Friday News And Views

Happy Industry News, Aggro Birds,  & "Wild" Anodized Stuff:

Kona Bicycles Back In Founders Hands:

Monday morning news came out that the beleaguered Kona Bicycles company that was being shut down and put up for sale by its owner, Kent Outdoors, was bought back by the brand's founders. The brand was sold in 2022 by Kona founders Jake Heilbron and Dan Gerhard, according to a news story published by "Bicycle Retailer and Industry News" on Monday morning.  

Apparently the originators of the brand were let down by the Kent Outdoors group which they thought would uphold the culture and status of Kona which they had crafted over the years. That didn't turn out to be the case and when the company went up for sale Heilbron and Gerhard bought it back.

According to the article, Kona has ceased direct to consumer sales and is saying that they will work through current inventory through established dealers only. 

Comments: First it was the British brand Orange, and now Kona, which has come back from the brink of extinction. Can Heilbron and Gerhard regain the former stature the company enjoyed with consumers in the past? They have a chance, but the deep discounting, direct to consumer sales, and recent turmoil set the hurdles pretty high.

Image of GT by Jason Boucher

You Already Knew This, But.....

Another story was posted on a study of cyclists and health benefits recently. The story on this study appeared in an NPR article which you can read HERE. 

This time it has to do with your knees and arthritic issues. Apparently the motion of cycling helps distribute an essential lubricating fluid for joints and builds muscle strength around knees which may help prevent arthritic issues from arising. 

The article doesn't say anything related to nut-jobs on single speed bikes though. (HA!) It is a commonly held thought by cyclists that single speed riding is bad for your knees. I've seen evidence that would say otherwise, but as with most topics, there is more gray areas than there are black and white ones when it comes to a subject like this one. All I know is that single speed riding big miles, or pushing a "big gear" on a geared bike, or hard riding into the wind, (or snow, or mud) for too long can be a problem for knees or any other parts of the body as well. You've gotta do things in moderation. Balance. Rest. It all can be good in the correct measures. 

New Podcast Episode Out Now!

I had the distinct honor to have Sam Alison of Singular Cycles on the latest podcast episode. It was a pleasure to speak with him since I have interacted with Sam since the mid-2000's in online forums and via emails. 

We chatted about his company, Singular Cycles, and we walked through a bit of how Sam saw his bikes and what they should be used for. Remarkably, it fits what the "gravel" bike should be in a more universal sense in my opinion versus the specialization that is occurring in that sector now. 

We also get into a bit of flared drop bar history as Sam was tabbed by cycling component and bicycle designer, Brant Richards, to be involved in the design of the Luxy Bar. A handle bar that Sam rightly points out has influenced a lot of what we see now in flared drop bar design for the gravel segment. 

Give the episode a listen. I also get into a bit of opinion on the upcoming Unbound gravel event at the end of this one. A more detailed look at my thoughts can be seen in a post from this blog HERE if you are interested in taking a deeper dive on that. Thanks for checking out the podcast, if you do, and as always, thanks for reading here!

A Red-winged Blackbird. (Image courtesy of Wikipedia)

Those Devilish Scourges Of The Sky:

Tis the season, as they say, for what has become an issue for many who ply the back roads on their bicycles. I'm speaking of the ever-vigilant Red-winged Blackbird. 

I wrote a post back four years ago about my tactics for dealing with these sometimes aggressive animals during cycling outings. It seems to have become an annually "most clicked on" article here, so I thought I would point it out again for anyone who was not aware of the post so that you can check it out if you want to. Just click HERE to go read that.  

And if you have any ideas that differ from mine, please add those in the comments here on today's post and I will make an update to the original post if those ideas seem to check out as good ones. Thanks! 

Wilde X Paul Zebra Splatter Ano Parts:

Wilde Bikes announced Thursday that they have done another collaboration with Paul Components on some crazy "splatter" anodized parts. This time in black with white looking strips of color in random patterns. 

These parts are in very limited quantities and being Paul Components, not exactly "budget friendly" either with prices varying from $170.00 for a stem to $350.00 for a set of brake cantilever arms. 

There may not be anything left in some cases but here are the original numbers for manufacture from Wilde's press release: Stems: 70, Brake sets: 6, Seat posts: 10, and Love Levers sets: 5. 

The product page is HERE if you are interested in taking a look.

 That is a wrap on things for this week. Thanks as always for reading the blog! Have a safe and wonderful Memorial Day Weekend - for those who observe this - and get out and ride those bicycles!

Single Speed Questions - Part 1

Listen to this episode HERE

Recently N.Y. Roll and I did a podcast all about single speed bikes on gravel. You can check it out HERE in case you missed it. I'm not sure why, but that episode has become one of our most popular episodes, quickly reaching Top Ten all-time status in our brief history. Still, we were a bit taken aback by the interest. 

In fact, we've received more than the usual feedback on that episode and so by that we already knew that many of our listeners found the subject intriguing. 

I even received an email from a long-time blog reader who listened in and had a lot of great questions about single speeding in general, and on gravel in specific. I had no real solid answers at first, because some of these questions were beyond the scope of my expertise. So, I did some research. 

Now that I feel comfortable with what I have found out, I am ready to share the results of my research and then add in what I know about some other questions that came up through the days since the podcast went live. So, grab a cuppa your favorite beverage, sit back, and get ready for a long post today! There will be links to go to for supplemental research you can do on your own time as well. Here we go! 

We're going to jump right in the deep end with a question on health concerns or health benefits in regard to single speed usage. Note: These questions were sent in by a reader and have been lightly edited for clarity. 

What impact, advantage or disadvantage, does riding single speed have on your knees?

The benefits and disadvantages of single speed use are not clear-cut.

This is probably the number-one reason most often given for folks either not wanting to give single speed a try, or for people to say that they cannot do single speed anymore. Knees. It is a big concern, but when I did my research, I found that overwhelmingly a few things rose to the surface that many riders don't give a lot of attention to when they go to a single speed set up and try riding it. I'm going to list the issues in bullet point fashion and I will provide links to go to for more information.

First and foremost though, it needs to be understood that any above-average use of joints and tissues can advance the onset of problems and accelerate wear issues. Always consult your physician/care provider before undertaking any extracurricular physical activities above and beyond your normal lifestyle's physical demands. 

• Initial Position/Set Up For The Rider: The overwhelmingly most mentioned issue that can cause you to have problems with single speed use is rider positioning on the bike. Saddle height is the main culprit, but cleat positioning can also be a major issue if it is wrong. (See "5 Common Causes of Cycling Knee Pain" Arizona Pain & Spine Clinic) Get these wrong and the extra stress induced by single speed usage will get issues to crop up faster than with geared bikes. 
• Single Speed Use Can Help Build Up Surrounding Knee Tissues: If your set up is correct for your body and bicycle, (we will get into gearing later), then single speed use can be a benefit to stronger knee support since it will build up tissues around the knee, make them stronger, and may help stabilize the knee joint in a more secure way than without that sort of stress being induced by single speed usage. (See "Fixed Gear Bicycles And Knee Health" by Sheldon Brown and "Cycling and its Impact on Your Knees" by The Noyes Knee Institute) 
• Overuse Injuries Can Be Mitigated: You can take some preventive measures, (beyond proper bike fitting) to help mitigate or avoid overuse injuries, which are one of the, if not THE most common type of complaint against single speed use. These measures include, but are not limited to, the following: Choose a reasonable gear ratio (More on this later) Go easy on the hills and downhills (if fixed gear). Walk longer/steeper hills. Stretching before and after exercise. Employ proper technique (Use your core, arms, glutes, etc) Maintain efficient pedaling as much as possible (Use momentum) Get into a state of physical fitness before attempting a heavy diet of single speeding, and then maintain that fitness while employing a single speed in your cycling routine. Finally, be cognizant of weather! (Wind) (See "Are Fixed Gear Bikes Bad For Your Knees? (The Truth)" by Brooklyn Fixed Gear)
• Go Easy To Start Out: Jumping right into the deep end by trying a single speed out and doing your regular geared routine/routes is definitely not the way to do it. As they sat, "Baby steps!" One of my sources stated that "Overuse injuries most likely occur when an athlete changes the mode, intensity, or duration of training." So, don't go out and pile on a few long single speed rides in the beginning if you want to be successful later on. Patience Grasshopper! (See "Cycling Knee Problems" by the Chester Knee Clinic & Cartilage Repair Center)

How do you know if a bike or frame can be made up as a single speed? 

Most single speed specific frames have a built-in tensioning mechanism

Actually, any bike can be ridden as a single speed. Just don't shift! But seriously, almost any bike can be modified in some way to be a single rear cog, no shift bike. 

Even a derailleur bike can be made to be a single speed by using the rear derailleur as your chain tensioning device. That said, there are opinions which say that you are not going to get a real "feel" for single speed unless you use a frame designed especially for that purpose. That's debatable, but I will say it is easier to just get a single speed and be done with it. Plus it is a level of commitment that might just motivate you enough to be successful at the venture. 

Now let's say that you are thinking about piecing together a single speed build. Then you will need to be looking for a certain type of frame that has the ability to position the rear wheel in the rear dropout in several positions. Most of the time this will be a "horizontal" drop out. 

The forward facing slotted rear drop out on this frame means it is SS ready

Check out the frame to the left here (or above if you are on a phone/device). It is my Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross frame and fork when I got it in 2011. 

Note the rear drop outs are facing forward slots. This is a "horizontal" style drop out which would allow you to position the rear wheel in several spots, of course, altering the wheel base. But, and most importantly for this discussion, it allows you to "tension" the chain for a single speed set up! 

Move the wheel forward in the drop out and this slackens the chain for wheel removal. Slide it back for tension on the chain for riding. Make sure to use a bolt-on wheel or a quick release wheel with an internal cam mechanism like that found on most Shimano skewers. 

If the slotted drop out faces the opposite direction, as with most older Surly frames, it is then called a "track end", "rear fork", or just "track drop-outs". 

Another example of a single speed tensioning system.

An example of an eccentric bottom bracket which allows for chain tensioning for SS set ups.

An example of a "swinging drop out", Salsa Cycles' Alternator Drop Out. This can be used as a single speed also.

I may be missing something else out there, but the idea is that either the rear wheel has to be "moveable" in terms of how it is fixed to the frame or the bottom bracket is an eccentric allowing the bottom bracket to be rotated in an elliptical orbit which tensions/detentions the chain against the rear cog. There is an elliptical rear hub, the White industries ENO hub, but that is pretty niche. 

That's enough for today. Look for Part 2 of "Single Speed Questions" to post tomorrow.