I’m always ready to take the road less traveled. It’s a trait that recently led me to gravel cycling, a catchall term to describe riding on a mix of unpaved surfaces — trails, fire roads, and singletrack, any of which might contain some loose or crushed rock and stone. Sure, sometimes that means I carry […]
Thinking about transitioning from road riding to gravel cycling? Join us in a fun conversation between Linda English (aka Gravel Girl and Executive Director of Dirty Freehub) and Kira Corbett (overall badass in cycling) as we talk about everything around the challenges and joys to making the switch from road to gravel. From route planning, what to expect in gravel, riding etiquette and gear. (Photo by Andrew Murray.)
Have you ever wondered what Central Oregon once was? Tropical Forests. Exploding volcanoes. Mudslides. Gigantic animals with names like Thunderbeast and Entelodonts. In this 20-minute video learn about this and a whole lot more!
Have you ever driven through Paisley, Oregon and noticed the advertisement for the Paisley Mosquito Festival? Is it really a festival about mosquitos? Today we talk with one of the festival’s organizers, Amy Davis, to learn about a festival that may very well involve mosquitoes. Sure would be fun to polish off the Milk and Honey gravel bike route and then head on over to the Mosquito Festival!
Mosquito Festival Website: https://paisleymosquitofes.wixsite.com/mosquitofest
Videographer Matt Cook takes us on a tour of Clear Lake, including under the surface where skeleton trunks of a millennia-old forest stand preserved in its frigid waters.
What were life and logging like along the McKenzie River in western Oregon in generations past? This picture history includes photos from the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The Deschutes River runs through the heart of Central Oregon. For the past century, the river has been managed to serve irrigation needs. This has had a negative impact on flows and the health of the river. Together with our community, the Deschutes River Conservancy is helping to change the story of the Deschutes River.
If you are a rockhound, watch this quick 2-minute video! In the tailings of the old Apex Mine, there are some beautiful rocks with blue Azurite and green Malachite.
WebCyclery, a bike shop in Bend, Oregon is celebrating their 25th anniversary. Let’s catch up with Owner, Kevin Gorman, as he talks about how it all began. What makes WebCyclery different and the story behind moving the shop into a former church. How has his family been involved in building the business and what is Kevin’s favorite Central Oregon gravel route.
This podcast is sponsored by the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund.
The Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge is one of the last remaining giant gold dredges in the US. In this 10-minute video learn a bit about the history, current status, and how the dredge worked.
What was life really like on the Oregon Trail? Learn about the risks and dangers of being on the trail, what a day in the life of a pioneer was like, and what equipment and supplies were used. This video is really worth 14 minutes of your time!
The Milky Way is a stainless steel sculpture that is located at Shevlin Park Road and Mt Washington Drive in Bend, Oregon. In this podcast, Pete Stein interviews Devin Field who was the artist behind this fun piece. Listen in as we learn about how the art was commissioned and then how we designed and built this sculpture. Also, The Milky Way is a lit sculpture; learn about why this is an important part of the art and the challenges to keeping it lit.
This podcast is sponsored by the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund.
One of our guiding principles at Dirty Freehub is “spend where your ride”. We think it is critically important that when you are visiting and riding in the backcountry that you spend some money in the local, supporting towns. That could be for gas, groceries, bike parts, a coffee, or a burger and beer. But […]
We all know it is important to spend where we ride and to support the local economy. But do all dollars spent have the same impact? In this podcast, we explore that premise with Thomas Barr, the Vice President of Business Development for Local First Arizona. Local First Arizona is a nonprofit working to build equitable systems for Arizona’s local businesses, those businesses that create a vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable Arizona economy. We think this is one of the most important podcasts we have recorded in the last 18 months. Give it a listen!
Riding on obscure Tuscon trails, we ran across amazing art that was created out of rocks carefully arranged in the sand to form very cool figures. A huge rabbit, a heart, a wolf howling in a moonlight, a horse, a hummingbird …. we also ran across the original artist, Karen Garno, who was busy working on her latest masterpiece. Listen in on this podcast as Gravel Girl interviews Karen. What inspires Karen to create her amazing art, how does she find all the rocks, and how did she get started. Creating this art is both an artistic and physical endeavor for this 78 year old.
The art is located in the Voyager trail network. You can find this awesome trail network by heading to the entrance of the Voyager RV Park . You’ll find a gate right across from the entrance with plenty of room to park. There are 16 works of art as we publish this podcast, along with over 30 miles of trails for you to ride. We will be publishing a route call Rock Art, so check back on the Dirty Freehub site to find it. But the trails are well marked so don’t be afraid to head out to the area without a route loaded.
