Bikes or Death

Ernie Lechuga is no stranger to cycling success at a high level. He began his road cycling career in the 90's and earned a spot on the coveted Team Jelly Belly. After retiring he moved to NW Arkansas where he now helps other cyclist unlock their potential through his coaching business, Leborne Coaching. In recent years he's been signing up for more endurance cycling events. He's done Silk Road twice and this was his fourth attempt a the Arkansas High Country Race. Last year he had to pull out of the ARHCR due to liver problems that almost cost him his life.

This year, he came back with a plan to set a new FKT (Fastest Known Time) with a goal of 4 days, 8 hours. The previous FKT was set by Ted King in 2020 with a time of 4d 20h 51m, Ernies goal would put him well again of King if he was able to pull it off.

Visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup with a gallery of images.

Athletic Greens – Great for bikepackers on the go! Visit www.athleticgreens.com/bikesordeath to get a FREE 1 year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D AND 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase.

Ombraz - Use code "BOD20" for $20 off your order AND BoD will get $20 from Ombraz as a thank you

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 No new Patrons this month 😔 Sign up to help me produce these episodes 😊

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on Patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

This week we are taking a peak over the preverbial cycling fence to see what's going on in the world of gravel racing. We've seen Ted King, Payson McElveen, Lachlan Morton, and many other gravel racers dip their toes into the bikepacking waters. Now it's our turn to take a peak into their world.

After coming on the podcast to tell us all about Wisconsin Bikepacking & Gravel, Shane Hitz invited me out to experience the Red Granite Grinder for myself. The RGG is a mixed terrain gravel race that starts/finishes in Wausau, WI. One very unique feature about this route is the 20+ special land access options that are available only during this race. Shane has been busy chasing down land owners and managers to make this route a reality and by all accounts his efforts have paid off.

Visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup and a gallery of images from my trip to the RGG.

BoD Takeover - We are a little over two weeks away from the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap Nov. 10-13th. We'd love to have you join us! Check out the registration info and if you have questions we'd love to hear from you!

Kuat - Not just great bike rack, check out their lineup of racks to transport your snow equipment too! And with their No Worries warranty you don't need to worry, because Kuat has your Rack and your Back!

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Tim Rowand Steven Bishop

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on Patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

RJ Sauer is no stranger to big trips, big challenges, and big adventures. I've been following him and his work for years with great interest and a tinge of jealousy. Last year he set out to take on a new challenge, this time with his 3 year old son, Ollie, in tow. They settled on the Rexy Gravel Race, a 200 mile mixed terrain race starting in Fruita, CO and ending in Moab, UT. The catch? You've got 24 hours to complete it! Before you dive into today's episode you may want to watch his film first.

Along For The Ride - Film

For a full writeup and gallery of images from today's episode please visit www.BikesorDeath.com

Kuat - Have you seen Kuat's Piston SR? It's essentially the single rail version of the Piston Pro X.Same great features like all metal construction, Tiger Drylac (dry-lack) automotive powder coat, Genuine Kashima (kash-ee-ma) Coat, hydro-pneumatic ratchet arms that hug the tires and don't touch your bike frame. Kuat took the Piston Pro X and elevated it, literally.

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Alsksandar Radan

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on Patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

Edyn Teitge just completed the Smoke n' Fire 400 at the age of 13. He didn't just complete it though, he came in 6th place only 8 hours behind Jay Petervery with a time of 2d 15h 31m. When I asked him how he felt after he finished, he didn't think he could go any faster, but he thought he could go for another couple of days at that same pace!

Please visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup and picture gallery from todays episode!

Quote of the Week - "Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." ~ Mark Twain

Athletic Greens - Great for bikepackers on the go! Visit www.athleticgreens.com/bikesordeath to get a FREE 1 year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D AND 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase.

Grepp - Home of the reusable bar tape! Grepp just stepped up to be a sponsor of the BoD Takeover and we couldn't be more stoked to have their support and their grepp ;)

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Sky Tettero-Crosby Ian Rhoat Taylor Evans

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on Patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

My guest today is Gemma Baird who recently set a new Singlespeed FKT (Fastest Known Time) on the Highland Trial 550 in Scotland. After battling breast cancer, surviving homeschooling her three kids through the pandemic, and turning 40, Gemma needed a big goal. That's when she set her sights on the 2022 HT550 group start. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to make the group start, but that' didn't stop her. In August she lined up at the start line solo for an ITT (Individual Time Trial). She finished with a time of 5d 9h 48m which was good enough to best the previous SS FKT by Isla Rowntree.

Please visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup on this episode with an amazing gallery of photos from the HT550.

Quote of the Week: "Until you make the unconcious consious, it will rule your life and you will call it fate" ~ Carl Yung

Gemma pinned an article about her ITT for Bikepacking.com that is refrenced in today's episode.

BoD Takeover – Join us for the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap in Ellija, GA from Nov. 10th – 13th. Visit MulberryGap.com for all the details and to register! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!

Ruby Coffee - Ruby is our official coffee sponsor for the BoD Takeover! If you can't make the Takeover you can try any of their coffee and get 20% off when you use the code "BIKESORDEATH".

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Doug Armfield Kenny Young

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on Patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

Seth DuBois just completed his biggest bikepacking challenge yet at the 2022 Silk Road Mountain Race. SRMR has quickly captured the attention of racers and fans from around the world. The stunning imagery and landscape that is Kyrgyzstan seems to lure people in. Seth felt that pull and he answered the call. This year, he joined 154 other brave souls from around the word to challenge themselves on the 1,120 mile course that scales over 100,000 ft. While the landscape may be breathtaking it is also relentless. This race has an attrition rate of 50% or more (depending on the year).

Visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup and gallery of todays episode.

Quote of the week ~ "Because in the end, you won't remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain." ~ Jack Kerouac

BoD Takeover – Join us for the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap in Ellija, GA from Nov. 10th – 13th. Visit MulberryGap.com for all the details and to register! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!

Red Granite Grinder - Oct. 15th in Wausau, WI. Listen to my chat with Shane Hitz all about this event and bikepacking in Wisconsin, then register to race. I'll be there on the media team, so come out and say hi!

Ombraz ~ Get the shades all the cool kids are wearing! Ombraz is offering a special deal to BoD listeners, use the code "BOD20" to get $20 off your order, PLUS Ombraz will send BoD $20 too!

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Matthew L Annabel Cedar Blanchard Christopher Bartling Jeff Hehn Christian Meinke

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

What were you doing at 17? Whatever it was, it's probably not as cool as my guest today. PJ Terry just shared first place at TNGA with a time of 2d 12h 30m. He crossed the finish line with Andrew Weidrich who shared the win with PJ.

Visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup!

This weeks quote ~ "Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving." ~Albert Einstein

BoD Takeover – Join us for the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap in Ellija, GA from Nov. 10th – 13th. Visit MulberryGap.com for all the details and to register! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!

Ruby Coffee ~ The best damn coffee can be yours at a 15% discount, just use code "BIKESORDEATH" at checkout!

Ombraz ~ Get the shades all the cool kids are wearing! Ombraz is offering a special deal to BoD listeners, use the code "BOD20" to get $20 off your order, PLUS Ombraz will send BoD $20 too!

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Schwan Hardi Travis Krzyminski

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

Shane Hitz has been busy building routes and putting on gravel races in Wisconsin for many years. This week he's here to tell us all about his routes, the Red Granite Grinder, and Wisconsin gravel riding and bikepacking. After this conversation I'm even more excited about at the Red Granite Grinder on Oct. 15th! The Red Granite Grinder is quickly making a name for itself in the gravel world. What makes this route really special is the hard work that Shane and his counter parters at Ironbull to get access to private land that you can only ride if you enter this race! Listen to today's episodes for all the details and when you're ready to sign up head over to Ironbull.org. I'll be there this year covering the event from a media perspective and riding the 25 mile group ride on Friday. So make sure to ride over and say hi!

Ready to sign up for the Red Granite Grinder - Sign up here and I'll see you there in Oct!

This weeks quote ~ "Pay attention! This is your life. You're going to want to know what it feels like."

BoD Takeover – Join us for the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap in Ellija, GA from Nov. 10th – 13th. Visit MulberryGap.com for all the details and to register! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!

Passchier ~ These handcrafted, bamboo laminated beauties give the rider a comfortable experience never felt before. With a slight amount of flex the rider has reduced jarring and a more relaxed ride, allowing you to ride on and on… Use Code "passchierordeath" at checkout for 10% off your order!

Kuat ~ Best racks on earth with the best No Worries Warranty. Kuat has your Rack and your Back!

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Veiko Vettik Kevin Shaffer

Join them won't you? Now is a great time to sign up on patreon. For a limited time Jefe Velo will be matching all new pledges made at Patreon.com/bikesordeath.com

This week I'm joined by Ana Jager who just became the 2022 Tour Divide winner on her Rookie attempt! Most of the questions for todays episode came from women who answered the call on social media! Hillary, Laura, Tatiana, and Katheryn all called in with their questions and many more women sent me questions to ask!

Please visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full writeup on todays episode!

BoD Takeover - Join us for the first ever Takeover happening at Mulberry Gap in Ellija, GA from Nov. 10th - 13th. Visit MulberryGap.com for all the details and to register! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!

Ombraz - You get $20 off your purchase, BoD get's $20, everybody wins! Use code "BOD20" at checkout and watch the magic happen.

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Manu Cattrysse Richard miller will gouty Colin Schindler Andy Field Joar Adrien Garnier Nico Olmedo Fabio Guarrasi

Join them won't you? These episodes aren't possible without support from our listeners.

Aleś Zavoral from the Czech Republic just won the 2022 Bike Nonstop US Race with a time of 18d 11h 51m. Aleś is no stranger to racing, he's logged 136 races in the past 13 years. I did the math, that's 10.4 races a year!

Please visit www.BikesorDeath.com for a full write up and photos from Aleś' race!

Embark Maple - Maple syrup tapped right from their farm made by, and for, bikepackers, adventurers, and outdoors people. For 30% OFF use code "bikesordeath30" at checkout Mulberry Gap - Tired of the heat and ready for fall? Me too! Start planning now for your fall get away to Mulberry Gap!

🎉 New Patrons 🎉 Thomas Subritzky Michael Young

Join them won't you? These episodes aren't possible without support from our listeners.