The Radavist

In February, legendary ultra-endurance cyclist Lael Wilcox, Joe Cruz, and the filmmaker Rugile Kaladyte traveled to the Colombian capital of Bogota, in partnership with Conservation International, Wahoo, and Bikepacking.com, to launch the Bikepacking for Conservation Program. The project was designed to explore and scout a bikepacking route that would connect the bustling metropolis of Bogota with rural communities and the Chingaza National Park. The resulting route — Ruta Chingaza — will help cyclists connect to nature and better understand the ecosystems upon which life and livelihoods in this area depend.

Film shot and edited by Rugile Kaladyte

Today is full of inspirational gravel videos! The latest from Shimano sheds light on Colombia, a country known for its coffee and amazing road riding but as this video showcases, the dirt ain’t bad either! Check out the video above and read the full feature at Shimano.

BMX twins Lizsurley and Queensaray prove to be ‘2 in a million’ as they work their way up from local freestylers to olympic hopefuls despite their lack of training infrastructure and resources.

Custom bikes with custom paint are one thing but the work of Richard Diebenkorn is on another level. Scarab Cycles is based in the Andes Mountains of Colombia, where cycling is taken very seriously! I found this story behind their RAUCH paint job on the Santa Rosa road model very interesting.

SC: What did you want the paint scheme to be based on? Why?

JR: …I had been kicking around the idea of a bike interpretation of “Ocean Park #79” by Richard Diebenkorn, and once I floated the idea by the team some additional inspiration started to bubble up, namely Omar Rayo’s geometric work. For a Colombian-made frame that was going to live in the California hills, the conversation around incorporating elements around these two artists seemed a natural fit.

Check out the full bike and interview at Scarab Cycles.

This teaser has me hooked for the full-length video.

I don’t know how I missed this but as a photographer, if you enjoy shooting photos of cycling as well, I highly recommend this video. Thanks for the heads up, Tracko!

Agustin Hincapie is the last remaining bike framebuilder in Colombia, where he builds under the name Tinno. Great video, Klaus!

There’s a great piece on the younger Colombian cycling teams up on Manual for Speed that’s well worth the click-through. The Colombians take cycling very seriously and this first piece by MFS barely scratches the surface…

“Because in Colombia, we’re into pedaling / We’re so good, that even Colombian cycling fans and amateurs / Could easily compete with the world’s best cyclists”

—El Lider by Diomedes Diaz

Manual for Speed