Review: 700 X 45mm Vulpine

 Note: WTB sent over one set each of the Vulpine S, Vulpine, and Resolute tires for testing and review to Guitar Ted Productions at no cost. I was not paid nor bribed for this review and I will always strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

 I did a review of the three new WTB tires back in early July and now I want to break down the review into parts focusing on each tire in the release.This time I am going to focus on the Vulpine 700 X 45mm tires. Last week I updated the 700 X 40mm Resolute review. You can check that out HERE. 

The WTB Vulpine has been a tread design that has suited our gravel roads in the past, but for me it was always just too skinny. The 40mm was almost good enough, but by the time the 40mm Vulpine had come out I was riding some 45's and 47's from other brands that worked better here. So, you can imagine my stoke upon hearing that there would be a wider Vulpine. 

Initially I was not blown away by this wider Vulpine. And by the way, it lives up to its branding as it is almost 46mm wide on my 24mm internal width rims. The width is nice, but for some reason, the ride quality, at first, wasn't up to what I had experienced with the 36mm or 40mm version of this tire. 

But now that has seemed to come around. As I stated in my original post on these tires, I thought that perhaps the casings needed to break in. And it would appear that has happened now. The ride quality on harder surfaces is easy to feel. It is when things get a bit chunky and rough that this Vulpine gets challenged in terms of ride quality. It isn't terrible, but it is not as smooth feeling as I would have hoped for, based on my previous Vulpine experiences. 

Oddly enough, this Vulpine rolls almost as freely on pavement as does the Vulpine S variant on this design. I did not expect that. The Vulpine at 45mm also would be my go-to on smaller gravel, smoother dirt roads, or harder roads with embedded rocks. I did not really like how it handled the chunkier gravel when I encountered that. Looser crushed rock is okay on this tire, but I found that the tire wants to roll sideways a bit too much when trying to roll forward over the looser, chunkier gravel. 

So Far... 

I would swap to this tire whenever our roads went into smoother seasons, which is typically Winter and eraly Spring here. Or this would be my tire if I were riding to and from gravel via some pavement. 

I think the Vulpine S is a better choice for people that mix a lot of pavement in with a little gravel, and maybe this would be the tire if you had a little pavement and a lot of gravel. That said, I'm going with the 50mm Resolute for mixed terrain rides because of its versatile tread and that extra girth in the casing. 

I almost hate to say this, because I'll sound like a broken record, (does anyone know what that means out there?), but I wish that the Vulpine was also available as a 50mm tire. Or maybe I should just ride a Resolute 50mm tire and shut up. Ha! 

Stay tuned for the Vulpine S update coming soon.

Programming Note: Tomorrow there is breaking Gravel Grinder News at 9:00am Central. There will be another post at the usual time for you early bird US readers and foreign readers to check out, but keep in mind that there will be two posts up tomorrow. Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Guitar Ted Lube-Off: Mid-Summer Update

NOTICE: The Guitar Ted 'Lube-Off' is a comparison of different lubrication products for bicycle chains that is undertaken in 'real world' conditions in a set way. Then I compare and contrast the results with past 'Lube-Off' products to see "which one is best for me". This is done for entertainment purposes and the reader should apply their own reasoning and discernment while reading my 'Lube-Off' entries. What works for me may not work for you at all. None of the companies represented in this Lube-Off have any knowledge of this review, nor are they sponsoring me at all.  

The last update was way back in June which you can read HERE. The contenders, once again, are the Effetto Mariposa Flowerpower Wax Lube, DuMonde Tech, and SILCA Super-Secret Lube. Since that time I have not re-lubricated any of the chains. I have not ridden the Raleigh (DuMonde Tech) all that much since then but I did start riding the Black Mountain Cycles MCD more which has the SILCA Super-Secret Lube on the chain. This time I'll contrast the Super-Secret Lube against the Flowerpower Wax lube.

Flowerpower Wax: 

The weather went from drought conditions to flooding in the last period between updates here. Interestingly, the Flowerpower chains looked like they did at the last update when all the riding was done in very dusty conditions. 

I thought that the Nobel GX5, being the geared bike I have set up with this lube, was noisier than I recall. The single speed King Fab bike seemed about the same, but it is a single speed, so... 

Compared to the Super-Secret lube the noise was a bit louder and I also thought that the Super-Secret felt slicker during the Touch Test. which didn't show much dirt off the rollers, but none of the chains did, really. I did wipe all the chains down with a cloth afterward and a strange finding was seen on both Flowerpower Wax chains. I saw a fair amount of black residue and some with a red tint. This was odd because I haven't ridden in red dirt, with the exception of the single speed, at all. Could that have been some rust? 

It's like - why bother with this test?

I checked all the chains for wear and both geared bikes barely register any wear at all while the single speed chain shows about 30% wear. Odd that, but the chain is a lesser quality piece on the single speed. 

After wiping the chains down with a cloth, neither the Super-Secret or Flowerpower Wax chains seemed to need lubricating, but I may do that and then go through the rest of Summer before I get to my final verdict. 

The red residue puzzles me. The single speed was ridden on red dirt roads in Oklahoma, but the GX5 has not been anywhere near red dirt, and yet it showed the same residue. My only conclusion is that this was caused by the Flowerpower Wax somehow. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this as the test goes on. 

SILCA Super-Secret Lube:

This stuff works great but this time the chain for the Super-Secret lube looked worse than the other two with the Flowerpower Wax lubricant.

The dust was caked on a bit thicker, especially in the inner plates area. This did not seem to bother anything, but it was notable. As stated above, this chain also does not show any wear. 

This chain, when wiped down, did not show any red residue, but it did show a little black residue. Much less residue than the Flowerpower Wax lubed chains. I will say that this bike has been running this Super-Secret Lube since last year, so the lack of chain wear is impressive.

I am finding it a bit strange that I am seeing more residue now than I was when things were dusty and dry. Perhaps the moister roads have caused this? That would be my guess. It certainly doesn't seem to matter in regard to the Touch Test which shows almost nothing on all three chains. 

Just because - Here is the Honeman Flyer's chain.

So Far... 

The differences between these two lubricants are minimal. The residue issues notwithstanding, both work about the same and both have about the same longevity in terms of time between lubing. As stated, the Flowerpower chains seemed a bit noisier and maybe less slick than did the Super-Secret lubed chain. 

The accumulation of dust is surprising on all three chains. I will be paying attention to this in my final analysis. I also hope to get the DuMonde Tech chain back in the mix before I end this round of the Lube-Off, but we will see. 

I am looking at the beginning of September for the final word on this round to be written up. Until then I don't see a lot of major changes developing between the three lubricants. They all seem to be pretty good, so far. 

Stay tuned...

Country Views: Hazy

Escape Route: Sergeant Road bike path.

This was the weekend that RAGBRAI ended. Traditionally this also would have been the weekend I put on the old Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational ride. I don't put that ride on anymore, but I did want to get back out into the country again for some sort of riding. 

Saturday was out of the question as I had to work and put on a three hour long clinic afterward. Sunday was the target day, but Saturday afternoon I got a late call-in to play at church. So....I waited until Sunday afternoon to do a short jaunt out South of town. 

Of course, it was hot and humid, just as it always was for those old GTDRI rides. I decided to take it easy, stop whenever, and not go too long. I was itching to get away though, as it had been too long since I'd last been out for me. I needed a dose of the country for my own peace of mind. (Not unlike a friend of mine does)

I went with the Noble GX5 this time for a couple of reasons. It's a great bike being one of them, of course. The ride was straight down Aker Road to start out. I had no idea how I would do and so I had multiple plans in mind, just in case I needed to cut things short. 

Side-by-side, UTV, whatever ya-callit. It's the de-facto farmer's vehicle now.

While we are officially back to "normal" in terms of drought monitoring, it is very dusty on the roads. The roads are also rougher than I remember them being in a long time. I mean that they are rough, but not because of gravel. The gravel was "normal" as far as its spread on the roads. So, the actual road bed under the gravel just seemed rougher than usual. 

This baling crew brought a smile to my face.

It was quite humid out and the few times the Sun broke through the hazy skies I could really feel it cooking me. A familiar feeling, by the way. I know what the heat can do to me so I stopped a couple of times just to cool down a bit. 

One of those times I stopped I had a secondary reason for doing so. I had just passed a crew baling straw, (from the looks of it) in the old "square bale" format. This is how almost everyone that baled hay back when I was young did the task. So, I found it to be a cheerful reminder of Summers gone by when I did this task with my Grandpa and sometimes with my Uncle and Cousin. Anyway, the baler was a John Deere make, like the one my Grandpa used to use. Those have a distinctive, rhythmic "song" to them as they work. As a youth, that sound captivated me.

So I went up round the next corner, stopped just out of sight, so as not to seem like some sort of "creeper", and stood there and just listened to that "song" again. It was a glorious noise. After a bit, I saddled up and meandered back into Waterloo, navigating side streets and alleys until I reached home. 

It was  a satisfying, if maybe too short, a ride. A perfect therapy for these hazy, crazy days of Summer 2024.

Comment Section Trolls

 In celebration of the twentieth year of this blog, I have a few tales to tell. This post is one of them. This series will occur off and on throughout this anniversary year, I hope to illuminate some behind-the-scenes stories and highlights from the blog during this time. Enjoy!

Blogs have comment sections. Well, most of them do. This blog has always allowed comments, but that process has changed a few times over the years and with that there are some stories to share.

Originally you could comment and hit "enter" and your comment was there immediately. Anyone could comment at anytime. There weren't "bots", spam comment machines, or the like. But people were, and still can be, troll-ish and mean. The comment section here was proof of this. 

Around late 2006 or sometime during 2007, (sorry! I cannot remember when this was!), I ran into an alarming situation that required me to make a big change to how the comments worked here. It had to do with what was then the new 650B/27.5"er MTB wheels which Kirk Pacenti was championing. I'm not sure which post of mine set off the things that forced me to change the comment section, but it very well may have been THIS POST from late 2007. At any rate, I was alerted to an issue in my comments section via email and when I checked it out, alarms went off in my mind. 

A colorized scan of the OG G-Ted logo drawn in the early 2000's.

There were pages of comments. Derogatory, defaming comments about myself and my take on 650B wheels. Apparently some ill-willed fans of the wheel size hatched a plan on mtbr.com's 650B forums and hit my blog repeatedly all day long with comments. 

This forced me to delete the entire comments section going back to the beginnings of the blog. There was no other way to do the work effectively otherwise. Then I installed a new comments section that required moderation. 

It was kind of a bummer because there were a lot of gems in the comment section back then from a lot of folks who also blogged in the cycling sphere and from folks I miss like Joel Dyke and others from the early Trans Iowa days. But trolls often ruin things and you should never read the comments sections anyway, right?

There was one other time when Google bought out Blogger and I had to flush the old comments out and start all over again with another version of the comments feature. Since then things have stabilized. But what do you expect after almost 20 years of blogging? Things happen. 

It has been really good ever since then as far as the comments go and I appreciate everyone that has taken the opportunity to comment and I have tried to keep things decent and have discussions here that acknowledge other's points of view. I have had a few times where I had to shut down a person because they were just being inflammatory and not adding to the discussion, but that is quite rare here these days.

Thanks for engaging here, if you do use this feature to communicate with me. I truly appreciate that you do comment and especially if you are a regular reader here.

Not The Kind Of Anniversary You Want To Mark

 In celebration of the twentieth year of this blog, I have a few tales to tell. This post is one of them. This series will occur off and on throughout this anniversary year, I hope to illuminate some behind-the-scenes stories and highlights from the blog during this time. Enjoy!

 Today marks an anniversary of an event in my life that I would rather not have had happen. An event that still affects me to this very day both physically and mentally. Many of you know the story, but in case you don't, here is the post from ten years ago describing that day. 

The hills North of Edgewood are spectacular.

I was struck by a drunk driver behind the wheel of a 4X4 GMC pick-up truck and flung through the air about 8ft, (according to eye witness account), and landed on my butt in the ditch. Funny thing was, I wasn't actually riding my bicycle. I was walking it alongside the gravel roadway. 

Major injuries were avoided, but ever since then my digestive tract hasn't been "right'. I think things got jumbled around inside of me and well, by this time all of that is 'normal' day-to-day life for me now. So, on this weekend ten years ago, my life was forever changed. 

I'm not complaining. I've got nothing to complain about regarding that incident. Like the title of the blog post ten years ago states, "it could have been worse'. Very much worse than it was.

From July 4th this year.

Like Elton John, "I'm Still Standin'", and I'm blessed to be out there on two wheels yet. I shudder to think of what may have been, but it wasn't meant to be that day. So, a lot of things are still going because of that. One of them is this blog. 

I did not say a lot about the aftermath of what I went through mentally immediately afterward ten years ago. There was stress over the fall-out from the crash scene. I wasn't the only person affected. Aaron Schnee had his helmet crushed and his titanium Fargo run over. Dan Buettner was also flung into the ditch. The others had to witness that and deal with the drunk driver afterward. Their memories are marred by that incident as well as mine. 

Insurance issues went on for several months afterward. Hospital bills were being pursued and we were waiting on the insurance that the driver had to take care of this. Thankfully the driver actually had insurance. These are things that you don't immediately think about after a crash with/on your bicycle. But it is more than just 'that day' that haunts you. 

Aaron Schnee at Gravel Worlds in 2021

Ironically I have found that these incidents kind of have a way of bonding you to people that were a part of the event. A great example of this happened in 2021 at Gravel Worlds. 

I ran up upon Aaron Schnee. He of the run-over Ti Fargo from the 2014 incident. Turned out his bicycle was okay. In fact, it was the same bicycle he was riding that day! 

This was fantastic news for me at the time. Catching up with Aaron, who I hadn't seen or spoken with since that incident in 2014 until that day at Gravel Worlds, provided a bit of closure for me. I was happy to know his bicycle was intact, still around and being ridden, and that I actually got to see Aaron riding it. 

As for my bicycle, it wasn't damnaged significantly. A bit of bar tape rash, really, was all it had done to it. But I was hesitant to go out on a ride on the Tamland Two for a couple of months afterward. Finally I forced myself to ride the bike again. I'm glad I got over that hump, but I still find it troubling that I went through that due to a random act of a drunk person behind the wheel of a vehicle. 

Probably one of the most confusing and troubling aspects of this being struck by a motorist event for me was that I was informed that year that my name would be read at the annual Ride of Silence. The ride which honors cyclists that have been killed at the hands of motorists. Apparently if you are struck by a motorist, you also get on the list, but I found that to be confusing and - in my opinion - unnecessary. I felt that took away from those who actually lost loved ones. But I don't make the rules for that. It just was one more thing I had to wrestle with. 

Maybe I'm not alone in this, but I think about dying at the hands of a motorist almost every time I ride a bicycle these days. Sometimes I almost don't ride because it would just be easier not to deal with the crazies. But I keep going..... 

Be careful out there. 

Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Mondraker

Olympics And Bikes!

Mondraker Shows Off Olympic Liveries:

Tuesday Mondraker Bikes showed off two Olympic liveries for two of their sponsored riders who are contesting the games in the XCO MTB category. The bike shown is the Mondraker F-Podium and this one is done up in a special livery for rider Bec Henderson who will represent Australia. 

Comments: The Olympics are a big deal in cycling and especially for MTB. I don't really follow Pro MTB anymore, so what struck me about this announcement was how much XC-ish bikes have changed in the last ten years or so. 

First of all, Bec Henderson is 5'2" tall, and she is on a 29"er. Now, I have been amazed by all the places 29"ers have made inroads, but the smaller riders still racing 29"ers has been something of a ongoing surprise for me. I know many women were really into the stability and safer feeling of the big wheels having been told this straight from some high-profile female racers back fifteen years ago now. (15 years ago!! What?!!) 

So, it's really something when you consider many would have said "No way women should be riding 29"ers, especially shorter women!", which is something I used to hear back then. Given the existence of performance oriented tires and wheels in 650B, that's even more crazy to consider. (And yes- I am aware some folks do use those wheels) 

And then there is the bike, a dual suspension model. A dual suspension XC racer wasn't super common, back in the day, but now it seems to be at least a fairly commonly chosen option. Anyway, just noting how things have changed in that scene.  

Image courtesy of KASK Helmets.

KASK Shows New Nirvana Aero Helmet:

Tuesday also saw the announcement by KASK Helmets who now offer a new aero helmet called the Nirvana. 

KASK used CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) programs to develop the Nirvana which KASK claims has displayed a 35% more reduction in  aerodynamic drag and a 19% increase in air-flow through the helmet to make this their most aero and comfortable helmet in the category. (Compared to "best aero helmets in the category" according to the press release)

KASK does its own internal safety testing which has resulted in their exclusive Multi-Pod Technology. A new design which incorporates a 3-D printed pad which KASK claims is resistant to rotational and linear impacts, yet allows direct airflow to the rider's scalp. 

The Nirvana is available in matte black, matte white, Cherry Burst, Blueberry Fade, and Ultraviolet. The US price for the Nirvana is $400.00.

Comments: Aero is a thing in gravel, although KASK doesn't market the Nirvana helmet as being a "gravel helmet". My bet is that the fast folks will show up with these at gravel events. Notice in the image how the helmet covers the tops of the ears? That's right folks! Your ears are not aero! (HA!) Of course, anyone who has noted the time trials in the TDF recently, or at any point in the last 40 years, has already been well aware of this. It is kind of strange to me that this sort of treatment and design hasn't been utilized in road helmets much, if at all. 

No MIPS here! And did you see that price? Ouch!  

Image courtesy of State Bicycle Co.

State Bicycle Co. Debuts Titanium AllRoad:

State Bicycle Co. announced a pretty compelling AllRoad variant in titanium on Tuesday of this week. The bike features double butted, "Gr9 3AL/2.5V titanium", according to State Bicycle Co. The frame also has internally routed cables, room for 50mm 700c tires, or 2.2" 650B tires, and it has PVD graphics over a sand blasted finish. 

The carbon fork has a stealth through-axle and flat mount brakes with a internally routed cable port. 

The bike can be had as a complete starting at $2,499.00 on up or as a frame only at $1,299.00 (no fork). There are a lot of options so check out the page for the bike HERE. 

Comments: Notice the maximum tire size? This will be the new gravel bike standard going forward. Long gone are the days of maximum tire clearances being under 45mm. These new gravel bikes will be criticized and said to be "drop bar MTB's" by many folks but that just doesn't quite fit here. Too many small details separate the two things. 

I like the aggressive pricing on this bike and most of the details. I do not see 650B as being a big deal for buyers anymore and while the ability to swap in those wheels once made sense it really doesn't anymore. Once you could get that 45+ millimeter tire by going to a 650B X 47mm tire, and maybe a bit larger, but with these new rigs handling 50mm+ sized 700c tires, the question becomes more about the size and height of the rider when it comes to using 650B wheels. I still think 650B makes a lot of sense for shorter riders, but most folks that can should ride larger diameter wheels for their inherent benefits. 

Because State doggedly sticks to their "two wheel diameter - one bike" marketing schtick they have to compromise on bottom bracket drop to allow for smaller diameter wheels. And that is the only thing that would keep me off this bike. There are just too many bikes hitting all the numbers for me to compromise on a design like this State AllRoad Ti. But that's me. I still think it is a smoking hot value. 

USA Gravel National Championships Adds Spots For UCI World Gravel Championship Race:

Besides a $40,000.00 prize purse split equally between the Men's and Women's Elite classes, now it has been revealed that there will be ten spots to the World Gravel Championships to be held in Belgium for those who win those spots. 

The USA Gravel National Championships will be held on a 131.1 mile course with an estimated 5,715ft of elevation gain. The event will be held again in Gering, Nebraska on September 8th. There will be three shorter courses available for amateurs as well. 

Comments: Interesting that the USAC event now is $20,000.00 poorer than last year's event was. But how does USAC/UCI fund racing in the USA with this kind of total competitive flavor? This has been the perennial issue with racing at this level for road for decades. I see no reason why gravel should be exempt when the pattern for everything USAC is doing in gravel mirrors everything they were doing with road events.

The pot was sweetened (or was it?) by the offering of spots to the 2024 World Gravel Championships to be held in October in Flanders. Of course, that sounds all good, but I'm betting the dime to get there is on the competitors, and you'd have roughly a month to come up with the dollars to fly back and forth, get lodging, and of course, food and drink. So, it isn't that big of a deal unless someone else is footing the bill, and I suspect no one is sponsoring this. Maybe a brand of one of the lucky winners would chip in, but with the cycling industry strapped as it is? I doubt it would happen.

Okay, that is a wrap on this week! Thank you for reading the Guitar Ted Productions site!

Finding Purpose

Last May I had a plan to go fixed gear on my Black Mountain Cycles "Monstercross" bike better known as "Orange Crush" on these pages. I've written a ton about this bike over the years, but if you are not familiar with it, see THIS post. 

Well, I think I am abandoning those plans to go with a fixed gear set up. The wheel set I was going to use is set up for 1/8th inch pitch chains and chain rings. That means I'd have to spend a bit of money on a chain ring and a chain and..... Well, I rode the bike again recently and thought I'd like to keep it as it is as far as the drive train goes. 

The plan a year ago was to make this bike a flat bar bike, and that fizzled out as well. I still have the brakes and levers for that project in the basement still in their boxes. So, why has it been so hard for me to get going with....anything, having to do with this bike?

The answer: Progress in this gravel bike field. The bikes I have now are light years better at what I am using them for and the Orange Crush is 'just okay'. That breeds apathy for the bike and that's not good. It makes it hard for me to find a purpose for the bike to hang around here. 

The big thing on this bike is the geometry. That's the deal-killer for me. The bottom bracket drop is 65mm, and that's ridiculously high these days. The front stack height is pretty low as well. To be perfectly fair, Mike Varley wasn't designing a "gravel bike" when he designed the Monstercross. It was, as the name might suggest, a variant of cyclo-cross bikes with wider tire capability allowing this bike to do some MTB-like trails.

Before there were "gravel bikes" this was my gravel bike.

But I got the Monstercross because there weren't any gravel bikes in 2011. You used whatever you could get that made sense at the time to ride gravel with. I used the Orange Crush. At the time, it made sense. Now? 

I would love the bike if it had about 10mm more bottom bracket drop and a degree slacker head tube angle, but it does not and will not ever be like modern gravel bikes. 

So I have spent the better part of three years trying to find purpose for this bike. I just cannot justify spending any money anymore on the bike. It has become an antique, of sorts, and even newer Monstercross bikes are not like mine. They changed, got better with the times, and maybe if I had one of those frames I'd just transfer over the parts and then ride on. But that would also be a big investment into a bike that still isn't quite what I'd want these days. 

Maybe it is time to retire this frame and fork. I might have to look into something I could transfer the parts to, or just get out of it altogether. I mean, it isn't like it is 2011 anymore around here. I've got plenty of gravel bikes. I don't really need a rim brake gravel bike. But if the right thing came along? 

Maybe then.

What's In A Name?

Video image grab from THIS YouTube video.

 NOTE: Large doses of "my opinion" will be handed out in gloppy dollops today. You've been forewarned.....

Recently at Eurobike Scott Bicycles had a little surprise that was posted on a couple websites. This bicycle is interesting for one reason only. It is notable because of what Scott called the bike. The Scott Scale GR. (GR = "Gravel")

The bike caused an immediate uproar in the comment sections wherever it has been written about. Folks are arguing about what it is and how it should or should not be used. 

Look - this is all about names. That is all. It has absolutely zero to do with riding the bike the name is slapped on. We only have ourselves to blame for all of this nonsense. How certain bicycles came to be known in a general sense has done more to cause confusion, disruption, and unnecessary arguments than anything else about cycling has in the past or present.

Remember when these were called "snow bikes"?

One of the best and most rare examples of where a bicycle was named incorrectly and subsequently was renamed was when the fat bikes were first introduced in mass retail as "snow bikes". 

The name made sense because, at the time, fat bikes were revolutionizing Winter riding. However; consumers weren't getting the idea that Winter riding was "fun" and were relying on their shallow take, which was, 'bicycles were not ever ridden in Winter' and "Who would want to do that anyway?" The bike was discounted as a non-viable choice before a test ride could be offered. 

Retailers very quickly moved to "fat bike" to describe the corpulent-tired bicycles and focused on capability, fun, and stability as the message. And "...oh yeah, you can ride these in Winter if you want as well." This put the correct idea in the heads of many consumers and the fat bike revolution took off for a while there. Had we stuck with "snow bike" the amount of bikes sold would have been far, far less than what has been sold. 

And to the fat bike's benefit, the name it was finally saddled with did not describe where you rode it, which - in my opinion - is probably a good thing. Names matter. Words have power. Naming your bike a "snow bike" or a "fat bike" does different things in the mind of a human being. So too does "gravel bike". This is where the Scott Scale GR comes back into the story here. 

The Scott Scale GR obviously comes from a completely different evolutionary line of bicycles than does your typical "gravel bike". It doesn't take a genius to see that it is an XC racing MTB with a rigid fork that has "adventure nipples" attached to its legs. Scott can call their bicycles whatever they want as far as trademark law is not violated. And why wouldn't they call it a "gravel bike"? It is one of the hottest categories in cycling. Especially when one of their own has stated that they like using a MTB for gravel riding. 

Originally called "all-terrain bikes", these became known as MTB's.

So, what the heck is it anyway? Well, to answer that question, we have to go all the way back into early mountain bike (MTB) history when a company called "Mountain Bikes" existed. 

Yes, the term was a brand name. All other bikes of its ilk were known as "all-terrain bikes". However; the brand "Mountain Bikes", started by fat tire pioneers Gary Fisher and Charlie Kelly, had too cool a name for just one brand to "own it" and suddenly everyone was calling their "all-terrain bikes" Mountain Bikes. Soon to be abbreviated to "MTB". 

Once again, a bad choice. Had "all-terrain" stuck instead of mountain bike, we maybe would have seen an even wider adoption of fat-tired 26" wheeled bikes across the nation, not just where there were mountains, or where younginz thought they could do "mountain bike things". Had all-terrain stuck I think "all-road" would have followed. But "gravel" got stuck to this drop-bar, all roads type of bike and so, well...... What the heck does "gravel" even mean? 

Getting back to the Scott bicycle. It is really an "all-terrain' bike, but yeah.... Good luck with that! It will never be known as that and people will attach "gravel" to a bike these days just because it gets the eyeballs and the comment sections going. Mountain bike? That would have done little to attract any attention. Scott marketers did exactly what a good marketing department should do. Use a name that gets attention. Whether that makes sense or not doesn't really matter.

Review: Delium Tires - Mid-Term

 Note: Delium Tire sent over two pairs of tires to Guitar Ted Productions at no cost. I am not being paid, nor bribed, for this review and I will always strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

A few weeks ago I received these Delium Tires and now that I have ridden them in some I have a bit more to share on them. If you missed my introduction to these tires you can find that HERE. Keeping in mind that these tires are more of a value oriented type tire I will be adjusting my review take slightly to accommodate that fact. These tires aren't equal to tires costing much more. They should do a decent job for those who cannot, or will not, spend a lot on tires. This is my expectation for the Delium Tires. 

In this post I will cover how the tires have been to 'live with' and how they have been performing so far in my testing. I would assume these tires would be upgrades from a stock entry level gravel bike, and perhaps going home to a first time tubeless user as well. The review will take a viewpoint from such a stance. 

Alright, let's take on that very derivative AllRounder model then. This 700c X 43mm tire is a dead-ringer for a Panaracer Gravel King SK. I happen to have a set of 650B X 50mm Gravel King SK's on a set of wheels in my possession, and so I was able to make a direct comparison. The resemblance is uncanny. So, does this AllRounder do the Panaracer dance? Well.....yes, sort of. 

It will fling a bit of small stone, it does pack up with tacky mud/dirt when that is encountered, and it rides well enough. So, in many ways, the experience is similar. However; you have that break-in period to get through which might be a bit depressing as this tire felt odd. Like a dragging brake was causing you to work a tiny bit harder. But miraculously the feeling changed during one ride recently and the tire felt just average from that point onward. 

Weird! But I'll take it. I tried the roll-down test again and it performed slightly better. What is going on here? My belief is the tire casing, which is fairly stiff when new, broke in and became ever so slightly more supple.
 

Now on to the Speed-X which has some slight similarities to a WTB Riddler. This tire, ironically, never felt 'draggy' like the AllRounder did. This tire did have a LOT of those mold-release "whiskers" on them which made the tire perform below average initially on the roll-down test. Once I rode the "shine" off them though, these tires picked up a lot on the roll-down test and are fairly impressive in that regard now. 

This tire also seems to have a bit better grip in hardpack corners and it also has a flatter crown which I prefer in loose, deep gravel. The ride is supple for such an inexpensive tire. (Same with the AllRounder) But both tires have a couple of traits that are a bit concerning.

One I mentioned already, and that is initial tubeless set up. Frankly, these tires would probably frustrate a new-to-tubeless user so badly that they'd likely swear off tubeless for good. I've set hundreds of different bicycle tires up tubeless and these Delium tires are some of the most difficult to set up tubeless I've ever dealt with. 

Then there is air retention. The Delium tires are not great in this regard, and each model has displayed a tendency to lose all of its air in the span of a few days time. One tire from each pair, so I am watching for this so as to see if it maybe is an actual characteristic of Delium gravel tires or if I just hit the flat tire jackpot within two days time. We will see.... 

So Far... Okay, I like the ride quality and the handling of these tires is fine, really. But these issues with the casings being hard to set up tubeless and the mysterious loss of air I noted in two of the tires is a bit concerning. Stay tuned for a few more weeks and I hope to get to the bottom of it all and have a final verdict for all of you that may be interested in these tires.

Review: WTB 700 X 50mm Resolute

 Note: WTB sent over one set each of the Vulpine S, Vulpine, and Resolute tires for testing and review to Guitar Ted Productions at no cost. I was not paid nor bribed for this review and I will always strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

I did a review of the three new WTB tires back in early July and now I want to break down the review into parts focusing on each tire in the release. In this post I am focusing on the Resolute in its new 50mm size.You can go back and see my previous take on this tire HERE.

The 700 X 50mm WTB Resolute with its familiar alternating tread block pattern

What About That Width?: The tire market for gravel has slowly been getting to the point where wider tires are more the norm than not. Ten years ago anything made for gravel tires was well under 45mm in width, with 38mm being the center of the width spectrum for tires made specifically (or marketed ) for gravel use. 

This was likely due to the fact that many companies were pivoting their cyclo cross frames to being marketed as "gravel" bike frames. The tell-tale was in the geometry charts and with regard to tire clearances, which limited these sorts of bikes to 40mm or so. However; savvy bike designers soon saw that wider tires for gravel were a good thing and bikes started being made to handle wider tires. We saw a surge of tires in the 43mm - 45mm range become available in the late 2010's. Then things slowly but surely have made their way to where now we are noticing even more bikes that can take 50mm+ wide gravel, or skinny 29"er, treads. 

The Resolute was introduced as a 42mm tire, but often times would end up being more of a 44mm tire on wider internal width rims. So, WTB jumped this tire straight to 50mm and as of now it stands as the widest gravel tire the company offers at the time of this writing. But if you read my previous update, you already know that the Resolute wasn't "measuring up". I was promised that it would stretch after usage. Did that happen? 

It took a while, but the Reso made it there!

As you can see by the image here, yes, the Resolute did actually make it to a 50mm width. It took a lot longer than I would have hoped and a lot longer to reach its stated width than the other two tires from WTB did which are in this test. 

If I were to venture a guess as to why that was, my guess would be that the full SG+ bead to bead puncture protection casing would be the reason why. The Vulpine and Vulpine S do not have a full layer of puncture protection, theirs is only a sidewall layer. My belief is that the full layer in the casing of the Resolute gave that tire a casing less prone to stretching. I could be wrong there though. 

Ride Performance: The Resolute was designed as an all-around conditions tire. I have had several Resolutes in the 42mm size on various bikes before and the overall impression I got of the Resolute was a tire that was kind of a jack-of-all-trades type tire. It did okay on pavement, but was probably best suited to dealing with loose, deeper crushed rock roads. 

I attributed this to the Resolute's flatter crown to the casing which helps the Resolute not cut into loose gravel and "hunt for the path of least resistance" but rather it seems to ride up over the top a bit better where the bike seems to react as being more stable. There is definitely a calmer ride quality to the Resolute in these situations. The wider Resolute does this even better. 

But a surprising result in my roll-down test was that this wider, heavier tire actually tested out as average on the paved section and above average on the gravel section. Resolutes have always been better on gravel than pavement, but I was expecting a below average paved test and maybe an average gravel test. So, that seemed to be a bit of a surprise for me there. 

Air pressure maters as it does in any tire and situation. What the wider Resolute allows you to do is to have a wider range of pressures to play with. Since the new Reso is almost a 29"er tire, I have been running it from around 30psi all the way up to around the high-30's psi. As the tire has broken in, and stretched a bit, this has allowed for an ability to make the tire fit the situation better. Lots of pavement? Go higher. Lot's of loose, silty, sandy dirt? Go lower. I have no doubt that this Resolute, with its higher volume of air in the casing, could be run in the upper 20's psi in the right situations for my weight and riding style. 

I cannot get away with that with a 40-43mm tire. Maybe with a 47mm tire, like the Teravail Rutland, which I think is really similar to the Resolute, I could get close. But now with an even wider, more voluminous Resolute? I think I have a Swiss Army knife of a tire now.

So Far... Now it will be time to play around with that ability to tune this tire to certain situations and conditions. I am excited to get out and try a few things with the 50mm Resolutes. Now, of course, this probably isn't the all-around tire in the sense that you could go fast and keep up with a paved group ride, most likely. No, that doesn't make sense, but with regard to all situations off-pavement, I am liking this tire's versatility and voluminous casing. 

I'll be back later in the Summer with a final word.

Some Musings From The Latest Podcast

The latest podcast from the "Guitar Ted Podcast" is up now and it is a pretty interesting show this time. My guest on the show was Kevin Lee of The Spinistry, the Texas based gravel event promotions company which has been doing gravel events since 2010. If you haven't heard this show you can listen by clicking THIS LINK which will take you to the Spotify home site for the podcast. 

If you don't listen to the episodes I have a few points to share today that I thought stoood out. It's interesting to see where the UCI is at with how they want to pursue the gravel scene in North America. 

I wrote a lot about this subject already HERE so I will try not to tread on the same ground again in this post. But the podcast is based upon a lot of what I wrote in the linked article. 

Okay, so with all the previous said, one of the more interesting tidbits for me was being told by Kevin that the UCI had actually pursued The Spinistry to have one of their events be a UCI sanctioned gravel event. I also know many other promoters had been asked to partner with the UCI and this was confirmed by Kevin as well as something which is true. I fully believe the UCI is still trying to convince event promoters to partner with them. In fact, the oft referenced "Marginal Gains" podcast with Erwin Vervecken as guest confirms this as well. 

Another interesting tidbit was the price to have a UCI sanctioned event, the fee for the UCI to even partner up with an event, was $40,000.00 in 2019. Forty thou?!! This doesn't include what you, as a promoter, would have to pony up to get your event up to UCI standards either. So, just from this point alone, it is pretty easy to see why there hasn't been a UCI sanctioned, large scale gravel event in the USA. And as Kevin Lee states in the podcast, the UCI isn't bringing anything to the table for the 40K licensing deal. Apparently prestige and legitimizing your event is what that does for you as an event promoter? Man! I can totally see why no event has accepted that offer! 

Then something Kevin was saying, (at about the 1hr mark of the podcast, by the way) struck me as one of the best descriptions about why the gravel scene is what it is and how the semi-Pro and Pro riders should regard that. I'm paraphrasing Kevin here, but essentially what he said was this gravel cycling scene isn't reliant on competition alone. It has an element of competition, but this is not what is most important. The sense that one can ride a bicycle on gravel - or anywhere, really - and have fun, is what is most important. This "fun" can be an adventure, social gathering, going fast, stopping often, and could include parts of some of this or all of these things. 

Actually, THIS is the latest podcast now!

As Kevin said, and I agree, the upper echelon of talent in today's gravel scene should never forget what they are privileged to be able to do at gravel events is built upon the foundation of those "12mph riders", as Kevin put it, making the events what they have become. It is this and the variety of events, which has always been a part of gravel, that makes "gravel" the sort of riding many are attracted to. 

Charging a lot of money to promoters to sanction an event is not going to work. Making events all similar in length and style, and forcing riders into a situation where it is all about top level competitors and "cat'ing up", as Kevin put it, is not going to foster growth in cycling here in the USA. It never really worked for road racing, MTB, or cyclo cross. How in the world does anyone think it would work in gravel cycling? It wouldn't. It would end up killing the gravel scene. 

Thanks again to Kevin Lee and The Spinistry for their support!

A Man, A Bike, And A Piece Of Black Electrical Tape

The only known shot of Jason Boucher riding "BET". Matt Gersib is on the right.

Sixteen years ago on July 16th, 2008, Jason Boucher rode from Waterloo, Iowa down to Hickory Hills park and the gathered riders there saw a bike that few had laid eyes on. A bike that would be the catalyst for a revival of a style of riding now known as "bike packing", which was formerly known as mountain touring, or off-road touring. This bike, and the man who pushed the idea through to get it made were responsible for the catch-phrase "Adventure by Bike" which became a movement and spawned an entire category of bicycles which are still being produced to this day. 

I've written reams of digital pages about this particular moment and the bike itself. It arguably is one of the most popular subjects on this blog with a page dedicated to this particular bike which gets views every week that top any other pages on this blog consistently. I am speaking, of course, about the Salsa Cycles Fargo. The man behind the ideas for this bike and the man who pushed it through to see the light of day is named Jason Boucher.

Jason Boucher in 2024.

I am not going to write a bunch of words today which already have been written here. I'll put some links down at the end of the post to direct you to where I have already opined about the importance of the Fargo. What I want to do here is to pull a quote from a recent Instagram post Jason made which will tell the story from his vantage point. I think that would be a good viewpoint to add to this story here. 

" It was 14 or 15 years ago today that I was riding a prototype bike to @g.ted.productions Death Ride. A bike I drove and helped create. That weekend it got labelled the “black electrical tape” bike. A coworker at the time called it the ugliest bike he had to own. Many said they didn’t need a drop bar mountain touring bike. Others said it’s a cool concept but touring doesn’t sell. "

And the Fargo was very hard for a lot of people to wrap their minds around. Of course, we need to keep in mind a couple of things to gain the correct context here. First off, 29"ers were not a "done deal" at that point in time. Sure, they had gained a toe-hold, but that wheel size was still roundly being criticized and put down as a fad that would fade away by riders and industry folks alike. Some brands were stating publicly that they would never, ever make a 29"er. (Looking at you Specialized, Yeti, and Giant)

Drop bars and fat tires were very odd  in 2008. Only weirdos and alt-bar freaks would put drop bars  on a MTB, much less one with wagon wheels. Drop bars were for road bikes and cyclo cross bikes! (And maybe touring bikes, but no one was doing that anymore!). Then there was the whole touring aspect, as mentioned, which everyone thought was a dead category.

The Fargo I was given by Jason in late 2008 as seen today.

The bike almost did not happen. It was resisted by higher-ups at Jason's place of employment at the time. It was seen as a bit of a losing prospect, as you can read from Jason's quote above. More from Jason:

"We did it anyways. Inspired by many drop bar bikes, touring bikes, and mountain bikes that came before it. It was the product that drove me to rebrand Salsa to Adventure by Bike. In many ways I still believe its the purest execution of the ethos of that tagline (IMHO) and I admit I am a bit biased."

 Of course, the entire bikepacking scene may have happened anyway at some point. Even without the venerable Fargo and its "Adventure by Bike" ethos. But I don't think the reach of that style of riding would have been as deep and far had the Fargo been nixed and never seen the light of day. I know it was a very popular choice for gravel riders, tourists that were looking for a bit more upright position, and it was popular with 29"er fans. 

In my opinion, the Fargo took a while to catch on, but when it did, the model pretty much had its way with the market until the late 2010's when other companies started jumping into the space the Fargo occupied. Now we have several "Fargo-like" choices, and probably the best of those is the Esker Lorax and the Tumbleweed Stargazer models. Ironically, Jason does some work with Tumbleweed these days. 

So, in closing I just wanted to post this to give Jason his flowers and shine a light on the man and the vision that brought the Fargo to life, and arguably was the catalyst for much of what came afterward in the bikepacking category as far as bicycles are concerned. 

Links to previous stories about the "Black Electrical Tape" bike and origin story. 

"The GTDRI Stories: Black Electrical Tape"

"Minus Ten Review - 29"

"The GTDRI Stories: The Fargo Comes Home"

"Fargo Riders Reunion Ride"

Update: Jason Boucher left a comment on this post which maybe won't be seen by many, so I thought I would add it to the post as it pertains to the Fargo and its genesis story. Here it is:

"I need to add a little more detail here. As memories fade it's important to write them down to both remember and document history. I certainly feel directly responsible for both the Fargo and Adventure by Bike. Yet, it isn't those two things that I remember as the most important. It's the people. The Fargo would not have happened without really good & talented people and partners, both inside the organization as well as outside.

Bikepacking.com just posted something on drop bar mountain bike just yesterday and one of the other really important people to this Fargo story is Joe Meiser. I recall one day chatting with Joe about a bike that I would want if I ever did my Alaska to Utah bike trip again (something I did after attending college). Joe was just then setting his sights not the Tour Divide. He wanted something special too. We schemed. One day Joe showed up to work and said "I drew the bike last night". We were both giddy. We looked. I suggested some changes from my personal experience and desire for this product.

Joe and I made changes. Buttoned it up. Ordered frames for us to build & ride. It was a product that was not on any product map or wasn't ever talked about as a product. We just did it. I'm forever grateful that that moment happened. I'm forever grateful of the team of people on our small Salsa team. I'm forever grateful for the people this idea and concept of adventure brought into my life. It changed me forever.

Also a fun fact, Fargo was not the original name. There was a different name that was changed to align with Adventure by Bike. I think only 3-4 people know what that name is........"

Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Madrone Derailleur

 We Can Rebuild It!

Madrone Derailleur Shown:

In the "I Missed This Earlier" files we have today the item originally shown this past April at Sea Otter called the Madrone Derailleur. 

This alternative to SRAM or Shimano for 12 speed MTB is rebuildable, according to Madrone, who also makes replacement parts for 12 speed SRAM AXS and Eagle rear derailleurs along with sealed bearing pulleys. 

This new complete rear derailleur can work with SRAM or Shimano by simply swapping out the cam on the derailleur body. 

The Madrone Derailleur is still in the prototype stage and is promised to be available later in the year. Asking price is $395.00USD.

Comments: These "alt derailleurs" always fascinate me, I don't know why, because they are very expensive and typically don't hold up well or are "unobtanium" for the average rider. Maybe Madrone's efforts will prove otherwise. I know that the INGRID rear derailleur, for instance, an all-CNC'ed piece, is about $750.00 and supposedly rebuildable also, but man! A Di2 GRX 12 speed rear mech is just over four hundred bucks. Mechanical GRX is just over a hundred bucks. Hard to justify these alt rear mechs that may or may not hold up under stressful gravel use. 

From Mid-South's Instagram

Mid-South Announces Mega-Mid-South For September:

Many "big-time" gravel events have added 300-ish mile, self-supported gravel challenges in recent years. The first to do it was DK200/Unbound with the originally named DKXL, (now just Unbound XL). Then Gravel Worlds popped off with "The Long Voyage", a 300-ish mile loop. Now it is Mid-South's turn and they are dubbing their event the "Mega-Mid-South". 

It will be a 300 mile loop that will encompass some of the previous Mid-South routes. The event will occur September 18th, 2024 and will start at 8:00am in front of District Bicycles in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The event has no entry fee and will require all participants to be responsible for themselves. Featuring over 15,000ft of elevation, this event will be held in the heart of central Oklahoma on Oklahoma's red dirt roads. 

Comments: I have no idea if any of these longer routes these gravel events put out there are inspired by Trans Iowa, with the exception of the XL (DKXL), which I was told directly from the RD at the time (Jim Cummings) was inspired by Trans Iowa. But I gotta believe a little of what Trans Iowa stood for is embodied in those events. Especially when I see "You Are Responsible For Yourself" used in the marketing. And I know Bobby Wintle is well aware of what Trans Iowa was and is a fan. Maybe....

But whatever. This is right up my alley. I love the idea. My only thing would be to have NO GPS files and make everyone use a cue sheet navigation with cues not available until they left. But hey! I am an old school, lost soul in a techno-world. I get it. You cannot fathom doing a course by paper cues. It makes your brain hurt thinking about it. I say, "Exactly!" But yeah....

Image courtesy of Esker Bikes

Esker Announces Steel Lorax, Smokey Frames And Completes:

Esker Cycles announced on Tuesday of this week that their Smokey hard tail MTB and their Lorax adventure bikes would now be offered in steel framed versions. These models are also available in titanium. 

Emphasizing ease of maintenance both models feature external cable routing (!!) and threaded bottom brackets. 44mm head tubes will also be used across both models. Both models feature many accessory mounting points as well. 

The steel Smokey will be available as a frame only for 1K. Then both the Smokey and Lorax can be had with forks at $1,600.00 or starting at $3,000.00 for completes. See Esker Cycles for details. 

Comments: I took a look at the Esker Cycles Lorax and liked a lot about that bike. However; the sizing is weird. I am at the extreme end for a large at 6'1" and smack dab in the range for an XL. Then I look at the differences and the XL seems too big, but.... I don't know. I remember Salsa Cycles back around the late 2000's and their sizing which was putting me in a similar pickle between their Medium and Large. Neither was really "right" for me. Maybe that's where I am getting the weird vibes about Esker's sizing. 

Image courtesy of fizik.

fizik Introduces New "Road Meets Gravel" Shoe:

Combining elements of the latest road shoes with a walkable sole and two-bolt cleat interface, fizik launched their newest shoe called the Beat on Wednesday of this week.

The uppers are fabric and have a lace-up closure, The soles are a Nylon reinforced TPU, (yes, the same stuff those tubes are made from), and the shoe comes in a white, a beige/tan that fizik calls "Desert", and black with the white and tan shoes having multi-colored soles. All three retail for $179.99USD.

The stiffness rating of the sole is "4", so not the stiffest soles out there. fizik claims this will aid in comfort over rougher roads. The Beat also features a wider toe box, according to the press release, which fizik claims is a new shape for the company.  The shoes weigh a claimed 355 grams. 

Image courtesy of fizik.

Comments:

Look! A white shoe for gravel! This gets the "Jeff Kerkove" seal of approval for hot weather riding. (He told me the reasons for white shoes a year ago that made a lot of sense.) 

I'm not sure about those TPU multi-colored soles though. Pick orange or purple, but the fade? Meh... It probably won't matter once they get scarred up from pedal mashing, walking on concrete and gravel, and with a nice coating of limestone dust all over them. 

It's a bit curious that fizik went with such a flexible sole. But at this price-point, you don't normally get a lot of features and expensive materials. So, if the idea was to reach the more recreational, "semi-serious" rider, this shoe makes sense. You get what looks like a top of the range road shoe at a much nicer price and a shoe that could cross over to gravel, road, or adventure cycling where walking is a much bigger part of the picture. 

Image courtesy of fizik

Getting back to that theory of Jeff's concerning white shoes. He told me a year ago while we were riding the GCHoF ride in Emporia that white shoes were preferable because the typical black shoe uppers were heat absorbers and as Jeff said to me then, "Who wants hotter feet? I know I don't!". 

So, on one hand this seems to make sense. On the other hand, my gravel shoes look dingy and cruddy 90% of the time and washing them is not all that effective in bringing back the "new". So, I could imagine what a white shoe will end up looking like after a few rides. Maintenance city, man! Too much fussing around for me. 

But I get it. I understand the heat absorption thing. I was standing outside the other day when it was 90-something degrees and the humidity was pretty bad in a dark colored t-shirt and you could feel the shirt start to cook in a few minutes. So, I buy into that theory, Jeff, I just don't know if I could put up with white shoes after a few rides on our gravel roads and then have to look at those dingy shoes afterward.

That's a wrap on this week. Good Luck to all the RAGBRAI riders! Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!