Periodically our resident sage pulls some questions out of the TCI punch bowl and drops the science. We suggest you take notes and try to abstain from drinking hot liquids while you read.
- Do you think you’ll ever own an eBike?
Maybe, provided I ever have an extra $12,000 laying around? See, here’s the thing… While the mountain version bugs the shit out of me now, I also realize they serve a practical purpose for folks who say, might have physical limitations, or for another example, want to ride a bunch of trail building tools into the woods. I rarely take a hard line against anything save for fascism, or the church forcing me to live my life by their standards. Anyway, eventually I won’t have the hard-as-nails, Adonis-like physique I do currently, and might appreciate a little additional support in my trips into the wilderness, but until that time comes, I will still sit quietly on the sidelines, shaking my fist at the clouds.
- When you’re shopping for a new bike, what are the main things you consider?
Personally I haven’t shopped for a new bike in many, many years, but I suppose the primary thing would be what style of riding you’re planning on doing with it, and now that there’s all manner of e-bikes, comfort, trikes, unicycles, hybrid, pennyfarthings, road, TT, aero-road, fixed, track, tracklocross, cyclocross, monstercross, gravel, tandem, all-road, beach cruiser, recumbent, folding, minivelo, cargo, BMX, XC, trail, fat, freeride, enduro, downhill, all-mountain, down-country, and down-cross (is that a thing, or did I just invent a new style of riding?), there are one billion styles of bikes one could pick. In short, communication is key. Talk to shops, talk to your friends, talk to people at the coffee shop, or the trail head. Eventually, armed with all of that information you’ll either end up with the bike that perfectly fits your needs, or you’ll just get overwhelmed, throw your hands up, and give up on riding altogether.
- Do you think social media is good or bad for cycling? Like, does it create a false picture of riding bikes that we’ll never measure up to? Or is it a good way for people to connect over a thing they love? I guess what I’m asking is, is it net negative or net positive? Or should I just put my stupid phone down and ride my bike?
As with any aspect of social media, bike social media tends to be a carefully curated selection of snaps from people’s best lives. It’s not just with riding that the bar is set too high, it’s the trails, adventures, new gear, or whatever else people want to celebrate/brag about/promote/use as influence. In general, it’s a gigantic mirror that reflects back to us the most brilliantly polished turds in human history. Everything’s on fire, but everything’s great. As a country we are goose stepping towards what has a high potential in a very dark future indeed, but hey, at least some random anonymito had a wiz-banger of a gender reveal party, or is having yet another tropical vacation, or is living their most enviable hashtag van life.
On the other side of that tarnished coin, is immediate access for folks to find like-minded communities (for better or worse, but in this case, we’ll focus on the ‘better’ part.) We can make friends and learn about super cool things we might otherwise would have never know about. While we’re packing our lunch in preparation for another day in the salt mines, we can find inspiration in watching other people’s journeys and perhaps dream about a day when we too might stumble across a beautiful swimming hole with rocks to jump off of a ‘plenty, while our handsome partners graze on well-curated charcuterie boards. As with anything, it’s vital we take things in small bites, and keep what we’re seeing in perspective. If it compels you to go out and create your own best life, then fine. If it’s a distraction and leaves you feeling as if you’re being left behind, maybe drop the old pocket computer in the drawer for a spell and focus on creating something epic that’s all for you.
Shimano North America sponsored this content, because they know a good thing when they see it.
“In general, it’s a gigantic mirror that reflects back to us the most brilliantly polished turds in human history.” This. This is the Stevil stuff that makes me spit a little coffee out.