respoke.rides was initially created as a means to share my cycling experiences with family and friends. When doing research about routes for some longer rides, I found it challenging to source relevant information. As I began to filter through what I found, I decided to document what I came across and contribute to the crowd sourcing I was drawing from.
I have used it sporadically since then, as a means to share some of the information I came across during trip planning, my experiences on my rides, and some thoughts on gear.
The site went online in May 2006. I had arrived in Hamilton, Ontario (Canada) a couple months previously for grad school. I picked up a new bike with the arrival of the warmer weather, aiming to get out and see what I could of the area.
The site was initially run on wordpress, and was ported to drupal in June 2008. It was rebuilt in Grav during April-May 2020 whilst many of us were on lockdown due to COVID-19.