Where Has All the Lycra Gone?

"Fort Collins is surprisingly lacking in lycra..."

This quote - regardless of accuracy - makes me giggle every time I read it. You see, it's phrases like this that end up in my "business journal of inspiration and accomplishment" (yea, that's a real thing).

It's true, though: Old Town Fort Collins has bikes all over. The riders are a blend of casual carnie-looking guys, boho-chic ladies, functional commuters, and business-casual retirees! The more you look around Old Town, the more you realize how often the cyclists are overlooked because they look surprisingly human. You know what I mean: everyday clothes, helmets optional, shoes of every variety...

If Fort Collins is Platinum on the bike-friendly scale (which it is, again!) and hales as home to the likes of Georgia Gould and TJ VanGarderen, there should be a healthy collection of lycra-clad Cyclists, right? So - where are they?!

A Map of Lycra For Your Viewing Pleasure!

Fort Collins is no stranger to traffic at all daylight hours excluding, perhaps, the "hangover" hours on holidays. As such, your daily exerciser takes the shortest and least-traffic route to either the fun mountain roads and trails, or the rolling plains. So no, there are not many lycra-clad riders in the cultural center of the city, but I promise you the train of grinning quintessential, lycra-wearing riders are a-plenty!

Cheers for now!

Adventure Jes

I'll Take the Faux-sperience, Please!

I love a good story, and I love retelling a good story to the best of my ability. Therein lies my greatest challenge, though: does it matter if the retelling of a story actually matches its origin, or can the beauty of a totally embellished tale be a memorable experience in itself?

This year Leisurely Pedaling is adding a Faux Collins Tour as a pre-planned, standard tour option for either half-day or full-day enjoyment! You'll get the full tour experience with anecdotes, fun factoids, and a whole lot of hoop-la that has limited - ok, I'll be honest, has almost zero - factual basis. You could probably ride this same tour a hundred times and never get the same rhetoric.

Oh the stories Old Town Fort Collins could tell!

Many questions you didn't know you had, and will laughingly embrace our answers for include:

• What is a council tree - and where is it?
• Why "horsetooth"?
• So, where did they stash the powder?
• Which street was paved first?
• What's the story behind the CSU Aggies becoming CSU Rams?
• Where was the original Fort?
• I hear the city has tunnels under Old Town, what are/were they used for?
• Tell me about Balloon Boy...
• What was the incident that inspired local legislation banning horses from being ridden into public buildings?

I know, we're just as excited to experience this tour as you and can't wait to share our knowledge along the ride or over a beverage with you and your tour buddies!

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

The city's oldest tree is in there somewhere...

The Destination is the Journey, or the Journey is the Destination: Enjoy!

The off-season affords endless opportunities to research and experience what other bicycle enthusiasts are accomplishing in the industry within the U.S. and abroad. To me, the tourism industry is fascinating and unique in similarly subjective ways as art with endless niches, preferences, and perhaps I'll get more into that train of thought at a later date. It turns out bikes pair well with just about anything: beer, wine, friends, language barriers, fine cuisine, endless dirt trails, coordinated paved pathways, sustainability, photography, mountains, beaches, plains, summer, winter, spring, and fall just to name a few! They even pair well with motors and rain. Really - I wouldn't lie to you

Tourist "Bike Gang" in the Misty Rain!

So there we were, all ten of us choosing to snuggle up with our significant others on motorbikes to self-guide a tour of a new city. We didn't really know the laws of traffic, or how to operate our motorbike bells/whistles/lights/brakes/etc... but we were determined to get farther and see more than walking allowed. Diving into city traffic totally clueless is terrifying, so naturally we headed out of town!

What we toured:

• "Lady Budha" at an enormous (hindu?) temple (slap my wrists, I failed to research this beautiful site)
• A yellow sandy beach without a soul in site
• The teasing promise of monkeys... alas our bikes lacked the capacity for the steep climb to see the living creatures - not just a pedal-power issue afterall!
• A mountain of marble
• An incredibly scenic coastal highway connecting all the above

Monkeys?!

Unexpected Private Beach!

Reinforced ideas that stuck with me from this adventure:

• the journey is the destination... and... the destination is the journey
• A dusting of rain and a cheap poncho make for a most memorable (and pleasant!) experience
• Three or four major attractions in one tour is satisfying...
• ...and so are the little unexpected stops revealing gems of culture and delight along the way
• I would be a sad, sad lady without sharing the travel experience both near and far!

Hindu Temple

The Little Engine That... Um... Well... *smile*

Naturally, these thoughts and experiences have played a role in how this 2016 tour season shapes up for Leisurely Pedaling. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised the subtle yet monumental adjustments coming down the road, and hope you all will get to come experience them with us!

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Pedaling with Cats: A Daydream

Sidecars.
Aviator goggles and leather helmets.
That one time we saved ourselves from sure destruction!

As you might expect, I find daydreaming about bikes a common occurrence. The chilly winter days and ice-covered streets and bike-ways understandably stimulate thoughts of sunshine, warm laughter, and summer afternoons filled with exciting discoveries and visiting "oldie but goodie" favorite places.

I wish... I really wish... my cat enjoyed biking as much as I do and would tag along without any fuss. Perhaps it's just his nature: he doesn't really like meeting new people, has a healthy fear of the Great Outdoors, and finds joy in sleeping in the sun. I hear this is pretty typical for cats.

Dream with me a moment, though: imagine a cat in the front basket of a bike! Better yet: a cat in a bicycle side-car wearing aviator goggles and a leather helmet!

We could explore nearby parks (he'd nap in the sunshine or climb the trees), play in the river (he'd keep his paws dry until a fish swam by), or enjoy people-watching at a local brewery's patio - maybe even make a few new friends! It would be endless fun!

Oh well, it was worth the daydream.

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Home: When Was the Last Time you Played Tourist?

 I love daydreaming about my next vacation or weekend getaway! Who doesn't? My bestie and I have on-going emails speculating epic bike routes, races, and bike-friendly city wanderings on this continent and the next. Getting away is always the goal, but who says you can't get away at "home"?

It didn't take more than a few memorable, jovial journeys in other hemispheres to open my eyes to the biking wonders right here in my backyard. Home: the stay-cation in Fort Collins!

When I was feeling stressed and pressed for time in grad school, the easiest getaway was grabbing my bestie, my camera, and designing routes to explore my own town. There's always something to be experienced: a new museum exhibit, new restaurant, new beverage joint, new construction, new (free) live music, and new combinations of all the above to create a beautiful day on the bike!

When was the last time you glanced at your home town as a tourist?

Cheers for now!

Adventure Jes

Safety: Because, You Know, A Penny For Your... Skirt?

Let's talk about the art of riding in a skirt. Initially you may think "oh sure Jes, this post is for the ladies" ... at which point I'll smile and remind you here in Fort Collins things are a little different. All-out costume occasions happens at least twice per calendar year and include Tour de Fat and Halloween. You've never seen so many skirted men and bearded ladies! Other times would include charitable 5k runs, bike-in movie nights (togas for Animal House, anyone?!), and various other musically boozy festivals.

Back to the point: the art of riding in a skirt!
Some skirts are flow-y, and others are rather fitted. Many are floor-length, and a few are lucky to just cover the goods. Regardless, you'll want to keep these pointers in mind for "skirted situations." I'm looking at you, toga-man!

Lucky penny: keeps your skirt hem in place

1. Lucky penny pick it up, attach to the skirt hem and you'll have good luck! Really: a penny is the perfect weight to keep most upper-calf-to-lower-thigh-length skirts riding at their intended level. All you need is double-stick tape, a penny, and the hem of a skirt. Find the front and center skirt edge, and affix the penny to the underside: out of sight, out of mind.
2. Booty shorts aren't just for volley-ball players! They're like spanx without the support, running shorts without the roominess, or standard bike shorts without the chamois. Ride with confidence, friends! Oh- and no-one ever even has to know they're there - which depends on your (mini) skirt of course! 
3. Alternatively: get down with your slightly Euro-side and rock a sweet pair of tights or leggings! Fashionable yet modest. Functional yet flattering. Full range of motion yet feminine.
4. Ankle straps, pant clips, garters: call them what you want, they come in pretty handy for those long billowy floor-length maxi skirts, togas, etc... How? I'm so glad you asked! Chances are your ensemble is billowy enough that showing a little leg is perfectly acceptable: loop your garter such that it encircles your waist band and skirt hem. Voila! Note: a toga would need a little more creativity, but chances are you can keep your hem out of the bike chain effectively.
5. Consider riding a step-through frame: they're a little more forgiving when you have restricted leg movement (think: mounting, standing stopped, and dismounting).

 Cheers for now!

Adventure Jes

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)