Multiplication

 In celebration of the twentieth year of this blog, I have a few tales to tell. This post is one of them. This series will occur off and on throughout this anniversary year, I hope to illuminate some behind-the-scenes stories and highlights from the blog during this time. Enjoy!

 When I started Guitar Ted Productions in May of 2005 I had no other intentions for doing other blogs, websites, or podcasts. However; I did not take long to get myself into all three of those things. This post will be a sort of brief history of the blogs, websites, and podcasts I've been a part of throughout the years. 

You could say that Guitar Ted Productions was the second blog site I was associated with since Trans Iowa's site predated this blog by almost six months. However; I was not the one making any changes to that blog until 2007 when Trans Iowa co-founder Jeff Kerkove left for Ergon. But technically I was a part of that, so.... 

By 2006 I had an idea for a gravel ride and Jeff Kerkove felt I should "make it official" so he went ahead and set up the Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational blog site without my knowledge and then handed it to me on a silver platter. Boom! Now I was involved in three blogs. 

A snippet of an article I wrote for "The Biking Hub"

By March of 2006 I was also a regular contributor to "The Biking Hub", an aggregator site for mountain biking articles from the web and a site started only a month and a half earlier which was trying to expand into original content. 

The editor, "Cory", (sorry! I have lost the last name to the fogs of time.), was instrumental in my early development as a writer. He took my submissions and patiently worked with me to hone my craft and become a clearer, more "professional" writer in terms of sentence structure, tone, and grammar. 

I owe a lot to Cory and the chance to become a better writer. This and the chance to start writing reviews. It was Cory's idea to do three-part reviews over time to give readers something different than the typical one-hit and done reviews which were the norm then, and still are today. I'd never seen anything done the way Cory was suggesting and I was excited to be given this template for reviews which I have stuck to ever since 2006. 

I cannot say for certain, but ever since I started doing reviews like this it seems to me other sites picked up on the style and whenever I see things like "mid-term review" or "out of the box", I cannot help but think Cory's ideas were the genesis of that style. 

So, "The Biking Hub" was my first site to write for. That lasted until 2007 when I made a switch.....

The last page posted by Twenty Nine Inches. By this point I had left the site.

 From some scattered submissions starting in late 2005 and running through 2006, my name appeared on articles on the "Twenty Nine Inches" website. Then in 2007 I went all-in on being a regular contributor. From that point on until the end of 2014 I was immersed in the big wheel world. 

My articles there came along at the height of my "influencer/reviewer/writer" status in the MTB world which gave me privileges which included flying to Monterrey to see Keith Bontrager, Gary Fisher, and Travis Brown, ride with them, and eat a home cooked meal at Keith Bontrager's home in Santa Cruz. I got to go to Deer Valley, Utah and ride. I was at Sea Otter three times. Plus several Interbikes as well. Those were crazy days and all due to the blog here. 

In 2008 I took what was a sidebar for gravel events on this blog to another blog, opened up a gravel focused chapter called "Gravel Grinder News", and started my transitioning into more of a gravel related blog here as well. Side bar: A little known fact is that the Trans Iowa history site, which was started at about the same time, was converted to Gravel Grinder News. Then I switched the Trans Iowa History site to its own Word  Press based blog. 

  Gravel Grinder News was an event calendar, then a review site toward the end of its "blog status". In 2013 Gravel Grinder News became an actual dot-com in its own right. That went on for 2013 and through 2014 before I was convinced to roll Gravel Grinder News into......

"Riding Gravel" was a site focused on gravel started by Ben Welnak, then of Colorado, back in around 2013 or so. He convinced me to join forces with him under his banner. So Gravel Grinder News went away and I became partners with Ben in Riding Gravel. 

This partnership lasted until the end of 2023 when I stepped away from doing anything for the site. This marked the first time since 2006 where I had not been contributing to a site, or writing for a site on a regular basis. 

Before I became a part-owner in Riding Gravel, I appeared on a podcast via Ben Welnak's "Mountain Bike Radio" network on a show called the "Guitar Ted Show". I would often call in and gab with Ben about Trans Iowa or early MTB/29"er history stuff. However; I was probably best known online in terms of audio when I did my "Trans Iowa Radio" broadcasts live from Trans Iowa every Spring. 

Those started with me using a few different audio-blogging services which have all - sadly- gone away so there are no archives of those reports. However; you can get a feel for what I used to do from the Emmy award winning documentary on Trans Iowa v7 called "300 miles of Gravel", by Jeff Frings. Jeff used a lot of my audio-blog posts from that 2011 event in his film and it is a great reference for any early gravel riding aficionado. You can Google it and find it online yet, I believe. 

Ben then decided to run a call-in podcast for each Trans Iowa for several years starting in 2013 for Trans Iowa v9. You can check that out HERE. 

This transitioned into the "Riding Gravel Radio Ranch" podcast which started in 2014 and ended in 2023 with a little over 100 episodes. That evolved into the "Guitar Ted Podcast" which is in season 3 now with 68 episodes as of this posting. 

I also have been a guest on several other podcasts going back to the 2010's including "The Path Less Pedaled", "The Shiftless Podcast", and also on "The Spokesmen Podcast". 

Besides the film and podcasts, I also have written feature articles for "Dirt Rag", "Bicycle Times", "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News", and was a contributor to an article in the Japanese publication "Bicycle Club". 

I also have been featured in several newspaper articles and other magazine articles. Most notably, Trans Iowa v3 was featured in a chapter of the book written by Zach Dundas called "The Renegade Sportsman" which came out in 2010. Zach shadowed me throughout the event and he captured my sleep-deprived, Red Bull fueled banter quite well, if I do say so myself. If you get a chance to read that chapter in the book, it is well worth your time to seek out. 

Finally, I also had blogs for my old employer's shop for a few years and the short-lived C.O.G. 100 also, which had its own blog site. There were the two websites I had for a bit. "The Cyclistsite" being the most notable where I and Grannygear wrote reviews on stuff not 29"er related. Then there was "650B.com" which I owned but never posted on. Ironically it is the only site I ever made money on. I sold it to someone in Alaska and I haven't seen anything of it since. Am I leaving anything out? I probably have forgotten something....

All these things because I started a blog in 2005. What was I thinking?

Where do I go from here after accomplishing all of those things? Well, ironically someone was trying to offer me a chance to write for a gravel related site as recently as a couple of weeks ago. The thing is, content writers do not get paid what they are worth, and this looked to be another pie-in-the-sky offer with no real foundational backing behind it which would lead me to believe I would not get remunerated for my talents. So, as for the future?

This blog and my podcast are enough. Time to quit multiplying my efforts all over the place! But I am eternally grateful for what I have experienced and have accomplished over these twenty years and due to this blog, really. Without Jeff Kerkove's encouragement to start writing? 

You probably would never had heard of Guitar Ted. Thanks for reading!

Made The Switch

  In celebration of the twentieth year of this blog, I have a few tales to tell. This post is one of them. This series will occur off and on throughout this anniversary year, I hope to illuminate some behind-the-scenes stories and highlights from the blog during this time. Enjoy!

At the end of 2014 I announced that I had made a switch. I was no longer involved with day-to-day operations of the "Twentynine Inches" website. This marked a finish line I had set for myself several years prior to that day when I announced this at the end of 2014. 

The switch was made and I focused on the gravel things after that point. Was  there any future in gravel cycling? Was this a move I made because I had some premonition that gravel cycling was about to become the biggest thing since mountain biking back in the late 80's/early 90's? 

No.

I had no idea where gravel was going in terms of what it has become these days. Frankly, I didn't really care at that point. We had "made it", as far as I was concerned already. We had real tires, we had bicycles designed to ride on gravel, and that, really, was all I was expecting this to be. A small niche cycling segment like fat bikes, maybe bigger, but not by much. 

The last page posted for Twentynine Inches in 2017

I think many people have forgotten my involvement with 29"ers. Honestly, if you are under 30 years old, you may not have ever known I was involved with 29"ers at all. Some say I was an influence in that scene. I say "maybe". I mean, I guess back in 2005/2006 I was one of the earliest bloggers on that subject, and it got me started in the cycling industry as a reviewer and writer. 

Before that I was pretty much nobody. A mechanic in a shop, like thousands of other human beings. 

But writing about 29"ers here made a dent, and enough of one that companies were ghosting my blog for trends and chit-chat on big wheels. Web folk were starting to poke around my blog and a couple asked me to start writing for them, including "Twentynine Inches". Then things took off from there.

I was published in "Dirt Rag" for an article or two, one on 29"ers, one on gravel riding/racing around about 2011

So again, if I didn't totally understand where gravel cycling was headed, and didn't have big-time media credentials to lean on, why would I have quit on the 29"er thing? Well, there were a LOT of reasons for that decision. But for the focus of this post, it was because, much like gravel bikes are the commonplace drop bar bike for everyday road riders now, 29"ers had become the de facto mountain bike. A MTB was a 29"er by default. Big deal! So, there was no real passion or reason to push into writing news and reviews on 29"er stuff for "Twentynine Inches" when all the cycling companies wanted to have the heavy-hitters in media do the reviewing and get the invites to press camps, and all of that sort of thing. This weighed heavily on those who remained at the site until after about two years beyond my departure, "Twentynine Inches" ceased operations here in the USA. 

As for myself, I just wanted to write about gravel cycling mostly, and the blog here really showed that focus. The site, "Gravel Grinder News" came out of this blog in late 2008, and by 2014 I was already doing reviews and write-ups on gravel stuff anyway. And in one sense, I kind of went from the frying pan into the fire as I merged "Gravel Grinder News" with "Riding Gravel" and started pretty much running that site. So, in a sense I just made a swap from one trend that had run its course to another that was gaining momentum daily. 

And now I am not doing anything with "Riding Gravel" either, so is the gravel thing no big deal anymore? Why did I leave the gravel site? That's for another time....

More soon.

A Statement Concerning "Riding Gravel"

Back at the beginning of December 2023 I announced that all my reviewing work would be appearing here on this blog. I said at the time that I couldn't really say anything more about the situation. Well, now things have been wrapped up in totality with the site "Riding Gravel", and I have ended my part-ownership in that entity. So, now I can talk about it. 

First - Why talk about this at all? I think it is fair to say that readers of that site and this blog may have some questions that pertain to my association to that site and may wonder what happened there. I have noted some of these questions recently. That is why I feel a bit of an obligation to those supporters of mine to give them somewhat of an explanation as to why I left that site. 

That said, I am not going into any personal feelings I may or may not have and opinions on what may have gone down with my former partner. Speculations will not be a part of this. 

Okay, so I think it is fair to say that I had expectations of being compensated for my contributions and in the beginning, I did receive a fair share of revenues when advertisers did pay the site for advertisements. However; that started to dry up in 2022 and there were also the issues with getting the "Riding Gravel Radio Ranch" podcast uploaded on a regular basis for whatever reason that was due to. All I know is that it was a bit of a source of frustration for me. My former partner was supposed to be helping with that. So, I took that into my own hands and started the podcast production and publishing myself. Then I broke that off from "Riding Gravel" altogether. 

My initial plan was to stop contributing to that site at the end of 2022. However, an email which was sent to me and my former partner from a potential advertiser promising a $5,000.00 spend came in December of 2023. This advertiser was coming on, in large part due to myself, and the contributors to the site, being writers there. I felt an obligation to that loyal advertiser and supporter of mine, so I decided to stick around for 2023 and see what would happen. 

And all throughout 2023 neither I, nor any of the contributors, were compensated once for our contributions to the site. That much is fact. So, I decided after the advertiser's obligations were met that I would cease writing for the site. I asked my former partner to be released from our agreement. Then, a week or so ago, the settlement came through which effectively ended the partnership and released me from the former agreement. My compensation wasn't anything to write home about, but at least it was something. 

So, to sum up: I asked to be released from the partnership agreement mainly because I was not being compensated for my work and because of the difficulties involved in dealing with my former partner. I regret that it came to that, and I apologize to any former and current advertisers, to the companies that entrusted myself and the contributors with review work, and especially to the readers of that site, who enjoyed my content, and the contributor's content, but will no longer will see our contributions there. 

As stated, the contributors who came on due to their relationships with me are also no longer contributing to that site, and that is of their own volition. I did not ask for them to end their work with that site. To be sure, the contributions of Matt Gersib (MG) Michael Troy, (Grannygear) and John Ingham, and with the podcast - Dave Roll, (N.Y. Roll), and Andy, amongst a few others, were central to whatever success we enjoyed at that site and brought untold opportunities to myself, the site, and enriched the lives of the readers and listeners to a degree that cannot be measured. They all contributed without compensation as well. I owe a LOT of my own success to these individuals and I would not have come as far as I have without any of them. Many thanks to these folks for being such great people to work with! 

And with that I will not be mentioning this again. I just thought it would be good to clear the air since I have noted a few misconceptions and questions about my actions voiced on the internet. Hopefully this will answer any of those questions and clear up any misconceptions about my actions since December of 2023 in regard to Riding Gravel.

Spring Brings The "New" In For Review

Shimano S-Phyre Ridescape GR sunglasses.

Well, the supply chain is full to over-flowing again and that means review items are coming in hot this Spring. I thought I'd share with you all what I have going on here as a lot of this stuff will be figuring into my upcoming rides. Generally I have shared what I was up to anyway with regard to reviewing product, so this shouldn't be too much of a shock for you readers here.

As always, The Standard Disclaimer applies. 

First up I have these Shimano S-Phyre Ridescape GR sunglasses in for review which has this magnetic lens retention system. It's pretty crazy to see how many uses for neodymium magnets that there are now. 

These have the frameless design, which I like as there are no frames to hinder your peripheral vision. Plus it is big enough not to look goofy on my large noggin. That is a plus! 

Then I have what seems like my most popular review category product of all-time which would be tires. The first proper review I ever wrote was on a set of bicycle tires. So, maybe I was destined for this? Maybe....

Anyway, I have two sets of Pirelli Cinturato Gravel M tires to test now. These are Pirelli's "multi-surface" tires, thus the "M" in the name. 

A couple of odd things I noted about these tires when I first laid eyes on them. One was that the sidewalls on these "Classic" versions of the Gravel M look a lot like a Continental tire sidewall. The second? These Italian brand tires are made in France. Weird. 

These kind of remind me of old ATB tires like the Tioga versions of mountain bike tires from back in the day. Actually, my friend Ari was the first to point this out when he spied my image of them on Instagram. Despite the old-school ATB looks, these are not designed to do anything like those old tires. 

They have a centralized tread block pattern that creates a virtual solid center line which helps with hard surface rolling.The other knobs are there ostensibly for traction and stability in looser soil and gravel. I will have to ride them a bit before I know if that is true or not.

I will say that they set up tubeless well and hold air like a champ. So far, so good.....

Security minded seat collar from Kinekt

Sometimes I get these odd items which sort of defy categorization in terms of "gravel" or MTB or road biking. Maybe commuting? But sometimes it's just an odd deal that someone wants me to amplify that is out there as a choice. This Kinekt  "Anti-Theft Locking Collar" is such a product. 

It's obvious job is to prevent anyone from hijacking your saddle and seat post. The keyed tool, which comes with the $44.95 collar, has a hex key socket on the one side and the 4-pin interface on the other. The tool is tethered which you can connect to a key chain for convenience. it also comes with the proper 4mm hex key as well. 

I dunno..... I guess if you live and ride in an urban or collegiate area that has a higher chance for saddle/post theft, this might make sense. Maybe for a bikepacking trip, or a tour, where a bit of security can go a long way toward peace of mind. I get it. I don't think this is necessarily anything I'd ever need, but there you go.

Now that the snow is gone....

I have even more stuff that I either cannot talk about yet or that is on its way in yet. So, stay tuned for more review items to be mentioned here. Of course, I will also review the Teravail tires on my Gryphon Mk3, as well as the bike, in future posts. 

So, now you know some of what to expect here over the coming months. reviews will be happening. Of course, that also means ride reports will be happening as well. That is, if I ever get over this stinkin' cold I have! 

Spring Brings The "New" In For Review

Shimano S-Phyre Ridescape GR sunglasses.

Well, the supply chain is full to over-flowing again and that means review items are coming in hot this Spring. I thought I'd share with you all what I have going on here as a lot of this stuff will be figuring into my upcoming rides. Generally I have shared what I was up to anyway with regard to reviewing product, so this shouldn't be too much of a shock for you readers here.

As always, The Standard Disclaimer applies. 

First up I have these Shimano S-Phyre Ridescape GR sunglasses in for review which has this magnetic lens retention system. It's pretty crazy to see how many uses for neodymium magnets that there are now. 

These have the frameless design, which I like as there are no frames to hinder your peripheral vision. Plus it is big enough not to look goofy on my large noggin. That is a plus! 

Then I have what seems like my most popular review category product of all-time which would be tires. The first proper review I ever wrote was on a set of bicycle tires. So, maybe I was destined for this? Maybe....

Anyway, I have two sets of Pirelli Cinturato Gravel M tires to test now. These are Pirelli's "multi-surface" tires, thus the "M" in the name. 

A couple of odd things I noted about these tires when I first laid eyes on them. One was that the sidewalls on these "Classic" versions of the Gravel M look a lot like a Continental tire sidewall. The second? These Italian brand tires are made in France. Weird. 

These kind of remind me of old ATB tires like the Tioga versions of mountain bike tires from back in the day. Actually, my friend Ari was the first to point this out when he spied my image of them on Instagram. Despite the old-school ATB looks, these are not designed to do anything like those old tires. 

They have a centralized tread block pattern that creates a virtual solid center line which helps with hard surface rolling.The other knobs are there ostensibly for traction and stability in looser soil and gravel. I will have to ride them a bit before I know if that is true or not.

I will say that they set up tubeless well and hold air like a champ. So far, so good.....

Security minded seat collar from Kinekt

Sometimes I get these odd items which sort of defy categorization in terms of "gravel" or MTB or road biking. Maybe commuting? But sometimes it's just an odd deal that someone wants me to amplify that is out there as a choice. This Kinekt  "Anti-Theft Locking Collar" is such a product. 

It's obvious job is to prevent anyone from hijacking your saddle and seat post. The keyed tool, which comes with the $44.95 collar, has a hex key socket on the one side and the 4-pin interface on the other. The tool is tethered which you can connect to a key chain for convenience. it also comes with the proper 4mm hex key as well. 

I dunno..... I guess if you live and ride in an urban or collegiate area that has a higher chance for saddle/post theft, this might make sense. Maybe for a bikepacking trip, or a tour, where a bit of security can go a long way toward peace of mind. I get it. I don't think this is necessarily anything I'd ever need, but there you go.

Now that the snow is gone....

I have even more stuff that I either cannot talk about yet or that is on its way in yet. So, stay tuned for more review items to be mentioned here. Of course, I will also review the Teravail tires on my Gryphon Mk3, as well as the bike, in future posts. 

So, now you know some of what to expect here over the coming months. reviews will be happening. Of course, that also means ride reports will be happening as well. That is, if I ever get over this stinkin' cold I have! 

A Gritty Take on the UCI Gravel World Championships: A Paper Tiger

 Note: Today I am running a post originally published on RidingGravel.com this past Thursday. Apologies if it is something you have already seen. The UCI Gravel World Championships takes place today and tomorrow in Italy.

Ted King sips the champagne at the finishline as the winner of the 2016 DK200 (Unbound) gravel event (Photo by Guitar Ted)

A Gritty Take on the UCI Gravel World Championships: A Paper Tiger – by Guitar Ted

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is holding its inaugural “Gravel World Championships” this weekend in the Veneto region of Italy. The acknowledged leading authority on professional level bicycle racing had heretofore not given any credence to the long standing competitions on gravel roads held in the U.S.A. and elsewhere around the world for the better part of the last two decades. However; now the august organization has suddenly taken an interest in this form of cycling competition.

Somehow we all knew, speaking of those of us that have been involved in the “gravel family” for years, somehow we knew that the UCI would wheedle its way into gravel event promotions. It was regarded by those veterans of the gravel scene as something that might alter gravel racing and riding negatively. To be fair, there were those who also pointed to the UCI’s, and by way of association, the U.S.A. based USAC organization’s, capabilities in holding ordered, finely tuned events that would have weight in the way that an independent promoter of a single gravel event could not have. However; there were more people that thought the UCI, despite itself, would never “get things right”. Now, on the eve of this weekend’s events in Italy, cries of foul are being heard regarding how the UCI is implementing this “world championships”.

Obviously any organization that says it has a “world championship” winner in any venue of sport is a bit of a farcical notion, but let’s play along anyway. First, we have the selection of athletes and where they come from. Out of the 138 Pro males racing there are five from the USA. It’s quite likely you may never have heard about them, or many of the rest of the athletes in that field. On the women’s side things are a bit more familiar with regard to the names on their list, but there are only 48 women in the Pro field total.

So, it’s a bit hard to take any of that too seriously when the UCI, supposedly the bastion of legitimacy when it comes to level of competition, seems to be having a tough time fielding a representative, fair, and level field of competitors. Granted, this is the first year for them…..

Allison Tetrick wields the sword given to the woman 1st place finisher of the 150 mile Gravel Worlds in 2018. (Photo by Guitar Ted)

Then you have the course. According to its own description, the “world championship course” is only 3/4’s gravel. Add in that one of its two featured climbs is on asphalt and one has to wonder if this is a serious “world championship level” challenge or some kind of poor joke. You might also mark in that linked article describing the course that it has a whopping 800 meters of ascent. A half a mile? Can that be right? Oh, and that’s only for the men. The women race a shorter course with 100 meters less ascent. You know, because…….well why, actually? Doesn’t that seem a bit weak and arcane? One might even say that it was a bit sexist.

Most of the well regarded gravel events here in the USA are events with pretty challenging distances. Unbound’s 200 miles, Gravel Worlds, (the Nebraska based event that’s been around for 13 years now) is 150 miles, and others which regularly feature 100+ mile courses, are considered to be quintessential gravel competitions. However; the UCI must have been living in some kind of vacuum since their “world championships”, so-called, is a distance of 102 miles. Oh, and that’s for the men, of course, because the UCI is only allowing the women to ride 87 miles.

What?!!

Looking at this event the UCI is touting as the crowning achievement in the sphere of cycling we know as “gravel”, I have to wonder, is this to be taken seriously? Can we really believe we are looking at a “world champion of gravel cycling”, or is this just a puffed up title because the UCI says so? Does a rainbow jersey from the UCI for gravel cycling have any meaning, or is this just a paper tiger?

At one time many of us in the gravel cycling community felt that the UCI would “ruin” gravel cycling. I don’t think that is the case. The UCI has just made gravel cycling a joke, and it isn’t very funny at all.

Note: the thoughts and opinions of Guitar Ted are his own and may not reflect those of the rest of the contributors or partners in Riding Gravel.

A Gritty Take on the UCI Gravel World Championships: A Paper Tiger

 Note: Today I am running a post originally published on RidingGravel.com this past Thursday. Apologies if it is something you have already seen. The UCI Gravel World Championships takes place today and tomorrow in Italy.

Ted King sips the champagne at the finishline as the winner of the 2016 DK200 (Unbound) gravel event (Photo by Guitar Ted)

A Gritty Take on the UCI Gravel World Championships: A Paper Tiger – by Guitar Ted

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is holding its inaugural “Gravel World Championships” this weekend in the Veneto region of Italy. The acknowledged leading authority on professional level bicycle racing had heretofore not given any credence to the long standing competitions on gravel roads held in the U.S.A. and elsewhere around the world for the better part of the last two decades. However; now the august organization has suddenly taken an interest in this form of cycling competition.

Somehow we all knew, speaking of those of us that have been involved in the “gravel family” for years, somehow we knew that the UCI would wheedle its way into gravel event promotions. It was regarded by those veterans of the gravel scene as something that might alter gravel racing and riding negatively. To be fair, there were those who also pointed to the UCI’s, and by way of association, the U.S.A. based USAC organization’s, capabilities in holding ordered, finely tuned events that would have weight in the way that an independent promoter of a single gravel event could not have. However; there were more people that thought the UCI, despite itself, would never “get things right”. Now, on the eve of this weekend’s events in Italy, cries of foul are being heard regarding how the UCI is implementing this “world championships”.

Obviously any organization that says it has a “world championship” winner in any venue of sport is a bit of a farcical notion, but let’s play along anyway. First, we have the selection of athletes and where they come from. Out of the 138 Pro males racing there are five from the USA. It’s quite likely you may never have heard about them, or many of the rest of the athletes in that field. On the women’s side things are a bit more familiar with regard to the names on their list, but there are only 48 women in the Pro field total.

So, it’s a bit hard to take any of that too seriously when the UCI, supposedly the bastion of legitimacy when it comes to level of competition, seems to be having a tough time fielding a representative, fair, and level field of competitors. Granted, this is the first year for them…..

Allison Tetrick wields the sword given to the woman 1st place finisher of the 150 mile Gravel Worlds in 2018. (Photo by Guitar Ted)

Then you have the course. According to its own description, the “world championship course” is only 3/4’s gravel. Add in that one of its two featured climbs is on asphalt and one has to wonder if this is a serious “world championship level” challenge or some kind of poor joke. You might also mark in that linked article describing the course that it has a whopping 800 meters of ascent. A half a mile? Can that be right? Oh, and that’s only for the men. The women race a shorter course with 100 meters less ascent. You know, because…….well why, actually? Doesn’t that seem a bit weak and arcane? One might even say that it was a bit sexist.

Most of the well regarded gravel events here in the USA are events with pretty challenging distances. Unbound’s 200 miles, Gravel Worlds, (the Nebraska based event that’s been around for 13 years now) is 150 miles, and others which regularly feature 100+ mile courses, are considered to be quintessential gravel competitions. However; the UCI must have been living in some kind of vacuum since their “world championships”, so-called, is a distance of 102 miles. Oh, and that’s for the men, of course, because the UCI is only allowing the women to ride 87 miles.

What?!!

Looking at this event the UCI is touting as the crowning achievement in the sphere of cycling we know as “gravel”, I have to wonder, is this to be taken seriously? Can we really believe we are looking at a “world champion of gravel cycling”, or is this just a puffed up title because the UCI says so? Does a rainbow jersey from the UCI for gravel cycling have any meaning, or is this just a paper tiger?

At one time many of us in the gravel cycling community felt that the UCI would “ruin” gravel cycling. I don’t think that is the case. The UCI has just made gravel cycling a joke, and it isn’t very funny at all.

Note: the thoughts and opinions of Guitar Ted are his own and may not reflect those of the rest of the contributors or partners in Riding Gravel.

Friday News And Views

I'm wearing the Century CC Jacket on the left. (Image by R. Versteegh)

Rain Jacket Review:

 I just posted my Showers Pass Century CC rain jacket review this week on RidingGravel.com. (Standard Disclaimer) It's probably the most comfortable rain jacket I've yet tried, and I've been sent many to check out over the years. 

Showers Pass was the rain jacket to have back in the early days of Trans Iowa. This was in the time before 'gravel' was a thing, and racing in rain jackets was thought to be done only in one of those mimimalist 'rain capes' which were pretty much clear plastic bags with a hole for the neck, two plastic tubes for sleeves, and a Velcro closure instead of a zipper. Gotta be able to read the sponsor's names emblazoned on yer jersey now! 

But touring cyclists were all about the effective, versatile rain gear for cycling. That's kind of where Showers Pass made its hay early on in its history. And subsequently when Trans Iowa riders were looking for that good rain jacket, the Showers Pass jackets were discovered. I remember talking with some of the early T.I. riders about what they were using, and the Showers Pass stuff came up often and got good comments from the folks using them. 

I had aims to buy one of their Century jackets for quite some time, but I had never gotten around to it, mostly because I was getting sent all these other jackets to try out. But recently Showers Pass came out with a budget priced version of the Century Jacket dubbed the Century CC, and I am now finding out what all the fuss was about. Showers Pass says a new version of that stalwart Century is going to be coming out. It might just be another great one for poor weather gravel riding. 

Continental Introduces A New Bike Packing Tire:

Continental, the German based tire company, have announced a new tire called the Terra Hardpack..It is a 50mm wide tire with a unique, low tread pattern for gravel, smooth dirt, and rougher roads. 

Offered in a 700 X 50mm width, the tire features Continental's Shieldwall puncture protection belt, a tubeless ready bead, and the new PureGrip compound which features excellent grip but long wearing properties, according to Continental. 

According to reports, Continental is also offering this in a 650B X 50mm size, but there are no other sizes available at this time. No pricing was found at this time either. 

Comments: Continental has always been a conservative company when it comes to stepping into new markets, so this late entry into the bike packing/wide gravel realm is not surprising. The Terra Hardpack has an interesting, almost scaly looking tread. My experiences with Continental have been that their tires often do not come out to be as wide as stated, so if that still is the case, this may fit into more bikes than you might think. 

Growtac brand "Equal" flat mount brake calipers. Image courtesy of Velo Orange

 Thems The Brakes:

In a world of parts shortages it is always interesting to find a new option that is actually in stock. Such is the case with a new flat mount disc brake option from Velo Orange called Growtac Equal Flat Mount Disc Brakes. 

These single-side actuated, mechanical disc brakes calipers come complete with hardware, adapters for the front, cables, housings, ferrules, and come in several anodized colors. The calipers weigh in at a claimed 135 grams each and do not come with rotors. Price is listed at $350.00/both wheels.

Comments: I was looking for flat mount disc brakes the other day and there were not many choices out there. This adds another interesting choice. The price might seem high, but you get everything you need minus rotors. (And good luck finding those!) But still.... You can get hybrid cable/hydraulic Juin Tech brakes for less. Those do come with rotors (six bolt though) and no cables or housings, but even with that you'd be well under $350.00 for both wheels. I mention these Juin Tech's as they are identical to the highly touted Yokozuna hybrid calipers and they work really well. 

TIME Bicycles' ADHX gravel bike. Image courtesy of TIME Bicycles USA.

TIME Bicycles Introduces Complete Bikes In USA:

A news announcement came out this week saying TIME Bicycles were again available in the USA. TIME has a new gravel bike they are excited about that uses a new lay-up of carbon mixed with Dyneema fabric for more strength and vibration reduction. 

Comments: This is a great example of some pretty cool ideas with a couple of fatal misses in design and geometry. First off, TIME specifies that the ADHX is good for tires from 38mm-40mm. What? Have these designers not seen what has been going on around them for the past five to seven years? A 'new' design that can only handle a 40mm tire is pretty much 2012 technology. 

Secondly, they have a great bottom bracket drop, but the head angle at 72.5° for a Large is waaay too steep! Again- it smacks of a geometry chart dredged up for a gravel bike made in the early twenty-teens. I fail to see how this bike would be really great at anything other than rough paved roads and very smooth dirt. But yeah.....racing bikes. I hear ya. 

Again with the wrong bike for the wrong reasons.

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! I hope that you all can get out for a ride or two this weekend!

Friday News And Views

I'm wearing the Century CC Jacket on the left. (Image by R. Versteegh)

Rain Jacket Review:

 I just posted my Showers Pass Century CC rain jacket review this week on RidingGravel.com. (Standard Disclaimer) It's probably the most comfortable rain jacket I've yet tried, and I've been sent many to check out over the years. 

Showers Pass was the rain jacket to have back in the early days of Trans Iowa. This was in the time before 'gravel' was a thing, and racing in rain jackets was thought to be done only in one of those mimimalist 'rain capes' which were pretty much clear plastic bags with a hole for the neck, two plastic tubes for sleeves, and a Velcro closure instead of a zipper. Gotta be able to read the sponsor's names emblazoned on yer jersey now! 

But touring cyclists were all about the effective, versatile rain gear for cycling. That's kind of where Showers Pass made its hay early on in its history. And subsequently when Trans Iowa riders were looking for that good rain jacket, the Showers Pass jackets were discovered. I remember talking with some of the early T.I. riders about what they were using, and the Showers Pass stuff came up often and got good comments from the folks using them. 

I had aims to buy one of their Century jackets for quite some time, but I had never gotten around to it, mostly because I was getting sent all these other jackets to try out. But recently Showers Pass came out with a budget priced version of the Century Jacket dubbed the Century CC, and I am now finding out what all the fuss was about. Showers Pass says a new version of that stalwart Century is going to be coming out. It might just be another great one for poor weather gravel riding. 

Continental Introduces A New Bike Packing Tire:

Continental, the German based tire company, have announced a new tire called the Terra Hardpack..It is a 50mm wide tire with a unique, low tread pattern for gravel, smooth dirt, and rougher roads. 

Offered in a 700 X 50mm width, the tire features Continental's Shieldwall puncture protection belt, a tubeless ready bead, and the new PureGrip compound which features excellent grip but long wearing properties, according to Continental. 

According to reports, Continental is also offering this in a 650B X 50mm size, but there are no other sizes available at this time. No pricing was found at this time either. 

Comments: Continental has always been a conservative company when it comes to stepping into new markets, so this late entry into the bike packing/wide gravel realm is not surprising. The Terra Hardpack has an interesting, almost scaly looking tread. My experiences with Continental have been that their tires often do not come out to be as wide as stated, so if that still is the case, this may fit into more bikes than you might think. 

Growtac brand "Equal" flat mount brake calipers. Image courtesy of Velo Orange

 Thems The Brakes:

In a world of parts shortages it is always interesting to find a new option that is actually in stock. Such is the case with a new flat mount disc brake option from Velo Orange called Growtac Equal Flat Mount Disc Brakes. 

These single-side actuated, mechanical disc brakes calipers come complete with hardware, adapters for the front, cables, housings, ferrules, and come in several anodized colors. The calipers weigh in at a claimed 135 grams each and do not come with rotors. Price is listed at $350.00/both wheels.

Comments: I was looking for flat mount disc brakes the other day and there were not many choices out there. This adds another interesting choice. The price might seem high, but you get everything you need minus rotors. (And good luck finding those!) But still.... You can get hybrid cable/hydraulic Juin Tech brakes for less. Those do come with rotors (six bolt though) and no cables or housings, but even with that you'd be well under $350.00 for both wheels. I mention these Juin Tech's as they are identical to the highly touted Yokozuna hybrid calipers and they work really well. 

TIME Bicycles' ADHX gravel bike. Image courtesy of TIME Bicycles USA.

TIME Bicycles Introduces Complete Bikes In USA:

A news announcement came out this week saying TIME Bicycles were again available in the USA. TIME has a new gravel bike they are excited about that uses a new lay-up of carbon mixed with Dyneema fabric for more strength and vibration reduction. 

Comments: This is a great example of some pretty cool ideas with a couple of fatal misses in design and geometry. First off, TIME specifies that the ADHX is good for tires from 38mm-40mm. What? Have these designers not seen what has been going on around them for the past five to seven years? A 'new' design that can only handle a 40mm tire is pretty much 2012 technology. 

Secondly, they have a great bottom bracket drop, but the head angle at 72.5° for a Large is waaay too steep! Again- it smacks of a geometry chart dredged up for a gravel bike made in the early twenty-teens. I fail to see how this bike would be really great at anything other than rough paved roads and very smooth dirt. But yeah.....racing bikes. I hear ya. 

Again with the wrong bike for the wrong reasons.

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! I hope that you all can get out for a ride or two this weekend!

New Rack, New Weather

I reviewed the Scoutset Bag Brace recently on Riding Gravel.

 Not long ago I was sent this titanium front rack-brace thingie from Velo Garage & Taphouse from Kansas City, Missouri. They call the thing the Scoutset Bag Brace. So, upfront here, the Standard Disclaimer applies. That's because the kind folks at the Velo Garage & Taphouse let me keep the rack/brace after the review was completed. 

So, I thought about which bike I wanted this thing to 'live' on. I had several choices, but in terms of using the SBB (short for "Scoutset Bag Brace), and using it as intended, I thought of a different bike than my gravel bikes. 

That's because if I ever get to bike camping, as I have threatened to do for years, I would use my Ti Muk 2 fat bike. So, I grabbed the SBB off the Tamland, which I used to review it on, and swapped it over to my Ti Muk 2 fat bike, which I think should be a great choice here. Basically, there was one big reason for going with this bike, but overall I still think it is the right choice. 

A little closer look at the SBB on the Ti Muk 2

As I used the SBB on the Tamland Two, I had a bit of a conundrum in getting a light to live on that bike in conjunction with the big Cycle Pro handle bar bag I intended on using. Even the dry bag would interfere with a handle bar mounted light. So, I had to use the old star nut in a steer tube trick to side mount a light off a fork mounted rack boss. 

While that works, I do prefer my light source on a bicycle to be somewhere closer to handlebar height. That wasn't going to work on the Tamland Two. But the Ti Muk 2 is a better choice from a few different angles anyway, so I wasn't going to keep that SBB on the Tamland anyway. 

The Ti Muk 2 has a Schmidt generator hub and front light which I have the handlebar mount for. There was plenty of exposed steer tube on the Ti Muk to allow me to deck the SBB on top of the head set and get that as low as possible hanging off the front of the bicycle. This will allow for a dry bag to be carried on the SBB and maybe a lower profile bag could work if I wanted to go that way. My hope is that my tent might fit there, but something will work out, and it won't be dangling off the handle bar either. The light head will clear most anything I want to carry for camping, at least, so no worries there.

The Ti Muk also made sense from the standpoint of touring/bike packing since I have a Salsa Alternator Rack on the back, which could haul anything that might obstruct my light up front on the rack instead. So, the bike makes more sense from a bag carrying aspect for camping or touring than anything else I have at the moment. Plus it has the Rohloff, so I can take this down about any road without fear of ripping off a derailleur. 

The full look.

Now, for an opportunity and some better weather! Fortunately it seems as though Winter's last gasp has been played out. Boy! What a doozy it was! Saturday morning it was wicked cold and windy, with temperatures in the teens and then by Sunday afternoon it was calm and mid-50's. It looks like from here on out we are out of the grips of Winter, but as has been noted in the comments, I thought that a while back too! 

I'm not sure when I'll get this out for the trial run, but at some point I do want to do a fat bike century, and there is a route I have in mind which features a ton of dirt roads and hardly anything for resupply until Mile 70. That would suit this bike well since I could carry a lot of stuff on it. We will see.... There has been another idea suggested to me that concerns a rail trail and camping too, so I have ideas to work with here. 

Anyway. I hope to be out on the gravel roads this week. Stay tuned...

New Rack, New Weather

I reviewed the Scoutset Bag Brace recently on Riding Gravel.

 Not long ago I was sent this titanium front rack-brace thingie from Velo Garage & Taphouse from Kansas City, Missouri. They call the thing the Scoutset Bag Brace. So, upfront here, the Standard Disclaimer applies. That's because the kind folks at the Velo Garage & Taphouse let me keep the rack/brace after the review was completed. 

So, I thought about which bike I wanted this thing to 'live' on. I had several choices, but in terms of using the SBB (short for "Scoutset Bag Brace), and using it as intended, I thought of a different bike than my gravel bikes. 

That's because if I ever get to bike camping, as I have threatened to do for years, I would use my Ti Muk 2 fat bike. So, I grabbed the SBB off the Tamland, which I used to review it on, and swapped it over to my Ti Muk 2 fat bike, which I think should be a great choice here. Basically, there was one big reason for going with this bike, but overall I still think it is the right choice. 

A little closer look at the SBB on the Ti Muk 2

As I used the SBB on the Tamland Two, I had a bit of a conundrum in getting a light to live on that bike in conjunction with the big Cycle Pro handle bar bag I intended on using. Even the dry bag would interfere with a handle bar mounted light. So, I had to use the old star nut in a steer tube trick to side mount a light off a fork mounted rack boss. 

While that works, I do prefer my light source on a bicycle to be somewhere closer to handlebar height. That wasn't going to work on the Tamland Two. But the Ti Muk 2 is a better choice from a few different angles anyway, so I wasn't going to keep that SBB on the Tamland anyway. 

The Ti Muk 2 has a Schmidt generator hub and front light which I have the handlebar mount for. There was plenty of exposed steer tube on the Ti Muk to allow me to deck the SBB on top of the head set and get that as low as possible hanging off the front of the bicycle. This will allow for a dry bag to be carried on the SBB and maybe a lower profile bag could work if I wanted to go that way. My hope is that my tent might fit there, but something will work out, and it won't be dangling off the handle bar either. The light head will clear most anything I want to carry for camping, at least, so no worries there.

The Ti Muk also made sense from the standpoint of touring/bike packing since I have a Salsa Alternator Rack on the back, which could haul anything that might obstruct my light up front on the rack instead. So, the bike makes more sense from a bag carrying aspect for camping or touring than anything else I have at the moment. Plus it has the Rohloff, so I can take this down about any road without fear of ripping off a derailleur. 

The full look.

Now, for an opportunity and some better weather! Fortunately it seems as though Winter's last gasp has been played out. Boy! What a doozy it was! Saturday morning it was wicked cold and windy, with temperatures in the teens and then by Sunday afternoon it was calm and mid-50's. It looks like from here on out we are out of the grips of Winter, but as has been noted in the comments, I thought that a while back too! 

I'm not sure when I'll get this out for the trial run, but at some point I do want to do a fat bike century, and there is a route I have in mind which features a ton of dirt roads and hardly anything for resupply until Mile 70. That would suit this bike well since I could carry a lot of stuff on it. We will see.... There has been another idea suggested to me that concerns a rail trail and camping too, so I have ideas to work with here. 

Anyway. I hope to be out on the gravel roads this week. Stay tuned...

Friday News And Views

New gravel event in August in Iowa for 2022

 Tour of Central Iowa Event Announced:

Relentless Events announced a week ago now that they would be putting on a new gravel event in Central Iowa called "The Tour of Central Iowa". The Relentless Events group also put on Iowa Wind and Rock, The Spotted Horse Ultra, and the Iowa Gravel Classic. 

This new event will feature a hill climb event, a 100K, 200K, and a special tribute to Iowa cyclist Joe Mann dubbed "The Mann Powered 380". There will be solo and supported categories amongst other details which you can see at the Tour of Central Iowa website. 

The event is set for August 12th-14th and will happen one week before Gravel Worlds. Event promoters are billing the event as a way to test your self before Gravel Worlds. Registration will be held by BikeReg and will open on 1/1/22. The location of this event will be at Cumming, Iowa at the Cumming Tap. Some of you may remember this event location from CIRREM or the 24hrs of Cumming events. 

Comments: Relentless Events is living up to their name- "relentless". This will be the fourth event created under that banner, three in the past three years. One week before Gravel Worlds? Interestingly I cannot find anything on a 24hrs of Cumming for 2022, but I thought I saw that it was going to happen. If it does it likely would have been the week before this, but with the Tour of Central Iowa being out of the Cumming Tap, I don't know what to think there. Anyway......UPDATE: I have it from Steve Fuller, one of the principals in Relentless Events, that there is no 24HRs of Cumming anymore. It was announced on Facebook by Steve Cannon, the event's RD, apparently. I also had a comment to the same effect here this morning.

Good deal and this will figure highly into my planning for 2022 rides. I did not sign up for Gravel Worlds and this event is a LOT closer to home. Stay tuned......

Getting reviews wrapped up will keep me busy!

Getting Everything Buttoned Up:

My biggest fear this time of the year is early snow that sticks and which shuts down reviewing of products. Typically I figure I am okay until Thanksgiving, but after that? 

I'm living on borrowed time.

It could snow any day after Thanksgiving and when it does, that usually stops the country rides. Last year it waited until the second week of December to kick in, but you just never know with Winter. 

Right now I have it laid out so that everything kind of culminates and comes to an end at the end of November, which isn't far away now! So, I have to get cracking with this job, but these chilly temperatures are not very inviting. It gets harder to get motivated and harder to get dressed up for the cold. But, I know what to do, how to do it, and I've been there before. I just have to, you know......do it! 

I'm just about there and there is no stopping me now, unless ice comes, and then I'm stopping! No need to crash my brains out. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here. I still have open roads and time. So, I will just have to buckle up and git er dun! It is ironic because last year I didn't have so much stuff to get reviewed by this point in the year. This with all the supply chain issues! Weird! 

Clipless pedal cleats....in titanium! Image courtesy of SILCA.

Just In Time For Gift Giving- Titanium Clipless Pedal Cleats!

SILCA seems to be on some sort of titanium kick of late. They recently offered an outlandish titanium Garmin mount which is 3-D printed. Now they are offering clipless pedal cleats made of that famous grey element. 

But instead of seeming frivolous, a titanium clipless pedal cleat just might actually make sense. SILCA claims they last longer and weigh less. Here is what the webpage says: 

"Cut the weight of your cleats in half while getting 4x the life expectancy. Brass cleats are soft and wear quickly, while 3D printed titanium is much harder and half the weight."

Even the fasteners are made of titanium. Yes- they are expensive, being more than three to four times the price of  typical Shimano cleats at $85.00 a pair. But, if you have to have all the 'latest and greatest' stuff, you have to have these. By the way, you can get these in Crank Brothers and TIME ATAC flavors as well. 

Comments: Wow! And also, "Whoa! That's expensive! But maybe if I was burning through those brass TIME ATAC  cleats in a hurry, yeah...... Maybe then. But I am a Shimano pedal user, and I can get the cleats for those pedals for a LOT less money and they last as long as my shoes do. For myself, these Ti cleats are a tough sell.

Speculation On What Effect PON Holding Company Will Have On NA Bike Market:

A recent think piece published on "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" website authored by Rick Vosper delves into what the landscape for bicycle retail will look like going forward after PON Holding Company's purchase of Dorel's bicycle brands. The sale of the brands does not take effect until early next year, but all industry experts agree that PON will now represent the largest retail bicycle purveyor in the specialty retail sector when the sale does become completed. 

In the article, Mr. Vosper speculates that PON will most likely be aggressively looking to buy up bicycle shops to help them gain a foothold in the market here as Cannondale currently sits a distant 4th from the leaders now which are Trek, Specialized, and Giant respectively. The thought being that PON would not have any issues buying up retail brick and mortar locations based upon their corporate history in high end automobile dealership takeovers. 

However; it may be that brick and mortar shops will only play a small part in PON's bicycle business model. I saw no mention of any direct to consumer ideas, which would play right into where PON is sitting with regard to a lack of retail showrooms compared to the other top three marks in the industry. The new, big warehouse lease near the East coast port of Savannah is perfectly situated for not only the assembly of bikes, but as a warehouse to the Eastern half of the USA for D2C sales. All PON would need to do is augment that with a West Coast facility and the whole retail side could be a two-pronged affair instead of a cash intensive buy-out of existing brick and mortar. 

But we shall see. This has a much bigger potential to disrupt the status quo than Canyon Bikes coming to the USA ever did.

That's a wrap for this week! Have a great weekend!