Instagram story viewer> @stevetheintern> Posts

Stephen Fitzgerald

@stevetheintern

17.3K

followers

1513

following

Inspirational quote

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Download All

T minus two weeks until I leave for Turkey. With each passing day I can feel it getting more and more real. It’s hard to believe how much has transpired between the now and the night I huddled around laptops with David, filling out the application, hoping that Nelson would approve my admittance into the race.

In those early months after approval it was all I could think of. I was thrilled to be in, and imagined myself slowly grinding up remote mountain roads in a far away land. My initial internal goals were to push as hard as I could. Top 10%, fast and efficient. Prove that I could still push. But my, what a difference 9 months make.

This has been, by a fair margin, the most active year that I’ve had on bikes. That happened without a plan. I was borne along by passion early on, then by other events, then by discipline. The miles stacked up, and so did the memories. And so did the physical and emotional fatigue.

After The Diagonal I was completely spent. This year has been enough. I was tipping past healthy into excess. In my mind Turkey was on the chopping block, but I gave myself time to rest a bit before calling it. These last few weeks have been that rest. No early mornings. No long days of training. Instead I sleep in, and hibernate on the couch with Sarah , and deeply enjoy a passive weekend of normalcy with the kids. Real life is beautiful. It has its own healing quality. I’m so grateful for it.

The fatigue of Diagonal faded with each passing day. Visions of Turkey tested my mind. Maybe? I’m 48 this month. How many opportunities like this will I have? Forget top 10%. Maybe just go for the experience, the community, and the memories from these things that you carry forever. Maybe be kind to yourself instead of pushing so hard. Maybe don’t chase your youth, but celebrate what has changed.

So, I’m going to go, and I’m excited. I’m dreaming of mountains again. I’ve two more weeks to rest and nest, then it’s one more big lap to cap off the year. Life is beautiful, and it’s hard to resist living it.

#rideexplorecreate by @stevetheintern

287

19

5 days ago

Before I rode Diagonal these last five days, I had done a big day from Steamboat to Denver about a week prior. I came back excited and enthusiastic about how it had gone, and by what I had seen, and the time spent with a friend. I came back, by the numbers, probably the “fittest” I had ever been, but I also came back tired. Internally, something just felt off. I was redlined not just physically, but in life. Cycling is the main thrust of what I share here, but it isn’t “me”. All-in I’m a dad and a husband and someone trying to run a business. I’m someone with normal relationships with normal people that have nothing to do with this two wheeled world that is presented here.

When you ratchet up the training on the bike, working towards big goals, you don’t just magically have the time to fit it all in, you make the time by displacing other things. You displace bit of work, a bit of family, a bit of quiet time alone that you need to be mentally healthy. You displace unscripted time where spontaneous things happen. You fall asleep on the couch instead of catching up with your wife. You lose your ability to listen and be present. You’re planning in your head, thinking about what’s coming, nervous about being under prepared. Sometimes people are talking to you at home or at work or at dinner, and you aren’t listening, and they can tell.

You’re trying to do it all and get it all right but that’s a fallacy. You can’t do it all. You can’t have it all. You give and you take. Maybe some people have simpler lives and it’s ok to be on “the take” a lot. Some people have no family, no kids, no obligations, no tethers, and they are free to lean fully into a thing, and for that to be ok. That is not my life. My life isn’t fully mine, it belongs to a lot of other people.

As I ride for hours or days, it’s catching up to me: The sense that I can’t live at redline, I need to let up on the throttle. That’s hard to type. Doing more isn’t winning, doing right is winning. Being in great shape doesn’t mean that I’m healthy.

So now, with this Diagonal done, I’m trying to take time to exhale and think about what it means to be healthy. For me and those around me. by @stevetheintern

207

16

22 days ago

There is no way to capture it in 20 measly slides. The Colorado Diagonal gave me enough memories to page through for a lifetime.

David and I touched the stone in the North East corner on Colorado at about 5am on Thursday morning, and touched the South West monument at the finish in Four Corners at 10:30 on Monday morning. In between was everything: Wide plains, endless rolling fields of grass, small towns, a big city, the rise of the Rockies, singletrack, hero dirt roads, murderous rollers, washboard, heat, doubt, fear. There were countless crests and high mountain passes. A billion babyheads, washboards, and side-by-sides. There were emotional highs, camaraderi, trust, friendship. There were deep valleys of doubt. Could we really complete this quest? Had we bitten off more than we had bargained for? Was it too much? Yes to all that.

We saw so so much of Colorado. By bisecting it on the diagonal we pierced the mundane and discovered exceptional jewels all along the way. This state has so many secrets to share with those who search them out. Now we are keepers of some of those, along with other who have passed through for centuries, millennia. Some secrets we can share as route intel - and we will. But others you have to earn: Sunset rendered in watercolor just past Hartsel, lost on private land - you had to be there. Euphoria at midnight atop Slumgullion Pass, under a vivid Milky Way - no camera captures that. Tickled senses of a thunderstorm that warns one ridge over - That electricity is being alive.

The monument at the end was what we dreamt of the entire rude, but it was everything that happened on the way that made it what it was: A highlight of life, cycling, and friendship.

Hats off to David, my wheelmate, who will always know what I see in my minds eye long after the words have long since run out.

#rideexplorecreate taken in Colorado by @stevetheintern

506

36

22 days ago

Dear Internet, by the time you’re reading this I’ll already be gone, on a big bike ride, across Colorado. I’m doing the riding first because I don’t want you to only care about my body and my looks. I want you to care about my personality and my soul. Yeah, I’m a big-bodied bike with big wheels. I’ve got high performance parts hung all over me, and flashy paint, but that is just the window dressing. In the end, I’m not a bunch of pretty components, I’m a tool.

I was built in Denver from titanium lugs and carbon tubes, then turned into a complete bike by the team there as well. I’m not for sale, and there are not yet any plans to release me to the riding public. I’m here to endure long days in the saddle across long distances. I’m here to be tested and evaluated. I’m here to help Rodeo decide if my measurements and big wheels are a passing fad or something that could be beneficial to specific riders in specific riding situations. I’m not a foregone conclusion, I’m the beginning of the answer to the questions that Rodeo is asking. Is more really more? If so, do we NEED more? Is more worth it? Are all the awesome bikes that people are already out riding somehow old tech now? Is there anything wrong with 29”, 650b, 26”, or even smaller?

Ride. Explore. Create. There’s a proper order to it. Riding first, always.

Once I’m dirty, chipped, and well worn from enough miles, the conclusions will come, and they will be shared. For now though, you can follow the ride at rodeo-labs.com/diagonal

Thanks to @fsa_components and @tailfincycling for their support on this build and this adventure!

Thanks for coming along!

#rideexplorecreate by @stevetheintern

3k

38

25 days ago

Here we go again. Another grand adventure. This time you’re invited to follow (or even ride) along!

I’ve had this project in my head for a few years, and even almost attempted it with friends last year before work interfered. The idea is simple: Colorado has four corners, could I connect them with a diagonal line? I hadn’t heard of anyone doing it, which made the idea more novel and exciting, and scary for me.

I wanted to keep the line as diagonal as possible, and for the route to not be overly curated. Colorado is what it is, some flat plains, some prairie, some rivers, some mountains, some majesty, some austerity. To really see a place and get to know it you take the good with the “bad”.

We leave tomorrow morning early, from the Nort East corner. We head southwest into the unknown. 688 miles. 44,362’ of climbing. Our goal is 5 days. That’s ambitious. It’s possible that we’re over reaching. I’m a little scared! But, that’s adventure, and we’re here for it!

We’ve put up a page on the rodeo Journal with all of the ride chapters, the interactive map, gear breakdown, land history, supporters and more. As we researched this route we found so much that we want to share, and it’s all there. Rodeo-labs.com/diagonal.

On behalf of myself and David, we hope you can follow along. If you’re so inclined, find our tracking dot on the map and meet up with us for some miles.

I’ll be posting stories from along the way as I’m able, and will have plenty to share about it all when we’re back.

Special thanks to Pete Streufert who developed the mapping and storytelling interface that we’re using for this project. It’s so cool to scroll up and down to watch the route and terrain go by, and to learn about the places we’re riding through.

Thanks to these peeps for their support:
@spring_energy
@tailfincycling
@fsa_components
@nemoequipment

#rideexplorecreate taken in Colorado by @stevetheintern

1k

52

a month ago

The fastest stories about bike riding, and Tour Divide itself are most often focused on the fastest among us, but the most inspiring riders and stories are often the ones that happen outside of the limelight. So how about we shift the limelight into someone who deserves it?

A new episode of the Rodeo Podcast is live, and in it we talk to Andy Zolyak, @designedbyz , who recently completed Tour Divide with an inspiring ride that had every manner of highs and lows. We discussed the journey, the lead-up, the weeks in the saddle. We talked about what went right, and what went wrong. We dug into what it means to persist not because you’re having fun, or hitting your goals, but because you simply can. It’s the type of mindset that takes you to the finish line and far beyond.

You can find The Rodeo Labs Podcast on any of your favorite podcasting platforms, or embedded at rodeo-labs.

#rideexplorecreate
#bikepacking
#tourdivide by @stevetheintern

172

17

a month ago

In episode 06 of The Radavist Podcast, @hailey.m.moore catches up with Stephen Fitzgerald @stevetheintern on all the recent haps at @rodeolabs, including some exciting news about their made-in-Denver hardtail aluminum mountain bike!

Give it a listen wherever you get your podcasts! by @stevetheintern

605

5

2 months ago

Iceland! The Rift Abyss. It’s still on my mind, and will be until I see myself out of this timeline. What was packed into four days of travel and 206 miles of bike riding is more than I can put into words but you know; I tried anyway. I tried the gather up the experience as a whole, and the places that we rode through as well as I know how, but of course my efforts do not do Iceland justice. You really have to just go and ride it for yourself. If you’re seeking inspo in that regard, head on over to the Rodeo Journal for the full written and visually documented recap. It’s all there, seen through the lenses of multiple people and photo contributors.

If Iceland seems to big, or too far away, I encourage you to scare yourself! It’s through these edge of the map experiences that we discover so much more about ourselves, our world, and our fellow travelers.

Thank you for the experience @therifticeland and @thebergur !

#rideexplorecreate by @stevetheintern

572

16

2 months ago

My vision has not been great of late. It seems that each year that passes I have a harder and harder time focusing on things close to me. Apparently this condition is a direct result of staying alive into and past your 40s. It doesn’t appear to be preventable or reversible.

2026 has already been quite a year. If I decided to call it today, I think I’ve already packed enough into it to sit back and say to myself “yep, that was a good one”. It’s also been an exhausting year. I’ve thrown myself into riding and training with increased vigor, probably motivated by equal parts passion and fear. I’ve got that huge event looming in October and it’s always reminding me that it will take everything I can muster, mentally and physically, just to complete it.

All the riding and training have left my cup of experiences on the bike overflowing this year, but as I came home from Iceland last week I could feel something deep: Excitement was masking exhaustion. I’m so, so tired. If I haven’t over cooked it this year, I definitely pushed right up against that line. I’ve felt it for a couple of months but kept straining. “I’ll rest after Iceland”. Suddenly, here we are, after Iceland, and it’s time to rest.

Resting feels strange. Sleeping more. Riding less. Being more still. Having no agenda. I feel the impulse to get up and go, but I need to sit down and stay.

We went camping this weekend. No bikes, just swimming and walking and sitting and watching three boys and a dog engage in being young. There was no cell signal. There were no screens. Wrangling these kiddos was as exhausting as any ultra, but it felt like rest in a profound way. I needed this, and I think they did too, for different reasons.

On Monday my eyesight was noticeably better. I could focus more easily. I didn’t need my glasses. I don’t feel tired at all. On Tuesday morning, after a day of work, my eyesight is soft again. What is that telling me?

I have one more week remaining before ramping riding and training back up again. I know how much work it will be. I need this time to regain my focus. Endeavor and rest: Each has their season. by @stevetheintern

295

18

2 months ago

Opinions are best formed through firsthand experience. Everything else is hearsay, and is not admissible in court.

#rideexplorecreate by @stevetheintern

781

20

2 months ago

I will never, ever tire of meeting our owners and riders from around the world. These are the people that make the Rodeo dream possible and sustainable. Not only that, they each add to the story of what Rodeo is. My story gets over represented because I never shut up, but their stories are far more numerous and varied. Vince flew into The Rift from Germany. He brought his custom painted TD3, which we built for him in the ‘22, the Covid years. That means he must have waited for it for a long time because lead times were ROUGH back in those days. I met other owners while I was there; Travis on a Flaanimal 5, someone else on a 5 Ti, and others. Each was an out of body experience for me. “These people trust us with so much when they adopt our bikes!”
It hits me in waves. How do you trust strangers anymore these days? What an honor.

I recorded a podcast with @ridingthefences a couple of weeks ago (called Gravel Things), and midway through we talked about the current bike industry apocalypse of high quality, low cost Chinese brands arriving in America and kicking the feet out of western brands with their insane value. Amazingly, it hasn’t been an apocalypse for us. I didn’t even know it was happening until I heard about it at Sea Otter. Why is Rodeo doing ok then? I think it comes down to moments like these, where I met Vince, but also across the entire company and experience. We talk a lot internally about sharing each customers’ excitement for their build. We talk shared passion. We take the time to answer the phone almost every time someone calls. We answer questions. We listen about who they are, why they ride, what their goals are. Sometimes we design unique paint and builds like Vince’s, and the bike becomes more than a bike, it becomes a rich part of the rider’s cyclist identity. The Chinese brands are excellent, and cheap, and for many that’s reason to get one. But for whatever reason, our customers know that we aren’t selling exactly that same thing. Yes, it’s just a bike, but there’s also passion and human connection woven into it, and that still means something to a lot of people in this current world. It sure means a lot to me. taken in Hella, Iceland by @stevetheintern

277

4

2 months ago

The Rift Abyss in Iceland was too awesome for a few photos or a 30 second reel. It felt larger than life, out of this world, and impossible to capture. We started riding into the Icelandic night, but there was no night, just endless sunset, twilight, and then sunrise. The vistas overwhelmed our senses over and over. Whereas on some rides you might get a jaw dropping view once or twice, the Icelandic Highlands were a string of views strung together like pearls. I’ve never seen another place like it.

The terrain was extremely rugged. Was this gravel, was it mountain biking? Was it gravel racing, was it ultra riding? Yes to all of those things. It didn’t fit neatly into a genre, it was its own thing. Glaciers, rivers, waterfalls, volcanoes, deep, black volcanic sand, rugged lava rock that threatened tires. Bumps, vibrations, wind, fog, mist. Also: moments of total serenity. Just you and the pink sky, or the moss, or the sheep, or a family of white swans swimming in a remote lake.

David and I started together and each recorded our video of the experience to whatever degree we could, and then I merged our POVs into this edit. Our stories overlapped and grew apart. Our timelines went in and out of sync. I arranged this piece in chronological order so you could see us experiencing the same sunrise at different parts of the course at the exact same time.

Instagram wants 30 second reels. Instagram wants likes and clicks and shares and monetization and gnat-sized moments. This edit doesn’t even belong here on this platform. It’s 30 minutes long. Fight the power, or whatever. We aim to Ride, Explore, and Create stories, so here’s the story of our Rift Adventure.

If you get the chance, definitely make the journey to @therifticeland . There are many different distances for different riders with different goals. If you go, you’ll come back changed by Iceland.

Thanks for the route and the memories @thebergur. This ride was a gift.

#rideexplorecreate taken in Hella, Iceland by @stevetheintern

346

39

2 months ago