The Radavist

One of the nicest guys in mountain biking, Matt Hunter takes to Sun Valley’s high elevation singletrack with his buds. Whether you’re into covering a bunch of distance on a huge loop or setting up a base camp and doing day trips, Idaho’s Sawtooth National Forest is a bucket list riding destination.

Yonder Journal’s Dead Reckoning looks to be their biggest clusterfuck to date and I mean that in a good way. Tidal surges, emergency heli lifts, male modeling, it had it all. Do yourself a favor and check out Dead Reckoning Day 05 and Day 06 now at Yonder Journal.

“Inspired by the sport of professional rally car racing, Deux North took a special group of riders to the Rally de Catalunya in Spain for Hunt 5. In Salou, they met one of the world’s best drivers, Kris Meeke, and recorded his story of passion and adventure. Traveling along the route of the World Rally Championship, from Barcelona to Valencia, Deux North ran into some of the most beautiful places on earth as well as some interesting surprises and setbacks. It was Kris’ story that inspired Deux North’s hunters over their four day trip and to this day. This is Hunt 5, as told by World Rally Championship driver, Kris Meeke, and Deux North’s Hunters.”

See more at Deux North.

Once in a while, a company like Specialized makes a truly innovative product, well before anyone else. I was both in awe and extremely jealous when I saw this contraption. Only compatible with the Zertz road bike, the Command Cockpit keeps the data where it needs to be, in your face. Smoother is faster, remember? But weight is most important. Specialized has won the “gram game” with this ultralight component.

Check out more below.

The latest from Yonder Journal is quite possibly (actually, it just is) the largest project the team has ever undertaken. Here’s the synopsis:

“In 2015, Yonder Journal will investigate, ascertain, and document the peripheries and possibilities of exploration by bicycle. We call this project Dead Reckoning*. At it’s core we will apply the technologies and methodologies of adventure biking, bike-packing, and ultra-lightweight touring, to multi-day expeditions with a focus on going Over Mountain, the concept of Over Mountain being the the most essential and transformative form of human exploration.

The first of our Dead Reckoning expeditions took us to New Zealand’s South Island where we would attempt to cross the island from east to west, traveling across roads, trails, and unmarked land that has seldom if ever seen bike traffic. The crux of our route would be a Broderick Pass, a seldom traveled route hidden deep in the Southern Alps. It was quite an adventure.”

Check out some samples below and the full, massive photo story at Yonder Journal.

While audax events may be incredibly challenging, the beauty is their non-competitive nature. Riders simply must complete the set distance within the time limit. This endurance sport has grown from its roots in the 19th century to still being popular today, with many major cities having their own randonneur club.

Specialized has been expanding their product line to move away from the “all pro all the time” look and shifting its sights onto fundurance and expedition style riding. The Audax is one of those shifts: a shoe meant for long distance rides. With, what feels to be a wider footbed, comfy fit, reflective hits and easy on-easy off Boa lash, the Audax has some great details.

Since I’ve only put a few rides in while wearing these shoes, I won’t give them a full review, but a detail photo and a short write-up should suffice for now. Now, why does a shoe named after audax riding have a road cleat and not an SPD cleat? I have no idea. Still, they do look a lot less race-oriented than other shoes in their product line. Available soon in a variety of colors from Specialized.

Winter in coastal BC looks incredible. Curtis Robinson hits warp speed with arguably the best soundtrack to any ride: tires on dirt.

… I’ll pause the ‘Cross Nats coverage for anything Peter Sagan-related!

I couldn’t imagine riding with a camera bag of that size, but kudos to these guys from Cycle Atlas for hauling their own load. You rarely see that these days, especially with footage like this.

New South Wales’ South Coast is captured magnificently in this video and it really matches with how everyday people would use a bike like the Diverge.

In the world of true gumwall tires, the higher the TPI, the better. Maybe not for puncture resistance, but surely for the ride. Performance road tires, by definition should perform and the new Turbo Cotton tires from specialized sound like they’ll do the trick. Hell, they sure look like they’re willing to fill that role (roll). I can’t wait to try out a pair!

Casing: 320 TPI Polycotton
Bead: foldable
Compound: GRIPTON
Flat Protection: BlackBelt
700 x 24; psi 115-125; approximate weight 210g

A few months ago, Erik from AWOL and I planned on doing a ride, not just any ride however, we wanted to do the Oregon Outback. 370 miles from Southern, to Northern Oregon, all at altitude desert? Hell yes! Little did we know, that ride would kick our asses. Well, my ass anyway.

Before Interbike, we had a party at the Poler store in Portland, where we launched these zines and patches. If you’re in Portland, you can still buy one at the Poler store, but for those of you who aren’t there, you can now pick one up here. The zine features a pattern drawn by LAND, a selection of photos from the Oregon Outback, words from Erik and illustrations by Chris Conlin.

For $15 shipped in the USA, $20 shipped world wide, each zine comes with a patch and all proceeds will be donated to an organization of my choice…

Check out more previews below but SORRY SOLD OUT!

A recent Pinkbike feature had me sifting through the MTB video mecca that is the Coastal Crew. Who are they? Where do they ride? What do they ride? All of these answers can be found both in the video above and at their Pinkbike feature. Seriously, don’t miss this one.

Thanks for sharing this video, Michael!

Check out the Poler Adventure post on the Oregon Outback

Well, the AWOL x Poler touring bikes are hitting the shelves of your local Specialized dealers today. Ordering is simple: contact your local dealer and order direct. The bikes will arrive within a week. Select international countries will also be able to order the bikes, call your local dealer to confirm. Poler is selling the panniers in their webshop as well.

See more specs and photos below.

A couple of people asked about the lamp that’s on Erik’s AWOL x Poler tourer. Earlier this year, when we rode the Outback, it was his sole light source for when the sun set over eastern Oregon. It’s best described as a “super-wide and super-bright beam.”

The Flux uses a Cree LED with a patented reflector for bright and wide light, much like you’d find in the automotive industry.

Powering the Flux are internal rechargeable 5200mAhr Lithium Ion batteries and there are three nighttime modes with power resulting between 1,200 and 400 lumens. You’ll get 1.75 hours at 1,200 and 6 at 400 lumens and it’ll recharge from zero to full in just four hours.

The Flux will hit shelves at your local Specialized dealer shortly.