Every.Day.Ride #20 with Mitch Boyer

Cycling YouTuber, Mitch Boyer spoke to us about his Every Day Ride! 

Tell us a little about yourself?

My name is Mitch Boyer, and I'm a Cycling YouTuber. I grew up making videos on my parents' VHS camcorder. It's a long, boring story, but after trying to "grow up and get a real job" throughout my 20s and first half of my 30s, I started making videos about my bike rides. It's now my full-time job and I'm so lucky to do something I love.

How and when did you get into riding?

I'm a "Covid-baby" cyclist. I bought my first drop-bar bike in May of 2020 because I was bored, unhealthy, and out of shape. I started with short, 15-minute out-and-back rides from my door, which quickly turned into all-day adventures. Living in Los Angeles, I had no idea how good the riding just outside the city was. It's a cycling paradise if you know where to go.

What are the best and worst things about riding?

On really bad days, when I'm stressed about work or life, bike rides keep me sane. It can be a long endurance ride or a short punchy ride, I love them all. One time, as we were riding up some ridiculously steep streets—the kind where you can literally fall backward down the hill if you quit, a friend told me, "Sometimes you gotta do crazy things to keep yourself from going crazy." I think about that all the time.

The worst thing about riding is how much it stresses out my wife, Val. She hates it when I ride through the city streets in Los Angeles. Our infrastructure is slowly getting better, but there is still a lot of work to do.

Tell us about your most memorable ride to date?

My most memorable ride was Lake Titicaca in Bolivia. The lowest point on the ride was 12 500 ft (3 800 m) above sea level and included a ferry across the narrowest part of the lake. The oxygen was thin, but the air was clear, the views were astonishing, and my ride companions were all good friends. Unfortunately, I had a plate of Truncha de Diabla ("Devil's Trout") at the end of the day, and despite being delicious and perfectly spicy, it made the car ride back to the hotel that night very... urgent.

What’s the best piece of riding advice you’ve ever been given?

"Constant Pressure." My first cycling coach, Cam Nicholls, drilled his favorite phrase into my head when we began working together. Continuing to pedal over the crest of rollers and down hills on endurance training rides has done a lot to improve my aerobic fitness. I still like to relax and cruise on occasional rides, but there's something deeply satisfying to me about seeing a flat power chart over rolling terrain in my GPS file after a ride.

What do you bring with you on every ride?

Sugar water! Even on casual rides, making sure I have enough "fuel" is super important and makes riding so much more enjoyable. I used to only bring water and I would almost always hit a wall after an hour or two of riding. Now I have at least 30-90g sugar or drink mix in my bottles depending on how hard I'm riding.

How do you keep your bikes secure at home and on the go? Share your best tips to help others keep their bikes safe.

I have a 1990s Specialized Hardrock that belonged to my Dad, which I converted into an errand bike with Nolan Tsuchiya, The Bike Sauce on YouTube. It holds a lot of sentimental value so it's important to keep it secured when I'm out picking up groceries or grabbing a bite to eat. I use the Litelok X1 and never leave the house on my errand bike without it. It's heavy and I like how solid it feels every time I lock up my bike.

When someone asks what kit you recommend, you say?

Kit is super personal and I think it's worth trying a bunch of different options. I started working with Attaquer this year because it's some of the best kit I've ever worn. Their bib shorts are super comfortable and that makes a huge difference on long rides. I also like all of the artist collaborations they do--so many cool and unique designs come out of that project. I'll admit I'm a little vain, and I won't wear a specific kit unless I think it looks really good.

What’s on your riding bucket list?

My big schtick on YouTube is riding up extremely steep city streets, but I also love long climbs in the mountains. I'm going to the French Alps for the first time this summer and looking forward to experiencing historic climbs like Col de Galibier. Taiwan is high on my list, and I hope to return to South America soon. My wife's parents are from Colombia, so I'm overdue a visit to the mountains around Medellin, and can't wait to go.