“What would we do differently if we had the chance to call the shots?” That’s the question teammates Ramsey and Elliot started asking themselves a year into racing. They wanted to use their voice to steer women’s road bike racing in a new direction.  

It was a conversation over dinner and wine that led to them launching Ruckus Racing. The pair chatted about barriers and setbacks women face, such as few resources for beginner riders, a lack of supportive or progressive events. 

Ruckus Racing was born to create an inspiring place for women to enter the sport. They wanted to create a community where women were supported in learning, racing and building their experience.

Yes, the name Ruckus Racing is a bit tongue in cheek by causing a disturbance in the racing scene but they are also helping cycling catch up with the times to be more inclusive.

If you want to support and follow the ladies at Ruckus Racing send them your love on Instagram. The team is also proudly supported by SamSara and Velosophy.

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Niels explains how he moved out of his parents’ home at 14 years old to chase his dreams racing bikes and what that taught him on his path to become a World Champion.

After what most would call a very successful BMX racing career, racing for the Netherlands Cycling Federation and now Niels is focused on Pump Track World Championships and King of CrankWorx. 

On his fourth attempt he took the top step of the UCI Pump Track World Championships after finishing just off the podium with two 4ths and a 5th in the prior years. He also finished off the 2022 season with a 5th in the King of Crankworx points standings with many podium finishes throughout the 4 stops proving he isn’t just skilled on a BMX race bike. 

Follow Niels’ attempt to be the King of Crankworx and his title defence on the rainbow stripes in 2023 via his instagram and youtube. 

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Bike packing is fast becoming the chosen activity for a lot of endurance athletes during and after covid but Meaghan has been bike packing before many knew it was a thing with her first major tour in 2009 riding the Pacific Coast (Terrace, BC, to Mulege, Baja California Sur)

Since then she has accomplished many great feats with some of her biggest being her outright win and setting Women’s KFT at the 2021 BC Epic 1000 plus her win and 741km record ride in the 2019 24hr TT World Championships.

Her story goes a lot deeper than just riding her bike as Meaghan is a published writer with her first book being shortlisted for the 2020 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize (Non-Fiction) and the 2020 Alberta Book Publishing Award (Trade Non-Fiction). She is due to release her 2nd book in 2023.  

To get in contact with Meaghan, head to her instagram https://www.instagram.com/meaghanhackinen/?hl=en or website https://meaghanhackinen.com/

Supported by F2C Nutrition and JSNT Endurance Coaching.

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Claire is a Lynn Valley girl that grew up in and out of bicycle stores with her Dad owning one in North Vancouver before she moved to Whistler to chase the bike life. She originally stumbled into the racing world when she podiumed her first elite nationals qualifying her for the Canadian worlds team. 

Her list of cycling achievements are nothing but great, but it’s how she got there that makes her special. Unlike most of her competitors she didn’t take up racing until her late teens where she found success both on the national and international circuits. Her achievements also don’t stop at racing but continue into the world of big mountain riding and freeriding.

• 12 Canadian National Team member and Canadian National Champion 2009
• Top 10 World Cup racer with her first World Cup Podium in South Africa, 2009
• 3rd 2011 World Championships in Champery to Emmeline Ragot and Rachel Atherton
• Winner of Womenzworx and the Gala at Crankworx 2009
• Nominated for International Cyclist of the Year 2009
• Voted one of the "26 Most Influential People in Mountain Biking", Decline Magazine January 2008

Moving forward after her racing career she has found herself giving back to the cycling community with her and her husband Chris Kovarik's coaching business. Together they have been helping the youth of Canadian DH perform at their top level, including supporting the JNR National DH team this year at World Champs in Les Gets, France.

Off the bike Claire finds herself working for Chromag Bikes in Whistler as their graphic designer using her artistic eyes that she sees the world through and playing with her dog down by the river!

You can find Claire on Instagram or Facebook and if you have any coaching questions head over to Kovarik Racing 

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Welcome to Episode 26 of our podcast! Tony 'Toe Strap' Brisindi has been working at Steed Cycles as a mechanic for over 6 years now and most of our regular customers will know Tony pretty well, having worked on their bikes, given them advice or maybe having been riding with them. Tony is a mainstay at the shop and we're happy to have him and his experience and knowledge in the shop.

Tony has been in and around the bike industry since 1995 - that's 27 years now and in that time the industry has changed a hell of a lot. Tony has seen a lot of different technologies come and go as things improved (or not), and somehow has retained much of that knowledge in that brain of his. Some things Tony knows are probably not worth knowing, however it is interesting picking his brains and going back into the annals of bicycle history trivia. Tony is a total tech nerd and likes to try all the new interesting parts like Shimano Airlines and linkage forks, but he also is a little old school in some regards. Currently Tony only owns steel bikes with only front or zero suspension, though each bike is definitely pretty weird and uniquely his.

In his time in the cycling industry Tony has tried riding all the different types of bikes. Back in the 90s and early 2000s were his downhill riding and racing days and rode some legendary bikes like the Specialized Demo 9. Moving on he spent some time riding fat bikes when they first came out and racing cross country, and he obviously decided to mix the two and was one of the first people to ride a fat bike in the Leadville 100, because why not? Tony wanted to be the first person ever to finish the race on a fat bike, but unfortunately one of his race buddies beat him by about a minute, making him the second guy. 

We could listen to Tony's random stories all day, but unfortunately we should probably get back to work. Either way, we hope you enjoy listening to this podcast as much as we enjoyed recording it. Cheers!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

For episode 25 of our podcast we've got Dougie Fresh AKA Doug Giles, our outside sales rep for Shimano, amongst other brands. Being rep for Shimano means Doug has a unique view into both the world of retail and the inner workings of the bike industry in terms of manufacture, distribution etc. for Shimano. Credit to Doug he's always as transparent as he can be, and we try to be to. We've all heard about the parts shortages this last couple of years due to COVID and while it's no big secret why, if you haven't heard it explained it's interesting to hear why we're still seeing shortages and delays even now.

More than just a rep, Doug has been in and around the cycling world for a long time. Starting his cycling career as a triathlete, what sounds like a fairly daunting world of pain can actually be a more accessible way into cycling because people are typically more inclusive since they have to be good at several different sports. The cycling world has changed a lot in the two decades plus that these two have been in it, and it's mostly for the best. Tune in to the full podcast to hear some throwbacks and some tasters of what's to come. Enjoy!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Welcome to podcast episode 24! This week Jarrad has the tables turned on him and has to sit in the guest chair while Steed mechanic and former radio journalist, Ash Kelly, jumps into hosting so you can hear all about Jarrad’s recent overnight epic ride (unofficially dubbed the “XXL Island Loop” by Jarrad). Their conversation touches on a lot more than his impressive ride stats though, as the pair dig into what drives us to do hard stuff, even when we don’t have to. The episode also introduces us to our regular host in a more intimate way as we hear about his childhood and generally positive outlook on life.

Jarrad has been riding bikes of all shapes and sizes from the time he could walk and often tells people he will ride anything he can get his hands on, he doesn’t need anything fancy to be happy on two wheels. He was racing BMX and riding motorcycles before he was six years old, racing motorbikes by eight and a mechanic for national motorbike road races in his teens. 

Jarrad’s recent XXL Island Loop clocked in at 460 kilometers and took more than 24 hours and four ferries to complete while he averaged a hefty 25 kilometers per hour. The loop began in North Vancouver, then to Victoria and north to Comox, across to the Sunshine Coast, finishing back in North Vancouver with only a small amount of drama. It was a logistically challenging trip in terms of planning, access to water, food overnight, with the added need to time arrivals at some infamously tricky ferries along the way. 

We are proud to say Jarrad has been a part of the Steed team for over 4 years. He believes anyone can enjoy cycling, no matter what bike they are on, or what path they are on in life. He brings enthusiasm and positivity to the community through his dedication and coaching.
Tune in to hear the full story and more. Enjoy!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Welcome to episode 23 of our podcast! This time around we have Ramsey Glass, also known as Ramsbikes on Instagram. Ramsey is a Vancouver-based road cyclist and has an Instagram account that's exploded in popularity since she started it in October last year as a creative outlet and a way to express who she is in cycling.

Ramsey only picked up cycling in a serious way in 2020, as with many new cyclists that picked it up through the pandemic. Since then she has spent time trying to find her niche within the sport and has discovered how to many people including herself, cycling is not just a hobby, but a lifestyle, and that there are so many different ways to be a cyclist or a part of cycling without being an elite racer.

We're lucky these days for cycling to be as inclusive as it is - free of judgement with bikes, clothing and events available for pretty much everyone, though clearly we still have a way to go. Back in June this year when the Tour De Concord event schedule was published there was no start time and no entries for cat 4/5 women, despite there being a men's race. When Ramsey contacted the race organizer, assuming there had been some mistake, she was told that since the event was organized there was no room to change the schedule. Cue the online backlash and support from a ton of other racers and the men promising not to race if the women couldn't, Cycling BC managed to make room for the women to race.

Ramsey says make room for the women and they will come, and she's totally right. We all want 50/50 women/men in cycling to be a reality, so let's treat it like it already is. We applaud Ramsey for standing up for the cat 4 women, because just because you're not a pro racer doesn't mean your experience is any less important.

Tune in to hear the full story and more, Ramsey has a truly unique and interesting perspective and one that we are excited to share. Enjoy!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Welcome to podcast episode 22! In this episode Jarrad heads to 7mesh headquarters to chat with founders TJ and Ian. For those unfamiliar with the brand, 7mesh are a high performance cycling apparel company, focussed on bringing the best technology available to the world of cycling clothing. 

7mesh had an interesting start - TJ and Ian moved over from high end outdoor clothing company Arcteryx where TJ was CEO and Ian was the principle designer. 7mesh was formed when they both saw that despite the improvements in outdoor clothing in general, much of those improvements were not making their way into cycling clothing. Taking what they had learnt from Arcteryx, they quit their jobs and started 7mesh. Based in Squamish since 2013 and still a relatively small team, their office is filled with passionate cyclists, their R&D lab being both the office and the amazing backcountry surrounding them.

We've been 7mesh supporters from the start and they have truly gone from strength to strength. Amazingly in their first year they managed to get together a catalogue of 13 products, half of which included women's items. TJ and Ian like to be hands-on when it comes to building new products, and that's one of the key reasons that they produce such incredible technical wear. Since the start one of their big missions was to produce comfortable high performance women's wear, which admittedly has been one of their biggest challenges and something they're still focussed on. With over half their staff now women, it's clear that it's a commitment that they're sticking to.

Most of all, the folks at 7mesh's main mission is to produce awesome technical wear that enables us to do what we do best - to get out there and explore the world on bikes. 7mesh is a celebration of the activities that they love, of having great times outdoors and learning and experiencing the world. Cheers to that!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here. 

Welcome to episode 21 of the Steed Cycles podcast. Today we're chatting with Tristan Olk and Scott Pilecki - Tristan and Scott are some of the original Steed Cycles staff from way back in the day when we were just earning our reputation for what we are today. They saw first-hand the shop change from a small business to one of BC's premier bike shops. 

Say what you want about California being the birthplace of mountain biking, but we'd argue that North Shore had a significant hand in the start of 'real' mountain biking. There are few other places in the world with such a high concentration of pro riders, industry professionals, bike companies and amazing trails. It's not uncommon to bump into a pro mountain biker on any given ride out here and Scott and Tristan remember the days when those guys weren't on anyone's radar as the sport was growing.

A lot has changed since those days and it's fun to reminisce about those times. The North Shore has long been a global stage for the world's best riders and bikes, and even those of use that haven't lived here for that long remember the heyday of Cove Bikes, Banshee, Rocky mountain etc. and the ebb and flow of the bike industry. It's fun to hear about the local perspective and there's a lot we can learn about the local bike scene history from the ramblings of these guys, as well as some silly North Shore stories about #Philannel, The Dumpsters and Gaber. If you're a part of the North Shore mountain bike scene there's a ton of laughs in here, and even if you're not it makes for an entertaining listen!

More than anything else, Scott and Tristan paint a picture of the cameraderie that is Steed Cycles. Some things don't change and the people that work in bike shops always have one thing in common, and that's a love for bikes. We're lucky to always attract great people to the team here and one thing that hasn't changed is that we always have great times together.  Whether or not you know Scott and Tristan, it's worth taking the time to sit back and listen to some classic North Shore and Steed Cycles stories. Enjoy!

Thank you for listening 

• Get in touch with us via Steed Cycles or via our Instagram
• Hosted by Ash Kelly
• Produced by Sam James

Listen to other episodes here.