Please join us in congratulating the six teams selected to participate in the ATB Challenge: Fleche It Out Reality TV Game Show. See who they are and their planned rides below!
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Radar
Apply Now: ATB Challenge Season 2 – Flèche it Out (Now Open For All Across the Globe)
Last year the All Terrain Bicycle Challenge selected five challengers and unleashed them on a brutal 71-mile course in Vermont. For season two, the project is shifting from old school “maybe it goes” style ATB routes to randonneuring inspired distance and time. Applicants are challenged with creating their own ultimate route, and five lucky teams of three will attempt to complete their ride, documenting it along the way, for a chance to win cash and prizes from ENVE, Fat Tire, The Radavist, Acre, and Mythical State Of. We at The Radavist are stoked to be the media partner for this event, so read below, plan a route, apply, and follow along for more!
Reportage
John’s Rivendell Hunqapillar 29er Klunker: AKA the Klunkapillar
Cruiser, Klunker, ATB. These terms get thrown around a lot and yet they represent pretty much the same thing: a rigid mountain bike. For me, the granularity of these denotations is intriguing. In modern times, these words have people debating about the proper nomenclature for each of these bikes, and there are opinions on every side of this argument. For those curious, I understand that a Cruiser is a coaster-brake bike with no gears and no hand brakes. A Klunker is a rigid mountain bike with gears and hand brakes. An ATB is simply an “all-terrain-bicycle” and was historically used to refer to a mountain bike with flat bars. “ATB” was used to denote a new, increasingly popular form of cycling at the time: “off-road” riding. AKA, riding on dirt, not pavement. Since the genesis of the term “ATB”, it has been co-opted to mean drop bar bikes as well. Being the trend-setter he is, once Ultraromance dubbed these bikes “ATB,” everyone jumped on board.
Time is a flat circle, like a wheel, so what was once a pariah in the cycling industry is bound to become the savior at one point. That’s kind of how mountain biking started, right? A bunch of misfits took the hills of Marin and the mountains of Colorado and began riding inappropriate bikes inappropriately.
Then, thirty-odd years later, Grant Petersen of Bridgestone and Rivendell fame designed the Hunqapillar, a true-to-form Klunker. I first rode one back in 2014 and immediately was drawn to the bike’s capabilities and unique ride quality. Yet, for some dumb reason, I didn’t buy one and missed out on every opportunity to own a size 62cm until recently. So why did the guy with too many bikes buy a Hunq? Well, read on below to find out.
Radar
All Terrain Bicycle ATB Challenge Trailer
We’re stoked to premiere the trailer for ENVE‘s forthcoming All Terrain Bicycle (ATB) Challenge. Check out the teaser for now with a full-length on the way!
Radar
ENVE’s All Terrain Bicycle (ATB) Challenge!
ENVE just announced the first-ever ATB Challenge. Five challengers will be selected to participate in the ATB-themed reality TV Gameshow that will tackle a yet-to-be-announced course that’s being aptly named the World’s Most Challenging ATB Route. The chosen contestants will have a bike built to their specs, then be flown to a secret, rugged and remote location somewhere in the United States where they’ll be given the opportunity to complete the route. The episodic series will introduce the selected contestants, their story, bike setup, and finally, their day on the World’s most Challenging ATB Route.
On the popular show Alone, contestants choose the gear they believe will give them the best chance of outlasting the other participants when they can rely on nothing but their own survival instincts and the limited gear available. The ATB Challenge isn’t all that different, but rather than receiving fishing line or a saw, the participants will choose between 650b or 700c wheels, flat, riser, or drop bar, and gearing selections in order to create what they believe is the best All Terrain Bicycle to conquer the route. Big watts and a high Vo2 Max won’t be enough to find success on the route – choosing wisely with equipment and being ready for any course challenge that comes their way will more than level the playing field.
See more at All Terrain Bicycle Challenge!
