DRAFT Magazine

Look ma, one gear

Pete LaVerghetta used to just be a runner, until one day he picked up a copy of Runner’s World.

‘Buy a bike, cross-train, run better!’ the headline said.

So he did just that. 5ks. Marathons. Bikes. This went on for a couple of years.

Then fixed gear bikes won out.

“I love to work with my hands,” he said. “So bikes were perfect.”

That and beer, of course.

“I try to keep things in balance,” he said. “Beer was always a great re-hydration drink. We’d finish a run or ride and met back at the parking lot for a beer. Or I’ll open a bottle of beer and polish my bike during those long winter nights.”

Beer Runner: How did you get into fixed gear bikes?

Pete LaVerghetta: I joined a club when started riding pretty regularly in 1994 or so. There was a local racer who came out on B rides. He was trying to meet women. He was slumming it, so he rode a fixie on these rides, and I was just floored. It appealed to the tinkerer in me, and it was way cool. I’m lucky to live about 60 miles from T-Town, and so in 1996 I bought my first track bike at the swap meet there. It was a lugged steel Lotus from their rental fleet.

BR: Who do you like to read for info/inspiration about fixed gear bikes?

PV: When I got started the bike corners of the internet were just getting going. I found Sheldon Brown/Harris Cyclery right around ‘96 and that was just a goldmine of information. It was and still is all captured right there. Fixedgeargallery.com is great, and I might even have a couple of bikes there! It’s kind of mind boggling how huge the whole fixed gear thing is now. It went from something that racers did in the winter to messengers to the New York Times.

BR: What’s one of the best routes or rides you’ve ever biked?

PV: So many! My wife and I have ridden our tandem in a lot of great places. Along with 40 club mates we went from the Adirondacks to Quebec City in 1997. We’ve been to the Outer Banks, the Grand Canyon and the Blue Ridge Parkway. I rode a 200K brevet on my favorite fixed gear bike through Southern New Jersey that was just perfect.

Pete and his Hammer of Glory (HOG)

BR: Being from Philadelphia, what’s your favorite places to drink in and around Philly?

PV: The Grey Lodge, The Blue Ox Bistro, Standard Tap, Local 44…we are really lucky, this is the best beer drinking city in the USA. Earlier this year I had the opportunity to haul the Hammer of Glory (HOG) to Opening Tap. The HOG is a ceremonial hammer that is used to tap the first keg of Philly Beer Week. We did a relay, and I rode the first leg on a Bilenky cargo bike.

BR: Tell me about your bike commute. How long is it, how often do you ride it, and any other highlights.

PV: It’s pretty short. It’s about 2 miles from my front door to my desk. I go home for lunch! Total daily mileage is about 8. I do it in street clothes. I do it 3 days per week. I telework one day and I’m off on Fridays. For about 3 years, from 1996 - 99 it was ten miles each way. I rode my fixie back and forth to work, was in great shape, and had a couple of 7,500 mile years.

BR: What’s the last great beer that you had?

PV: The last great beer I had was cask conditioned Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA on the beer engine at my favorite local bar, the Grey Lodge Pub. Tiny bubbles that lasted until the last sip, great grapefruit and pine notes. It was just the perfect pint

BR: Did you dress up as anything for Halloween?

PV: No, I’m lazy. We had friends over for dinner. We cook a lot, try to eat healthy. Beers and baseball!

BR: Are the Phillies going to win it all?

PV: I think they will.

BR: Anything else to add?

PV: Keep spinning.