Category Archives: Adventure

E206 – Timo & Esther: Sweet Bike Love

Adventure, Advocacy, Bicycling, Family, Fun, Touring, Train Travel, Transit, Travel, Urban Design

Timo & Esther are established figures in the Portland transportation scene, Timo as a part of the Portland Bureau of Transportation & Esther with Sunday Parkways events. We chat with them about how bicycling (and breakfast on the bridges) brought them together, a bikey wedding near Silverton, OR, and a honeymoon of epic proportions through southern Europe!

Our musings on bicycle music brought these mentions: Johnnyrandom’s “Bespoken”, Frank Zappa, and the Portland Bike Ensemble.

Also: Brock rides through the hardest rain of the season to check out the new Type 5 MAX light rail cars, meets listener John from Maine; Aaron is off drugs! He also ran into Greg and Sarah from Funemployment Radio, who are having a live show soon.  TheTransportastic studio opener was awesome.

Mail

Zoe is our newest monthly supporter (and also a vocal one)! Thanks!  JohnnyK has been donating forever and somehow never made it into the credits.  Bad, Brock, bad!

Chris in Chico climbs 3000 feet at Lassen Volcanic National Park’s car free day, and Meets His Maker at a Paul Components event.

Dan Christensen shares this photo of a man’s recumbent bike/inflatable raft combo! The website Adventures of Greg is a human powered adventure log!

Dan in MN looks pretty damn awesome in his raingear.

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)

Thanks to our sustaining donors for supporting our show costs:
Logan Smith, JohnnyK, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby, Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi, Justin Martin, Eric Iverson, Cameron Lien,Richard Wezensky, Tim Mooney, Orange & Purple, Glenn Kubish, Matt Kelly, Jim Goodin, Eric Weisz, Doug CohenMiller, Todd Parker, Scott McAllister Morgan, Chris Gonzalez, Dan Gebhart, Zoe Campagna

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E200 – LIVE at Velo Cult: Dan Christensen, Sarah Gilbert, & Joe Kurmaskie

Adventure, Advocacy, Bicycling, Communication, Transit

It’s been nearly 4 years of podcasting, and we celebrate with a live storytelling event at Velo Cult Bike Shop & Tavern in Portland OR’s Hollywood district.  Dan Christensen tells his account of how bicycling allows the world to touch him, Sarah Gilbert lays down the beat poetry of empowerment, and Joe Kurmaskie shares several stories of life on two wheels.  We also enjoyed a ride with the Grilled By Bike crew before the show!

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E199b – Nathan Jones: TransAm Bike Race

Adventure, Bicycling, Downsizing, Mountain Biking, Racing, Touring, Travel

Nathan Jones is the owner of Ride Yr Bike who conceived of and organized the Trans Am Bike Race, an unsupported ride from coast to coast in which the participants competed simply for the bragging rights!  He tells us about the trip.

Also: e200 live show!, retort to close pass contest, explosions on the waterfront

Headlines

BikePortland: Community bike rally against violence in North Portland

Mail

Dan from MN recommends the Surly Disc Trucker.

Drew clarifies the strength of Brock’s bike repair.

Logan recommends the Soma Saga for its kickstand plate.

Phil in AK corrects Aaron on the origins of the band X.

David joins PDX cargo bike gang!

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)

Thanks to our sustaining donors for supporting our show costs:
Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby, Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi, Justin Martin, Eric Iverson, Cameron Lien, Richard Wezensky

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E197 – Going Somewhere: Brian Benson (with Leah Benson)

Adventure, Bicycling, Kitchen, Touring, Travel

Brian Benson, author of Going Somewhere, joins us to talk about his new memoir centered around a formative bicycle journey.  He is joined by his twin Leah Benson ofGladys Bikes! (not an actual twin)  We also speak about our shame foods (shh).

Also: Brock decries his cynicism on returning to Portland in a full rebuttal of his previous statements, complains about the weather, and Aaron & Dan recap the Midnight Mystery Ride debacle.

Headlines

Alaska Dispatch News: Bike-work-bike routine allows couple to take long cycling treks(thanks Phil!)

TriMet: announcing the plans for eFare implementation in 2017

TriMet: line 15 rider turns 102, gets special birthday bus (thanks Logan!)

Mail

Jim shares the Tigr lock:

http://tigrlock.com

Logan writes “MKS makes a quick release pedal that you may want to check out since you do so much bike boxing and pedal removal. The pedals are called MKS EZY removable pedals. I have them on my brompton and they are great! They could also be a potential theft deterrent while touring (the thief can’t ride away! 😉

Russ Roca devised a great method for carrying large amounts of water by bike while touring. He wrote a review for the tool he used on his Epicurean Cyclist blog: I’ve used this method and it works great!

Roger in Santa Cruz:

“Brock, I was enjoying my coffee this morning and peacefully listening to the podcast with Ellee, then when you gave pedal removal instructions using a blow torch and if that failed pulling out a pistol and blasting the pedal to tarnation ….. Well, a mouthful of coffee erupted and soiled a lot of clothes.  Dammit!”

I told him brown is in right now.  This marked two spittakes in two weeks!

Tim Mooney:

“As I’m getting prepared to box my bike up I ran into a severely stuck pedal – I had some work done on the drivetrain and they torqued them on super tight. Luckily I have a pedal wrench with more leverage handy, so it wasn’t a problem at home. On the road… quite another matter! I usually go with the tried and true liberal greasing of the threads and put just the slightest tightening force on the pedals… that way I can get the pedals on and off with a .99 cent crescent wrench I bring with.”

Eric Iverson: spotted in Estacada: not chain grease.

Fine Print

email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)
Thanks to our sustaining donors for supporting our show costs:

Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby, Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi, Justin Martin, Eric Iverson, Cameron Lien

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E195 – Lenny Anderson, Touring Old-School

Adventure, Bicycling, Camping, Touring, Train Travel, Travel

This week we bring back Lenny “the King of Swan Island” Anderson to tell us about the days of touring without all the fancy gadgets you kids have these days. The last time we talked with Lenny we didn’t get any of his touring stories. He did not disappoint this time. Though he was not impressed with my choice of beverage.

Also with us is Dan B. who comes to PDX from the Volunteer State. Dan will be starting a podcast on sustainability with his siblings and wanted to see what podcasting Sprocket-style looks like. God luck, Dan!

Oh, and Lisa’s back! She has a funny anecdote that turns into a plug for Gladys Bikes (take a drink Krista S).

Mail

We got physical mail From Mark in San Jose!

We got Voicemail from Tim Mooney

From Johnny K. in FLA: Aaron got the intro, hates clowns, and wants breakfast on his commute.

From Josh G. in Concordia: “I vote Eilif your most entertaining guest.. up there with brewmaster Dan Hynes from Thunder Island Brewing.”

From Brock Dittus in Lake Chelan
“I only took two pictures! But here they are. No. 2 is a sunRISE, even though it looks like a sunset.”

News

From Gizmodo via listener Mark V: How Cyclists on Fixies Saved California’s Mail Service 120 Years Ago

From TriMet: an open house on the new Orange Line

find us on the Internet at thesprocketpodcast.com
send feedback about the program and suggestions for topics or guests –
write us via email, the address is thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
call and leave us a message or text to 503.847.9774
connect with us on Twitter @SprocketPodcast
thanks to Ryan J Lane for providing our theme music
thanks to Hurtbird for our headlines sounder

and thanks to our sustaining donors Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby , Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi,  Justin Martin and Eric Iverson

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E194 – Swing-Bike Eric and His Amazing Friends

Adventure, Alternate Fuels, Bicycling, Technology, Touring

A little out-of-the-norm for us cycle-tourists, but who doesn’t like some good old-fashioned fun on bikes? Today we talk about bike fun on bikes that are fun in their own right. Swing Bikes!!! Eric Iverson, now dubbed Swingbike Eric, come to the studio with his friends J.P. and Eilif who introduced me to maybe one of the most fun ways to get from Point A to Point B. It’s possible you’ve already met these three. Anyone remember that whole Grill By Bike ride?!? That was these guys, and you know we’re gonna be talking about that.

mail (btw, this is the 4th time I’ve edited and posted this section)

from Johnny K. in FLA:
secret agent 004 was in the movie Thunderball
Marvin K Mooney will you please go now!

from Wayne Norman
“I can assure you that Roger and I are not ‘together’”

Eric W: hand positions and loss of feeling in fingers

Roger ups his donation amount after being entertained.

News
From Gearjunkie.com, via Brock: (“Holy shit. I’m drunk in eastern wa and this looks amazing”): Triple-Fat-Tire Trike Is Beast Made For Sand And Snow

From Bike Portland: Bike Tourism & Transit

find us on the Internet at thesprocketpodcast.com
send feedback about the program and suggestions for topics or guests –
write us via email, the address is thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
call and leave us a message or text to 503.847.9774
connect with us on Twitter @SprocketPodcast
thanks to Ryan J Lane for providing our theme music
thanks to Hurtbird for our headlines sounder

and thanks to our sustaining donors Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby , Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi,  Justin Martin and Eric Iverson

still working out my page format issues (really!)

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E191 – Maria Schur’s Oregon Outback plus Brock and Adele week 1&2

Adventure, Bicycling, Camping, Doin' It, Kitchen, Touring

Maria Schur’s second time on the show was a little difficult to get recorded. Scheduling conflicts abounded! Still, I felt it important, nay necessary, to get her story out for all of you to hear. In the end, I took a ride to her place with iPod in hand and sat down with her for some morning coffee and conversation.

Pictures!! I keep forgetting to take pictures. These next few shows may be semi-photoless. For what it’s worth, I did get a shot of the steed she rode through the Outback.

I dub this episode an “aaron light” episode. No mail or headlines this week, but I did insert Brock and Adele’s week 1 and 2 dispatches from the road.

as always:

find us on the Internet at thesprocketpodcast.com
send feedback about the program and suggestions for topics or guests –
write us via email, the address is thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
call and leave us a message or text to 503.847.9774
connect with us on Twitter @SprocketPodcast
thanks to Ryan J Lane for providing our theme music
thanks to Hurtbird for our headlines sounder

and thanks to our sustaining donors Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby & Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi,  Justin Martin and Terra Firma

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E190 – 2 of 3 Kell(e)ys, Hugh from SoCal, Where’s Coconut Bill?

Adventure, Bicycling, Fun, Touring

Three guests in one show?!? Holy shit, I’m turning into a real host! This week we bring 2 of the three Kell(e)ys that have admitted to liking this podcast. They brought their friend Hugh from LA. Say what you want about those “California a-holes” (inside joke for you, Purple and Orange), but they get kudos from me for biking in a car-centric city-state. Here’s what Neighbor Kelley had to say about it:

“We sure know how to BS.  Thanks again for having us on! Here is Hugh’s blog: velocipedemusings. And since Flickr is what brought us together as friends and where we share our life and often bikey & hikey adventures, here are our Flickr pages: socalpedalpusher (Hugh)’s Flickr, Coffee Kelley’s Flickr, Neighbor Kelly’s Flickr

Also, those cookies….nom, nom, nom…so good :-)”
Yes, I’m not beneath bribing a potential with cookies.
But enough about the podcast. Listen for yourself.

Headlines:

From Tory Orzeck: Orp Lights are now available.

From everywhere: Amtrak Viewliner II baggage car field testing

also: Amtrak to welcome bicycling passengers by end of the year

From Bike Portland: aggro pickup truck driver gets served

Mail:

From: David N. in Portland, OR:
“Climber Kyle Dempster made a film called “The Road from Karakol” that is outstanding. His idea was to bike across Kazakstan from climbing spot to climbing spot, not the big destinations, just what he cod find on his biking route. He bought a $100 mountain bike off Craigslist and a used trailer and off he went. It’s pretty inspiring.”

From: Richard W. of suberbanassault.org suggests we use Patreon!

From: Anna O. from OK:
“As a bike shop employee this place sounds like paradise minus the cat hair.  Anyway the important thing to say here is you guys rock super hard and after I finish Bike School at UBI (Ashland campus) in August I’ll come bug ya.”

From brother Dan on the facebooks:
“Sulu was in Yellow also, Disney probably has a shadow profile in their databases containing fingerprints, several facial pictures, lists of who your family and friends are, email adresses, etc…”

From Johnny K in FLA:
“Okay I see now if you sit in the co-host chair you’re just lost.  Is that chair some kind of brain sucking device or what…”

Sara D in SF sends us a book and donation:
“I listen to the podcast while the girl I nanny takes a nap and I do laundry. I look forward to it every week. after seeing this book at her house I thought of you guys. Enjoy!”

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E188 – Brock & Aaron talk Camping & Climbing

Adventure, Bicycling, Camping, Cargo, Communication, Downsizing, Transit, Travel

It’s a little cohost chat about life right before the big summer trip for Brock, and Aaron’s trip to the magic kingdom.  We discuss an upgrade/sidegrade to the stove that caused us so much trouble last spring, then encourage listeners to write in for stickers and join Brock’s summer postcard club.  Then Brock delves deep into Aaron’s feelings about taking the reigns for the summer on the show, asks about what happens in Portland this summer.  We get off on a tangent about moon landing conspiracy theories, but then get back on the wagon with a short mention of Bikes In Space, Volume II!  Weariness and “the bonk” get a mention, along with Pedalpalooza stories, then Brock opines on the simplicity of the camping experience.  Then we wrap up the show with a discussion of climbing into trees to get away from it all.

Mail
Chris in Arcata has his own coffee club going!

Thanks for listening!

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)

Thanks to our sustaining donors for supporting our show costs:
Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby, Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi, & Justin Martin

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E187 – Ellee Thalheimer: Cycling Sojourner Washington Edition

Adventure, Bicycling, Touring

“This is my first post.” Aaron takes a shot at editing and engineering while Brock steps back before his and Adele’s big sumer trip. We couldn’t have asked for a better guest to have for this experience. Ellee Thalheimer joins us for the third time with stories of traveling through our neighbor state to the north. Listen up! Then go buy her new book Cycling Sojourner: Washington.

Also: It’s Pedalpalooza!! Yes, we talk about the WNBR. Aaron went on some non-nude rides because he’s got body-shame. Also stay tuned for an exciting conclusion to Aaron’s Cedar Pointe anecdote. Or don’t. Listen to Brock instead as he guests on our friend, Tim Mooney’s, new podcast: The Pedalshift Project.

Mail: Brock’s friend, Ben sends us a cool vid of a tree house with a bike elevator. Bike-evator?

Shelagh “YEG-babe” Kubish sends us a graphic that just about sums up our ethos.

Fine Print
email us: thesprocketpodcast@gmail.com
twitter: @SprocketPodcast
phone in or SMS: 503-847-9774
web: http://thesprocketpodcast.com
music: Ryan J. Lane (intro & outro) & Hurtbird (headlines)

Thanks to our sustaining donors for supporting our show costs:
Logan Smith, Shadowfoot, Kathrina Mellemgaard, Roger Grigsby, Wayne Norman, Doug Robertson, Ethan Georgi, & Justin Martin

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS | More