Friday News And Views

Okay, maybe I should re-name this post "Fat Bike Friday". You'll see why...

SRAM Fat bike crank?

The image here is supposedly from SRAM and supposedly depicts a 2014 component for a fat bike. This appeared on mtbr.com's fat bike forum back in December of last year. You can click to enlarge the image, look and decide for yourself what it is....

My opinion: If this is a SRAM X-9 fat bike crank, and if it is destined for production for 2014, I would say that it isn't going to be produced solely for the aftermarket. SRAM doesn't work that way, that much I do know from being around this stuff for awhile.

So, what does that mean? I would suggest that some bigger company is either fronting the tooling costs, or has ordered enough of these to make it worth SRAM's while to manufacture a fat bike crank, if it is a reality. That could  mean just one company, ( a bigger company), or several smaller companies are involved here. Either way- I do not think Surly and Salsa have enough numbers to support this on their own. Not from numbers I've seen bandied about. (But those numbers could have been all just speculation as well.)

So, I am not saying that a "big company is coming in to make a fat bike". I have heard that though......a lot lately. In fact, a certain company's rep came into a shop I am very familiar with and told the buyer that "Trek and Specialized" are both going to make fat bikes for 2014, and that Specialized is going to introduce theirs this Spring. I have heard rumors mostly about Specialized from other sources. I do know a fat bike was spotted in Specialized's compound during a media tour last Spring, and that a certain well known Trek mountain bike tester has been riding fat bikes quite a bit of late from that tester's Twitter feed. Read into that what you may.......

Of course, all of this could be complete rubbish. It may never happen, but if it does, here is more of my opinion. Trek and Specialized are looking to get dealers to push the competition for floor space on local bike shop floors out the door. Meaning- they want more of the local bike shop owners dollars, and are being very aggressive about it. With fat bikes selling like hot cakes in Winter, this maybe has raised some eyebrows with the big companies. But maybe the only way they can leverage dealers carrying fat bikes is to make their own fat bike models, and get the sales the other smaller companies are getting now. Maybe. Maybe not......

This irks some folks out there...

No Love Here: 

Obviously, not everyone is going to like fat bikes, nor should they. However; I found a pretty brazen rant on-line yesterday from a certain small brand's owner that, well......you can go read it here and make up your own mind.  Apparently, the posting of the carbon fat bike from On One was part of the pebbles that set off that avalanche of screed. (Judging by a reaction to said post on Twitter yesterday.)

It's interesting to read from the standpoint of a dissenting opinion, but obvious holes in the logic do jump out at me. For instance, you could insert "29 inch wheeled bikes", (something that company sells), and insert it in the place of "fat bikes", or as he erroneously calls them, "snow bikes", and the story fits as well.

Oh well, as I say, just an interesting viewpoint, if nothing else, and as always, it is good to consider from the standpoint of someone that may not get it, or agree with it, or like the idea at all. That's okay with me.

New shoes for the Vaya

Vaya Update:

Well, first off, the bike is built and ready to be ridden. No images yet, as it is too flippin' cold out to take images just yet. Soon! I will have a full post on the build.

I did get these Vee Rubber tires on suggestion from a reader that thought I should try them and review them for Gravel Grinder News. That I will do, but for this post, I just wanted to point out the hot patch which says "29 X 1.75".

I find that amusing, as anything sub-2 inch is almost always not 29" in diameter mounted to a 700c rim. It's stuff like this that the bicycle industry does that confuses the heck out of consumers. However; it isn't as easy to market a 28"er tire, and you know- "twenty nine inches" is much better from that standpoint. Who cares that it isn't even close to reality.

Then there is a certain German based tire company that marks their 700c X 28mm-30mm tires as "28 inches". Again- not even close. Plus, it mixes two measuring standards up. It gets customers of the shop where I work tripped up all the time. They ask for a "28 inch tube" and we hand them a 700 X 28mm tube and they tell us that we're crazy. We need to carry 28" tubes.

Okay, well, I digress.... The Vaya- yeah. It is done and these new tires, set up tubed for now, will be the shoes it wears for awhile at least. I'm pretty pleased with the way it came out. Not floored, but pleased. It does barely cut the mustard for the goal I set which was to be a lighter rig. I'll get into detail on that, but for now I will say it weighs 23lbs less pedals. I could shave some more off it, but again- this had to be a "mutt build" for now.  More soon....

Have a great weekend, and remember, fat bikes are stupid, so ride something else, right? (<====HA!)