We were so thrilled to be a sponsor of the annual Levi’s GranFondo in Santa Rosa, California, last weekend! About 5,000 riders came together to benefit at-risk youth in a choice of 11 courses from 8.8 miles to 102 miles. It was a beautiful sunny day in the wine country of California. You can find out more about the ride here!
This month, we sat down with one of our fabulous brand ambassadors, Jennifer von Geldern, to learn a little bit about her love of cycling and Tonik.
A California gal, Jennifer is originally from Yuba City in Northern California near Sacramento. She is 53 years old and has been cycling since she was a little girl which gives her almost 45 years of cycling!
She started cycling as an adult because she wanted a form of exercise that fit her lifestyle, and enjoys “all the traditional reasons people love cycling, such as getting outdoors” and the ability to choose how mild or challenging your ride can be, seeing the world by bike, group rides, solo rides, etc.”
Her favorite ride in her local area is Lake Tahoe or Monterey which are about 2-3 hours away from Jennifer’s home. A bit closer is Sutter Buttes with surrounding orchards and rice fields. All of these rides, Jennifer notes, provide gorgeous scenic views.
She loves all things about cycling and especially the equipment that goes along with it. She has a total of thirteen bikes including 12 road bikes and 1 commuter/hybrid bike!
This “inclination to collection,” (as she puts it) began when she picked up a used Liv Avail. Her most recent purchase was a vintage steel Bianchi road bike -- the comfort of steel bikes and smoothness of their ride is what drew her to make the decision.
Jennifer originally made a connection with Tonik at our vendor booth at America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride, around Lake Tahoe in 2016, and got her first Tonik jersey that day (she now has 10!). We’ll let Jennifer describe, in her own words, some of her favorite items from Tonik:
What is your favorite Tonik item for everyday life?
“I have to say, it's probably this new Mary Blue Dress that I just reviewed! I can hardly express how perfect it is as both a casual dress and a cycling dress. It's pretty much perfect in every way.”
What is your must-have Tonik item for rides?
“My short-sleeved Tonik jerseys such as the Beth. I wear them frequently, even among about 400 jerseys I have total, and they're often my choice for looking good and being comfortable on paid rides (centuries, metric centuries, GranFondos).”
Outside of cycling, Jennifer enjoys reading, writing, and snow skiing. She is also a freelance writer for several magazines including Cycle California! Her favorite thing that she is reading right now is The Radium Girls by Kate Moore, a non-fiction book that tells the story of women who were hired to paint luminescent dials with radium-infused paint in the 1930s.
Big thank you to Jennifer for taking the time to talk with us!