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The Open UP has had quite the reception across the world, bringing in a high-tech carbon layup mixed with an innovative design and aesthetic all its own. Admittedly, it’s the UP’s aesthetic that I’ve never been a particular fan of. Not so much the frame design itself, but up until now, I’ve yet to see an UP in a color that I liked. The orange was too much for me. You’re seeing where I’m going here, right? For Raoul, the distributor for Open, it was too much for him too…
Paul’s Crusty ‘Cross Band is back with the third edition of Rock Lobster Cup! The Lord of the Claws has let it be known that: Oct. 22nd at Wilder ranch we will indeed have a race. Even the the parks department has confirmed that all systems are go. his will probably be the most grueling CX event on the West Coast with 288 ft. of climbing per lap. It’ll be loose, bumpy climbing that starts out steep. This could become a legendary event and might set a precedent for more CX events at Wilder ranch in coming years. Proceeds from the race go to benefit Juniors Cyclocross Development program.
The Rock Lobster Cup is capping the field at 250 riders, so get in while you can!
Head over to the Bike Reg event page now to sign up.
As far as modern carbon fiber ‘cross bikes go, there are some that don’t do it for me and then some that pique my interest. While Canyon’s aesthetics might not be for everyone, the Inflight looks great, in my opinion anyway. With builds ranging from $4,000 to $2,000 for a frameset, these bikes are competitively priced and as previously stated, look damn good. See more at Canyon. Not sure when these will hit the US, but I’d be willing to bet they will!
I hope you went back and picked up that RedBull can! ;-)
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…
With ‘cross season right around the corner, Speedvagen unveiled its new Ready Made race frame. These stock-sizing frames come in two Team Issue bike kits, the CX-R with SRAM Force 1 and CX-X with Shimano 1x and begin at $5,995 with three paint options. The pre-order is open for two weeks (July 18th – Aug 1st). Once the window is closed, they’re going to move into production and get your bike to you in time for Cyclocross season. Check out more photos and specs below and head over to Speedvagen for ordering information.
At the heart of Niner is racing and while they’ve made a big push to expand their bikes from this lineage, they still know how to design one sick race machine. The newly updated BSB (blood, sweat and beer) 9 RDO is now available. These bikes are Di2 ready with seat post battery compatibility, feature a flat mount disc caliper design, thru axles, C5 Carbon warranty for 5 years and Niner’s no-nonsense race geometry. These are available in limited quantities, so holler at your Niner dealer for ordering. See more information at Niner!
The 70’s were the automotive paint design heyday, ATMO anyway. Earth tones and bright hues intersected along cars, vans and trucks via a network of chevrons and stripes. While many manufacturers embraced these trends, it was the niche hobby market who took it to the next level. A whole culture emerged with vans donning intricate designs, long before #VanLife, yet it was the off-road culture that has always piqued my interest, most notably the baja bugs and trucks. Jeremy from Stinner Frameworks has always had an affinity for the early 70’s Baja Bug paint designs, ultimately these became the inspiration for this two-wheeled off-road machine.
The latest from Fat Chance beckons you to get off those busy paved roads and off onto some dirt. With two wheel size clearance options, a steel Yo Eddy or carbon fork option and plenty of paint choices to make this Chris Cross bike your own. See more at Fat Chance.
If you’re in SLC for NAHBS and want to ride your bike on Friday night with a lot of people in a somewhat competitive environment then go to this event!
Ok, maybe you can call it a ‘cross bike, because that’s truly what it is at its roots. Before we get ahead of ourselves here, let’s take a step back. There are stigmas attached with the words “commuter” “city” “townie” and even “cross” bike. There are certain checklists that apply to each of those permutations. The most notable being fender and rack provisions. Even with the latter, “cross” purists want drop bars and 32mm tires for a bike to be true to its UCI roots. This bike has no provisions for racks or fenders, is sold with a 40mm tire, flat bars and a bell. It’s not as much as it is. It is whatever you want it to be.
This all makes a lot of sense. Minus the winged alpacas, but whatever. Check out more information on the Flaanimal at Rodeo-Labs! Also, they make such a rad fork. Anyone got one on their bike?
Niner’s tried and true RLT 9 Steel platform got some upgrades with its latest model. These upgrades include flat mount disc brakes, more bottle bosses, mounts on the fork as well as a bolt-on top tube bag attachment. These frames will fit a 1.75″ tire, as well as double and triple cranksets. The new RLT 9 Steel is available in 1-star up to 4-star builds from both Shimano and SRAM. Head to Niner to see more.
It looked like a real wet and wild time at the 2017 Cyclocross World Cup in Fiuggi this weekend.
… to go play in the desert with Jeff from All-City while he’s in town! Hope you’re enjoying this long weekend and we’ll be back on Tuesday.
I’d love to see more from this event in Budapest!
Niner took the popular RLT 9 steel model and made it a carbon RDO model. There are many reasons for this permutation, yet the overall difference is weight. I’ve seen and held one in person and it’s incredibly light. More on this to come this week, but for now check out this video and more information at Niner.
Between the snow and the temperatures falling on this year’s CX Nats course, it looked like one hell of a good time.
