Let's Talk About The New Surly Straggler

Image courtesy of Surly Bikes

 Last week a new version of the Surly Straggler was released. It had been quite some time since the Straggler was released originally, so it was long overdue for an update. This is also one of the issues with the new version, ironically. 

When the Straggler was set to be released originally I was onboard at "Twentynine Inches", the website which covered 29"ers from 2005 until 2015. I was in attendance at the 2013 Outdoor Demo for Interbike, the former big-time bicycle show once held in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was where I met and rode the Straggler. 

The bike, to my mind, should have been called the Disc Crosscheck, which would have followed what Surly had done with the Long Haul Trucker/Disc Trucker models. But anyway..... Straggler it was. My intial take on the bike was that it was heavy and the rear drop outs looked clunky. As with all Surly bikes up to that point, it was single speed capable, so this was the reason for the weird rear drop outs. Okay....moving on.  

Wait! Is that a Vaya? No! It's a Surly Straggler in "Shaggy Carpet" (Image courtesy of Surly Bikes)

 Of course, in 2013/14 there weren't many choices yet for gravel bikes, and I knew the Raleigh Tamland was also debuting in 2014. There was no doubt in my mind which was the better of the two for gravel, and the Raleigh ended up in my clutches for this and other reasons some of you long-time readers know all about. But this is another story.... 

There were a few things about the original Straggler which  were missed opportunities, but again - It was 2013, and gravel bikes weren't an established category then. In a few years this would be a different story, but Surly chose not to direct any efforts into the Straggler. Maybe the brand had sunk resources into other projects, and could not afford a redesign of the Straggler at that point in time. Maybe Surly has something against the whole "gravel" thing. It is notable that Surly does not have any gravel category listed on their site for its bicycles. (Although it recommends the Straggler for gravel on its page for the model) Whatever the case may be, the Straggler probably should have been redesigned five years ago, at minimum, and it would have been really good had they done it in the 2017 - 2019 window when gravel went bananas. 

A first generation Straggler I built up for "Duluth Dave" many years ago. 

 So, back to 2025 and the current Straggler. This newest version of the model has no single speed capabilities native to the design. This has been pointed to as another issue with the current version of Surly Bikes which built its reputation upon the ethos of single speed biking. Yes, this is pretty much just another example of brand identity being purged. 

One can pass off the single speed thing as being unnecessary and say it makes the Surlys of the past overly-complicated, but brand identity does help with perceptions. When you abandon something which made your reputation and made your brand unique, well it means something. Usually something not good.  

So, when I saw the new Straggler I was not very impressed. Honestly, it looks like a poorer version of the Salsa Vaya. A bicycle which was axed from Salsa's line earlier in this year. So, a not very impressive "update" in my mind, and certainly not very "Surly Bikes" of them when you consider Surly's past reputation. 

Those are my thoughts, but what do you think? Could Surly have done something truly remarkable and kept the single speed thing?  Am I just not understanding what has happened here? Let me know in the comments. 

And as always, thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions, (if you are actually human).  

Let's Talk About The Trek Checkout

As seen at the Unbound XL back in early June.

 Last week Trek officially announced the Checkout. A bike which had been discussed in rumor mills for months over the Summer of 2025 after images of it were shared across social media. Now this bike is available for purchase, and how many will get sold is anyone's guess. What is not questionable is the level of debate this bike has stirred up since the announcement.

Of course, I have several thoughts on this introduction by Trek and I have had several discussions with N.Y. Roll concerning the bike already. I'm going to throw out my thoughts here on today's post, but I also encourage you, the reader, to chime in on this bike in the comments section. Is it a mountain bike? Is it unnecessary? Who is this bicycle for? 

Okay, with all of these thoughts circulating in our heads, let's tackle the most common thought I see being expressed about the Checkout online.  The thought I see most commenters expressing has to do with the Checkout being - or trying to be - a mountain bike. But many feel it is something a bit less than a mountain bike. Well......is the Checkout a mountain bike or not? 

To figure this out I went to research a few things. The geometry used for what is called XC MTB today is very unlike anything we've seen in years past. The geometry today leans into downhill/enduro influences pretty heavily, so you have bikes with zero - or near zero - stem extensions, very slack head tube angles, and the ubiquitous "long/low" layout of the chassis. We did not always mountain bike this way. My thought was the Checkout is an FS 29"er from 15 years ago. 

So, is this true? I went and researched the numbers from a 2011 Gary Fisher HiFi Deluxe, a dual suspension trail bike. I don't think anyone in 2025 would look at this as being anything other than a mountain bike. An old mountain bike, but a mountain bike. Here is what I found:  

Gary Fisher HiFi Deluxe vs Checkout (HiFi numbers first, then Checkout's)

• Head Tube Angle: 71.0° vs 69.5°
• Seat Tube Angle:  73.6° vs 73.0°
• Seat Tube Length: 48.3cm vs 54cm
• Top Tube Length: 61.7cm vs 61.3cm
• Bottom Bracket Drop:  45mm vs 68mm
• Chain Stay Length: 450mm vs 442mm
• Trail:  74mm vs 88mm

Image courtesy of Trek Bikes

NOTE: I compared a Size Large for each, so apples to apples as far as sizing goes. You can find variances by comparing different sizes. 

Okay, I see a big difference in three areas. One: Bottom bracket drop. But remember, the HiFi Deluxe had 100mm travel front/110mm travel rear. The bottom bracket needed to be higher due to sag when setting up the bike. So, perhaps a wash there, depending on rider weight. 

Second: Chain Stay Length. Again, the HiFi Deluxe has more travel, so this figures in, and it had a front derailleur with triple chain rings. Make this a 1X design and the Fisher could have easily had a shorter chain stay in the realm of the Checkout's. 

Third: Trail. This is the figure which takes into account front end geometry and wheel size. The Checkout is actually more stable than the HiFi due to its longer Trail figure. 

One more detail: The Checkout is based around road bike drive train standard while the HiFi is based on MTB drive train standard. This matters. A LOT. However; it is easier to get a wide range, low gear AND a fast gear on a road bike standard drive train than it is on a mountain bike standard drive train in 2025, so advantage Checkout here.

After considering all this, the answer to "Is the Checkout just a drop bar mountain bike?" is YES. An older mountain bike, but yes. This is a mountain bike. I'd say it is a more capable mountain bike in several ways than the HiFi was. Only the short travel on the Checkout (60mm front, 55mm rear) is holding it back. So, maybe we should add to the answer here. "The Checkout is a drop bar MTB from another era with too little travel." 

2011 Fisher HiFi Deluxe (Image courtesy of Trek Bikes)

Next: "Who is this bike for?" I've seen many online defending the Checkout by saying it is a bike for ultra-endurance folks who do things like the Atlas Mountain Bike Race, or Trans-whatever continental type rides you want to point to. Okay....maybe so. But how many people actually do these events and are not sponsored athletes who have to ride certain equipment? Then take the remainder and see who want to trust a carbon fiber bike on a thousand mile or more outback trek across unsupported territories. I'm guessing we would be left with a not very large market for buyers. .

So, I believe Trek isn't going to base their marketing around events and riders who do those types of events, but they will gladly take their money if they choose a Checkout. No, Trek is looking at something else here with more chances for sales. 

What has more appeal these days than Gravel™. Also, note the Checkout has a rack. Note the frame bags Trek shows the Checkout with in some of their marketing. Note the name: "Checkout". A clever take on their gravel bike nomenclature, certainly, but an intentional name as well. All this points to bike packing/touring. Trek even had the media crowd come to a press camp and had the journos ride the Checkout on fire roads, single track, and other mountainous type trails. Not a lick of gravel roads like we have in the Mid-West to be seen. Also intentional. 

So, Trek is trying to appeal to the bike packing type who could justify the Checkout as being a gravel bike, or an everyday usage bike in a pinch. This helps the consumer accept the big price tag (9K) of the Checkout and its weight as well. (Reportedly something around 27lbs).  I also expect a lesser priced aluminum framed Checkout at some point. 

There are more to things here which I have thoughts on, but in my opinion, the Checkout is a throw-back 29"er FS bike with a nod towards gravel. It is trying to capture those consumers who have a wanderlust for bike packing but need to justify their purchase by having the bike be some other thing as well. And what better way to do this than make it a pseudo-gravel bike.  

On Stats

 As many of you regular blog readers may know, I had started running a "Weekly Top Five" list on weekends to point folks to posts which were getting read more than others. I thought it would be a fun way to see how people used the blog. 

When you have 20 years of archives,  the stats used to show me some interesting things. There were times when certain posts would bubble up to the surface because maybe a forum somewhere linked to it. Maybe a website linked to a certain subject here. You just never really knew what might turn up. 

That is, until this Summer. 

At some point this Summer, it is my opinion that artificial intelligence, web crawling bots, or aliens were pumping up the numbers artificially. Maybe it is all three things. I don't know. 

I do know every week it gets more and more ridiculous to the point I do not believe the numbers anymore. We are talking about numbers five times higher per day than what I'd been seeing for the past five years. 

I expect a little growth, sure, but this? It all seems fake, and I feel because of this, doing a post based on stat numbers I am getting, which likely are false, is not a good thing. It is artificial and misleading, I think. 

So, I am suspending the "Weekly Top Five" series and I probably will not do a "Top Ten Posts of 2025" review at the end of the year. I wish the numbers were reflective of real people reading these pages, but it seems highly unlikely this might be the case. 

Anyway..... If you ever see an AI generated story about gravel cycling which kind of sounds like I wrote it and it is not on this blog, you can probably bet it is AI. Not saying it will ever happen, but from what I am seeing on the backside of the blog, I would not at all be surprised if it were to occur.  

Peregrine Mk4 Update

 Someone in the comments said earlier this week the following statement: "Too much Peregrine content?? No way. It’s your New Bike Day/Month! We want all the details! "

Well, be very careful what you ask for, because here is more content about the Peregrine.  

I'm in my "getting to know you" phase of ownership here which includes my making small tweaks to my set up. I can only do this fine tuning after rides lasting from 30 minutes to an hour or so. I ride. I make a tweak. I ride and see if what I did results in what I am after. Rinse and repeat until I finally am satisfied. 

So, to describe why I was 'tweaking' what I was tweaking I have to go back to the original intentions for the build. One of those was to use what I had on the Twin Six as much as possible. This meant avoiding new cables and housings, new brake hoses, and all the things this can entail. In this I was successful. However; because of this I had painted myself in something of a corner which I had to find a way out from behind. 

This mostly had to do with how I was sat on the bike. I was a tiny bit cramped due to the need for the stubby Whisky Parts Co. stem I used. I could not put a longer stem on the bike because I'd have to switch out the rear brake hose, rear cable housing, and rear cable. So, to gain a little bit of the lost reach back, I decided to try to find and use a seat post with a little more setback and a saddle which would also accommodate me in this way as well. I was hoping both things would get me closer to the number I like to see for my reach.  

The Honeman  Flyer with the Thomson seat post, zero offset. 

 Looking at my fleet of bicycles I noted I had not addressed the seat post issue on the Honeman Flyer 100% to my liking.  (The bike with the seemingly never-ending seat post saga!) Anyway..... I had been using a Salsa Cycles Ti Regulator post on this bike which has a fair amount of set back. This was not ideal for the Honeman Flyer's 70° seat tube angle. I started off with a zero offset post on the Flyer and it was better, from an ergonomic standpoint. It was undersized though, and slipped all the time, so it had to go. I eventually landed on the Ti Regulator as a stop-gap solution to end all the slipping seat post madness I was experiencing with this bike. 

Well, if I could find a suitable post for the Honeman Flyer maybe I could poach the seat post for the Peregrine. So, to the seat post bin! (Yes......I have multiple unused seat posts sitting in a big tin can!) I rummaged through this assortment of seat posts and came across a nice silver Thomson post with zero offset. Nice! Now I could swap posts with the Honeman Flyer and maybe get the setback I was looking for. 

The Peregrine Mk4 with the Salsa Ti Regulator and WTB Solano saddle installed. 

Now the Flyer also had a WTB Solano saddle fitted, so I knew this saddle was pretty good with me, and it had a fair amount of rail to use for adjustment. With the saddle slid back as far as allowed, and with the set back on the Ti Regulator, I gained back almost all my preferred reach. Almost, which is fine, because I wanted to try a little less reach and see if I wasn't setting my bicycles up with too much reach, ending up being too stretched out, perhaps. We will see. Remember: Test & Tweak.  Now on to one other interesting point about this bike. 

I'd say that looks like a good half of an inch there.

I had a reader ask about toe overlap with the Peregrine Mk4. Good question! Since this bike can handle big tires, this could be a concern, right? Well, I went out with my size 46 Shimano gravel shoes on, clipped in, and tried to get my foot to touch the front tire. This tire is a 700 X 50mm Schawlbe G-One Overland, for reference. The crank arm length is 172.5mm. 

The image here shows the closest I could get to touching the tire with my toes. I'd say this is not very close! Also, I try to set my cleats back as far as I can, but not all the way back. Very close to it, but I would still have room for my foot even if my cleats were slammed all the way back.

So, the good news here is that a size Large should not cause any issues with toe overlap. Maybe if I were running fenders, I might have toe overlap with this big of a tire, but I bet I'd still be good, if just barely so. 

Had I been sporting the biggest tire which would clear the Peregrine's frame and fork, I probably would get a bit of toe contact, in my opinion, but I'm not planning on going to the extreme which would cause this to happen. 

Next, I had someone in the comments ask about contrasting the ride of the Peregrine with my Gen I Fargo. So, this is really an apples and oranges thing, in my opinion. The Fargo Gen I being a more MTB-leaning drop bar bike, while the Peregrine is based on a classical road bike. Certainly the two overlap in certain aspects, but as far as the ride quality, these are very different bicycles.  

I think it might prove to be enlightening if I just put it this way: I'm not getting rid of either of the two bikes and they will do different things for me. Now if one was doing the same thing for me as the other? One would have to go away, as I wouldn't ride one of them. As it stands, again for myself, this is not the case and both bikes will remain in my service for the time being. 

If anything, this Peregrine is probably more like my Black Mountain Cycles MCD. But I will have to do some back-to-back comparisons to verify this. Keeping in mind the MCD can run 'up to' a 50mm tire, while the Peregrine can handle even slightly larger tires.  

Okay, I think I've covered just about everything I wanted to get to on this update. I hope you folks who had indicated you were fine with more Peregrine content are satisfied! Ha! 

I'll have more to share here soon. I know of one more tweak which is coming, and there may be more. Plus I hope for ride content as well. Stay tuned. 

Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of ROTOR

ROTOR Unveils UNO Electronic Shifting Group Set:

ROTOR, the Spanish company best known for oval chain rings and crank sets, had Wheeltop, a Chinese component manufacturer, buy a majority stake in the company last year. Long rumored to be having an electronic group set in the making with Rotor branding, this now has become a reality with UNO. 

The "Gravel Upgrade Kit" version of UNO consists of the levers, hydraulic brake calipers, and the rear derailleur. Compatible with 1X only and with a 46T rear cassette limitation, the group set will cost $948.42 USD (Odd pricing, but likely a conversion from a foreign currency figure) 

The group set's rear derailleur is carbon with 7005 series aluminum bits. ROTOR claim the rear mech will shift up to 15,000 times on one battery charge. Interestingly, this group set is compatible with 10, 11, 12, and 13 speed cassettes as long as the rear cassette does not exceed a 46T low gear.

Comments: Well, another electronic, wireless choice which is breaking the 1K price point. Wheeltop's collaboration here is notable as previous efforts by ROTOR to make a group set were hydraulically controlled. This would appear to be more Wheeltop than not. Wheeltop users on the internet have reported mixed results with their group sets, and how ROTOR's UNO will fare is not known at this time. 

We will have to wait for the results to come in via real world usage, but for now, this marks a further march toward a wireless bicycle era which will feature no cables on bicycles. 

Image courtesy of Velo Orange

Velo Orange Announces Raffle For Charity:

Here's a fun bit of news. Velo Orange is holding a raffle for a Neutrino rolling chassis which has been custom Cerakoted by Weichel Coatings and has components from ATW Builds . Each $5.00 chance gets you in line for possibly winning this size Large Neutrino partial build. 

All proceeds go to helping out the mission of Happy Helpers of the Homeless, a charity who bring meals and support to homeless and poverty stricken men and women every weekend in the Halethorpe, Maryland area. 

The raffle runs through now to October 15th. A winner will be chosen at random the week of October 20th. See all details and rules for this raffle HERE. 

IMage courtesy of IRD Components

Airdrop Seat Post Provides Dropper Feature In Silver Ano:

IRD Components, who do a variety of niche items, have a new Airdrop dropper post which has a few unique features. You'll notice right away it is offered in a silver anodized finish rather than the common black anodization. 

The Airdrop also has no cable running to it or a lever to deal with on your handle bar. Rather, it uses a simple lever located off the seat post head to raise and lower the post through its 100mm of drop. 

The Airdrop comes in the common 27.2mm size only and has an overall length of 400mm. The maximum insertion is listed at 190mm and minimum insertion for the post is listed at 90mm.  

The Airdrop is available on IRD's site and runs $129.00 USD. 

Comments: This is kind of cool for anyone with a silver anodized build who may want to explore a dropper post on a gravel bike. Why would you want to do this? Well, for one, a dropper post can be used as a way to easily mount and dismount a bike by lowering the saddle when stopped. This is of particular benefit if you have a very heavily laden touring bike set up, or if you are bikepacking. 

Secondly, lowering the post on any longer downhill will help you get lower on the bike, and more aero. You'll bomb hills far faster with a dropper post lowered than not. It can be rather eye-opening, actually. Of course, there is the benefit while descending steep, rough terrain as well. 

US Customs Cites Giant For Forced Labor Practices, Holds Imports:

On Wednesday, "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" broke a story in which Giant Bicycles is being investigated for forced labor practices at its Taiwan factories. As a result, all Giant product and other branded product made there is being held at port until the matter is solved.  Giant is reportedly filing a petition to revoke the Withhold Release Order.,

You can read the story HERE.

Comments: This is an interesting development as it is widely known Giant also makes bicycles for several other well known brands. If, in fact, the Withhold Release Order is upheld, this could further disrupt the chain of supply and cause detriment to an already depressed economy for the cycling industry. 

This could also be seen as a bad public relations event, if this ends up becoming a larger issue. 

UPDATE: 9/26/25:  (From Bicycle Retailer and Industry News X Account) UPDATE: Giant clarified to BRAIN this morning that CBP is currently not holding any shipments from the company. The CBP's Withhold Release Order announced Wednesday applies to any products arriving after the order.

Image courtesy of Trek Bikes

That Full Suspension Gravel Bike From Trek Finally Is Official:

On Thursday Trek Bikes finally unleashed the Checkout SL- a 9K carbon fiber full-suspension gravel/bike packing bike. Replete with 55mm wide tires out of the box and the new Rudy XL (released yesterday) on the front. This bike has 60mm of travel up front, and according to a Instagram post I saw, 55mm in the back. 

Rumors and images of this bicycle were floating around the web since around the Unbound event back in early June, so those who caught the pictures then probably are not surprised here. 

And look at the flares and swept tops on this drop bar. Pretty radical for a 2025 release. I happen to like this sort of thing, but it does go in the opposite direction from the racing type handlebars on most newer gravel bikes. 

Comments: Hmm.... Much can be said about a bicycle like this. I will say it looks a little ungainly and the "Miami Vice| color palette is not my cup of tea. (The Checkout SL 5 is a more subdued black, by the way) The images of this bike kitted out for bikepacking look great, but the bare bike is sort of jarring to the eye with the tipped forward rack and MTB-looking fork. 

I could see an aluminum, more budget friendly version of this bike at some point if they sell these things. $8,999.00 for the Checkout SL 7 is no joke though, so you have to wonder if many of these will be sold. Mostly because (a) it is an oddball bike, not really XC MTB and not really gravel, and (b) it is a carbon frame bike. Most bikepackers are looking for Titanium or steel in this space. It is an interesting bicycle, nonetheless. 
 

That's a wrap on this week's news and views. Thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions. Get out and ride those bicycles!
 

Gravel Grinder News: SRAM Introduces Rudy XL Ultimate, Rudy XL Forks

The new 60mm travel Rudy XL Ultimate

 New Longer Travel Forks For Gravel Riders Feature More Tire Clearance:

NOTE: Information and images were provided by SRAM. All opinions and statements in the "Comments" section are Guitar Ted's. 

SRAM announces their latest in front suspension forks for gravel today by showing the new Rudy XL Ultimate and Rudy XL forks. These forks will feature longer travel with 50mm or 60mm of travel paired with tire clearance to match gravel riding's new wider tire trends. 

The Ultimate will be SRAM's flagship model and will have the Charger 2 damper with Solo Air spring. This model will be quite noticeable in its Electric Red color. 

Riders will be able to enjoy the 50mm or 60mm of travel  with lock out and the 29"x 2.25" of clearance will assure riders that they have every option for gravel tires available to fit in the fork. Additionally, a separately available front fender can be attached via two bolts to help cut down on the mud and water getting to the rider during extreme conditions riding. 

SRAM claims the Charger 2 damper is tuned to "stay firm" on faster sections and smooth out the rougher stuff. The 45mm of offset should allow for more stability as well. The fork will be available aftermarket with tapered steer tube and at a sub 1K price of $929.00 USD (  € 1,010, £ 900)

The Rudy XL will be OEM only

The Rudy XL will be the fork you see on stock bikes coming from your favorite brands. This version of the new Rudy will also feature 50 or 60mm of travel. The difference is the Rudy XL will not have the Charger 2 damper but a "cartridge rebound damper with a broad range of Rebound adjust". 

This fork will have the same tire clearance of 29" x 2.25" and the aftermarket fender option. There also will be gloss black and flat black versions of the Rudy XL.

Comments: In my opinion, the original gravel suspension forks featuring 40mm of travel were just not worth the money and lacked performance which we've all become accustomed to having in MTB forks with 80mm of travel and up.  

Moving to 60mm of travel is, in my opinion, a better option, but it still is not going to be quite enough. However; unless we are willing to move to - what basically will amount to - full-on 29"er XC racing bike fare, this will be maximum in gravel and will barely keep these bikes looking anything akin to a road bike. The kind of bicycles from which gravel bikes were originally born from. (If we are talking from a brand/marketing standpoint)  

Yes, cue all the chatter on social media deriding the new Rudy XL as "just another marketing ploy" and "why don't we just call this drop bar MTB already!" However; the evolution of "what is gravel" is being pushed forward into this territory by gravel racing. This fuels marketing and informs new product. The cycle only continues to live on because people buy the ideas. 

Is this going to move the needle? It is probably already being used by gravel Pros, we just did not know it. (SRAM claims this has been in development for two years already) So, yeah... It will be adopted by many riders. Like it or not, gravel is becoming the defacto XC cycling of the 21st Century. These forks are only a precursor to more changes which are, no doubt, coming to make "gravel" more uniform in terms of events and appeal for media coverage. At least at the semi-Pro and Pro levels. 

But those are discussions for the future. Will the fork work for today's gravel events? Well, in theory, 60mm of travel has got to be better than 40mm of travel. We're getting closer to "what actually works", but for roads which are unpaved? This is probably overkill.  

With any gravel telescoping suspension fork you still have high maintenance costs, the risk of buying something which will be obsolete in a few years, and you'll be adding more weight. Does this all pale in comparison to the benefits? Only you, the riders, can decide this.  

Cables Are So Old School

The bikes of the future will have zero cables

 I touched on the subject of bicycles with no mechanical group set compatibility here last weekend in my latest "Two Things" post. I theorized this might reflect a move by brands to make consumer direct sales an easier thing. 

However; I received an email from a small, semi-custom brand recently which gave me a different feeling about this subject. I will redact the name to protect the innocent, but the following quote from this email was enlightening.  

" XXX is designed as a purebred racer. The best drivetrains on the market are now all wireless. XXXv2 is only compatible with wireless drivetrains. The rear brake line now routes internally through the down tube.XXXv2 is now sleeker and more intentionally aligned with its function."

And that note was in an email for a steel frame! Soooo...... What happens when wireless drive trains trickle down to mid-tier levels? What happens when Chinese brands like L-Twoo and  Wheeltop drive electronic, wireless components to the entry levels? Well, I think what we are seeing above is what will become more and more commonplace. Frames with no compatibility with cabled drive trains and brakes. 

Shimano and SRAM will fall in line with this because frame makers will say it will streamline frame production, make certain designs feasible which would have been hard to do with cabled designs, and it will fit the fashion of the day. 

In another email I received this week, SRAM announced a "firmware update" for Eagle AXS Transmission which addresses "cassette mapping" and shifting speeds. So, tune up by down loading an update? And this isn't even a dealer service only thing, anyone can update this system.  

Does this mean cabled drive trains are becoming extinct? Well.....top of the range drive train bits are already all wireless, so the answer is it has already happened. At least for those range-topping bikes and components. This will only be spread downward into mid-tier bicycles and eventually, entry level bikes. It is going to happen. 

But I do think mechanical drive train parts are a niche market which perhaps can survive in a different sort of marketplace. Maybe a more boutique, cottage type economy will serve those who do not wish to have battery operated gears. 

But cables? Soooo old school! 

NOTE: A press release will be posted today at 9:00am CST. Be sure to check back to catch this news if you are an early morning reader of the blog. Thanks! 

Are Fat Bikes Dead?

Text from N.Y. Roll

Ten years ago it was fat bike utopia. Everyone had jumped on the fat bike hype-train. Maybe you do not remember those days. I do, and those were heady times in the world of fat bikes. 

Remember these fat bikes? The Raleigh Rumson. Or how about the Fuji Wendigo? No? Well, how about the Heller Bloodhound, or the Jamis Roughneck? Surely you recall the Fat Cad with the Lefty fork and the Coast Bikes full suspension fat bike, don't you? 

Hmm.....all bikes gone by the wayside these days. Fat bikes fell off a cliff in terms of sales by the late twenty-teens, and by the pandemic they were nearly relegated to only the long time brands in the space like Salsa Cycles, Surly, and Fatback Bikes. Most brands who had jumped in around 2014 - 2015 were out of the game by 2020. 

Now fat bikes are pretty much gone from the performance/human powered cycling space. But they are thriving for the brands which attach motors to frames which can handle big, corpulent tires. Since little regard has to be given to weight when motors are involved, these fat bikes are heavy. Since they dominate the market, manufacturers are trending toward making stuff for them. Not so much for the human powered fat bikers. 

Try finding a variety of 26" x 4.0 tires with tubeless ready casings and fast tread design. You'll run into exactly what I mean. Lots of wire bead, heavy, non-tubeless e-bike fare. The market for those 26"er fat bikes that can handle around a 4" tire is getting pretty thin. 

Bring back the Black Floyd!

Only half kidding there. But anyway, fat bikes are not dead as in "not around anymore", but their development is non-existent. I mean, how many seasons has Salsa trotted out the exact same bikes as the year before donned in a different color? Same with Surly. 

In this sense, fat bikes are 'dead'. At least you can still get a 100% human powered one. 

Planning Out The Rest Of The Year

With Fall here now I am thinking about the rest of 2025 and what I would like to accomplish before Winter shuts down riding to plowing through snow on my fat bikes. 

Obviously, this past Summer is a perfect example of why you can lay down plans and never see them come to fruition due to circumstances beyond your control. I certainly have had this experience over the past month and a half. 

So, risking possibilities of having all this nixed and never happening, I have the following ideas for how I'd like to see my riding go for the next few months. 

Obviously, I want to put in a lot of time on my new Peregrine Mk4. I already have a couple of tweaks in mind to accomplish concerning fit for the bike. This will mean a couple of component changes are in the mix. I know I need a different seat post with a hair more set back. I also want to swap out saddles. The current WTB SL8 was already attached to the seat post when I grabbed it out of the parts bin, so it was a choice made out of convenience. I now remember why it was not one of my favorites! 

I also have to put in miles on those Schwalbe G-One Overland tires for my review. So, gravel rides are on the menu here. I think since I have use of a vehicle again I can perhaps haul the bike to start points I would not have been able to do before this and since last October. This presents more options, and honestly, a bit more excitement from my perspective. 

You are probably going to get tires of seeing this bike. Well......hopefully you will!

Later on into Fall I want to try to do another metric century, or attempt a full century, but getting an entire day to myself is not easy now. This is merely a hope. I need to get in a solid base of consistent two to three hour rides before this can really be a reality anyway. 

Then I will also be doing the Virtual Turkey Burn Challenge again this year around our Thanksgiving weekend holiday. I hope Winter doesn't come earlier than this! It should be the last big mileage weekend for the season for me. I also enjoy the stories which come in for the blog related to this. In case you are not familiar with the Virtual Turkey Burn Challenge, hit THIS LINK and it will take you to a post I wrote concerning the challenge so you can understand what it is. Maybe you will want to join in?  (There will be an "official" announcement coming for this in November.)

In the past I have not offered any reward other than having your story and images reproduced on the blog. This time I may do something like have some stickers made and have anyone who wants to participate send me a self-addressed, stamped envelope to send some stickers out for doing the challenge. I'll have to come up with a design for this. 

So, I know this is a bit unfocused and lacks any hard and fast dates, and whatnot, but I'm playing things by ear here and with what has happened to me over the past several weeks has made me a bit reticent to say "this will happen" or what have you. 

Country Views: Fall Is Here

Escape Route: Northern Waterloo Alleys

It has been a while now since I've had a ride out into the country. These off and on again thundershowers and rain have made scheduling a ride difficult  for me of late. In fact, I generally just had to dash out when the opportunity arose to just get in a brief ride in my neighborhood.

Things finally straightened out enough this past weekend to allow for chancing a ride out of town. However; I had to make it brief due to a few things going on with us at home. 

One was a bathroom remodel. A project which was to have started a few days after my son's death, and was put on hold for obvious reasons. Next was Mrs. Guitar Ted's knee surgery, (a clean-up, not a replacement), which had been scheduled for over a month. This meant Mrs. Guitar Ted could not drive, so anything requiring driving was now on my plate. So, yeah.....chaos. 

But on Sunday there was a window of time where everything came together to allow for a brief ride, so I grabbed the chance. Of course, I rode the Singular Peregrine Mk4. Since this was to be its first foray on "real gravel", I had to take it to the "Big Rock", because this has kind of become tradition with me and gravel bikes. 

It seems things are a bit advanced as far as where the crops are at for harvesting.

The skies were moody on this day.

Once I reached the rural areas it was plain to see the corn was totally dried down and harvesting had been taking place. I have seen a lot of harvesting images on social media from Iowa, but here everything is on hold. There were places which have received over three inches of rain around Waterloo over the past week. Those harvesters won't get out there in these fields until things firm up a bit more. 

Even some of the trees are in full-color already here.

The visitation

The calendar says it is "officially Fall" now, and it shows up all around. Even some of the trees are all in color now. Again, seems a bit advanced from a normal year. I think of early October for this sort of color and the beginning of harvesting corn. Maybe I am way off, but this is my perception of things. 

 

Lying in wait. Ready to attack!

I made it to the Big Rock and took a brief assessment of my time and condition. Oh, I forgot! I tweaked my right shoulder muscles somehow while hauling scrap out of the basement at the Collective the other day. I did not want to exacerbate this issue as it was feeling a bit better for the first time on Sunday. So, with all the things going on, I made the call to make this a short ride. 

Good thing too. I was two blocks from home when my incapacitated wife put out a distress call. Nothing major, but I was sure happy I was close to home!  

Two Things

New Guitar Ted Podcast Discusses New And Old Technologies:

The latest Guitar Ted Podcast just dropped. In Episode 84 you will hear a variety of things being discussed. If there is a theme here it is that of how new tech is going to change our view of cycling in the near future. Or at least it is what we think will happen. (Listen to Episode 84)

Of course, I discuss my Singular Cycles Peregrine Mk4, which was the main subject here all of this past week. The newer stuff we talked about is in direct contrast to a bicycle like the Peregrine. 

With the cycling marketplace changing to something most industry experts don't even understand yet, this move to consumer direct sales will have a far-reaching effect upon how bicycles are designed and what components will be bolted to those bicycles. 

We discuss how it may be that frames designed only for electronic gearing with no wires might be a response by the industry to companies wanting to make selling direct to consumers an easier thing for all parties. Imagine a world where all that needs to be done is to pair Bluetooth components to an app and have any adjustments necessary be done through the app. You could literally send a bicycle nearly complete in a box and have all adjustments be led by the app and possibly a YouTube video. 

This would effectively eliminate the need for dealers to have mechanics around to build bicycles up. There will still be repairs, fittings, and accessories, so dealers won't go away, but initial sales will be direct to consumer, cutting out dealers entirely and lessening the need for mechanics on duty all the time. 

Image courtesy of SRAM

SRAM Files Suit Over UCI Gearing Restrictions:

Perhaps you noted on Friday the suit filed in a Belgian case regarding the UCI's gearing restrictions and how this affects SRAM sposored Pro Road racing teams.  

The condensed, overly-simplified story here concerns the UCI's efforts to bring speeds down for racing, and therefore improve  rider safety. The UCI has issued a decree which limits gearing range to an effective 54 X 11T maximum on the high end. SRAM's newest Red AXS has an effective 54 X 10 range. 

SRAM is saying the UCI has arbitrarily eliminated SRAM from Pro racing with this edict and their rule is a misguided attempt to make racing safer. Amongst other things SRAM said, by the way, this seems to be the crux of their issues with this UCI ruling.   

Comments: I tend to agree with SRAM on this one. The rider's safety is important, but limiting gearing is not the way to address excessive speeds. Rider's and teams will adapt, and speeds will return to where they are at, if they are affected at all. 

And maybe the issues are not gear related. Perhaps course design, crowd control, and rider's decision making is to blame here. At any rate, SRAM has a point with their argument. 

However; I disagree with SRAM in their insinuation that the UCI is picking on them specifically. Besides, can't SRAM just, you know, have something made to allow them to comply? Like, how hard is it to make a cassette which would satisfy the UCI when this company can find ways to make chains proprietary, amongst other daft "standards" SRAM has created over the years. 

Garage Sale: T-6 Standard Rando v2 Frame Set

 For Sale:

Twin Six Standard Rando v2 . 59cm 2020 model in "Safron" Carbon Fork upgrade. 

The current Standard Rando with Carbon fork upgrade and a Wolf Tooth head set runs $714.00 USD ON SALE on Twin Six's site. With the frame set I am selling you get an upgraded Enduro Bearings MaxHit head set, ($118.00) and Enduro Bearings "TorqTite" PF 30 bottom bracket ($98.00) and all cable clips to run 2X ($16.00 upgrade) for $450.00 + shipping. (PayPal or cash only) Sale is final, no returns. 

This frame is in VERY GOOD condition with no through-paint scratching or scuffs. It will come with through axles and seat collar, as shown. Carbon fork steer tube has been cut and has a steer tube plg installed. 

The bike fit a 6' 1" rider perfectly. I would give a size range for the bike of  6" 00"" to 6' 2" as being ideal here. Twin Six has a geometry chart you can see by scrolling through the gallery for the model HERE. 

Bike will be expertly packed in a standard bike frame box. Shipping costs will be determined at time of sale. You can also opt for local pick-up. 

Interested? Get a hold of me at g.ted.productions@gmail.com

NOTE: I can provide more images if needed. 

Schwalbe G-One Overland Tires 700 x 50mm: First Impressions

 Note: Guitar Ted was gifted these tires by a friend for his Singular Peregrine Mk4 bicycle build. Guitar Ted is not being paid, nor bribed for this review. Schwalbe is unaware of this review and have no input in the content here. All opinions are Guitar Ted's. 

The Schwalbe G-One Overland tires were introduced back in early September. Due to having to wait for the bicycle I wanted to mount them on having to be shipped and built up, this post was a bit delayed. By the way, if you missed the intro, you can go back and read it HERE. 

Mounting & Initial Measurements: 

The Schwalbe site doesn't give us a lot of information on the casing for this tire, which is dubbed SUPERGROUND, by the way. I do know it has some level of puncture protection. Handling this tire, and many other tires with puncture protection in the past, has led me to a couple of conclusions.

First, despite whatever SUPERGROUND actually is, I believe it is a bead-to-bead puncture protection layer in the casing. I say this because the casing is very stiff, and this made the tire very difficult to mount. Maybe I am incorrect in this guess, but I think not. 

As I have mounted hundreds of different types of tires in the span of a 30+ year career as a bicycle mechanic, I can say these G-One Overlands rank high on the "difficult to mount" range. By the way, I was using a Shimano GRX carbon wheel, so this isn't some narrow, odd carbon rim.

 Secondly, as stated, due to the stiff nature of the G-One Overland tires, the casing felt plasticky, and not very rubber-like, despite the tread feeling grippy. This tire reminds me a lot of the Hutchinson Touareg tires, which also had a bead-to-bead puncture protection layer. I had to run those tires at significantly lower pressures to get a ride feel I wanted and the Hutchinsons took a while to stretch to their designated width as well. Likely due to the not very pliable, or stretchy puncture protection belt. I expect a similar experience with these Schwalbe tires. 

Once mounted, the tires aired up easily with a floor pump with the valve cores installed. This was a surprise as I would have guessed an air compressor would have been necessary to set the beads due to the very stiff sidewalls. However; it could be that the G-One Overland's tighter fit, (which also made these difficult to mount, by the way), allowed for the ease of setting the beads in place.

I set the tires up at 30psi each and after a few hours they measured at 49mm and 49.4mm each. This is a good sign for the Overland tires to reach their stated width of 50mm eventually. 

The casing has a rounded look on these 25mm inner width GRX rims. Again, very reminiscent of the Hutchinsons. The center tread section should be speedy due to this casing shape, and unless my pressure setting is too low, I will be expecting a speedy roll on hard pack or pavement.  

Coming Up:

I'll be spending a lot of time with the bicycle the G-One Overlands are on so these tires should get a fair shake before Winter sets in. I think I'll learn everything I can about the Schwalbe G-One Overland tires by the time the leaves are off the trees, so expect a final verdict around that time. 

The Singular Peregrine Mk4 mounted with Schwalbe G-One Overland tires.

 I probably will also post a mid-term update once I have several rides on these tires, so look for this update coming in soon. Until then, all I can say is I can totally see why mechanics or average riders who do their own tubeless set ups may not like these tires much from an installation standpoint. I used this mounting tool to set the Overlands up with and without it I would have been very frustrated. Besides the difficulty in mounting, the airing up and setting of the beads was a cakewalk. So, some bad, some good there. 

Stay tuned for more soon.  

Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Singular Cycles

Singular Announces Titanium Kite:

Last week word came down concerning the new drop of titanium Singular Kite frames and forks. While titanium is often used as a frame material, it is less often seen used for a fork. 

I don't mean to gloss over the beautiful Kite model here, because it is a stunning bicycle. However; the fork is pretty amazing, and this comes down to its mode of construction. 

The drop outs and the fork crown are 3D printed, which allows for the exact placement of material for strength, and for aesthetic purposes, which cannot be achieved using traditional titanium stock and joinery methods. 

The Ti fork has a tapered steer tube, and it may not work for every bicycle, but if you have something compatible with this fork, you can purchase it separately HERE. 

I know, it's been a Singular Cycles week here. But I thought the fork on this Kite model was amazing. 

Image courtesy of Dangerholm Facebook page

Your Rims For Gravel Are Wimpy!

The athlete known as "Dangerholm", Gustav Gullholm, has produced a rim for gravel racing which he thinks will revolutionize the sport . Gullholm is a proponent of wide, 29" rubber for gravel and thinks rims are just not where they need to be for these wider tires. 

Working with a company called Faction Bike Studio, Gullholm is saying these 45mm inner rim width rims with a sort of "shark tooth" aero treatment will be the fastest wheel set on gravel in the coming year. For comparison, the rim on the left has a 30mm inner rim width. 

Gullholm feels the wider rim gives a better aero profile with the wider tires he prefers. Saying the 70mm depth profile and overall 52mm width works best with 29" X 2.2" - 2.25" tires, Gullholm claims these rims have proven themselves in simulations done by Faction Bike Studio.

Comments: While I have been a proponent of aero for gravel, this seems a bit extreme. How much do these rims weigh? I have no idea and Gullholm isn't saying at this point. But whatever they weigh, the weight has to be something of a negative here, one could easily assume. We may find out soon enough as Gullholm says these are rideable prototypes and the bike they will be going on will be unveiled at the Dresden Bicycle Show soon.  

Image courtesy of Factor Bikes

Factor Bikes Releases New Aluto Carbon Gravel Bike All-Arounder:

Factor Bikes announced on Thursday their newest gravel bike, the Aluto. Meant for longer days and rider comfort, the Aluto design is a bit different than Fator's Ostro model. 

Eschewing the move by many companies to stuff in larger tires, Factor has designed the Aluto to be optimized around a 45mm tire. Maximum tire clearance is 52mm in the front, but the rear is maxed out at 47mm. 

Factor also went against the grain with a shorter front/center and short reach for the handle bars shipped with this bike. Their reasoning is due to the longer hood length of modern gravel-oriented shifter/brake levers and for better rider comfort during longer rides. 

Image courtesy of Factor Bikes

Factor also states it shortened the rear center, and it steepened the head tube a bit over their Ostro model. Finally, a bit lower bottom bracket height rounds out the tweaks to this gravel bike.

The de rigueur down tube storage and internal everything routing is here as well. 

The Aluto is available as a frame set. with SRAM Force AXS XPLR, or Red AXS XPLR. The frame is also 1X or 2X compatible. (Electronic only)  Prices are $3,999.00 frame set, $6,999.00 Forsce AXS XPLR, and $8,699.00 Red AXS XPLR USD.

Comments: Yeah, this is cool and all, but shorter chain stays and steeper head tube angles? Seems a step backward in terms of rider comfort, in my opinion. (Or a bicycle aimed at roadies coming over to gravel) This bike was ridden by Factor's Brand Director, David Millar at Unbound this past June. He being a former road Pro, it would make sense to me if the Aluto was a more "fast-feeling" bike, and not necessarily an actual advancement in "rider comfort for longer rides" type bicycle. 

Oakley Meta Meta Vanguard Prizm. (Image courtesy of Oakley)

Oakley Releases Meta-Enabled Eyewear:

Your Sunglasses can now be "devices". Oakley has released their new range of "Meta-Enabled" smart-glasses. The new Meta Vanguard Prizm is the model in this range aimed at cyclists. 

You can pair these with a Garmin device, take images with the embedded camera, and listen to tunes via the onboard speakers. The Vanguard Prizm goes for about $500.00 USD and the battery will last "up to nine hours", according to Oakley.. 

Comments: They will sell every pair they can make. People are "device-mad" these days and I see no end in sight. Yeah..... I don't know man.... I cannot get away from having to charge this and that fast enough as it is. I'm in the camp of "Lithium-Ion batteries are The Devil" now. 

So, for me? Not so much. But these are amazing technology and Oakley eyewear is pretty much the standard for activities in the Sun to protect your eyeballs. 

That's a wrap for this week. Get out and ride those bicycles!

Review: Singular Peregrine Mk4 - Ride Impressions

 NOTE: Guitar Ted paid for the Peregrine Mk4 out of pocket. Singular Cycles is not paying for, nor has any knowledge of this review, (that is - until Sam reads this post!) All thoughts and opinions are Guitar Ted's.

 First of all, thank you for reading the build series for this bike. If you missed it, the previous three posts to this one should catch you up on things regarding this bicycle. Another thing to note here is the Schwalbe G-One Overland tires will be going on soon and these WTB tires are not the final look for this bicycle. Okay, with this out of the way, I wanted to give you all my first ride impressions from the two test rides I have put in on this bicycle so far.

The first ride was a neighborhood test ride to make sure everything was put together correctly and functioning as it should. I did run into one issue with the bike on this ride which I wanted to speak to here. It has to do with the seat post binder bolt. 

Typically, the non-driveside part of the binder is keyed and the key mates into a slot in the frame so this part of the binder bolt cannot rotate. You adjust the binder from the driveside. However, the binder bolt which was shipped with the frame is not keyed, so I must use two 5mm wrenches to adjust the post height and secure it. No big deal. However; on my first ride the post was slipping, because I didn't get it tight enough, and I did not have two 5mm hex keys along with me. Just a bit annoying is all. 

 I did not glean enough from what the rest of the bicycle was doing on the first ride because I was so annoyed by the slipping seat post. (It was noted about halfway through the test loop) So, I really couldn't tell you much about this bike from this first ride.

The second ride went far better and I brought two hex keys with me on this particular ride. However; I had that post locked down and I ended up not needing the two hex keys, but isn't this the way things go?  

 This time I was able to concentrate on what this bicycle was doing differently than the Twin Six. It was apparent right away that the Peregrine felt springier, less harsh, and definitely a bit more forgiving without being flexy and unpredictable.

I hit some dried out tractor tread tracks. Kind of like a dirt version of rumble strips, and the bike floated over these with just a touch of feedback to my hands. The T-6 would have communicated this to me as a very buzzy, rough patch, but the stiff carbon fork on the T-6 is mostly to blame there. I needed  a Redshift Sports ShockStop stem on the T-6 to help with this issue. On the Peregrine Mk4? I don't find it to be necessary yet.

Overall the bicycle reminded me of an old mountain bike in that it was doing things in compressions and over chatter which I found familiar from my experiences with those old, steel frames and forks. The fact of having the bars behind the front axle makes this even more pronounced, I think. It was slightly better than those old bicycles though, and I think this is due to materials use and through axles. 

I did find I had to really weight the handle bar on the inside of a corner to keep the front tire biting, but during gravel riding, this should not be a big deal. Speaking of.....

This will be the next test. A longer gravel ride. Stay tuned....