Steve's Cycling Blog
The job of the book reviewer is to provide enough information about a book so the reader can decide if they want to read it. With that in mind, I should start by introducing the author of "Draft Animals" (Note: The full title of this book is Draft Animals: Living the Pro Cycling Dream (Once … Continue reading Cycling Book Review – Draft Animals, by Phil Gaimon
In the 1990s, I started cycling semi-seriously as a mountain biker. I got my first "real" mountain bike in 1992 (an Iron Horse). In 2002 I got my first full-suspension bike (a Kona) and started to enter races. So my cycling roots are in mountain biking. In recent years however, I've found myself cycling more … Continue reading Mountain Biking at Turkey Point
The end of August has a different feel than other months. It marks the end of summer for many of us, particularly those with kids who head back to school after Labour Day. By this time of year, daylight hours are noticeably shorter and temperatures are typically starting to cool. With this decrease in daylight … Continue reading August 2018 – Cycling Update
The day after we got back from our vacation in Newfoundland, I found myself in Toronto for an afternoon. It made perfect sense for me to take a bike with me and explore the city a bit more. I didn't have a lot of time to plan because we got in late Monday evening and … Continue reading Cycling in Toronto – Humber River and Waterfront Trails
I don't usually like to ride in the rain. Having said that, there are times when I've cycled in pretty nasty conditions (winter, mud, rain, wind). Often, these rides have occurred during races (downpours during 24-hour mountain bike relays) or charity events (2017 Ride for Heart). But typically, when it's raining out, I'll avoid getting on … Continue reading Ride Don’t Hide – 2018 (in the rain!)
Lately, I've been more selective about the cycling events I enter. Until this weekend, the only event I'd entered was Paris to Ancaster. However, when I got a message on social media that I'd won an entry to the 3rd annual Creemore SpringsTuras Mor in Creemore, Ontario, I was excited (Thanks Noelle W. from Pedal … Continue reading 2018 Turas Mor – Gravel Grinding in Creemore
The 2018 edition of the Ontario Spring Classic "Paris to Ancaster" was the 25-year anniversary of the event. I first entered this race in 2002 on my mountain bike and I haven't missed a year since (although several times, I entered the shorter 35-40km version of the race). In the 17 years I've entered this … Continue reading 2018 Paris to Ancaster
A few months ago, I blogged about some of the Strava Apps I use. Since I'm an engineer, I like to play with numbers (and maps), so I've spent some time scouring the internet for more cycling tools. Here are a few more: Padvark: This website connects to your Strava account and summarizes the data. … Continue reading More cool Strava Apps
In 2016, on my 50th birthday, I decided to do something a little different. I plotted out a route that wrote out a big 5 and 0. I rode after work and the weather looked like it might cooperate (it had been raining off and on all day). When I completed that ride, I coined … Continue reading Bicycalligraphy
Cyclists don't have to look very far to find discussions about how to deal with winter in Canada. There's considerable information online about how to train indoors over the winter. There's also a lot of people who will ride outdoors in just about any weather conditions. And there are obvious benefits to both options. I … Continue reading Winter Cycling – Indoors or Outdoors?
