Farewell to Greg, the Bearded Bike Trail Philosopher

The Over a Beer keg has finally run dry. Greg Heil has moved on from Singletracks after more than five glorious years of covering everything from breaking mountain bike product news to the latest barbed wire trail terrorism incident.

Greg’s skill as a travel and gear writer is matched only by the length of his beard, which careful listeners of the podcast know sounds like a stiff Colorado wind dancing over an open microphone.  A proud man whose favorite colors seem to be forest green and seafoam green, Greg clung to his cherished Singletracks jersey, despite our best efforts to rebrand.

Never one to shy away from controversy, Greg got readers riled up from time to time. Like the time he said plus tires are overrated. Or the time he said e-bikes are the spawn of Satan. Even the time he claimed a dropper post is the #1 upgrade mountain bikers can make. (We’re still not sure why this last one caused such a bluster!)

Greg traveled this world seeking out new places to ride his mountain bike, leading one reader to accuse Greg of possessing “some kind of Louis and Clark complex.” Yes, Greg lived the life, mountain biking in exotic locations across the globe including Switzerland, Scotland, and British Columbia. Also, Alabama.

All told, Greg wrote more than 1,600 articles on Singletracks over the years, not to mention the video shares he published and the countless pieces he edited. For his tireless work and contagious enthusiasm for mountain biking, we raise our glasses to you Bearded Bike Trail Philosopher — Singletracks will miss you!

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