TD4 – Rodeo Adventure Labs, LLC

BWR Arizona – a sick day for a sick day

I am a big believer in the seasons of life. We all have sequences where things happen to us in cyclical ways. And I am not just talking about birthdays, anniversaries or holidays. I am talking about the less definite moments, feelings and vibrations which come rolling around year after year.

I have a couple of these signifiers, but the most reliable one is getting colds in February or March. Without fail, it chases me down and gets me as the window of winter starts to shut.

I thought I could maybe get away from it living here in sunny Arizona, which I have called home since August. Yet, Thursday morning as I woke up two days before what was my first gravel race of the year at BWR Arizona, I was a prisoner of the season once again with a sore throat, congestion clogging me up, and a quickly building sense of disappointment that it has happened again.

The cold built through Thursday and Friday morning was not much better. I went through as many cold medication options as I could, checked my temperature often, and monitored my lungs for a buildup of congestion. I skipped a ride Thursday and did an easy recon ride on Friday, keeping my power well below the normal pre-racing engine revving I like to do. Yet still heading to sleep Friday night before the race, I didn’t know if I would take to the start in the morning. Sickness, I have learned, is not something you can bully your way through in bike racing.

When the alarm rang at 5:00 AM Saturday, thankfully, I felt immediate relief. My symptoms weren’t worse, they were the same. That’s all I needed to take a stab at it. And oh boy, am I glad I did! In retrospect, BWR Arizona was a sick day for a sick day and it is the perfect building block for the season to come.

Preparation

At 5:00 AM, the harsh buzz of my phone alarm shakes me awake. The temptation to hit snooze is real, especially knowing the comfort of 15 more minutes in bed. But I remind myself of the reward: another episode of The Sopranos, my new trainer session companion. I shimmy into my bibs and socks, letting the compression stir some circulation. My spare bike is already set up on the trainer, making it easy to slide on my shoes, swing a leg over, and press play. Last winter, I binged Six Feet Under, diving into its poignant storytelling of a family funeral home swirling in chaos. The characters were so maddeningly flawed that they became magnetic, drawing me into their world episode after episode. This winter, The Sopranos has muscled its way onto my training regimen, using classic Mafia tactics—charm and intimidation. Widely acclaimed as one of the greatest shows ever made, it was simply a show I couldn’t refuse. Tony’s relentless pursuit of control in a chaotic world feels familiar. Each episode is a reminder that life is often a balancing act between ambition and the forces that threaten to unravel it.

Foreign – Luke’s Traka Adventure

2 AM, on Sunday Morning and I’m in a Boeing at over 35,000 ft in the air. Sorry, over 11,000m in the air. When competing outside of these United States, we will use the metric system, like the rest of the civilized world. But I refuse to be some proselytizing Metric Snob just because I have been to Europe once. As soon as I cross that border, that Wahoo returns to miles and I’ll be referring to my beverages in “fluid ounces” and calling French fries by their true name, freedom fries.

Adventure Gravel Bike Luke Hall Rodeo Labs Traka

Mid South: a Heaven fit for the Talking Heads

Mid South is the type of Heaven the Talking Heads always imagined. Here is why:

Gravel Bike Gravel Race Mid South Rodeo Labs

A Season of Lessons, Pt II

Summarizing a 10-month season of racing is complicated, but in an effort to take you all along with me through 2023, I’m going to try. Events like Mid South in mid-March now seem so distant compared to the more recent sweltering heat of Foco Fondo in July. Now it’s December, and I’m deep into prepping miles for the 2024 season. My brain wanders while on the trainer: What is it that defines a season as a success or a failure? Is it really either-or, or is it neither-nor?

Colorado Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs traildonkey

Four improvements with TD4

Bike brands spend a lot of time obsessing over details that distinguish their product from others. They hire PR firms, bring in R&D to discuss and verify the finer points. They hire athletes to say they ride faster because my gear is better than other peoples, or something close to that. Comparison is important in a market place of ideas and products, after all.

Adventure Colorado Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs Trail donkey review traildonkey

A Season of Lessons Pt 1

For the last 10 months, I have been racing professionally in CA, AZ, OK, CO, NE, KS, and AR. My TrailDonkey tells the story of long, dusty miles and many lessons learned. This is the first year I have raced full-time and it has been an enlightening experience. More than a tool for fitness, a bicycle is a teacher. The lessons are usually tough and sometimes take more than one confrontation with challenges. I entered the season wanting to dive deeper into the sport than ever. Over the season, I’ve grown as an athlete physically, mentally, and professionally. I’d like to share some of the things I’ve learned so far in 2023. I can’t wait to see what new lessons the next season will teach me.

Robididn’t: Open Range Tornados

I experienced a wide range of emotions after standing on the podium at Unbound. Climbing up there and fulfilling a long journey of hard work and sacrifice filled me with elation. However, it also left me with a lingering question of “what’s next?” The following four days were mostly filled with snacking and sleeping as I basked in achieving my biggest goal of the year, only touching the bike to clean it.

Colorado Cowtown Gravel Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs traildonkey

Naked means Naked with TD4.

Traildonkey 4, TD4, Naked unidirectional carbon fiber,

We’ve offered “Naked” frames at Rodeo for a long time, but naked has never really meant NAKED, because practically speaking carbon bikes are often not precise enough to show in their naked state. There are almost always small aberrations and flaws in a frame once it leaves the mold, Those are mostly covered with putty and then paint. Some sections of the weave or layup come out smooth and those may be clear coated, but very few bike companies will offer their frame in its visually naked state because clear coat doesn’t only show the beauty of carbon fiber, it also shows the abnormalities.

Gravel Bike traildonkey Uni Directional

TD4 production / delivery update

Its been five months since we announced Traildonkey 4.0 (TD4) at Philly Bike Expo. The response that the bike received and continues to receive from our community and customers has been thrilling to all of us here in Denver who have been at the genesis of its creation.

Gravel Bike TD4