Banjo Blog

  • Eric Hawkins and his father, Howard, the Founder of Park Tool. Park Tool was founded in 1963.

    FIVE THINGS WITH CYCLIST ERIC HAWKINS - CEO PARK TOOL

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is Park Tool's, Eric Hawkins.

    Eric Hawkins is the owner/CEO and Chief Mechanic at Park Tool Company the world’s largest manufacturer of specialty bicycle tools and fixtures. Raised in a bike shop, Eric’s career started assembling Sting Rays and Varsity(s) at his father’s shop in the mid 70’s then on to work at Park Tool starting in 1983. Park Tool was started by Eric’s father and a business partner out of the back of a bike shop in the mid 60’s and has now grown to include over 500 products and is distributed to bikes shops and home mechanics in over 75 countries.

    Enjoy this week's Banjo Brothers Five Things.

  • 5 Things With Cyclist Willy Lee

    FIVE THINGS WITH CYCLIST AND #30DAYSOFBIKING SUPPORTER WILLY LEE

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is Willy Lee.

    Willy is late-bloomer when it comes to bikes, learning to ride a bike when he was 26. Proximity to bike paths has changed his life.

    "My wife and I bought a house on the chain of lakes and she said, we are not living on these great bike paths and not riding them, so she dragged me to a couple of bike shops and made me buy a bike. LOL, the joke’s on her. I now own 11.5 bikes (one is a unicycle.) I worked weekends at a shop for a few years, and have really fallen into a big bike family"

    Willy is also a #30daysofbiking diehard and he thinks you should totally join the herd this April.

  • Molly Hurford, Author Shred Girls

    FIVE THINGS WITH CYCLIST AND "SHRED GIRLS" AUTHOR MOLLY HURFORD

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is Molly Hurford.

    Molly Hurford is a journalist in love cycling, running, nutrition and all things outdoors. When not outside, she's writing about being outside, travel, and athletic style on TheOutdoorEdit.com

    Molly is obsessed with getting more women psyched on adventure and wellness, and hosts talks and coaches clinics and camps for cyclists. She’s the author of multiple books on cycling and nutrition, including “Saddle, Sore: Ride Comfortable, Ride Happy.” Her most recent project, Shred Girls, is a young adult fiction series (and website) focused on getting girls excited about bikes.

  • Banjo Brothers Five Things Interview With Craig Altheide

    FIVE THINGS WITH CYCLIST CRAIG ALTHEIDE

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is cyclist Craig Altheide.

    From Hannibal, Missouri, Mark Twain's hometown, the 54-year-old father and high school teacher starting riding seven years ago to fix a gimpy knee and drop a few pounds and hasn't looked back.  

    Craig's epic and cycling-rich Instagram feed, where he goes by the moniker "@oversizedcyclist", caught our eye, so we said, "Hey, how'd you like to submit a Five Things profile?" We dig his no-nonsense, straightforward style.

    Enjoy this week's Banjo Brothers Five Things.

  • BANJO BROTHERS  FIVE THINGS WITH LILAH GUERTIN

    FIVE THINGS WITH CYCLIST LILAH GUERTIN

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is cyclist Lilah Guertin.

    The former bartender at Dangerous Man Brewing has also been a freelance event marketing professional, and store manager at Erik's. A year-round bike commuter, Lilah founded Wreckhouse and #SomethingInspirational Racing. A new photojournalism project on Instagram called femme_oral_order  features a series of images that lift up femme-oriented people in Guertin's immediate communities.

  • Banjo Brothers Five Things With Cyclist Chris Smith, aka Smithers MPLS

    FIVE THINGS WITH THE LEGENDARY CHRIS SMITH -AKA SMITHERS MPLS

    FIVE THINGS is a feature on the Banjo Brothers Blog. It’s a short interview about life and bicycles with a notable person. This week's notable person is cyclist Chris Smith, a.k.a. Smithers MPLS.

    "I don’t have a favorite bike. For me, a bike is just a tool to accomplish a task. I have favorite rides and choose the appropriate bike for that ride, or sometimes the inappropriate bike in order to make the ride more entertaining."