UK-based Brother Cycles, profiled by Petor last year, just rolled out their new 2024 Kepler touring bike frameset pre-order (£799). Read on for a closer look at these all-steel, versatile frames below!
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Panorama Cycles Boreal Pinion Touring Bike
Just announced today, the newest bike from the East Coast of Canada-based Panorama Cycles is a pinion gearbox touring bike dubbed the Boreal Pinion (4,399$ – 5,999$ CAD). Find out more below…
Radar
2024 Touring Bikes and Rigid MTBs Under and Around $2000
All of us here at the Radavist have been on a bike tour at some point. With the proliferation of bicycle touring and bikepacking in the modern bike zeitgeist, many options exist for a “touring bike.” This also means it can be hard to sift through all those options. With bikes that span from the “skinny tire” gravel bikes to the monster truck fat bikes, touring bikes can be whatever you need of them.
We compiled a list of touring bikes and rigid MTBs under or around $2000 to help you find your first or next tourin’ rig…
Reportage
Bike Touring Cork in Ireland: Hardtails, Hills, and Horses
Nick McIntyre takes us on a mosey through Ireland’s southernmost county on some choice cuts from the Golden Age of 26-inch MTBs. Sharing company with a small group of friends, Nick writes about rolling past stashed-off coves, winding back roads, and an unexpected day making petty bets at the Ballabuidhe Horse Fair after one of the wettest Irish summers on record. It was a given that there would be some downpours to deal with along the way, but these only made the odd break in the clouds all the sweeter. Read on for Nick’s retelling of bike touring in Cork and don’t miss his 35 mm gallery.
Radar
Enigma EXPLOR Flat Bar Touring Bike
Enigma is a UK framebuilder, founded in 2006, that has won various accolades over the years, including NAHBS awards. We’ve featured the brand before, albeit briefly, in our Limited Edition Shimano Silver GRX build showcase. Enigma’s EXPLOR platform features a geometry adapted specifically for flat bars, with lots of touring accouterments like plentiful rack, fender, and cargo mounts…
Radar
A First Look at Sim Works’ New Doppo Locust Touring Bike and SimLoaders Bags
We got our first look at the made in Portland, Oregon Sim Works SimLoaders bags during our Chris King Open House Reportage this year and today, the Japanese brand announced the full lineup, coinciding with a completely redesigned Doppo touring bike, now dubbed the Locust and with either 27.5×2.8″ or 29×2.4″ tire clearance!
We first showcased the Doppo when John did a bike tour around Mt. Fuji with the Circles crew back in 2016, so it’s exciting to see the newest permutation of this line. Read on for a complete look at the SimLoaders Bags and the new Doppo Locust below!
Reportage
Mental Detours Part One: Bike Touring the Italy Divide(ish)
Travel is routinely romanticized. And it is romantic—how could having the privilege of “checking out” of the daily drum of work, family, bills, etc., and the attendant stress in favor of experiencing a new place not be? The word vacation is, of course, derived from the verb “to vacate,” and while going on vacation is about the act of leaving, it’s also about finding. Finding new culture, new landscapes, new experiences, but maybe just as importantly it’s about finding new perspective on what it is you’ve placed on hold.
After two weeks spent bike touring in Italy in October, Hailey Moore reflects on what she found while away and the paradox of trying to experience more than the Trip Advisor-version of a place without missing the five-star sights. Read on for part one of her Italy Divide reflections while riding from Trento to Florence.
Reportage
Falconer Cycles Now Offers Titanium Frames: A Look at Cameron’s Hardtail Touring Bike and Rack
Falconer Cycles is now making titanium frames and last weekend, he unveiled a stunning titanium hardtail touring bike to John…
For creatives – be it sculptors or painters – expanding into other mediums is often fulfilling and cathartic. Learning new methodologies and processes keeps makers engaged with their work. Lots of bicycle fabricators start out TIG welding steel frames and, later, expand into working with titanium. This offers new horizons for not only the brand but also for loyal followers to access a superior material.
Cameron Falconer is the latest builder to be documented here expanding into titanium from steel. While in Southern Arizona last weekend, John caught up with Cam who showcased a titanium hardtail touring bike with a custom titanium rack. This was “John’s modern bike shoot of the year” as he put it excitedly and you can see why below…
Reportage
John’s Restoration of a 1983 Ritchey Everest With a “Touring Package”
Forever tinkering with his bikes, John recently wrapped up a complete restoration of the 1983 Ritchey Everest that we looked at last year. Remember? The gray one? The bike appeared to have been subjected to a sloppy respray at some point in the early 2000s, and John wanted to restore the bike to its formal glory.
He pinged Rick at D&D, the guy who has painted more Ritchey frames than perhaps anyone, to respray the Everest in Imron Bright Gold paint with the uber-rare Palo Alto Ritchey decals to finish the look. The Everest also had a “touring package” added when Tom built the frame in 1983. Since John acquired it, the Everest has always felt a bit naked without the proper racks…
We know John’s posted a lot of vintage projects over the past few years, but this might be the best yet! Let’s check it out below…
Radar
Radar Roundup: DKG Maglite Mount, Stelbel 50th Anniversary 50esimo, Riv Shirts, Suntour Hats, Wilier Adlar Touring Bike, Chris King Open House, PEdALED Odyssey, and Fat Biking the Oregon Coast
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
Reportage
Titanium Touring Perfection: Singular Gryphon Drop Bar 29er MTB Review
Over the years, I’ve had the ability and privilege of throwing my leg over a number of fat tire, drop bar touring bikes. From the almighty Tumbleweed Stargazer to the readily available Kona Sutra ULTD, these robust bikes with an off-road and load-bearing geometry make for great interstitial, genre-bending machines for all sorts of riding.
Yet before brands like Salsa were even making high clearance, drop bar, 29er, disc brake, production touring bikes, a brand called Singular Cycles in the UK shifted the paradigm with its Swift in 2007 and, later in 2008, Gryphon models. These frames featured high stack numbers, fit big tires, and most importantly, had rack/fender/cargo bosses aplenty.
This year, Singular debuted its custom Gryphon Titanium, and once again, I’m questioning which bike to crown “best in class.” Check out my full-length review below…
Reportage
Circumnavigating the Sawatch Range: A Classic Colorado Bike Touring Route
With numerous high summits along the Continental Divide and over a dozen 14,000′ peaks, the Sawatch Mountains are the heart of central Colorado’s alpine riding. Below, Hailey Moore shares a 340-mile bike touring route that circumnavigates 14 of the 15 Sawatch peaks by linking together a few of the region’s classic high passes and resupply options in iconic mountain towns. Read on for Hailey’s inspiration behind crafting this classic Colorado cyclo-touring route, detailed information for each section, and an optional extension that loops around Mt. Holy Cross to make the route a complete circumnavigation.
Reportage
Juanito and His “Burra”: A Fabio Duarte Touring Bicycle
When Karla and I arrived at Básica Studio’s workshop in México City, one of the first things I noticed was a yellow bicycle parked on its kickstand standing a little apart from the other ones on the rack. A complete set of fenders and heavy-duty racks made it clear this bike was intended for fully loaded touring, and the letters on the down tube, F. Duarte, spelled a brand I hadn’t seen before. We soon found out this bike belonged to Juanito, one of the mechanics at the shop, and I knew I had to see this bike and this guy in action.
Reportage
Updated 2023 Conditions: Four Rolls of Film Over Four Days – Bike Touring the CDT in Northern New Mexico
The Northern New Mexico Continental Divide Trail, or CDT for short, is a popular route for bicycle touring. Singletrack and overgrown double-track compose most of this true-to-form high-country route, where beautiful campsites and natural water sources abound. Yet, it can be a challenge to pick up the route’s thread season after season, as deadfall and weather-related changes obstruct wayfinding. John and a group of six friends recently rode the 93-mile section, and he documented the scenery with his 35mm rangefinder camera and a 35mm focal length lens.
Find the most current, mostly singletrack route of the Northern NM CDT below, along with route notes and a wonderful gallery that captures the vibe of this stunning section of bike-legal trail below.
Reportage
The Tour Divide on Fabric Spokes: Brian and His Rare Earth Cycle Craft Touring Bike
For framebuilders, there’s no better test for their product than a long bike tour. When I last saw Brian, he had just completed the Baja Divide on a bike he built. At the time, he had just left the outdoor industry and hoped to transition into building frames full-time under the Rare Earth Cycle Craft banner.
His hardtail was one of my favorite bikes I documented this year until I saw his Tour Divide bike…
Radar
Radar Roundup: MONoPOLE Toolbike, Tout Terrain Pamir e-Touring Bike, Cushcore Trail, Back to The Berkshires Ride, Sufur Prototype, Universally Pegoretti: Hecho a Mano in Mexico, and Return to Dillon Cone
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
Reportage
Joe’s Mason Cycles RAW Andean Touring Rig and a Colombian Overnighter in El Cocuy
It’s always great to get a chance to cross paths with internet acquaintances on the road and there are very few places like the Boyacá region of Colombia that enable that, thanks to Dean and Dang’s classic “Oh Boyacá!” route. I was heading north along the track while most are aimed southbound, which found me crossing with long and short-distance tourers on a daily basis while grinding up these infamous Colombian mountain passes. I spent some miles with two UK riders and, of course, we talked gear. Read on for a recap of our overnighter around the El Cocuy National Park and a closer look at Joe’s Mason Cycles RAW Andean Tourer.
Reportage
Kumis and Glaciers: Stories From Bicycle Touring Kyrgyzstan’s Tian Shan Mountains
Wild horses, high mountains, glaciers, and nomads—Ana Zamorano first heard stories of adventure and misadventure from bike touring in Kyrgyzstan while riding in The Andes. The allure of adventure was too enticing and she made a pact to experience the vast valleys and high passes of the Tian Shan Mountains herself. Read on for her retelling of a trip that included loaded high-altitude touring, a glimpse into the region’s nomadic culture, and endless mountains in the distance.