The Northwoods Ramble Podcast Show #8

Posted on October 2, 2023

This episode features an interview with return guest Josh Rizzo of The Nxrth.com website. We record that interview outside at Home Base Lodging at Telemark Village and discuss the cool new trailside lodging there as well as go through the remaining regional gravel races of the season on his website’s calendar.

Home Base is destined to be a favorite of cyclists and skiiers with all the targeted amenities as well as the nearby MTB and ski trails. The indoor bike and ski storage with a floor drain is genius! Could it be a one of a kind silent sports lodging amenity?

First though, I give a fall seasonal update on Life Above 8 that includes the Cable Area Fall Fest, my recon rides on the 2023 Tour de Chequamegon route and I get into the modifications I have been making to my Yuba Sweet Curry to turn it from an urban utility ride into a Northwoods beast of a cycling UTV that could also be used for dogpacking. Let it be said that the Manitou Mastodon Pro LE Camo suspension fork and the fatter tires are a total game changer on the loose gravel forest roads and singletrack.

It remains to be seen though if Cowboy wants to go dogpacking on the bike. At this point, he is not totally into it. He will go along and hop up on the back when I have the bread tray mounted to it, but I’m not sure he likes it. I will keep trying on shorter trips before I remove the motor and battery to turn it into an analog dogpacking bike.

The bike weighs 90 lbs with the motor and two batteries and only has a range of about 80 miles. The hassle of finding a charge at campgrounds or along the route on bikepacking trips isn’t worth the assist in my opinion. If I remove the assist and the heavyish front basket it only weighs about 42 lbs, which is fine for a dogpacking bike.

I also remind folks that the Northwoods Ramble Podcast will be at the Ironbull Red Granite Grinder the weekend of Oct. 14th to record some race reports at the finish for a future podcast. So be sure to look for Seeley Dave somewhere near the finish, most likely close to wherever Redeye Brewing is serving up their latest beer release!

The show is best viewed as a video on Spotify or YouTube to see the routes and gear we review, but you can stream just the audio if that is more convenient.

Amazon Music
Apple for just audio
Spotify for video or audio
YouTube

Below is a list of the Bikepacking Gear Lending Library Equipment I have available to loan as of this podcast. Email me at seeleydave2021@gmail.com if you are interested in borrowing any of it.