Weekly Cyco Gallery: Issue #7

Ohio, Arizona, Illinois

Hello everyone, and welcome to another edition of Weekly Cyco Gallery.

I trust you all have had a nice week, full of Thanksgiving eating and being merry with friends and family. And if you don’t celebrate the holiday, I hope you were able to find a moment or two to be grateful for the things that matter in your life.

Last week, you all voted on Mickey Gilbert’s pink Surly Troll with 2.75 Dirt Wizard tires and pink cable housing.

I asked her to provide a little more context for the photo. Here’s what she said:

“I was camping at Blackwater Falls State Park in West Virginia and thought the Surly would do well on the dirt trails. The bike and tires worked great but I lack the skills needed to ride a lot of it.

“Blackwater Falls is a beautiful area with tons of hiking and cycling adventures.  The campground was nice but a little rustic. I didn't mind since it is all part of the adventure. I generally rode the Troll on easier mountain bike trails such as Findley State Park — the bike was fun to ride.

“The bike was originally purchased for bike packing trips and loaded touring, it was great except it was heavy since it's a steel frame. I changed out the black cables to pink and put on drop bars with (Shimano Total Integration) shifters.  It turned out nice and the pink pedals are either SPD or flat so I had the option of clipping in or playing it safe. Once I decided to do the Bike Nonstop race I sold the Troll since I needed to get a true gravel bike. The Troll collected dust for two years before I decided it was time to find him a new home.”

Gilbert is a beast of a rider. I first met her over the phone. She called me from a small town in Missouri earlier this year to talk about her participation in the Bike Nonstop U.S. race, a 3,500-mile trek across the country.

Unfortunately, her ride ended early when she had a nasty spill in Pennsylvania’s Allegheny Mountains that broke her femur. She was 276 miles away from the finish line in Washington, D.C.

The race director has allowed her to stay in the race, and she’s determined to finish once she’s gained back the strength.

Mickey, thanks for the photo submission. Best wishes in your recovery!

This week, we have photos from Max, John, Nelson. Thanks guys.

Mohican State Park, Ohio; Nov. 23, 2022. Pictured: 2023 Norco Optic resting against a tree on a recent trip through the woods. Photographer: Max Latham.

McDowell Mountain Regional Park, Arizona; Circa December 2006. Pictured: A red Trek Sugar nicknamed Waldo resting against a boulder. Photographer: John Mumaw.

Charles Mill Lake, Ohio; Dec. 5, 2021. Pictured: A 2008 Diamondback Insight equipped with Kenda gravel tires for snow. Photographer: Nelson Shogren.

Somewhere in Chicago, Illinois; April 2016. Pictured: A group of blue Divy rental commuter bikes waiting to be used. Photographer: Michael Jarosick.

That’s all for now folks. Thank you for participating and for voting.

If you have any bikies collecting virtual dust on your phone, send them my way so they get featured on the Weekly Cyco Gallery. You can send them to brazdill.25@gmail.com. Make sure you include details like: year, make and model of the bike (if you know it), and where in the world you were when you took it.

P.S. Stay tuned for Wednesday’s post, when I’ll announce the launching of a new series on Cycotherapy. It’s gonna be awesome.

P.P.S Just because I’m excited about it, I wanna let you in on a secret: Cycotherapy has its very own sticker now! I’ll likely write a longer something about this soon, but consider yourself rewarded for reading to the end. These are available to buy for $3.