Bike Shop Life

So... It's been over 2 years since my last episode. I've been busy riding the roller coaster of the Bike Shop Life... Boom. Bust. We. Are. Still. Here. The show must go on. So much has happened. I run through some of it and get you-all caught up on what we've been up to. Expansion. Closing a store. It's been a wild ride. Most of which I did not want to re-live through podcasting, lol. But here we are. Going to give it a go once again and make you-all some content!Thanks for tuning in!Intro/Outro: Little acoustic ditty I've been working on for way too long. Like maybe 2009? Some day it'll be a song. For now its still a work in progress. 

Cross in the Park is our (Campus WheelWorks/Campus Cycling Collective, Inc.) biggest event of the year. Cross in the Park 2021 is this coming Sunday September 19th. I had been fielding many questions regarding our race, cross races in general, and USA Cycling / Bikereg.com related questions. I decided to answer as many of them as I could in one place... here. This is also my annual ringing of the cow bell to get people off the side lines and onto the starting line. Cyclocross is the best discipline of cycling to begin at, and it's pretty great to be ok at... Come join me. Thanks for tuning in! Intro/Outro: DIRT WAR "C.P.S." off of their album Loss. DIRT WAR was a Buffalo band consisting of one former and one current co-worker. 3/4 members are cyclists. Seemed only fitting I include them on this episode as they have helped make this race happen in the past. Check them out at https://dirtwar716.bandcamp.com/album/lossCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Part three of this saga is the event solely from my perspective. This episode includes all the live audio I recorded while on the route. It captures a bit of the emotion and sounds of walking riding or flying down dirt roads, moments of clarity, moments of insanity. I hope you enjoy this third and final part from our adventures on the Catskill Bike Packing Route. From the New York State Adventure Racing Association's website: “This self supported bikepacking route is not a race.  There is no entry fee, no starting gun, and no cheering finish line.  The 250+ mile route circumnavigates the Catskill mountains while climbing over 25,000 vertical feet.  On this route you will find all types of terrain: smooth paved road, flowing single track descents and gnarly hike-a-bike.  For the fit and experienced bikepacker, this route is intended to be completed in about 3 days. Additional time would be needed for those who plan to travel more slowly, or at a touring pace.” (It's definitely a race).Thanks for tuning in!Intro/Outro: Trystero: Conception Apparatus. Trystero was my last band I was in this was off our final ep "The Cold Machines" released at our last show in 2010. This album and more are available at: https://trystero716.bandcamp.com/album/the-cold-machinesCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

We went, we saw, some of us conquered and some of us were conquered... Welcome to the aftermath interview of our attempt of the Catskill Bikepacking Route. Please enjoy our stories of triumph and tribulation. From their website: “This self supported bikepacking route is not a race.  There is no entry fee, no starting gun, and no cheering finish line.  The 250+ mile route circumnavigates the Catskill mountains while climbing over 25,000 vertical feet.  On this route you will find all types of terrain: smooth paved road, flowing singletrack descents and gnarly hike-a-bike.  For the fit and experienced bikepacker, this route is intended to be completed in about 3 days. Additional time would be needed for those who plan to travel more slowly, or at a touring pace.” (It's definitely a race).Thanks for tuning in!Intro/Outro: Sonorous Gale: Let Your Darkness Shine. Sonorous Gale was one of my favorite Buffalo bands to watch and play with. They were a two piece consisting of Aaron Weese on bass and Steve Kerfien on drums (two of my longest Buffalo friends). Two dudes, big sound. This album and more are available at: https://sonorousgale.bandcamp.com/album/twos-a-crowdCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

5 guys from Buffalo are traveling to the Catskill Mountians this Friday (June 11th) to attempt the Catskill Bikepacking Route. I gathered them around a table and had a little before interview. I hope you enjoy it. We will be following up a week after the event for part 2 The Aftermath... From their website: “This self supported bikepacking route is not a race.  There is no entry fee, no starting gun, and no cheering finish line.  The 250+ mile route circumnavigates the Catskill mountains while climbing over 25,000 vertical feet.  On this route you will find all types of terrain: smooth paved road, flowing singletrack descents and gnarly hike-a-bike.  For the fit and experienced bikepacker, this route is intended to be completed in about 3 days. Additional time would be needed for those who plan to travel more slowly, or at a touring pace.” (It's definitely a race).For those interested in following along at home you may do so at: http://trackleaders.com/catskill21fThanks for tuning in! Intro/Outro: Sonorous Gale: Dogmatic Equations. Sonorous Gale was one of my favorite Buffalo bands to watch and play with. They were a two piece consisting of Aaron Weese on bass and Steve Kerfien on drums (two of my longest Buffalo friends). Two dudes, big sound. This album and more are available at: https://sonorousgale.bandcamp.com/album/twos-a-crowdCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

So you want to be a bike mechanic? Welcome to part three of my conversation with Patrick Meszler. It took an entire episode for Pat to tell us how he got into the bike industry. AN ENTIRE EPISODE. From walking into a barn-basement-bike-shop near Utica, NY at 15 to working at Campus, not once but thrice. Now we will move onto what his life has been like working in Campus and find out what makes him tick. Besides rockets... I hope you enjoy hearing about it.Thanks for tuning in! Intro/Outro: Pat is a major rocket, orbits, space, science enthusiast(nerd). He brings up something about space and or rockets nearly every day at our morning meetings. I thought it only apt to include some launch audio as his third episode accompaniment. All NASA communications are of the public domain (as Patrick informed me) so this unique mix is the result.Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

So you want to be a bike mechanic? Welcome to part two of my conversation with Patrick Meszler. Today we move onto the question of how Pat got into the bike industry. From walking into a barn-basement-bike-shop near Utica, NY at 15 to working at Campus, not once but thrice, he has followed a unique path. I hope you enjoy hearing about it.Thanks for tuning in! Intro/Outro: Original music by Art and Robin "Broadway Bigwig" One of Pat's other greatest loves is showtunes. This may be the result of being a stage techy and band nerd from a young age. If you haven't figured it out yet, music is important to us Campus peeps...Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Welcome to the beginning of my conversation with Patrick Meszler. Pat has a deep bike racing history all the way back to starting out as a junior road racer. He has been in, out and about of the bike industry since around the same time. His relatively recent love has become bike touring and bike packing. Last year he completed the Great Diving Mountain Bike Route from Banff, Canada to (New) Mexico. This first episode of our conversation will focus on his touring exploits and adventures. This will conclude (for now) my (now) 5 episode series on Adventure by Bike. I hope it has been interesting to you. I also hope that some of you are now inspired to give it a try. Traveling by bicycle is an amazing experience I hope you will give it a try. No more excuses....Thanks for tuning in! Let's send it...Intro/Outro: Original music by 95turboSol "Impact" some symphonic black metal for you... Pat's a bit of a metal head so I had to oblige. Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Part 2 of my second interview in a series of conversations with folks who embody adventure by bike. Ryan is a lifelong cyclist, adventurer, mountaineer, bike racer and now bikepacker. He recently completed the TATR a 585 mile self supported bikepacking race in the Adirondacks. We will cover that event in depth as well as touch on several other epic adventures he has completed, for your enjoyment...Ryan documents many of his journeys and posts them on Youtube and Vimeo. Search “Ryan Sarka” and you can find his work. Feel free to suggest a better channel name (sorry Ryan…) Also check out “Between the Peaks” a documentary he made on his trip to climb two of the largest mountains in the world Aconcagua and Denali and volunteer in every country they’d pass through between them. Ryan is the real deal.Intro/Outro: Original Music from Bread and Roses from Boston, MA. The intro and outro track is "Mamma Tried" off of Deep River Day. These guys are old friends and graciously allowed me to use some tracks, they played Buffalo many times back in my show house days. Check them out on Bandcamp.com

My second interview in a series of conversations with folks who embody adventure by bike is with Ryan Sarka. Ryan is a lifelong cyclist, adventurer, mountaineer, bike racer and now bikepacker. He recently completed the TATR a 585 mile self supported bikepacking race in the Adirondacks. We will cover that event in depth as well as touch on several other epic adventures he has completed, for your enjoyment...Ryan documents many of his journeys and posts them on Youtube and Vimeo. Search “Ryan Sarka” and you can find his work. Feel free to suggest a better channel name (sorry Ryan…) Also check out “Between the Peaks” a documentary he made on his trip to climb two of the largest mountains in the world Aconcagua and Denali and volunteer in every country they’d pass through between them. Ryan is the real deal.Intro/Outro: Original Music from The Can Kickers from New London, Connecticut. The intro track is "Dingus Day Polka" and the outro is "Money in My Pockets" both off of Mountain Dudes. These guys are old friends and graciously allowed me to use some ripping tracks, they played Buffalo many times back in my show house days. Check them out on Bandcamp.com

Part 2 of my converstion with Joe & Emmalee Olgin, my first official Local Legend interview. They have a legendary amount of bike touring experience having ridden their bikes to and from 49 states of our great nation. One of these trips was over a year, yes over a year living on their bikes. With that kind of adventure comes many adventures and stories. Join me as I do my best to harvest a few for you. Tune in to learn how these adventures came about and what kind of life choices they have made to accomplish their goals and why.My next interview will be with Ryan Sarka another Local Legend who has done some major bikepacking. With these two quite different approaches to ways to accomplish self supported bike transportation and adventure we will get a good scope of what is possible by bike. The take away I hope to expose is that if any of this sounds interesting, you can likely do it. Any able-bodied person with a bike can go bike touring or bikepacking with a little gear and a little time off. Intro/Outro: Original music by Bread and Roses from Boston, MA. They are old friends of mine and shared the stage with The Purchase more than once. A bluegrass set of just Misfits songs in the basement of 29 Custer comes to memory... RIP Adam the fiddle player gone too soon. The song is "Burried in Business Casual" relevant subject material to Joe & Emmalee's prioritization of adventure/quality of life over working. Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Joe & Emmalee are my first official Local Legend interview. They have a legendary amount of bike touring experience having ridden their bikes to and from 49 states of our great nation. One of these trips was over a year, yes over a year living on their bikes. With that kind of adventure comes many adventures and stories. Join me as I do my best to harvest a few for you. Tune in to learn how these adventures came about and what kind of life choices they have made to accomplish their goals and why.My next interview will be with Ryan Sarka another Local Legend who has done some major bikepacking. With these two quite different approaches to ways to accomplish self supported bike transportation and adventure we will get a good scope of what is possible by bike. The take away I hope to expose is that if any of this sounds interesting, you can likely do it. Any able-bodied person with a bike can go bike touring or bikepacking with a little gear and a little time off. Intro/Outro: Original music by The Louisiana Purchase a band I was in for several years. The song is "Dirty Dog" (a reference to Gray Hound busses) from our demo recorded at The Last Stand 99 Custer St. in 2003.Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Part two of my staff interview/exit interview with Vanessa Elder on her way out of town. Vanessa is a 5 summer seasonal employee of Campus WheelWorks. For 5 summers Vanessa has brought her own style and touch to our sales floor adding to the Campus culture as our Cycling Style Maven (official title).Vanessa and I sat down for a few hours and documented her non-stereotypical bike shop employee experience as a woman in our bike shop and played some accordion. Some pure #bikeshoplife action right here. I hope you enjoy our laughs, stories and perspectives. Near, Far, Wherever You Are....Intro/Outro: Live accordion played by Vanessa. The accordion was a gift she received from her uncle just a week before. She brought it to the interview for show and tell, but I had to use it... Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

I snagged a staff interview/exit interview from Vanessa Elder on her way out of town. Vanessa is a 5 summer seasonal employee of Campus WheelWorks. For 5 summers Vanessa has brought her own style and touch to our sales floor adding to the Campus culture as our Cycling Style Maven (official title).Vanessa and I sat down for a few hours and documented her non-stereotypical bike shop employee experience as a woman in our bike shop and played some accordion. Some pure #bikeshoplife action right here. I hope you enjoy our laughs, stories and perspectives.Intro/Outro: Original Music from SOUNDbyte Music. The intro/outro track is "Ride" and features both Vanessa singing back ups to her father Dave Elder who played everything else.Available at: sound.byte@verizon.netCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Part two of my coast to coast episode with Justin Plinz of Ascent Cycles in Ballard, Washington. Justin manages Ascent Cycles and began his career right here at Campus WheelWorks way back in 2007. Old Lucky Justy and I sat down for a few hours and shared our love and frustration of this career we have dedicated our lives to. Some pure #bikeshoplife action right here. Join us on our journey as we document and dissect what it is to work in a small independent bike shop on opposite coasts of the US and A.Intro/Outro: Original Music from Knife Crazy. Good friends and former Buffalo rockers. The intro/outro track is "All that I can say is Shucks" off of "Delicious Delicious Science" a release from 2006. Available at: https://baddronemedia.bandcamp.com/album/delicious-delicious-scienceCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

A coast to coast episode as Justin Plinz of Ascent Cycles in Ballard, Washington is my next guest. Justin manages Ascent Cycles and began his career right here at Campus WheelWorks way back in 2007. Old Lucky Justy and I sat down for a few hours and shared our love and frustration of this career we have dedicated our lives to. Some pure #bikeshoplife action right here. Join us on our journey as we document and dissect what it is to work in a small independent bike shop on opposite coasts of the US and A.Intro/Outro: Original Music from Knife Crazy. Good friends and former Buffalo rockers. The intro/outro track is "All that I can say is Shucks" off of "Delicious Delicious Science" a release from 2006. Available at: https://baddronemedia.bandcamp.com/album/delicious-delicious-scienceCommercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Our story goes back, way back to 1999 at T&L Cycles... Join me as I introduce to you my best friend, my business partner, my partner in crime, the yin to my yang... Alex Davies. My first guest on Bike Shop Life. So begins my quest to find the answer to how we all got here, we as in those who chose the bike shop life. He and I basically did it together... Here is our story. Let's have some laughs.Intro/Outro: Original Music from Emi (the) Fox with Kurt on Drums. Good friend and former Buffalonian. The intro/outro track is "Bikes are Better" Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

What I hope is my last episode centered on our experiences during the Corona Virus Quarantine. Every week is a new business plan. I touch on some personal challenges as well as those we face at work. Through it all we continue on... Intro/Outro: Original Music from Usurp my very first punk band in Buffalo from 2001 or thereabouts. Featuring Josef Bellucci my Head Mechanic on drums as well. The intro/outro track is "Commodified" off our demo "Eating Dumpstered Donuts as the Bombs Fall."Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

A continuation of documenting our experience during the Covid-19 Quarantine. Life on the front lines... Daily challenges and ever changing policies. What we have done to stay safe and stay open. Our story even made WBFO our local NPR affiliate! Enjoy it from my perspective.Intro: Original Music from Trystero a band I played in 8 years ago. The intro track is Circles to Circuts off of The Cold Machines EP Released at our last show in 2012. Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

Covid times at the bike shop. Welcome to the new norm, I hope you like it here. Uncertainty, survival, unemployment, pandemic... These are the feels going into this one. And unfortunately this isn't an April fools joke.Intro/Outro: Original Music from Trystero a band I played in 8 years ago. The intro track is Hateful Rain, Outro is Dirty Dirty Deception both off of The Cold Machines EP Released at our last show in 2012. Commercial Audio by Jack Toft off an original Campus Commercial from 2012.

This is a fairy tale of Campus WheelWorks & Ethan Johnson and how the two came upon their life long relationship together. This is my first podcast episode ever. It may not be perfect but it will give you a glimpse into what I hope to cover in the following episodes. Sit back and take in a bit of the history of my shop and my bike shop life.Intro/Outro: Original music by Do your F*cking Dishes! a band I played in a million years ago. The song is Cruster General off our Demo that was a cassette tape painted like a dish sponge. Commercial audio by Jack Toft from an original Campus commercial from 2012.