Stone Bicycle Coalition

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  • 3,000 Miles from a Farmers-Market Find: A Rapid City Author’s Ride to the North Pole

    Destination North Pole by Gary W. Wietgrefe

    We went to the Rapid City Farmers Market this week for vegetables and came home with a 3,000-mile bike adventure instead.

    There was a book on one of the tables — a bicycle on a long northern highway on the cover, Destination North Pole: 5,000 km by Bicycle. We bought it on the spot. Turns out the author was right there in the Hills the whole time.

    3,000 miles, 40 days, one very patient sag wagon

    In the summer of 2018, Gary W. Wietgrefe set out from Pierre, South Dakota and pointed his front wheel north — all the way to North Pole, Alaska, just outside Fairbanks.

    The numbers are the kind you read twice. Roughly 3,000 miles (5,000 km). Forty days. An average of 75 miles a day, often eight hours in the saddle. Eight mountain ranges, the Canadian prairie, northern British Columbia, and the vast Yukon. Hundreds of black bears and grizzlies for company. He was 65 years old, riding a bicycle that was already ten years old — and he arrived about three weeks ahead of schedule.

    It’s billed as the first time anyone has ridden that exact route. We believe it.

    A Rapid City neighbor with a wild résumé

    Here’s the part that made us smile: Gary lives right here, in the Rapid City area.

    Before the writing life he was an inventor with a half-dozen patents, a military-intelligence veteran, and an agricultural economist — and he’s since become a remarkably prolific author, with everything from a Relating to Ancients culture-and-learning series to Dakota poetry to a farmer’s guide on growing millet. The man clearly does not sit still. A 3,000-mile bike ride at 65 starts to make a lot of sense.

    It takes two

    What we loved most is that it isn’t really a solo story.

    Gary’s wife, Patricia, drove the sag wagon the whole way — going ahead each evening to find food and a place to sleep, then meeting him down the road the next day. The book is as much about a couple doing a big, slightly crazy thing together as it is about the miles. As two people who tend to take on the next adventure side by side, we recognized that immediately.

    Why it belongs on a Coalition shelf

    This is the kind of story the Stone Bicycle Coalition exists for.

    A great ride doesn’t require a plane ticket — Gary’s started in our own backyard. A bicycle, some grit, and a good partner will carry you a lot farther than most people think. And finding all of that at a local farmers market, from a local author, is exactly the kind of community we’re trying to build here in the Hills.

    So consider this our recommendation. You can find Gary at the Rapid City Farmers Market on summer Saturdays, at Henry’s Books in Spearfish, or through his site at relatingtoancients.com. Buy it local if you can — that’s half the fun.

    We came for tomatoes. We left with a reminder of how far two wheels can take you.

    — Rory & Nicole, Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • Sharing the Lane: What Two Cyclists Learned Earning Their Motorcycle Endorsement

    Nicole riding on the range during the MSF Basic RiderCourse.

    Earlier this week we spent a few days in a parking lot doing slow circles, and it might be the best thing we’ve done for our riding all year.

    Nicole and I earned our motorcycle endorsements through the MSF Basic RiderCourse, taught here in our area by Mike Weston and Gina Suelflow with the South Dakota Safety Council. Two cyclists, side by side on the range, learning a different machine — and recognizing a lot of what we already believe about being safe on the road.

    Why we took it

    We didn’t take the course because we had to. We took it because we’d rather build a skill than assume we have it.

    That’s the same instinct that started the Coalition. You don’t learn to ride safely by reading about it or by getting lucky for a few years — you learn it on purpose, with someone who knows more than you watching and correcting. Getting trained before you trust yourself in traffic is just doing it the right way.

    What the course actually teaches

    The Basic RiderCourse is part classroom, part range. You spend a few hours on the why — how crashes actually happen, where riders get into trouble, how to make good decisions before you’re forced to. Then you get on a bike and drill the things that save your life: emergency braking, swerving around a hazard, slow-speed control, and scanning the road far enough ahead that you’re never surprised.

    Mike and Gina were the kind of instructors who don’t just run you through the cones — they explain what each drill is really for. By the end of the course, the habits start to feel automatic. That’s the whole point.

    Same lane, same rules of respect

    Here’s what kept being reinforced. A motorcycle and a bicycle are not that different out there.

    Both are small. Both are exposed. Both are easy for a distracted driver to miss. And both depend on the same handful of habits to stay safe — be visible, ride predictably, hold your position in the lane, and never assume the car can see you.

    The road is shared. That’s not a slogan, it’s a fact about how traffic works. Drivers, look twice before you turn or change lanes — the thing you don’t see is usually a two-wheeler. Riders, make yourself easy to see and easy to predict. Everybody gets home that way.

    Safety is a mindset, not a checklist

    The thing we walked away with isn’t a list of rules. It’s a posture.

    The same care that keeps you upright on a motorcycle keeps you safe on a bicycle — and honestly, it carries into every “ride” of life. Pay attention. Build the skill before you need it. Respect the people sharing your space. Leave yourself an out.

    We came for the endorsement. We left with a reminder of why we do any of this.

    So: watch for two-wheelers out there — we’re all sharing the same lanes. And if you ride, get trained. The South Dakota Safety Council runs courses all season, and a few days in a parking lot is a cheap price for a habit that keeps you alive.

    — Rory & Nicole, Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • Jokes & Spokes:Comedian Touring South Dakota by Bike

    We end up at a lot of comedy shows around here — it’s a scene we love and keep a foot in. Most nights the tour vehicle parked out front is a van. The other night it was a bicycle.

    Skyler Bolks is a Sioux Falls comedian, and at six-foot-seven he’s a big presence on a genuinely big bike. He’s a seven-time “Sioux Falls Funniest Comic” who’s worked his way through 36 states, and his humor is Midwest to the bone — the kind that’s sharpest when he’s messing with the crowd. He had the room.

    But the part that stuck with us isn’t the act. It’s how he’s getting from town to town.

    A thousand miles, stage to stage

    Skyler is in the middle of a tour he calls Jokes & Spokes — roughly a thousand miles, pedaling from one town’s stage to the next, all building toward RAGBRAI in July. The bike isn’t a gimmick bolted onto the comedy. It is the tour. Eastern South Dakota at first, and now the wheels have rolled all the way into the Black Hills.

    We talked to him after the show, slipped him a Stone Bicycle Coalition sticker, and told him to holler if he needed anything on the Hills end of the trip. What came back wasn’t road-grind complaints. He’s enjoying it — the plains, the small towns, the people and cultures strung between the stages.

    That right there is the whole pitch we keep making. A bike turns the in-between miles — the part most people sleep through on the interstate — into the best part of the trip.

    Our kind of journey

    This is exactly the sort of trip we want more folks dreaming up: pick a direction, load the bike, go find out what’s out there. Skyler just added a microphone. And if a guy can make an honest living riding South Dakota and making people laugh, even better — we’ll be first in line to watch.

    So — thanks for the show, Skyler, and good legs the rest of the way to RAGBRAI. What a journey you’re on. Anybody out there cooking up their own version (comedy optional): you know where to find us.

    — Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • Three Saturdays on the Grass: The Grasslands Triple Crown

    The Black Hills get all the postcards. Ride an hour east and the land opens into something quieter — the National Grassland, where the gravel runs straight at the horizon and you can go a long while without meeting a car. Three prairie towns put on a gravel event out there every summer, and together they make the Grasslands Triple Crown.

    [Photo: Wide prairie gravel road running to the horizon, single rider]

    These belong to the Oahe Wheelmen and the crews in Lemmon and Wall, backed by the Northern Great Plains Joint Venture and the South Dakota Grasslands Initiative. We’re Rapid City riders, and we’re pointing you east: these are worth the drive.

    The hook

    Ride all three this summer and a Lemmon artist named Ethan Thom hands you back a metal sculpture — not a medal, not a shirt, a sculpture. That’s the Crown. If you like a little competition, each long route carries three Strava segments that score toward the series; upload your ride after you finish and you’re in it.

    [Photo: Last year’s finishers or the Ethan Thom sculpture]

    The three

    • Grassland Gravel — Fort Pierre — Saturday, July 18. 31, 53, or 71 miles. (register)
    • Thunderhawk Wide Open — Lemmon — Saturday, August 15. 25, 50, or 115 miles of remote Old West country up near the North Dakota line. (register)
    • Wheelin’ to Wall — Wall — Saturday, September 26. Its 10th year — gravel and pavement, 31 to 64 miles, mass start right in town. (register)

    The local read

    From the Hills: Wall is the close one — about an hour out I-90, an easy day trip. If you only do one, do that. Fort Pierre is two and a half, three hours east — worth a Friday night over by the river. Lemmon is the haul, three and a half hours north.

    And no, you don’t have to race. Every event has a short route; ride the 31 at Fort Pierre at whatever pace gets you to the post-ride meal grinning. The long routes and the segments are there if you want them. Same thing we say about 8 Over 7: pick one, ride it, see how it feels.

    A few of us are headed out. Want company for the drive to Fort Pierre or Lemmon — or just want to know what tires to run on grassland gravel? Come find us; we’ll carpool where it makes sense.

    Register for all three on BikeReg (links above). Sign up early: prices climb as the dates near, and Fort Pierre stops guaranteeing shirts after July 1.

    Three Saturdays, one big stretch of grass. Go find out what’s past the postcard.

    — Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • A Bike for CD — One More Out the Door

    Today a refurbed white KHS hybrid rolled out of The Quarry and into the hands of a rider we’ll call CD.

    Why this one mattered

    CD has been on our waitlist since April. His existing bike needs repairs he can’t afford — and where he lives in Rapid City, a broken bike isn’t a hobby problem. It’s a commute problem. It’s getting to work. It’s getting groceries. It’s the difference between independence and being stuck.

    That’s the gap the Stone Bicycle Coalition exists to close.

    The bike

    A refurbed KHS flat-bar hybrid — aluminum frame, 700c wheels, mechanical rim brakes. White and clean. A no-frills, ride-ready workhorse, inspected and tuned by our volunteer crew at The Quarry.

    [Photo: SBC-002 — the white KHS side profile, before handoff]

    It’s exactly the kind of bike the wait list keeps asking for: simple, lightweight, low-maintenance, the kind you can park outside the job site and trust to be there at the end of the shift.

    The gift

    We didn’t charge a thing.

    Bike out the door. Lock included so it stays his. No invoice, no sponsorship ask, no fine print. That’s the whole point.

    How to keep this happening

    Every bike we hand out is bankrolled by someone — a donated bike, a sponsored refurb, a check written to the Coalition. Three ways you can put the next one on the road:

    • Donate a bike or parts. Old bike in the garage? Box of cassettes you’ll never use? Drop it at The Quarry. We refurb it; somebody rides it.
    • Sponsor the next rider. $150 covers the parts, tubes, brake pads, and shop time to send another bike out the door the way CD’s went today.
    • Chip in any amount. Locks, helmets, lights, tubes — the small stuff adds up. Every dollar stays in Rapid City.

    Reach us at info@stonebicyclecoalition.com or stonebicyclecoalition.com. We’ll get you connected.

    One bike out the door today. More to come.

    — Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • 8 Over 7 — One Rider’s Journey

    I rolled out of Cheyenne Crossing on May 15 with a loaded bike, a Garmin inReach pinging home, and a route Jason had redrawn — denser, higher, more honest. Three days later I came off Terry Peak with everything I rode in on, seven summits in my legs, and a lot of new respect for He Sapa.

    “It’s becoming a classic annual Black Hills dirt tour to iconic peaks and high points. It’s special to me because of the routes and places it takes you. The time invested in perfecting the route. Also the camaraderie of taking on the challenges with like minded riders.”

    — Perry Jewett, founder of 8 Over 7

    Day Distance Climbing Moving Max Speed Start Temp
    Day 1 — Spearfish → Hill City 80.11 mi 7,431 ft 9:01:19 38.3 mph 75 °F
    Day 2 — High rim → Custer 60.28 mi 5,371 ft 6:21:34 34.9 mph 64 °F
    Day 3 — Spine → Terry Peak 33.04 mi 2,448 ft 3:35:52 29.8 mph 43 °F
    Total 173.4 mi 15,250 ft 18:58 — —

    ~11,300 calories. 8,276 kJ of work. About 19 hours of pedaling spread across three days. Honest climbing came in at 15,250 ft — roughly 2,000 more than the “around 13,000” we’d been quoting. Jason’s denser line was, as advertised, more honest about elevation.

    The crew

    Perry J., Zach, Garick, Joel, Bryce, Jason, Leif H., Phil J., Logan, Jake R., Chris G., Aaron D., Pat A., Ryan H., Rory S., Jeff B.

    Sixteen riders. One route. The camaraderie Perry talks about above is not abstract — it’s what gets you over the next climb when the legs say no.

    The ride

    Day 1 dropped south through Rochford and Mystic to Sylvan — smooth gravel until it isn’t. Day 2 was the high rim: Bear, Grand View, Odakota, Green, hours above 7,000 feet where the horizon turns from spruce-dark to plains-tan. Day 3 ran the spine north past Crows Nest and Crooks Tower to finish at Terry Peak. Honest, not euphoric — the kind of finish where you know exactly which parts you’d come back for.

    Top efforts

    • Day 1 PR — Lachstring to Cheyenne Crossing — 28:43 (5.14 mi, 10.7 mph, 183 W avg)
    • Day 2 climb — Reno Gulch — 1:13:53 (6.51 mi @ 3.5%, VAM 299)
    • Day 3 closer — Terry Peak Summit Rd. — 38:38 (3.14 mi @ 4.8%, VAM 379)

    The full per-day breakdown — every effort, every climb, the Garmin and Strava traces — lives at 8over7.com.

    Per-day activity data:

     

    Why this matters to the Coalition

    Stone Bicycle Coalition exists to make this kind of riding — or any kind of riding — accessible to anyone in Rapid City who wants it. The 8 Over 7 is one end of that spectrum; a kid picking out their first earn-a-bike at the Quarry is the other. Both ride the same roads home.

    Full recap with maps, GPX, and the Ride Log: 8over7.com

    — Rory Stone, Co-Founder, Stone Bicycle Coalition

  • Pedal for Empathy: Thank You, Rapid City

    On Saturday, May 2, neighbors from across Rapid City rolled out from Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park for the first Pedal for Empathy — a community ride and trail cleanup hosted by Stone Bicycle Coalition. We came together to share coffee, ride at a casual pace through our public spaces, and leave the bike paths a little better than we found them.

    How the day went

    The morning started with coffee, donuts, and ice-cold water at HLMP — a chance to meet riders before we wheeled out. From there we pedaled together along the Rapid City bike path system, stopping along the way to grab gloves and bags and clean up the corridors we ride every day. We wrapped at Acme Bikes around 1:00 PM for community, conversation, and a post-ride pizza spread.

    A donation to Feeding South Dakota

    One of our promises to the American Empathy Project was that the grant would do double duty for our neighbors. We’re proud to share that Stone Bicycle Coalition donated $350 to Feeding South Dakota as part of this event — supporting hunger relief work right here in Rapid City and across the state.

    Thank you to our partners

    • City of Rapid City Parks & Recreation — for the partnership, the cleanup gear support, and Melissa Petersen’s hands-on coordination.
    • Acme Bikes — for hosting the post-ride rendezvous and being a constant ally to Rapid City cyclists.
    • Minneluzahan Senior Citizen Center — for being our home base community partner.
    • American Empathy Project and the American Humanist Association — for selecting Stone Bicycle Coalition from over 600 applications nationwide and funding this event.
    • Every rider, volunteer, and neighbor who showed up. Empathy is showing up — and you did.

    What’s next

    Pedal for Empathy was the start, not the end. Stone Bicycle Coalition rides and gathers throughout the year — community rides, the Quarry bike marketplace, free bike refurbishment, and our open-source bike co-op toolkit are all moving forward. Follow along on Instagram @stonebicyclecoalition, or reach out at stonebicyclecoalition@gmail.com if you want to ride, volunteer, or donate a bike.

    Ride. Clean up. Connect. Give back. See you on the next one.

  • Pedal for Empathy: Community Ride & Trail Cleanup — May 2

    Stone Bicycle Coalition invites you to Pedal for Empathy — a free community bike ride and trail cleanup through Rapid City on Saturday, May 2, 2026.

    Event Details

    • Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
    • Time: 10:30 AM
    • Meeting Point: Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park (HLMP), Rapid City
    • Cost: FREE
    • Who: Everyone! All ages, all skill levels, families welcome

    The Schedule

    10:30 AM — Coffee & Donuts at HLMP — Meet up at Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park. Grab a coffee, a donut, and meet your fellow riders before we head out.

    Late Morning — Community Ride & Trail Cleanup — We’ll pedal together along Rapid City’s bike path system at a casual, social pace. This isn’t a race — it’s neighbors riding together. Along the way, we grab gloves and bags and clean up the paths and greenways we ride on. Cleanup supplies provided.

    ~1:00 PM — Rendezvous at Acme Bikes — After the ride and cleanup, we regroup at Acme Bikes for community, conversation, and to wrap up the day together.

    What to Bring

    • Your bike (any type — road, mountain, cruiser, BMX, whatever you’ve got)
    • Helmet (recommended — we’ll have free helmets and lights available)
    • Water bottle
    • Sun protection
    • Comfortable clothes you don’t mind getting dirty
    • Good attitude

    Don’t have a bike? Contact us and we can help — stonebicyclecoalition@gmail.com

    About the Grant

    Pedal for Empathy is funded by the American Empathy Project, a national initiative by the American Humanist Association. Stone Bicycle Coalition was selected from over 600 applications nationwide. A portion of the grant will be donated to Feeding South Dakota to support food security in our community.

    Partners

    • City of Rapid City Parks & Recreation
    • Acme Bikes
    • Minneluzahan Senior Citizen Center
    • American Empathy Project (American Humanist Association)

    Get Involved

    Follow us on Instagram @stonebicyclecoalition for updates.

    Questions? Email stonebicyclecoalition@gmail.com

    No registration required. Just show up, ride, and give back.

    Sign Up

    Registration isn’t required, but signing up helps us plan for coffee, donuts, and supplies. Takes 30 seconds.

    ← Back

    Thank you for your response. ✨

    You’re signed up! We’ll see you May 2 at 10:30 AM at Hanson-Larsen Memorial Park. Bring your bike and your good vibes!

  • Stone Bicycle Coalition Is Joining the American Empathy Project

    We’re excited to share that Stone Bicycle Coalition is participating in the American Empathy Project this spring.

    On Saturday, May 2, 2026, communities across the country will come together for a national day of service organized by the American Humanist Association. The goal is simple: show up for your neighbors, take action, and build connection through empathy.

    Stone Bicycle Coalition will be hosting Pedal for Empathy—a community bike ride and street cleanup right here in Rapid City.

    What Is Pedal for Empathy?

    It’s a morning of riding, cleaning, and connecting:

    • Community bike ride through Rapid City’s urban bike corridors—casual pace, all experience levels, families welcome
    • Street and trail cleanup along the route—supplies provided
    • Community gathering afterward with food and a chance to meet your neighbors

    No experience required. No fancy bike needed. Just show up.

    The Details

    • When: Saturday, May 2, 2026
    • Time: Morning (exact time coming soon)
    • Where: Rapid City (meeting location TBA)
    • Cost: Free
    • Who: Everyone. Families. Kids. First-timers. Seasoned riders. You.

    Don’t have a bike? Reach out and we’ll help you find one. That’s not a barrier.

    Why We’re Doing This

    Cycling is one of the most democratic forms of transportation—affordable, accessible, and human-scale. When you’re on a bike, you see your city differently. You notice the streets that need care. You see your neighbors.

    Pedal for Empathy is about taking that feeling and turning it into action. Ride together, clean together, eat together. That’s it. That’s the whole idea.

    Stay In the Loop

    We’ll be sharing route details, timing, and more as May 2 gets closer. Follow us on Instagram at @stone_bicycle_coalition for updates.

    See you on May 2, Rapid City.

  • Pedaling for Alex & Democracy

    This past Saturday, Stone Bike Co joined 20 cyclists for “Pedaling for Alex and Democracy” – a community solidarity ride hosted by Josh Bruhn as part of the cycling industry’s “Ride Together, Stand Together” movement.                

    The Ride                                                                                                             

     Under overcast skies, we rolled out for 7 miles through the community. The turnout was strong and the energy even stronger – 20 riders united, pedaling with purpose.                                                                                            

     Why We Rode                                                                                                          

    This ride answered the call from Salsa Cycles and bike shops across the country to show up, ride together, and stand together. Cycling has always been about community. Saturday reminded us why.    

    Thank You                                                                                                            

    Big thanks to Josh Bruhn for organizing and to everyone who came out. This is what showing up looks like.