There Once Was a Town Whose Air Was Riddled With the Scent of Hops

Available at: Akinz.com

On the first day of touring my true-love said to me: have a fat tire and let's cheers sustainability! (that's New Belgium Brewery, yo!)

On the second day of touring my true-love said to me: O'Dells is our favorite, so let's get mercenaries and cheers craft breweries!

On the third day of touring my true-love said to me: This basket looks so empty let's free-growler-fill-Tuesday at Black Bottle Brewery, O'Dells is still our favorite, and dangit - just plowed this cruiser into Snowbank Brewery!!!

On days four through twelve we ditched the rhyming and leisurely meandered among Coopersmith's, Ram Brewing, Equinox, Patero's Creek, Fort Collins Brewery, Funkwerks, Zwei Brewing, 1933, Rally King Brewing, Horse & Dragon Brewing Company, and (because we needed the mileage for tour gnar points) Anheuser-Busch.

We probably missed one or two: rumor has it we're up to 19 breweries these days with more breaking ground!

New Belgium Brewery: Always a Selection, Always Well-stocked!

So, what makes the brewery experience in Fort Collins unique?

Apollo: from Fan Photo Friday - Puppy Edition!

• Breweries have formed, for the most part, a "district" that is easily biked or walked allowing residents and tourists to explore the breweries safely at their leisure. Why drink at a bar when you can go straight to the source... with excellent patios, games, and occasionally music? Oh: many are dog-friendly, too!
• New Belgium and O'Dells were the micro breweries who started it all here in the Fort in 1989. You may have heard of Fat Tire Ale? Easy Street? 
• ...And just down the street situated along Interstate 25 is Anheuser-Busch: home of Budweiser, American Eagle Distribution, and... Clydesdales? Rumor has it they're bringing the ponies home to stay!

Budweiser: Yes, They're Here in Fort Collins as Well!

• Why it's worth mentioning: A-B is one of the economic drivers in Fort Collins and while it's easy to turn up a nose at their global domination through lager beer (they have a fourth step called "disillusion" roughly meaning "adding water")... They're arguably the most family-friendly brewery with access to the famous Clydesdale stables, a polished and professional tour, beer school, charming boutique, and freshly re-finished biergarten.
• Cooper-tition: a strange mix of cooperation and competition. Cooperation in the form of collaborative blends and temporarily borrowed brew-masters. Competition to see who gains favor with flavor in fermented bliss.
• Any outdoor festival featuring a beer garden is sure to be three things: 1. locally brewed, 2. award-winning, and 3. an easy, drinkable favorite.

And yea, there's probably a tour or two for that *wink*

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Tour, anyone?! (O'Dells)

Biking, Working, and Enjoyment!

Fort Collins is always mentioned in conjunction with beer, bikes, mountains, sunshine, and choice places for all-around living. What you may find surprising is the prevalence of flat streets and bikeways throughout which makes a gentle pedal rather attractive. Even when the snow flies, biking can be attractive because the bikeways are plowed long before the priority streets are clear for cars.

Bike to work day, which is a national event in May as part of national Bike Month, has become a semi-annual unofficial holiday for Fort Collins. Here bike to work day is during the third week of June, and the third week of December. Both attract all varieties of creativity in organizing breakfast stations, mechanical support, and end-of-day after-parties at participating breweries. Normally about 6% of commuters choose to bike: during summer bike to work day, the percentage of bike commuters easily doubles. Here are a few quick, fun facts about Fort Collins’ bike to work day:

• Over 100 businesses host a bike-to-work-day event
• Around 50 breakfast stations scattered across town
• 4,500+ participants on bikes
• 25% of those participants already commute by bike on a regular basis
• 60% are age 30 or older

This year Leisurely Pedaling participated as an “unofficial mild-mechanical support station” at Colorado State University’s Powerhouse campus as part of their on-going effort to encourage and support bike commuting among their community of students, professors, and professional researchers. Even in our unofficial capacity, we helped a steady stream of riders improve their commute!

• inflate tires
• adjust brakes and shifting
• advise maintenance fixes like new tires, brake pads, and replaced chains
• clean and lube chains
• compare route notes

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Raining... Pouring... and Pedaling?

Even in cloud cover: a verdant glow everywhere!

It doesn’t always rain in Northern Colorado. In fact, we average more than 300 days of sunshine every year. Usually, we have amber waves of grain, dusty prairies, and all shades of purple Rocky Mountains.

This spring, however, has taught us all to value our “waterproofs” and provided an opportunity to dust off the thesaurus in describing the lush verdant glow of our surroundings. Starting around tax day (how fitting!) the clouds descended and the rain set in. Our May flowers received a light dusting of snow. The sun shone on Colorado State University’s spring commencement ceremonies, and finally we emerged from this low-pressure stupor for Father’s day.

May 'showers' and flowers!

Riding in the rain is an acquired art: there is no right answer, is rarely universal one day to the next. However, the relaxed explorer would do well to keep the following in mind:

The 'original' waterproof case!

*When in doubt, put your technology in a sealed plastic bag

*Carrying your waterproofs (jackets, pants, etc…) doesn’t ensure you won’t need them

*Bike lights aren’t just for dawn, dusk, and midnight adventures!

*You can keep your feet dry pedaling in up to five inches of gently flowing water

*Bike parking is exceptionally easy… When raining!

To date: no-one has melted due to rain.

Double-take: Does That Say "Leisurely"?!

Saturday, April 25 was a day for firsts here Colorado. Primal and Audi of Denver sponsored the inaugural Colorado Bike Expo at the Denver Convention Center, and Leisurely Pedaling participated in its first ever vendor event! Let's pause and reflect on this a moment...

Denver Convention Center

...Paws and reflect a moment? (You see what I did there?) The bike expo hosts were very attentive and accommodating throughout the experience: here's to hoping all vendor events flow as amazingly well! I'd certainly come back to this one again just for the variety of bike-related industries mingling throughout the day.

Loading up!

Pre-planning *smile*

Our immediate neighbors were Bolle Eyewear and Presserly. Across the aisle were Denver's version of The Fort Collins Bike Co-Op, a cyclist injury law firm, and ladies performance yoga-wear. Directly behind the booth was an adult big-wheels racetrack. Our wonderful neighbors, proximity to the racetrack, and proximity to the beer garden made for an exciting day filled with fun interactions and the most wonderful conversations!

Learn-to-ride area (separate from the big-wheels race course)

I found it refreshing the amount of interest in Leisurely Pedaling and what we're all about, and the many friendly individuals who also acknowledged the odd presence of "leisure" throughout most bike events these days. A walk-through of the expo is a prime example of how many ways a cyclist can do it stronger/faster/farther/longer/weekend-warrior through nutrition, equipment, varied physical activity, and coaching. For the record, I love a quality cycling challenge as much as the next enthusiast (my cycling history is a few stories for another day), but when do cyclist remember to really smile and enjoy the journey? Aside from the two yoga-focused booths and paint studio, Leisurely Pedaling was the "relaxed cyclist stronghold" on the floor. This fact alone contributed to the majority of smiles, chuckles, and friendly banter throughout the day.

Thank you all who stopped by the Leisurely Pedaling booth and brought additional smiles and inspiration to my day! My helper (Marcia, also my beautiful mother) and I thoroughly enjoyed sharing the opportunity to site-see Fort Collins and Northern Colorado by bicycle with us this summer and beyond!

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

ready for business!

brochures, T-shirts, and stickers!

Eye-catching, yes?

Our trusty Vintage Cruiser, Courtesy of the Fort Collins Bike Library!

Just a trailer full of T-shirts!

Owner Jes Mallory ready for fun!

We are go for launch - no joke!

Springtime is the embodiment of all that is brand new and full of hope, just like Leisurely Pedaling! March has been quite the whirlwind, and while not the standard interpretation of "in like a lion, out like a lamb" referring to weather... the month proved to be just that. In like a lion: the deafening roar of business deals, purchasing, marketing, coordinating, re-researching, and (finally!) launching. Out like a lamb: now we're in that deceptive lull where the news slowly spreads, grows, and expands into something beautiful, perhaps like the cherry blossoms in Washington DC, or the daffodils hesitantly rising to colorful life in my neighbor's yard.

The Leisurely Pedaling launch party was a smashing success! The Laboratory provided endless plates of delicious delights and a brilliant atmosphere. Akinz, The Parlour, Kilwins, and Old Town Spice Shop donated truly generous and wonderful door prizes embodying the character of Fort Collins. One lucky winner even walked away with a two day tour for two of Fort Collins! In all, about 80 people joined in the festivities, and several friends were showing their support with Leisurely Pedaling T-shirts in Idaho, Washington, and California.

Here are a few fun pictures from the event!

Dust off the bikes- it's time to cruise!

Spring is near and my heart sings for joy when I embark on leisurely, exploratory rides around town! The last couple months have been devoted to minor maintenance and repairs on the bikes so that all are ready to roll once the snow melts. Oh no, I'm not talking about the Leisurely Pedaling Cruisers for which we have the Fort Collins Bike Library to thank for their rental agreement and partnership (more on that in a future story)...

Yes, I have several bikes and each serves a unique purpose. The mountain bike got a deep cleaning: sure it'll be coated in trail dust within seconds of its first ride, but a well-oiled machine is much more forgiving as I work out my "early season jitters!" The daily commuter has freshly patched tubes, a new squeak-horn, and a "lick and a promise" for replacing the chain and casettes this summer. the Super-fast road bike is currently having its 10,000 mile once-over maintenance visit: the drive train is getting replaced, wheels trued, and brake pads refinished. I can't wait to head outside the city and enjoy the nearby mountain roads with this baby! Finally, the cruiser is getting a bath and some new accessories. I love the cruiser for its around town handy nature. It's too heavy to steal (easily), and it has a very functional basket to carry all my whimsical necessities. Most importantly, this city is flat enough to get away with the single gear on a casual cruise.

From our home base in Old Town North, I can effortlessly cruise over to O'Dells, Funkwerks, and New Belgium breweries... or venture to Blue Sky Winery... or drop in for some spirits at Copper Muse Distillery. Venturing a bit farther and landing in Old Town affords a variety of shopping, people watching, and live music. I can't think of a more relaxing shopping experience!
Most importantly, adventures like these don't require your standard hard-core cycling apparel (which I have plenty and use frequently). A close second in important details: 2-hour parking only applies to cars! *smile* Bike parking is aplenty, and Fort Collins keeps adding innovative and convenient options for avid bike commuters. In fact... I'll finish these thoughts later: the sun is shining and my cruiser is calling!

Business Development: What Are The Frustrations?

Most of the frustrations come at the inception of a good business idea: the closer you get to launch, the more frustrations evolve into welcome challenges. What frustrated me the most - and still makes me pause and smile - is all the "hurry up - wait, stop... now... go?" that goes into the first fragment of a business dream. Perhaps the "problem" (if it can be labeled as such) lies in the very broad concept of wanting to make a career of riding my bike. Let's go back to the end of 2012 and the start of 2013...
Naturally, everyone had an opinion and found the most obscure, far-off, and otherwise super-niche cycling activity to encourage as "profitable" before nudging me on my way. Because, you know, I really want to starve myself following the Amazon to a hidden temple of "bike enlightenment" and return destined for Olympic gold while simultaneously pied-pipering all the women of the free world into all forms of bike love. Sponsored by Patagonia, Nike, Orbea, Nabisco, and Smith...
Each incredible suggestion did help narrow my business and life focus onto two fundamental elements. The first is biking for the love of wind in my hair and sun-kissed smiles. The second is being a resource in sharing with other people something that I find interesting and important. This posed an occasional frustration in being effectively understood and re-explained among my peers. A very love-based frustration, to be sure, but equally frustrating overall.
Fort Collins is a gem of down-to-Earth residents, progressive students, outdoor adventure, and beer snobbery. It is completely endearing and the model for Main Street in Disneyland. New business ideas bloom daily involving all these charming qualities. My first inclination was combining brewery tours and bike tours since A) way too many delicious breweries to explore and experience in town, and B) no real tours of any kind going on in Fort Collins. Keep in mind this was January 2013. *ahem*

You know the absolute test of patience? Here I was voluntarily taking a business development class full of senior-level undergrads in the spirit of "four months of three credit hours per week crunching the creative young minds for the most pristine developed business plan ever." While I kept busy leading those young geniuses into a bike-conscious mindset, another hops-and-cycling focused enthusiast launched a bike brewery tour business.

Yep. Obviously, we did a great deal of research on that business... but the real research? That would be managing the three undergrads with which I had partnered, and pulling ends together for a viable business plan as the semester drew to a close. Patience and guided creativity are one thing, and the tools to master and manage are quite another.

The biggest take-away from frustrations experienced with taking this route to planning the business and watching my "initial dream" launch under someone else's expertise and leadership? Well, the best business plan for combining local lore, bicycles, and tourism research was yet to come and it would be frustratingly, gloriously mine to launch: and Leisurely Pedaling is by far the best take-away from all this!