Even MORE Holiday Gift Guiding!

The inaugural Holiday Gift Guide was so well received that I’ve racked my brain for more. This Guide 2.0 will help supplement what you can wrap up and place under the tree for all you last minute shoppers… or anyone who’s said, “Umm, yeah I already shopped for all those things.” This will be a quick one my friends, but of course time is tight as Christmas is right around the corner. Ready, set…HO HO HO.

The quality isn’t great, but this photo makes me laugh.

Nothing quite says “Holy heck, it’s -40 degrees, my face is literally frozen, and we’re thousands of miles away from civilization!” quite like the spontaneous selfie. My point in this photos is that if you look back at photos from Holiday Gift Guide 1.0, the photos of the James Bay Descent don’t actually look all that cold. Throw some once every two year snow on Tucson, Arizona and you might think those photos were taken in the south western desert. However, when push comes to shove and you’re actually in the middle of some life and death cold conditions, I suggest that you keep your hands warm by using some Draugenklaw pogies. It’s like putting your hand in a sauna when you body is actually in the north pole. Or perhaps you’re 50 miles west of Philly or Madison, Wisconsin or riding around the Richmond Mountain Trails, you don’t actually need to be in northern Canada to keep those fingers and hands warm when it’s anything but. Similarly, when you need a toasty pair of shoes during the months that end in burrrr, I suggest the 45NRTH Ragnarok boots. They’re as waterproof and warm as you’ll ever need and yet they remain comfortable and super simple to use. Friends, if you ride in the super duper cold, use these things.

I’ve had a lot of backpacks in my day. I remember my first Eastpak in middle school that was as sturdy as a wet tissue or my first blue LLBean backpack that nearly sent me backwards when it was all loaded up to the brim. On Liquigas I had a backpack with my face emblazoned on it (ask politely and I’ll take a photo of it), and a few dozen in between. Hands down, the most functional, stylish, and well designed backpack I’ve ever owned is the ROKA Utility Pack. It’s truly at thing of beauty, it’s an engineering marvel, and best yet, let’s cut to the chase, it holds all of my stuff! I’ve been using this exclusively since literally the day it came out and I can’t see ever stopping.

I don’t know about you, but I reminisce of a simpler time. We’re so glued to technology these days that so the rumor goes, our attention span has dropped from 12 seconds to 8 seconds since the advent of the iPhone. For what it’s worth, a goldfish has a 9 second attention span. So rather than needing to know the date by the quick flip of your phone, I suggest you procure a calendar. In fact, I recommend a barn calendar because barns are sweet. Heck, go all in and get a New England Barn Calendar, because then you get 12 majestic barns from all across this picturesque geography. I’m a fan of this one and I imagine you will be too.

A water bottle cage is a water bottle cage is a water bottle cage. Right? Wrong! All’s well and good until you’re humming along, hit a bump and eject your beverage. Going back is as productive as it is counter productive, so why not just have a water bottle cage that works. I can’t say enough good things about the Arundel Bando. It could cost twice that and it would still be worth its weight in gold (admittedly, it’s not heavy, so its weight in gold is pretty paltry. But it IS an amazing product so if you’re in need of a reliable cage, this is the ticket). Their Mandible cage is a stylish addition that’s also incredibly reliable and super duper light.

As much as I detest our addiction to technology I’m also not a luddite. I’m a millennial after all, so podcasts are a way of life. I enjoy music, I listen to NPR, and all the things, but my point here is that listening to anything can be hazardous when riding a bike. I’ve heard of various semi-noise-cancelling earbuds and earbuds that fit in your ear just a little bit so that you can hear traffic around you. At the end of the day I want the best of both worlds: I want to hear traffic and I want to have terrific sound quality. And therefore I’m a huge fan of the Jaybird Vista. I pop just one earbud in, that way I can listen to whatever I want and still have the other to absorb the world around me. Battery is going low? Trade and pop in the other. They’re sleek, they recharge super quickly, they’re doggedly weatherproof, they slip right into my ear like a boss. I’ve toyed with plenty of other earbuds in my day and this cream rises above the rest.

If science and nursery rhymes are to be believed, girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice. And it’s therefore no wonder that Laura and I are expecting a baby girl because I love spice! If I could have an entire mini fridge dedicated to my hot sauces I’d be happy; furthermore, pumpkin pie is divine and that’s largely from copious cinnamon. And UnTapped's Ginger Mapleaid plus Chai Waffle are out of this world! It’s for these reasons that we curated the wildly popular Ted King Cycling Bundle from UnTapped. It appeases the spice needs in my day to day and it provides you with a sweet waterbottle at a ridiculously low price. It doesn’t really get better than that, PLUS UnTapped has free guaranteed 2-day shipping to arrive December 24 as long as you order at least $25 by noon on Saturday. Santa’s elves are pumped.

Gravel: it’s a thing. Let’s face the cold, hard facts. Rooted Vermont, SBT, Big Sugar, The Rift, these races and plenty more are sold out. But let’s then embrace the bigger reality of that: this is the golden age of gravel! There are so many other awesome events that aren’t yet capped and that still have room for you to join. Or maybe you’re into some of these races, but you’re not starting to freak out because 200 miles sounds daunting. Step one, take a relaxing breath. Step two, check out some of these events that I’ll suggest in chronological order to help maximize your 2020 gravel year.

SugarCane 200 allows you perhaps the fastest 200 miles you’ll ever log because it’s in Florida where your elevation gain will be about 17 feet. Furthermore it’s in January which will boost your spirits when you know you’d otherwise be somewhere cold and less pumped on life. January 25 might sound early but it’s money in the bank so check this one out. If you’re training for DK and need some 200 mile rides in your legs, this is the ticket.

Oklahoma Gravel Growler for one, has a great name. And for two, this is a great way to get some Oklahoma riding in your system in case you have LandRun on your sights this year or years to come (which you should because LR100 is legendary). Craig and his crew have developed an up and coming, booming event in early February that help provide you some early season goals with plenty of foundation to have a great rest of 2020. And it starts on February 1.

Let’s pretend it’s now later in the year. Let’s pretend you’re Canadian and/or within driving distance to eastern Canada (cough cough, all of New England and beyond). There’s therefore no better series of events to line up for than Gravel Cup Canada. Do one or do them all, there are seven events all over the region catering to folks new to the sport to some grizzly veterans. These events are as nice looking as Canadians are nice.

And now let’s steer our eyes towards the end of season with a knockout entire weekend of festivities, Rebecca’s Private Idaho. Laura and I have done it once and that’s reason enough for us to come back as we’re hoping to make it to 2020 RPI. The forward-thinking Rebecca Rusch created a stage race which is something that we’ll be seeing more and more of in the coming years. Do one day or the whole Labor Day weekend, definitely check out Idaho in late summer at this gravel classic.

Give the gift of gravel.

The holidays are a season of giving and benevolent opportunities this time of year are a terrific gift. I am asked to support a lot of incredibly worth while organizations, but I try very hard to keep the list limited of groups that I support so as to not water down the message. There’s no bigger one in my life than the Krempels Center. They are the recipient of donations from the King Challenge. The Krempels Center is where my dad spends three days per week in a community for brain injury survivors. Brain injuries are a horrible thing and the Krempels Center brings tremendous positivity to this community.

Next, I’m proud to be on the Board of Directors for Mountain Bike Afghanistan. My good friend, Middlebury grad, cyclist, and Afghan himself Farid Noori started this organization to help Afghan youth, help empower boys and girls in a country that has been so plagued by the Taliban, as well as showcase some incredible landscapes in a culture that is yet to embrace the power of recreation. One big push is to introduce racing to the culture. They’ve made huge inroads in their Hindukush Challenge, a second annual bike race. If you want to second guess your "need” for a new personal, bike, I encourage you to explore their website, see some of the youtube videos of the races and rides they’re doing and rest assured that your funds are going to a terrific cause.

Lastly and not leastly, World Bicycle Relief is a group that I’ve been part of for most of my career. WBR believes in the #powerofbicycles, helping students, health care workers, and entrepreneurs get to school, their patience, and work, they are now approaching 500,000 bicycles given to very worth recipients in developing countries. One way WBR differentiates itself is that they have infrastructure on the ground so that these very durable Buffalo Bikes are delivered and are able to be maintained. They’re not riding silky smooth roads, of course, so ongoing maintenance is a necessity but they have the ability to provide jobs and keep the bikes rolling through mechanics in the field. Really amazing work here.

Christmas is a way to see money leave your grasp. Despite the abundance of holiday sales, all of these aforementioned things cost money. This next gift is fairly inexpensive and best yet, it’s actually designed to keep money in your pocket! Literally. The Velocio Recon Wallet is one of very few things that is guaranteed to be in my pocket when I go out on a ride. My right pocket will always have a phone, my left pocket carries my various UnTapped sundries, and right in the center is my Recon Wallet. It’s highly flexible, highly water resistant, much to the appreciation of the cashier behind the counter at the gas station or bakery so that I’m not handing over soggy dollars. You could continue using plastic baggies for the rest of your career or you could opt for some style in your pocket with this charming accessory.

Or give the gift of any of the above or just hang out with your family and cook up a feast because I know they’ll love that too. Merry Christmas my friends!

-Ted