Pedalshift's New Basecamp
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Release Date: 12/11/2025
Best of Pedalshift 340: Staying Safe on Bicycle Adventures
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Look, we all know there’s some inherent risk in bikepacking, bike touring and even bike commuting. Between bad infrastructure and inattentive drivers, we assume some degree of risk every time we’re in the saddle. But as with anything, there are things we can do to make our bicycle adventures safer than by doing nothing. On this episode, some thoughts on all the things you can do to have a safer ride! .
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Minimalist California Part 2
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
A fun night adjacent to the Happiest Place on Earth, but work to do on the final day of the adventure. A scouted ride to Orange County airport seemed easy, then challenging, then maybe easy again. But there’s been a peculiar lack of drama on this podcast that tends to have unnecessary drama in the trips. I wonder… could we find some? Statistics Miles biked 27 Zippers broken 2 Yards of tape used by SNA TSA to seal the bike bag 3 Futile attempts to repair the zipper in Seattle 1 Flats 0
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Minimal California Part 1
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
A flight to San Diego and operation get my bike to Seattle begins! Sunny Southern California lures me in with perfect… wait, what’s that? Rain all day? In San Diego? <sigh> That tracks. Day 1 of the experiment that is Minimal California has a soggy start and a magical finish, because all winter bike trips lead to Disney parks right? Statistics Miles biked 25+2=27 Busses 1 Trains 1 Water bottles needed to wash sand off bike brakes from beach side quest 4 Flats 0
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Minimal California Preview
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Welcome back from Winter Break! I was busy while we revisited some classic adventures, and went off and had a brand new one. On this edition, we preview Minimal California, a pared down adventure with a purpose, a destination, and... would you believe things that went awry? I should have shownotes but I'm still on winter break mode... it's a good episode and you should listen to it!
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The Jalapeño Popper Tour (Feat. Brock Dittus)
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Enough of my tour journals, let’s shake it up and bring in special guest star and longtime friend of the show, Pedalshift Society member Brock Dittus in on a tour of not the Oregon coast! Brock travels solo through some of the steepest riding in the state, fueled by fried spicy goodness. Would that be enough to handle the climbs and our old nemesis, wildfire smoke? Originally podcast July 13, 2023.
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Winter Break: A Brompton Stealth Overnight
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
With my proper trail bike in the shop but a real need to get out for an overnight, I turned to a C&O newbie… my trusty 12″ wheeled, very orange Brompton as my chariot to an urban(ish) stealth camping overnight. Would the trail chew up the Brompton? Would my orange gear prove too, well, orange for stealth camping? If you can’t get your adventure by the liter these days, may as well do it in sips… Originally podcast July 16, 2020.
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Winter Break: Olympic Peninsula Part 2
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
In the second of a two-parter, it’s Pedalshift Tour Journals: Vol. 9: Olympic Peninsula! Join me and my trusty Brompton for 4 days of transit-aided bicycle touring from Washington, DC to Seattle to the Olympic Peninsula and wrapping things up in Astoria, Oregon. This week features a more-challenging-than-expected short mileage day, a visit to Kurt Cobain’s riverfront hangout, and a long bridge serving as a finish line. Originally podcast March 29, 2018.
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Winter Break: Olympic Peninsula Part 1
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
In the first of a two-parter during winter break, it's Pedalshift Tour Journals: Vol. 9: Olympic Peninsula! Join me and my trusty Brompton for 4 days of transit-aided bicycle touring from Washington, DC to Seattle to the Olympic Peninsula and wrapping things up in Astoria, Oregon. This week features the machinations of getting from DC to a tent in the shadows of the Olympic Mountains (if there were, y’know… sun) and the first very soggy day of riding. Originally podcast March 22, 2018.
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Winter Break: Evolution of Bike Adventure Gear
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
Every once in a while it’s nice to look back on where it all came from – on this edition, we explore the evolution of bike touring gear from the beginning of the modern era in the 1970s through today’s high tech enhancements to bikepacking and more. Plus, a nod to what the future might hold with new materials and tech to make bicycle adventuring more fun and accessible! Originally podcast June 22, 2023.
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Adventure Goals for 2026
The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures
One more episode before we take a little winter break (with some great best of's!) we do our annual setting of goals. This year we mix in one non-cycling goal on top of the others. Hey if I hit all of these it's going to be a great year! Adventure Goals for 2026 Continued fitness upgrades Oh Canada! New bike(s) Ultralight gear and ultralight tours A Brompton adventure Seattle S24Os Big toe dip: backpacking… Hoh Rainforest? A transit-assisted adventure A food and beverage-centric adventure A ferry-centric adventure
info_outlineBig news for the show: The Pedalshift Project is setting up camp in a new city! This episode breaks down what that means for future tours, how this opens up brand-new riding possibilities, and why the destination may be a bit of a surprise and also not a surprise at all.
My new home: Seattle!
Why? This move is all about geography, access, and expanding the Pedalshift touring sandbox. Seattle places world-class touring terrain right outside the door and increases the show’s ability to cover more routes, more often.
And yes—this is a return to the broader PNW. Think of it as a new basecamp, and not a commentary on my beloved Portland. It remains the land of sunshine and bunnies, and it’s just down I-5.
There’s obviously other details to all of this but they are far more weedsy than worth getting into for you all. Let’s focus on the parts that impact the pod!
What Seattle Unlocks for Bike Adventures
Puget Sound & the Islands
- Bainbridge, Vashon, Whidbey, and the San Juans
- Ferry-based overnighters and S24Os
Olympic Peninsula
- ACA Pacific Coast connections
- Port Townsend → Sequim → Forks routes
- Big coastal scenery for trip diaries
Cascade Range
- Palouse to Cascades Trail (hello, cross-state gravel epic)
- Snoqualmie Pass corridor
- North Cascades Highway rides when the snow gods allow
British Columbia
- Vancouver + Victoria loops
- Easier cross-border touring content
Western US Access
Simpler jumps to NorCal, SoCal, Alaska, and Rocky Mountain tour starts
How the Show Evolves
More Micro-Tours
Seattle puts quality riding minutes—not hours—away, which means more short trips, more experiments, more rapid-fire episodes.
Some Non-Bicycle Adventures
Exploring by foot - hiking, urban adventures and more. Not a replacement for bikes, but a compliment.
New Possible Arcs
- The Islands Project
- The Puget Sound Loops
- Palouse to Cascades: Piece by Piece
- Return to the Coast (Seattle → Portland → Coast → beyond)
Year-Round Riding
Milder PNW winters = more shoulder-season content and gear discussions. Also proximity to southern CA for winter riding?
What Stays the Same
- The philosophy of intentional, practical, joyful bike travel
- Long-form tours and multi-state adventures
- Portland is the land of sunshine and bunnies, and Seattle will need a tagline
Early Seattle Recon
- Riding West Seattle, Alki, and Elliott Bay
- Ferry recon missions
- Scouting trails, routes, and spots for easy S24Os
- Checking out the local bike shop ecosystem
Production Notes
- Scheduling in winter and spring TBD with some back and forth travel
- Regular episode cadence with best-of’s
Listener Input Wanted
- Got Seattle, Puget Sound, or PNW route suggestions? Hidden gems? Ferries worth timing for golden hour? Winter riding hacks?
- Hit me up—I’ll feature the best ones in future episodes.