Rider Profile: Lao K
Posted on February 09 2015
The beauty of cycling is that it brings all kinds of people together over two wheels. Sometimes we meet a rider we can really relate to. Lao K is one of those guys. He rides year-round for the love of cycling, has a pretty nice build and tells some really interesting stories. He’s also super fast.. and slightly bonkers.
name: Lao K (è€K)
age: 35
hometown: Shanghai
profession: Public Relations, personal trainer
Q: Tell us about your bike:
A: This is an black and gold F5100. I bought it from F5 two years ago and I’ve upgraded a couple parts since. I ride it a lot, fixed-gear is perfect for the city – who needs gears in Shanghai? I get obsessive about cleaning it because I want it to look good and I keep it inside where I live.
Q: How did you get into cycling?
A: When I was in middle school I rode my Emmelle mountain bike to class every day. It was so heavy and useless but I didn’t know any better. Only when I moved to Shanghai did I understand fixie life and it changed everything.
Q: What’s your favorite style of riding?
A: Everything but I mostly love adventure cycling. I’m a running coach and me and some friends decided one night to take a trip together riding from Lhasa to Kathmandu. It was crazy, we cycled for 10 days and passed the Everest base camp.
I’ve also been on riding trips to India and Vietnam. It’s difficult for Chinese people to get Visas to go to foreign countries but I think I had a good enough reason. Look at this helmet, a local Vietnamese motorcycle taxi dude gave it to me. It’s not for bikes but I think it’s pretty cool.
Q: What else do you like doing?
A: I’m a sportsman. I love running, marathons, cross country. I’ll play any kind of outdoor sport. My wardrobe is entirely sports gear. I love reggae too, I ordered this custom bag from USA. Everything in my life has been chosen for a reason and my bike is the same. I get to mix in my personal style with my main mode of transport.
