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Petor’s Favourite Products, Rides, and More From 2024
Last but not least and perhaps maybe the best for last is Petor‘s Favourite Products, Rides, and More From 2024. Read on as our intrepid Gonzo journalist, and owner of BESPOKED reflects on his year one clever quip at a time…
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Josh’s Favorite Products, Experiences, and More from 2024
Next up in our year-end recaps, Josh shares a list of his favorite products that span an eclectic range from cycling components and apparel to car camping creature comforts and even laundry detergent. He also reflects on a career-defining project, his approach to reigniting creative sparks in response to waning social media interest, and shares some pivotal music and books that inspired him along the way. Read on below for Josh’s favorites…
Radar
Readers’ Rides: Dylan’s Meriwether Touring Longtail Fatbike
Custom bikes aren’t always about the bling; they’re about designing form for specific functions. For Dylan, his love of touring through the Australian outback pushed him to get a custom Meriwether Cycles longtail fat bike for touring. Read on for a dusty Readers’ Rides…
Reportage
Otso Warakin Steel Review: A Gravel Bike That Cuts Through the Noise
The field of all-road and gravel bikes may seem crowded, but Otso Cycles always seems to add something new to the conversation with their bikes. In this review, Hailey Moore writes about what sets the Otso Warakin Steel apart among its off-road peers.
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2024 Bespoked Dresden: A Special Fern Bicycles Chuck Gravel Touring Bike
Amid our ongoing coverage of the Bespoked Dresden framebuilder and maker showcase, today we are featuring a very special bicycle made by Berlin-based Fern Bicycles equipped with Allygn racks and custom bags from Gramm Tourpacking. With design language referencing a late-1980s Toyota Pickup and mountain bikes of the same vintage, the build features both old and new elements with components from a long list of artisan fabricators like Cyber Cycles, Garbaruk, Tune, Velocity, SON, Gevenalle, Btchn’, and many more. We think this bike might be peak Fern. Continue reading below for the complete breakdown of this special Fern Bicycles Chuck gravel touring bike.
If you’re at Bespoked this weekend, make sure to swing by the Fern booth to check this out!
Radar
Readers’ Rides: Sam’s Hunter Cycles Midtail Hardtail Cargo Bike
Sam from Aotearoa, New Zealand sent in this beauty of a Hunter Cycles Midtail hardtail cargo bike for this week’s Readers’ Rides. Let’s check it out!
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Bespoked Dresden 2024: Drust Cycles Collapsible Touring Bike
Yesterday, Josh bumped into Konstantin Drust of Drust Cycles on his way to Dresden for this year’s Bespoked framebuilder and maker showcase. Konstantin was picking up the luggage for his show bike from Kristin Heil’s Gramm Tourpacking workshop in Berlin. Josh was so enamored with the bike that he couldn’t wait to see it again at the show, and he documented it on the spot. Continue reading below for a detailed look at the Drust Cycles collapsible touring bike…
Reportage
Paso Agua Negra: Cycling Up Chile’s Longest Climb
As Ryan Wilson makes his way from Colombia to Santiago de Chile by bike, he tackles one of the longest climbs in the world, on a road that straddles the Chile and Argentina border. Follow along as he explores the stunning desert landscapes and night skies of the region while crossing Paso Agua Negra.
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Tumbleweed Sunliner Review: A Timeless Mountain Touring Bike
The Tumbleweed Sunliner ($3775 complete) continues a long-held tradition of equipping a mountain bike with touring accoutrements. Since the mountain bike’s inception, people have been bolting racks and strapping bags to them, taking advantage of its beefy chassis and wide gearing to pedal deeper into rugged terrain than ever before. John has been riding the Sunliner all year in the Southern Rockies, both unloaded as a trail bike and loaded on camping trips. Read on for his thorough assessment of this timeless touring bike…
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Reader’s Ride: Ali’s Panorama Taiga EXP and Poem
This week’s reader’s ride comes from Ali Becker as she rides across the Great Northern Bike Route. She talks about her journey from overstuffing panniers to her current svelt bikepacking setup and entertains us with a poem about packing her rig up…
Radar
Hyperlite Mountain Gear Splash Bivy Review
In her review of the Hyperlite Mountain Gear Splash Bivy, Hailey Moore writes about why she prefers bivies over tents and offers her assessment of this featherweight dyneema bikepacking, or backpacking, sleeping kit companion.
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A Fistful of Bolivianos: Crossing the Andean Altiplano
As Ryan Wilson continues his bike tour south from Colombia to Chile, he crosses a remote stretch of Bolivia’s infamous altiplano. Follow along as Ryan takes on this harsh yet beautiful environment through volcanic landscapes and otherworldly salt flats.
Reportage
Eurobike 2024 Part 02: Amapola, Battaglin, Crossworx, Dangerholm, Kocmo, Ortleib, Passoni, Peak Design, Purple Dog, Sayle, Stijn, Zoceli, 2Rads
Our European correspondent Petor Georgallou is back for the second installment of covering Eurobike in his trademark gonzo style. Read on to follow Petor’s tracks into the wonder and weirdness of Europe’s largest cycling trade show.
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Crust Bikes Scapebot Review: The Yes Man
The Crust Bikes “Scapebot” is the third iteration of the original Scapegoat. The frame fits a wide variety of tire sizes and has a unique geometry that is both modern and harks back to the golden age of ATBs. True to form, Spencer has been using this bike as his touring rig for years and decided to put the most outlandish tire clearance claims to the test. Check out his long-term review of the Crust Scapebot below…
Radar
Mike Varley’s ‘Dropping In’ Article from 1991
We’ve got a story coming up tomorrow that references this Mountain and City Biking article written by Black Mountain Cycle‘s Mike Varley from 1991 about drop bars on mountain bikes. Also known as dirt drops, Mike discusses the benefits of the unique riding position offered by these off-road drop bars in the original article text below…
Reportage
2024 Bespoked UK Handmade Bicycle Show Part 02: Alfano, Assembly, Atherton, Drust, Medusa, Reilly, 18 Bikes, SON, Wizard Works, and Uber Gallery
With both 2024 Bespoked UK and MADE Australia taking place over the same weekend, we’ve got an action-packed week of event recaps ahead.
First up, Josh is in Manchester, UK, reporting from the historic Victoria Baths with the second group of stunning bikes and products from Alfano, Assembly, Atherton, Olsen Bikes, Medusa, Reilly, Eighteen Bikes, SON, and Wizard Works
Let’s dive right in below!
Radar
Mica is a Rear Rack for Bikes Without Rack Mounts
Skyler Des Roches created the Mica Rack as a solution for bikes without rear rack mounts for riders who didn’t want the hassle of bikepacking saddle packs. Rather than having a bag swaying and bouncing all over, the Mica Rack allows you to strap dry bag with your straps of choice. It is not a pannier rack, nor a rack for fully-loading; think of it as a bag support. Let’s check it out below…