Earth Day Market Ride 2024

What a gorgeous day for the annual event! Unlike last year’s somewhat gray day, this year we got blue skies, sunshine, and warming temperatures. I kept up my streak for #30DaysOfBiking, which is rolling along nicely. People of all shapes…Continue Reading

Hand-drawn upright turquoise bicycle with lettering that reads Happy April! #30daysofbiking. By Melissa Balmer, PedalLove.com

Just Ride. Every Day. It’s That Simple.

The title of this piece echoes what the great bike racer Eddie Merckx said: “Ride as much or as little, or as long or as short as you feel. But ride.” As March wraps up I’m looking ahead at April…Continue Reading

Image of a penny farthing bicycle (the kind with the giant front wheel and tiny back wheel) against a blue sky with the words Hello January! above it in a typeface that resembles the shapes of a penny farthing.

Riding Down Memory Lane: January

Some blog posts are evergreen, some a flashback to events I haven’t thought about in quite a while. Rolling back through the archives, month by month, yields this round-up of posts written in Januaries past. This isn’t every last January…Continue Reading

Alas, you can't see how the two peachy pieces on top complement each other. But you can see the snow on the ground. Luckily I don't have to ride in it with my skinny tires!

Riding Down Memory Lane: December

Don’t assume December will be too wet, cold, icy or snowy to ride. Even living in the four-season climate in Spokane I often rode on bare, dry roads in md-December. If you have the right clothing to go for a…Continue Reading

#Coffeeneuring 2023: Success!

I mean, how hard is it really to go for a bike ride and get some coffee? Seven times in just over six weeks. With no more than two trips per week. Always to a different venue. OK, so, yes,…Continue Reading

Riding Down Memory Lane: November

So many, many things to be thankful for this month or any month, and the ability to move our bodies outside is one of them. Reminder of November Bike Events All month long: #RideInTheRain. This one is promoted by Washington…Continue Reading

In 2011 when Mary Gersemalina created coffeeneuring as a mash-up of the words “coffee” and “randonneuring” I jumped at it. That came along during what I might think of as my “peak challenge” period. I had founded Bike to Work…Continue Reading

In foreground, sitting on a wooden table-top in soft lighting, white coffee cup with drawing of a turquoise upright bicycle and the words "Life is a beautiful ride". Background soft focus of kitchen with appliances.

#Coffeeneuring Is Rolling!

My very very favorite bike challenge starts today, Oct. 7, and runs through Nov. 20. It combines two of my favorite things to do: ride my bike and drink coffee (or some other fall-appropriate beverage). Mary Gersemalina created coffeeneuring 13…Continue Reading

Photo of a zombie woman crawling on the grass and reaching toward the photographer

Riding Down Memory Lane: October

In October those fall colors are simply glorious and the leaves make a nice crunchy sound when we ride through them (although be careful since you don’t always know what’s underneath and you wouldn’t want a flat tire). Reminder of…Continue Reading

Riding Down Memory Lane: September

Back to school month, so it’s time to organize a bike bus if you have school-aged kids. If you don’t have school-aged kids you can just celebrate the beautiful riding of early fall, with some crisp mornings and sunny days.…Continue Reading

Wheeling Sea to Sound, Day Three

Day three: A delightful finale to a thoroughly delightful Sea to Sound ride! One notable difference between this and many large bike events: There wasn’t any emphasis on finishing quickly, or first, or at all, if that wasn’t within your…Continue Reading