Kayakers find themselves lost in time and space
Canoe and Kayak magazine correspondents Jeffrey Andreoni and Giulio D’Eramo are currently on a paddling trip down the length of Ukraine’s Dnieper River towards the Black Sea, and they’ve submitted a series of dispatches to the magazine as part of it. In the latest dispatch the duo explores Kremenchuk, which is an important industrial city, and its surrounding areas. “Entering a small inlet at the southern tip of Hortitsa [a river island near Kremenchuk] we find peaceful and clear water. This place seems to be made for baidarkas [sea kayaks], and we soon meet three families paddling Neris 3 baidarkas in the calm canals and flowery marshes between the island and the city,” the duo wrote. “We again have a small island to ourselves, apart from some locals who spend an hour drinking and shouting on the neighboring beach. From our campsite, which seems lost in time and space, we only have to walk 15 feet through the trees to see the lights and factories of the nearby city. Unbelievable.” To read the entire dispatch, click here.

Photo courtesy Canoe and Kayak

Cycling’s for cool kids–sort of
For those of us who have ever taken up the unique sport of cycling, we all know what it’s like to show up for a group ride and suddenly feel out of place because we lack the snazzy gear and clothing of our fellow riders. Even longtime cycling writer and Mountain Biking Hall of Fame member Sal Ruibal knows the feeling, as he writes about it in a recent story on Bike magazine‘s site. “The first fondo [long-distance road cycling event] I ever participated in was the Gabicce Mare Fondo in Italy in 2005. I was working in Germany at the time and some of the folks from Radsport Wolf bike shop in Landstuhl talked me into going. Within five minutes of arriving there, I realized my bike was not cool enough, my kit was crap, my sunglasses were lame, and I didn’t have hair gel,” he wrote. But, like most of us, Ruibal eventually discovered that his lack of gear meant little in the end. “Ten minutes after arriving there I had a bottle of wine in one hand, a salami sandwich in the other, and about 50 new friends,” he wrote. To read his full post, click here.

Photo of cool rider with all the right gear and hair gel courtesy Bike magazine, Ruibal

Dr. Dirt: Setting your suspension sag
Dirt Rider magazine’s Dr. Dirt is full of helpful tips on how to keep your motorcycle working smoothly, and his most recent recommendations involve suspension sag. “The most important thing you can to do to improve the handling of your bike is to set your sag,” Dr. Dirt wrote. “When you sit on your motorcycle your bike ‘sags’ or compresses under your weight. The amount of sag affects handling by changing the ride height of your motorcycle fore and aft. Understanding how sag works lets you fine tune your bike so it will perform its best.” To read the rest of Dr. Dirt’s tips, click here.

Photo courtesy Dr. Dirt