Weekly Video Roundup: Riding in North Korea, ‘Cross at Cascade Locks, Glady-ators, and more

Welcome to the weekly video roundup! It was a good and wild week for me- I went on a fantastic muddy ride last Sunday, there were tons of hikers, runners, and cyclists out despite the weather. Anyhow, here’s a great pile of vids to enjoy over the weekend. We’re starting with Brumotti, who never fails to entertain with his bike-handling. Notably, he shows some ways to avoid the gaps next to streetcar tracks.

Similar to the Brumotti, this video also shows skilled riding on jumps:

Speaking of skilled riding, this dusty MTB trail video is great. I like the music, but I also like the fluffy dirt. It reminds me of skiing in powder. There’s a bunch of talk about wheel building and how they tune it for the terrain:

I’ve been following Jaka Parker, who posts great video from North Korea. I don’t know how or why, since they control media and tourists so carefully. But it’s interesting to see a snippet of life. It’s ironic they are cycling on the sidewalk, given the relative lack of cars and the poor quality of the sidewalk.

I’ve been sharing trials videos in the past few weeks, this is the most action-packed recap of the Antwerp even that I’ve seen.

Wout Van Aert’s 17lb Colnago cross bike is pretty slick:

Related, cross champ Sven Nys gives tips for mounting/dismounting while racing CX.

Tri and TT bikes are weird looking, and the latest crop is very exotic. GCN’s weekly show goes through recent bikes and if they meet spec (this segment starts just after the 6 minute mark). There’s also talk of a Strava KOM with 71k riders on the boards.

The pro racers are put up in local hotels for races, especially stage races. It’s hard to get any sort of luxury when 200 cyclists plus huge support crews, fans, and journalists swarm on some small town. That means there are always stories about bad hotels and roommates:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbTBsiM3TUo

KymNonStop has been traveling and racing, she shows how to fit her bike into a “backpack”. It’s a lot easier with a gearless/brakeless bike. Pro tip: you can mark your seat height with a Sharpie. (bonus kitty cameos)

Road bikes are getting wider tires. They are supposed to actually be faster, and disc brakes have made it much easier. Here’s a nice overview of the topic: (also: overview on choosing the correct drop bars)

If you haven’t noticed, there’s fresh snow on the mountains. If you like to train through the winter, and train outdoors, here’s some helpful tips for doing so:

Racing

There’s a pile of great videos from local cross racing – here we go:

This is a fun video from the Glady-ators from the Cascade Locks races in the Cross Crusade. Great music and editing.

And the Cascade Locks venue inspired filmmaker Patrick Croasdaile to include an homage to native tribes in his fantastic edit:
https://vimeo.com/187608600

Here’s video of the same series from River City Bikes. It has great music and editing too:

Apparently I missed a video from RCB at the Alpenrose sessions of Cross Crusade. Here it is:

Also: BMC racing team talks about their success at the team time trial and about new BMC time trial bikes.

Local WTF moments

Up in the Southwest Hills towards Council Crest is a confusing intersection- though it’s unlikely drivers there are unfamiliar with it. This video shows a driver (of a Toyota, Oregon 301-GTF) who can’t wait their turn.

Elsewhere: people explaining why they ride with cameras

Honorable Mentions

This week’s honorable mentions: memorializing Dave Mirra (RAAM competitor among lots of other 2-wheeled sports, committed suicide this year), discussion about Curtis Keene’s Specialized Enduro 29 (worthwhile for the tool storage discussion alone), overview of hardtail mountain bike categories, inspiration and evolution of the Jones H-Bar, promotional vid for Giro della Donna, Australia, PBOT interviews about a new sidewalk constructed for Safe Routes To School in east Portland: a mom, the principal, how pros scrub jumps, and tips on riding safety and bike theft safety.

Inclusion criteria: If I’ve missed something, post it in the comments! I prefer videos published in the last week or so. Note if there’s a specific point in a long video that is worth highlighting. Also note if there is colorful language. I will delay videos containing pro racing spoilers by 7 days.

[Ted Timmons byline]