Announcing the new Bivo Blog Series! 

We have lots of fun recapping events, highlighting rides, and giving advice on our bottles through our Thirstday weekly Blog. And, throughout the process, we have come across so many interesting, badass people with amazing hobbies and passions that all relate to cycling and things that we love (coffee, coaching, hydration, race highlights, whoot whoot!) that we want to be able to share those with you too. 

Introducing our new guest series, a weekly blog post launching this Saturday. This blog series will be written by folks we have connected with along the way - whether it is from former jobs, during our time training growing up or from the amazing connections we have made while running Bivo. Some will be ride highlights in cities we dream of visiting, some will be on hydration from dietitians. Some will be on roasting coffee and how to get the perfect crema. You may even get a story from my mom and dad on the process of making Pétillant Naturel (trendy version of Champagne, look it up, it’s delicious).. Side note: my parents started a winery at the age of 65 and are still working harder than ever at 72. I’m proud of them but sometimes wish they picked the more traditional grandparent route. I’m excited to see what comes of this too. If you have article ideas, send ‘em our way!

Our first post in this new series is written by Peggy Shinn. I first learned about Peggy when she interviewed my dad for her book,World Class. Written about the rise of the US Women’s Nordic Ski Team, World Class is a good read for anyone interested in team building (in and out of sport). Our worlds collided when Robby and I somehow landed her brother-in-law, Neil Bainton, as a mentor during our time at the Vermont accelerator program, Launch VT. Neil still works with us today (thanks Neil!) and he gifted Peggy her first Bivo. Though she was a bit hesitant at first, she says now that she will never go back to plastic. 

A little more about Peggy to get hyped to read on Saturday - she shared a funny bio with me that I can’t take credit for: Peggy grew up in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom riding her department store kid’s bike with a banana seat, then her Dad’s Raleigh ten-speed, on the NEK’s trails and dirt roads before mountain biking and gravel riding was a thing. In the winter, she skied, shredding her mittens on the Lyndon Outing Club’s rope tow and occasionally heading to Burke for “big mountain” skiing.

After college, she moved West, first to Arizona where she started bike racing on the road, then to Colorado where she discovered mountain biking. She’s competed in such suffer-fests as the Leadville 100 and Mt. Washington Hillclimb, finishing on the podium in both. She’s also climbed most of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks, skied in almost every state that has snow (and Canada too!), and earned two graduate degrees, one in engineering, and neither of which she’s actively using.

She moved back to Vermont in 1997 and began a writing career. She’s contributed to all of the major ski magazines and has worked as a senior contributor to TeamUSA.com since 2008, covering seven Olympic Games. She’s also written a couple of books, includingWorld Class, mentioned above. 

She lives in Rutland, Vermont, with her husband, a quiver of skis, not enough bicycles, and sadly, no more cats. 

Be on the lookout for our first article in your inbox on Saturday morning. Peggy will be a regular on our Guest Series, so we felt it was right to kick the series off with her. Thanks so much for being here! 

Cheers,
Carina

P.S. Photo credit for this cover image goes to Gretchen Powers. Thanks, Gretchen!