Friday News And Views

Image courtesy of Sklar Bikes

New Bike PPacking Rack From Sklar Bikes:

Sklar Bikes introduced this rack about a week or so ago. Inthe midst of all the Sea Otter madness, it seemed that the news was lost in the haze of 32'ers and all, so I am featuring it here on this FN&V. 

This rack, rated to carry up to 30lbs, weighs in at 1.4lbs including hardware. It is designed as a minimalist rack for light touring or bike packing with mini-panniers. You can also use it to strap on water bottles or just use it for utilitarian errand running around town. 

At $140.00USD it seems like a nicer rack which looks good and should fit a wide range of bikes. 

See Sklar's webpage for this rack HERE.

Comments: One nit about this rack is that the description does not say what it is made out of. Anyway.... I like this rack from the perspective of its design intentions. Minimalist pannier type touring and bike packing uses do not require super-heavy duty racks. Not if you are conscientious and intentional with your loading. And this rack carries up to 30lbs, which, let's be honest, is about the most I'd want to load up with anyway. Especially if you consider what you might be carrying in bags and on racks elsewhere on your bicycle. This might be a little pricey for some folks, and yes -cheaper racks exist, but if you care about how your stuff looks and like this style it is hard to beat it. 

Image courtesy of Q36.5

Q36.5 Offers New Range Of Wind/Rain Gear:

Q36.5 brand is now offering a range of wind and rain jackets and designed to allow cyclists to choose garments specific to their use cases and not have to compromise by a "one size fits all" solution to wind/rain gear.  

The range includes various jackets and vest, with the lightweight "Air" models being the most packable. Q36.5 claims the Air vest will roll up to the size of a gel packet. 

Most of the range called out in the press release doesn't seem to be up on the site yet, but the Air jackets and vests do appear there on their site. You can check those out on the website HERE.  

Comments: I don't know of any other category in cycling which has more wordy press releases and marketing than the apparel side. I mean, look at this jacket. It is rather unremarkable, yes? Yet the site goes on and on about it as if it were some super-tech device. Maybe its just me, but I've reviewed clothing for cyclists for over a decade and this seems to be par for the course across all apparel brands. I find it rather odd.  

Typically most of these apparel press releases are ignored by me, but this one has a feature I think many cyclists would see as being useful in the ultra-packable nature of the Air jacket and vest. I could see this as a great "break-glass-in-case-of-emergency" bail-out when the weather turns on you during a ride. I would imagine the rain wear (which didn't seem up yet on the site) would be similar. 

Image courtesy of Kuat Racks

Picking Up The Rack This Weekend:

Thanks to all who commented on the recent "Rack Me" posts here on the site. I valued each and every comment. I ended up buying a Kuat Piston Pro, and this weekend I am meeting my good friend Ari in St. Donatus, Iowa to pick it up. 

There were many reasons as to why I went with a Kuat, and if you missed the post listing those reasons out, you can go back and read it HERE. 

I will be excited to get this and use it for going to different places to ride. I've been stuck in the local loops for a few years now and it is time to branch out a bit. I've already got a few places in mind to hit up. 

I'll also be excited to visit with Ari again after not seeing him for close to two years now. And visiting St. Donatus will be interesting as well. Look for a report on all of this coming up next week. 

Never fear N.Y. Roll is here!

New Podcast Dropped:

The latest Guitar Ted Podcast episode is HERE.  This episode contains N.Y. Roll's advice on how to be a good event participant. I think it is a good list of things to consider. Too many times we hear about an event in a negative light on social media. It is nice to be reminded to say "Thank you" to event directors, volunteers, and staff when attending events. It is also prudent to air concerns directly with event directors instead of being a coward and running off to social media. Event directors, despite popular opinions, really do care about participants and their event. 

We also gabbed about the 32"er stuff from Sea Otter. I already covered my take on the bigger big wheels HERE, in case you missed it.  

We also covered one other thing, but you'll have to go listen to the episode to find out what this was all about. (Hey! I gotta drive the numbers somehow!) 

We should have another episode posting up soon. So, thanks if you are subscribed to our podcast, or if you have checked it out at some point. We appreciate you folks a lot! 

Image courtesy of Airborne social media

High-Tech Titanium Gravel frame By Airborne Now Available:

Hydroforming and 3D printing are utilized in the manufacturing of Airborne Bicycle Co.\s new Endeavor gravel bike. This frame has other unique features as well. 

Airborne claims this has a 13 position adjustable head set to alter head angle. The titanium material is also double butted for strength and weight reduction. The double-dropped chain stay alignment allows for 700 x 54mm tires. UDH compatible as well. of course. 

The asking price is $3,232.50. You can see and learn more at Airborne's site HERE. 
 

Thank you for checking out Guitar Ted Productions. Now get out there and ride your bicycles!