Revolting: Recent Episodes
The Cycling Independent
Revolting is a cycling podcast that isn’t about bikes, or even cycling really. Hosts Robot and Stevil sift through topics vaguely related to cycling, looking for what’s good, what’s better, and dwelling sometimes on what’s confusing. The guys are looking, and almost never finding, answers. But the fun is in the looking. This a cycling podcast for those not defined by racing, high-performance, or any performance at all really. It’s a podcast for people who just like to ride bikes, and do other stuff, because it’s fun. Revolting is another fine production by The Cycling Independent.
The Revolting Biopic Starring Danny Devito and Pauly Shore. The Revolting biopic is a comedy and a cautionary tale, a bildungsroman and a French period drama. Sure, it’s got panache and style. The costumes are outstanding, but what are the lessons we’re meant to learn from it and why does the plot seem so incoherent? […]
For a Brief, Shimmering Moment We Were Gods. We may look like only slightly abnormal human beings, but oh, you should have seen us back in the day, or rather, on that one day, when we were really good at something, so good that we remember it and base some not insignificant amount of our […]
The Motivation is the Message. Marshall McLuhan, who was Canadian and had a great name, thought the “medium was the message,” but it was the ‘60s, and apparently he also thought a mustache was a solid move. Anyway, since then media has exploded into a million little messages, and it seems more clear than ever […]
Coup d’etat! Coup d’etat! It was 1984 and Repo Man was in the theaters, a couple of them anyway. The suburban United States suddenly became aware of a little LA band called The Circle Jerks. Forty years later, some large part of the US custom bike building community converges unironically on Portland, and a whole […]
How Heavy is Your Record Collection? You can measure it a couple ways. Raw weight. Number of Slayer albums. Quality vs. quantity. This is all really just an excuse to talk more about music and how we consume it and to express even more of our questionable opinions. Music pick of the week: Robot – […]
The Fine Print in the Social Contract. Just cause we’re introverted malcontents doesn’t mean we’re not on our second-best behavior when we’re out in public. Out there in the streets it’s a collaboration. Teamwork makes the dream transpire in a more agreeable fashion. So how do we get more people to understand there’s no ‘them’ […]
Excuse Me, Can I X-ray your Xylophone. We’ve both been back to places we might have come from to revisit our roots, and all the while you think you’re finding a deeper part of yourself, the connections are breaking down in time. Maybe you realize you’re just a random collection of genetically encoded dust, or […]
Caring Carers Who Care. We can all agree that it’s much better to not care than to care, but sometimes you have to, and more specifically, sometimes you have to take care of something or someone you didn’t expect to. This can be mentally and emotionally draining. Why is it so hard to care for […]
As Punk as Kettlebells and Scented Candles. When you’re just a pimply-faced teen trying to establish yourself as an iconoclast and quite possibly a voice of your generation, things are pretty simple. You pull on your bondage pants and your Chuck Taylors and show the world who’s boss. Then you get old as shit and […]
The Struggle is Surreal. We want everything to be easy, but if everything comes easy, it doesn’t have a lot of value. So we need some struggle but still hate struggling. Is this why human people are so stupid? Music pick of the week: Robot – Vanishing Life – Surveillance Stevil – Poison Idea – […]
Pivotal Moments in Dirt Bag Development. In a deterministic universe, there are no surprises. From the moment we emerged from our mothers’ wombs we were meant to be the dirt bags and derelicts we have become. But there were warning signs, critical junctures at which we might have followed different, more stable and lucrative paths, […]
Our Current Tally of Major Awards. So far we have zero Webby, iHeartRadio or People’s Choice podcast awards, the same total as George Clooney. Also no Pulitzers or Nobels, but usually those get awarded years after your major accomplishments, so we’re not sweating it. This week’s topic is figuring out how to go on with […]
For Our Next Trick, We’ll Need a Volunteer. We always say we’re doing the only things we know how to do, but that’s a cop out. We could be carpet salesmen or tree surgeons. We could be the Sigfried and Roy of a casino in a minor media market. We could be satanic priests or […]
The Best Defense Is to Be Extremely Offensive. We’re living in the age of outrage, and to be fair, there’s plenty of outrageous stuff happening. At the same time, it’s worth asking what the value of being offended really is. Is it a way to drive change, or just a way to drive people more […]
Lightning in a Bottle, Thunder in a Can. We’re taking a break from the deep, philosophical explorations this show is known for to reengage with our monkey brains. It’s another lightning round of questions that don’t really deserve answers, though those are exactly the questions this podcast was designed for. Music pick of the week: […]
Stapling Bananas to the Wall. This one is partially inspired by a question from listener Oliver Beckers and partially by the deaths of Rick Froberg, Gary Flloyd and Steve Albini, and partially by the #MeToo movement and partially by the complicated business of consuming art in the information age. This week we’re talking about what […]
Emerging Patterns from the Swirling Chaos. Ain’t it just the case that you reach these points in your life where you think you have some things figured out, you can see the way forward, and you feel hopeful and optimistic, but as sure as the sign rises in the East, chaos comes to scatter your […]
When the Wedding Band Stretches Out. This is a show about Steve Albini, who is probably really dead, despite both of us hoping the news of his passing was some elaborate prank he was pulling. When people think about the pure ideals of punk rock, they usually think of Ian MacKaye first, but they should […]
Karma Is a Failure of Both Pattern Recognition and Ligaments. We musta said and done some pretty not cool stuff to deserve the level of negative physical consequences doled out by daily life lately. Today we’ll talk about the possibility that there actually is justice in the universe, or whether we’re just ignoring the normal […]
If Dungeons and Dragons Was Real, Metal Would Make a Lot More Sense. Listen, not everything has to be so literal. You don’t have to talk about your heart to express your love for another human being. Maybe that’s why Candace left you. You’re boring and predictable. Today, we’re talking about ways to open your […]
The Women Without Whom We Would Not Be Us. Roughly half the people on the planet are women, and a very high percentage of them are smarter, funnier, more beautiful, wiser, and more emotionally stable than a high percentage of the other half of the people, all of this notwithstanding the people who are neither […]
The Internet Stole My Mind and My Wallet. Sometimes you marvel at how much easier things are, because you can email your grandmother and pay your debts online, but then you realize you don’t seem to have any more time in your day and your attention span has been smashed into a million pieces, leaving […]
Pep Talks from Chronic Depressives. When you’ve been through some hard times, you learn things that might be useful to other people. At the very least, you come to understand the value of a sympathetic ear. There’s a real case to be made that chronic depressives are much better at pep talks than shiny happy […]
My Body Is a Temple, Abandoned by the Gods. All things fall apart. Order tends toward chaos. The entire universe gets colder and colder by the picosecond. And our bodies, strong and capable for a shining moment, eventually let us down. Today we’re talking about how cadaver parts and stubbornness keep us on the right […]
Don’t Wear Sandals to a Bar Fight. Life is full of rules, both useful and made to be broken. There are bike rules. There are rock show rules. There are a million reasons to follow them and just one to punch them in the face. Today we talk about the rules. Music pick of the […]
The Real House Husbands of Whatever Zip Code This Is. Both of us are home bodies and at one time or another have been home makers. Today we’re talking about what it means to have and make a home, and how that lets us create great works of art and philosophy and impress other people […]
The Re-Arrangement of the Deck Chairs on the Titanic. There comes a time in everyone’s life when they realize they’re on the wrong path. Maybe you’ve let Leo DiCaprio make periodic-specific nudies of you, only to let him drown after the boat hits an iceberg. Wake up calls like that can be valuable. Music pick […]
Other Things We’re Not Good At. We try to stay humble. We’re not great at podcasting, mountain biking, skateboarding or orthopedic surgery, but actually, there’s a ton of other stuff we’re also not very good at. Sometimes it’s helpful to remind yourself what you’re really best at is mediocrity. Music pick of the week: Robot […]
Coffee and Sugar, Cigarettes and Weed. Everyone loves drugs, even the people who say they’re against drugs, and we love them too, even if only pretty specific ones. Today we’re talking about our relationship with vice and the dumbest things we’ve done to get high or get away with getting high. Music pick of the […]
The Joys of Being Single. It takes a special kind of bike rider to ride a single-speed, the kind of rider who really only likes to pedal going uphill, the kind who appreciates making everything harder for themselves. But simplicity has a certain charm to it, and anyone who’s married maybe knows what we’re talking […]
The Year Punk Rock Went Broke. I don’t know what happened, but it was probably Green Day’s fault. Everyone went from making fun of us for listening to weird music to elbowing us out of the way, so they could buy Red Hot Chili Pepper’s t-shirts at Target. We went from saying this music should […]
The Unbearable Lightness of the Corrosion of Conformity. Life has this odd tension between wanting to fit in, go along and get along, be a good teammate or co-worker or whatever, and then at the same time, fully inhabiting your own identity (whatever that is) in order to stand out and remind yourself that you’re […]
The No Good, Very Bad Words. Every week we rewrite our content warning because we’re required somehow to warn people that we use profanity and sometimes talk about the immense size of horse penises. At the same time, folks are bumbling about their everyday lives using terrible words that we find more offensive than all […]
Sometimes 2+2=5. The basic premise of today’s show is the basic premise of the show, by which we mean that we’ve been hearing from people who find whatever it is we’re doing here helpful. They’re inspired or encouraged or they learn something about themselves as we talk about ourselves and our challenges. It’s weird. Neither […]
Baby, It’s Cold Outside. We’re deep in winter’s cold embrace, and since humans have broken the climate this winter has served up a heaping helping of Arctic chill. How do you deal? How do you keep going? What do you look forward to? Music pick of the week: Robot – Trigger Cut – ROGO Stevil – […]
I Got My Ascot in My Dickie. You would never know it from looking at either one of us, but we care what we wear, and since humans are supposed to wear clothes most of the time, today we’re talking about fashion, which some denigrate as a vapid form of self-expression, but mostly by people […]
Better Luck Next Time, the Year in Review. Oh, 2023 you surprised us. Good one! Triumphs, tragedies. We laughed. We cried. We figured we’d better at all of this by now. Today we’re gonna talk about what happened, how we felt about it, and what we’ve got our eye on for 2024. Also, gotta be […]
Resolving Not to Resolve, But Secretly Resolving. Oh, we’re all too cool for New Years’ resolutions. They’re so stupid. But actually, we spend all of our time trying to turn over new leaves, trying to pick the lock of everyday happiness, and we’re CONSTANTLY resolving to be different or better in some way. So it’s […]
The Over/Under on the Under/Over. Today we’re gonna play a fun little game of overrated/underrated with an array of people, bands, ideas and foods. This should help you adjust your attitudes to the reality we live in, or at the very least give you reasons to send us angry emails, which we enjoy thoroughly. Music […]
Sympathy for the Devil. Human people are terrible, and we’re no exception. It’s hard to understand how you’re supposed to love your fellow person when they are constantly doing dumb shit and spouting terrible ideas. Again, we are not an exception to this rule. But today we’re going to talk about how to be better […]
If It Wasn’t for Bad Habits, We Wouldn’t Have Any Habits at All. The defining characteristic of the human species is its imperfection. Plagued with self-reflective consciousness, humans are prone to eat themselves alive with bad thoughts, bad decisions and bad behavior. This week we’re talking about our vices, bad habits, and what we’re doing […]
The Universe is 68% Dark Energy. Once daylight has been saved and the sun sets half an hour before it rises, it can be really hard to stay motivated and moving in the right direction, but there are secret pockets of energy in the universe that will carry you through to that blessed day when […]
Euphoric Recall. Many of us of a certain age cling to the idea that things used to be better than they were. For example, we wax nostalgic about seeing Repo Man for the first time in Trisha Thomas’s living room in 1985 but forget that Ronald Reagan was busy ruining the world at the time. […]
Some Call Collect. What is it about the human psyche that compels it to collect objects and ephemera, to gather too much of a good thing? Toys, trading cards, bikes, bike parts, skateboards, records, tattoos…today we’re talking about the things we’ve collected and why we we’re driven to do so. Music pick of the week: […]
Gatekeepers at the Gates of Hell. We have occasionally been accused of gatekeeping, which isn’t awesome. That’s not who we want to be. So today we’re going to figure out what gatekeeping is, what it maybe isn’t, and revise all of our previous shitty comments about everything. Music pick of the week: Robot – Sun […]
The $64 Ka-Billion Dollar Pyramid. If you follow us on social media, you’ll know that, for our 100th episode we besought 100 listener questions, so now we’re gonna answer ‘em, except that we didn’t get 100. It turns out Revolting listeners are just as apathetic as we are, and so we only have 18 questions. […]
Failing to Succeed. This week we’re talking about things that we’re not very good at, like podcasting, but still really enjoy. Basically, we’re taking failure back from all the people who are doing it wrong, and if anything, 99 episodes of this podcast are a testament to the possible successes of continuing to fail. Music […]
Live, Laugh, Love, It’s the End Times! This week we’re talking about apocalyptic thinking. Are these really the end times? Or does it always just feel like the end times when you’re a human being burdened with reflective consciousness? And if it is the end times, what is the appropriate response? Music pick of the […]
Nattering Nabobs of Negativism. This week we’re going negative. We’ve been asked to discuss our least favorite music of all time. And where to start!?!?! I mean, just think about it. All over the world musicians, both talented and not, are in studios committing all manner of shear garbage to the permanent musical record. Music […]
It Puts the Lotion in the Basket. Life is not so bad. Pretty good really. We put the lotion in the basket and get on it with it mostly. But each of us daydreams about psychopaths not wearing our skin, about something different, something better. Today we talk about our dreams of escaping to something bigger […]
The Magnum P.I. Opus. Today’s show is about the urge to produce something big, a single work or collection, that expresses everything you’re about, your magnum opus. Will Revolting be the most consequential thing we’ve done with our lives? Gosh we hope not. Robot – Jawbreaker – Bivouac Stevil – Thrasher – Blazing Wheels and […]
The Greatest Shows on Earth. One of the ways you can tell if you’re not living your life right is if you have stopped going to see live performances of music. Today we’re going to talk about some of the best shows we’ve ever seen and also heard. Robot – Ikara Colt – B-Sides (2010) […]
Solo Breakaways. We’ve both been on trips this last week, and while we met up with and even stayed with friends while we were away, the travel part was all solo, the decisions were all up to us, and the results were, as they always are, kinda mixed. Today we’re talking about solo adventuring. Music […]
One Bike, Two Bike, Red Bike, OK, That’s Enough Bikes. So this is a weird one, because we’re recording it BEFORE the MADE bike show, which we are both attending, but it is coming out directly after. We have a complicated relationship with time, usually forgetting when we did things or when we’re supposed to […]
Some Regerts. In Alcoholics Anonymous they say, “We shall not regret the past, nor seek to shut the door on it.” Why they need to use such fancy words is not clear, and the point is that all of our mistakes and troubles have brought us to this moment, a moment when we’re seeking to […]
Do You Have to Breathe So Loud? This week is about roommates. Good ones. Bad ones. The collaborative chaos of cohabitation, and maybe, the joys of living alone, either as the last person on Earth or the first on Mars. Music pick of the week – Robot – Son Volt – Trace Stevil – Monster […]
Where the F*%$ is Waldo? Most of us are home bodies who also crave adventure. We hate leaving home a lot of days, but if you’ve got plane tickets, we’ve got backpacks. Today we’re telling stories from travels both domestic and international, the things we’ve seen, the mistakes we’ve made, and the times we probably […]
Dogs Should Live Forever. We were having a real hard time coming up with a topic this week, because Robot’s dog died on Sunday, and it’s all he can think about. Django was among the best boys ever. He was quick with a joke. He smelled awful, and if you knew him, you loved him. […]
A Love Note to Cycling. Riding bikes doesn’t suck, no matter what Stevil says. And some people have real style and grace on the bike in a way that’s inspiring, and so today we’re going to talk about that. But we’re not going to say the things you think we’re gonna say, because otherwise why […]
The East Coast – West Coast Beef. This episode is about figuring out which of the Robot/Stevil autonomous units is the correct and original one by dissecting the quality of music, bikes, skateboards, weather and attitudes of their particular coasts. If there can be only one, then this episode should determine which of Robot or […]
The Top Five Ricks. This episode is about Rick Froberg. He was the best Rick. We’ll talk about who some of the other really good Ricks are or were, but really today we’re talking about Rick Froberg who passed away unexpectedly just a few days ago. He was the lead singer of bands like Drive […]
It Rubs Us the Wrong Way. We have some nice, expensive bike stuff and we have some cheap, functional bike stuff. It seems like no matter how carefully we curate our collection of stuff, we still get pains in our ass, chafing in unfortunate places, numbness and funny red marks in funny places. Today we’re […]
You Light Up My Life. We’ve talked about the things that inspire us before, but we were possibly less inspired when we did that than we are now. So, we’re going to talk about it again, and hopefully, in the process inspire you to check some of this stuff out with the idea that you […]
The Lightning Strikes Twice Round. Here we go again, another ride on the Tilt-a-Whirl, another slam fandango on the ADD magic carpet. Ten questions each. Ten rambling, nonsensical answers. This will either scratch an itch you didn’t know you had or leave you feeling itchy. Take the red pill. Take the blue pill. They’re all […]
The Times We Might Have Died. You know, a lot of times when we’re close to death, we have no idea. We only realize after. Today we’re talking about times we almost ate the ultimate shit, which may be sad or funny or both, but hopefully leaves us glad we’re still alive, if only to […]
How to Avoid the Bummer Life. Deep down you know you’re lame, and it’s because you sit around feeling sorry for yourself or get too wrapped up with trying to be a good adult, when you should be acting like a 12-year-old with a better bank account. This episode is about the ways you’re screwing […]
Is That Gravel in Your Shorts, Or Are You Just Glad to See Us. This episode is about gravel bikes. Oh yeah, a whole stupid show about bikes. We’re gonna talk about gravel as a category, what makes a great gravel bike, and we’re gonna take those things very seriously and not at all make […]
Walking on Sunshine with Amanda K. Bryan. For this episode we have with us agent of chaos, smiley villain, and all around stone cold homey, Amanda K. Bryan. If you’ve listened to the show for any length of time, you’ve heard Amanda’s name come up. Maybe you even listened to the episode she joined us […]
The Family Friendly Show. This week we’re talking about nice things, memories of childhood, benign and non-controversial ways to spend your time, BIKES!!, skateboards, and what’s good on TV. We’re sure it won’t be too boring, and hopefully neither of has a seizure trying not to swear. Music pick of the week Robot – The […]
Singletrack for All with Ashley Duffus of Cosmic Dirt. For this episode we have with us cycling industry luminary Ashley Duffus who is the owner and prime mover behind the Cosmic Dirt apparel company, whose mission is to make clothing for EVERYBODY who wants to ride bikes, meaning in the widest range of sizes possible. […]
The Confidence Game. This week we’re talking about confidence and what it does to our riding, our skating, and our work generally, where it comes from, where it goes when it goes away, and how we get it back. Music pick of the week Robot – Devo – Q: Are we not men? A: We […]
The Fountain of Youth. Today we’re talking about bikes, skateboards and punk rock, which are the key ingredients in the elixir of eternal youth. If you don’t love these things, there’s a good chance you’re gonna die. Music pick of the week Robot – OFF! – Free LSD Stevil – Mutoid Man – Helium Head
When You Lose Your Body, Your Mind Is Close Behind. Today’s topic comes to us from listener Oliver. He says, “We all get injured doing what we like most. I am recovering from a broken ankle and waiting to get back on the bike, which is tough (as you know). What have you guys done […]
Not Everyone is Evil and Stupid. This episode is about our favorite companies in the bike industry. After we spent last week on a variety of rants about how terrible bikes and bike companies are, we’re back this week with sunshine and positivity and at least a fraction of the bike content that most of […]
The New and Improved Problem. This episode is about how a company can make a perfect thing, sell loads of them, get you well and truly hooked on them, and then for no reason we can figure out either decide to change them for the worse OR just get rid of them altogether. Music pick […]
This episode is about domestic dirt baggery. Despite outward appearances we are functional adults who are concerned for our nutrition, who enjoy cooking and eating, and who love good food as much as we love bad food. This week we’re going to talk about both of those things. Music pick of the week Robot – […]
The Lightning Round. This episode is like a regular episode but more so. Normally we have a few questions written to keep us from wandering too far off topic. Today there’s no topic. Just questions. Random questions. And we’ll go back and forth with our questions until it’s time to quit. If your favorite part […]
Yumming Someone Else’s Yucks. This episode is about the little things we like. Maybe you don’t like ‘em. That’s ok. We’re not yucking other people’s yums today. We’re yumming their yucks. We’re trying, for once, to keep it real positive. Music pick of the week Robot – Lightning Bolt – Wonderful Rainbow Stevil – High […]
The Clown Car. This episode is about the bike industry. It draws in hordes of well-meaning rag-a-muffins, iconoclasts, and odd balls. There are smart people doing smart people things, and there are smart people doing dumb stuff too. The whole thing is a lurching mess of brilliance and stupidity, frustration and transcendence. Why is it […]
How the Magic Happens. This episode is about the creative process. We both do things that don’t pay well. Given the choice to do something else, even hypothetically, we would both probably just stick to doing what we do. Today we’re going to talk about why, and specifically what about the process of our work […]
True Sexy Crime. This episode is all about clicks. The whole world loves true crimes and sex, so we’re gonna stop doing high art and just give the people what they want for a change. We discuss the crimes that have been done to us, and the ones we’ve done to other people. Music picks […]
Losing It. This episode is about losing things. What physical thing do you find yourself searching for, late at night, the most? Not your keys. We’re talking about that late night obsessive search to find a messenger bag you know you owned 20 years ago and suddenly must find, or a bike part that you stuck somewhere […]
In Event of Emergency. This episode is about cycling events, what makes a good one, what makes them less good, why sign up at all, etc. As usual we struggle to stay on topic and contradict ourselves a lot. Music pick of the week Robot – Dinosaur Jr. – You’re Living All Over Me Stevil […]
Trail to the Treasure. This episode is about trails, what makes a good one, what makes a bad one, how to ruin a good one, how to use what’s there better without ruining it. This one comes to us from Ken Barker, who is a trail builder. He actually sent this to us as a […]
Doomsday Prep. This episode is about bike gear. Cyclists LOVE their stuff. From n+1 bikes to the latest Gore-Tex eyebrow warmers, we inhabit an industry that thrives on making small, technologically questionable iterations to last season’s stuff and then selling it to us like magic beans sprinkled with fairy dust. Today we discuss what you […]
It’s the “off-season,” which means many of us are riding less. One of the ways to stay connected and even increase motivation is to dig into the rich canon of cycling literature. Patrick finally puts some numbers to his belief that on-the-bike is one of the happiest places on Earth. Show links: Tomorrow, We Ride—Jean […]
The Hard Journey of the Lone Wolf. This episode is about being alone. When we feel lonely, it can be really hard to break out of whatever melancholy shell we’ve constructed for ourselves. How do you reengage with people when you’re in that awkward place, and is the bike or skateboard a useful tool for […]
Going Cold. For once, this episode is about bikes mostly. It’s December in North America, and it’s getting cold, or it already got cold. It snowed where we live, in both Washington and Massachusetts. So today we’re going to talk about riding in the cold, some tips, some tricks, and what we like/hate about it. […]
The Never-Ending Treasure Hunt. This episode is about the never-ending search for treasure, whether it’s constantly searching through record store bins or used bookstores or casing your local trails for some hidden, new stretch of dirt, or exploring an abandoned building somewhere for something, we’re not sure what, but it might be there if we […]
The Irresistible Charms of Self Destruction. This episode is about the abiding attraction of risky behaviors, either on a bike, on a skateboard, or on drugs, or maybe even just walking around breaking laws because. It’s about doing things we know won’t help us, because they’re just so goddamned sexy to do. Music pick of […]
The Meaning of Life. This episode is about the meaning of life. First and foremost, how do you keep from falling into the abyss of hopelessness and despair? And once you’ve done that, how do you do things that make being here worthwhile? Music pick of the week. Robot – Western Addiction – Cognicide Stevil […]
Gravelly Serious. This episode is about gravel racing. Now that there is a World Championships of gravel, it seems pretty obvious that the racer heads are taking over the sport, which will lead, inevitably, to bike, component and clothing choices skewing toward the very serious gravel rider. We’re gonna express opinions about that. Music pick […]
Relationship Advice for Cyclists. This episode is about learning to navigate your dirtbag lifestyle while also maintaining the love and trust of another human being. In other words, this is about how to take a hostage. Then we debate whether to become airline pilots or surgeons. Music pick of the week. Robot – Gnod – […]
Ride to Live, Skate or Die. This episode is about how bikes continue to evolve and change mostly for the better, sometimes for the worse, but skateboards remain the same. What gives? Why does it matter? We mostly don’t figure it out, but you’re used to that by now. Music pick of the week. Robot […]
The Battle Vest. This episode is about how a sleeveless garment, lovingly adorned with patches that indicate your primary predilections can make you a bigger, stronger, more resilient person. Is this just handy-crafts for punk rockers, a sort of dirtbag Bedazzler project? This goes all the places you don’t expect it to, and then we […]
A Race to the Bottom. This episode is about racing bicycles, what’s good about it, what’s bad about it, when we’ve enjoyed it, when we’ve hated it. Oh, and today’s would-you-rather is maybe worth the price of admission all on its own. Music pick of the week. Robot – Stiff Richards Stevil – Bothers
You Can’t Go Home Again. This episode is about hometowns, the good, the bad, and the ugly and what happens when we go back to visit, because you can never go home again. Someone said that. Are you a nomad or a local? Are you nostalgic or sad. Let’s turn over every rock and see […]
Corporate Rock Sucks. This episode is about how big companies get it wrong, and why it’s critical to support the independents. We take SST Records’ iconic slogan and apply it to the bike industry. Then we call out some small companies worth supporting. Music picks of the week: Robot – Husker Du Stevil – Deftones
Trail Etiquette. This episode is about how you should act while you’re out in the woods on a bike. We discuss the basics and have a few little rants. Then we talk about having kids or dogs and stuff gets deep. Also RC trucks. Music pick of the week. Robot – Unwound Stevil – The […]
The Medium is the Message. This episode is about cycling media, what we like, what we don’t like and how it relates to other endemic media, like skateboarding or music. We really get into it this week. Bombs get dropped. Feathers get ruffled. Music pick of the week. Robot – Russian Circles Stevil – Sonny […]
The Perfect Bike Day. This episode is about our idea of the perfect bike day, from sunup to sundown. How does it start? How does it end? How many burritos do we eat? What kinds of bikes do we ride? How much riding do we even do? Find out. Music pick of the week. Robot […]
Stuff We Find on Rides. This episode is about all the stuff we’ve found while out riding bikes. Not gonna lie, we get pretty deep in this one. We also get pretty stupid. It’s real roller-coaster ride. Music pick of the week. Robot – The Sword Stevil – Iron Maiden
Kook Games. This episode is about competitive bike events that aren’t races, or aren’t just races, the sorts of things we’d like to see added to the UCI calendar. With any luck, a few of you will pick up the batons we are passing here and start getting dumb with a few of your friends. […]
Episode 42 – Live, Laugh, Love. This episode is about what inspires and motivates us, and about what sort of inspiration and motivation we’re trying to put out into the world. We also examine the relative merits of fingernails and eyebrows, because those are things that needed to be clarified. Music pick of the week. […]
This Is Your Life. This episode is slightly different than our normal meandering nonsense. Today we’re going to get to know each other via a single song and a single bike for every decade of our lives. Believe you me, we still really struggled to stay on track, because our memories are poor and every […]
Manual Labor. This episode is about how punk rock a hard day’s work is, or actually it’s more about how manual labor shaped us and how it is fundamentally different than the work you do on the bike, even when bike work is often harder. Also, we decide, basically, whether it’s better to be a […]
Episode 39 – Scenes and Subcultures. This episode is about how sometimes your punk rock friends become Hare Krishnas or get really weird and start a rap/metal band, or how someone you like gets really into bike polo or freestyle unicycle. Lots of Stevil stories in this one, and a would-you-rather that gets a little […]
Write It In Blood. This episode is about tattoos, liking them, getting them, regretting them, what they mean, and what they don’t mean, and how to get a good one. We hear the story of Stevil’s first tattoo in 8th grade and talk a little about our own histories with the buzzing needle. Also, a […]
Bike Shops. This episode is about bike shops, what we like, what we don’t like, basically a recipe for success for small businesspeople everywhere and a love letter of sorts to the hilarious dirt bags who make the bike industry tick. Plus music picks and a would-you-rather that you won’t be discussing over Thanksgiving dinner.
Camping. This episode is about camping via bicycle, not necessarily bikepacking, with all sorts of gear, but maybe just riding out to a park or open space, making a little bivy or something, and falling asleep under the stars with a beer and a burrito. Do we go solo or bring friends? Yes!
Brushes with Greatness. This episode is about the people we’ve met or been near who are or were demonstrably better than us, both inside the bike business and outside it, and how they influenced us to be better versions of ourselves. Can you imagine what we’d be like if we hadn’t met them? No, us […]
Courier Pigeons. This episode is about bike couriers, messengering, and the strangely outsized influence of a niche job on cycling culture. Stevil was one, so we hear some stories of his life in the streets, and then discuss why these dirtbags and daredevils are such a source of fascination for people who really shouldn’t be […]
Satanic Bike Riding Rituals. This episode is about riding bikes and the stuff we do when we ride bikes without really thinking about it. Satanically. No. Not really. But that seemed like better marketing. We talk about our riding tics and habits, where they came from and why we still do them. That plus, wasabi […]
‘70s Dad. This episode is about our dads and how they were different than us in good ways and bad ways. We try to remember the most ’70s stuff our dads did, including whacking us when we stepped out of line occasionally. How do we feel about that now? We revisit the idea of what […]
Internet Friends. This episode is about people we know really well, but probably never met, because the internet made effort in friendships obsolete. There’s some pretty trenchant analysis of emotional bandwidth, connection, and creeping agoraphobia here. Also we consider whether it’d be better to eat a whole shark or a whole elephant.
Road Trippin. This episode is about road trips, by bike maybe, by car maybe, good ones and bad ones. We trot out our best road trip stories and discuss road trip music from the perspective of our high school selves, confined to one 90-minute cassette tape. We also mull the Mountain Dew jingle and whether […]
Hot Jorts. This episode is about performance cycling wear, by which we mean, the clothing you like to perform in. We discuss sports-specific leotards and jorts, and whether the requirement for technical clothing is one more way cycling reinforces its exclusivity and limits its own growth. Spoiler: We come to very few conclusions. As ever […]
The New Manliness. This episode is about not using your gender as an excuse for being a broken, toxic dickhead. We got invited to participate in a conversation with some other dudes about positive masculinity in the cycling industry, so we mull over why it is we got invited. Then we talk about positive feedback […]
Get Off My Lawn. Herein we grapple with the idea that things actually did used to be better than they are now. But which “back in the day” was the best day? Then we do some heavy thinking about the internet’s role in jacking us all up. We close with a consideration of both kindergarten […]
I See You Are Also Wearing a Black T-Shirt. This episode is about t-shirts. If that seems dumb to you, then clearly, you’ve not listened to this podcast before. As it turns out we could talk about t-shirts all day long. One of us is a hoarder. Both of us still dress like we dreamed […]
The Tour of France. This episode is about the Tour of France’s influence on cycling and us as cyclists. I know. I know. We broke down and talked about bikes for a change. As it turns out we both loved (and still love the Tour) despite all the madness and nonsense. All that, some music […]
We had a technical issue with Revolting #24. We fixed it, so we recommend that you delete the old version. And download what we meant for you to hear all along.
This episode is about the good news that Stevil no longer looks like a gorilla. Also, the guys talk about what the rules are and how closely or not you should follow them. You should always pick up after your dog though. That’s not even up for debate.
This is episode is about the events that made us change the way we do things. It is notoriously difficult to change people’s minds about things. First, what sorts of thing have you changed your mind about? And second, what got you to change your mind? How often do you change your sheets? Your towel? […]
Single-speeding. This episode is about single-speed bikes, riding, racing, etc. The hardcore of cycling. One note. Purity. The guys talk about their personal histories with just the one gear and the ethos around singel-speeding “back in the day.” Then they consider whether this oddball category isn’t just as elitist as all the others.
This episode is about Attention Deficit, both the diagnosed kind and the undiagnosed kind. It’s also about embracing the kind of thinking people who think this way do. The bike industry is filled with people whose minds are fast, flexible, and maybe a little out of control, and that’s ok.
Cross Training for Chaos. This episode is about the all the stuff we do to be able to keep doing the stuff we want to do like riding bikes and skateboards. The guys discuss the steps they’ve taken to be healthy enough to maintain their knucklehead lifestyles, and come to the surprising conclusion they like […]
This week Stevil and Robot talk about creativity and the state thereof in the world of bikes, not to mention their own creative processes. Skateboarding and music come up, as they do. Deep truths are uncovered. Paradigms get shifted. Buckle up. We’re about to move your cheese.
This week the guys talk about nostalgia. What is one bike thing they’re nostalgic for? Is nostalgia good or bad? And if they could put one great rock band back together, which one?
The guys make a format change in an effort to bring the maniacal chaos of their tangential digressions under control. This is a lightning round pile of questions that concerns, for a change, bicycles, but not before discussing body odor and the inability to sleep past 6am. Enjoy it!
The guys discuss digestive health, which may be a pretense for telling stories about having crapped their pants. As usual, there is a public health message embedded in some adolescent humor. Stevil tells stories. Robot laughs. They agree on most things.
Everyone has that crazy friend who leads them on adventures both comedic and tragic and often both. Stevil and Robot dig into the dumbest ideas they’ve entertained, and the most entertaining ones too. As always, they get off track, find their way back, and forget what the point of the story was in the first […]
What do we believe? We do we not believe? What are the things we’ve seen that we can’t explain? And how did those things change us? This week Robot and Stevil talk about what’s important, explore the topic of superstitions, and inevitably rope in skateboarding, music, Satanism, and OCD.
This week the guys talk about the funny way the bike industry has of introducing old ideas as new products. They’re mad about it, except when it works. They have no interest in participating, unless someone wants to hook them up. It’s the age-old problem of trying to figure out what’s actually really good and […]
This week the guys talk about the funny way the bike industry has of introducing old ideas as new products. They’re mad about it, except when it works. They have no interest in participating, unless someone wants to hook them up. It’s the age-old problem of trying to figure out what’s actually really good and […]
In this very special episode of Revolting, the guys welcome Amanda K. Bryan, a force of nature and straight talker, who educates them about the problems of sitting on a bike seat while being a woman. This one is packed full of toe-curling stories and snort laughter. Enjoy at your own risk.
In this very special episode of Revolting, the guys welcome Amanda K. Bryan, a force of nature and straight talker, who educates them about the problems of sitting on a bike seat while being a woman. This one is packed full of toe-curling stories and snort laughter. Enjoy at your own risk.
This week’s episode is NOT the one about riding bikes while female. That’s out next week. My apologies. This is actually the one about doping, the lure of it, the consequences of it, and the reality that our sport has been ruined by it, if you were one of those gravely concerned with who won […]
This week’s episode is NOT the one about riding bikes while female. That’s out next week. My apologies. This is actually the one about doping, the lure of it, the consequences of it, and the reality that our sport has been ruined by it, if you were one of those gravely concerned with who won […]
This week the guys talk about eating for mediocrity. Robot waxes poetic, rhapsodic, and lyrical about the fine fare on offer at 7-11, and we learn that Stevil has a strict and nutritious diet he follows religiously, except when he’s cramming pizza in his face. Here again, they get into what it means to get […]
This week the guys talk about eating for mediocrity. Robot waxes poetic, rhapsodic, and lyrical about the fine fare on offer at 7-11, and we learn that Stevil has a strict and nutritious diet he follows religiously, except when he’s cramming pizza in his face. Here again, they get into what it means to get […]
What is dirtbag fitness? Just because the guys don’t deal in watts or KOMS, doesn’t mean they’re not trying to stay capable on the bike and off it. This is a conversation about what it means to get older, and how to take care of a body that’s been put through the wringer, then thrown […]
What is dirtbag fitness? Just because the guys don’t deal in watts or KOMS, doesn’t mean they’re not trying to stay capable on the bike and off it. This is a conversation about what it means to get older, and how to take care of a body that’s been put through the wringer, then thrown […]
Parasites. The guys contemplate their places in the hurl and burl of the bike industry. On the one hand, as a pair of aimless, slackers who love to ghost rides bikes into the bushes, drink woods beer, and generally jackass around in the name of lowering the standard for everyone else, they feel like parasites. […]
Parasites. The guys contemplate their places in the hurl and burl of the bike industry. On the one hand, as a pair of aimless, slackers who love to ghost rides bikes into the bushes, drink woods beer, and generally jackass around in the name of lowering the standard for everyone else, they feel like parasites. […]
The guys delve into mental health struggles, their own experiences, and how the bike works as a therapeutic tool. They touch on heartbreak, depression, anxiety, substance abuse and much more. This is a far ranging discussion we all need to be having with friends, families and even strangers. It’s ok not to be ok.
The guys delve into mental health struggles, their own experiences, and how the bike works as a therapeutic tool. They touch on heartbreak, depression, anxiety, substance abuse and much more. This is a far ranging discussion we all need to be having with friends, families and even strangers. It’s ok not to be ok.
Stevil and Robot just drop the pretense and talk about music in this one. Skateboarding makes its customary appearance. If you like loud, fast bands or just like listening to two old jerks discuss bands who never made a dollar in their lives, this episode is just the banger you’ve been looking for.
Stevil and Robot just drop the pretense and talk about music in this one. Skateboarding makes its customary appearance. If you like loud, fast bands or just like listening to two old jerks discuss bands who never made a dollar in their lives, this episode is just the banger you’ve been looking for.
Robot and Stevil dig into their crashes, how they felt about them when they were younger, the psychological damage that needs to be overcome, and the worthwhileness of continuing to take risks. Blood, guts, perseverance. Skateboarding. Two parts macho bullshit. Two parts humility. One part semi-sound advice. One part inspiration. A cocktail onion and a […]
Robot and Stevil dig into their crashes, how they felt about them when they were younger, the psychological damage that needs to be overcome, and the worthwhileness of continuing to take risks. Blood, guts, perseverance. Skateboarding. Two parts macho bullshit. Two parts humility. One part semi-sound advice. One part inspiration. A cocktail onion and a […]
Robot and Stevil talk about going places by bike, all the good places, the weird places. Messengering. Seizures. Playing Tempest at the K-Mart arcade. Trespassing. Mountain biking in Wales. Going to see bands. The secret handshake. Fine museums. Dirt church. And then some random places too. Oh, and Stevil keeps talking about skateboarding.
Robot and Stevil talk about going places by bike, all the good places, the weird places. Messengering. Seizures. Playing Tempest at the K-Mart arcade. Trespassing. Mountain biking in Wales. Going to see bands. The secret handshake. Fine museums. Dirt church. And then some random places too. Oh, and Stevil keeps talking about skateboarding.
What’s Wrong with Cycling? Stevil and Robot wonder why cyclists insist on siloing themselves and how cycling turned into a middle-class white person thing, at least as far as the industry is concerned. They talk about the “dirtbag” demographic, how it lives alongside (or under) the rest of the industry, and consider some of the […]
What’s Wrong with Cycling? Stevil and Robot wonder why cyclists insist on siloing themselves and how cycling turned into a middle-class white person thing, at least as far as the industry is concerned. They talk about the “dirtbag” demographic, how it lives alongside (or under) the rest of the industry, and consider some of the […]
When We Rode Bikes. Stevil and Robot discuss the best times in their cycling lives, messengering, college days, exploring all the places everywhere, beginning with BMXing with friends. The conversation is, as you might guess, as rambling as some of those rides, but come along. It’ll be fun.
When We Rode Bikes. Stevil and Robot discuss the best times in their cycling lives, messengering, college days, exploring all the places everywhere, beginning with BMXing with friends. The conversation is, as you might guess, as rambling as some of those rides, but come along. It’ll be fun.
TCI is pleased to announce the launch of a new podcast called Revolting. Revolting is a rambling cocktail of thoughts, anecdotes, opinions, and half-remembered dreams, hosted by Stevil and Robot. Episode 1 is like a comic book origin story in which the guys discuss how they fell in love with bikes, and how bikes connected […]
TCI is pleased to announce the launch of a new podcast called Revolting. Revolting is a rambling cocktail of thoughts, anecdotes, opinions, and half-remembered dreams, hosted by Stevil and Robot. Episode 1 is like a comic book origin story in which the guys discuss how they fell in love with bikes, and how bikes connected […]