Friday News And Views

5DEV direct mount chain wheel as shared on their social media.

 The Colorful Edition of the FN&V!

Fashion Plates?

I've been noticing a trend of late on social media. Bicycles with derailleur drive trains being shown with 'pie plate' style, solid chain wheels as 1X drive rings. 

I first noted this back in 2022 at the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame shindig in Emporia, Kansas. I noted a Stormchaser single speed with a brilliant purple, solid chain wheel. 

Then I found out that Absolute Black does a 'pie plate' style ring, which is supposedly aero. It is a rather stark, unusual offering from this company known for its more open designs and industrial looking offerings in several anodized colors. 

Now I am noticing a few custom bikes being shown on the Insta that have silver colored, solid chain wheels. Okay.....something is going on here. I suspect that some more offerings in this style will appear at Sea Otter soon.

I don't know if I am a fan though. Color me jaded by years of working on cheapo BMX kids bikes, but these look like a gussied-up department store bike component. It's hard for me to take the 'pie plate' look seriously. But that's probably just me. What do you think? Let me know in the comments.

Image courtesy of Wolf Tooth.

Wolf Tooth Announces New Colors For SS Cogs:

Now for the other end of the drive train, you have Wolf Tooth announcing new colors for their line of single speed cogs. Gold and Orange are being added to their other offerings in the range. 

These are aluminum, of course, but Wolf Tooth also has a stainless steel single speed cog offering for those of you who want the longest lasting cogs and don't care about fashion. (Ha!) 

Comments: I am happy that someone out there still believes in making single speed stuff. That kind of went away for a while there in the last ten years and for a while I was worried that I'd be scrounging for parts for my several single speed bikes. But Wolf Tooth must be selling these things, otherwise they would not introduce more colors, I would imagine anyway. 

Now I know where to go to replenish the look on my Campstove Green Karate Monkey when I wear out a cog, or want to change gearing, and want a green cog! 

Image courtesy of Wheels Manufacturing.

Wheels Manufacturing Offers Anodized BB-30 Options:

Now on to the bottom bracket! Wheels Manufacturing recently added anodized color options for their range of bottom brackets for 30mm spindles. Now available in seven anodized hues for BSA 30, T-47 internal, T-47 outboard, and PF-30 variants. 

Prices are $100 - $124.00 each. You can check them out HERE along with all their other bottom bracket options. 

Comments: I've used Wheels Manufacturing bottom brackets for repairs and personally for years now and have found them to be very good quality options for a decent price. The anodized colors are just icing on the cake here. 

Image courtesy of Chris Skogen's social media

Almanzo 100 v3?:

Monday a surprise announcement from Chris Skogen, the founder of the seminal and legendary Almanzo 100, came out, via Skogen's Instagram page, announcing that the Almanzo 100 was coming back. 

This would mark the third come-back for Skogen and the second time for the event to come back as well. (A timeline of events documenting the retiring of the Almanzo 100 name and original event can be found HERE) 

In the announcement, Skogen indicated that the 100 mile event would occur this May on the 18th. Other details are yet to be released, but this post will be updated when and if those details become available. 

The announcement reads as follows, taken from Skogen's Instagram:

"***WE’RE BACK***

That’s right, we’re bringing Almanzo back!

WHEN: Saturday, May 18th - 8:00am
WHERE: Starting location will be announced here on May 11th
WHAT: 100 mile self-supported route (no drop bags, no outside support, no GPS)
WHO: Everyone
WHY: Because

See you in a few weeks!!

#nerd #party"

Comments:  Mr. Skogen has been known to make surprise, unexpected announcements at odd times regarding the Alamanzo and its satellite events. (See link above) On April 2nd he posted again saying this was "real" and that he is, "Taking another swing at building community in and around the bike space."

 UPDATED 4/7/24: Mr. Skogen posted on Saturday on Instagram a list of gravel events with some designated as events he will attend. Quoted: "I’ll be at the events in BOLD." One of those events he marked in bold, on May 18th, is The Heywood Ride, the ride that Mr. Skogen handed over to the organizers of The Heywood, when it was called the Almanzo,  and asked that they not use the name "Almanzo" for it. So, they came up with "The Heywood Ride".

So, is the Heywood going back to being called the Almanzo? 

Stay tuned........

Kit for a Cause Jersey image from Gravel Worlds social media.

Jersey To Benefit Cancer Causes:

Gravel Worlds announced recently that they are offering "Kits For A Cause" now through their jersey vendor, Voler USA. 

The first is a design by Kevin Wilkins that features dogs biting one another with a sign on the rear that says "Chase me!"

All profits from the sales of the jerseys are going toward cancer survivor @kevinwilkins and the organization Grind For Life.org which has a mission to provide financial assistance to cancer patients and their families when traveling long distances to doctors and hospitals.

You can check out the kit and order at this link:  www.gravel-worlds.com/kit

Orders for this kit close on April 15th. Gravel Worlds says there will be other efforts similar to this in the future.  

The Guitar Ted Podcast Sponsored by The Spinistry:

A new episode of the Guitar Ted Podcast is up now. In this one N.Y. Roll and I discuss the celebrations of last place, the Sardine Tool, and N.Y. Roll's experience in Texas recently where he rode the Red River Riot.

You can listen to the episode by clicking THIS LINK. 

We are working on new episodes concerning tires and their construction, how gravel roads are made and why, and more. If you have any episode ideas, let me know in the comment section. 

Thanks again to The Spinistry for their continued support of The Guitar Ted Podcast and check out their Gravel 1000 challenge which anyone can engage in from any location. You can find out more about this challenge by clicking THIS LINK.
 

That's a wrap on this colorful edition of the FN&V for this week. Have a great weekend and thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Friday News And Views

Trek Dual Sport 2 Gen 5 (Image courtesy of Trek)

Trek Re-markets Dual Sport Bikes As "Gravel Bikes":

The Trek Dual Sport, a hybrid bike developed by Trek in the mid-2000's, is the "bike that saved 29"ers". That's what you'd hear if you talked to anyone at Trek that was there back then. The 29 inch wheel experiment was on 'life support' at the company in 2004 when sales of the wagon-wheeled MTB's were dismal. 

The Gary Fisher brand introduced 29"er MTB's to local bikes shops affiliated with the brand in the USA in 2002. However; retailers and salespeople didn't understand the then new idea of big wheels and how they were a distinct advantage over 26" MTB wheels. The wheel size, which up to that point, had been the standard in MTB riding. As a result, the experiment with these bikes, which was the brainchild of Gary Fisher, were up to be cut from the line-up in 2006. But a new hybrid bike, which was sort of like a 29"er, but wasn't, actually saved the 29"er from what may have been its early demise overall. 

That bike, as stated, was the so-called "Dual Sport", which had 29"er-like qualities, 700c wheels, but was positioned as a more dirt-worthy hybrid bike. Hybrid bikes, which were well understood by salespeople and retailers, were an easy sell, and the Dual Sport was the gateway to 29"er acceptance amongst that important link of the chain. Salespeople had to buy-in, and when they did, the lid was blown off for the acceptance of the 29"er side of MTB and well, you know the rest of that story.

Enter in the Gen 5 Dual Sport, a 27.5" wheeled bike with 2" tires and a very MTB-ish geometry and set up. Only now Trek is marketing it as a "gravel/adventure" bike, because, well.....gravel, don't cha know? That Trek is marketing, what is in all essence a MTB-lite bike as gravel, is fine with me. It's the details that I found interesting. 

For instance, the whole "Gen" thing. Trek has been working toward getting rid of model years for bicycles for at least 15 years now, and has recently enforced that messaging with its retailers. However; Shimano kind of has them held as hostages, along with the rest of the bicycle industry, due to the format of Shimano's component release scheduling. That said, the generational aspect of this marketing idea of Trek's means that consumers won't know that a Gen 4 Dual Sport is a 2022 model and that Gen 5 is 2023. Kind of..... Anyway....

The other thing? The price for this Dual Sport 2 with mostly Shimano Acera and a Chang Star hydraulic brake set is $849.99 (USD- MSRP) Acera at eight hundred and fifty bucks? I'm pretty sure that the bike which was analogous to this Dual Sport, the Trek FX 1, was about 500 bucks in the mid-twenty-teens. That's a big leap upward in pricing, which, as we all know, was expected. But sheesh...... 

The Bookman Monocle (Image courtesy of Bookman)

Bookman "Monocle" Head Lamp:

Recently I was asked to review a product for bicycle lighting by a Swiss company named Bookman. I agreed to take a look and when the package arrived it had another, non-bicycle specific light in there. 

It was a head mounted light for running called the "Monocle". Head mounted lights are nothing new, of course, but with the activity of running in mind, certain design criteria were more important than say, a camp light you might find at the checkout of your local big-box home and lumber supply company. 

And to be honest, I did not know it was a product for running when I received it. In fact, I did not learn that until moments before I wrote this when I researched the company. So, my thoughts on how to make use of this gizmo light were far different than what Bookman may have envisioned. 

Where I work in an old building at the Cedar Valley Bicycle Collective, and considering my workshop at home is in a basement that is over 100 years old and wasn't designed to be a workshop, it is no wonder that the lighting is less than desirable. Especially for my old eyes. So my first thought was to use this at work, and conveniently, the day I received it I had to work. I charged it up, strapped it on my head, and wore it for the next five-ish hours. It lit up dark places on bikes and allowed me to have less frustration in getting stuff done. It's "stepless angle adjustment" allowed me to get just the right aim on my work too. I also used it on the way home to see if it might be a good supplementary light for night riding. 

With its claimed 225 Lumens of light at High, which will last a claimed 1.5 hours, I can say that signs were lit up  and I could use it to read cues easily, if I needed to. In fact, 225 is almost too bright for that. Thankfully there is a half power option which lasts four hours that is a bit less brilliant and glaring to use as "cockpit lighting". My only beef so far is that the button to power it on and tab through its three modes is a bit stiff.

The thing costs about $55.00, weighs 40 grams, and the strap has a lot of little reflective details. So far? Impressed. Standard Disclaimer applies. . (More on this and the other Bookman product I was sent will be posted soon)

Titanium chainring from 5Dev (Image courtesy of 5Dev)

Titanium Chainring Promises Less Wear:

Titanium, that grey aerospace metal of fame and renown in bicycle circles, has not often been used for chain rings. But a USA company called "5DEV" may change that. 

The company, probably best known for their far-out designs for titanium stems and crank arms, now offers a 34t or 36T titanium chain ring in raw, or three other anodized colors including a teal (!!).

Benefits claimed are longer wear life, better toughness, and compatibility with SRAM or Shimano chains. 

Comments: I remember when Boone titanium cogs were the big deal for single speeders because they were (a) cool looking and (b) did not wear very much at all. I have a Boone Ti cog somewhere along with those weird wavy titanium spacers they made. I have to say that the cog has held up well over the years. 

That these are only $150.00 bucks isn't bad when you think about it. I know I could totally get on with one of these on my single speed or on my Ti Muk 2 fat bike with the Rohloff set up. I wonder though, how would this hold up on a 1X set up? That cross-chaining that you have to do with 1X usually wears cogs and chains out laterally instead of in the traditional way. 

Anyway, an interesting, if not a bit limited, option for some folks.

Image courtesy of Classified.

Classified Hub Gets A Big Shot Of Cash:

The Classified hub technology, which I first came across in  the Fall of 2020 as seen here in this "FN&V", has recently been infused with a reported 24 million USD in funding from the CEO of investment firm Active Partners and who is also Rapha's chairman. 

Cycling media outlets and commentators are suggesting that new wheel partners are also coming onboard with this technology. Speculation is that the investors want to see the Classified hub system on the same level as SRAM/Shimano in terms of market share and acceptance by the riding public. 

Comments: As always, anything that disrupts the "standards" which cyclists, mechanics, retailers, brands, and manufacturers hold dear is going to have a tough row to hoe when it comes to proprietary drive train ideas. Just look at Rohloff, Pinion, Gates Belts, or components that are slightly out of the main focus of Shimano's and SRAM's main fare. Sure, they are out there and available, but does anyone think that these ideas have taken a hold in mainstream cycling? I have a hard time believing that anyone would say "yes" to that. 

Essentially, if and until Shimano gets displaced as the de-facto arbiter of what is happening in mainstream tech for cycling, anything like Classified's hub will only ever be like a Rohloff Speedhub, or a Pinion system- Something that is an option for some people, but definitely not "the next big thing". 

That's a wrap on this week! Have a great weekend and get out and ride. Spring is coming soon!

Friday News And Views

Trek Dual Sport 2 Gen 5 (Image courtesy of Trek)

Trek Re-markets Dual Sport Bikes As "Gravel Bikes":

The Trek Dual Sport, a hybrid bike developed by Trek in the mid-2000's, is the "bike that saved 29"ers". That's what you'd hear if you talked to anyone at Trek that was there back then. The 29 inch wheel experiment was on 'life support' at the company in 2004 when sales of the wagon-wheeled MTB's were dismal. 

The Gary Fisher brand introduced 29"er MTB's to local bikes shops affiliated with the brand in the USA in 2002. However; retailers and salespeople didn't understand the then new idea of big wheels and how they were a distinct advantage over 26" MTB wheels. The wheel size, which up to that point, had been the standard in MTB riding. As a result, the experiment with these bikes, which was the brainchild of Gary Fisher, were up to be cut from the line-up in 2006. But a new hybrid bike, which was sort of like a 29"er, but wasn't, actually saved the 29"er from what may have been its early demise overall. 

That bike, as stated, was the so-called "Dual Sport", which had 29"er-like qualities, 700c wheels, but was positioned as a more dirt-worthy hybrid bike. Hybrid bikes, which were well understood by salespeople and retailers, were an easy sell, and the Dual Sport was the gateway to 29"er acceptance amongst that important link of the chain. Salespeople had to buy-in, and when they did, the lid was blown off for the acceptance of the 29"er side of MTB and well, you know the rest of that story.

Enter in the Gen 5 Dual Sport, a 27.5" wheeled bike with 2" tires and a very MTB-ish geometry and set up. Only now Trek is marketing it as a "gravel/adventure" bike, because, well.....gravel, don't cha know? That Trek is marketing, what is in all essence a MTB-lite bike as gravel, is fine with me. It's the details that I found interesting. 

For instance, the whole "Gen" thing. Trek has been working toward getting rid of model years for bicycles for at least 15 years now, and has recently enforced that messaging with its retailers. However; Shimano kind of has them held as hostages, along with the rest of the bicycle industry, due to the format of Shimano's component release scheduling. That said, the generational aspect of this marketing idea of Trek's means that consumers won't know that a Gen 4 Dual Sport is a 2022 model and that Gen 5 is 2023. Kind of..... Anyway....

The other thing? The price for this Dual Sport 2 with mostly Shimano Acera and a Chang Star hydraulic brake set is $849.99 (USD- MSRP) Acera at eight hundred and fifty bucks? I'm pretty sure that the bike which was analogous to this Dual Sport, the Trek FX 1, was about 500 bucks in the mid-twenty-teens. That's a big leap upward in pricing, which, as we all know, was expected. But sheesh...... 

The Bookman Monocle (Image courtesy of Bookman)

Bookman "Monocle" Head Lamp:

Recently I was asked to review a product for bicycle lighting by a Swiss company named Bookman. I agreed to take a look and when the package arrived it had another, non-bicycle specific light in there. 

It was a head mounted light for running called the "Monocle". Head mounted lights are nothing new, of course, but with the activity of running in mind, certain design criteria were more important than say, a camp light you might find at the checkout of your local big-box home and lumber supply company. 

And to be honest, I did not know it was a product for running when I received it. In fact, I did not learn that until moments before I wrote this when I researched the company. So, my thoughts on how to make use of this gizmo light were far different than what Bookman may have envisioned. 

Where I work in an old building at the Cedar Valley Bicycle Collective, and considering my workshop at home is in a basement that is over 100 years old and wasn't designed to be a workshop, it is no wonder that the lighting is less than desirable. Especially for my old eyes. So my first thought was to use this at work, and conveniently, the day I received it I had to work. I charged it up, strapped it on my head, and wore it for the next five-ish hours. It lit up dark places on bikes and allowed me to have less frustration in getting stuff done. It's "stepless angle adjustment" allowed me to get just the right aim on my work too. I also used it on the way home to see if it might be a good supplementary light for night riding. 

With its claimed 225 Lumens of light at High, which will last a claimed 1.5 hours, I can say that signs were lit up  and I could use it to read cues easily, if I needed to. In fact, 225 is almost too bright for that. Thankfully there is a half power option which lasts four hours that is a bit less brilliant and glaring to use as "cockpit lighting". My only beef so far is that the button to power it on and tab through its three modes is a bit stiff.

The thing costs about $55.00, weighs 40 grams, and the strap has a lot of little reflective details. So far? Impressed. Standard Disclaimer applies. . (More on this and the other Bookman product I was sent will be posted soon)

Titanium chainring from 5Dev (Image courtesy of 5Dev)

Titanium Chainring Promises Less Wear:

Titanium, that grey aerospace metal of fame and renown in bicycle circles, has not often been used for chain rings. But a USA company called "5DEV" may change that. 

The company, probably best known for their far-out designs for titanium stems and crank arms, now offers a 34t or 36T titanium chain ring in raw, or three other anodized colors including a teal (!!).

Benefits claimed are longer wear life, better toughness, and compatibility with SRAM or Shimano chains. 

Comments: I remember when Boone titanium cogs were the big deal for single speeders because they were (a) cool looking and (b) did not wear very much at all. I have a Boone Ti cog somewhere along with those weird wavy titanium spacers they made. I have to say that the cog has held up well over the years. 

That these are only $150.00 bucks isn't bad when you think about it. I know I could totally get on with one of these on my single speed or on my Ti Muk 2 fat bike with the Rohloff set up. I wonder though, how would this hold up on a 1X set up? That cross-chaining that you have to do with 1X usually wears cogs and chains out laterally instead of in the traditional way. 

Anyway, an interesting, if not a bit limited, option for some folks.

Image courtesy of Classified.

Classified Hub Gets A Big Shot Of Cash:

The Classified hub technology, which I first came across in  the Fall of 2020 as seen here in this "FN&V", has recently been infused with a reported 24 million USD in funding from the CEO of investment firm Active Partners and who is also Rapha's chairman. 

Cycling media outlets and commentators are suggesting that new wheel partners are also coming onboard with this technology. Speculation is that the investors want to see the Classified hub system on the same level as SRAM/Shimano in terms of market share and acceptance by the riding public. 

Comments: As always, anything that disrupts the "standards" which cyclists, mechanics, retailers, brands, and manufacturers hold dear is going to have a tough row to hoe when it comes to proprietary drive train ideas. Just look at Rohloff, Pinion, Gates Belts, or components that are slightly out of the main focus of Shimano's and SRAM's main fare. Sure, they are out there and available, but does anyone think that these ideas have taken a hold in mainstream cycling? I have a hard time believing that anyone would say "yes" to that. 

Essentially, if and until Shimano gets displaced as the de-facto arbiter of what is happening in mainstream tech for cycling, anything like Classified's hub will only ever be like a Rohloff Speedhub, or a Pinion system- Something that is an option for some people, but definitely not "the next big thing". 

That's a wrap on this week! Have a great weekend and get out and ride. Spring is coming soon!