Anywhere but Here
If you'd asked me where I wanted to go the day I bought my touring bike, I couldn't have told you. There was no particular destination in mind, no tour route I wanted to follow, no endpoint calling…
Latest Posts Page One Op-Ed Classified Talk
Hey, Just Ride 99: Is Big Better?
As the calendar marched toward Y2K and worries about the impact of technology gone wild on the world ran rampant, I didn’t hesitate for amoment in deciding to leave behind my cushy position as editor…
storage space?
Storage Space - we all need more. Or, want more. I guess if we were runners, that might be another drawer in the bedroom, but alas we are cyclists. Most of us probably have more than one bike and…
Revolting 151
The Apocalypse Being Nigh. This episode has been gifted to humanity one day before the US election that may or may not (but probably will) trigger the end of our species in the universe. We can…
Beyond And Back
My Gripe With Gravel
There was a point out there when I said to myself, I’m done with travel events. You’ve been there. You train for months, take time off work, spend more than you planned on…
Video – How to Be a Good Cyclist
Everyone loves to be lectured by a dude with a posh British accent. It's like the platonic ideal of the condescending parent scolding us for being rambunctious and/or high-spirited.
Still, we…
TCI Friday – Your Mind, Blown
Even before I rode it, just walking into the living room in the dawn light and seeing a BMX bike on its kickstand in front of the tree, caused synapses to fire in new and exciting ways. Riding it was…
The Physics of It
You are presumably at least some manner of rider of a bicycle if you are reading this publication. I’ve been riding bikes since the Triassic. All kinds. The flowered banana seat kind my dad pushed me…
Paceline Podcast 390
This week John talks about how some shops are beginning to reimagine what it means to be a bike shop. Patrick takes on the question of why, after so many years devoted to road cycling, he began…
Featured Posts
Becoming a Cyclist on the Long Way Home
“When did you get into cycling?” he asked invitingly. Our wheels hummed side-by-side down a quiet rural highway somewhere in Wyoming, or maybe Nebraska, it’s all a blur. I privately hazarded a guess…
A Good Time at the Dollar Store
I spent several hours in Rustee's yard, organizing myself in the rain-slush-snow. My bike bags kept filling up with water as I packed them, but I happened to have a large sea sponge in my car so I…
Part of Me
In my dream, I am riding up a steep climb on a narrow road winding through redwoods, barely able to turn the pedals. But I am happy. Ecstatic, really. I am one with my bike, an extension of my body,…
To Love and To Be In Love
I met my wife on a college camping trip in 1992. At the time I was trying not to spend the week drunk beyond imagining. A friend convinced me to sign up for this trip through the community service…
The Perfect Sport
I've been a cyclist most of my life. My life has had little permanence, but cycling has been as close to permanent as anything short of my parents. Cycling didn't care whether I rode or not. My bike…
The Corrections
A thing I wrote years ago for Red Kite Prayer. On this Monday, when the words are all stuck in between my ears, refusing to find my fingertips, a good reminder that sometimes it helps not to try so…
Crash Therapy
The conversation in my head while riding Bull Run last weekend in Moab was dawdling along something like this:
“I’m riding really well. I’m gonna try to keep it mellow, keep from redlining cause…
When You’re Uncool – Riding with Dave Stoller
Back in 2016 my friend James Winchester pulled together an incredible number of people, bikes and machines to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the venerated Italian brand, Masi Bicycles.
…
Letter from the Editors
The year draws to a close, whether you're done with it or not, and 2022 was a banger here at TCI. Readership grew throughout the year. More people listened to our podcasts. Subscribers subscribed,…
Lost and Unlost
Crater Lake. The Pacific Coast. Ghost towns in the high desert. That's cool, but how can you do so much riding alone? This question is usually followed by a comment like "you're so courageous." I…
The Shirt Off Our Backs
A call to commerce! An unsubtle, attention-grabbing shout out! A gentle plea.
Please witness the arrival of the brand-new, classic Cycling Independent Black t-shirt.
Excuse the smirking…
Letter from the Editors
Hello Friends,
Just us, checking in from the end of summer (unless you're one of our Southern Hemisphere readers...we're not trying to be hemispherist). It's been a busy time for us, Padraig…
Just To Be Alive
I know just enough about bikes to know that I don’t know s#*$ about bikes. And I don’t want the mountain of what I don’t know to ruin the truth of what I do know … which is I f*@%ing love riding my…
The Crash Samaritan
You open your eyes. Disoriented. Dirty. Details are sharp but nonsensical. Rising dust motes. The tick of a spinning freewheel. A dog with five white whiskers licking your arm. The smell of Christmas…
Introducing: Turtle Wandering
A good friend of The Cycling Independent, Elizabeth Allen, has started a really cool new video blog series called Turtle Wandering. In her words, this is the description:
"It is about the places…
Non-Zero Sum Gains
I have been thinking an awful lot about cycling advocacy and inclusivity. Why? Because I dream of a self-powered world, one in which all citizens glide around on a bicycle of one flavor or another. I…
A Year of Shelter
Life changed for us 365 days ago. I doubt you or anyone you know would have been willing to guess that the life you're living today was even possible. It was certainly beyond my imagination, and I…
What We Would Say
I chose cycling because it's the only time I don't feel like a klutz.I chose cycling because I can't stick the ball. I chose cycling because I didn't play team sports.I chose cycling because I'm…
We Need You On This Ride
I'll be brief.
Our primary goal at The Cycling Independent is to make our community as large as we possibly can. Part of that is selfish. We can't continue without your financial support. This is…
Editor’s Letter
Right now you might be thinking, "How can this be an editor’s letter on a website? This isn't print!"
You very well should be thinking that because we’re not just another website with a bunch of…
The Cycling Independent: a Statement of Purpose
The way I tell the story, my love of magazines, of periodic publications, began with Skateboarder Magazine in 1977, but that’s not actually true. I can trace it further back, to Boy’s…
New York to Provincetown
A single day can feel like a month. Processing a massive ride afterwards is like staring at a Salvador Dali painting. Fifty miles dissolves into a blurry moment.
Turns out it took a village…
Revolting 151
The Apocalypse Being Nigh. This episode has been gifted to humanity one day before the US election that may or may not (but probably will) trigger the end of our species in the universe. We can…
Page One
Hey, Just Ride 99: Is Big Better?
As the calendar marched toward Y2K and worries about the impact of technology gone wild on the world ran rampant, I didn’t hesitate for amoment in deciding to leave behind my cushy position as editor…
storage space?
Storage Space - we all need more. Or, want more. I guess if we were runners, that might be another drawer in the bedroom, but alas we are cyclists. Most of us probably have more than one bike and…
Video – How to Be a Good Cyclist
Everyone loves to be lectured by a dude with a posh British accent. It's like the platonic ideal of the condescending parent scolding us for being rambunctious and/or high-spirited.
Still, we…
Op-Ed
Anywhere but Here
If you'd asked me where I wanted to go the day I bought my touring bike, I couldn't have told you. There was no particular destination in mind, no tour route I wanted to follow, no endpoint calling…
Beyond And Back
My Gripe With Gravel
There was a point out there when I said to myself, I’m done with travel events. You’ve been there. You train for months, take time off work, spend more than you planned on…
TCI Friday – Your Mind, Blown
Even before I rode it, just walking into the living room in the dawn light and seeing a BMX bike on its kickstand in front of the tree, caused synapses to fire in new and exciting ways. Riding it was…
Classified
A Useful Review – The New Clif Blok Energy Chews
Clif has unveiled some new flavors of Clif Blok energy chews. Up until now, the chews have all featured sweet flavors, save for the salted watermelon and margarita flavors, which carried a more…
A Useful Review – The ODI Dread Lock and Elite Pro Lock-On Grips
Normally, a person would review one product at a time, but I'm doing two today, because I'm real clever and also because I do what I like. Day-to-day I ride two different grips, and these are the…
A Useful Review – The NightRider Lumina 1000 Boost Headlight
With summer’s long days beginning to wane, and the local shops exhorting everyone to bring lights on their evening rides now, it's high time you sorted back through whatever drawer you threw yours…
Talk
Revolting 151
The Apocalypse Being Nigh. This episode has been gifted to humanity one day before the US election that may or may not (but probably will) trigger the end of our species in the universe. We can…
Paceline Podcast 390
This week John talks about how some shops are beginning to reimagine what it means to be a bike shop. Patrick takes on the question of why, after so many years devoted to road cycling, he began…
Revolting 150
Arbitrary Moments of Joy, Pain and Indifference. There are milestones in life that you see coming, and there are others that just happen to you. There are some you think are going to move your…