Preparing for this issue, I was reading Stew Boyd's Work Futures newsletter & his latest issue kicks off with this Margaret Wheatley quote:
"We can’t be creative if we refuse to be confused. Change always starts with confusion; cherished interpretations must dissolve to make way for the new."
A tough pill to swallow for all the know-it-alls-out there! ; ) Myself included though I do say: "strong opinions, loosely held". 😆 This week's preamble is composed of additional wisdom Stew shared from Wheatley's book, Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future:
👂 "We have the opportunity many times a day, every day, to listen to others, curious rather than certain."
🙂⃤🙂⃤ "But the greatest benefit of all is that listening moves us closer."
🔗 "When we listen with less judgment, we always develop better relationships with each other."
📜 "It’s not differences that divide us. It’s our judgments about each other that do."
🤔 "Curiosity and good listening bring us back together."
🤨 "Sometimes we hesitate to listen for differences because we don’t want to change."
😌 "We’re comfortable with our lives, and if we listened to anyone who raised questions, we’d have to get engaged in changing things."
🥱 "If we don’t listen, things can stay as they are and we won’t have to expend any energy."
💡 "But most of us do see things in our life or in the world that we would like to be different."
🧏🏻♀️ "If that’s true, we have to listen more, not less."
😬 "And we have to be willing to move into the very uncomfortable place of uncertainty."
I hope that got your wheels turning like it did for me! Related: consider making optimism your default setting. ; )
with appreciation,
Jon
p.s.
I had too much to include in this issue to some links that didn't get full features: buycycle's US expansion: a case study in cross-Atlantic success, Will Butler-Adams, CEO at Brompton Bicycles, speaks with Danielle Reiff-Jongerius in the fifth article for CIN exploring diversity in the cycling industry & a little peek into the factory tour I did Wednesday at Van Raam. (Dutch) I'll post an insta reel about it this week! And my friend Jelle is organizing a bike rave in The Hague! 🪩
Upcoming Events
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September
- 🇨🇿 5-8 Bohemian Border Bash Camp
- 🇳🇱 7 Bike Rave The Hague
- 🇳🇱 8 Women's 100 at WS6
- 🇪🇸 20-22 Sea Otter Girona
- 🇳🇱 27 Dox Under The Tracks
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October
- 🇩🇪 18-20 Bespoked Dresden
- 🇳🇱 25-26 Cargo Bike Festival November
- 🇳🇱 29 Twotone Ten Year Party!
Bikes
The Bohemian Border Bash Race '24 Kicked off!

Follow the racers here. Badlands is in full swing and September is action-packed in the bikepacking department! I'm Czechia bound for my 5th BBB Camp. Looking forward to seeing a few of you there! : )
Le Pilgrimage Begins Sept 12th

Best of Marnix 2024 🔥
Soulcycle celebrated 25 years of business with Saturday's Best of Marnix Jam! Congrats to all the participants! Full results here. I made tons of clips but haven't made my edit yet! 😅 (Sem's hip-to-wall flight was one of my favorite moves of the comp!)
Ideas
State of Travel 2024

📉"travel to USA is notably down from 2019 - 2023"
🏆"Sport events + concerts are a major catalyst for travel both domestic + international"
🛂"2023 was a record year for intl travel for Americans, with over 22 million people registering for passports (more than any year on record)"
✈️"India is one of the countries most eager to visit USA; they have 52% more interest in coming, vs Japan who have gone down -54%"
🧘🏼"intl “wellness tourism” is up 175% (!!), and is favored as a travel motivator by those earning 200k+
👤"interest in solo travel is surging, and a market presently valued at approx $484 billion"
The Bikepacking Cookbook

I love this! Admittedly, I've never bikepacked with a stove but will. And will refer to this resource. When I can, I bring pizza or other packable prize foods for when I reach the summit with a cola or beer. Krista Diamond recently wrote about exactly that.
Ride Anyway

Friends
Trackloscotia Tracklo Weekendo 2024

Grav Grav's New Logo Designed by Jack Taylor

James Nord Interviewed by Cyclespeak

Cyclespeak interviews are consistently good and James always has great thoughts to share. Nice one, guys!
Radness
Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life

I tried making a snazzy gif outta the trailer but I think this film might be too rad for simply a gif teaser. Click thru to see for yourself. I plan to watch with my kids on my next trip to Florida in 2 week's time. I've been a fan of Geoff's for more than a decade via his work with Golden Saddle, Mudfoot and the Bicycle Film Festival. : )
Thank you very much for reading!
Here's to getting confused for new views this week!