Fat Tires in a Skinny Frame: John’s 2012 Bruce Gordon Monster Cross

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Fat Tires in a Skinny Frame: John’s 2012 Bruce Gordon Monster Cross

“It’s just a bike.” The late Bruce Gordon built bicycle frames to enhance his customers’ lives. Through all my interactions over the years, up until his passing in June of 2019, he would take praise for his work, but would always end the conversation with: “It’s just a bike.”

To talk about this bike in particular, you first have to know Bruce. Who he was, his ethos, the mythos, and what he brought to the “g” word: gravel. Bruce was making fat-tire road bikes for a long time. Long before many. He developed tires, toe clips, and helped foster an entire movement of makers in the Petaluma, California area and beyond.

But just like that, he was gone, and he left behind a legacy…

Where Bintage Hides In The Spectrum Of Fantasy And Reality: A Tael Of Two Brother Cycles Mr Wooden Builds

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Where Bintage Hides In The Spectrum Of Fantasy And Reality: A Tael Of Two Brother Cycles Mr Wooden Builds

Petor Georgallou recently built up a Brother Cycles Mr. Wooden alongside his buddy Neil. Below, Petor delves into piles of parts and decides on some unusual choices as the cornerstone of his build. Follow along for his musings on old bike parts, laughing with friends, and maybe even getting two whole bikes running for the price of one. 

The Radavist Not So Serious but Kind of Serious 2023 MADE Bike Show Awards

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The Radavist Not So Serious but Kind of Serious 2023 MADE Bike Show Awards

Best. Best. Best. All the subjectivity, all the time. The era of the NAHBS awards is long gone. No more medals given out to the same four people, year after year. Instead, we’re looking at the most subjective, most obscure, and most ridiculous to dish out a playful, in jest best list from our 2023 MADE Bike Show coverage. Read on below for the best road, best gravel, best mountain, and more…

Hybrid Moments: A Hudski Doggler Review

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Hybrid Moments: A Hudski Doggler Review

As cyclists, we love bikes that can do more than one thing. A Swiss Army knife rather than a scalpel, if you will. So when a bike like the Hudski Doggler passes through my possession, I want to find its limits and then push through them. I’ve spent a few months riding the Doggler around Santa Fe, in and around our beloved Santa Fe National Forest, and I’m ready to spill the beans on what makes this bike so appropriate for gravel and mountain riding…

2023 MADE Bike Show Coverage: Part 02 – Albatross, Baphomet, BTCHN, Caletti, Frances Cycles, HotSalad, Neuhaus, Schön Studio, Sour Bicycles, and Tonic Fab

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2023 MADE Bike Show Coverage: Part 02 – Albatross, Baphomet, BTCHN, Caletti, Frances Cycles, HotSalad, Neuhaus, Schön Studio, Sour Bicycles, and Tonic Fab

We’re here in Portland, covering the 2023 MADE Bike Show, looking for bikes that we thought you, the readers of The Radavist would appreciate. Josh and John have been scouring the halls of the show for bikes to document, and we’ve got Part 02 of our coverage for you to enjoy…

Thanks to 1-Up USA for sponsoring our continued 2023 MADE Bike Show coverage!

Greg Herbold’s 1991 Miyata Ridge Runner Team

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Greg Herbold’s 1991 Miyata Ridge Runner Team

Nothing screams early-90s louder than a tension disc and a pile of anodized parts and the colorful World Champ, Greg Herbold. Of all the pro riders who made a name for themselves in the early 90s, few played as important a role in pushing new technology forward as Greg Herbold. Although best known for winning the inaugural UCI Downhill World Championship title in 1990, Herbold was already a celebrated champion having previously won the NORBA National Downhill title three-times…

Deadfall, Cow Sh*t, and Monsoons: A Well Used Revelate Nano Panniers Review

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Deadfall, Cow Sh*t, and Monsoons: A Well Used Revelate Nano Panniers Review

In a world where traditional bicycle touring setups are seemingly overtaking strap-on bikepacking bags, micro or mini panniers make a lot of sense. If you have a rear or front rack, why not run a pannier over a lashed, structureless bag? Panniers are great for many reasons, mainly their ease of loading and stability. They don’t flop all over or rub your tires on smaller frames like bikepacking bags tend to, and if they’re packed and mounted right, they stay out of your way during the inevitable hike-a-bike. Plus, depending on how you load your rear rack, you can still use a dropper post. 

John recently took the new Revelate Nano Panniers ($250/pair) out on the Northern New Mexico CDT for four days of navigating deadfall, battling cow shit, and being trounced by Southwestern Monsoons, i.e., the true test of a pannier’s reliability!

Read on for his well-used review!

Clint’s SaltAir Cycles Twentysixie Fixed Gear

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Clint’s SaltAir Cycles Twentysixie Fixed Gear

While the 2023 Enve Grodeo was chock-full of some of the snazziest bespoke all-road bikes from around the world, Spencer Harding’s eye was caught by an eccentric build noticeably absent from the show floor. Fortunately, he was able to get the bike’s owner, Clint, to stop throwing skids long enough to snag a closeup. Pulling influence from some strange corners of the bike world and outfitting the frame with some amazing and unique parts, Clint’s SaltAir stood out for more reasons than its single rear cog. Clint rode this pink dream on all 92 miles of the Enve Grodeo, a feat in itself regardless of it being a fixed gear 26-er. Let’s have a closer look!  

A 600-Mile First-Ride Review of Beast Components’ Carbon Hybrid Bar

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A 600-Mile First-Ride Review of Beast Components’ Carbon Hybrid Bar

Fresh off racing the North-South Colorado Bikepacking Race, where she finished 1st women’s and 7th overall, Hailey Moore is here to share her first-ride impressions of Germany-based Beast Components’ Carbon Hybrid Bar. The mtb-shift-and-lever compatible design allowed her to run her Bearclaw Ti Hardtail as a monster-tourer, drop bar 29er, but how did the modified design manifest in ride quality as she pedaled 600 miles down Colorado’s Front Range? Read on for her thoughts…

A Little Goes a Long Way: Starling Cycles Murmur V3 Review

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A Little Goes a Long Way: Starling Cycles Murmur V3 Review

Back in late 2018, I took delivery of a quirky steel full-suspension bike to review from a small framebuilding operation in the UK called Starling Cycles. Over the course of a few months, I rode the shit out of it in Los Angeles, where I was living at the time, and couldn’t get enough of it. As someone who lives metal bikes and loves riding trails, I hadn’t fully migrated to a full suspension chassis because I didn’t like the way the widely-available carbon models rode. The Murmur changed that for me. I reviewed the Murmur in April 2019 and immediately bought a V2 Murmur. 

Now living in Santa Fe, with arguably more technical terrain, I haven’t been able to put down the Starling Cycles Murmur; taking it high into the Sangre Mountains and beyond, this steel full-suspension bike really changed my perspective on the potential ride quality of full-suspension mountain bikes. Late last year, Joe from Starling reached out, saying he had a V3 frame for me to test out, and once again, I’ve been reaching for it nonstop.

Let’s look at my thoughts on the small changes the V3 underwent, leading to large improvements, and a broader perspective on steel full-suspension bikes below…

Everyone’s Nice at Brother in the Wild Dorset

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Everyone’s Nice at Brother in the Wild Dorset

Petor Georgallou steals his sister away as a (reluctant) partner in crime to check out the Brother in the Wild Dorset, hosted by Brother Cycles. He’s pleased to find a “field full of weirdos” and a plethora of equally unique and odd bikes and, it turns out, everyone’s nice. Stick around near the end for a lengthy discussion on the merits and cost of silver brazing, and a sampling of the bikes that made an appearance.