The Radavist

The Surly Midnight Special is a drop bar bike that fits big tires – real big tires. Beyond fitting huge tires, what makes it unique among the expanding options in this category is that its geometry is derived from a road bike rather than the ‘cross bikes that most “Road Plus” bikes have descended from. Chainstays are short and head tube angles are relatively steep across the board, making for a quick-handling bike that loves to carve corners at any speed – but especially when you’re going fast.

Don’t let the massive tire clearance fool you; despite the wide 650B tires, it handles on the road more like bikes you’d expect to see narrower tires on. Because of this, the Midnight Special is difficult to classify. It fits big tires and it’s got disc brakes and drop bars, but it’s not a ‘cross bike and it’s unlike any bike being marketed as gravel. It fits more tire than a Straggler but its geometry is more like that of the Pacer. So let’s get into that.

No, this isn’t a troll and yes, I’m aware of the polarizing nature of this particular topic of discussion but I can’t help but say I had a lot of fun making this short gallery.

As the editor, or owner, or whatever you want to call me, I tend to hold a certain sensitivity to topics here on the site. Or at least I am mindful of the Radavist’s impact on riding, even in the smallest of ways. E-bikes, for whatever reason, tend to generate a lot of flack and rightfully so. There’s the issue of trail stewardship, of accessibility, or perhaps it just looks wrong on paper. Or in this case, on screen. There have been tons of op-ed pieces circulated over the internet over the years, of all I have not read. Personally, I’m more of an experiential learner. I like to actually try something before putting my opinion down. Just a few weeks ago, I was finally able to truly use an e-bike. Not just in a cruise around a bike shop’s parking lot kinda way, but actually use one.

I love the swooping, curvy lines found in Oddity Cycles‘ machines. Part of that is due to the truss fork, which offers a bit more compliance than the typical carbon fork or rigid steel fork. This fatbike in particular though has some great color coordination with matching Paul Components blue anodized cranks, chain guard, skewers and Klamper disc brakes. To put it even more over the top, it’s rolling on those made in the USA HED fatbike rims…

Spencer Harding is true rad atavist. He’s always touring on his tallbike, or packrafting the LA river, and finding unique or interesting people to photograph. For the past few weeks, he’s been in Los Angeles, working on photo projects and riding extensively. For whatever reason, he and I yet to connect. It seems that while our paths were concurrent, they weren’t yet converging. Until last week when a text message ended with finite plans to ride.

Initially, we were going to ride Sunset Ridge, a ripping descent but I wanted to ride something a bit harder and more cross-country. Ty had already annihilated Chilao the day before, so we chose Strawberry Peak and its exposed singletrack.

For whatever reason, I thought Spencer always had a Surly ICT. I’d seen his tires before with their plump 4″ width, but never actually realized it was a Motobecane. You know, the BikesDirect.com in house model that seems awfully similar to Surly, down to the dropouts. We were joking as I was shooting photos: “that’s the most stock, cheap bike to ever be featured on the Radavist!” My mind raced to think of another example, yet came back empty after running through the database. Yes, this is a damn stock bike, save for the bell and Brooks saddle, but as Spencer has proven time and time again, it’s not the bike that makes the ride. This one’s all about the abeausage…

Enjoy these photos of some of Los Angeles’ most beautiful trails and give Spencer a follow on Instagram!

In the short time that Chumba found a new home outside of Austin, they’ve been pushing hard on expanding their made in Texas frame catalog. With rowdy hardtails, 29+ and finally, a full fatbike, the brand has something for everything from bikepacking to daily trail riding. Their first full fat platform bike, the Ursa Major has landed and it’s one of the most surprising fatties I’ve ridden.

Austin isn’t exactly ideal stomping grounds for a fatbike. Not a straight out of the box kit anyway. Once you dial in your tire and rim selection, go tubeless and can achieve the much-needed traction for both loose corners and slick limestone, you’re good to go. Getting that tire pressure right is crucial, especially with a suspension fork. That takes a little bit of trial and error and a few trialside adjustments. In my experience anyway.

What Morgan touched on with his Ice Cream Truck and RockShox Bluto review applies here. While a lot of what he was talking about in his review was foreign to me at the time, even after just a single afternoon on the Ursa Major I began to understand his points.

Curtis Inglis’ company Retrotec is located in Napa Valley, California. Not exactly full fat territory, but as we all know, riding fatbikes can be fun in any terrain. For Curtis, building countless plump-tire bikes finally wore on him, resulting in not only the Best Mountain Bike award, but a new steed in his personal stable.

With a custom-painted Pass and Stow rack, PAUL Klampers, PAUL thru-axles and XTR, it has all the bling of a show bike and the stance of a trail beast. This is my personal favorite fatbike in the show…

The thing I appreciate about Kristofer Henry’s work at 44 Bikes is that each model represents a different New Hampshire season and it just so happens that the New England winter is unforgiving (especially this year), which is why most of his bikes have big tires. Winter thrashes the roads, the tracks and trails, so over time, he’s designed his bikes to accommodate those conditions.

At the 2014 NAHBS, Kristofer brought his own personal bikes to display. Why? Because they’re all purpose-built and besides, he doesn’t want to make his clients wait any longer for a frame. If the bike was done pre-NAHBS, he sent it out.

This Big Boy Fatbike was an obvious first choice for photos from the brand but it won’t be the last. I really can’t wait to shoot his disc road and his rigid 29r. Using the 5″ platform and a 1 x 10 drivetrain, this thing will motor through snow with ease and the carbon components shed some weight off the total build, which comes in around 27 lbs.

See more in the Gallery!

Warning: this post contains the bane of everyone’s existence this winter – snow. I apologize and promise to bring warm vibes from here on out. Seriously.

I absolutely love riding my Pugsley around Austin. Both on and off-road, it’s been a blast and the number one question I get is: “what’s that bike for?”. My answer “snow”… This causes a look of puzzlement on their faces. There’s no snow in Texas! Naturally, but it’s still fun to motor around town and hit some trails.

Riding a fatbike in the snow is something I’ve yet to do, so when Jeff told me to stay a few days longer after Frostbike, I brought my Pugs and threw on some platform pedals. Our first stop (and as it turns out, only stop) was the River Bottoms. Kyle and I had been there before with Jeff, in the summer months and I was eager to see how much it had changed after the all snow and freezing temps.

We kitted up in waterproof fabrics and wool, set our PSI to around 8 and 10, brought some snacks and of course, Baroo, Jeff’s Basenji / Red Heeler mix trail dog… What happened next was a mix of riding and an “Adventure by Hike”.

Adopting the 5″ fat platform, the Surly Ice Cream Truck fatbike was the prize of their booth at Frostbike this year. Dubbed the ICT, this symmetrical fatbike just looks mean. But it’s got more than enough elegant details to soften that tank-like aesthetic.

Oversized tubing, tighter wheelbase, pressfit 30 bottom bracket and an insane sparkly paint job makes this bike stand out from the rest of their lineup. The hub spacing is determined by the new MDS dropouts. These allow for either 197mm 12mm thru-axle or 190mm quick-release.

When asked to describe the ride characteristics of the Ice Cream Truck, Tyler from Surly said “you have to use your whole body to move the bike, but it’s an incredibly stable ride”.  The wheelbase is tighter than the Moonlander for a zippier ride and while I didn’t get the chance to shred it, I look forward to the day…

The ICT will come as a complete or frameset in XS – XXL. If I recall correctly, the MSRP will be around $2400 with an Ops version for around $2700 and the frameset will retail for $850. 

See more in the Gallery!