Gravel History With Guitar Ted: A Snapshot From 2011

 Welcome To Gravel History With Guitar Ted! This will be a random series here on the blog where I will give you my take on the history of gravel riding and racing in the modern era.* 

There may be a "Ted-terview" or two where I speak with those from the early days of the Modern era of Gravel as well. 

Today in "Gravel History With Guitar Ted" we are going to go back to the year 2011. This was at the zenith of the "Discovery Era" in terms of gravel riding. The time where we as gravel riders had sussed out many things that did or did not work for us and set-ups on bikes were reflecting this. 

It was also a time where some bikes started to be designed with a bent towards usage on gravel, but were not marketed as "gravel bikes". That term and that category were not in use yet, but within a year of this image I am about to share, "gravel" as a category was definitely being utilized by several brands. This means that at this time in 2011, plans were being laid and products were in development already which would change the face of cycling forever. While all that is true, Steve Fuller, the owner of this bike at the time, tells me that this same bike, in largely the same form, finished top-ten at the 2009 DK200 event. So, it represents the then "state of the art" in gravel travel.

That's why I felt the following image from the inaugural "Gents Race", then known as the Renegade Gents Race, was of particular interest as it clearly shows a few things that were rather common by 2011. So, while I apologize for the saturation of Gents Race subject matter over the past five days, please excuse me for that and take a close look at the following image. 

"Captain" Steve Fuller on a Salsa Cycles La Cruz during the 2011 Renegade Gents Race.

This is a great image and maybe at first glance you may think, "Well, this is no big deal", but the devil is in the details, as they say, and when you really drill down into this image, several things jump out at you. Let's take a closer look then, shall we? 

• The Bike: Let's start with the obvious. The Salsa Cycles La Cruz disc brake bike was never marketed as a gravel bike, but the unsaid intention was for this to be a "catch-all" bike model which could be a road bike, a single track bike, or used on gravel. Salsa marketed it then as a "split-personality" bike. Ostensibly sold as a disc brake cross bike that could use "up to 42mm tires", the La Cruz represented the cyclo - cross bike's dominance in the gravel cycling world at this time. Note the large, open front triangle for shoulder portaging, necessary for cyclo - cross racing. The geometry also was cyclo - cross based with a high bottom bracket. Disc brakes were still kind of odd, but they were the way forward not only for gravel bikes, but eventually road racing style bikes as well. Lastly, this represents the height of steel as a frame choice for gravel, which many riders at the time preferred due to its toughness in extreme conditions and also due to the perceptions that steel was okay to "sacrifice to the gravel", as this sort of cycling is hard on paint jobs and frame materials. 
• The Tires: This might be the perfect example if only for the tires this bike has on it. The Schwalbe "Marathon" series of touring tires were THE tire of choice in the gravel scene from about 2008-2013 after which time the Clement MSO and Challenge Tires models took over the gravel cycling marketplace. These Schwalbe tires weren't easy to track down at times since importers did not understand that gravel riding was even a thing. So getting your hands on a tire that many in the cycling business world thought was a niche tire for the rare market of touring cyclists wasn't always easy. However; it performed admirably in the most severe gravel conditions and warded off punctures well. It wasn't perfect, as it was a heavy, ponderous tire with a stiffer casing, but it would do the trick. 
• The Handlebars: Take a look. No flared drops! The bars are also a bit narrowish looking. This is because many riders were using typical road bike drop bars for gravel riding back then, and that is also based in cyclo - cross where flared drops were not in wide usage either. So, where did the whole flared drop bar thing come from? Actually, I may have had some influence on that, since I was a big flared drop bar advocate for 29"ers back in the 2000's and I also asked for that sort of bar on the 2014 Raleigh Tamland. The Salsa Cycles Fargo development was also heavily influenced by those of us that had Salsa's ears at the time who were flared drop bar converts. That bike became a big influence on the gravel scene early on as well. So, there may be a case to be made there, but this image doesn't lead us to that conclusion. Instead, it is a reference to when things weren't so flared and points to today's renaissance of road bars on gravel bikes in narrower widths. 
• Of Note: Besides those three big things I noted the Jaand Frame Pack, a triangular little bag that was immensely popular in the 2000's gravel scene, but quickly gave way to the "half-frame bag" idea which was most perfectly exemplified by the emergence of the use of Revelate Designs' "Tangle Bag". Also- you can see the spoke card-cum-cue sheet navigation tacked to Steve's stem here. GPS files were coming, but cue sheet navigation was still a big thing back at this time. Finally, note the lack of "adventure warts"- the ubiquitous accessory mounts found on most gravel bikes now, which were not commonplace in 2011. Especially on a cyclo - cross based design which were always minimalist in that regard.

That's a look at a time capsule from 2011. Is there anything you see that I missed? Let me know in the comments. I hope that you enjoyed this look back at gravel history!

* The "Modern Era of Gravel" started when Trans Iowa was concocted by myself and Jeff Kerkove in the Fall of 2004. From that point forward what became known as a new niche of cycle-sport and cycling culture was born.

Gravel History With Guitar Ted: A Snapshot From 2011

 Welcome To Gravel History With Guitar Ted! This will be a random series here on the blog where I will give you my take on the history of gravel riding and racing in the modern era.* 

There may be a "Ted-terview" or two where I speak with those from the early days of the Modern era of Gravel as well. 

Today in "Gravel History With Guitar Ted" we are going to go back to the year 2011. This was at the zenith of the "Discovery Era" in terms of gravel riding. The time where we as gravel riders had sussed out many things that did or did not work for us and set-ups on bikes were reflecting this. 

It was also a time where some bikes started to be designed with a bent towards usage on gravel, but were not marketed as "gravel bikes". That term and that category were not in use yet, but within a year of this image I am about to share, "gravel" as a category was definitely being utilized by several brands. This means that at this time in 2011, plans were being laid and products were in development already which would change the face of cycling forever. While all that is true, Steve Fuller, the owner of this bike at the time, tells me that this same bike, in largely the same form, finished top-ten at the 2009 DK200 event. So, it represents the then "state of the art" in gravel travel.

That's why I felt the following image from the inaugural "Gents Race", then known as the Renegade Gents Race, was of particular interest as it clearly shows a few things that were rather common by 2011. So, while I apologize for the saturation of Gents Race subject matter over the past five days, please excuse me for that and take a close look at the following image. 

"Captain" Steve Fuller on a Salsa Cycles La Cruz during the 2011 Renegade Gents Race.

This is a great image and maybe at first glance you may think, "Well, this is no big deal", but the devil is in the details, as they say, and when you really drill down into this image, several things jump out at you. Let's take a closer look then, shall we? 

• The Bike: Let's start with the obvious. The Salsa Cycles La Cruz disc brake bike was never marketed as a gravel bike, but the unsaid intention was for this to be a "catch-all" bike model which could be a road bike, a single track bike, or used on gravel. Salsa marketed it then as a "split-personality" bike. Ostensibly sold as a disc brake cross bike that could use "up to 42mm tires", the La Cruz represented the cyclo - cross bike's dominance in the gravel cycling world at this time. Note the large, open front triangle for shoulder portaging, necessary for cyclo - cross racing. The geometry also was cyclo - cross based with a high bottom bracket. Disc brakes were still kind of odd, but they were the way forward not only for gravel bikes, but eventually road racing style bikes as well. Lastly, this represents the height of steel as a frame choice for gravel, which many riders at the time preferred due to its toughness in extreme conditions and also due to the perceptions that steel was okay to "sacrifice to the gravel", as this sort of cycling is hard on paint jobs and frame materials. 
• The Tires: This might be the perfect example if only for the tires this bike has on it. The Schwalbe "Marathon" series of touring tires were THE tire of choice in the gravel scene from about 2008-2013 after which time the Clement MSO and Challenge Tires models took over the gravel cycling marketplace. These Schwalbe tires weren't easy to track down at times since importers did not understand that gravel riding was even a thing. So getting your hands on a tire that many in the cycling business world thought was a niche tire for the rare market of touring cyclists wasn't always easy. However; it performed admirably in the most severe gravel conditions and warded off punctures well. It wasn't perfect, as it was a heavy, ponderous tire with a stiffer casing, but it would do the trick. 
• The Handlebars: Take a look. No flared drops! The bars are also a bit narrowish looking. This is because many riders were using typical road bike drop bars for gravel riding back then, and that is also based in cyclo - cross where flared drops were not in wide usage either. So, where did the whole flared drop bar thing come from? Actually, I may have had some influence on that, since I was a big flared drop bar advocate for 29"ers back in the 2000's and I also asked for that sort of bar on the 2014 Raleigh Tamland. The Salsa Cycles Fargo development was also heavily influenced by those of us that had Salsa's ears at the time who were flared drop bar converts. That bike became a big influence on the gravel scene early on as well. So, there may be a case to be made there, but this image doesn't lead us to that conclusion. Instead, it is a reference to when things weren't so flared and points to today's renaissance of road bars on gravel bikes in narrower widths. 
• Of Note: Besides those three big things I noted the Jaand Frame Pack, a triangular little bag that was immensely popular in the 2000's gravel scene, but quickly gave way to the "half-frame bag" idea which was most perfectly exemplified by the emergence of the use of Revelate Designs' "Tangle Bag". Also- you can see the spoke card-cum-cue sheet navigation tacked to Steve's stem here. GPS files were coming, but cue sheet navigation was still a big thing back at this time. Finally, note the lack of "adventure warts"- the ubiquitous accessory mounts found on most gravel bikes now, which were not commonplace in 2011. Especially on a cyclo - cross based design which were always minimalist in that regard.

That's a look at a time capsule from 2011. Is there anything you see that I missed? Let me know in the comments. I hope that you enjoyed this look back at gravel history!

* The "Modern Era of Gravel" started when Trans Iowa was concocted by myself and Jeff Kerkove in the Fall of 2004. From that point forward what became known as a new niche of cycle-sport and cycling culture was born.

Friday News And Views

Gravel Ride Tonight! If you are a local, don't forget the "3GR" tonight which will again start at Gateway Park in Cedar Falls at 5:30pm.

I'm planning on about a 25 mile route, basically more of the same from last week. I cut last week's short due to the sketchy looking skies, but this time the weather is supposedly going to be stellar.

In the future we'll do different routes, so stick around for some fun stuff hopefully every Friday all summer long.

Speaking of gravel rides... The next big deal I have going on will be my "Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational" which is slated for July 15th, 2012. Now, every year I have to say this, but this isn't a race, and it isn't exclusive. It is a gravel group ride of at least 100 miles or a bit more in a day. we never leave anyone behind, and anyone that is up to it is welcome. last year I had 12 or so folks show up and we had a blast.

This is a free, unsupported event. You are responsible for you! I have to come up with a route, or I could do last year's again. I may do a route out of Hickory Hills, the Grinnell area, or up in Northeast Iowa again. Anyone want to sway my opinion? Hit me with a comment.

Kona Rove

And More Gravel Related Stuff! The other day I posted on Gravel Grinder News about the new Kona Rove disc gravel grinder bike coming out later this summer.

The image here is of a prototype, so that isn't the final color, most likely. Paint it orange though and say "Salsa La Cruz". See any resemblance? I sure do.

Funny thing about the La Cruz is that it was lamented after it was cut from the line. The Vaya kind of took its place, but folks still longed for that "classic" cross bike profile with big tire clearances and disc brakes. Well, we'll see how many catch on to the Rove here.

The Kona site says this is a gravel grinder/tourer/commuter. The fact that they even use the term "gravel grinder" is a big deal for us that do just that with ou bicycles. It means the marketing machine thinks this genre is big enough to market to. Weird in a way, since we've all been out there doing this for ever anyhow. But still.....it's nice to be recognized!

Look similar?

Kona also says that this bike's geometry isn't "too long and low". Now that has me scratching my head, because what cyclo-cross based bike is long and low? A peek at  their geometry chart doesn't reveal anything very forward thinking either. It isn't bad, mind you, but it isn't anything to write home about.

No- it's just good, solid, safe geometry folks will get along with just fine, I suspect. It'll be interesting to see if they sell anymore of these than Salsa did before they cut the model out of the line up.

Okay, that's all for today folks. Go ride yer bikes, take some pictures, and have some fun.

Friday News And Views

Gravel Ride Tonight! If you are a local, don't forget the "3GR" tonight which will again start at Gateway Park in Cedar Falls at 5:30pm.

I'm planning on about a 25 mile route, basically more of the same from last week. I cut last week's short due to the sketchy looking skies, but this time the weather is supposedly going to be stellar.

In the future we'll do different routes, so stick around for some fun stuff hopefully every Friday all summer long.

Speaking of gravel rides... The next big deal I have going on will be my "Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational" which is slated for July 15th, 2012. Now, every year I have to say this, but this isn't a race, and it isn't exclusive. It is a gravel group ride of at least 100 miles or a bit more in a day. we never leave anyone behind, and anyone that is up to it is welcome. last year I had 12 or so folks show up and we had a blast.

This is a free, unsupported event. You are responsible for you! I have to come up with a route, or I could do last year's again. I may do a route out of Hickory Hills, the Grinnell area, or up in Northeast Iowa again. Anyone want to sway my opinion? Hit me with a comment.

Kona Rove

And More Gravel Related Stuff! The other day I posted on Gravel Grinder News about the new Kona Rove disc gravel grinder bike coming out later this summer.

The image here is of a prototype, so that isn't the final color, most likely. Paint it orange though and say "Salsa La Cruz". See any resemblance? I sure do.

Funny thing about the La Cruz is that it was lamented after it was cut from the line. The Vaya kind of took its place, but folks still longed for that "classic" cross bike profile with big tire clearances and disc brakes. Well, we'll see how many catch on to the Rove here.

The Kona site says this is a gravel grinder/tourer/commuter. The fact that they even use the term "gravel grinder" is a big deal for us that do just that with ou bicycles. It means the marketing machine thinks this genre is big enough to market to. Weird in a way, since we've all been out there doing this for ever anyhow. But still.....it's nice to be recognized!

Look similar?

Kona also says that this bike's geometry isn't "too long and low". Now that has me scratching my head, because what cyclo-cross based bike is long and low? A peek at  their geometry chart doesn't reveal anything very forward thinking either. It isn't bad, mind you, but it isn't anything to write home about.

No- it's just good, solid, safe geometry folks will get along with just fine, I suspect. It'll be interesting to see if they sell anymore of these than Salsa did before they cut the model out of the line up.

Okay, that's all for today folks. Go ride yer bikes, take some pictures, and have some fun.

Wednesday News And Views

Klunkerz Project Update: Well a major hurdle in the Klunker project was cleared when a co-worker of mine called in a favor owed to him and got me this 410mm seat mast machined out of solid aluminum billet for free! (Thanks Mark P.!)

Yeah, pretty much like a late 70's era klunker, as far as I can tell. There are still some big hurdles to leap over yet though. I need to source a crankset, possibly a tubular BMX style cruiser fork, and decide if I want to braze on some canti studs, or get some Sturmey-Archer drum brakes, (which could influence whether I keep the flat blade fork or not). I actually have some gold ano Ukai wheels for it that are laced to a Sturmey-Archer 3spd rear hub and a SunTour high flange front hub. I found some BMX levers from back in the day with white plastic covers too, which I could use for the brakes. Oh! And I can not forget that the frame needs some brazing work, as well.

This Hub Goes To Eleven! Yeah, I know! Old cliche'! But anyway, the Alfine hub is changing for 2011. It will be a 11 speed hub with a wider gear range and will go to an oil bath lubrication for the internals. I've always thought a winter commuter/gravel rig set up this way would be the bees knees.  I'll be keeping an eye on the availability of this. I almost popped for the Alfine 8spd version, but the lack of a really low gear kept me off it. Now Shimano claims this Alfine variation will dip into a lower range than the current 8spd. one does.

Salsa Cycles Announces The Titanium La Cruz: I have already posted a blurb about this on Gravel Grinder News, so I won't go all into the tech stuff. I'll just give you all my two cents on this deal.

Salsa Cycles came out with the steel La Cruz with disc brakes awhile ago. I have almost been tempted several times by that bike, but in my mind, the disc part was overkill and unnecessary for how I would have used the bike, which was for gravel road riding and paved road riding. To my mind, if you want disc brakes, tons of clearance, fatter tires than a typical cross rig, (read above 34mm), and the versatility of being able to go off road all dressed up in a drop bar specific package, you go to the Fargo. Then the Vaya hit the scene recently, and to my mind, it was too much Fargo and not enough of a lightweight road influenced gravel flyer. I guess the Vaya is to the Fargo what Miller Lite is to a good IPA. But that's just me.

Now when I saw Joe Meiser go to the front on that titanium cross bike in T.I.V5, and I realized what I was looking at was a titanium Salsa proto, I figured someday we'd see the rig bow as a La Cruz or Chille Con Crosso titanium rig. I'm glad Salsa chose the La Cruz moniker and the tire clearance that the name is known for. This is the gravel weapon I was thinking of. Light, titanium ride quality, plenty of room for 38's, and it doesn't appear to have a dinky head tube. Cantilever brakes work just fine on gravel, and are in keeping with the light theme set out by the gray-ish metal the frame is worked up in. Not to mention, I have become enamoured of the way titanium can ride of late, no thanks to Lynskey!

Get me some carbon clinchers, a tubeless set up, and some nice SRAM Rival group action and I would have "near perfection" for gravelly goodness here. Near perfection? Yes. It is missing single speed-ability and the price! Well........what do I expect? It is titanium after all!

Wednesday News And Views

Klunkerz Project Update: Well a major hurdle in the Klunker project was cleared when a co-worker of mine called in a favor owed to him and got me this 410mm seat mast machined out of solid aluminum billet for free! (Thanks Mark P.!)

Yeah, pretty much like a late 70's era klunker, as far as I can tell. There are still some big hurdles to leap over yet though. I need to source a crankset, possibly a tubular BMX style cruiser fork, and decide if I want to braze on some canti studs, or get some Sturmey-Archer drum brakes, (which could influence whether I keep the flat blade fork or not). I actually have some gold ano Ukai wheels for it that are laced to a Sturmey-Archer 3spd rear hub and a SunTour high flange front hub. I found some BMX levers from back in the day with white plastic covers too, which I could use for the brakes. Oh! And I can not forget that the frame needs some brazing work, as well.

This Hub Goes To Eleven! Yeah, I know! Old cliche'! But anyway, the Alfine hub is changing for 2011. It will be a 11 speed hub with a wider gear range and will go to an oil bath lubrication for the internals. I've always thought a winter commuter/gravel rig set up this way would be the bees knees.  I'll be keeping an eye on the availability of this. I almost popped for the Alfine 8spd version, but the lack of a really low gear kept me off it. Now Shimano claims this Alfine variation will dip into a lower range than the current 8spd. one does.

Salsa Cycles Announces The Titanium La Cruz: I have already posted a blurb about this on Gravel Grinder News, so I won't go all into the tech stuff. I'll just give you all my two cents on this deal.

Salsa Cycles came out with the steel La Cruz with disc brakes awhile ago. I have almost been tempted several times by that bike, but in my mind, the disc part was overkill and unnecessary for how I would have used the bike, which was for gravel road riding and paved road riding. To my mind, if you want disc brakes, tons of clearance, fatter tires than a typical cross rig, (read above 34mm), and the versatility of being able to go off road all dressed up in a drop bar specific package, you go to the Fargo. Then the Vaya hit the scene recently, and to my mind, it was too much Fargo and not enough of a lightweight road influenced gravel flyer. I guess the Vaya is to the Fargo what Miller Lite is to a good IPA. But that's just me.

Now when I saw Joe Meiser go to the front on that titanium cross bike in T.I.V5, and I realized what I was looking at was a titanium Salsa proto, I figured someday we'd see the rig bow as a La Cruz or Chille Con Crosso titanium rig. I'm glad Salsa chose the La Cruz moniker and the tire clearance that the name is known for. This is the gravel weapon I was thinking of. Light, titanium ride quality, plenty of room for 38's, and it doesn't appear to have a dinky head tube. Cantilever brakes work just fine on gravel, and are in keeping with the light theme set out by the gray-ish metal the frame is worked up in. Not to mention, I have become enamoured of the way titanium can ride of late, no thanks to Lynskey!

Get me some carbon clinchers, a tubeless set up, and some nice SRAM Rival group action and I would have "near perfection" for gravelly goodness here. Near perfection? Yes. It is missing single speed-ability and the price! Well........what do I expect? It is titanium after all!