The Radavist

Black Cat Bicycles presents the 2020 edition of the Hello Monsta! The perfect gravel bike scaled up. Designed around 27.5 x 2.4” tires, but fully compatible with 700 x 40mm tires(!) without compromise to chainstay length, bb height, or steering trail dimensions. Let’s get real. Most of these features are ancillary to the fact that this bike just rips. The Hello Monsta! is great for exploring chunky backcountry, touring the world, or rallying your local favs. We shot this bike at NAHBS and it got a lot of attention. It’s finally available for ordering!

The frame and fork set will have the following features and specs:
-Custom sized frame and fork, tailored for you
-110 x 15 and 148 x 12 hub spacing-mtb boost
-1x or 2x drivetrain
-27.5 x 2.4” tires
-73mm British threaded bottom bracket shell
-1 1/8″ threadless unicrown fork for maximum ride quality
-front and rear flat caliper mounts for maximum versatility
-27.2 or 30.9 seatpost, internal dropper port if desired
-S bend seatstays
-Art School dropouts or Swinger single speed dropouts
-Custom blended rugged tubeset for aggressive riding
-Cable or electronic shifting
-Drop or flat handlebar
-Dear Landlord rack available, but not included
-Original paint always available and starts at $1000
-$4600 frame and fork. White Industries custom crankset and headset included.

So as you can imagine, the contributors to the Radavist are all sitting on a bit more free time these days, myself included. While personally, I still have a few bikes to review, which will be rolling out over the next few weeks, we’d all like to queue up a few more. Over the years, the readership has provided outstanding feedback, and with those opinions, we’ve reviewed various bikes from big brands to small. We’re all collectively wondering which bikes you’d like to see reviewed here on the Radavist? Drop your preference in the comments and we’ll take note!

Last year’s Warroad brought endurance all-road performance to the Salsa catalog and this year, the brand revamped the new frame with some vibrant paint options and updated build kits. Due to the current pandemic, they’re even offering up consumer direct shipping via your local bike shop and Salsa’s Adventure At Your Doorstep program. Head on over to Salsa to drool over this AXS build at the high end and a Tiagra build for more budget-minded buyers.

Curious about what we thought about Warroad? Check out our review.

The world has been brought to its knees over the Covid 19 pandemic and while our current administration hasn’t enacted the Defense Production Act, manufacturers like Industry Nine have picked up the torch themselves. Read on for their recent announcement:

Industry Nine is in a position to help with manufacturing parts needed and assisting supply efforts in combating the virus outbreak. At our disposal are dozens of CNC machines ready to make parts in short supply like ventilator components. Our engineering teams have years of robotics and automation experience ready to support companies producing PPE like masks and gloves. We’re reaching out to our contact network to find ways to support these industries in need, but now we’re calling on our dedicated followers to help us connect with other manufacturers or suppliers. If you think you can help us in this effort please email:⁣ tips@industrynine.net⁣⁣
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Please share with or tag people/friends who may be of help. Thank you all – please be safe! ⁣⁣

Do you know of other companies doing so? Link them in the comments!

Available in April and launched today at the Mid South, the Stormchaser is Salsa’s new singlespeed gravel bike. This new bike is available at the moment only as an aluminum frame, with a carbon fork, and is inspired by the Warbird’s all-road, all-conditions, no-nonsense geometry.

Because gravel races often take place in inclement conditions, Salsa added abrasion plates on the fork, internal routing, and extra clearance for when the mud really gets caked on.

The all-new Alternator Flat Mount dropouts allow for single speed setups or 1x drivetrains with a geared dropout plate. This geometry is adapted so that wider bars can be run with it as well.

Complete builds are priced at $1,499 with the frameset coming in at $1,099. See more information at Salsa.

With a weight coming in at 1575grams and setting you back $1300 for the wheelset, the Bontrager Aeolus Pro 3V is a bomb-proof, yet most importantly, more affordable carbon wheels option, perfect for road, all-road, or straight up gravel riding and racing. To be honest, with a price point like that, it’s hard to deny the appeal of these wheels but let’s dive into the details of Bontrager’s assembled in the US carbon disc wheels. I’ve been using these wheels for over eight months now and have some thoughts on what to expect…

RedShift’s ShockStop suspension seatpost was designed and engineered for gravel and all-road bikes, particularly for those longer rides or races where rough roads can do damage to your rear end, thanks to their patent-pending ShockStop system which provides 35mm of tunable suspension travel. Check out more information at RedShift.

-35mm of active suspension travel
-Infinitely adjustable preload stiffness adjustment
-Swappable springs included for different rider weights
-Optimized linkage geometry provides ultra-responsive suspension
-27.2mm x 350mm length (shims available to fit larger seat tube sizes)
-497g

Kona’s popular Libre DL all-road model has some changes in build spec for 2020. Most notably is the wheel package. The Libre DL now comes with 650b/27.5 wheels and a 2x Shimano GRX 800 drivetrain, giving this capable bike even more range. The Libre DL’s frame is made using Kona Race Light technology and is mated with an Easton carbon bar, Race Face carbon seatpost, Easton EA70 AX wheels and a Kona Verso Carbon touring fork. Retail for the complete build is set at $3999 with the frameset coming in at $1999.

-Frame Material: Kona Race Light Carbon
-Fork: Kona Verso Full Carbon Flat Mount Disc
-Wheels: Easton EA 70AX 650b
-Crankset: Shimano GRX 810
-Drivetrain: Shimano GRX 810 11spd
-Brakes: Shimano GRX 810 160mm front / 160mm rear rotor
-Seat Post: RaceFace Next Carbon
-Cockpit: Easton EC70AX bar/Easton EA90 Stem
-Front Tire: WTB Venture TCS DUAL 650bx47c
-Rear tire: WTB Venture TCS DUAL 650bx47c
-Saddle: WTB SL8 Pro

With five classes of Romax, Brodie’s do-it-all gravel bike model, ranging from the Comp for $2099, to the Carbon (pictured) for $3999, and many tiers of build kit and wheel options, Brodie’s offerings for these all-road bikes has something for everyone. The Romax has a steel, aluminum, and carbon frameset offerings, each with cargo bosses on the fork, clearance for plush and supple tires, and build kits ranging from 105 to GRX. There are just too many options to list, so head to Brodie to see the 2020 Romax for yourself.

If you’re looking to build up an all-silver road, all-road, or gravel build but have been struggling finding silver bars in a shape that you like, well, look no further. Salsa’s two most popular bars, the Cowchipper and Cowbell, are now available in silver. Head to your local dealer to check a pair out in person!

All-City’s been pushing new models consistently over the past few months and people are already building them up in wild custom specs. The new Cosmic Stallion is landing in January 2020 at your local dealers and upon its arrival, you’ll note a few updates.

The first being new paint. Duh. The Stallion comes in a purple to white fade, SRAM Force 1 kit, or a lime, silver, and white chevron GRX build. It also got a new geometry update, making it a bit longer and lower for all-road stability, proven at races like the Land Run 100.

There’s also a new fork, with adjustable rake. The Columbus Futura Cross Carbon Fork has been updated to accommodate a 12mm thru-axle. The Stallion features a tapered head tube with external cups, and ding ding ding, flat-mount disc brakes.

Look for these ponies to land in your local dealer in the new year and read more at All-City!

Mike DeSalvo is celebrating 20 years of building frames with a special edition disc bike, modeled after his old 1968 VW Crew Cab truck, “Curley”. See all the details for these unique and stunning bikes below.