Riding Fixed, Up Mountains, with Pros. – Ep. 13: Echo Lake w/ Alex Howes

Alex Howes and Scott Piercefield take on a section of one of my favorite rides (Mount Evans via Hwy 103) on fixies.

In Episode 13 of this series, we give isolated and bored Alex Howes (EF Pro Cycling) the chance to fulfill one of his dreams: riding a fixie bike with Scott Piercefield (State Bicycle Co.) Alex is a Colorado native, born and bred. He’s been riding for as long as he can remember, so bicycle racing came naturally. Alex earned the reputation as one of the most consistent riders fighting for the podium in recent years. In May of 2019, Alex checked a major box in his career by winning the National Championship Road Race.

Then COVID happened. Alex qualified for the 2020 Olympic Cycling Team – which is now the 2021 team. He’s been locked down since March so we thought he might like a change of scenery and a new challenge. We wanted to learn what makes Alex tick, so we asked Scott to interview him while climbing over 3,600 feet on Colorado Highway 103 to Echo Lake.

• Would you guess that Alex is a science geek?
• Why does Lachlan Morton, the Australian Pro, have his brake levers reversed?
• Did you know that “undorkifying” is a word?
• Fashion commentary: US men versus Europeans. (Who believes cargo pants never go out of style?)
• Alex Howes quote of the day: “In every Pro, there’s an average Joe.”