Pat Sorensen Talks Almanzo 100 on The Riding Gravel Radio Ranch Podcast

Penn Cycle owner Pat Sorensen recently joined Mountain Bike Radio's Ben Welnak on the seventh episode of the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast to talk about the Almanzo 100.  This is a special race to Pat for very personal reasons.  He describes why he rides, the challenges the course presents and how Penn Cycle got involved to help Spring Valley Tourism with the giant task of putting on a free gravel race for over a thousand cyclists.

Details of Almanzo weekend including registration, Friday night packet pick-up, the Royal 162 and Alexander 380 are also discussed.

Image Credit: Gal Alon

The new Penn Cycle Support Ambulance will make an appearance at Almanzo, other gravel events and numerous cycling rides and races throughout the year.  Pat tells the story of how his idea for this support vehicle became a reality.  To finish off the interview he and Ben talk about his other passion that starts May 7th, Thursday Night at the races.

You can listen to the episode by visiting the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast page, Stitcher or download the Mountain Bike Radio app to listen on your Apple or Android device.

Pat Sorensen Of Penn Cycle Interviewed On Inside Mountain Bike Radio

Penn Cycle President, Pat Sorensen recently went on the Inside Mountain Bike Radio Show on Mountain Bike Radio to talk with host Ben Welnak about some of the history of Penn Cycle, events Pat has coming up and the long-standing tradition of Thursday Night at the Races.

Inside Mountain Bike Radio-November 5, 2014
Pat Sorensen of Penn Cycle

Pat starts the interview with how his father Elmer got Penn Cycle going back in 1957 and details some of the history and growth of the business.

 Elmer at the Richfield store back in the early 1960's

Image Credit: Penn Cycle

Pat tells Ben about the upcoming Minnesota Off-Road Cyclists' 20th Anniversary Gala on November 9th, Penn Cycle's commitment by being the Title Sponsor and the great work that MORC does for mountain biking in Minnesota.  Tickets are available at bit.ly/morcGALA.

He then goes into how the Get Phat with Pat fatbike races got the name, the unique location where they are held (the Minnesota River Bottoms), some of the fun and prizes to be had and how these races help raise money for MORC.  Also discussed is the evolution of fatbikes in the last few years.  More information on the upcoming Get Phat with Pat races can be found here.

With the Cross For Tots race coming up on November 29th at Moir Park in Bloomington, Pat gives a little history on how this cyclocross race was started and how it will benefit Toys For Tots.

To wrap up the show Pat reflects on the 23 year history of Penn Cycle's Thursday Night at the Races at Buck Hill in Burnsville.  How the kids races started, the danger, mayhem and fun that comes along with the adults on kids bike races are also discussed.  Watch the video below to get a taste of what Thursday Night at the Races is all about.

A download link of this episode of Inside Mountain Bike Radio is also available here.