The Radavist

Silver Siouxon: Fall Bikepacking in Portland’s Shoulder Season
Photos and words by Gabe Tiller

One of the most frequent questions I hear is: “What can I bikepack on a long weekend that’s close to town?” The Silver Siouxon route is the answer to that question. You get incredible backcountry singletrack and a remoteness that seems much, much farther than an hour’s drive from Portland.

We rode it in October with vibrant fall colors, but late spring and early summer sport an equally beautiful wildflower bloom. The variety of terrain you pass through is unique. Countless waterfalls, working timber forests, the faux-alpine terrain of Silver Star (a byproduct of the Yacolt Burn), the giant scree fields of Bluff Mountain, the imposing Cougar Rock, and the verdant green tunnel of Siouxon Creek’s old growth forest make this a route that’s challenging physically and technically, but inspiring and soul regenerative at the same time.

After South Africa, I realized two things. The first being my knee injury will have me off the bike for a few weeks and the second; it’s finally the perfect time for the desert. Rather than stewing at home, unable to ride and constantly being surrounded by the thing that I can’t do right now – riding bikes – I decided that a trip to the Mojave was in order. A nonprofit artist organization, the High Desert Test Sites, was doing their annual symposium in the Joshua Tree area. Cari has worked with them in the past, so I thought it’d be an awesome excuse to get out to the Mojave for a short trip.

The problem is, Joshua Tree this time of year is a zoo, so finding a camping spot on the weekend is a challenge. My rough plan was to drive out to the Cady Mountains, camp, wake up to look for Big Horn sheep and explore the slot canyons, then drive to Joshua Tree for the festivities. We’d then bail out back to the Mojave and explore some more areas I’ve got saved for just such an occasion.

Romanticising the desert is as old as literature. From Edward Abbey to Aldo Leopold and Mary Hunter Austin. Over the years, authors and artists alike, have taken to these vast, arid landscapes for inspiration. I, myself, identify with these places and feel most at ease while traversing their planes and mountains. Perhaps its the ability to see for miles, in any direction, or it could be the intricacy of their flora and fauna, but the desert to me is the most wonderful place. Riding a bike in these conditions can be challenging, however. Typically, water is an issue, as is the sun and its oppressive rays, but probably the most incapacitating element is the wind, for you can take measures to block the sun and you can always carry more water.

Last year, I was supposed to travel to South Africa to partake in the Eroica, as well as a cycle tour around the Karoo Desert but I came down with the worst flu of my adult life the day I was supposed to depart. Fast forward a year and I really wanted to return, so I contacted Stan Engelbrecht, the Cape Town local race organizer to see if he wanted to do another trip. Stan also throws the Tour of Ara, a six-day, vintage steel bike-only race. He’s no rookie to races and so I struck up an email thread with him again. That’s when he told me that the Karoobaix was happening.

Smoked and Stoked: Riding High in Central Oregon
Words and photos by Colin Frazer

Growing up outside of Eugene, I’d spent Summers camping and swimming in the rivers, lakes and hot springs that define the west side of Oregon’s Cascade range. Mountain biking was still a fledgling sport at the time and I was only vaguely aware of the burgeoning meccas sprouting up around me. Since I really only started riding after high school, I’ve been wanting to get back home to do some bikepacking for a while, but the right conditions just hadn’t come around. With all the rad work that Gabe and crew have put in making the Oregon Timber Trail a reality, the interest was brewing and a small crew started to form. Adam and Sam, childhood friends from Colorado, would come over with me from Bozeman, Corey and David, childhood friends from Ohio, would come from Seattle and LA respectively, for a week or more of shredding central Oregon.

Approaching one of Oakland’s industrial area warehouses I am stoked to take note of the impressive lineup of old Toyota pickups and a VW bus. Smith meets me at the gate and I am unsurprised that he is another very tall frame-builder. I have a sneaking suspicion many tall riders got sick of finding frames that fit them so they just started making their own. Anywho, Smith gives me a tour of the large building that is split into smaller studios for painting, ceramics, and glass work. The main area has many kilns and people working various glass projects. The yard is filled with pups lounging and a family gutting some old camping trailers to make them home.

Smith’s shop, RatKing, is quite humble, just enough room for a few tables to weld on, some shelving, and a mill. He keeps detailed notes of time spent on each frame to track his efficiency and still has many hand-drawn frame layouts up on the walls. Smith started pulling out some of his first frames and laying them next to a current batch of thru axel touring machines. If one thing sticks out on most of his frames it seems to be an affinity for very large head tubes, in diameter and length. Those massive 44mm head tubes lead to some really amazing custom fork work as well. The progression appears to have been quick from the first-built-but-never-ridden track frame to his current small lineup of custom frames. My first trip to his shop I caught a few frames in progress and pre-paint and was stoked to return a few weeks later to see the finished product.

It’s no secret that Owens Valley has become a favorite playground of mine. It’s the interstitial region where I like to ride and explore when the Spring temperatures are too hot in Los Angeles and Death Valley has already hit triple digits. With natural hot springs, enough geologic formations to shake a stick at, and lots of rich history, this place is both an educational experience and a thorough workout, all in one. Especially when you begin to venture into the Eastern Sierra.

History. It’s something we rarely touch on here, and to be honest, I’m not sure why. I’ve read numerous books on Owens Valley, including Cadillac Desert, the history of how Los Angeles robbed this region of their water, and quite frankly, continues to do so, even today. After this trip, I found myself asking “where did the name Owens Valley come from?” To which, a quick history lesson began.

Mike ‘Kid’ Riemer’s Salsa Blackborow with Ode To Trout Cedaero Bags
Photos by John Watson, words by Mike ‘Kid’ Riemer

Editor’s note. I emailed Mike, requesting a few quotes about this bike, and received a novella, telling the tale of Mike’s interest in the outdoors. While I could pull quotes from it, I felt that as a whole, it tells more of the tale than I ever could…

I often tell my son, and my nephews, that there is nothing better than finding something in life that you are passionate about. 

I’ve been lucky in that regard, I guess.

I grew up in Korea, loving the outdoors and playing in the pine forest around our home and the neighboring hills, hiking the majestic Sorak mountains of the west coast, and living in the waters of the Yellow Sea for as much of my summer each year as possible. The outdoors became a passion for me, in many ways without me ever realizing it. It was inside me waiting for opportunities to come out. 

It’s been a hot, hot summer here in Los Angeles and after two weeks of over 90º weather, we had to get out of town. Let’s be honest, though, that’s what everyone in this county of 10 million people was thinking too! So where would we go? As I was contemplating this very question, I bumped into my friend Nathan, who told me he had an amazing touring route from San Francisco out to Point Reyes National Seashore planned for the long weekend. I immediately asked if there was room for Cari and me to come along… I owed her a better touring experience after getting us lost in the Sequoias!

Jotunheimen Super Randonnée
Words and photos by Johan Björklund

In late July it was finally warm and dry in Sweden, so we decided to go to cold and wet Norway and ride the Jotunheimen Super Randonnee, 600km with 10 600 meters of elevation. We had been talking about it for the last two years when Daniel, Even and I suddenly decided to ride it without doing any real planning.

A Super Randonnee is a 600km brevet, but with a minimum of 10 000 meters of elevation gain. In return, you get a more generous time limit, from 2017 and forward 60 hours and before that 50 hours plus one extra hour per additional 1000 meters of elevation. They’re run as permanents, so you can ride it when you want with the permission from the local organizer. The regular brevet card for stamping at gas stations is partly replaced by awkward staged photos where the bikes of all riders with an attached plastic sign have to be visible at specific locations.

There’s nothing like a California sunset, especially over the San Gabriel Mountains here in Los Angeles. Those faded evenings usually come after an all-time MTB ride and for Nathan, he was craving some trail time. Sure, he’d ridden a lot of the singletrack in our great city on a bike before: his Rock Lobster all-road, but he wanted to finally rip them up – and himself – on a proper MTB. He went to the team at GSC and began talking to them about a Ritchey Timberwolf build. One unlike any the shop had put together before. GSC contacted Ritchey and requested one of their special Heritage paint jobs, then Mike, a mechanic at GSC talked to Nathan about a build kit. A Fox 36 fork would take the hits, while a Shimano drivetrain would offer smooth, worry-free shifting and braking. Wheels, featuring White Industries and durable rubber from Onza paved the way for one slick build. Being Nathan’s first mountain bike, it’s had a number of crashes already, but with each ride, he gets more and more accustomed to speed and cornering on loose and sandy trails.

The Timberwolf is a very popular hardtail option, I reviewed one and loved it. I know a number of you have these bikes, so share them in the comments.

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If you want a custom build like this and live in Los Angeles, hit up Golden Saddle Cyclery.

Words by Ty Hathaway, photos by Ty Hathaway and Julia DeConcini

It wasn’t but a few minutes of being back in the van after floating the Snake River that Julia was already figuring out what river was next and how to make it better. We had already gotten some good info about the North Fork of the Flathead River in Montana from a good friend of ours who grew up taking family trips down the section. He made it sound like some kind of magical dream land filled with big fish, crystal clear water, and endless scenery. Naturally, this would be our next river of choice, but this time we would do an overnight and with no van shuttle.

11am. We had to be in Downieville by 11am for a special ride. A VIP ride if you will. Paul Components bought a morning shuttle to do the classic Downieville Downhill shuttle. There were 12 spots and Kyle and I had to boogie ASAP from Northstar. Luckily, long nights and early mornings were the norm on this trip, so we loaded up the ‘Cruiser and headed to Downieville.

Saddle Drive Is Still the Best!
Words by John Watson, photos by John Watson and Jarrod Bunk

Saddle Drive! It’s part party, part bike demo and part tradeshow, in that order. Or at least that’s how we’ve covered it in years past. This year, however, QBP did things a bit different, opting to put many, if not most of the bicycles and products they “launched” under strict embargo. The bad news is, you won’t see any bike portraits in this gallery, but the good news is, you’ll see my two favorite bikes in the future, once the embargo is lifted.

The Custom Bikes of Grinduro Scotland
Photos by Kyle Kelley, words compiled from each builder by Andrew Denham

Each year at Grinduro California, the event reaches out to a handful of builders to showcase their handy work. With this year’s first event in Scotland, Grinduro decided to do the same, pinging a handful of UK builders to design the ultimate Grinduro bike, display and race their creations. The project was supported by Columbus, Lauf, SRAM, Clement and Fabric. The featured bikes were the subject of a public vote to establish the ‘best in show’ with the winner getting an awesome prize of Flights and entry to Grinduro California! Adeline O’Moreau won the vote with her awesome ‘Good Vibes’ MTB which she rode to victory in the under 30’s women category, so we’ll begin with her creation first.

Boulder, Colorado-based Matter Cycles knows a thing or two about dirt. The Boulder area is a veritable playground for riders looking to keep their bikes dusty. Collin Schaafsma has an extensive background shredding in the Colorado mountains, and if bikes work well there, chances are, they’ll excel just about anywhere, including Los Angeles.

Coincidentally, Collin’s web guru, Grant just relocated to LA and has been steady shredding this Wolfbeard all-road bike. With 43mm Bruce Gordon Rock N Roads, Shimano Ultegra and Reynolds wheels, Grant’s got a do-it-all bike, with plenty of reliability built right in. Right now, it’s set up as his daily dirt road bike, but with a few add-ons, it’ll transform into a touring rig.

I’ve ridden alongside this bike for weeks now, and have been meaning to take some environmental portraits, in the woods, but I’ve yet to have the chance to, so this perty blue wall will do for now…