On The Fly

Summer mornings, especially on a holiday weekend, have a special magic. The air is cool, the world quiet, and the day full of possibilities. This July 4th weekend, Lori and I decided to capture a bit of that magic by beating the holiday traffic with an early morning bicycle ride. We went through our usual pre-flight checklist: Stretched out the morning stiffness. Filled the water bottles. Strapped on the helmets. Checked the tires. Three tires passed inspection. The fourth had apparently declared independence. The rear tire on my e-bike was flatter than a Kansas highway. “Well, it looks like we’re not riding today,” Lori said, with the calm acceptance of someone who had already mentally promoted coffee to the day’s main event. “Why not?” I replied. “I’ll ride my old bike.” She gave me that look —the one that safely translates as, "Are you sure about this? " “Absolutely,” I said. “Why not?” I dragged the bike stand out and surveyed my options. One glance at the aggressive gear...

Team BMC 2015 Team BMC wins the team time  trial  by one second in  stage  nine! Ah, Summer! Bicycling magic is renewed for millions when the voices of Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen, and Bob Roll, grace the television airwaves broadcasting  Le Tour de France   (Le Tour). When you dare to believe you’re an accomplished bicyclist, just tune into the NBC SN Sports broadcast of Le Tour in July ( July 4 - July 26, 2015) . Very quickly humility sets in. To date, the riders in that race have ridden nine grueling stages, with an average distance of 186 kilometers, that’s 115 miles per day. This year is the 102 nd  Anniversary - 21 stages, a total distance of 3,360 kilometers, and only two,  yes two , rest days - of this classic race that tours the French countryside with the finale in Paris on the Champs-Elysées. Dare I say it – Le Tour can inspire even casual riders, take your bicycles from the back shed, dust them off, inflate their tires...

Fignon & LeMond Ah, Summer! Bicycling magic is renewed for millions when the voices of Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen, and Bob Roll, grace the television airwaves broadcasting Le Tour de France (Le Tour). When you dare to believe you’re an accomplished bicyclist, just tune into the NBCSN Sports broadcast of Le Tour in July. Very quickly humility sets in. To date, the riders in that race have ridden nine grueling stages, with an average distance of 186 kilometers, that’s 115 miles per day. This year is the 102 nd  Anniversary - 21 stages, a total distance of 3,360 kilometers, and only two, yes two , rest days - of this classic race that tours the French countryside with the finale in Paris on the Champs-Elysées. Dare I say it – Le Tour can inspire even casual riders, take your bicycles from the back shed, dust them off, inflate their tires, and hit the streets. It’s amusing to see people pretend, they are in Le Tour, competing for the coveted yellow jersey. It’s summer...