When I first heard about the Colorado Trail Race I was in fact riding part of the route, albeit one of the least engaging stretches. It was just ten days after I’d raced my bike for 200mi in Kansas and I’d been overly optimistic about my recovery when I’d agreed to a four-day tour from my home in Boulder through the South Platte (and on through Summit County) with my partner Tony.
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The Radavist Cycling Guide to Flagstaff
With two members of our Radavist editorial team living in Arizona, it only made sense to head to Flagstaff for our second Cycling Guide. With its recent spike in new singletrack development, legendary dark skies, and accessible location as a hub for other Northern Arizona destinations, there’s a lot to talk about. Read on for a look at The City of Seven Wonders…
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Reflections on the Inaugural Arkansas Graveler: This Is Personal
A local Arkansan who grew up in Bentonville, Hilary Lex left home after high school, swearing never to return. Fate brought her back and she rewrote the narrative of her relationship with The Natural State because of one unexpected thing: The Inaugural Arkansas Graveler. The Arkansas Graveler is a mixed-surface, 6-day ride across the state of Arkansas that takes cyclists from the rolling hills and hollers of the Ozarks down into the Arkansas Delta river bottoms. Read on below for Hilary’s personal recap…
Reportage
Mega Mid South: Love Letters Written in Red Dirt
Erik Mathy returned to Stillwater, OK for the inaugural Mega Mid South, a 300-mile gravel cycling endurance event hosted by Bobby Wintle and the team who bring the Mid South to life every year. Below, feast your eyes on a gallery full of Erik’s unique handmade images and enjoy quotes and prose from the Oklahomans who welcome these events into their communities. Without further ado… this is the Mega Mid South.
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The Radavist Cycling Guide to Santa Fe
Santa Fe is where The Radavist calls home, so what better location to look at in our first Cycling Guide? Read on for a look at The City Different…
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Far from Alone: Meaghan Hackinen’s Invisible Support Network Behind her Solo Tour Divide Finish
This June, Meaghan Hackinen set out to compete in the Tour Divide. While no stranger to big rides or bikepacking races, this would be Meaghan’s longest off-pavement adventure yet. After a neck-and-neck race with Ana Jager, Meaghan reached Antelope Wells in a time of 15 days and 23 hours, winning the 2024 women’s division (7th overall) and setting the fastest women’s time for a grand depart.
In this reflective essay, Meaghan weaves together snapshots from her experience while exploring the invaluable but less visible support network that helped her achieve this Tour Divide win.
Supporting photographs from Seth DuBois, Alexandera Houchin, and Megan Dunn
Radar
Mega Mid South Route Episode 02
Here’s the second episode in the behind-the-scenes look at District Bicycles‘ MEGA Mid South ultra route. Starting and ending at the shop in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the 300-mile loop is comprised of the outer perimeter of every MID-SOUTH course over the past 13 years.
The route traverses the tribal land of the Quapaw, Kiowa, Osage, Kickapoo, Pawnee, Iowa and Wichita Nations. The first ever grand depart of the Mega Mid South will happen Wednesday, September 18th at 8am.
The event is free and 100% self-supported. Anyone who completes the Mega Mid South on this first grand depart will earn guaranteed entry into The Mid South 2025.
The Mid South 2025 happens March 13th-16th in Stillwater OK more details at www.midsouthgravel.com
Radar
Mega Mid South Route Episode 01
We shared the Mega Mid-South Route last week, and today, we get a behind-the-scenes look at District Bicycles‘ first recon trip on the new MEGA route. Starting and ending at the shop in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the 300-mile loop is comprised of the outer perimeter of every MID-SOUTH course over the past 13 years.
The route traverses the tribal land of the Quapaw, Kiowa, Osage, Kickapoo, Pawnee, Iowa and Wichita Nations. The first ever grand depart of the Mega Mid South will happen Wednesday, September 18th at 8am.
The event is free, and 100% self supported. Anyone who completes the Mega Mid South on this first grand depart will earn guaranteed entry into The Mid South 2025.
The Mid South 2025 happens March 13th-16th in Stillwater OK more details at www.midsouthgravel.com
Radar
Travis’s Summer 2024 Product Picks
Summer means something different for mountain bikers in Los Angeles. Unless you’re in Malibu, it’s not a great time of year to ride. Travis is not in Malibu, but he’s got ten products that will make the season more palatable.
Radar
Introducing the Mega Mid South 2024: A 300-Mile Ultra Race
The Mid South and District Bicycles are excited to announce the “Mega Mid South,” a new 300-mile ultra race in Central Oklahoma…
Reportage
Arcouzan Bikepacking Route in French Pyrénées: Embrace Everything
Arcouzan bikepacking route is a mixed-terrain, circular cycling track around the wild and remote (but surprisingly accessible) Ariège region of the French Pyrénées. Arcouzan is not a race; it’s about finding connection through adventure. It’s designed as an immersive journey for cyclists, a bike-packing route encouraging you to travel slowly and embrace everything you encounter.
Continue reading below as Claire Frecknall and Tomas Montes document their reconnaissance mission on the new Arcouzan bikepacking route…
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Readers’ Rides: Zeke’s Gemini World Randonneur
Originally featured in our MADE OZ coverage, Zeke’s stunning resto-mod Gemini World randonneur build was expanded upon by Alex Streich on the Off Course Bike Shop blog. We’ve got the whole write-up below for a very in-depth Readers’ Rides!
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Riding Every Street in the London Postal Code: First Impressions and a Ride with a Local Legend
Photographer Conor Courtney recently moved to the UK and decided to set off on an unusual two-wheeled adventure: riding every street in London. This led to him meeting up with explorer Jonathan France. Read on for Conor’s account of what unfolded next…
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Monē Bikes SB2 Review: Cruisin’ for a Bruisin’
We talk a lot about the early klunkers, from Breezers to Cunninghams and Ritcheys, but what about the very first MTBs in the US, the coaster cruisers, aka mountain cruisers? These esoteric singlespeeds rely on a coaster brake hub to control their speed and were adapted from old Schwinn newspaper bikes.
Read on as John reviews his coaster cruiser, a Monē Bikes Small Batch Straight Bar, aka the SB2. These bikes are the simplest mountain bike you can ride: No hand brakes. No gears. Big bars. Balloon tires. This is peak coaster cruiser!
Radar
Wearing the Pants: Dovetail Is Making Workwear for Women, By Women
Started in 2018 by the two owners of a landscaping business in Oregon, Dovetail Workwear aim to make “top-to-toe, all-season, all-reason” utility apparel for women. Hailey Moore stumbled upon their work pants at her local hardware store and wanted to know more. Read on for her review of Dovetail’s workwear and thoughts on how the brand’s mission is having an impact beyond the retail space.
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Yosemite of Southern Arizona: Two Nights Around the Chiricahua Mountains
The often overlooked Chiricahua Mountains sit between Las Cruces and Tucson. Sitting on the edges of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, the range boasts incredible scenery and biodiversity. Spencer and some buds spent a long weekend bike camping around the Chiricahua mountains. Check out one of the most underrated areas in Southern Arizona and all it has to offer.
Reportage
Emil Carr-Ross Reflects on Being the Only Woman to Finish the 2023 l’Esperit de Girona
In September, Emil Carr-Ross became the first and only woman to finish the second edition of L’Esperit de Girona, the solo unsupported off-road bikepacking event held in Catalonia. She completed the 800km course in 8 days, 11 hours and 10 minutes. It was her first-ever ultra-distance event. Carr-Ross is also one of the few trans athletes competing in ultra-cycling. A few weeks after the event, she talked through her ride, her work for a refugee cycling charity in Glasgow, and her experiences as a trans athlete in the sport. Read all about it below…
Reportage
The New Familiar: Riding Wisconsin’s Tour de Nicolet Bikepacking Route
Located in a commonly overlooked corner of the United States, there is a place with endless gravel roads and trails. A region with an incredibly vast network that can be linked through systems of singletrack and small towns. A land where flowing water and spring-fed lakes abound. With prime fall color promised, Josh Uhl makes a last-minute trip to the lesser-known ATB paradise that is Wisconsin to ride the 360-mile Tour de Nicolet and reconnect with the place he found bikes to begin with…