Interview format and questions a collaborative effort between John Kim and B Vivit

I love Virtuous Cycle, the blog that John Kim has started to focus on the good and the sustainable in this bike industry. John has interviewed many industry veterans (like John Watson, Jessica Grenwis, F.K. Day, Ira Ryan, Carine Joannou, Paul Price, among many others) and folks who work in the shadows of the industry and are often forgotten, but are continually putting in the work it takes to get more folks on bikes and create a better, more diverse, and more inclusive industry. So understandably when John asked me to do an interview, I was blown away to be included in this list of folks doing rad things for the industry. In return, I think he deserves a little bit of recognition for this labor of love that exposes so many kind souls to the public.
Can you do one kind thing today?

Written by Rich Bernoulli; title by David Guetta

To a lot of people, titanium has a mystique of extremes and an almost legendary quality, in that it is incredibly light, incredibly strong, incredibly expensive, incredibly rare, incredibly difficult to work with, and will last forever. Some of these ideas are absolutely true, while some are not. Additionally, there are some characteristics of titanium that are less known. As a common material for bicycle frames, I thought I would ask:

How Well Do You Know Titanium?

Written by Nathan Riddle

Most of us have been on a ride at some point and suffered a crash or mechanical problem that has ended our ride (hopefully not in the ER). It’s extremely frustrating to think you are prepared to fix your bike out on the roadside or trailside only to find that your tool doesn’t have the bit you need or can’t reach the fastener you need to tighten. Or maybe you’ve fixed your flat tire only to find that your pump won’t work with your tube or your CO2 is wasted learning how it works. The majority of this article will explore things to think about and properly prepare for your next mechanical ride-stopper before it happens.

Interview and Introduction by B Vivit
Jessica Shadduck, from Omaha Nebraska, showed up for the first day of class sun-kissed and in Chacos, after a whole month of bike touring from BC, Canada, down to the scholarship in Ashland. To set the scene, she had contacted us early to ask for tips on getting through Oregon with the incredible amount of smoke we'd had build up from the Northern California and Oregon fires; so we were incredibly excited to follow her journey South. Jessica chronicled the journey via Instagram through her own personal and also through her shop @ponderosacyclery.
 
During the scholarship, Liv Bikes (with Acacia Wytaske another of the folks who received the scholarship in October 2018) sponsored our ride, mid-scholarship, and with this October crew, we got to shuttle to the very top of Mount Ashland; Jessica got to try a full-suspension bike for the first time. Also, on the weekend in-between the two weeks of our Professional Repair and Shop Operations class, Jessica and a few of the other scholarship folks headed out to Sam Hill, OR to camp for the night. Also leaving with one of the venerated UBI tattoos! After the scholarship was over, she continued her journey south to San Francisco, meeting old friends, new friends, and having great adventures all along the PNW. Talk about one of the chillest, kindest, and most open souls; Jessica took this trip, and the scholarship, for all it was worth and turned it into so much more.