Saturday News And Views

Shimano drops Deore 12 speed this last week. You know what that means?

NOTE: Back in the day I used to run a "News And Views" post whenever news arose. Well, some things dropped at the end of the week and I already had a full FN&V post done, so I am bringing back a G-Ted Productions tradition.....

12 Speed Drops To Deore Level:

 Twelve speed trickles down another step. This past week Shimano released news of its 12 speed Deore level group with all the features of the upper gruppos only a little heavier and not quite as smoothly finished as XTR, XT, or SLX.

Of course, this pushes 11 speed down as well, which is now going to be found at the Deore M5100 level. Wait! Don't I mean Alivio? Nope. Shimano is actually making three levels of Deore now. 12, 11, and 10 speed. Alivio is refreshed, but remains 9 speed. When Shimano does things like this, you'd better pay attention if you are running 10 speed and especially you 9 speed folks, because this stuff will be getting pushed out to the cheaper groups and premium level parts will all be 11 speed and 12 speed in the very near future. Oh....and there was no mention of anything 8 speed. Although I am sure it exists, it isn't getting a refresh, so, again, pay attention to that tidbit.


This also means that 12 speed makes Deore MicroSpline, further pushing the old style free hub design to the back of the room, quality-wise. Of course, the other result of this is that 2X is now only 11 speed and 10 speed. Essentially the lower end of Deore, and in the future? Probably this will remain in the lowest end groups only.

The Deore 11's group.

In terms of new bikes, this also means that Deore is pretty much going to be a very confusing sale in bike shops and especially online. With three levels of the group, you are going to get folks thinking one bike, say with the Deore 12's, is 'overpriced' when they 'can get the same bike' for less with Deore somewhere else. But will that be Deore 10's? Yeah...... Have fun with that retailers.

Finally, you gotta wonder when MicroSpline comes to GRX for gravel, or........wait for it........ROAD BIKES!!! Oh yeah! That will be a day of reckoning that I believe is coming VERY soon. Yes, that means all your old, fancy-pants wheel sets will instantly be obsolete. SRAM will have to decide where to go at that point because traditional free hub tech will be essentially a dodo bird waiting to go extinct. Shimano already has aftermarket wheel and hub folks doing MicroSpline for mtb, and they aren't going to want another proprietary hub deal from SRAM. Not that SRAM won't do it, but yeah.... Interesting times ahead.

Note: Images courtesy of Shimano.

Iconic wheel and component manufacturer, MAVIC, seems to be in trouble.

 Confusion At MAVIC:

An icon of the road scene, MAVIC, seems to be in some sort of financial trouble. According to this story on "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News", the wheel maker may not be owned by who we were led to believe. Furthermore, the French press is reporting the the company is in receivership.

I have noted that a mechanic's Facebook page has had several comments posted by many North American based mechanics saying that their e-mails and calls for service parts and technical help have not been returned by MAVIC. Clearly, something is amiss. I remember the last time I worked on a MAVIC wheel, in 2019, it was a real pain to get parts at that time. This is not good news for shop mechanics.

This is bad news for anyone with MAVIC wheels in the future as it would appear that much of their technology is not being supported now and if the brand is really in financial trouble, it could mean those with MAVIC hubs and wheels may have some instant antiques on their hands. Hopefully something comes out of this on the positive side, but as a veteran of 20 years in this industry, usually brands come out on the other side with a clear cut-off from their past, if they make it out at all.

The Sterile Iowan is one of a few events still planning on taking place this Summer.

 Gravel Event Promoters Back At It: 

With several states starting to lift restrictions on businesses and movement, I'm starting to see some event promoters push out there events again. Some are holding to their original dates, and of these, most are in July/August. But some, like the Sterile Iowan, never quit promoting and that particular event is scheduled for May 30th.

Many more events I am aware of are modifying their formats radically to accommodate social distancing suggestions. Things like solo course challenges, dates expanded to weeks or even months to complete courses, in some cases, and electronic challenges on trainers are happening now and throughout the Summer.

Of course, many events are postponed to Fall. The 'hot date' seems to be September 18th, with the week before, the 12th, being a close second. I'm still not real sure that this will work out for those events, but all the best to them the same. Once September passes, things seem to ease up, but postponed events are scheduled throughout October also. This is going to be a crazy Fall season, assuming things don't flare up again with this virus.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

That's it for today. Have a great weekend!

Saturday News And Views

Shimano drops Deore 12 speed this last week. You know what that means?

NOTE: Back in the day I used to run a "News And Views" post whenever news arose. Well, some things dropped at the end of the week and I already had a full FN&V post done, so I am bringing back a G-Ted Productions tradition.....

12 Speed Drops To Deore Level:

 Twelve speed trickles down another step. This past week Shimano released news of its 12 speed Deore level group with all the features of the upper gruppos only a little heavier and not quite as smoothly finished as XTR, XT, or SLX.

Of course, this pushes 11 speed down as well, which is now going to be found at the Deore M5100 level. Wait! Don't I mean Alivio? Nope. Shimano is actually making three levels of Deore now. 12, 11, and 10 speed. Alivio is refreshed, but remains 9 speed. When Shimano does things like this, you'd better pay attention if you are running 10 speed and especially you 9 speed folks, because this stuff will be getting pushed out to the cheaper groups and premium level parts will all be 11 speed and 12 speed in the very near future. Oh....and there was no mention of anything 8 speed. Although I am sure it exists, it isn't getting a refresh, so, again, pay attention to that tidbit.


This also means that 12 speed makes Deore MicroSpline, further pushing the old style free hub design to the back of the room, quality-wise. Of course, the other result of this is that 2X is now only 11 speed and 10 speed. Essentially the lower end of Deore, and in the future? Probably this will remain in the lowest end groups only.

The Deore 11's group.

In terms of new bikes, this also means that Deore is pretty much going to be a very confusing sale in bike shops and especially online. With three levels of the group, you are going to get folks thinking one bike, say with the Deore 12's, is 'overpriced' when they 'can get the same bike' for less with Deore somewhere else. But will that be Deore 10's? Yeah...... Have fun with that retailers.

Finally, you gotta wonder when MicroSpline comes to GRX for gravel, or........wait for it........ROAD BIKES!!! Oh yeah! That will be a day of reckoning that I believe is coming VERY soon. Yes, that means all your old, fancy-pants wheel sets will instantly be obsolete. SRAM will have to decide where to go at that point because traditional free hub tech will be essentially a dodo bird waiting to go extinct. Shimano already has aftermarket wheel and hub folks doing MicroSpline for mtb, and they aren't going to want another proprietary hub deal from SRAM. Not that SRAM won't do it, but yeah.... Interesting times ahead.

Note: Images courtesy of Shimano.

Iconic wheel and component manufacturer, MAVIC, seems to be in trouble.

 Confusion At MAVIC:

An icon of the road scene, MAVIC, seems to be in some sort of financial trouble. According to this story on "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News", the wheel maker may not be owned by who we were led to believe. Furthermore, the French press is reporting the the company is in receivership.

I have noted that a mechanic's Facebook page has had several comments posted by many North American based mechanics saying that their e-mails and calls for service parts and technical help have not been returned by MAVIC. Clearly, something is amiss. I remember the last time I worked on a MAVIC wheel, in 2019, it was a real pain to get parts at that time. This is not good news for shop mechanics.

This is bad news for anyone with MAVIC wheels in the future as it would appear that much of their technology is not being supported now and if the brand is really in financial trouble, it could mean those with MAVIC hubs and wheels may have some instant antiques on their hands. Hopefully something comes out of this on the positive side, but as a veteran of 20 years in this industry, usually brands come out on the other side with a clear cut-off from their past, if they make it out at all.

The Sterile Iowan is one of a few events still planning on taking place this Summer.

 Gravel Event Promoters Back At It: 

With several states starting to lift restrictions on businesses and movement, I'm starting to see some event promoters push out there events again. Some are holding to their original dates, and of these, most are in July/August. But some, like the Sterile Iowan, never quit promoting and that particular event is scheduled for May 30th.

Many more events I am aware of are modifying their formats radically to accommodate social distancing suggestions. Things like solo course challenges, dates expanded to weeks or even months to complete courses, in some cases, and electronic challenges on trainers are happening now and throughout the Summer.

Of course, many events are postponed to Fall. The 'hot date' seems to be September 18th, with the week before, the 12th, being a close second. I'm still not real sure that this will work out for those events, but all the best to them the same. Once September passes, things seem to ease up, but postponed events are scheduled throughout October also. This is going to be a crazy Fall season, assuming things don't flare up again with this virus.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

That's it for today. Have a great weekend!

News Season 2015: Titanium & Weirdness With Big Wheels

Wait.....what the....!! Half an elevated stay?!!

Elevating The Species:

Trek has had the Stache model in the lineup for a couple years now and while it was well received, I thought they kind of missed the boat by using too long a chain stay length when everyone else was clamoring for sub 17" stays and was getting it from other companies. I stayed away and got a Singular Buzzard instead.

Then Trek came out with a 29+ tire in late '14 dubbed the Chupacabra. Of course, they did not have a bike for it. Well, it was no secret that they would do a bike for this tire, the question was what it would be. Waiting for the frame geometry to be dialed in and for a fork to be produced specific to the design, Trek was biding their time.....until now. 

There is a lot going on here, and Trek has been doing work on this idea for three years now. The testing showed that the design needed to have shorter chain stays than the original Stache and that the then new 29+ idea was perfect for a trail hard tail design. In fact, Trek is claiming this redefines the trail hard tail. Being that the Manitou decided to jump in and do a 29+ and 27.5+ specific fork, Trek could push this idea to fruition. The fork comes in at two levels and is dubbed the "Magnum Pro" and "Magnum Comp", by the way. It takes its design cues and internal workings ideas from Manitou's previous Dorado and Mattoc forks and features the new front spacing standard of 110mm, called "Boost110". This makes for a more laterally stiff wheel which is smart. (I think they should have just gone to 135mm, but hey! Whadda I know?) Clearances for 3.25" tires on the fork, by the way.

So, 420mm stays when the through axle is pushed all the way back in the sliding drop out, (Stranglehold drop out is actually an ovalized slot type drop out that is fully enclosed.) , and it is single speed compatible. Compatible with 29, 29+, and 27.5+ type rubber, so its really versatile. Three versions, (Trek says more are coming, and I'll bet some are 27.5+), plus a frame set.

Obviously, with all the elevated this, squished seat tube that, you aren't going to run anything but a 1X system here. This is what makes a frame like this possible though, and in many ways, this is the culmination of an idea Gary Fisher and Mark Slate worked on back in 1999/2000 where Gary wanted short chain stays, longer front center, and a suspension fork, which ironically was a modded Manitou back then! Looks like things have come full circle, eh?

Stache 5 with rigid 100mmOD fork

Stache 9 with dropper post and Manitou Magnum Pro

The return of a classic gravel bike.

 Vaya Titanium v2: 

Ever since the Vaya came out in a titanium version, I have wanted one, because they make killer gravel road bikes. The geometry of these rigs is darn near perfection, and with the frame done up in smooth titanium, it makes the perfect gravel travel rig. However; the titanium Vaya was always hard to come by, even when they did make it at first, and then they switched to stainless steel with couplers. Not a bad idea, but not exactly titanium either. Plus, that steel frame came with a titanium price tag, which was vastly misunderstood by most riders. May as well buy a titanium bike, right? So, I decided to stay on the sidelines again....

Then yesterday, in a surprise announcement, Salsa Cycles comes back with a Titanium Vaya, and it has a modernized head tube, fantastic geometry again, and big tire clearances. WooHoo! But, it isn't all perfection here.

I still am not a huge fan of an adventure bike having paint on it if it is a titanium frame. Frame bags, dust, and the rough and tumble nature of gravel riding means that stuff isn't going to look good after a while. Titanium always looks good if it is bare, and maintenance of the finish is simple. I like the "purposeful" look and when you slather on the frame bags, who cares what color the tubes are?

The other thing is that while the rear drop out is replaceable, it isn't single speed compatible. While SRAM thinks we need 1X for gravel to simplify our gravel adventures, they and Salsa didn't think about what usually happens out there- rear derailleur carnage, that's what. Give me a solution to that and keep yer durned 1X gruppo and replaceable hangar to yerself! But, yeah......I am digging this new Vaya.

Deore XT 11 speed

SRAM Says 1X, Shimano Says "Whatevs!"

Shimano is killing it, in my opinion, and the new Deore XT is another step in the right direction. Offering everyone an option, and not forcing the front derailleur-less group on the masses, Shimano has come out with such a wide range gearing set up it is crazy. 3 X 11? Are you kidding me? 11-40 and 11-42 cassettes without a weird driver? Nice.

Now don't get me wrong, I like 1X stuff and I see where it makes sense, but when you deny me triple, and even double ring, crank sets, that's not cool. I rode a Deore level triple on a test bike last Fall/early Winter and it was eye opening. The cadence and momentum advantages were very evident. The shifting was super smooth, quiet, and not an issue at all. The range was spectacular. This was a 3 X 10. Imagine a wide range 11 speed cassette and a triple that was efficient in shifting performance with a bike packing set up. I mean really, when was the last time anyone blew up a front derailleur on a tour? Rear derailleurs and cassette bodies? Yeah, those get roached all the time, but you rarely hear about a front derailleur issue, only that it wouldn't shift. And Shimano has that sussed out now. The front derailleur isn't evil, (Anymore. At one time, yes- maybe), and I feel many would benefit from using them if they understood how. Because some people do not is not a reason to dumb down the drive train to 1X, but again- maybe it will make for a great entry point for non-cyclists until they learn the skills necessary to operate a triple. You know, gaining a skill set should be seen as something worth doing, not something to avoid, or made a negative.

Okay.....rant mode off!

News Season 2015: Titanium & Weirdness With Big Wheels

Wait.....what the....!! Half an elevated stay?!!

Elevating The Species:

Trek has had the Stache model in the lineup for a couple years now and while it was well received, I thought they kind of missed the boat by using too long a chain stay length when everyone else was clamoring for sub 17" stays and was getting it from other companies. I stayed away and got a Singular Buzzard instead.

Then Trek came out with a 29+ tire in late '14 dubbed the Chupacabra. Of course, they did not have a bike for it. Well, it was no secret that they would do a bike for this tire, the question was what it would be. Waiting for the frame geometry to be dialed in and for a fork to be produced specific to the design, Trek was biding their time.....until now. 

There is a lot going on here, and Trek has been doing work on this idea for three years now. The testing showed that the design needed to have shorter chain stays than the original Stache and that the then new 29+ idea was perfect for a trail hard tail design. In fact, Trek is claiming this redefines the trail hard tail. Being that the Manitou decided to jump in and do a 29+ and 27.5+ specific fork, Trek could push this idea to fruition. The fork comes in at two levels and is dubbed the "Magnum Pro" and "Magnum Comp", by the way. It takes its design cues and internal workings ideas from Manitou's previous Dorado and Mattoc forks and features the new front spacing standard of 110mm, called "Boost110". This makes for a more laterally stiff wheel which is smart. (I think they should have just gone to 135mm, but hey! Whadda I know?) Clearances for 3.25" tires on the fork, by the way.

So, 420mm stays when the through axle is pushed all the way back in the sliding drop out, (Stranglehold drop out is actually an ovalized slot type drop out that is fully enclosed.) , and it is single speed compatible. Compatible with 29, 29+, and 27.5+ type rubber, so its really versatile. Three versions, (Trek says more are coming, and I'll bet some are 27.5+), plus a frame set.

Obviously, with all the elevated this, squished seat tube that, you aren't going to run anything but a 1X system here. This is what makes a frame like this possible though, and in many ways, this is the culmination of an idea Gary Fisher and Mark Slate worked on back in 1999/2000 where Gary wanted short chain stays, longer front center, and a suspension fork, which ironically was a modded Manitou back then! Looks like things have come full circle, eh?

Stache 5 with rigid 100mmOD fork

Stache 9 with dropper post and Manitou Magnum Pro

The return of a classic gravel bike.

 Vaya Titanium v2: 

Ever since the Vaya came out in a titanium version, I have wanted one, because they make killer gravel road bikes. The geometry of these rigs is darn near perfection, and with the frame done up in smooth titanium, it makes the perfect gravel travel rig. However; the titanium Vaya was always hard to come by, even when they did make it at first, and then they switched to stainless steel with couplers. Not a bad idea, but not exactly titanium either. Plus, that steel frame came with a titanium price tag, which was vastly misunderstood by most riders. May as well buy a titanium bike, right? So, I decided to stay on the sidelines again....

Then yesterday, in a surprise announcement, Salsa Cycles comes back with a Titanium Vaya, and it has a modernized head tube, fantastic geometry again, and big tire clearances. WooHoo! But, it isn't all perfection here.

I still am not a huge fan of an adventure bike having paint on it if it is a titanium frame. Frame bags, dust, and the rough and tumble nature of gravel riding means that stuff isn't going to look good after a while. Titanium always looks good if it is bare, and maintenance of the finish is simple. I like the "purposeful" look and when you slather on the frame bags, who cares what color the tubes are?

The other thing is that while the rear drop out is replaceable, it isn't single speed compatible. While SRAM thinks we need 1X for gravel to simplify our gravel adventures, they and Salsa didn't think about what usually happens out there- rear derailleur carnage, that's what. Give me a solution to that and keep yer durned 1X gruppo and replaceable hangar to yerself! But, yeah......I am digging this new Vaya.

Deore XT 11 speed

SRAM Says 1X, Shimano Says "Whatevs!"

Shimano is killing it, in my opinion, and the new Deore XT is another step in the right direction. Offering everyone an option, and not forcing the front derailleur-less group on the masses, Shimano has come out with such a wide range gearing set up it is crazy. 3 X 11? Are you kidding me? 11-40 and 11-42 cassettes without a weird driver? Nice.

Now don't get me wrong, I like 1X stuff and I see where it makes sense, but when you deny me triple, and even double ring, crank sets, that's not cool. I rode a Deore level triple on a test bike last Fall/early Winter and it was eye opening. The cadence and momentum advantages were very evident. The shifting was super smooth, quiet, and not an issue at all. The range was spectacular. This was a 3 X 10. Imagine a wide range 11 speed cassette and a triple that was efficient in shifting performance with a bike packing set up. I mean really, when was the last time anyone blew up a front derailleur on a tour? Rear derailleurs and cassette bodies? Yeah, those get roached all the time, but you rarely hear about a front derailleur issue, only that it wouldn't shift. And Shimano has that sussed out now. The front derailleur isn't evil, (Anymore. At one time, yes- maybe), and I feel many would benefit from using them if they understood how. Because some people do not is not a reason to dumb down the drive train to 1X, but again- maybe it will make for a great entry point for non-cyclists until they learn the skills necessary to operate a triple. You know, gaining a skill set should be seen as something worth doing, not something to avoid, or made a negative.

Okay.....rant mode off!