Where to go for my first ride after recovering from my accident? I had commuted around Tokyo to make sure it was fine to ride my bike again, but now I wanted to experience the Japanese mountains once more before returning to Seattle. And so I headed to one of my favorite routes:...
A few weeks ago, we went back to Houshi Onsen, my favorite hot springs in Japan. Our friends had taken Hahn and me to this wonderful place on a ride that coincided with a typhoon hitting Japan. Despite the torrential rain and lashing wind, we took the old road that travelers used centuries ago,...
I recall a great ride up Tsuchiyu Touge (touge = pass) almost two years ago. This ride was organized for Hahn and me by friends from Tokyo. It was a day of much climbing, even more laughter, and the beginnings of wonderful friendships. We were in Fukushima to visit the Nitto factory, and the...
As the cycling season draws to a close, I look back over the memorable rides that I have enjoyed. This year, my cycling season ended abruptly when a car turned in front of me in Taiwan, but my recovery has been helped by remembering many wonderful rides. It's been a...
I like climbing, and I like mountain scenery, so I was excited when the Audax-Club Parisien introduced the Super Randonnée 600 (SR 600) brevets a few years ago. The idea behind the SR 600 is simple: Over 600 km (373 miles), the route climbs at least 10,000 m (33,000 ft). The...
It's a common dilemma: You want to ride to the start of a cyclocross race. The distance of 20 miles to the start doesn't bother you – it's a good warm-up. But your expensive cross tubulars will wear off their knobs quickly if you ride them on pavement. What to do? One solution is equip...
I thoroughly enjoyed the second Bicycle Quarterly Un-Meeting this last weekend. It had seemed hard to top the first-ever Un-Meeting, but this year's gathering was at least as much fun! About 50 cyclists met in Cle Elum for a day of riding and good company. The group split up into a...
The first Paris-Brest-Paris was held as a "utilitarian race" in 1891. Organized by the newspaper Le Petit Journal, the big event started with a parade through Paris, before the cyclists raced off toward France's westernmost city, some 600 km distant. On our way to the pre-ride bike check of this year's...
It's less than two weeks to the Bicycle Quarterly Un-Meeting! What's unique about our approach is that it is not a set, planned route, but rather the opportunity to loosely gather and explore together. Last year's meeting near Mount Rainier was great fun (above). This year we will meet on September 26...
After Paris-Brest-Paris, Theo and I rode out to Chanteloup in the hills west of Paris. After every PBP, we organize a small reunion of the Pilotes de René Herse (the riders on René Herse's team) at the restaurant where the team used to eat after the Poly de Chanteloup hillclimb...
A recent ride with BQ contributor Mark was typical: a combination of great training, enjoying the sights, and stimulating conversation. Except that this one was enriched by encountering some of my favorite cars... (I am aware of the many problems cars have caused, and I rarely drive them, but I...
This year's Bicycle Quarterly Un-Meeting will take place on September 26 and 27 in Cle Elum, Washington. The Un-Meeting is a simple idea for an event: Anybody is invited, but there is no organization, there are no entry fees, and no services are provided. The logistics of how to get...
Last weekend was the Seattle International Randonneurs 600 km brevet. Not only was it the last brevet we needed to qualify for Paris-Brest-Paris, but we also had a goal of finishing it in R60 time: 24 hours for 600 km. Some readers my be surprised by our secrets on how to...
Oceans have a strong appeal to me. The Raid Pyrénéen, a ride across the length of the Pyrenees mountains, starts at the Atlantic and ends at the Mediterranean. On our Flèche 24-hour rides, we often visit the Pacific Ocean. Oceans seem like limitless expanses of water from the shore, yet...
"Let the guys on the 650B bikes to the front. They'll be ahead anyhow." That is what the organizer of the Seattle International Randonneurs 400 km brevet said before the start. We laughed – what a change from just a few years ago when many people thought I was exceptionally...
Every year, the first brevet of the season sort of sneaks up on me. I've been enjoying bucolic rides with friends for the first months of the year, and then suddenly, the 200 km brevet is just a few days away. It serves as a reminder that if I want...
If you have been around randonneurs lately, you'll have noticed a buzz around three letters: PBP. The 1200 km ride from Paris to Brest and back has captured the imagination of cyclists for more than a century. It's now organized every four years, and 2015 is one of those years! Randonneurs...
The cycling season has started again. In January and February, the Bicycle Quarterly team begins our training with long rides at an unhurried pace. This year, we've been lucky with the weather, with many clear days and gorgeous views. Mount Rainier (above)... ... the Cascade Mountains in the morning mist... ...and Mount...
With Paris-Brest-Paris coming up this year, a lot of people seem to be interested in randonneuring. They like the idea of a challenging, but not competitive, sport. Many brevets feature great scenery, a sense of adventure, and wonderful people to ride with. Unfortunately, all too often, I hear people say:...
As the year draws to a close, it's fun to look back at the memorable rides we've done this year. And what a year it's been! We've discovered new roads and enjoyed new adventures. The links in the text lead to posts that talk more about individual rides. The year started...
Most of the 5800 copies of Bicycle Quarterly are mailed directly from the printer. Then there are those that go to local newsstands and bike shops, and I greatly enjoy delivering them by bike. It's also an excuse for a ride on my Urban Bike. A box of magazines neatly...
Last week, I asked readers to guess how much mud my cyclocross bike carried at the end of a recent race. The answers varied greatly. Clearly, the mud around the bottom bracket and chainstays looked impressive, and some thought it added 30% to the weight of the bike. (Many readers...
For me, cyclocross is the most fun you can on a bike in less than an hour! I don't care much for racing any longer, but 'cross is a different matter. Cyclocross is a very technical sport, where leg power counts only for so much. Coordination is equally important. You choreograph...
I just returned from Japan. It was an amazing trip of talking to Compass Bicycles' suppliers and of collecting material for future Bicycle Quarterly stories. Most of all, it was great fun! We got to see old friends and acquaintances, and meet new ones. We rode bikes with some, went to...
In Seattle, we don't really have four seasons. The joke that we get a three months of summer and nine months of rain is fairly true. Yet I love to see the landscape change with the seasons and the weather. That is why I love the Cascade Mountains. Every time I...
When my friend David Cooper from Chicago mentioned that he was a judge at the Pacific Northwest Concours d'Elégance in Tacoma, I decided to go and join him there. I don't get to see him often, and attending the Concours as his guest was sure to be fun. The ride...
Last weekend was the first Bicycle Quarterly "Un-Meeting". The weather was perfect, about 25-30 riders showed up, and everybody had a great time. Aside from handing out copies of route maps, I was just another participant and was able to enjoy the meeting like everybody else. It was nice to...
Next weekend is the Bicycle Quarterly "Un-Meeting" in Packwood. The weather forecast is great: warm during the days, a little cooler at night, sunshine. Bring sunscreen! Here are a few things about logistics: Getting there: Here is a route from the nearest train station in Centralia to Packwood. For those riding from...
On Labor Day, I scouted the routes and logistics for the Bicycle Quarterly "Un-Meeting", which will be held (or "un-held") in Packwood on September 13. After a few rainy days, it was a gorgeous sunny morning. I started in Greenwater with the climb up Cayuse Pass. It was sunny and...
During a recent vacation on the Big Island of Hawaii, I did plenty of snorkeling and hiking, with a bit of surfing, and otherwise enjoyed the beaches. Most of all, the mountainous island presented the opportunity to explore a new landscape by bike. The Big Island is famous for the...
When I am riding alone, cycling is meditation for me. When riding with friends, it's uninterrupted time together. In both cases, it means leaving my busy life behind. No random e-mails, no urgent phone calls, nobody coming to my desk. Usually no one even knows exactly where I am (although...
It all started innocently enough. We had taken the Shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto in the morning. We were to spend our last weekend in Japan with our hosts, Ikuo and Harumi Tsuchiya of I's Bicycles, in Miyama. Wouldn't it be splendid to ride to Miyama, rather than...
My most memorable rides involved a challenge and friends. We came up with a goal, and then we set out, as a group of friends, to achieve that goal. What followed was a magical ride full of seamless teamwork. We traded pulls. We enjoyed the scenery together. We took turns...
I had the opportunity to ride a favorite classic René Herse again recently. This is the bike that started the current trend of 650B bikes in North America. It's the bike that made us re-evaluate front-end geometries and wide tires. It's truly the ancestor of the bikes we ride today,...
Last week, I rode the 363-mile Oregon Outback gravel race/ride. It was an epic adventure, and a full report will come soon, in Bicycle Quarterly 49. I saw the winner Ira Ryan's tire tracks much of the time, and he even wrote "Go Jan!" in the gravel during one particularly hard...
On September 13-14, 2014, we'll have a Bicycle Quarterly Meeting in Packwood, WA. The "meeting" is a simple get-together of cyclotourists, not an organized event. Perhaps "un-meeting" would be a better term: there is no registration, no fee, and no services will be provided. Several of us will be there...
"Le tandem avale la distance," I thought as we pedaled through the night. "The tandem gobbles up the distance." Long stretches of road seemed to be compressed during the weekend's ride, with the difference being that I wasn't riding my own bike, but rather sitting on the back of a...
Bicycle Quarterly contributor Hahn Rossman and I just returned from a three-week trip to Japan. It was an incredible visit, filled with excitement, wonder and learning. We rode through wonderful landscapes. We met randonneurs, cyclotourists, bicycle collectors and many others. We rekindled old friendships and forged new ones. We visited amazing sites...
Looking at the photo above from our Flèche last year, it's easy to think: "Two of these riders are much safer than the other two." The reflective vests really stand out in the flash of the camera. Being hit from behind is one of the primal fears of cyclists. It's the...
It's already mid-March: two-and-a-half months into our riding season. And what a season it's been so far, full of memorable rides enjoyed with wonderful friends. Here are just a few snapshots from those long, early-season miles. These are the rides when our legs feel sluggish, the weather is cold, and yet...
I usually ride with friends; it's great fun to enjoy a wonderful ride together, to share the experience, and to pass the time with animated conversations. I'm disappointed when the scheduling does not work out, when no one can make it, or when things come up at the last moment....
Quite a few readers have asked about winter clothing. Most of all, they seem surprised that I don't wear windbreakers or shells unless it is very cold (way below freezing) or raining very hard. What is the best clothing for winter riding? I think the answer depends. If you ride at...
The new cycling season is starting! As we start to train again, we are making plans for another great season of riding. Not all these plans will come to fruition, but it's nice to dream, plan and look forward to some amazing rides. The Flèche is a highlight every year, and...
Gravel Grinding is the new "hot" trend in cycling. I am very excited about this. Riding on gravel is great fun. A friend who was a telemark skier had a T-shirt: "Free your heel and your mind will follow." I get a similar feeling when my tires are freed to...
With the new year, our cycling season has started again. Training now will get us in shape for the wonderful rides we've planned for later this year. During my "winter rest," I have ridden very little for eight weeks. So these first "long, slow" rides always are hard for me. It...
I am a careful rider, who looks ahead and tries to foresee possible danger spots in order to avoid them. After decades of riding in traffic, I feel competent and confident. I was surprised that cycling advocates characterize riders like me, who are comfortable of riding on most roads, as...
As 2013 draws to a close, we are looking back over the successes and joys of the year, especially the exceptional rides we have enjoyed. For me, last year had me realize what is truly meaningful for me in a ride: fun, adventure, connection with my friends, and being present...
Trying to make it up a slippery hill takes total commitment! This autumn, I have started to race cyclocross again, after retiring from it 16 years ago. I've always liked 'cross, so when my son decided to try the sport, I dusted off my skills hopping on and off the bike....
There are many reasons to plan a ride. In this case, we had been looking at a map. We found Forest Road 6700, and it looked like it could provide an alternative to Highway 2 on the way from Stevens Pass to Leavenworth (below). It had everything we could ask for:...
Returning to Paris after a trip to the Alps, there was an e-mail from Olivier Csuka of Cycles Alex Singer: "We will meet tomorrow at 7 at the boutique. About 150 km." I set my alarm, and in the first light of day, I rode up the Champs Elysées as everything...
When the terrain is incredibly steep or rough, cyclists tend to crank it out instead of walking. Walking might feel like defeat – they didn't "clear" that section. I have gotten to the point where I don't mind walking when the terrain gets too steep or too rough. Walking stretches my...
Randonneuring is often described as a "big tent" with many valid approaches, and there are many reasons why people ride their bikes long distances. For me, it comes down to three elements: Beauty: I live in the city, but I love riding through the countryside. Randonneuring enables me to take vacations...
Vélocio, the founder of the cyclotouring movement in France, has long been a great inspiration. Imagine my delight when I suddenly found myself on one of the maître's favorite roads! I was riding from the Rhône valley, where I had visited La Tante (the Aunt) just weeks before her 100th birthday,...
In a previous post, I described our reconnaissance trip for the Super Randonnée 600. We climbed a dirt road pass at night, and even though we had to hike through some snow still left from the winter, it was passable. We were anxious to know the conditions over the key...
Ever since the Super Randonnée 600 program was announced by RUSA, we've been planning our ride. Even though RUSA cancelled the program, we've been pursuing the idea. (You still can ride the SR600 by applying directly to the ACP in Paris.) Last week, we headed out to see whether the snow...
The rides I enjoy most are outings with good friends. We've ridden together so much that we anticipate each other's moves and thoughts. There is no need to call out obstacles. When one of us moves a bit to one side, the other automatically follows, knowing that there is a...
When I criticized the new "cycle path" in Seattle – the first of many that the city plans to install – I was surprised by the number of comments (more than 260), but even more about how much agreement there is between the proponents and opponents of separating cars and...
Last weekend we rode our 2013 Flèche Northwest. The Flèche is a wonderful event that combines much of what I love about randonneuring. You select your own route, you ride as a team, and you finish together.Traditionally, the Flèche has had the goal to ride the maximum distance possible, but...
Many cyclists wonder whether it is safer to ride to the very right of the road – out of the way of cars – or whether they should "take the lane" and ride in the middle of the lane as if they were a car. The answer is: "It depends...
In the René Herse book, there is a chapter on the 1945 Omnium des Cyclotouristes, which included a climb up the steep cobblestone hill at Neauphle-le-Château near Paris. One of the riders, Paulette Porthault, remembered: "Oh it was awful, all those rough cobblestones which dated from the time of Louis...
May is "Bike to Work" month. With winter weather behind for most of us, it's a great time to use your bicycle more often for transportation, and not just for recreation. Cycling for transportation for most of us means that we often ride in the city. Safety is a major...
Ryan's e-mail started like this: "I haven't cycled on the San Juan lslands for a long time. We could leave in the afternoon and catch the 10:30 PM ferry to Orcas. We would be on top of Mt Constitution by 2 AM..." I didn't need to read any further. Instead, I...
Tim Bird brings Yorkshire, England to Bicycle Quarterly readers. We eagerly anticipate every one of his adventures and stories. (The latest is in the Spring 2013 Bicycle Quarterly.) He immerses us in the landscape, culture and history of the countryside. I especially like the unique and storied names of towns,...
Mark and I were signed up to do the Seattle Randonneur's 300 km brevet last weekend. A few days before the brevet, it snowed, and the organizers decided to play it safe and cancel the brevet. Mark and I decided to ride 300 km on our own instead. If it...
The Flèche 24-hour team ride is my favorite highlight of the early randonneuring season. We are planning our ride right now – the event usually is held around Easter. We hope to inspire you to join a Flèche team as well, so you can experience the best randonneuring has to...
Every spring as we head into the mountains again, it is exciting to rediscover the roads that we love. For us, each season has its particular routes. The spring rides are some of our favorites. Heading to Index for the first time of the year is special. Index lies deep in...
A number of readers have asked about randonneuring, and more specifically, about which bike is best to get started with randonneuring. I recommend that you gradually ease into long-distance riding, and also incrementally change your equipment as you gain more experience. You don't need to buy brand-new equipment before riding your...
Now that it's February, our winter rest is over. We are starting to build a base for the coming cycling season. That means riding long distances at a moderate pace. It can be hard to get going for these rides. It's easy to be discouraged by the cold weather. On the...
When it is cold and foggy outside, or when the rain is beating down, I like to remember the days when it was summer. My mind wanders back to long hours of daylight, sunshine and memorable rides. Like last October, when Mark and I headed out for an all-day exploration...
Winter is a great time for riding around here. We have a choice between cold and sunny or not-so-cold and rainy. If we can, we pick the sunshine, but that often means starting our rides when it is just below freezing. Riding into a glorious winter morning is wonderful, if you...
I recently visited relatives in Germany. They live in Bavaria, in the corner between Austria and the Czech Republic. The "Bavarian Forest" is a lovely landscape that offers some of the best cycling anywhere. The name is deceptive, because most of the "forest" is an agricultural landscape that has been...
May the new year bring you wonderful rides and great memories!
When you read this blog or Bicycle Quarterly, you may get the impression that all our rides go over hundreds of miles and involve at least three mountain passes on gravel roads. The reality is more prosaic. We live in a major urban region, and we have busy lives. A...
Last week, I posted about the first day of the Seattle International Randonneurs' Autumn 600 km brevet. When we sent our riders on their way in the early hours of this second morning of the ride, we did not know whether we'd see them again further down the road. Ryan and...
During our pre-riding the planned route for the Seattle International Randonneur's "Mountain 600 km Brevet," we realized that it was not safe to have riders descend from Windy Ridge at night. It would be too cold, and the road has big cracks that already had seen a rider crash during...
Yesterday morning, I got a phone call: "Gerolf here. I am in Seattle." Gerolf Meyer is one of the people behind the German magazine Fahrstil, for which I had written a few articles in the past. I knew that he was riding from Vancouver to San Francisco, and that he...
Last weekend, Ryan and I were fortunate to have glorious weather for our "pre-ride" of the Seattle International Randonneurs 600 km brevet. A "pre-ride" is done by the ride organizers to make sure the route sheet is accurate, instead of relying solely on sometimes-erroneous maps and outdated satellite images: Bridge...
With the recent news that Lance Armstrong effectively admitted to a large-scale doping conspiracy on his teams, the issue of doping has been front and center in the cycling news. A few readers have asked whether doping exists in randonneuring, too. The short answer is yes – doping exists in any...
The cycling community sometimes seems to fall into two camps: Those who emulate racing, and those who don't care the least about racing and performance. On the one side, you have the mainstream bike industry, who finds it easy to sell racing bikes to anybody interested in cycling for recreation and...
Last weekend, I rode in the Cascade 1200 km brevet. I like to make one ride every year my "main goal" - a ride for which I train, around which I plan my calendar, a ride that is special. This year, my "big" ride was the Cascade 1200 km brevet. The...
Last weekend was the 24-hour Flèche team ride, traditionally held over the Easter weekend. The Flèche was officially inaugurated in 1947, but its origins go back further to the early 20th century when Vélocio gathered cyclotourists every spring in Provence. Riders from all over France rode their bikes to these events. ...
Looking at the weather forecast, we realized that the next day had the potential to be a perfect day. So we meet at seven. When the sun rises above Lake Washington, we already are well on our way out of town. After a stop in Snohomish at a café to warm...
I have ridden fixed-gears and single-speed bicycles, but for my own bikes, I am wedded to multiple gears. Part of that is my love of the mountains with their long and steep climbs, and part of it is my allegiance to Vélocio, who fought tooth and nail to get multi-speed...
For me, November and most of December are rest months. That doesn't mean that I don't ride my bike – I use my bike for daily transportation – but there isn't any "training" on the bike. I worked on my core fitness and went for a few short runs. Taking...
As Seattle is receiving a dusting of snow, I received this wonderful photo of Bicycle Quarterly contributor Tim Bird ("A Day Out in the Yorkshire Dales").
Before packing up the Calfee "Adventure," I took it out for one last ride. It was a lovely afternoon that did not feel like November. The sun was out, and it was 59 degrees F. The weather forecast was for rain in the lowlands and snow in the mountains. It...
The German poet Friedrich Schiller wrote his Ode to Joy in 1785, celebrating friendship and the unity of humanity. Ludwing van Beethoven set the poem to music and incorporated it into his 9th Symphony as the final movement. I was thinking about the Ode as we rode a favorite road a...
Two years after the inaugural event, the second Oregon Manifest design contest and technical trials were held last weekend. The Oregon Manifest crew put together a great event, even better than the first. I see the Oregon Manifest as an idea lab for the future of the urban bike. Builders,...
Going to France was a treat. Not just because PBP is a wonderful adventure, but because I love visiting France. In August, Paris loses some of its urban edge, and people become more relaxed. The city organizes Paris Plages ("Beach in Paris"): For a few weeks, sand is trucked in,...
It is unfortunate that most "road" and even "hybrid" bikes are sold with tires so narrow that you cannot cross streetcar tracks at an oblique angle without risking a fall. The Seattle Times reported recently about a rail line that crosses a city street not far from my house. "A bicyclist...
Whether you are training for Paris-Brest-Paris (PBP), a century ride or racing, speed is an essential part of a successful event. Simply put, the faster you are able to ride, the more enjoyable (and less stressful) your ride will be. You'll be able to work with pacelines, rather than just...
By March, the distance/base mile phase of my training is over. It is time to work on speed and strength. This transition is hard every year. I remember how strong I felt when I climbed mountain passes last September, and now it seems like even small hills have grown into...
In the previous parts of this series, we have looked at how our preferences in bicycles changed over time. More important is how the changes in our bikes have expanded the way we ride. Indeed, we replaced saddlebags with handlebar bags, triple cranks with compact doubles, mid-trail geometries with low-trail ones,...
My favorite bookseller called and said: "We just sold the last copy of The Competition Bicycle, and there is a gaping hole next to your other book in our window display." There was only one thing to do: I loaded up the trusty Urban Bike with a 40-lb box of books...
Autumn is a melancholy time. In Seattle, it is hardly noticeable, as the weather gradually gets cooler and wetter. But in the Cascade Mountains, the change of the seasons is swift and spectacular: Cold nights turn deciduous foliage into bright hues of yellow for a brief time, before snow falls...
Recently, I had to return a Bicycle Quarterly test bike to MAP Cycles in Portland. I really don't like boxing up bikes, and very much prefer to ride them. Boxing a bike takes half a day, riding to Portland about a day, so it was an easy choice to ride...
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