Chainless World Championships are Tomorrow!

Over in Crested Butte, the long running Fat Tire Bike Week kicks off tomorrow with a chainless race down a road on the outskirts of town, rolling back into the village.

Mountain Biking in Idaho, 1986

Check out the Biker Fox Hop at 1:29!  All shot on Super 8, this is a rare glimpse of what riders in the beautiful state of Idaho were up to.

Deux North Hunt 4.

Incredible shots by Andy Bokanev and what looks to be much rad getting.  I'm a huge fan of dust, trespassing, and fog!  Check more out over at The Radavist.

Wheelie Wednesdayz

Klunker Edition.

10,000: No Easy Feat!

Oftentimes, a century out here in the front range of Colorado will hit 10,000 feet of climbing merely because you're doing multiple summits that are miles long.  In the midwest, getting to this total elevation gain requires short, seriously steep pitches.  Ride Axletree (North Central Cyclery) created a route that does just this in 125 miles.  On top of that, they've proposed a gentlemen's race pace with 3 man teams.  Sounds rad!

Smoking Hub?

Transition's here to remind you that even a layperson can fix their own bike, especially with the right tools.

 

 



Rare Bird: Hufnagel Cross frameset

Check it out. I usually post items after the auction's ended, mostly because I like the roundup format so as to not flood the blog with posts. When I find a particularly cool item, I'll post the auction as it's still going. As you may know, Jordan Hufnagel recently hung up his torch and went on sabbatical to South America via moto.  Recently returned, he may or may not start building again.  In the off chance that a finite amount of Hufnagel frames are out there, here's your chance to snag a nice one with a handmade stem to boot.

Ess Ess Cee Ex Double You Cee Kay Why with Adam Craig.

UNstable: Bontrager Privateer

Like many folks, my cycling experience began with track bikes.  I quickly learned how sketchy, albeit fun, they were to ride on mixed terrain.  Even before I could talk my friends into riding mountain and cross bikes, my main objective was to see what lay beyond the urban environment I was used to.  Years of cross racing and chilling on mountain bikes bring us to the current moment where I've become quite interested in the versatility of those early all-terrain bikes whose sole purpose was for exploration, not being good at fitness.

Many cyclists, myself included, think about what bikes they are going to build sometimes long before they purchase the frame, parts, and accessories. Sometimes your vision is compromised by the fact that great rides beckon, and the right bike for the job simply isn't going to come along in time.  With the recent trend in cycling favoring a versatile, in-betweener bike, I've given some thought to a concept I call the "UNstable."

By this, I mean that I like to see a collection of bikes which are a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none.  These are bikes which allow you to be impulsive.  Explore that dirt, hit that sketchy jump, hop the cross-barrier-height gate.

None of the bikes in an UNstable are purpose built.  A bike built for one purpose is simply less fun than one which can hit trails at a moment's notice.  A stable of purebreds merely inspires one to find situations in which to NOT ride a particular bike.  With multiple bikes, the dominant thought should be, "Which of these bikes could I take out today, no matter the terrain?" 

The first bike in this UNstable series is my Bontrager Privateer.  Equally as fun to ride on concrete as it is on sketchy trails, this embodies my idea of a bike that anyone can build for a small investment and often from a parts bin.

This bike is the culmination of trying to stay true to a period and build a bike around original WTB dirt drops.  Most of the parts are from 92-98, including the NOS tires recently gifted to me by Pearl Velo owner Tyler Hardie.  The only new components are the Thomson seat post and a 1/1 Paul Neo Retro set in rasta.

Can't Win Em All!

Drool-worthy completed eBay auction items that I missed out on! All photos are links.

MTB Collectors Still Rule.

Bikerumor visited a Santa Cruz local to dig into his collection of bicycle curiosities.  There are some real gems in there, including Salsa #1 and lots of Bontrager prototypes.

Check out the full story here.