tag
During the ENVE Open House framebuilder exhibit, one builder traveled further than the others: Mark from Prova Cycles in Melbourne, Australia. I’d never seen a Prova in person. Instead, I’ve had to check out his work via the lens of FYXO and the Prova Instagram. Mark learned at the Bicycle Academy in the UK and has been really putting in work on his brand. Let me tell you. It shows.
There aren’t a whole lot of options on the market for those seeking a rigid MTB for shredding trail or bikepacking on. So when a brand like Kona, with their expansive dealer network, puts out something like the Unit X, it piques our interest. With a 29 x 2.6″ wheel platform, multiple bottle bosses, including on the fork, a compact geometry for easier mounting, and SRAM Eagle gearing, it seems like a no-brainer for those looking to make their home trails a little more engaging, or for someone trying to tackle singletrack touring. See more information at Kona.
London-based apparel company, Romance, has teamed up with Dutch artist Parra for a very special Specialized S-Works Roubaix, which is being auctioned off to support the World Bicycle Relief. This one-off bike is built with SRAM RED eTap AXS groupset, Zipp 404 NSW disc-brake wheels and a Specialized S-Works cockpit. The auction starts today and will end on August 16th – with all proceeds going to World Bicycle Relief, who help communities in rural developing countries to access education, healthcare and work through the power of bicycles. Head over to eBay to see the auction site and below to see more photos of this project.
To up the ante on their consumer-direct OB1 all road bike, Thesis is now offering two AXS build options. You can now order an OB1 with the “mullet” configuration, an Eagle rear mech and cassette mated with road shifters, or with AXS 2x setup. These bikes ship 90% built and ready to ride, with a variety of build options, direct to your door.
Pricing on the new AXS builds comes in at $4,999 for the AXS 1x or $5,199 for AXS 2x.
See more details at Thesis.
SRAM has backed the Philly Bike Expo’s Inclusivity Scholarship, which supports women, trans, and POC frame builders who have been underrepresented at bike shows and in the industry at large. The inaugural class consists of Moth Attack, Pedalino bikes, Schön Studio and Untitled Cycles. This is an exciting announcement and for the full press release, click on below.
Bike thieves suck. Colin got his last Sklar road bike stolen last year here in Los Angeles. It was one of those moments where we all dropped what we were doing and rode all over the neighborhood looking for it. While that event was less than ideal, the resulting bike is what is featured here on the Radavist today.
This bike. This freaking bike. When I first built up my Sklar, it was built on the 700c wheel platform. At Lost & Found last year, I swapped out the i9 wheels for the new ENVE G27 650b gravel wheels and haven’t missed the 700c wheels one bit. From there, the bike slowly went under transformations but it wasn’t until I put the Crust Towel Rack Bars on it that I feel like this bike has finally come into its own.
Disruptive patterns have long had a place in cycling’s kit and with this new collab from SRAM and Troy Lee Designs, they looked to re-imagine camoflauge through two products; a DH bar and two cranksets, all of which carry the same specs and reliability Truvativ is known for, just with a new futuristic camo pattern. Expect these to hit dealers in June.
Want the technology of SRAM’s new Red AXS lineup but at a lower cost? SRAM just launched their Force eTap AXS group, offering the same functionality of Red eTap AXS but at a much lower pricepoint, ranging from $1250 – $2000 depending on the drivetrain options, versus Red’s $2838 – $4158 price. Head to SRAM to see more!
Let’s rewind a bit, back to the Steamboat Ramble Ride, where I rode this very frame, fully loaded from Steamboat Springs to Fort Collins along with a whole crew of people from all over the country. The whole time I was on the ride, I kept thinking about how much I love drop bar 29ers for tours like that. It’s the best of both worlds – drops for different riding positions and MTB gearing for slogging a loaded bike up mountain passes. In the back of my mind, I began playing out how I could use a bike like this for some of my more ambitious rides in the Death Valley or Inyo Mountains area. Then SRAM contacted me about working on a project with their new AXS components. Initially, their thoughts were to build a custom bike around the interchangeability of the eTap AXS road with the new Eagle AXS system and do a project with this new bike. The subject matter was entirely up to me. Meanwhile, my mind was still on the Moots Baxter and how it would be perfect for this loop I had scouted a year or so ago…
As a supplement to our Reportrage with SRAM in Cerro Gordo, I pinged James from Drop Media to tell the story through his incredible video work. For an in-depth look at this ride, don’t miss the corresponding Reportage that dropped this morning.
Owens Valley, the Mojave, and Death Valley have been the backdrop for many stories here on the Radavist, but there is one region in particular that has interested me in regards to both the terrain and the history. The Inyo Mountains are ripe for adventure-seekers looking to get off the beaten path of Death Valley National Park or the Eastern Sierra. It can be a very isolating place: the roads are rough, rugged, with little to no cell reception or provisions. If you can, however, access this zone safely, you will be rewarded with unsurpassed views of the Eastern Sierra as the backdrop and colorful geological features abound.
I spend my free time exploring this region for routes that are suitable for travel by bicycle and to be honest, very few have proven to be fruitful in such endeavors. The area is plagued by roads so steep that even an equipped 4×4 can overheat, or miles upon miles of rock gardens, and sand traps. Not to mention the complete absence of water. To ride in this zone, you have to be prepared, both mentally and physically. It’s a region that challenged the native tribes as well as the prospectors who were driven by the desire to strike it rich. There’s a bigger tale here before we dive into our story, that needs to be told. One that hits close to home for us at the Radavist.
Philly Bike Expo 2018: Crust Nor’Easter with MicroSHIFT 12-Speed Eagle
Photos and words by Jarrod Bunk
A cross between evasion and romancer, the Crust Bikes Nor’Easter is a low-trail bike, with a slightly shorter rear end than the Romeo. It’s a 1-1/8″, 1x specific bike, with internal routing. The Nor’Easter comes in 4 sizes, with the two largest rolling on either 27.5+ or 29, and 26+ or 27.5 on smaller two sizes. This beautiful color pictured is not the final color unless you all express just how much you love it.
The beauty of this specific build is that it utilizes the new MicroSHIFT, all-new 12-speed “Eagle” barcon. That and those Swift Industries bags!
____
2018 Philly Bike Expo: Bass Boat Sparkle All Road
Photos by Jarrod Bunk, words by John Watson
Bryan Hollingsworth started Royal H Cycles in 2008. It’s now his 10-year anniversary of the company and at the Philly Bike Expo, he brought just the bike to celebrate, a deep purple sparkle-painted disc all road with elegant lines and modern functionality.
While the SRAM Red eTap, Easton Wheels, Zipp components, a Columbus fork, and Cane Creek Headset make for a completely balleur build, the detail in the wishbone seat stay steals the show. What a way to celebrate 10 years of framebuilding!
____
You can tell a lot about a cycling brand based on what the owner or proprietor rides. In this case, we take a look at Mosaic Cycles‘ owner and builder, Aaron Barcheck’s own RT1 disc road built with ENVE, Zipp, and SRAM. This weekend, the brand is coming to Los Angeles, to kick-off the Cub House as being a new dealer for Mosaic and with it, Aaron himself, along with his bike will be here to ride in the endless summer heat.
Speaking of heat, will you just look at that thing! Propped up against the backdrop that is the San Gabriel mountains, surrounded by Chaparral, with its Spectrum powder coat glistening in the sun, and raw titanium “braggers triangle” showing off its frame material. Bikes like this need very little description since they stand on their own.
Stay tuned for details of the Cub House party this weekend!
____
Follow Mosaic on Instagram and follow the Cub House on Instagram.
Well, it’s happened. SRAM’s Eagle technology has trickled down to the NX group, offering a very affordable component group with a 11-50t range. I’ve been running various models of Eagle technology on my bikes, and can’t see myself going back anytime soon. See more at SRAM.
Bicycles are often the by-product of their environment, their peer group, and their community. Sure, that might be extending a lot of credit to an inanimate object, but over the years, it’s easy to see that people often kit out their bikes based on these conditions. For people like Annalisa, from Endurance PDX and the We Got to Hang Out podcast, her road bike is a by-product of her community in Portland.
Next door to Endurance PDX is a little company called Breadwinner Cycles. Perhaps you’ve heard of them? Tony and Ira, along with a very talented team, build beautiful bikes, designed to be ridden hard on various terrain. The Lolo is their classic, rim brake road bike with room for chubby road tires and a beautiful paint job. Annalisa built her bike up with Chris King parts, another Portland, Oregon-based company and wheels built by none other than Sugar Wheel Works, you guessed it, yet another company that calls Portland home.
While Annalisa was in town doing bike fits at Golden Saddle Cyclery and interviewing Jen Whalen for their latest podcast, I took this Red 22 eTap-equipped roadie to the photo wall for some up close and personal photos.
Thanks to Annalisa for being such a positive and supportive voice in the cycling industry. I can’t wait to come hang with y’all later this summer.
“Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road.” – Jack Kerouac, On the Road
We all have our favorite authors, our favorite books, and our favorite quotes. Many of these anecdotes for travel or life’s great lessons can be applied to cycling. For Mason, he was drawn to the writing of Jack Kerouac. Particularly, On the Road. This quote became his mantra for his new Stinner Gibraltar road bike. Mason selected one of Stinner’s “Vault” paint options, Paradise, and requested the Team Dream Team Chubby Bobcat to be added to the wild paint scheme. This little detail, along with his Kerouac quote really brought the whole build together. Not to mention the SRAM Red eTap, Boyd Wheels and Quarq power meter cranks. The whole package was assembled by Simon at the Cub House.
Straight up road bikes still do it for me, especially when they’re this clean, this light and this local. I love seeing all the Stinners on the roads of Los Angeles, both paved and unpaved.
Enjoy this bike, Mason!