The Pull

By The Cycling Independent

What's The Pull about?

The Pull is a podcast devoted to one-on-one interviews with artisans about their craft.

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The Pull episodes:

12.20.2023
Paceline Tandem: Fitting the Pros with Cyclefit’s Julian Wall
You don’t know Julian Wall. You’ve never heard of him. But if you’ve watched pro racing over the last decade plus, then you’ve seen his work. Not only is he co-director of London’s Cyclefit, one of the premier fit studios...
02.06.2020
The Pull: Bryan Hollingsworth, Royal H Cycles
Of the many builders I’ve met over the years, I don’t think I’ve met any with a more unusual background. Bryan Hollingsworth is a New Englander who cut his teeth working for Seven Cycles. He may be the only builder...
11.28.2019
The Pull: Frame Builder Mark Nobilette
Of the many frame builder who can capably be called masters of the craft, it is distinctly possible that no one has been at the bench longer than Mark Nobilette. His credentials are impeccable. He was trained by Albert Eisentraut...
10.24.2019
The Pull: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part II
In this second part of my interview with Toby Stanton, we discuss his team of juniors and what the ingredients are that has made the team so incredibly and consistently successful. Hot Tubes riders and stars and stripes jerseys are...
10.17.2019
#52: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part I
I first met Toby Stanton at a mountain bike race in 1991. He was coaching a team that included future cyclocross supahstah (this was in Massachusetts, mind you) Jonathan Page and their kits were white with red, yellow and blue...
10.16.2019
The Pull: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part I
I first met Toby Stanton at a mountain bike race in 1991. He was coaching a team that included future cyclocross supahstah (this was in Massachusetts, mind you) Jonathan Page and their kits were white with red, yellow and blue...
09.11.2019
The Pull: David Wages of Ellis Cycles
My guest today is frame builder David Wages of Ellis Cycles. There was a time when the most common career path for a frame builder was to put in solid years building bikes for a brand that sold bikes in...
09.04.2019
The Pull: Steven Kotler, Author and Flow State Expert
This week my guest is writer and flow state expert Steven Kotler. Kotler is a New York Times-bestselling author known for his work decoding the neurochemistry of flow. What began as a series of articles for Discover Magazine led to...
08.29.2019
The Pull: Austin McInerny (ex) of NICA
My guest this week is the former executive director of the National Interscholastic Cycling Association, the organization that oversees, administers and fosters mountain bike racing for high school kids. McInerny has been involved with the organization almost since its inception...
08.21.2019
The Pull: Sports Psychologist Dr. Kristin Keim
This week my guest is sports psychologist Dr. Kristin Keim. Keim came to my attention several years ago when I began to see her posts on social media reshared by friends of mine in the bike racing world. Her posts...
08.17.2019
#47: Sociologist Ben Brewer
This week I’m taking a slightly different tack and am interviewing an academic. My guest is sociologist Ben Brewer of James Madison University. Brewer picked up the cycling bug in the 1980s as a teenager and had the good sense...
08.16.2019
The Pull: Sociologist Ben Brewer
This week I’m taking a slightly different tack and am interviewing an academic. My guest is sociologist Ben Brewer of James Madison University. Brewer picked up the cycling bug in the 1980s as a teenager and had the good sense...
07.31.2019
The Pull: Mike Desalvo of Desalvo Custom Cycles
My guest this week is frame builder Mike Desalvo of Desalvo Custom Cycles. Desalvo is part of what I refer to as the second generation of American builders, those craftsmen who got their start as builders in the 1990s. Many...
07.24.2019
The Pull: Rudi Jung, Black Magic Paint
My guest this week is painter Rudi Jung of Black Magic Paint. Jung caught my eye in 2017 with a frame he painted for Chris Bishop. It was a mostly black frame and fork, but had a red-orange-yellow fade through...
07.17.2019
The Pull: Frank Wadleton, aka Frank the Welder
My guest this week is frame builder Frank Wadleton, better known in the industry as Frank the Welder. Wadleton, or FTW as he was often referred to, was a household name to mountain bike action readers back in the late...
07.11.2019
The Pull: Ryan Johnson of Galaxy Gearworks
My guest this week is someone that you likely haven’t heard of before. His name is Ryan Johnson, but his resume is arguably one of the most interesting I’ve come across in the bike industry. For anyone who wants to...
06.27.2019
#43: Remembering Bruce Gordon
This week our show is an appreciation of frame builder Bruce Gordon who passed away June 7th at the age of 71. Gordon was one of the most experienced and talented frame builders ever to pick up a torch. He...
06.20.2019
#41: Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster, Part II
First up, thanks for enduring this several-week break due to my travels. I would have loved to get an episode squeezed in there somehow, but today’s show required a fair bit of tending to create; it wasn’t the simple conversation...
05.22.2019
#40: Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster, Part I
My guest this week is Santa Cruz-based builder Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster Cycles. I first encountered Rock Lobsters in the late 1980s when mountain biking was exploding. It was only later that I learned just how accomplished Sadoff was...
05.09.2019
#39: Remembering Roland Della Santa
This week, I’m devoting the show to frame builder Roland Della Santa who passed away last weekend at the age of 72. Della Santa is most famous for helping to launch Greg LeMond into bike racing; one of the earliest...
05.01.2019
#38: Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles, Part II
In the second part of my interview with Tom Kellogg, we begin with a discussion of geometry for track bikes, and while this subject may not seem super-compelling on its face, it brings in a very interesting discussion of position,...
04.24.2019
#37: Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles
This week my guest is Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles. Kellogg’s career in the bike industry spans more than 40 years and includes relationships with brands like Merlin, American Bicycle Group and Time. His bikes have won more dozens of...
04.17.2019
#36: Steve Rex of Rex Cycles
This week my guest is frame builder Steve Rex. Back in 1997 I moved to Redondo Beach, Calif., and began doing the local group rides. There was a guy on that ride who wasn’t on a Trek, Specialized or any...
04.03.2019
#35: Bryce Gracey of No. 22 Bicycles
No. 22 is a newcomer on the custom bike scene. The company was founded in 2012 by Bryce Gracey and Mike Smith on the idea that titanium just rides better. After working with a couple of different contract shops that...
03.27.2019
#34: Nick Crumpton
This week my guest is frame builder Nick Crumpton. We may be in the golden age of frame building thanks to the fact that some of the finest steel frames ever produced are being built today. That didn’t stop Nick...
03.06.2019
The Pull: Aaron Barcheck of Mosaic Cycles
To hear Aaron Barcheck tell it, he wasn't even planning to be a frame builder when he went to UBI to take their titanium frame building class. He definitely wasn't thinking of starting a brand. But after finishing the class...
02.28.2019
#32: Curtis Inglis of Inglis and Retrotec Cycles
In the annals of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show few builders have been as celebrated as Curtis Inglis, the man behind Inglis Cycles and Retrotec. Inglis has taken awards home more than a half dozen times from the show,...
02.21.2019
#31: Brad Devaney of Litespeed Bicycles
My history with Brad Devaney goes back more than 30 years to Memphis, Tennessee, when we were both students at the University of Memphis and working as wrenches for the Peddler Bike Shop. Even then, Brad was impressive. His work...
02.14.2019
Cory Hibbard and Sarah App of Pearl Izumi
This week I’ve got a twofer for you. I’m interviewing two people responsible for creating new clothing for Pearl Izumi. Cory Hibbard is an apparel designer who has worked on a variety of products, from their BikeStyle line of casual...
02.07.2019
#29: Steve Hampsten, Hampsten Cycles
This week, my guest is Steve Hampsten, the man behind Hampsten Cycles. While Hampsten Cycles may draw its fame from Steve’s brother Andy, the only American winner of the Giro d’Italia and Tour de Suisse, Steve has been in the...
01.30.2019
#28: Brian Vernor, Part II
In the second part of my conversation with photographer Brian Vernor, we talk about storytelling through photography as well as photography when it is in service to a written feature. We also discuss the difference between commercial work and editorial...
01.23.2019
#27: Brian Vernor, Part I
On this week’s show, my guest is photographer, writer and filmmaker Brian Vernor. For many cycling aficionados, Brian Vernor came to prominence as a result of his work with Rapha here in the U.S. His photography seemed to capture the...
01.16.2019
#26: Dave Kirk, Part II
In the second part of my interview with veteran framebuilder Dave Kirk, we talk about the last phase of his career with Serotta, and then his move west to Bozeman, Montana, where he opened his own shop. This interview takes...
01.12.2019
#25: Dave Kirk, Part I
On this week’s show, my guest is Dave Kirk, the man behind Kirk Frameworks. The path to becoming a skilled framebuilder isn't set. I've met masters who apprenticed under legends. I've met geniuses who chafed under menial tasks at big...
12.14.2018
#24: Jeremy SyCip
Jeremy SyCip is a real-life fantasy. He began college with an eye toward industrial design but quickly realized he wanted to be more hands-on. So he took a course in framebuilding at United Bicycle Institute. His teacher for the class?...
12.05.2018
#23: Carl Strong, Part II
On this week's episode, I continue my conversation with Carl Strong. Strong is unusual among framebuilders in that he has constructed bikes in every mainstream material being used in high-performance bikes: steel, aluminum, titanium and now carbon fiber in his...
11.29.2018
#22: Carl Strong, Part I
On this week’s show, my guest is frame builder Carl Strong. The Bozeman, Montana-based builder behind Strong Frames is best known for the titanium road and gravel frames he makes from titanium, something he’s been doing for more than 20...
10.27.2018
#21: Peter Flax
On this week’s show, my guest is writer and editor Peter Flax. Flax was features editor for the Hollywood Reporter. Flax is also a contributor to CyclingTips where he writes on a wide range of cycling culture topics. He is...
10.17.2018
#20: Rebecca Rusch
Rebecca Rusch has what may be the ultimate nickname not just for a cyclist, but for any endurance athlete. She’s known as the Queen of Pain. And she has more than earned that nickname. She has won the Leadville 100...
09.27.2018
#19: Mike Ferrentino
On this week’s show, my guest is Mike Ferrentino. In the early 1990s Ferrentino rose to national prominence with the launch of Bike Magazine and his column the Grimy Handshake. Since then, Ferrentino has gone on to help found the...
09.13.2018
#18: Erik Noren of Peacock Groove, Part II
On this week’s show, we continue our conversation with Erik Noren of Peacock Groove. Last week we talked about some of Noren’s signature creations like his Evil Dead bike and his Appetite for Destruction bike. While those works generated some...
09.06.2018
#17: Erik Noren of Peacock Groove, Part I
Among the many builders I’ve interviewed in my career, I can say that Erik Noren is truly unique. In a room full of unusual cats, he still manages to stand alone. This episode, and the next, because honestly, the conversation...
08.30.2018
#16: Dario Pegoretti Remembered
On this week’s show we remember frame builder Dario Pegoretti who died last week at the age of 62. Pegoretti rose to prominence in the 1990s as a contract builder who provided custom frames for professional racers painted to look...
08.22.2018
The Pull: Sam Pickman of Allied Cycle Works
The emergence of Allied Cycle Works, is notable as much for the quality of the carbon fiber bicycles they make as where they make them. At a time when all of the major bike makers produce their carbon fiber bikes...
08.15.2018
The Pull: Gary Fisher
Few people can claim to be as inextricably linked with the birth of mountain biking as Gary Fisher. His company MountainBikes produced what were arguably the very first production mountain bikes, before he went on to found Gary Fisher Bikes,...
08.10.2018
The Pull: Mark DiNucci, Part II
In Part II of my conversation with Mark DiNucci, we discuss some of the work he has done as an engineer working on contract for other manufacturers, like SAPA and Evil. We go into greater depth about his building today,...
08.03.2018
The Pull: Mark DiNucci
If you wanted to find the American who made the most profound impact on the ride of steel road bikes in the last 30 years, it would be hard to find a person more influential than Mark DiNucci. As an...
07.25.2018
The Pull: Nick Legan
On this week’s show, my guest is Nick Legan, the author of Gravel Cycling, from VeloPress. Legan has one of the more varied backgrounds I’ve encountered in cycling. He began his career as a race mechanic, first working for Slipstream...
07.18.2018
The Pull: James Winchester
On this week’s show, my guest is James Winchester, the product manager for Masi Bicycles. The role of a product manager at a bike company is, perhaps, one of the most visible expressions of what it is to work for...
07.11.2018
The Pull: Lennard Zinn
On this week’s show, my guest is Lennard Zinn, whose book, Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance, has just been released in its sixth edition by VeloPress. Zinn is best known for his work as technical editor for...

What's The Pull about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

The Pull episodes:

Paceline Tandem: Fitting the Pros with Cyclefit’s Julian Wall

The Pull: Bryan Hollingsworth, Royal H Cycles

The Pull: Frame Builder Mark Nobilette

The Pull: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part II

#52: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part I

The Pull: Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes, Part I

The Pull: David Wages of Ellis Cycles

The Pull: Steven Kotler, Author and Flow State Expert

The Pull: Austin McInerny (ex) of NICA

The Pull: Sports Psychologist Dr. Kristin Keim

#47: Sociologist Ben Brewer

The Pull: Sociologist Ben Brewer

The Pull: Mike Desalvo of Desalvo Custom Cycles

The Pull: Rudi Jung, Black Magic Paint

The Pull: Frank Wadleton, aka Frank the Welder

The Pull: Ryan Johnson of Galaxy Gearworks

#43: Remembering Bruce Gordon

#41: Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster, Part II

#40: Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster, Part I

#39: Remembering Roland Della Santa

#38: Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles, Part II

#37: Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles

#36: Steve Rex of Rex Cycles

#35: Bryce Gracey of No. 22 Bicycles

#34: Nick Crumpton

The Pull: Aaron Barcheck of Mosaic Cycles

#32: Curtis Inglis of Inglis and Retrotec Cycles

#31: Brad Devaney of Litespeed Bicycles

Cory Hibbard and Sarah App of Pearl Izumi

#29: Steve Hampsten, Hampsten Cycles

#28: Brian Vernor, Part II

#27: Brian Vernor, Part I

#26: Dave Kirk, Part II

#25: Dave Kirk, Part I

#24: Jeremy SyCip

#23: Carl Strong, Part II

#22: Carl Strong, Part I

#21: Peter Flax

#20: Rebecca Rusch

#19: Mike Ferrentino

#18: Erik Noren of Peacock Groove, Part II

#17: Erik Noren of Peacock Groove, Part I

#16: Dario Pegoretti Remembered

The Pull: Sam Pickman of Allied Cycle Works

The Pull: Gary Fisher

The Pull: Mark DiNucci, Part II

The Pull: Mark DiNucci

The Pull: Nick Legan

The Pull: James Winchester

The Pull: Lennard Zinn