I pulled myself away from watching football on Sunday and watched a riveting Documentary of the TourDivide on the Documentary Channel.

It made my blood churn and yearn to do a similar adventure. Perhaps I will ride and not race it. I live in the Northwest and will ride the Montana section to get a sense of it.

The Tour Divide  is 2700 mile unsupported mountain bike race that courses from Banff, Alberta to Antelope Wells, NM on the Mexican boarder. Last years winner, Matthew Lee finished in 17 days and 16 hours. Unbelievable! There were 48 starters and 23 finishers. That race is indeed a heroic journey by good people who love to bike.

We just returned from the African Congo and saw the Project Rwanda bike in the Kigali airport. Saw another Project Rwanda bike by a grocery store in Kigali. It was being sold for $200US (that is a bargain).

Rwanda is a much more developed country than the Congo. We saw scores of bikes in Kigali and only a handful in Bukavu, Congo. Africa has great need for bicycles. The rural areas of Africa does not have the infrastructure to support vehicles and trucks. People can afford them either.

A bicycle in Africa is a means to transport food, water, and easier access to medical care and education. You can Google “bicycles for Africa” and find many organizations that find ways to get bicycles to Africa.

Earlier this year I ordered coffee from Wooden Bike Coffee that is supported by Project Rwanda. Here is the review: The coffee was good but not awesome. It seems to have been dried rather than roasted. It reminded in color and flavor to Folgers. Others tried it and liked it. I would recommend it as coffee, but I wouldn’t consider it exotic. The important thing is that is supports the development of a much needed economic engine in rural Rwanda. Order some and spread the word.

Watch this story. This story will make you believe that chance encounters may not be by chance.

A elderly cyclist has trouble getting out of his Look pedals and it changes lives forever. Watch it and weap and know that Bike is Good.

Paul Lebelle and Adam Burkowske are joining the movement to share the goodness of cycling with good kids. They started a non-profit called BikeFree (check out www.BikeFree.org). They intend to ride across the United States and raise money to buy bikes for Military children.

They share a similar vision with Bikes for Goodness Sake. In fact Bikes for Goodness and Bike is Good is honored to help them raise money and connect them with Raleigh bike shop on their journey. Click here to see their route. If they are coming to your city, please show your support.

Wel will be monitoring Paul and Adam’s progress and help them build support for their good cause.

I read this hilarious and personally damning column by The Bike Snob in the May issue of Bicycling (BTW Bicycling.com has to get in the current century on social media – I couldn’t get the article from their archives – that is crazy).

If your are like most cyclists I know, this article is probably talking about YOU!

We pass through many stages in our evolution as cyclists. First, we simply ride our bikes, grinning with joy and blissfully unaware of the mistakes we are making. Then, like Adam and Eve, we become self-aware. Our bliss turns to shame and our smiles disappear. This means we’re improving, and part of improving is learning what is “pro.”

Obsession with being pro usually begins shortly after you’ve replaced your shorts with bibs, and it ends when you actually become a pro cyclist, which is typically never. Pro includes maintaining a studied air of mild discomfort at all times while on your bike, wearing embrocation instead of tights and successfully urinating while riding.

Sadly, though, few people grasp that trying to  be pro is just a subtler form of what some might call “being a dork.” Take white cycling apparel, for example. Being paid to wear all white is pro; wearing it for free just means you’re a rain shower away from showing the group ride your ass.

Having a power meter or a coach is similarly un-pro. Whether it’s the SRM on Fabian Cancellara’s bike or the electric meter on your howwe, power needs to be measured only when money is changing hands. Otherwise, the label for a person who unnecessarily measures power with electronic is a “geek”. And hiring a coach when you’re not a pro is like hiring an accountant even though you’re exempt from paying income tax.

The truth is that much of what cyclists call “pro” is just an obsession with the tools of a trade. It’s like getting a bunch of professional dentist equipment, using it to brush your teeth and bragging about how you’re “so dental. Really, “pro” just means “cool”, and in both cases if you have to try to be it, you’re not. There’s nothing pro about urinating while riding if you have the luxury of getting off your bike. It’s cooler to stop and smell the roses – or relieve yourself on them.

Craig Calfee has been making composite bikes for years.  In this video he is helping Ghanan’s build bamboo bikes to carry heavy loads.   He mentions in the video that they can double their work output with a bike.  That means doubling one’s income.  Imagine what that can do for any economy.  It makes a massive impact on a third world economy.  Be Good and support good cyclists like Craig.

I was in San Diego for the Health and Fitness Convention called IHRSA.  There were two score stationary bike trainers on exhibit.  The designs and resistance mechanisms haven’t changed in decades.  Most try to differentiate themselves by some aesthetic tweaks and variations on the cycle computers to integrate. 

The best looking cycle was the Keiser M3.  It also had the best resistance control system that was integrated into the cycle computer.

But the innovation award goes to Real Ryder.  Like all the bikes it is stationary, but the Real Ryder is hinged so that it can float side-to-side.  This innovation makes for a more realistic riding sensation that also improves balance by taxing the riders’ core.  I rode it, like I rode most other trainers.  The Real Ryder didn’t have the cycle computer bells and whistles and wasn’t as sleek looking as the Keiser M3 .  However, the Real Ryder is hands down the best stationary bike trainer on the market.   Click on their link and watch the video, it will “rock” you word.  Their website isn’t all that useful, but it is great marketing piece.

Bike is Good will share with you good products that promote the goodness of cycling.  The people in this booth were great.

A bike shop in the UK is helps a baby named Jake.  Jake was born with a malformed heart.  The Bicycle Doctor bike shop helped Jake’s family with a fund raiser for the hospital that helped Jake.   The Bicycle Doctor organized a 24 Hour Mountain Bike Race they dubbed The Mountain Mayhem.

Bike is Good is a forum for advocating the Goodness of Cycling and the Goodwill of People who Love to Bike.  The Bicycle Doctor is a Bike Shop that  is run bysuch people.  Here is Jake’s Story.

Here is a good excuse to go to beautiful Vancouver.  The Lung Association is putting on a Bicycle Trek for Life and Breath.

You can survive three days without water, three weeks without food, but only three minutes without air. Yet most of us take breathing for granted. Most of us, but not the one in five British Columbians with lung disease.

By committing to raise $425 or more, and participating in our annual Bicycle Trek for Life and Breath, you will make a real difference in the fight against lung cancer, asthma, emphysema, air pollution and tobacco.

Join in, see some of the most breathtaking landscapes in North America, say thanks to the Canucks for a great Olympics, and do some bicycle goodness.

I was in San Diego last week and learned (thru the San Diego Union-Tribune) about Bill Irwin’s Charity Ride across the United States that benefits the Torrey Pines Rotary Club Foundation.

Bill aims to do some Bike is Good Goodness by riding nearly 2500 miles and raise $10 per mile over 42 days of cycling.

Click on the Torrey Pines link above and you can contribute to the good cause.  If Bill rides through your town, give him a cheer and an Andrew Jackson.

Bill, if you read this, let us know and we will send you some Bike is Good gear for all your Goodness.

If you are doing a charity event, let us know and we will help share the bike goodness.