Bikes or Death

Y'all probably know by now that I love Arkansas. Last Tuesday evening I was sitting on my couch getting caught up on all the instagram-goings-ons when I came across a post i had forgotten about. Natural State Rock & Republic was going to be hosting "Tales of the High Country" the very next evening, and I knew I had to be there. The next morning I woke up early, threw some stuff in the van and pointed it in a northeastern direction for a 9 hour drive. When I got there I found out that they wanted me to co-moderate the evenings events. I had a solid 30 minutes to prepare questions for a live audience, so of course I agreed. Just two weeks ago I leant Lilly my bullhorn at Truffle Shuffle and now she leant me her microphone. I'd like to thank her personally for not only moderating one helluva event, but for allowing me to share in the experience. For a full write up and picture gallery from the event please visit www.BikesorDeath.com                    _____________________________________ Episode Sponsors I always say that these episodes aren't possible without support and this trip was the perfect example. Being able to take 24 hours out of my "normal" life to drive to Arkansas and capture this event is only possible with support. As I creep closer to making this my full time job I hope to make more impromptu trips just like this! Ruby Coffee ~ Ruby is currently offering a promotion through the 28th that any orders over $150 will get a $10 gift certificate sent to the purchaser as thank you, and as always, you can use the code BIKESORDEATH during checkout for 15% off any one time purchase or 20% off the first shipment of any subscription.  Mulberry Gap ~ Visit Mulberry Gap during Winter Weekends and SAVE! Use codes: WINTER20 - Stay 2 night and save 20% WINTER30 - Stay 3 nights and save 30%  WINTER40 - Stay 4 night and save 40% Huge Thanks to our Newest Patrons: 🗝 Tom Surly 🗝 Aaron McLuckie 🗝 Andreas Löfgren 🗝 Maggie Ross 🗝 Brian Young 🗝 Melissa Patrick 🗝 Jacob Join them on Patreon to support your favorite podcast, plus get access to bonus content, the BoD After Party, Patron Perks, and more!

I'm honored to have this years Arkansas High Country Winner, and new Women's FKT holder, back on the podcast. Scotti Lechuga completed this years race in 5d, 10h, 49m, besting everyone in the field. For the uninitiated, the Arkansas High Country Race is quickly earning a reputation for being extremely challenging 1,000+ miles course that covers much of the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains. The conditions this year were challenging due thanks most to heavy rainfall that reached havoc on gear and racers. Scotti overcame a lot on her journey to this years big win. Visit www.bikesordeath.com for a full writeup with pictures! Here is a link to my episode with Scotti and Ernie Lechuga _________________________ EPISODE SPONSORS These episodes aren’t possible without support! Competitive Cyclist – Use this link with promo code BIKESORDEATH at checkout to receive 15% off your first full priced order and FREE Shipping on orders $50 or more. Some exclusions apply. Kuat – Did you know the new Piston Pro X is 99% metal, just like Bikes or Death! This thing is built to last and look good doing it. Visit your LBS or favorite online retailer to order yours now for Spring 2022 delivery. Huge Thanks to our Newest Patrons: 🗝 Charles Matthew Hudson 🗝 Kyle Day 🗝 Kevin Spicher 🗝 Jill Holloway  🗝 Ranse Stanley 🗝 Cynthia Sayre 🗝 Kyle Beckel 🗝 Noah Baker 🗝 David Beattie 🗝 Taryn Davis 🗝 Nate Branch Join them on Patreon to support your favorite podcast, plus get access to bonus content, the BoD After Party, Patron Perks, and more!

For day 3 of Monumental Loop Week, we are featuring a podcast with Cjell Mone', owner of Mone' Bikes based out of Silver City, NM. He is know for producing functional steel bikes with an aesthetic flare out of the back of a 1990 Wonderbread Truck (Seriously!). Words won't do his bikes justice, so let's take a look at a few of my favorites at www.bikesordeath.com. Link to Monumental Loop Fund that I mentioned on the podcast.   _______________________ EPISODE SPONSORS These episodes aren’t possible without support! Ruby Coffee - Cjell Mone' approved ✔️ Quad Lock - The best damn smartphone holder for bikes.  Patrick Farnsworth approved ✔️ Huge thanks to our newest Patrons:  🗝 Brendan Haren 🗝 Michael Reardon Buy me a cup of coffee or a glass of whiskey as a thank you for this episode on Patreon

This is the third episode to come out of a podcasting trip I made two Austin right after the East Texas Showdown. I interviewed five participants of the ETS in less than 20 hours just days after the their ride ended. It was really cool as a first time event director to get all of their feedback shortly after finishing the event. Alicia Danze and Hannah Simmons shared first place this year on the East Texas Showdown route with a time of 2d, 1h, 21m. It was both of their first times to do a bikepacking race, but they each came in with experiences that gave them confidence. Alicia is a well rounded cyclist with bikepacking experience and as a member of Ultra Violet Racing. Hannah is the shop manager at CycleEast in Austin and the first bike tour she did was the Texas 4000 that starts in Austin, TX and ends in Anchorage, AK, she did it almost on a whim because a friend asked. This time she was sucked into the ETS by her Austin friends, Alicia included, but I don't think she needed much convincing. Full writeup along with a nice gallery of images of Alicia and Hannah from the race on www.bikesordeath.com. EPISODE SPONSORS These episodes aren’t possible without support! Rockgiest is a cottage gear company specializing in custom framebags and welded, waterproof gear. If you're looking to improve your bikepacking set up, looking for tailored gear, or searching for waterproof solutions definitely reach out to them by visiting rockgeist.com. In addition to their custom work, they have a wide selection of universal gear that prioritizes stability for singletrack use. Most recently they have re-release their super stable Barjam harness, which now uses locally machined brackets made in Asheville, NC. Visit rockgeist.com or email bikepack@rockgeist.com to see all their gear options and to get in touch with their team. East Texas Showdown - April 1-3rd, save the dates! Huge thanks to our newest Patrons: 🖤 Hank Doupe 🖤 Dave Brink 🖤 Matt Heckler Buy me a cup of coffee or a glass of whiskey as a thank you for this episode on Patreon

From Wikipedia, "The lanterne rouge is the competitor in last place in a cycling race, the phrase comes from the French for "Red Lantern" and refers to the red lantern hung on the rear vehicle of a passenger railway train or the brake van of a freight train, which signalmen would look for in order to make sure none of the couplings had become disconnected." I first met Katy at a 6 hour MTB race in 2016, she had just moved to town and we became fast friends. Since then we've both found our way into the bikepacking world. She spent the past 5 months riding 5 routes and accumulating over 4,000 miles of bikepacking, most of it solo. Somewhere in there I announced the East Texas Showdown and I sent her a personal invitation to participate. She accepted and lined up with high expectations for the race. She had just spent 5 months riding some impressive routes and she was ready to put it to the test. Also seeing old friends again after months of solo riding was a big draw for her as well. Unfortunately, illness prevented her from achieving her race goals, which turned to more survival than bike race. That is what makes the Lantern Rouge a honored position, it usually indicates some that had a tough go of it, wanted to quit, but didn't. That is worth celebrating, as is ever single person who lined up and started regardless of how far they made it. Many people are too scared or are unable to even try something like that, so I applauded them all. Katy and I met up at a park in Austin, TX four days after the race. We had a enjoyable chat thanks to her open and honest approach to live and bikepacking. We wish her luck on her job hunt, and if an interviewer is seeing this....you should definitely hire her!! Here are the routes Katy did that we mentioned in the episode. Has anyone else ridden any of these? The comment section is open at www.bikesordeath.com.  C&O Canal Great Allegheny Passage Western wildlands Route Baldy Bruiser, CA SoCal Desert Ramble Episode Sponsors These episodes aren't possible without support! Mulberry Gap - Is a new advertising partner, but Kate Gates and Mulberry Gap are no stranger to the podcast. I conducted 5 podcast interviews at the 2019 Bikepacking Summit which was hosted at Mulberry Gap. Of the 5 guest, Kate was one of them. The story about how Mulberry Gap came to be and how it is run is quite fascinating. If you'd like to learn more about Mulberry Gap, check out my episode with Kate Gates and a write up I did on my experience riding and eating there! Huge thanks to our newest Patrons: 🖤 Drew Pittman 🖤 Mark Smith 🖤 Matt Christensen 🖤 Caleb Schnatz Buy me a cup of coffee or a glass of whiskey as a thank you for this episode on Patreon 🙏

The inaugural East Texas Showdown is over and now comes the podcasts! Hearing everyones stories after their rides as we shared food and beverages was a true pleasure, enjoyed by all. It was really probably the magic sauce that made this event special. I went to Austin shortly after the race and recorded 3 episodes with five guests and I look forward to sharing some of that post race fodder with you over the next couple of weeks. First up are Nick Ybarra (Showdown, 4th) and Kyle Gilbert (Showdown,. 6th). We meet the Wednesday after the race at Kyles workshop in Austin, which made for a cool backdrop to our conversation. On this episode Nick and Kyle share their experience on this years ETS. It was both of their first bikepacking race and they had different approaches. For example, Nick wore sandals for, had rim brakes, carried very minimal gear, and no aero bars. Whereas, Kyle was clipless, with disc brakes, ran aerobars, and lived on crackers. It created some good conversation about different approaches to the same course. It was a lot of fun for me to get to hear about my event from their perspectives. I had all kinds of concerns as a first time racer director with a brand new route, but as I heard more and more stories like these all of my concerns have been squashed. The feedback I got from participants was overwhelmingly positive. In fact, a Spring date was highly requested and we are happy to make that happen. Dates coming soon! These episodes aren't possible without support. Thanks to this weeks supporting partners: Kuat - They just released the Piston Pro X, and it's badass. How do you tell your bike you love it without saying I love you? Answer, you get it a Piston Pro X. NM Bikepacking Summit - Part Summit, Part Bikepacking Party, 100% good times, good rides, and good tacos. Schedule Oct. 21st at 6:00pm - 12-15 mile mellow gravel ride Oct. 22nd 8:20-11:00am & 2-5pm - Bikepacking Summit - @7:30pm I'll be interview Cjell Mone' with a live audience Oct. 23rd at 9:00am - Dangerbird Group Start Contact Matt Mason for more info! Huge thanks to our newest Patrons: 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤 Ryan Can Mikaela Koch Paul Lichtenauer Edward Anderson Nicholas Campbell Andy Simmons Anderson Simmons 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

In 2018 I took on the biggest challenge in my life, a 500 miles bikepacking race. To prepare mentally I relied heavily on the book "How Bad do You Want it" by Matt Fitzgerald. Matt is an endurance athlete himself and has made a career out of the study of endurance. He's written over 20 books on the subject, coaches endurance athletes, host his own podcast, and is a wealth of knowledge on the topic of endurance sports and athletes. In this episode we focus on his book "How Bad Do You Want It?: Mastering the Psychology of Mind over Muscle" which as you can infer by the title is all about how our mind is the thing that limits us, not our physical ability. Matt uses real examples of athletes overcoming obstacles to showcase the scientific principles outlined in his book. I found this format to way more digestible and relatable than a scholarly paper. Thankfully, Matt has done the hard work of reviewing and collecting the science and stories of athletes to add context to the science while making more relatable. Visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full write up and pictures of Matt. _____________________________ This weeks episode is brought to us by the Sponsors of The East Texas Showdown Rockgeist Wren Sports Kuat Ruby Coffee Quad Lock Avani Salon Big thanks also to our newest Patrons! 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤 Thomas Buttery Shane Hitz 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

On this episode my buddy Miles Arbour is back on the podcast for a 3rd time to talk about his newly published route called the Tree to Sea Loop. This was a great excuse to catch up with Miles and also hear all about this epic new 1,000 km route in British Columbia. Because Miles works at Bikepacking.com he is exposed to a lot of different facets of the industry. I took this opportunity to ask him about his favorite bikepacking tire, favorite cycling shorts “that don’t look like cycling shorts”, we also talk poop stories, and much more. We always have a great time, and I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did. You can find our episode link below and find all the route info over at Bikepacking.com _________________________________________ Episode Sponsors: tell them thanks for making this episode possible! Wren Sports: Cameron is back on to talk about the new bikepacking specific gravel fork they call the Beefcake. Use code “BOD10” for 10% off your entire order. Ruby Coffee: Jesse comes on to tell us about coffee from different regions and what makes them different. Use code “BIKESORDEATH” for 15% off your first order or 20% off your first order of a subscription. This week’s newest sustaining Patrons! Welcome to The After Party 🎉 David George – Newest patron Paul Drees – 2nd longest patron Miles Arbour – 3rd longest patron

This year the Tour Divide produced a new record, but one that wasn't set to be beaten. Quinn Brett just became the first person to complete the Tour Divide on an adaptive handcycle, with a time of 25 days. For her, this was more about showing the world what is possible for disabled people and that adventures like this are not only for the abled bodied. Thanks to advancements in bike technology, there are now some very capable options available, and Quinn's accomplishment are proof of what these machines are capable of.   For a full write up with lots of pretty pictures visit BikesorDeath.com. ___________________________________________________ Episode Sponsors: tell them thanks for making this episode possible! Quad Lock: Professional downhill mountain biker Ben Moore has been riding with QL for 4 years and he came on to share some of his experiences! This week’s newest sustaining Patrons! Welcome to The After Party 🎉 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤 Joshua Perry Dewitt Lunsford Kyle Koch Daniel Osman Ryan Mcnabb - Longest Patron 🥇  🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Join me in the van as I scout a re-reoute for this years East Texas Showdown and Slowdown. Back in July on a scouting mission we discovered a 25 mile section of road that looked good on the maps, but once we saw it in person it was an obvious "no go" for safety reasons. This left a huge hole in the route and with only 4 months until race day I had to scramble for a solution. On this episode I take you along the journey as I scout a new section for the route. Along the way I share what to expect for people who are signed up for the race or may want to ride it at some point in the future. I speak directly to folks from all over the world who have never been to Texas and have know idea what to expect, but I hope locals will find it helpful as well. As we go along I share updates on the progress and also important details about surface type, tire choice, weather, a little Texas history, and anything else that pops in my head. If you are considering creating a route/race like this you may also find this episode helpful as I share some of my reasons for this event, what I hope to accomplish, challenges I faced, and how I am tackling things that come up. At the end of this episode I answer questions that have come up since releasing the route and I also announce the live Facebook event for race participants. This will be part route overview and part Q&A to tie up any loose ends that may still be dangling in the wind. Showdown Route Stats 373 miles 15,800 ft. elevation 60% gravel The hardest part of this route may be the last 40 miles.  At mile 329 you will pass the Bullet Grill and you may be tempted to stop for a burger and beer, but will you get back out on route?? Time will tell!  If it helps, the last 20 miles on the route are some of my personal favorites.   Slowdown Route Stats 273 miles 11,300 ft. elevation 64% gravel There are 2 days left to register and 3 spots left. Episode Sponsors: tell them thanks for making this episode possible! Ruby Coffee: This week Jesse shares some tips on brewing the perfect cup of coffee at home. Use code “BIKESORDEATH” for 15% off your first order or 20% off your first order of a subscription  NM Bikepacking Summit: Matt Mason tells us a little about what they've got brewing for the first ever NM bikepacking summit on Oct. 22nd in Las Cruces, NM. Thanks to this week’s newest sustaining Patrons and welcome to The After Party 🎉 Jonas Schaller Christy & Ross Jones Jim Barrow Brandon Masters