Improve Your Bike And Life Skills With Ladies AllRide
A decade ago, Lindsey Richter saw a void in women’s mountain bike skills clinics and created Ladies AllRide to fill it. To this day, Lindsey, a long-time BikeFlights Ambassador, and her business partner Meredith Brandt of Grit Clinics continue to offer skills camps for women. Their camps are the perfect opportunity to take a mountain bike vacation at one of the best trail centers in the U.S., ride challenging tracks with supportive friends and sharpen skills.
On a day-to-day basis, Lindsey manages public relations, social media, written content, public speaking and general inspiration for Ladies AllRide while Meredith serves as the CEO and ‘Director of Everything’, handling logistics and managing everything and everyone.
Lindsey initially set out to design a new kind of skills camp that acknowledges the fears and difficulties associated with mountain biking while also creating an environment in which riders could celebrate their love for working through those elements of the sport. Its an ethos that remains a driving principle of hers today.
So what exactly happens at Liv Ladies AllRide camps? Here is a rundown from Lindsey herself:
We run 14 instructional mountain bike skills camps across the country annually where we coach up to 70 participants at each camp. These are fun-filled weekend events that are meant to bring women together to share the joys of mountain biking and learn in a safe, encouraging and welcoming environment.
We are passionate mountain bikers and professionally trained skills instructors who teach all levels of riders from beginner to advanced. We strive to build community and grow the population of female mountain bikers across the globe.
Combined with skills on the bike, we also inspire women to face fears, believe in themselves and change negative thoughts to positive. We relate mountain biking to life by helping women see how fear can debilitate us on bikes and in life. We have a unique formula where we throw in life skills along with bike skills.
For instance, we don’t stare at that rock and imagine crashing into it; we choose a line, look ahead, and think only thoughts that serve us, thoughts about what we need to do to get through, thoughts that keep us moving forward.
A Ladies AllRide weekend is not only full of awesome instruction on the bike, we also provide a Friday and Saturday afternoon happy hour, goody bags full of awesome sponsor product and coupons, raffle prizes, discounts to our partner bike shops, a nutritious lunch, snacks like Picky Bars and free demo products like G-Form pads, Smith helmets and Liv demo bikes. We also offer an hour of “education stations” with topics like bike maintenance, suspension set-up, nutrition on and off the bike, managing fear and a body positioning slideshow with commentary.
When they’re not busy running Ladies AllRide from the road and at home in Bend, Oregon, Lindsey and Meredith can be found leading private lessons and destination-based camps with their staff of 50+ professionally-trained coaches. Together, they continue to sow the seeds of mountain bike stoke across the nation.
Book a skills camp with Ladies AllRide, or book a private lesson with Grit clinics.
Shipping is one of the safest ways to transport your bike, but as with any method of transportation, damage and loss are possible. That’s why we offer Premium Protection for all BikeFlights shipments. When you ship your bikes, wheels or gear with BikeFlights, we recommend that you purchase protection to cover the market value of the contents of your shipment. Then you’ll be fully covered just in case the unexpected does happen.
Every BikeFlights shipment comes with with $200 of Premium Protection, and you may purchase additional Premium Protection in amounts up to a maximum of $20,000 during the booking process.
Once your shipment is booked, protected, packed and labeled, you can drop it off at any UPS Store or UPS Customer Center, or if you scheduled a pickup, we’ll send a driver to pick up your shipment on on the date you selected.
We are pleased to introduce our 2023 BikeFlights Brand Ambassadors and Sponsored Teams, including 36 individuals and two teams.
“All year long, our BikeFlights Brand Ambassadors inspire us with all that they do on and off a bike,” said Sue George, Vice President of BikeFlights. “For 2023, we’re welcoming 36 amazing individuals and two fantastic teams to represent BikeFlights in their communities and wherever they go ride and race. We can’t wait to see what they get up to this year.”
“What I love about BikeFlights is the stress-free process and assurance I get from knowing my bike or equipment will make it to my destination on time and safely,” said returning BikeFlights Brand Ambassador Kyle Trudeau.
New BikeFlights Brand Ambassador Maria Doering said, “I love the flexibility that BikeFlights gives me and that I am able to plan ahead when to ship my bike.”
Launched eight years ago in 2015, the BikeFlights Brand Ambassador program continues to make it easy for Ambassadors to ship their bikes, wheels and gear, whether they are traveling with their bikes or shipping bike-related gear they’ve just sold online. In exchange, Brand Ambassadors help spread the word about BikeFlights.
Long-time BikeFlights Brand Ambassador Ashton Lambie said, “Using BikeFlights is so easy. I can select a pickup to avoid having to drop off large boxes, and I can also send folks labels easily for them to ship to me.”
Returning BikeFlights Brand Ambassador Caleb Swartz said, “As a privateer I am in charge of a tremendous number of logistics. There are so many moving parts to my program, and I am constantly moving around equipment for races and training camps. BikeFlights makes it so easy and affordable to plan ahead. This reduces stress and it saves me innumerable headaches.”
“Our Ambassador program consists of riders of all ages and levels of experience from grassroots to pro,” said George. “We’re proud to support ambassadors who are gravel riders, mountain bikers, road riders, trackies, triathletes and cyclocrossers of different races, ethnic backgrounds, ages, genders and locations.”
BikeFlights Brand Ambassador Diana Hildebrand, who has taught both adults and youth how to ride a bicycle, said, “I love that BikeFlights offers safe traveling for bicycles, supports various organizations and offers ambassadors opportunities.”
“BikeFlights provides a wonderful tool for shipping bikes and gear, but the BikeFlights family is one that cares about each other and their customers,” said returning BikeFlights Ambassador Rose Grant, a mom and recently retired pro racer. “I have really loved being a part of this community.”
Expect to see BikeFlights Brand Ambassadors in action at national caliber events like The Mid South, the Sea Otter Classic, Unbound Gravel, the Leadville MTB Trail 100, Rebecca’s Private Idaho and Big Sugar as well as many more events in their local communities and beyond. You’ll also often see them out pedaling on their favorite local roads and trails.
Individuals
Abe Alkhamees (Kuwait City, Kuwait)
Alex Kang (Newark, CA)
Alexey Vermeulen (Boulder, CO)
Andreas Drekonja (Minneapolis, MN)
Annie Davis (Bentonville, AR)
Ashton Lambie (Houston, TX)
Caleb Swartz (Missoula, MT)
Diana Hildebrand (Cleveland, OH)
Emmett Culp (Portland, OR)
Enzo Moscarella (Queens Village, NY)
Eric Brunner (Boulder, CO)
Garrett Bonenberger (Knoxville, TN)
Jake Wells (Avon, CO)
Jessica Brunson (Fort Worth, TX)
Justin Hanneken (North Fort Myers, FL)
Kait Boyle (Victor, ID)
Kecia McCullough (Rochester, NY)
Kelly Freire (Miami, FL)
Kenneth Oladapo (Atlanta, GA)
Kyle Trudeau (Tucson, AZ)
Lauren Thrailkill (Coatesville , PA)
Layla Doman (Washington, DC)
Lindsey Richter (Bend, OR)
Lisa Gillespie (New York, NY)
Liza Rachetto (Boise, ID)
Maria Doering (Banner Elk, NC)
Noah Hayes (Santa Barbara, CA)
Rebecca Rusch (Ketchum, ID)
Rose Grant (Columbia Falls, MT)
Sam Coyle (San Luis Obispo, CA)
Sara Lim (Seattle, WA)
Sarah Bowman (Los Angeles, CA)
Starla Teddergreen (Longmont, CO)
Sydney Wenger (Roanoke, VA)
Tina Beecham (Cibolo, TX)
Tsitsi Merritt (New York City, NY)
Teams
Bear Development Team (including Riders: Alyssa White, Andie Aagard, Austin Beard, Bailey Cioppa, Bayli McSpadden, Benjamin Crismon, Brady White, Brayden Johnson, Brynnlie Aagard, Carson Hampton, Cayden Parker, Charlotte Philkill, Chloe Fraser, Cobe Freeburn, Daniel English, Daxton Mock, Ethan Blocker, Ethan Shirey, George Frazier, Hayley Ballard, Ian Brown, Jack Spranger, Kaya Musgrave, Kellie Harrington, Kira Mullins, Landen Stovall, Lasse Konecny, Lauren Lackman, Leo Gutierrez, Liam Baartman, Luke Mosteller, Mike Ziomek, Miles Mattern, Nathan Dutton, Nico Konecny, Noah Spangenberg, Paige Edwards, Raulito Gutierrez, Robbie Day, Ruth Holcomb, Tai-Lee Smith and Vida Lopez de San Roman; and Team Managers & Staff: Julia Violich, Jason Jablonski, Julien Petit and Nik Johnson)
Maxxis Factory Racing Team (including Riders: Andrew L'Esperance, Colton Peterson, Elizabeth (Lia) Westermann and Haley Smith; and Team Manager Drew Esherick)
Our Brand Ambassador program is full for 2023. Applications will be accepted for 2024 starting sometime in October 2023. Stay tuned to our e-newsletter, social media and blog for details about when and how to sign up in the future.
BikeFlights Buck Up For Bikes Program Donates $16,000
We are pleased to announce a donation of $16,000 to Trip for Kids, the National Interscholastic Cycling Association, Little Bellas and the International Mountain Bike Association from funds raised via our BikeFlights Buck Up for Bikes program throughout 2022.
“We value the excellent work that the beneficiaries of our Buck Up For Bikes program are doing to create more opportunities and places for people to ride,” said Alcorn. “We also appreciate the ongoing support of our customers for Buck Up For Bikes.”
Originally created in 2016 to benefit NICA and the Amy D. Foundation, BikeFlights’ Buck Up for Bikes (BUFB) program has been growing ever since. From the program’s inception to date, BikeFlights has raised and given out more than $95,000.
“It is an honor to express my sincere appreciation to the BikeFlights team for their enduring partnership and commitment to Trips for Kids,” said Patricia Gallery, President of Trips for Kids (TFK). “The Buck up for Bikes program is helping us drive our national movement to enrich the minds and bodies of all kids from all communities, especially those in need, through the transformative power of the bike.”
Lucas Euser, National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) Director of Corporate Partnerships said, "NICA is infinitely grateful to all of our partners that help break down barriers to empower every kid to be part of a thriving and engaged cycling community. The Buck Up for Bikes program is an easy way to help get more kids on bikes through NICA’s safe, reliable and predictable youth development programming. Thank you, BikeFlights, for being a great NICA partner."
"BikeFlights has been an incredible long-standing partner with Little Bellas,” said Sabra Davison, Director of Little Bellas. “They have been shipping bikes for girls in need to every corner of the country as well as utilizing their Buck Up for Bikes checkout to further support getting more girls on bikes."
Dave Wiens, Executive Director of the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) said, “We're grateful for the continued support of BikeFlights and the Buck up for Bikes program, being recipients alongside partners who introduce kids to mountain biking. BikeFlights knows that keeping kids riding requires fun trails and more trails close to home. Supporting IMBA supports trails, and more trails means more kids on bikes."
Per the Buck Up for Bikes program, BikeFlights customers have the option to contribute from one to four bucks during checkout when booking their bike shipping online. BikeFlights not only collects and tracks all donations, but also supplements collected contributions and covers the costs of administering and publicizing the program.
The Tour de France held its annual presentation last week in Paris, France to announce next year’s official routes. Both the hommes (men’s) and femmes (women’s) editions are already being touted as a climber's dream because each winner will likely be decided high in the mountains. As the official bike shipping service of the Tour de France, BikeFlights got the inside scoop on what next year’s routes have in store for the pelotons.
Tour de France Hommes
The Grand Depart of the 2023 Tour de France Hommes will take place starting on July 1, 2023 in Spain’s Basque Country before the Tour heads towards the Pyrenees mountains. As with most editions, next year’s Tour will favor aggressive climbers by featuring four summit finishes and an uphill individual time trial. The sprinters will also have their turn to race for stage wins with six flat stages. The race will conclude after 3,404 kilometers on its traditional circuit in Paris on the Champs-Élysées.
Here are the stages for the 2023 Tour de France Hommes:
Stage 1: July 1 - Hilly - Bilbao to Bilbao - 182km
Stage 2: July 2 - Hilly - Vitoria-Gasteiz to Saint-Sébastien - 209km
Stage 3: July 3 - Flat - Amborebieta-Etxano to Bayonne - 185km
Stage 4: July 4 - Flat - Dax to Nogaro - 182km
Stage 5: July 5 - Mountain - Pau to Laruns - 165km
Stage 6: July 6 - Mountain - Tarbes to Cauterets-Cambasque - 145km
Stage 7: July 7 - Flat - Mont-De-Marsan to Bordeaux - 170km
Stage 8: July 8 - Hilly - Libourne to Limoges - 201km
Stage 9: July 9 - Mountain - Saint-Léonard-De-Noblat to Puy de Dôme - 184km
July 10 - Rest Day
Stage 10: July 11 - Hilly - Vulcania to Issoire - 167km
Stage 11: July 12 - Flat - Clermont-Ferrand to Moulins - 180km
Stage 12: July 13 - Hilly - Roanne to Belleville-en-Beaujolais - 169km
Stage 13: July 14 - Mountain - Châtillon-Sur-Chalaronne to Grand Colombie - 138km
Stage 14: July 15 - Mountain - Annemasse to Morzine Les Portes Du Soleil - 152km
Stage 15: July 16 - Mountain - Les Gets Les Portes Du Soleil to Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc - 180km
July 17 - Rest Day
Stage 16: July 18 - Individual Time Trial - Passy to Combloux - 22km
Stage 17: July 19 - Mountain - Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc to Courchevel - 166km
Stage 18: July 20 - Hilly - Moûtiers to Bourg-En-Bresse - 186km
Stage 19: July 21 - Flat - Moirans-en-Montagne to Poligny - 173km
Stage 20: July 22 - Mountain - Belfort to Le Markstein Fellering - 133km
Stage 21: July 23 - Flat - Saint-Quentin-En-Yvelines to Paris Champs-Élysées - 115km
Tour de France Femmes
The second edition of the new version of the Tour de France Femmes will take place throughout France during eight stages from July 23 to July 30, 2023. Its Grand Depart will be hosted by the city of Clermont-Ferrand, the capital of the Auvergne region before the race also travels south into the Pyrénées. The Tour will conclude after 956 kilometers with an individual time trial in Pau.
Here are the stages for the 2023 Tour de France Femmes:
Stage 1: July 23 - Flat - Clermont-Ferrand to Clermont-Ferrand - 124km
Stage 2: July 24 - Hilly - Clermont-Ferrand to Mauriac - 148km
Stage 3: July 25 - Flat - Collonges la Rouge to Montignac Lascaux - 147km
Stage 4: July 26 - Hilly - Cahors to Rodez - 177km
Stage 5: July 27 - Flat - Onet le Chateau to Albi - 126km
Stage 6: July 28 - Flat - Albi to Blagnac - 122km
Stage 7: July 29 - Mountain - Lannemezan to Tourmalet Bagneres de Bigorre - 90km
On the heels of the Leadville Trail 100 MTB came SBT GRVL, an annual gravel race held in the Colorado Rocky Mountain resort town of Steamboat Springs. Since its inception in 2019, BikeFlights has been represented both as an event partner and with our own tires on the gravel.
However this year our Partnership Director and Colorado resident Michael Potter couldn’t make it because he was busy helping his wife welcome Ellis Robert to the world (congrats Grayson and Michael!). So our Vice President Sue George, and former BikeFlights Event Marketing Manager Vince Camiolo packed their bikes and BikeFlights’ed them from the east coast to Steamboat Springs to fill in for Michael and get their own taste of what SBT GRVL calls “the greatest gravel roads on Earth.”
The schedule on Day 1, Friday, called for the downtown expo to start at 3:00 p.m., giving Sue the opportunity in the morning to reunite her Moots bike with its birthplace and join a group ride from the Moots headquarters.
A festival-like atmosphere filled Yampa Street in downtown Steamboat Springs on Friday evening and all day Saturday. Both sides of the street were filled with tents representing much of the cycling industry, as well as organizations promoting inclusivity in cycling, like Ride for Social Justice and All Bodies on Bikes.
SBT GRVL has made inclusivity a focus of the event from a variety of angles. The race itself has four course choices starting at the Green (37 miles) and ascending to Red (62 miles), Blue (100 miles) and Black (142 miles). In addition to the typical male and female categories, there are non-binary category and para categories.
After two days of expo, chatting with the bike shipping-curious and seasoned BikeFlights customers, and handing out swag and packing tips, Sunday morning came along, and it was time to ride!
Sue and Vince both chose the Blue 100-mile course and rolled across the downtown Steamboat Springs starting line at 7:00 a.m. with 878 other cyclists.
The course left town on pavement, but it wasn’t long before it turned onto a gravel descent, starting the more than 70-percent unpaved sections of the course. Climbing for the day would total over 6,000 feet in 100 miles, ranging in elevation from about 6,600 feet to over 8,000 feet above sea level.
“My favorite part of the course, aside from the constant picturesque mountain scenery, is how varied the terrain was,” said Vince. “The majority was the quintessential Colorado gravel road, but we found ourselves on singletrack, occasional smooth pavement, and even a hayfield as well.”
Sue said, “The course rolled so much faster than I was expecting for a primarily gravel road event. It felt like we were absolutely flying over those smooth roads all day, yet I still enjoyed some chances en route to chat with some of the other participants. I loved pedaling the beautiful, more wooded section out to and around Steamboat Lake with a local who was pointing out and naming the local peaks and other landmarks.”
While different gravel races take varied approaches to offering aid stations along the course, the SBT GRVL Blue offered a well-stocked and well-staffed aid station every 25 miles, with a few surprise extras along the way.
Some events are suited for a single check on the bucket list, but SBT GRVL, with its focus on inclusivity and its setting in a welcoming and amenity-stocked resort town (like multiple solid coffee shops!), has the potential to be an annual pilgrimage for cyclists of all levels. Conquer the Blue? Come back and do the Black. Maybe bring the whole family and ride the Green together. Or let them enjoy the town until it’s time to welcome you at the finish as you endeavor to beat your Blue time. Either way, it’s easy to ship your bike straight to Steamboat Springs, and maybe we’ll see you there next August!
The Leadville Trail 100 MTB has always been a bucket list event for endurance mountain bikers, but this year, it also doubled as the fourth stop of the Life Time Grand Prix. BikeFlights was on hand all weekend to catch up with customers and cheer on the racers.
The ‘From the Ground Up’ Crew
Our very own Sparky Moir, Support Team Director, and Daniel Precious, Customer Experience Associate, made the journey up to Leadville from Colorado’s Western Slope to expo on Thursday and Friday and to watch Saturday’s 100-mile race.
“The BikeFlights tent was set up right next to the beer garden and expo stage, and we had the chance to talk to hundreds of racers, BikeFlights Ambassadors, families and other riders who were checking out the expo,” said Sparky. “After handing out lots of BikeFlights swag and wishing racers the best of luck, we got out for a quick ride on some singletrack, and also checked out the start and finish portion of the race.” They especially enjoyed taking in the views of the surrounding 14ers and 13ers while enjoying some nearby trails.
On Saturday morning, Sparky and Daniel woke up bright and early to watch the race’s start, which was conveniently located on the same street where they were staying. After encouraging riders at the start, they drove to the course to watch riders descend a singletrack section. Then it was off to a later part of the course to watch some of the top pros come through.
Daniel recounted one of his favorite moments of the event. “We were kind of in the middle of nowhere with no one else around us at mile 70, and one of Sparky’s friend Sarah came by telling us she was ‘breaking,’ and it sounded as if she were about to cry. We cheered her on until she was completely out of sight, and she ended up finishing fourth in the pro women’s category.”
Throughout the day, Sparky and Daniel cheered on BikeFlights Ambassadors including Rose Grant, Derek Braun and Alexey Vermeulen, former BikeFlights Staff Member Emily Birch, and three From The Ground Up riders.(Learn more about the From the Ground Up project here).
Then it was onto the finish to support riders as they rolled in after a very long and hard day.
“Another memorable moment was at hour 13, when most racers had already finished and gone home. There was a teenager standing 100 yards from the finish line on the lookout for his dad,” said Daniel. “When he saw his dad, he burst out yelling "YES DAD, YES DAD," and you could tell he was so happy and proud to see his dad. His dad had the biggest smile on his face once he saw his son's reaction, and his son ran across the finish line with his dad. It was an incredibly touching moment, and I'm sure that a few people in that finishing area shed some tears.”
Sparky added, “It was incredible being out there and witnessing the hard work every racer was putting in to get to the finish!”
For this year’s BikeFlights Ambassador program we worked to provide riders with more support and more gear and we have been thrilled with our team’s representation across the country wearing the newly designed BikeFlights Kit. Our friends at Alé Cycling created a comfortable and stylish kit that stands out in the peloton by combining our signature BikeFlights blue with their high-performance materials. Whether our Ambassadors are cruising the local trails and roads, or taking on national-level events, they have worn our kit with smiles.
