#tom-ritchey

Radar

Ritchey Introduces the Redesigned P-29er XC Mountain Bike

Previewed in our Sea Otter Classic coverage earlier this year, the new Ritchey P-29er is finally available. After perfecting his concept for a new mountain bike, Tom introduced the first P-29er in 2012. Now, Ritchey announces the latest updated version of the P-29er, the latest manifestation of Ritchey’s deep heritage of mountain bike history.

With its pedigree firmly rooted in the decades-deep lineage of its P-series predecessors, this version of the P-29er is very much a contemporary machine with features demanded by today’s XC riders. Like all Ritchey frames, the P29er is built with proprietary triple-butted Logic steel tubing, now with stealthy dropper post routing and an ultralight forged machined tapered headtube. It boasts BOOST spacing and clears tires up to 2.3”.

Its modern XC geometry, delivers a breathtakingly balanced ride, however if you want to make old trails new again, forego suspension and opt for a rigid fork to get extra rowdy. Or pair it with a super compact drop bar and go even farther afield, including the urban landscape. All of this comes together to enshrine the P-29er as a monument to the spirit of endless possibility, redesigning what riders expect from a hardtail.

Tom Ritchey is known for taking whatever bike project he’s working on to the limit and then pushing beyond that in the redesign phase. This latest P-29er perfectly demonstrates his indisputable design style and his tendency toward new thinking to make something great even better.

Ritchey P-29 Quick Hits:

Frame cost: $999 USD
Material: Heat-treated, triple-butted Ritchey Logic steel tubing – TIG welded
Headset: WCS headset included (upper IS42/28.6 | lower IS52/40)
Seat Tube: 27.2mm with stealth dropper routing
Bottom bracket: 73mm – English threaded
Crankset maximum ring size: 38T single / Designed for 1X chainrings
Chainline: 52mm / Replaceable stainless-steel derailleur hanger
Recommended tire size: 29×2.25 (2.3 max) – tire size varies by rim and tire manufacturer
Post-mount rear brake: 160mm (180mm max – adaptors available separately)
Bottle cage mounts: Two (one on downtube and one on seat tube) *Note: size small frames include only a downtube bottle
cage mount
Sizes: S (15″) / M (17″) / L (19″) / XL (20.5″)
Weight: 2,315g (M/17″)
Color: Dirt in Blood
Spacing: BOOST 148mm spacing (12mm alloy thru-axle included) / Optimized for 120mm (BOOST) suspension travel fork or 500mm axle-crown rigid fork

See more at Ritchey

Reportage By: Tasshi Dennis & John Watson

Vintage Bicycles: 1975 Ritchey Track Bike

John and Tasshi from The Vintage MTB Workshop once again team up to deliver a Vintage Bicycles article. This time, featuring a 1975 Ritchey track bike. Read on for John’s photos accompanying Tasshi’s words…

Reportage By: john watson

A Man, a Tree, a Photo, a Citation from Federal Agents, and a Ritchey Annapurna

You’ll never know who you’ll meet while on the road, and sometimes, the characters floating around campsites within our National Forests are as colorful as the natural surroundings. While John and Cari were cashing in on some long overdue R&R last week in the mountains of New Mexico, they met a fella with a Ritchey Annapurna and quite the story to tell…

Reportage By: Ryan le Garrec

Conversations with Tom Ritchey Part Two: The Influence of Jobst Brandt

This is part two of an in depth conversation between Tom Ritchey and Ryan le Garrec where Ryan seeks to identify key periods in Tom’s life alongside key people. Perhaps second only to Tom’s father, it seems that Jobst Brandt had significant influence of the young Tom. Below, Ryan shares excerpts from Tom’s side of their conversation that highlight Jobst’s character, his notorious rides, and his lasting impact. Enjoy!

Reportage By: Ryan le Garrec

Conversations with Tom Ritchey Part One: Tommy, Thomas, Tom

Tom Ritchey is not what you would call an open book. Rather, he’s a whole library; a labyrinth with many alleys, chockfull of stories, where everything splits and branches like the best network of singletrack, and there are no cul de sacs. Every door leads you to another room. Every answer opens up another question. There are no shortcuts.

The following is just a casual conversation. In it, you might not find all the details of the next frame that he is working on but you may find a better understanding into what it took for Tom Ritchey to become Tom Ritchey.

“I have a public self and I have a personal self. I could answer that question on a public side and tell you I just love riding my bike and being by myself and all (…) That would be an authentic answer but it’s not the whole answer of course. So I’ll give you the personal one too.” – Tom Ritchey

Reportage By: Ryan Le Garrec

The Lighthouse: Tom Ritchey

Late August 2019, Düsseldorf, Germany.

Schicke Mütze, a bike shop, and cafe in Düsseldorf organized a visit of Tom Ritchey and a gravel ride together with local cyclists and enthusiasts. they let me in on that beautiful day, the following is the account of a conversation and video interview with Tom Ritchey.

Radar

From the Mouth of Tom Ritchey

You ever lay awake at night wondering what Tom Ritchey feels about carbon, oversized downtubes, and other modern-day bicycle details? Well, this interview with Tom from last year – which I’m just now finding out about thanks to Rivendell – is very insightful. Check it out as one of the most influential bicycle designers discusses modern bikes…

Reportage By: John Watson

The Bicycle Academy’s Old Skool New School Tom Ritchey 27.5+ Hardtail

Before we jump into the coverage from my visit to Somerset, England’s the Bicycle Academy, I thought I’d share a very special bike. You might recognize this hardtail from the video I shared a few months back. It made its debut in the Tom Ritchey Old Skool New School video. It was built by Tom, while he was at the Bicycle Academy and has been ridden by various guests of the school. This fillet brazed hardtail features some unique cable routing, clean fillet brazing, a clear coat over the raw frame, 27.5+ wheels and tires by Ritchey, Shimano XT components, RockShox Reverb, Pike and Ritchey Bullmoose bars.

If you’re thinking the frame looks a bit small, Tom purposely made it a size medium, hoping to allow a number of people the ability to ride it. The Old Skool New School program is a great idea and this particular project made for a great first round. Look forward to more coverage from the Bicycle Academy this week and even more Old Skool New School news in the coming months.

… and if you haven’t watched the Ritchey video, you really should!

Radar

Tom Ritchey in Old Skool x New School

Tom Ritchey stars in this video from the Bicycle Academy doing what he does best from his visit in September 2016 to spend some time hanging out, teaching students and to build a bike with the young framebuilders that run the school in Somerset, England.

Check out some images of the completed bike below!