#Specialized

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Ride to the Beach with Your Board and Brews on the Poler Surf Jammer

Reportage By: John Watson

Ride to the Beach with Your Board and Brews on the Poler Surf Jammer

While fatbikes might be at home in wintery environments and locales where it snows more than the sun shines each year, over time these strange bicycles began to migrate to sandy regions. From the Mojave to the Oregon coastal dunes, fatbikes have spent a fair amount of their short-lived existence on Earth shredding sand. With their high volume, low pressure tires, suddenly you can pedal for great distances through thick sand. Something not really possible on a bicycle prior. Visit any beach town, especially one with a high influx of tourists and you’ll find some janky fatbike sitting next to a beach cruiser and soft top surfboards in the rental fleet.

That’s not what’s going on here, I can assure you.

Call it a Comeback: Specialized Brings Back the Sequoia and its Versatile Design

Reportage By: John Watson

Call it a Comeback: Specialized Brings Back the Sequoia and its Versatile Design

The Specialized Sequoia was first designed by Tim Neenan in the early 1980’s. Later, Jim Merz improved upon the design of this versatile bicycle. While the 1980’s steel Sequoia had a certain panache, the aluminum models of the 2000’s somehow lost their sex appeal. Maybe it was the industry at the time, or maybe it was the “hybrid-looking” silhouette of the bike, but whatever the reason, the Sequoia died out in the 2000’s. In its time however, the steel Sequoia from the 1980’s received a cult-like following.

“In the early 2000’s, Bicycling Magazine asked several industry luminaries what they thought the best bike ever built was. Grant Petersen, founder of Rivendell Bicycles, nominated the 1983 Specialized Sequoia.” Adventure Cycling, August 2003.

Fast forward to modern times. The cycling industry is enamored with the outdoors. Bikepacking, touring, bicycle camping and S24 rides are all the rage. Hell, even Adventure Cycling is celebrating the Bikecentennial this year! All the brands have taken a stab at designing the best-suited bike for the aforementioned activities. While Specialized wasn’t by any means the first to the party in terms of “adventure bicycles,” they have staked their claim to the movement.

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Adventure Dispatch: Ty Hathaway

In the first of Specialized’s Adventure Dispatch mini-documentary series, our friend Ty Hathaway hits on a theme that we bring up often here at the Radavist: using bikes to seek out the places very few people know about, let alone see – even in a place as densely populated as Los Angeles.

Thomas Slater for Yonder Journal

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Thomas Slater for Yonder Journal

I could try to paraphrase this project, but instead, I’ll leave it to the pros:

“Anyone concerned with things like time and efficiency will go from A to B by planes, trains, or automobiles. In fact, a bike would rarely even factor into the equation. But for those more focused on reinforcing friendships, seeing new sites, and exploring Australia’s interior than punching the clock and making “good time,” you go for a ride.

In the case of the latest Yonder Journal trip, the gang rode from Sydney to Melbourne on our Diverge, opting against the obvious choice, the Princes’ Highway. There were dirt roads, paved roads, snow-capped mountains, and plenty of good times along the self-supported way.

To celebrate the trip, we worked with one of our favorite illustrators, London-based Thomas Slater, to create bottles, shirts, and even bike paint jobs, that reflect the icons of Australia, albeit stereotypical ones, in his tongue-in-cheek style. The color palate is all drawn from nature, taking cues from the Outback and midnight sky, and of course, the gear itself is of the utmost quality.”

See the bottles and shirts at Specialized and if you haven’t read the Yonder Journal posts, don’t miss those either!

Mission Workshop: Ask a Founder – Mike Sinyard

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Mission Workshop: Ask a Founder – Mike Sinyard

October 10th brings about yet another Ask a Founder event at Mission Workshop. This time, it features Mike Sinyard of Specialized Bicycles.

“The Founders Event was created in effort to pull the curtain back and learn more about cycling brands that we respect. We as an industry tend to focus on the stunning finished parts but not as much on the struggle it takes to get there. For the event we simply turn the cameras on, step back and watch the story unfold. We cover the inspiration behind ideas, the projects that never got off the ground and everything in between.

For our fourth installment of this project we present to you the relatively unknown founder of one of the cycling world’s leading innovative forces. Mike Sinyard of Specialized will now take your questions. Join us Saturday October 10th at 7PM PST to watch Mike live on Bikemag.com. Be part of the event by asking Mike a question via Twitter using “#AskSinyard” as the hashtag. Live audience space is limited, if you can make it to Mission Workshop San Francisco, email RSVP@missionworkshop.com for a seat.”

Dan Hughes’ Mothra Crux for Gravel Worlds

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Dan Hughes’ Mothra Crux for Gravel Worlds


Photos by Chris Riekert

The thing I admire about bicycle painters and designers in general is the ability to look at life’s struggles, or challenges as inspiration. In competition, it’s easy to get lost in the ferocity of rivalry. You can let it psyche you out, or take it as it comes. Here’s a back-story to this frame:

“Whats the point of racing without rivalry? In 2014, Dan Hughes of @sunfloweroutdoorandbikeshop and Yuri Hauswald (@yhauswald) were introduced as the “Mothra and Godzilla of cycling”. This weekend Dan and Yuri are going head-to-head at the Unofficial Gravel World Championship in Nebraska and to commemorate Dan’s winged persona, @swiznooski, dreamed up this metal-flake clad motif. Good Luck to the guys this weekend! And Yuri, you’re going down!”

See more photos of this insane project below…

Yonder Journal’s Piute Pass Has Begun

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Yonder Journal’s Piute Pass Has Begun

The gang took to high Sierra in their latest excursion, which coincidentally still had snow at altitude. Snow and rain. Did I mention it’s still cold up in those parts? Day 01 seems like a cake walk compared to what they’ll experience later on in the trip, so head over to Yonder to read all about it, while their bikes are still in one piece…

Futurism and the Specialized Enduro Expert Carbon 29 – Kyle Von Hoetzendorff

Reportage By: John Watson

Futurism and the Specialized Enduro Expert Carbon 29 – Kyle Von Hoetzendorff

Futurism and the Specialized Enduro Expert Carbon 29
Words by Kyle Von Hoetzendorff, photos by Ethan Furniss

Before we begin let me give you a little background about who I am and how I found myself writing this review. I grew up in Bishop, CA. I raced mountain bikes there as a kid. Then I stopped, the reason is a tired story, and one that you have most likely heard before, it has to do with hormones, cars, beers, and girls. When I moved to Santa Barbara, CA to attend college and I started working at a shop called Velo Pro. This is where I started riding downhill bikes. Then I stopped, did some rock climbing, school, babe chasing, etc. A decade ago I moved to Portland, OR and once again I found myself at a shop, working at the Fat Tire Farm and riding downhill bikes. This is where it gets interesting. First came seat droppers and with it a yearn to explore more trails. I started riding trail bikes, then picked up riding road bikes and cross bikes. For the past three years I worked for Chris King, and my job gave me the chance to ride a wide variety of bikes. Through mutual friends and shared adventures John and I became friends and I have been lucky to post a couple rides and adventurers all the while sharing with him some of my favorite MTB videos and articles from around the web. It turned out that John needed a bike reviewed, so here I am. Lets get started.

Ben’s Koi Dreamin’ Schemin’ Specialized Crux SSCX

Reportage By: John Watson

Ben’s Koi Dreamin’ Schemin’ Specialized Crux SSCX

As I’m pedaling away from Mellow Johnny’s on Ben’s bike to photograph it, I couldn’t help but try to think of some clever way to describe it or at least the back-story. These days, custom paint is divided into a few categories with the most prominent being either high-concept or merely aesthetic. Truthfully, I’m not sure where this one sits on that spectrum.

When I look at this orange, yellow and black steed, it reminds me of some menagerie. It was painted by Dustin at Violet Crown Finishing in Austin, Texas. Close my eyes. Open them. I see a koi fish. Or a tiger. Moreseo, a koi though. Perhaps it’s the sparkles? Tigers don’t have sparkles. Was that Dustin’s inspiration? Who knows. Ben, the owner (a mechanic at MJ’s) has a lot of traditional Japanese tattoos.

When you ride a bike like the Specialized Crux, it’s hard to stand out from the other fish on the field. They’re literally a dime a dozen. Affordable, performance-minded, lightweight and they look great, right out of the box. Sometimes though, you want something a little more flashy, without springing for a custom frame.

The frame was a cheap pickup, actually a trade. The Giant wheels came from a friend, for free. The rest of the parts were scrapped from a free bin, save for the Pro cockpit and post. I don’t want to tell you how much money Ben has invested in this frame, because it’ll make you mad. That and his friend Dustin wanted to really paint a bike.

You don’t need to go custom to have the custom experience. Painters are just as talented as builders and they have the ability to transform even a bike like the Specialized Crux into something that will truly stand out from the other fish in the school.

Case in point… wow.

Yonder Journal: Sunchuli Pass – Lord Nerd Beta

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Yonder Journal: Sunchuli Pass – Lord Nerd Beta

While the first day of the Sunchuli Pass’ coverage focuses mostly on gear and bikepacking check lists, there are a lot of excellent passages like the following:

“We went to Bolivia because of the mines.

Everywhere else in the world roads go where roads go and trails go where trails go. There is very little confusion about which is which, and it’s clear where one ends and the other begins. Roads are wide, paved or graded, and maintained to some degree. Trails get rad. In Bolivia, because of the mines, the situation is more fluid.

If gold was discovered on the top of Mt Whitney, and California didn’t give a fuck about large scale mining and environmental stewardship because it was the poorest country in South America, somebody with three snow shovels lashed to the front of a minivan would figure out how to build a road to the top. Now imagine thousands of Whitneys, only 40% taller, steeper and more rugged. That’s the Cordillera Apolobamba.

That’s why we went to Bolivia. To ride a network of the world’s most ambitious, ludicrous roads. Roads that defy physics. Roads that weave throughout an ancient and venerable Alpine Wonderland that is currently transitioning into to Tolkien’s Mordor.”

Like this? I do. If you do, you can continue reading more from Yonder Journal’s recent excursion to Bolivia. There’s also a great list of what kind of gear to carry and how in this post. I can’t wait to find out if they finished the damn ride this time. Also, how fuckin’ metal is that poster?!

Taking on the #FlowShiv – Chris Riekert

Reportage By: John Watson

Taking on the #FlowShiv – Chris Riekert

Taking on the #FlowShiv
Photos and words by Chris Riekert

Here in the hallowed halls of the big red ‘S’; you know, the Death Star of the cycling world… you might be surprised to see there are some real people roaming around. Real people that are, first and foremost, big fans of bikes.

People like my buddy John Friedrich, the only man I know who would happily talk about the different weights of DOT brake fluid and what they offer to the rider, literally, until you’d choose water boarding over continuing the conversation… Or like our mechanic Patrick “Tree” Miller who seems like someone delivered to earth in one of those rescue pods shot through space as the planet Krypton went through nuclear collapse. Patrick is the NICEST most willing to help person I’ve ever met… and yes, he is a bicycle mechanic! How about that?

Ornot Ornot
Mondraker Mondraker
Endura Endura
Flagstaff Flagstaff
45NRTH 45NRTH
State Bicycle Co State Bicycle Co
Paul Paul
Gravel Adventure Field Guide Gravel Adventure Field Guide
Leatt Leatt
Rivendell Rivendell
SimWorks SimWorks
Quad Lock Quad Lock