When The Numbers Seem To Come Together

The Fezzari Shafer (Image courtesy of Fezzari Bikes)

 One thing about bicycles is that things don't stay the same for very long. Changes come and go, but you can count on fashion and design to mold our bicycles into different directions all the time. 

It used to be that things were settled. The geometry was what it was. You bought a frame and fork because it had a certain frame tubing, or because a certain guy brazed it together. Not because it had a 'long, low, slack' geo, or because it had 'progressive geometry', or because it had a certain head angle. 

But all those things and more are constantly in flux now as designers try new things and connect buzz-words to their recipe for geometry. Marketers get a hold of this and run with it, then the media reinforces this with reviews and opinions saying that you simply cannot ride anymore unless you have such-and-such geometry. 

Well, as we know, sometimes this goes a little too far. 

I'm not saying what I like is 'the right geometry' for gravel riding, but historically speaking, there have been certain things done which were proven concepts that weren't driven by marketing so much as they were by what actually works for most folks. I have done research and delved into the history enough to have a basic understanding of some of these concepts and I have had enough experience riding lots of different bicycles to have formed my own opinion. Which, if you didn't catch that, is my opinion. You will have to figure things out for yourself, because I may not be right for you. Close? Maybe, but not 'right', whatever that may mean to you. 

So, when I see something put out there that dances around the same circle as my mind does with geometry numbers, I get excited. Again- not for anyone else, necessarily, but for myself. So, when I saw the press release for the Fezzari Shafer, I was pleased to find out that Fezzari hits on several things I have had in mind for a gravel bike for years. Things I've wanted to see done since the late 00's, and you folks that have read this blog for a long time know that this is true. 

The Shafer's geometry table courtesy of Fezzari Bikes.

So, what the heck did Fezzari do? Well, they dumped the bottom bracket drop to 77mm. Yes! I've always thought that somewhere around 75mm was pretty good, and I've wanted to try something a bit deeper, and there ya go. 77mm. Nice! 

Then Fezzari slackened out the head tube angle to a 68.5° figure and matched that up with a 50mm fork offset. Bold! Pretty 'out there' for a gravel bike. Only the Evil Bikes Chamois Hangar goes beyond the bottom bracket drop and head angles here, and honestly, I think they crossed a line with that bike. 

Then Fezzari went and did that three in the triangle bottle mount thing with fork mounts as well, which I absolutely love. Internally routed cables for everything? Meh! It is what it is, and yes- easily cleaned. I get it. But I am a mechanic too, so..... On that note, a threaded bottom bracket! Rejoicing here! Plus, all of that and a reasonable price for a frame and fork at about a grand less than that Evil Bikes model. 

So, what did they get wrong? I would point to that fork offset at 50mm. I would have liked to have seen that increased a bit. Maybe 53mm? maybe even 55mm. But at 50mm I would still give that a try. My thoughts being that on a long, slow grind of a climb with looser gravel, that makes the mechanical trail figure a bit much to hold steady. But yeah, everything else there looks pretty spot on, so a slightly less than inspiring trail figure may not be all that bad a deal. 

So, here's a great example of where fork trail in particular was a big surprise for me. It was at Bootleg Canyon for an Interbike Outdoor Demo. Mike Curiak had been working over Devin Lenz of Lenz Sport Bikes to make a long travel 29"er with certain aspects of geometry that were- at that time- considered to be the death of handling for 29"ers. Mike had dialed me up to the existence of the bike, and asked me to demo it at Bootleg Canyon, but would not tell me anything about the geometry until after my ride. 

Well, needless to say the bike handled really well and the geometry was whack for the day in regards to what we all thought was 'right' for a 29"er. The trail figure, in particular, was off the charts for a 29"er, as in the three digit range! Far higher than anything I would have thought would have worked on a climb, but it did. 

And so I say that to point out that Fezzari may have it right and what the heck do I know? Maybe someday I can swing a leg over this new fangled rig and find out.

When The Numbers Seem To Come Together

The Fezzari Shafer (Image courtesy of Fezzari Bikes)

 One thing about bicycles is that things don't stay the same for very long. Changes come and go, but you can count on fashion and design to mold our bicycles into different directions all the time. 

It used to be that things were settled. The geometry was what it was. You bought a frame and fork because it had a certain frame tubing, or because a certain guy brazed it together. Not because it had a 'long, low, slack' geo, or because it had 'progressive geometry', or because it had a certain head angle. 

But all those things and more are constantly in flux now as designers try new things and connect buzz-words to their recipe for geometry. Marketers get a hold of this and run with it, then the media reinforces this with reviews and opinions saying that you simply cannot ride anymore unless you have such-and-such geometry. 

Well, as we know, sometimes this goes a little too far. 

I'm not saying what I like is 'the right geometry' for gravel riding, but historically speaking, there have been certain things done which were proven concepts that weren't driven by marketing so much as they were by what actually works for most folks. I have done research and delved into the history enough to have a basic understanding of some of these concepts and I have had enough experience riding lots of different bicycles to have formed my own opinion. Which, if you didn't catch that, is my opinion. You will have to figure things out for yourself, because I may not be right for you. Close? Maybe, but not 'right', whatever that may mean to you. 

So, when I see something put out there that dances around the same circle as my mind does with geometry numbers, I get excited. Again- not for anyone else, necessarily, but for myself. So, when I saw the press release for the Fezzari Shafer, I was pleased to find out that Fezzari hits on several things I have had in mind for a gravel bike for years. Things I've wanted to see done since the late 00's, and you folks that have read this blog for a long time know that this is true. 

The Shafer's geometry table courtesy of Fezzari Bikes.

So, what the heck did Fezzari do? Well, they dumped the bottom bracket drop to 77mm. Yes! I've always thought that somewhere around 75mm was pretty good, and I've wanted to try something a bit deeper, and there ya go. 77mm. Nice! 

Then Fezzari slackened out the head tube angle to a 68.5° figure and matched that up with a 50mm fork offset. Bold! Pretty 'out there' for a gravel bike. Only the Evil Bikes Chamois Hangar goes beyond the bottom bracket drop and head angles here, and honestly, I think they crossed a line with that bike. 

Then Fezzari went and did that three in the triangle bottle mount thing with fork mounts as well, which I absolutely love. Internally routed cables for everything? Meh! It is what it is, and yes- easily cleaned. I get it. But I am a mechanic too, so..... On that note, a threaded bottom bracket! Rejoicing here! Plus, all of that and a reasonable price for a frame and fork at about a grand less than that Evil Bikes model. 

So, what did they get wrong? I would point to that fork offset at 50mm. I would have liked to have seen that increased a bit. Maybe 53mm? maybe even 55mm. But at 50mm I would still give that a try. My thoughts being that on a long, slow grind of a climb with looser gravel, that makes the mechanical trail figure a bit much to hold steady. But yeah, everything else there looks pretty spot on, so a slightly less than inspiring trail figure may not be all that bad a deal. 

So, here's a great example of where fork trail in particular was a big surprise for me. It was at Bootleg Canyon for an Interbike Outdoor Demo. Mike Curiak had been working over Devin Lenz of Lenz Sport Bikes to make a long travel 29"er with certain aspects of geometry that were- at that time- considered to be the death of handling for 29"ers. Mike had dialed me up to the existence of the bike, and asked me to demo it at Bootleg Canyon, but would not tell me anything about the geometry until after my ride. 

Well, needless to say the bike handled really well and the geometry was whack for the day in regards to what we all thought was 'right' for a 29"er. The trail figure, in particular, was off the charts for a 29"er, as in the three digit range! Far higher than anything I would have thought would have worked on a climb, but it did. 

And so I say that to point out that Fezzari may have it right and what the heck do I know? Maybe someday I can swing a leg over this new fangled rig and find out.

Friday News And Views

2007: You can't do that with 29"er wheels. 2021: Hold my beer...

Niner Bikes Releases New WFO-9:

Occasionally something significant still happens in the world of big wheels. Recently it came from a company once known for pushing boundaries with big, 29"er wheels. That company has been a bit silent in the 29"er scene over the past decade, but this week, Niner Bikes once again lived up to their moniker and posted news concerning a big wheeled monster of a bike, the WFO-9. 

When the first WFO-9 was whispered about in 2007, it drew a lot of criticism and negativity. "You can't do that with 29"er wheels!", and more was heard on all the major forums. However, Niner, only a couple of years into their existence, was pushing ahead regardless of their not being 'real tires' or 'real forks' for this endeavor. It was cutting edge, forward thinking, and disruptive. Looking back on that early WFO-9, one can now see that Niner Bikes, whatever you may think of them today, should be credited with helping to break the barriers down to what a 29'er could be. 

Another individual who also brought big wheels and long travel together in a way that shocked the mainstream was Devin Lenz. His Lenz Sport brand also has to be recognized in the same breath as Niner as Devin was also independently pushing the big wheeled idea forward with amazingly capable rides that blew away the criticisms of 29 inch wheeled bikes and what they were capable of. 

It's a crazy world of big wheeled bikes these days and back in the 00's, no one was thinking things would be like they are today. Well, except a couple of crazy companies that turned out not to be quite so crazy as we thought. Congratulations to Niner Bikes on the new WFO-9. It may seem like no big deal in 2021, but when you consider that at one time, 29"ers were relegated to being thought of only as single speed bikes or maybe XC bikes, it is a big deal. 

It Costs How Much?

Zipp Wheels have never been what I would call "inexpensive" wheels. Many of their past models would easily be called "halo products"- Products with heady price tags which people aspire to own, but probably never will. 

Well, Zipp didn't do anything to dent that reputation with the recent introduction of their new "353 NSW" wheel set. Yep, you need four thousand Benjamins to get these in your mitts. Carbon wheels for bicycles have been trending downward in price of late, but Zipp? Ha! Obviously they went in the opposite direction with the 353 NSW.

Okay, so what do you get for 4G, (and I ain't talkin' about ancient cell phone connectivity rates). Well, you'd better be getting a light wheel set, and Zipp delivers there with a sub-1300 gram wheel set weight. Okay, well, you'd better be getting an aerodynamic, watt-saving wheel. Once again- if the claims can be believed - Zipp delivers. That saw-toothed design is supposedly a big deal here. Okay- well, what about being able to use it for gravel? Actually- this is the most interesting part. This is basically a gravel wheel set. 25mm internal width? That's not a road racing inner rim width folks. Add in a disc only brake standard and this wheel screams "aero-gravel".

I tested the FLO Cycling wheels last year and stated that these would not be the last we'd here about aero wheels for gravel. While Zipp doesn't claim that these are only for gravel, a companion press release sent at the same time features Zipps rebadged 40mm gravel tire and shows it on.....you guessed it- the 353 NSW wheel set. They may not say it overtly, but this is aimed at the gravel market.
 

Bike Shop News: 

In the world of bike shops, I have been hearing that shortages are happening all across the nation yet. It seems to ebb and flow between different products, but certainly the situation with tires, tubes, cassettes, chains, free wheels, and other maintenance/wear items is still a bad situation. Getting accessory items is also still hit or miss. We've gotten in some stuff, like floor pumps, which were rare last year, yet we cannot get other things at all right now. It's unpredictable and frustrating for everyone. 

In terms of bicycles we actually are getting some few things through the shop. We get them built and they disappear about as fast as we build them. But I am hopeful that at least a trickle of bikes will continue throughout the Summer.  

In other bike shop related news, my friend and El Presidente' of the Slender Fungus, Ari, has been telling me that the Chicago metro region shops are desperate for qualified bicycle mechanics. Ari tells me most shops are four weeks behind in repairs in the region and that there is no end in sight. If you know how to wrench on bikes, and if you want to hang in the Chi-town area for the Spring and Summer, you can definitely find work. 

Again, this situation doesn't seem to have any resolution in sight for the near future. It's so odd working under such constraints and during such unusual times. How this shakes out is anybody's guess at the present time. All I know is that this roller coaster of a bike season in Iowa is going to be an odd one. Especially with RAGBRAI happening. (Oh, and what the heck happened with that whole "Iowa's Ride" thing? Who knows.....)

The shortages are also affecting what I do at RidingGravel.com as well. But it's all okay. Somehow we'll muddle through this. I'm not worried. I just marvel at the weirdness and how it seems to have no end at this point. They keep saying 2022...... We'll see. 

Podcast And Shirts:

Hey, just a reminder that the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast has it's latest episode up. Hear it here or wherever you get your podcast feed from. We try to keep these episodes at about an hour or a little less, so you don't have to invest a ton of your time into these. My co-host is Andy of Andy's Bike Shop, so sometimes we drop a little local stuff as well. 

Also, you can still get the "Riding Stones - Shaking Bones" or "Addicted To Gravel" shirt designs at the RidingGravel.com website. The link to those shirt designs is here. 

And finally, my own designs for the former C.O.G 100 in hats and jerseys and G-Ted merch are still available and you can find that link over there on the right side or just go to the Garage Sale Page for the C.O.G. 100 stuff. 

NOTE: I've been blogging for over 15 years now, I have been doing Riding Gravel since 2015, and putting on events for 20 years or more. These small ways of making some money help me to keep going, defray some costs for making some of the content I put out, and honestly, with the C.O.G. stuff, I just don't want it to go to waste. In the case of the G-Ted merchandise, that actually helps my daughter and I don't get any monetary benefit there at all. I'm not going to apologize for occasionally making you all aware of these things as I feel it is just giving you an opportunity to give recognition to, and give back to what I have have been doing for all these years. If you don't feel led to do anything, no big deal. I'm good. I just wanted to provide the opportunity for you all to say "thanks" and if that speaks to you it does. If not, don't worry about me. I'll keep on keepin' on regardless of whether this stuff gets purchased or not. 

So, don't pull out your credit card unless you really want to. (But get this C.O.G. stuff outta here, or it is going to the landfill before long)
 

That's a wrap for this week. Hoping for warmer weather here. I also hope you get out for a ride!

Friday News And Views

2007: You can't do that with 29"er wheels. 2021: Hold my beer...

Niner Bikes Releases New WFO-9:

Occasionally something significant still happens in the world of big wheels. Recently it came from a company once known for pushing boundaries with big, 29"er wheels. That company has been a bit silent in the 29"er scene over the past decade, but this week, Niner Bikes once again lived up to their moniker and posted news concerning a big wheeled monster of a bike, the WFO-9. 

When the first WFO-9 was whispered about in 2007, it drew a lot of criticism and negativity. "You can't do that with 29"er wheels!", and more was heard on all the major forums. However, Niner, only a couple of years into their existence, was pushing ahead regardless of their not being 'real tires' or 'real forks' for this endeavor. It was cutting edge, forward thinking, and disruptive. Looking back on that early WFO-9, one can now see that Niner Bikes, whatever you may think of them today, should be credited with helping to break the barriers down to what a 29'er could be. 

Another individual who also brought big wheels and long travel together in a way that shocked the mainstream was Devin Lenz. His Lenz Sport brand also has to be recognized in the same breath as Niner as Devin was also independently pushing the big wheeled idea forward with amazingly capable rides that blew away the criticisms of 29 inch wheeled bikes and what they were capable of. 

It's a crazy world of big wheeled bikes these days and back in the 00's, no one was thinking things would be like they are today. Well, except a couple of crazy companies that turned out not to be quite so crazy as we thought. Congratulations to Niner Bikes on the new WFO-9. It may seem like no big deal in 2021, but when you consider that at one time, 29"ers were relegated to being thought of only as single speed bikes or maybe XC bikes, it is a big deal. 

It Costs How Much?

Zipp Wheels have never been what I would call "inexpensive" wheels. Many of their past models would easily be called "halo products"- Products with heady price tags which people aspire to own, but probably never will. 

Well, Zipp didn't do anything to dent that reputation with the recent introduction of their new "353 NSW" wheel set. Yep, you need four thousand Benjamins to get these in your mitts. Carbon wheels for bicycles have been trending downward in price of late, but Zipp? Ha! Obviously they went in the opposite direction with the 353 NSW.

Okay, so what do you get for 4G, (and I ain't talkin' about ancient cell phone connectivity rates). Well, you'd better be getting a light wheel set, and Zipp delivers there with a sub-1300 gram wheel set weight. Okay, well, you'd better be getting an aerodynamic, watt-saving wheel. Once again- if the claims can be believed - Zipp delivers. That saw-toothed design is supposedly a big deal here. Okay- well, what about being able to use it for gravel? Actually- this is the most interesting part. This is basically a gravel wheel set. 25mm internal width? That's not a road racing inner rim width folks. Add in a disc only brake standard and this wheel screams "aero-gravel".

I tested the FLO Cycling wheels last year and stated that these would not be the last we'd here about aero wheels for gravel. While Zipp doesn't claim that these are only for gravel, a companion press release sent at the same time features Zipps rebadged 40mm gravel tire and shows it on.....you guessed it- the 353 NSW wheel set. They may not say it overtly, but this is aimed at the gravel market.
 

Bike Shop News: 

In the world of bike shops, I have been hearing that shortages are happening all across the nation yet. It seems to ebb and flow between different products, but certainly the situation with tires, tubes, cassettes, chains, free wheels, and other maintenance/wear items is still a bad situation. Getting accessory items is also still hit or miss. We've gotten in some stuff, like floor pumps, which were rare last year, yet we cannot get other things at all right now. It's unpredictable and frustrating for everyone. 

In terms of bicycles we actually are getting some few things through the shop. We get them built and they disappear about as fast as we build them. But I am hopeful that at least a trickle of bikes will continue throughout the Summer.  

In other bike shop related news, my friend and El Presidente' of the Slender Fungus, Ari, has been telling me that the Chicago metro region shops are desperate for qualified bicycle mechanics. Ari tells me most shops are four weeks behind in repairs in the region and that there is no end in sight. If you know how to wrench on bikes, and if you want to hang in the Chi-town area for the Spring and Summer, you can definitely find work. 

Again, this situation doesn't seem to have any resolution in sight for the near future. It's so odd working under such constraints and during such unusual times. How this shakes out is anybody's guess at the present time. All I know is that this roller coaster of a bike season in Iowa is going to be an odd one. Especially with RAGBRAI happening. (Oh, and what the heck happened with that whole "Iowa's Ride" thing? Who knows.....)

The shortages are also affecting what I do at RidingGravel.com as well. But it's all okay. Somehow we'll muddle through this. I'm not worried. I just marvel at the weirdness and how it seems to have no end at this point. They keep saying 2022...... We'll see. 

Podcast And Shirts:

Hey, just a reminder that the Riding Gravel Radio Ranch podcast has it's latest episode up. Hear it here or wherever you get your podcast feed from. We try to keep these episodes at about an hour or a little less, so you don't have to invest a ton of your time into these. My co-host is Andy of Andy's Bike Shop, so sometimes we drop a little local stuff as well. 

Also, you can still get the "Riding Stones - Shaking Bones" or "Addicted To Gravel" shirt designs at the RidingGravel.com website. The link to those shirt designs is here. 

And finally, my own designs for the former C.O.G 100 in hats and jerseys and G-Ted merch are still available and you can find that link over there on the right side or just go to the Garage Sale Page for the C.O.G. 100 stuff. 

NOTE: I've been blogging for over 15 years now, I have been doing Riding Gravel since 2015, and putting on events for 20 years or more. These small ways of making some money help me to keep going, defray some costs for making some of the content I put out, and honestly, with the C.O.G. stuff, I just don't want it to go to waste. In the case of the G-Ted merchandise, that actually helps my daughter and I don't get any monetary benefit there at all. I'm not going to apologize for occasionally making you all aware of these things as I feel it is just giving you an opportunity to give recognition to, and give back to what I have have been doing for all these years. If you don't feel led to do anything, no big deal. I'm good. I just wanted to provide the opportunity for you all to say "thanks" and if that speaks to you it does. If not, don't worry about me. I'll keep on keepin' on regardless of whether this stuff gets purchased or not. 

So, don't pull out your credit card unless you really want to. (But get this C.O.G. stuff outta here, or it is going to the landfill before long)
 

That's a wrap for this week. Hoping for warmer weather here. I also hope you get out for a ride!

Friday News And Views

Trek's Full Stache 29+ dually Image courtesy of Trek

Manly Haired- Dual Boinger-Wagon Wheeler:

About a week or so ago Trek dealers were sent images and info on a strangely named full suspension device with 29+ wheels. I checked it out and then realized that it probably was under an embargo since there was no chit-chat online about it.

I was correct, as Trek did not release the details until yesterday. However; some dealers were getting these bikes in already and I heard about an "unboxing" at Cycle Works in Lincoln via my good friend, MG. MG is in possession of a Stache 9.8 hardtail and we discussed the potential small animal crushing abilities of the Stache and Full Stache bikes.

Trek brings a lot to the table when it comes to design and R&D, so I suspect that this bike will be pretty dialed, and the early pieces by the various mag media wonks seem to agree, the Full Stache is a rock crawlers dream. However; and as one report I read rightly points out, this bike is not the only bike of its kind. Salsa has the Deadwood FS, and Lenz Sport has been refining this platform for years. I've followed with great interest the development of the Lenz Behemoth 29+ and Fatillac designs. Traction has been one of this platform's biggest pluses all along, so to read that about the Full Stache is no surprise to me.

Interestingly the Behemoth has 435mm chain stays vs the 430mm of the Stache, but the Behemoth has a traditional diamond shaped rear triangle which should be stiffer than the Full Stache and the mag media wonks are already telling us the Full Stache is flexy in certain situations.

Also worthy of pointing out, the Behemoth uses a through axle in the rear which is 12mm X 157mm, a DH standard. This gives a wider and more rigid stance for the rear wheel to work in, and with a carbon rimmed wheel, I cannot imagine that the Behemoth wouldn't be a stiffer, more planted bike in the fast twisties.

But the Trek does give you a more open front triangle and for those who want to bike pack in the back country, that may be a more appealing feature. I can see that for sure. The thing is that with the Salsa Deadwood, the Behemoth, and now Trek supporting this type of use for full suspension 29+ wheels and tires, the future looks a little more secure for these wheels use in mountain bikes. Added to that you have the Krampus, Stache hard tail, and Jones bikes, plus some various smaller companies doing things in 29+. The future looks bright for these wagon wheels.

Volunteer t-shirts for T.I.v14

Throwback Design For T.I.v14:

I was super stoked Thursday when I was sent the rendering for the t-shirt for the volunteers for Trans Iowa v14. The design will be as shown- white logo on black t-shirts, because black is the only color for t-shirts. Ha! Only half kidding there. You should look in my t-shirt drawer sometime.

So, a bit of a back story here: Jeff Kerkove went to college and studied graphic design. He did all the headers for Trans Iowa up through T.I. v9. I took over the job for v10 and beyond. Anyway, Jeff's original Trans Iowa logo appeared on every header from v1 through v6. It has appeared as a sticker (v6 and a couple other times in rider's race bags), and on the blog here when I write about Trans Iowa. It was used once on a t-shirt for Trans Iowa v5. I figured it was high time we brought the design out of mothballs and used it prominently once again.

Although it probably will be too cold for t-shirts at Trans Iowa v14, our volunteers will be sporting these shirts, so look for them to appear here and there in the future. When you see someone with one of these on, you will know that they were a T.I.v14 volunteer, or that you found me! I'll have one or two of these in my t-shirt drawer in the future. They should fit right in there!

We probably won't be getting passed by farm equipment this year!

Renegade Gent's Race 8.0:

The ride is tomorrow and I'll be joining my four Renegade Gent's on the Careless Whispers team for the 8th time. It's going to be a blast, because, how could it not be? 

Due to the forecast low temperatures, which are more February-like than April-like, the start was pushed back an hour by the organizers. Still, it will most likely be in the low 20's when we start and if we are lucky we will see the high 30's later in the day. I'll be riding up to the start from Ankeny, like I did last year, so I'll be out when it is really freaking cold! 

I doubt we will see any traffic out in the country when the event is on since absolutely zero farming is happening now. Heck, we are still experiencing Winter! I suspect the weather will break soon, I mean, it has to, right? It's just too bad it won't be nice at the Gent;s Race. I guess we will just have to pedal harder to stay warm!

Once again, expect a full report of the goings on come Monday.

That's all for now folks! Stay warm and get a ride in!

Friday News And Views

Trek's Full Stache 29+ dually Image courtesy of Trek

Manly Haired- Dual Boinger-Wagon Wheeler:

About a week or so ago Trek dealers were sent images and info on a strangely named full suspension device with 29+ wheels. I checked it out and then realized that it probably was under an embargo since there was no chit-chat online about it.

I was correct, as Trek did not release the details until yesterday. However; some dealers were getting these bikes in already and I heard about an "unboxing" at Cycle Works in Lincoln via my good friend, MG. MG is in possession of a Stache 9.8 hardtail and we discussed the potential small animal crushing abilities of the Stache and Full Stache bikes.

Trek brings a lot to the table when it comes to design and R&D, so I suspect that this bike will be pretty dialed, and the early pieces by the various mag media wonks seem to agree, the Full Stache is a rock crawlers dream. However; and as one report I read rightly points out, this bike is not the only bike of its kind. Salsa has the Deadwood FS, and Lenz Sport has been refining this platform for years. I've followed with great interest the development of the Lenz Behemoth 29+ and Fatillac designs. Traction has been one of this platform's biggest pluses all along, so to read that about the Full Stache is no surprise to me.

Interestingly the Behemoth has 435mm chain stays vs the 430mm of the Stache, but the Behemoth has a traditional diamond shaped rear triangle which should be stiffer than the Full Stache and the mag media wonks are already telling us the Full Stache is flexy in certain situations.

Also worthy of pointing out, the Behemoth uses a through axle in the rear which is 12mm X 157mm, a DH standard. This gives a wider and more rigid stance for the rear wheel to work in, and with a carbon rimmed wheel, I cannot imagine that the Behemoth wouldn't be a stiffer, more planted bike in the fast twisties.

But the Trek does give you a more open front triangle and for those who want to bike pack in the back country, that may be a more appealing feature. I can see that for sure. The thing is that with the Salsa Deadwood, the Behemoth, and now Trek supporting this type of use for full suspension 29+ wheels and tires, the future looks a little more secure for these wheels use in mountain bikes. Added to that you have the Krampus, Stache hard tail, and Jones bikes, plus some various smaller companies doing things in 29+. The future looks bright for these wagon wheels.

Volunteer t-shirts for T.I.v14

Throwback Design For T.I.v14:

I was super stoked Thursday when I was sent the rendering for the t-shirt for the volunteers for Trans Iowa v14. The design will be as shown- white logo on black t-shirts, because black is the only color for t-shirts. Ha! Only half kidding there. You should look in my t-shirt drawer sometime.

So, a bit of a back story here: Jeff Kerkove went to college and studied graphic design. He did all the headers for Trans Iowa up through T.I. v9. I took over the job for v10 and beyond. Anyway, Jeff's original Trans Iowa logo appeared on every header from v1 through v6. It has appeared as a sticker (v6 and a couple other times in rider's race bags), and on the blog here when I write about Trans Iowa. It was used once on a t-shirt for Trans Iowa v5. I figured it was high time we brought the design out of mothballs and used it prominently once again.

Although it probably will be too cold for t-shirts at Trans Iowa v14, our volunteers will be sporting these shirts, so look for them to appear here and there in the future. When you see someone with one of these on, you will know that they were a T.I.v14 volunteer, or that you found me! I'll have one or two of these in my t-shirt drawer in the future. They should fit right in there!

We probably won't be getting passed by farm equipment this year!

Renegade Gent's Race 8.0:

The ride is tomorrow and I'll be joining my four Renegade Gent's on the Careless Whispers team for the 8th time. It's going to be a blast, because, how could it not be? 

Due to the forecast low temperatures, which are more February-like than April-like, the start was pushed back an hour by the organizers. Still, it will most likely be in the low 20's when we start and if we are lucky we will see the high 30's later in the day. I'll be riding up to the start from Ankeny, like I did last year, so I'll be out when it is really freaking cold! 

I doubt we will see any traffic out in the country when the event is on since absolutely zero farming is happening now. Heck, we are still experiencing Winter! I suspect the weather will break soon, I mean, it has to, right? It's just too bad it won't be nice at the Gent;s Race. I guess we will just have to pedal harder to stay warm!

Once again, expect a full report of the goings on come Monday.

That's all for now folks! Stay warm and get a ride in!

Minus Ten Review- 41

The Lenz Lunchbox I got to ride at Interbike in 2007 thanks to Mike Curiak

Ten years ago this week on the blog I shared an image of the Lenz Lunchbox belonging to Mike Curiak that he brought for me to ride at Interbike. This was the bike with the "super-secret" tires on it that Niner Bikes mistakenly showed on the floor of Interbike that year when they were not supposed to.

In a fitting irony, the testers of the then unnamed tire decided that this design wasn't cutting it and a new design was worked out instead. Unfortunately, by the time the eleventh hour decision was made to change directions, the first design was tooled up and ready to go. This first tire was known as the "Kodiak 2.5"" tire.

The second design, deemed much better by nearly all who ever had ridden both designs, was called the "Descent 2.5"" tire. So, what about the Kodiak was it that became ironic? Well, the very company that exposed the design too early ended up buying the entire production run of the Kodiaks. Niner sold them on their long travel 29"er. They also sold them separately.

I remember asking Curiak why the first design was panned and he said something to the effect that the Kodiak was too much of a "one trick pony". It was only really an effective design in one specific condition and area where the Descent was a much more versatile tire. In the end, the Kodiak and the Descent were too far ahead of their time. Only now, ten years down the road, are we finally seeing a push to make big, tough, voluminous 29"er tires for trail riding on long travel 29"ers.

The Trek Slash 9.7 29"er. See any similarities to the Lenz?

That Lenz bike was also ten years ahead of its time. Of course, we now have better wheels, tires, and forks to make the idea work. The "geometry du jour" is different, yes, but this Trek Slash owes a lot of its DNA to the groundbreaking work of Devin Lenz and Mike Curiak. Lenz and Curiak were doing stuff in '07 that many in the industry were saying was impossible to do. Yet there they were, largely ignored, and yet making a fully capable, high performing platform which was doing the job with big wheels that others could only pull off at the time with 26" wheels.

Looking back on that day I got to ride that bike, I had little idea that I was riding something from the future. The tires, the deep travel, the capable geometry which, by the way, was so different from the then current thinking on geometry that it could be thought of as being from another planet. Curiak purposefully held back any specific geometry information from me until well after I had ridden the bike, because he knew that had I known the numbers up front it would have colored my impressions of the bike. He was right, because those geo numbers, which would be considered tame by today's standards, were so outside of the box, circa 2007, that I would have laughed at him had I known what they were ahead of time.

It is no small feat then, and in no way hyperbole to say that the Lenz Lunchbox was a game changer. Devin Lenz went on to make a 7" travel bike dubbed the "PBJ" and it further pushed the boundaries of 29"ers. Now everyone is being taken aback by all this big wheeled intrusion into DH and enduro territory, but the mold was cast ten years ago, and I got to ride the prototype.

Thanks Mr. Lenz and Mr. Curiak! I never would have believed it then, but you two helped usher in an era of big wheelers that is nothing short of amazing.

Minus Ten Review- 41

The Lenz Lunchbox I got to ride at Interbike in 2007 thanks to Mike Curiak

Ten years ago this week on the blog I shared an image of the Lenz Lunchbox belonging to Mike Curiak that he brought for me to ride at Interbike. This was the bike with the "super-secret" tires on it that Niner Bikes mistakenly showed on the floor of Interbike that year when they were not supposed to.

In a fitting irony, the testers of the then unnamed tire decided that this design wasn't cutting it and a new design was worked out instead. Unfortunately, by the time the eleventh hour decision was made to change directions, the first design was tooled up and ready to go. This first tire was known as the "Kodiak 2.5"" tire.

The second design, deemed much better by nearly all who ever had ridden both designs, was called the "Descent 2.5"" tire. So, what about the Kodiak was it that became ironic? Well, the very company that exposed the design too early ended up buying the entire production run of the Kodiaks. Niner sold them on their long travel 29"er. They also sold them separately.

I remember asking Curiak why the first design was panned and he said something to the effect that the Kodiak was too much of a "one trick pony". It was only really an effective design in one specific condition and area where the Descent was a much more versatile tire. In the end, the Kodiak and the Descent were too far ahead of their time. Only now, ten years down the road, are we finally seeing a push to make big, tough, voluminous 29"er tires for trail riding on long travel 29"ers.

The Trek Slash 9.7 29"er. See any similarities to the Lenz?

That Lenz bike was also ten years ahead of its time. Of course, we now have better wheels, tires, and forks to make the idea work. The "geometry du jour" is different, yes, but this Trek Slash owes a lot of its DNA to the groundbreaking work of Devin Lenz and Mike Curiak. Lenz and Curiak were doing stuff in '07 that many in the industry were saying was impossible to do. Yet there they were, largely ignored, and yet making a fully capable, high performing platform which was doing the job with big wheels that others could only pull off at the time with 26" wheels.

Looking back on that day I got to ride that bike, I had little idea that I was riding something from the future. The tires, the deep travel, the capable geometry which, by the way, was so different from the then current thinking on geometry that it could be thought of as being from another planet. Curiak purposefully held back any specific geometry information from me until well after I had ridden the bike, because he knew that had I known the numbers up front it would have colored my impressions of the bike. He was right, because those geo numbers, which would be considered tame by today's standards, were so outside of the box, circa 2007, that I would have laughed at him had I known what they were ahead of time.

It is no small feat then, and in no way hyperbole to say that the Lenz Lunchbox was a game changer. Devin Lenz went on to make a 7" travel bike dubbed the "PBJ" and it further pushed the boundaries of 29"ers. Now everyone is being taken aback by all this big wheeled intrusion into DH and enduro territory, but the mold was cast ten years ago, and I got to ride the prototype.

Thanks Mr. Lenz and Mr. Curiak! I never would have believed it then, but you two helped usher in an era of big wheelers that is nothing short of amazing.

Where Are The Non-Believers Now?

Wait a Gol durn miniute! They were doin this in '08! Image by mtbr memeber "crashtestdummy"

"Nope, it can't be done. And even if it could, they shouldn't, because those big wagon wheels are just too heavy, fragile, cumbersome, and make a bike handle like a truck. "

What is it that I am talking about here? Well, if you go back ten years ago, that was the the common response to anyone asking why there weren't five and six inch travel 29"ers. The common wisdom at that time relegated 29"ers to single speeds and maybe a full suspension XC racing bike. Maybe. This was when 26"ers ruled the long travel category of the mountain biking world. You remember long travel 26"ers, right? Boy! Have things changed in the last few years!

Of course, they were all wrong even back then about 29"ers and long travel. Many won't remember, or even care, but credit for shoving the long travel 29"ers in the face of a disbelieving mountain biking world has to go to Devin Lenz and Mike Curiak. Devin was, and still is, the mad scientist at Lenz Bikes.  Mike Curiak was, and maybe still is, somewhat of a brand ambassador for Lenz. I actually rode a 5 inch travel 29"er in 2007 at Interbike courtesy of Lenz and Curiak. By the way, the bike actually worked really well. Then the following year I got to ride the newest, six inch travel version, and the following year Lenz brought a seven inch travel model to Interbike. So, yeah.....pioneer, ahead of his time, and all of that.

I think the deal was back nine, ten years ago, was that there were no good components to go with the ideas. Lenz was using cobbled together forks from Manitou and White Industries. Tires weren't anywhere near what was needed to really get the platform working to potentials, and rims were hard to find that were wide enough, and stout enough. Still, it was plain for any big company engineer to see that a long travel 29"er was, indeed, not only possible, but worthwhile to check in to.

The 2017 Trek Slash ultra-spectacular enduro machine of doom!

As I said, I actually had the chance to pilot the six inch travel version of Lenz's bike courtesy of Mr. Curiak, (that's me above with said bike), and I was dutifully impressed to the point that I seriously was considering buying one. Like I really needed that kind of a monster! But the bike was so fun, handled so well, and was so capable, I wanted one despite the fact I needed it like I needed another hole in my head. So, wisdom prevailed, and I passed on owning a piece of history.

The thing was, all that time the naysayers were putting forth all their efforts to slam the idea of a long travel 29"er. Then 27.5"ers hit the scene hard in 2012, and, well....... I figured that was the nail in the coffin for any long travel 29"ers, and so did most everyone else. I had different reasons for thinking that way, but I never saw this day coming.

Apparently tinkerers and mad mtb scientists still inhabit the sport, because somewhere along the line, enduro racing was infested with 29"ers. You know, enduro racing? The whole reason long travel 650b bikes were taking over the 26"er bike category and killing them off? Remember that? The industry foisted the move on the market as the heat of the 29"er craze was waning in order to boost sales up for a bit longer. Well, that basically, in my opinion, not only killed 26"ers, but made 650B a thing it would never have become unless the industry did what it did back then.

Anyway, somewhere along the way, 29"ers started winning enduro races. Lots of them. Then companies started to take notice. Bigger companies, with bigger influences that could get things made to, ya know, actually make that old idea of a long travel 29"er that Devin Lenz was doing all along actually have cutting edge technology. Now we see the Slash 29"er with 150mm travel rear and 160mm travel front coming to the fore. A bike with a promise to be a very capable, maneuverable, robust, light, and better than anything else out there.

Where are the non-believers now?

Where Are The Non-Believers Now?

Wait a Gol durn miniute! They were doin this in '08! Image by mtbr memeber "crashtestdummy"

"Nope, it can't be done. And even if it could, they shouldn't, because those big wagon wheels are just too heavy, fragile, cumbersome, and make a bike handle like a truck. "

What is it that I am talking about here? Well, if you go back ten years ago, that was the the common response to anyone asking why there weren't five and six inch travel 29"ers. The common wisdom at that time relegated 29"ers to single speeds and maybe a full suspension XC racing bike. Maybe. This was when 26"ers ruled the long travel category of the mountain biking world. You remember long travel 26"ers, right? Boy! Have things changed in the last few years!

Of course, they were all wrong even back then about 29"ers and long travel. Many won't remember, or even care, but credit for shoving the long travel 29"ers in the face of a disbelieving mountain biking world has to go to Devin Lenz and Mike Curiak. Devin was, and still is, the mad scientist at Lenz Bikes.  Mike Curiak was, and maybe still is, somewhat of a brand ambassador for Lenz. I actually rode a 5 inch travel 29"er in 2007 at Interbike courtesy of Lenz and Curiak. By the way, the bike actually worked really well. Then the following year I got to ride the newest, six inch travel version, and the following year Lenz brought a seven inch travel model to Interbike. So, yeah.....pioneer, ahead of his time, and all of that.

I think the deal was back nine, ten years ago, was that there were no good components to go with the ideas. Lenz was using cobbled together forks from Manitou and White Industries. Tires weren't anywhere near what was needed to really get the platform working to potentials, and rims were hard to find that were wide enough, and stout enough. Still, it was plain for any big company engineer to see that a long travel 29"er was, indeed, not only possible, but worthwhile to check in to.

The 2017 Trek Slash ultra-spectacular enduro machine of doom!

As I said, I actually had the chance to pilot the six inch travel version of Lenz's bike courtesy of Mr. Curiak, (that's me above with said bike), and I was dutifully impressed to the point that I seriously was considering buying one. Like I really needed that kind of a monster! But the bike was so fun, handled so well, and was so capable, I wanted one despite the fact I needed it like I needed another hole in my head. So, wisdom prevailed, and I passed on owning a piece of history.

The thing was, all that time the naysayers were putting forth all their efforts to slam the idea of a long travel 29"er. Then 27.5"ers hit the scene hard in 2012, and, well....... I figured that was the nail in the coffin for any long travel 29"ers, and so did most everyone else. I had different reasons for thinking that way, but I never saw this day coming.

Apparently tinkerers and mad mtb scientists still inhabit the sport, because somewhere along the line, enduro racing was infested with 29"ers. You know, enduro racing? The whole reason long travel 650b bikes were taking over the 26"er bike category and killing them off? Remember that? The industry foisted the move on the market as the heat of the 29"er craze was waning in order to boost sales up for a bit longer. Well, that basically, in my opinion, not only killed 26"ers, but made 650B a thing it would never have become unless the industry did what it did back then.

Anyway, somewhere along the way, 29"ers started winning enduro races. Lots of them. Then companies started to take notice. Bigger companies, with bigger influences that could get things made to, ya know, actually make that old idea of a long travel 29"er that Devin Lenz was doing all along actually have cutting edge technology. Now we see the Slash 29"er with 150mm travel rear and 160mm travel front coming to the fore. A bike with a promise to be a very capable, maneuverable, robust, light, and better than anything else out there.

Where are the non-believers now?

We Always Knew It Could Be This Way

Gary Fisher had it figured out right away.... (circa 1999)

Take a quick glance at this image of a bicycle drawing. Would you believe it if I told you this was a current idea, waiting to be developed by some small brand that wanted a short rear end, long top tube hard tail? You could easily be forgiven for thinking just that, as this rendering is very contemporary for today's tastes in 29"er hard tail design. But here's the kicker- it is a drawing from 1999. 

Gary Fisher, who had just gotten a few sets of the unprecedented Nanoraptor 29"er tires to play with, was busy designing a 29"er frame set with WTB's Mark Slate and Steve Potts. Fisher knew he wanted a shorter rear end, a long, low front end, and a suspension fork. He wanted a front derailleur as well because you just had to have one. It would be some dozen years or so before SRAM would introduce a 1X drive train with gearing that was anywhere close to a triple crank set's gearing. That kind of nixed the short chain stay deal. Gary tried a modded front derailleur, but of course, everyone but a few visionaries thought that Mr. Fisher was out of his mind. It would all be deemed as a totally impossible thing to do with those "wagon wheels". Subsequently, many compromises were made which didn't do 29"ers any good, but as we all know now, they were overcome one by one until today.

I haven't written much about 29"ers here since, well, there wasn't a whole lot to say in recent years. The industry had its attention diverted elsewhere. However; I've been casually observing a trend in the last few years. 29"er FS designs with very good geometry numbers and performance that was knocking the socks off of riders all over. Brands like Banshee, Kona, Lenz, Transition, Santa Cruz, and Evil were dishing out stuff that was hearkening back to the stuff Mr. Fisher had floating around in his brain back 17 years ago. Only thing was that now it was actually possible to pull this stuff off. 

The new Hightower (29"er) from Santa Cruz.

 Tuesday it was all over the web that Santa Cruz had introduced a new bike that had this "forward thinking geometry". (<===HA!) Interestingly, you almost miss in all the hoopla that this bike is a 29"er. It was almost as if Santa Cruz doesn't want you to think about that part. In fact, one description of the bike from a journo who was flown in to try one out in South America said something to the effect that he didn't think about the bike being a 29"er the whole time he was riding it. Then he went on to say that he had a rough relationship with 29"ers, (well....all big time bike journos say that, don't they?), and that this bike was convincing him they weren't all that bad for him. Gee, welcome to 2009, Sir! Anywho......

The thing is that now, after a short pause to have some flings with other off road ideas, the bigger brands have started to come around to the idea that maybe these 29"ers "can do", and that nothing is really impossible for 29"ers, except maybe that they don't fit a lot of women and smaller riders all that well. Ride the biggest wheels you can fit on, and that seems wise.

Somewhere in a fancy suit and tie, I imagine Mr. Fisher seeing all of this and that a wry smile curls his handlebar mustache a little bit. It could always have been this way. He saw this years ago, and so did Devin Lenz, and a few others who "got it" years ago. It isn't anything new. But really, nothing is new in the bicycle world. We just have the ways and means to actually make it work better now.

Note: This post was inspired by the head cheese at TNI these days, Grannygear, and a post he did recently on the state of 29"ers in 2016. Read it HERE.

We Always Knew It Could Be This Way

Gary Fisher had it figured out right away.... (circa 1999)

Take a quick glance at this image of a bicycle drawing. Would you believe it if I told you this was a current idea, waiting to be developed by some small brand that wanted a short rear end, long top tube hard tail? You could easily be forgiven for thinking just that, as this rendering is very contemporary for today's tastes in 29"er hard tail design. But here's the kicker- it is a drawing from 1999. 

Gary Fisher, who had just gotten a few sets of the unprecedented Nanoraptor 29"er tires to play with, was busy designing a 29"er frame set with WTB's Mark Slate and Steve Potts. Fisher knew he wanted a shorter rear end, a long, low front end, and a suspension fork. He wanted a front derailleur as well because you just had to have one. It would be some dozen years or so before SRAM would introduce a 1X drive train with gearing that was anywhere close to a triple crank set's gearing. That kind of nixed the short chain stay deal. Gary tried a modded front derailleur, but of course, everyone but a few visionaries thought that Mr. Fisher was out of his mind. It would all be deemed as a totally impossible thing to do with those "wagon wheels". Subsequently, many compromises were made which didn't do 29"ers any good, but as we all know now, they were overcome one by one until today.

I haven't written much about 29"ers here since, well, there wasn't a whole lot to say in recent years. The industry had its attention diverted elsewhere. However; I've been casually observing a trend in the last few years. 29"er FS designs with very good geometry numbers and performance that was knocking the socks off of riders all over. Brands like Banshee, Kona, Lenz, Transition, Santa Cruz, and Evil were dishing out stuff that was hearkening back to the stuff Mr. Fisher had floating around in his brain back 17 years ago. Only thing was that now it was actually possible to pull this stuff off. 

The new Hightower (29"er) from Santa Cruz.

 Tuesday it was all over the web that Santa Cruz had introduced a new bike that had this "forward thinking geometry". (<===HA!) Interestingly, you almost miss in all the hoopla that this bike is a 29"er. It was almost as if Santa Cruz doesn't want you to think about that part. In fact, one description of the bike from a journo who was flown in to try one out in South America said something to the effect that he didn't think about the bike being a 29"er the whole time he was riding it. Then he went on to say that he had a rough relationship with 29"ers, (well....all big time bike journos say that, don't they?), and that this bike was convincing him they weren't all that bad for him. Gee, welcome to 2009, Sir! Anywho......

The thing is that now, after a short pause to have some flings with other off road ideas, the bigger brands have started to come around to the idea that maybe these 29"ers "can do", and that nothing is really impossible for 29"ers, except maybe that they don't fit a lot of women and smaller riders all that well. Ride the biggest wheels you can fit on, and that seems wise.

Somewhere in a fancy suit and tie, I imagine Mr. Fisher seeing all of this and that a wry smile curls his handlebar mustache a little bit. It could always have been this way. He saw this years ago, and so did Devin Lenz, and a few others who "got it" years ago. It isn't anything new. But really, nothing is new in the bicycle world. We just have the ways and means to actually make it work better now.

Note: This post was inspired by the head cheese at TNI these days, Grannygear, and a post he did recently on the state of 29"ers in 2016. Read it HERE.

A Peek At The Future?

Posted by Mike Curiak, the Lenz Behemoth with Plus sized wheels.

Probably six or seven years ago or so, I was contacted by Mike Curiak to meet him just off site in the parking lot at Interbike's Outdoor Demo. He wanted to have me check out "the future" of long travel, 29 inch mountain bikes. Now mind you, at that time there were no long travel 29'ers and nearly everyone said it couldn't be done.

You couldn't get the geometry right, there were no forks, there was no tire suitable, and on and on, yet here was Mike, showing me a six inch travel, full suspension mountain bike with beefy tires, slack geometry, and a "real fork". The bike rode and handled better than any 29"er available at the time, and the prototype WTB tires were flat out monsters. The bike was waaaay beyond my capabilities then and now. Oh.......and it was the future. Easily five or six years ahead of its time, and in terms of mountain bike technology, that may as well be an eternity. The Lenz "Lunchbox", as it ended up becoming, was a ground breaker. 

Tires were so secret, I couldn't take a close up! From I-Bike '08

Now Mike has posted this beast, a Behemoth, with plus sized rubber. looks like 29+ to me, but whatever- this is the future of dual suspension mountain biking. In many ways, it is simply an evolution of that bike I rode back in '08. That bike laid the foundation for what seemed to be impossible, but Mike and Devin Lenz keep pushing the envelope, and quietly, together, they are showing up bigger companies at their own game.

All that aside, the Lenz shown here has short chain stays for tires this big at a claimed 434mm/17.08" and with the 1X set up, the plus sized rubber has room to spare. I've no doubt the bike is dialed and would make mincemeat of any trail anywhere near where I live. In fact, you'd have to take lines that weren't lines here to make this bike worth owning in the Mid-West. That isn't the point though. The point is that folks that don't think it would work, well........they are wrong. It would work, of that I have no doubt. That ride in '08 convinced me that Mike and Devin were dead on to the way big wheels can work in a full suspension setting.

I think B+ will become this. I am pretty sure 29+ will find an application here as well. The Boost axle spacing will become standard fare, and as far as "fat bike" dual suspension, ala the Bucksaw- I think those will be super rare. Those 4" tires and the wheels they go on are just too heavy. Not that the plus-sized/mid-fat FS stuff will be a whole lot lighter, but it will be lighter.

I'll tell ya what, this kind of bike looks like a ton of fun to me. If I were to able to take any bike I could get my hands on to Texas where I go occasionally, I would want that Behemoth pictured above. The Franklin Mountain State Park would suit it perfectly, and I would be having a ton of fun with that sort of rig. Maybe someday I'll make that dream come true.........

A Peek At The Future?

Posted by Mike Curiak, the Lenz Behemoth with Plus sized wheels.

Probably six or seven years ago or so, I was contacted by Mike Curiak to meet him just off site in the parking lot at Interbike's Outdoor Demo. He wanted to have me check out "the future" of long travel, 29 inch mountain bikes. Now mind you, at that time there were no long travel 29'ers and nearly everyone said it couldn't be done.

You couldn't get the geometry right, there were no forks, there was no tire suitable, and on and on, yet here was Mike, showing me a six inch travel, full suspension mountain bike with beefy tires, slack geometry, and a "real fork". The bike rode and handled better than any 29"er available at the time, and the prototype WTB tires were flat out monsters. The bike was waaaay beyond my capabilities then and now. Oh.......and it was the future. Easily five or six years ahead of its time, and in terms of mountain bike technology, that may as well be an eternity. The Lenz "Lunchbox", as it ended up becoming, was a ground breaker. 

Tires were so secret, I couldn't take a close up! From I-Bike '08

Now Mike has posted this beast, a Behemoth, with plus sized rubber. looks like 29+ to me, but whatever- this is the future of dual suspension mountain biking. In many ways, it is simply an evolution of that bike I rode back in '08. That bike laid the foundation for what seemed to be impossible, but Mike and Devin Lenz keep pushing the envelope, and quietly, together, they are showing up bigger companies at their own game.

All that aside, the Lenz shown here has short chain stays for tires this big at a claimed 434mm/17.08" and with the 1X set up, the plus sized rubber has room to spare. I've no doubt the bike is dialed and would make mincemeat of any trail anywhere near where I live. In fact, you'd have to take lines that weren't lines here to make this bike worth owning in the Mid-West. That isn't the point though. The point is that folks that don't think it would work, well........they are wrong. It would work, of that I have no doubt. That ride in '08 convinced me that Mike and Devin were dead on to the way big wheels can work in a full suspension setting.

I think B+ will become this. I am pretty sure 29+ will find an application here as well. The Boost axle spacing will become standard fare, and as far as "fat bike" dual suspension, ala the Bucksaw- I think those will be super rare. Those 4" tires and the wheels they go on are just too heavy. Not that the plus-sized/mid-fat FS stuff will be a whole lot lighter, but it will be lighter.

I'll tell ya what, this kind of bike looks like a ton of fun to me. If I were to able to take any bike I could get my hands on to Texas where I go occasionally, I would want that Behemoth pictured above. The Franklin Mountain State Park would suit it perfectly, and I would be having a ton of fun with that sort of rig. Maybe someday I'll make that dream come true.........

Friday News And Views

Powderkeg

Ssssh! Don't say nuthin', but....

I often find it strange at trade shows when one person is strictly sworn to secrecy and yet another blabs about it all publicly and isn't taken to task for it.  Once again, this happened at Frostbike. So, I figured what's good for the goose is okay for the gander, and here are the two bits that I was strictly forbidden to speak about.

First off, here is where I saw the information, so don't anyone get their panties in a bunch about it.  The first bit is that the tandem shown at Frostbike has a name: Powderkeg, and as anyone knows, "once you name it, you become attached to it!" (movie reference!) Anyway- the point is, by naming the project already, it would seem to further legitimize this as an offering that is coming down the pike at some point. Also mentioned was the thing hanging this project up- which is testing. Salsa wants to be assured this tandem can take what ya'all dish out, but there are no definitions or parameters set for such machines at this point. I suspect that will change soon.

The other bomb in the linked article was sort of slipped in there without much fanfare, but check this out: (Quoted from the Dirt Rag article.)

"...a fat bike suspension fork from a major suspension manufacturer is going to happen soon. It will be spec’d stock on some Salsa fat bikes. No ETA as of yet, or much information at all. After months of test rides on various older forks that fit fat tires, Salsa is confident there is a place in the mountain bike world for a proper fat bike squishy fork. Probably a full suspension fat bike as well!"

Did ya get that? The one thing that holds back fat bikes from becoming full-fledged, year-round mountain bikes is lack of control over that bouncing front wheel. Did you catch the "major suspension manufacturer" hint? Yes- this will not be a cheesy effort. It is coming, and this single facet of Salsa's master plan will be a major turning point in fat bike acceptance and use.

Also, we all know that last year at Frostbike there was a big hullabaloo over a prototyped suspension fat bike that "was held back by lack of a proper front suspension fork". Do you see that finally becoming available?  It sure doesn't take a genius to put that "two-and-two" together, does it? Especially after Salsa kept putting the concept bike out there for folks to see at demos all throughout the summer last year.

In fact, I can't believe Salsa let that slip now. But keep in mind- I didn't say this. Dirt Rag did. So ya'all just as well move along now. Nuthin' to see here.......

Let's Not Forget Our History: 

Codeine

 First it was On One's prototype Codeine that made some folks sit up and take notice. Slated to get 5" of rear travel mated to any 140mm-160mm fork.......wait. What? There are no readily available 160mm travel suspension forks for a 29"er, right? Then Specialized bombs everyone with the 6" travel bike, seen here.

While everyone may get the impression that these are "ground breaking" bikes, they are not.Anyone remember the Lenzsport Lunchbox? A fully capable, 6 inch travel All Mountain rig that I actually got to ride back in about 2007. Then the following year, LenzSport brought out the PBJ 7" travel rig. Both with pretty short chain stays too. Well made, highly regarded and still being made to this day. While Specialized and On One will seem "cutting edge", just keep in mind that it has all been done before.

What it does do though is legitimize "long travel" 29"ers as something viable. Whether or not riders embrace them remains to be seen, but 27.5"ers better be careful if these bikes do take off. And speaking of 27.5"ers, did ya see that Shimano just announced two wheel sets for the size? yep. That'll push that size further than it would have without Shimano.

Gravel Grinder News News: 

Yes- you read that correctly- Gravel Grinder News is going to be a-changin'.  Don't worry, if things go as I hope, it will become better, easier to use, easier to find events that are interesting to you, and perhaps even more gear reviews and what not.

The process to find a good template to switch to has already begun, and a draft for the plan has been made. Now I have to decide on some details, and then we'll be playing with the fine tuning behind the scenes.

It's been an eye opening week from my perspective as far as that site goes. I started it purely out of frustration that no centralized site existed to gather information for folks to see regarding the events out there. It grew to become far more than I intended, and far more used than I imagined. In fact, I only just figured it all out this past weekend. kind of a "Eureka!" moment, if you will. So, that's when all the planning started, and it will take a while to get everything in order. I definitely will post an announcement when it goes live.

Thanks to all the riders and promoters that have made Gravel grinder news a success over the  past 5 years.