Cross training and running go together like peanut butter and jelly. If you build it into your schedule intentionally, strategically, and with a clear understanding of what you're trying to accomplish, you'll thrive. Megan makes the case that cross-training serves runners for several distinct reasons, and the right reason for you will shape how you approach it.
The 32" tire started with a simple concept. Can it make top level XC racers faster in a real race situation? Our short tests have been pretty inconclusive. From what we've heard, it feels a tiny bit slower, yet it is incrementally quicker. That's great for an elite racer, but less so for my relatively slow rides.
Start with the tires and chain. Is your chain cleaned and lubed? Is the sealant in your tubeless tires good to go? If not, refresh both. Pop your bike in a stand like the Feedback Sports Pro Mechanic or Sport Mechanic 2.0, confirming that it's shifting correctly and brakes are functioning properly before embarking on any significant cycling journey.
Batch aims to repeat the process, now in the gravel corner of the industry. Now, surely, these new gravel offerings won't completely knock your socks off, but that isn't Batch's intention. However, will they get new riders out on two wheels without the incredible cost barrier? Absolutely.
Yes-you can buy a quality bike on Amazon, if you choose the right bike type, avoid "too-cheap-to-be-true" builds, and buy from a brand with real support. Amazon isn't the problem. Bad components, poor sizing choices, and bargain-bin bikes are the problem.
Quick Take: For this post, stacking means two rides in one day-morning and evening-so I practice riding when I'm not perfectly fresh. It prepares me for 7 straight days of touring without destroying myself in training. I'm training for a 7-day, 470-mile Mississippi River tour where the real test isn't day one-it's day five. By then your legs have opinions, your energy fluctuates, and your mind starts negotiating.
I had trained for a full year to complete a self-supported bicycle tour from San Diego to Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was meant to be the next-to-last chapter in my coast-to-coast cycling journey - one more long stretch of road before the final piece fell into place. Thirty-four miles into the ride, it was over. A microfiber towel caught in my derailleur. A fluke. One of those things you never plan for and still struggle to explain afterward.
While most modern competitions recruit riders with similar skillsets and design courses to suit them, Natural Selection flips the script. By drawing riders from a wide range of backgrounds, NST creates a format that values creativity and individuality as much as technical execution. It is one of the few competitions where the structure of the contest comes secondary to the riders themselves.
Try as we might, it's not always easy to keep up with it all, and sometimes, it can be a challenge to give everything the attention it deserves. In our new Shifting Gear series (see what we did there?), we'll be highlighting products that have just arrived, we're excited to try out, or that we're particularly stoked to tell you about but haven't had a chance to review yet.