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I wondered if I was ever going to ride my bike again. This is a happy post. It really is. But honestly, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get to...
It’s hard to ride very far in November in Roanoke. It’s just too cold. Sure you get the odd day when it’s not — and we all take advantage of...
A bike ride to fight Human Trafficking. 424 stands for the low price to buy a young girl being trafficked in Thailand and surrounding countries. Translated, it means you can...
Classics like the Blue Ridge Parkway and my Waterford bicycle belong together The dogwood leaves are beginning to turn. They are always among the first along the Parkway. Everything else...
It’s not easy to get to Paint Bank, Virginia. In fact, you pretty much have to be headed there if you want to be there, but it’s worth a purposeful...
The annual Burke’s Garden Century and Metric Century are a tradition in Virginia’s New River Valley. I rode in the event for the first time this year, and though I...
There is a reason the Going to the Sun Road should be on every cyclist’s bucket list. Bags out at 6:10 am. That was the mandate from the Backroads trip...
An Adventure in Glacier National Park Glacier National Park (Carlinthecyclist.com) Since I live in the mountains of Southwest Virginia, John Muir’s famous line, “The mountains are calling and I must...
If there is already another popular loop in the Roanoke area called Twin Peaks, tell me now — but this seems like the perfect name for this amazing loop. I...
Rows of Corn, Rows of Bikes I had forgotten how amazing Franklin County’s (Virginia) roads are for cycling, but the second annual Roll Over Cancer ride offered a great reminder....
Spring Summits The Blue Ridge Bicycle Club is onto something. This spring the club launched the Spring Summits Challenge. This completer vs. “competer” take on cycling achievement is perfect for...
What is a Schwinn apologist? It’s a guy who rides a good bike that everyone else thinks is something less. And he knows it. Call me a Schwinn apologist. I’m...
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About me
John Carlin
I ride mountain, road and gravel bikes in the rugged country surrounding my home in Roanoke, Va. Photography, video editing, writing, and social media are sources of enjoyment for me, so this blog is really a guilty pleasure. According to Strava (and most group rides!) I'm an intermediate cyclist. My bikes include a 1996 Waterford steel road bike. Off road, it's a Cannondale Trigger 3. My Gravel bike is a Fuji Jari. Like most of you, I'm always dreaming about the next bike to join the stable. So many bikes, so little time.
Please follow me on Strava.