For three years, I rode the same route, year-round. I knew every crack and pothole. I knew where ice would form in the shady spots. I navigated the most dangerous intersections on my route with aplomb, never startled by bad driver behavior. I collected just the right bags and lights and coats and locks, over a long process of trial and error. I cemented my reputation as a bike commuter among colleagues. And then I […]

By this time in the summer everyone should be acclimated to their bikes and putting in their big miles. Ragbrai is going on next door in Iowa. The Mountain Bike events of the Cornhusker State Games were this past weekend, with the rest of the cycling events this coming weekend. The Rapha 100 km is in the books. Or you’re ready to to do some epic bike packing and touring, but you’re really getting annoyed […]

Someone asked me the other day what I missed most about China and today I thought of one more thing. The tree covered B-roads. As much as I love riding the gravel roads around Lincoln, when I’m broiling under the hot sun I think of how nice it was to be in the shade of the poplars around Zhoukou. They know how to squeeze out a use for every bit of land there and many […]

I hear some of you like to ride in the heat. More power to you. For the rest of us, we have to find ways to deal with it and to stay safe. The early morning ride is probably the best option, followed by the night ride, but commuters don’t have the luxury of picking the best time of day to ride. If you’re arriving to work drenched in sweat you already know to pack […]

We are back in Lincoln now and the jet lag wasn’t too bad. I’ve managed to get out and ride every day since in our fair city. After the past ten months in Zhoukou the traffic here is predictably calmer, faster, and often clueless to the presence of non-motorized vehicles. It may take me a little while to fully re-adapt to traffic regulations after the free-for-all that is bicycling in China. I was a Peace […]

Torrence Strong, League of American Bicyclists board member, is touring the country in connection with the National Bike Challenge and working towards bicycle friendliness everywhere. Meet him tonight Method Cycles & Craft House at 6pm.

Tomorrow we begin the lengthy trip back to Lincoln with an overnight in Beijing. When I read the accounts of the bike touring and bike packing trips so many others do I feel like maybe we should be riding back. After the 37 hour day we have in store we may wish we were. This past week I’ve been reflecting on the roads and how they’re dealing with the burgeoning traffic problem here. As China […]

There is a possibility that one week from today we could be on our way back to the U.S. Final exams have been given and now I’m in the middle of a sea of grading, leaving limited time for riding. I hope I have time later this week for another trip to Luyi, and maybe Xiaoyaozhen. So what is it I’ll most remember about riding around Zhoukou this past year? Maybe how much difference ten […]

I have a complicated relationship with the maps on my phones. Between my two phones I have four maps, each good for particular things at different times. Some things no map will say, like that the last few miles of both county roads 020 and 004 have fallen into disrepair and are practically impassable after a rain. Usually I don’t have map problems, but yesterday I seemed to find some kind of interruption of space […]

Have you ever had a route you thought you knew, only to find that you had no idea what was only a few blocks away? That happened to me last week. I thought I had finally established a good Nuwa temple loop to the north when I saw some spires poking above the rooftops of Xihua. I went closer to investigate, and was shocked to discover a whole previously unknown temple complex only a few […]