James Huang is Heading to Substack

[Angryasian]

Originally Posted by litcrazy

James, do you feel like you have a special niche that means brands are okay with you being candid?
It seems like other sites definitely sway position such that it seems they choose to say nothing at all rather than say something negative. Their version of integrity is to omit negative reviews rather than speak disingenuously.
Your approach feels akin to the push to publish negative results in science.

Beats the hell out of me.

When I was originally hired at Cyclingnews back in 2006, I received very little guidance aside from "write product reviews" (my direct boss was crazy busy at the time). I was certainly still getting my feet wet, but "write product reviews" certainly seemed to me to include both good stuff and bad stuff, and no one ever told me differently. I think one benefit to me working remote all these years (and almost always for titles that weren't based in the US) was that I was perhaps left alone to my own devices almost by default, and maybe now I have a sufficiently large following that brands still want to hear what I have to say, whether good or bad? No idea.

Regardless, I think I've been pretty lucky in that respect.

[JSL]

I was a paid up member at CT and then EC solely because of James' podcasts. A lot of people really appreciate his work and I hope it pans out for him. He has a wealth of experience, a curious mind, and is an excellent podcast host.

[Carbonita]

+1 on the technical insights, fine prose, and interesting podcasting from James. At its peak, CT (esp. with Dave Rome) was great, but EC has more sports coverage than I want.

Originally Posted by JSL

I was a paid up member at CT and then EC solely because of James' podcasts. A lot of people really appreciate his work and I hope it pans out for him. He has a wealth of experience, a curious mind, and is an excellent podcast host.

[benadrian]

Originally Posted by Carbonita

+1 on the technical insights, fine prose, and interesting podcasting from James. At its peak, CT (esp. with Dave Rome) was great, but EC has more sports coverage than I want.

I enjoy racing as a casual fan. BUt my favorite part of the cycling media landscape is more adventure based, and maybe "clever" tech rather than racing tech.

The Cycling Podcast used to have some "Explore" episodes, as well as "Service Course", and those were my favorite things. After the passing of Richard Moore, they slowly stripped back, lost Lionel, and it's now pretty much a racing news show.

I feel like there were some other adventure-y podcasts and such, but they all dried up. I think I must be in a minority. I love bikes, I love gear, I enjoy pushing myself a bit, and I love the explorations and shenanigans I can get into when on the bike... usually with friends.

This is why I enjoy Bicycle Quarterly, though I get it about it being a tire and accessory sales catalog. It seems like, at it's core, it's still a whole lot of people doing adventures with great photography and good travelogues.

Anyway, I'm glad James has a thing and I hope to see some cool stuff.

[jimoots]

@James: Cool to see you respond in here! I was really disappointed when you left EC, so goes without saying that I wish you well with this project. Have always enjoyed your journalism/reviews/commentary and thought of you as someone who is fighting the good fight.

And for mine, in an industry that incessantly pushes innovation for the sake of innovation (or more accurately, marketing), that good fight is more than just not posting 'honest' reviews but often taking it one step further and asking 'why'.

[Angryasian]

Originally Posted by jimoots

And for mine, in an industry that incessantly pushes innovation for the sake of innovation (or more accurately, marketing), that good fight is more than just not posting 'honest' reviews but often taking it one step further and asking 'why'.

Why, as in why does a certain bike/product exist?

[NHAero]

Originally Posted by jimoots

@james: Cool to see you respond in here! I was really disappointed when you left ec, so goes without saying that i wish you well with this project. Have always enjoyed your journalism/reviews/commentary and thought of you as someone who is fighting the good fight.

And for mine, in an industry that incessantly pushes innovation for the sake of innovation (or more accurately, marketing), that good fight is more than just not posting 'honest' reviews but often taking it one step further and asking 'why'.

+1

[jimoots]

Originally Posted by Angryasian

Why, as in why does a certain bike/product exist?

Yep, exactly.

[Geekonbike]

Originally Posted by JSL

I was a paid up member at CT and then EC solely because of James' podcasts. A lot of people really appreciate his work and I hope it pans out for him. He has a wealth of experience, a curious mind, and is an excellent podcast host.

Agree wholeheartedly. The dynamic between James, Zach @ Boulder Grupetto and Caley was a nice combo during CT and EC.

EC in my experience as a member has kinda taken a turn for the worse recently and I'm a little bummed.

N-1 podcast would be great....now just to find that cohost that has a little bit of chemistry with James. Hopefully it gets off the ground.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Geekonbike

Agree wholeheartedly. The dynamic between James, Zach @ Boulder Grupetto and Caley was a nice combo during CT and EC.

EC in my experience as a member has kinda taken a turn for the worse recently and I'm a little bummed.

N-1 podcast would be great....now just to find that cohost that has a little bit of chemistry with James. Hopefully it gets off the ground.

Ben Delaney put out a video with James, and the two of them seemed to get along well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcBR7r952Hk

I'd certainly be interested in more collaborations between the two, including potentially a podcast.

I am also a member at EC, and unlikely to resubscribe. Maybe it's all in the struggle to stay financially viable, but it seems like they're constantly trying to reinvent themselves in new and increasingly unappealing ways. All I wanted was bread and butter cycling coverage executed well.

[Geekonbike]

Sympathize with the EC struggles to make it $ viable. They seem to be grasping at straws and IMO the main podcast is unlistenable. I had been listening to Caley since his time at velonews but just can't anymore. Maybe its me but the dynamic seems off and I doubt it is long for this world.

Lanterne Rouge and The Cycling Podcast (though not what it used to be) do a much better job and seem much more plugged into the Euro peloton than EC.

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by Geekonbike

Lanterne Rouge and The Cycling Podcast (though not what it used to be) do a much better job and seem much more plugged into the Euro peloton than EC.

I think they are trying to make their niche outside of the Euro peloton / world tour race reporting it seems. Not that they arent at the big races but they seem to be more focused on whats happening around the race than the race itself.

They absolutely killed it with the coverage they did of the tour last year though.

[Wakatel_Luum]

Originally Posted by prototoast

Ben Delaney put out a video with James, and the two of them seemed to get along well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcBR7r952Hk

I'd certainly be interested in more collaborations between the two, including potentially a podcast.

I am also a member at EC, and unlikely to resubscribe. Maybe it's all in the struggle to stay financially viable, but it seems like they're constantly trying to reinvent themselves in new and increasingly unappealing ways. All I wanted was bread and butter cycling coverage executed well.

Did you tell EscapeCollective that? They seem pretty receptive to feedback.

[fa63]

I can't stand the post-Richard Moore Cycling Podcast.

Which I think is a testament to EC's struggles; it is hard to please everyone

Originally Posted by Geekonbike

Lanterne Rouge and The Cycling Podcast (though not what it used to be) do a much better job and seem much more plugged into the Euro peloton than EC.

[alexihnen]

FWIW - I'm a big fan of EC and really appreciate how it's developed. Not to simply be a contrarian, but I think it's getting better. The Cycling Podcast certainly misses Richard Moore, however I've become a big fan of Daniel Friebe. His books on cycling - Merckx and Ulrich to be specific - are fantastic.