Bike Expo For the Win!

Remember when I talked about coopertition last month? It's a real thing: I'm living it right now. The annual bike expo in Denver is, as anticipated, a lovely experience of most things bicycles. Last year was a lot of faster/stronger/farther training focused booths, and this year the e-bikes really stick out (though they were the main view down the row from our booth). While nibbling on delicious flavors of Hope Hummus, we even had the privilege of seeing pros like Dave Weins and Georgia Gould participate in a tire changing competition... blindfolded and handcuffed! At some point there was an acoustic cover of Gangsta's Paradise serenading the beer garden. The whole set up was heavenly.

Colorado Bike Expo 2016

Back up a second - OUR booth? Yup! Leisurely Pedaling and Beer and Bike Tours teamed up to share space, laughter, and overall success of the event with each other. And - you guessed it - we're in coopertition together. We're coopertiving. Something. We were even graced with the ladies who run Experience Plus Bike Tours sharing a corner of our booth for a moment Saturday.

Someone Got Their Hands on Sidewalk Chalk!

This is how it works: Experience Plus has tours all over Europe and beyond as their specialty (they have other tour options as well). They just happen to have their home office in Fort Collins. Win! Beer and Bike Tours specializes in exactly that: breweries, bikes, and enjoying the ride. Their tours span Colorado and portions of the US that are lovely and have delicious beer culture. Leisurely Pedaling specializes in site seeing Fort Collins and the neighboring communities. We all have a little overlap (stellar experiences being offered, funloving guides, endless laughter and joy), though we all have distinctly different personalities.

Thank you so much all who dropped by the Colorado Bike Expo this last weekend. I hope to see you all again next year, and you're always welcome on our tours between times! We've drawn winners from the drawing, and are excited to announce their names in the next newsletters :-)

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

We Know How to Have a Good Time!

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

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

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

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.

Happy Holidays from Adventure Jes!

Bike bells ring- are you listening?

In Old Town FoCo- lights are glistening

A leisurely site!

We're bundled up tight!

Biking in a winter wonderland!

Old Town Fort Collins lights up for the winter!

All smiles at freezing temperatures!

Fortunately for the year-round bicyclists in Northern Colorado, the winters are fairly mild in the snow-dump department. When the flurries do arrive the bike routes and paths are cleared of snow long before the neighborhoods and secondary street routes!

We've been hard at work dialing in the last of the logistics to open up shop first thing in the New Year! The itineraries are set, and the daily site-seeing options are plentiful. Our neighbors, colleagues, and friends eagerly anticipate the moment they can share our unique and unhurried approach to exploring the cities along Colorado's Front Range with distant family and friends. 

With that, we're taking a moment to breath, choose the best publicly advertised name for these sock-rockin' tours, and embrace the winter for what it is before the big launch into welcoming the world into our expert site-seeing care!

May the holidays be treating you and yours festively well throughout the holidays and always!

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Designing the Adventures- Leisurely ;-)

Public Art: Andy Warhol, Soup Can

The proposed itineraries are coming together quite nicely, and we cannot wait to have AdventureJes.com ready to handle all the fun! Mapping out points of interest with the limiting criteria including "comfortably bike-able" and "I personally love this spot, and so does everyone who visits me regardless of age, origin, and inclination to travel!!" You'll find everything to be distinctly Colorado in theme and feeling.

For example, Fort Collins is known for Breweries (they're popping up EVERYWHERE!), Bikes (Platinum Bicycle City anyone?), and an Ample Supply of Restaurants (highest number per capita in the US!). What you might not know is the city also houses the broadcasting of the Nation's Atomic Clock, Colorado's only "Wild and Scenic River" as designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Old Town which became the model for Main Street in Disneyland!

Plotting Fort Collins Attractions!

While Loveland is known as one of few access points to Rocky Mountain National Park (and the town of Estes Park), you might not know that Loveland is one of the Nation's top artist communities and boasts more than 200 pieces of public art and the largest outdoor sculpture gallery in the US. As well, the town is proudly "Sweetheard City USA" and you may recall this fun factoid from having a Valentine re-routed through Loveland to be delivered to your sweetheart with an extra-romantic and charming postage cancellation. Who knew snail-mail could be so fun?! Actually we did, so we're sharing with you! ;-)

As you can imagine, even more fun, unique, and inspiring distinctions are true of the rest of Northern Colorado. We can't wait to share what fun, leisurely, and inspiring stories will come to life for you during your leisurely pedaling adventures with us.

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

Bike-Topia

While the "to-do" list continues to grow, this last month and a half was well stocked with many activity research opportunities here at Adventure Jes!

Our adventures exploring "what gets people to take active vacations?" took us to Montana and Wyoming where things are done in a more "pen and paper" style and phone numbers are commonly understood in their 7-digit format. As well, the route research took us up to Summit County (about an hour and a half from our base in Fort Collins) to do a little "Leaf-peeping" as the aspens prepare to lose their leaves for the year.

Montana and Wyoming have the advantage of well-dispersed populations making the roadways and bike routes a truly personal experience. We chose to get our tires in the dirt despite the "road and pavement" nature of Adventure Jes. We're looking forward to recreating a felling of "it's just you, the road, and Nature" feeling as we update and coordinate routes throughout Northern Colorado.

On the same token, Yellowstone has a fantastic mapping system that tells you where bikes can go and where they are discouraged. Nothing compares to finding a quiet spot to observe the geysers and waterfalls just a moment farther off the well-worn foot paths in Yellowstone- bringing the bikes was a major win!

Exploring Summit County in mid-September is absolutely breath-taking, and I cannot put into words my excitement for taking Colorado visitors on a tour of foliage next autumn. Great brakfast cafes, well-maintained bike paths through and between cities and towns, and several places of interest for stopping and enjoying the history, scenery, and small indulgences unique to Colorado. I hope the following pictures will suffice.

Cheers for now!

Adventure Jes

Market Research: Riding Across Iowa With Five Close Friends In One RV!

Now that Adventure Jes is truly an entity, the fun can begin! This last week was spent on RAGBRAI: The Register's Annual Great Ride Across Iowa, and was an excellent exploration in "what cyclists want" and "what cyclists appreciate" versus "what cyclists do". My informal observations and chats provided a wealth of information for the kind of cyclist explorers we will attract:

• What cyclists want is efficiency, prompt gratification, scenery, accurate (and slightly ironic) signage, smooth roads, well-known music, and MORE COWBELL!
• What cyclists need are clean bathroom breaks, just enough variety of food to cover the "sweet/salty/crunchy/soft/hot/cold/flavorful/simple" bases, drink variety that includes "hoppy/electrolyte/cola/water/lemonade", emphasis on cold drinking water, flat sleeping surfaces, accurate mileage expectations, compatible group dynamics, reliably warm showers, and basic laundry service.
• What cyclists appreciate are good dance parties, shopping opportunities, points of interest, local flavor, volunteer and paid support that "just get how cyclists operate," and cold adult beverages at the end of the ride (or at the first rest stop).

This makes Adventure Jes happy! ...and is all information that will be used in putting together our tours. As always, we welcome your input and thoughts as we get geared-up and dialed-in for leisurely pedalings throughout Northern Colorado.

Anyway, below are a few highlights from this last week ending in a lovely Colorado sunset upon returning home. Enjoy!

Cheers for now,

Adventure Jes

All riders welcome!

Juiciest, thickest, most delicious pork-chops ever!

Reliable Volunteers

RAGBRAI or BUST!

Lovely end to a lovely week of riding

Let's Get Down to Business, Adventure Jes LLC!

Today the dream has become reality as Adventure Jes takes form in the annals of public records and tax responsibility! I am very excited to bring this business to life and share our adventures in the many seasons to come.

Won't you pedal with me a moment? It will be fun: I promise! What are the details you say? This is an adventure- the details will be along shortly... :-)

Cheers for now,

Jes