{"id":264403,"date":"2026-09-25T14:57:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T14:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/25\/raise-your-stem-and-your-spirits-will-follow\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T14:57:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T14:57:10","slug":"raise-your-stem-and-your-spirits-will-follow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/25\/raise-your-stem-and-your-spirits-will-follow\/","title":{"rendered":"Raise Your Stem And Your Spirits Will Follow"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Popular culture rarely if ever gets cycling right, as some of our most insightful film critics have pointed out<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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However, last night I happened to be watching the new e-bike episode of \u201cSouth Park,\u201d<\/a> and was amused to note that they did an excellent job sending up the middle-aged Fred, or MAMIL, if you prefer:<\/p>\n

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I mean okay, fine, if we\u2019re going to nitpick then you\u2019d be unlikely to see this many non-aero brake levers outside of L\u2019Eroica or maybe one of those \u201calt-cycling\u201d events<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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But they really did nail a lot of it, including the indignant rants about e-bikes in the bike lanes, and the clickety-clack cleat walk across the kitchen floor:<\/p>\n

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It was also a pretty entertaining and clever look at the whole e-bike thing in general, which in turn made me wonder how Colorado\u2019s free e-bike program is going.<\/p>\n

In 2021 it was going to slow climate change somehow<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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And in 2023 the smuggies told us we\u2019d see mass migration to cities with similar programs<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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Well, it\u2019s 2026, so you\u2019d expect that by now we\u2019d be a country of climate refugees and e-bike migrants, and that we\u2019d all be wandering across the country with bindles on our shoulders looking for water and free electric bicycles. Well, that hasn\u2019t really happened. But Colorado\u2019s free e-bike program does seem to be going well:<\/p>\n

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