Brown Season: Riding Into Spring

Escape Route: South Riverside Trail

 A little more than a week ago we were staring down a blizzard. High winds and snow battered us Sunday evening through until Monday evening. Then it got brutally cold with negative wind chills and air temperatures in the single digits on Tuesday. 

By Friday it was shirt-sleeve weather! 

What a crazy Winter, and I sure hope it is all over with. We were on a roller coaster of freezing, thawing, snow cover, no snow cover, all Winter long. But hopefully it is all done with, and this Spring can be a bit less up and down. 

Friday I took advantage of the nice weather and got out on my Honeman Flyer since it has all the Ergon stuff on it I am reviewing. It was 65°F and so I put on a wind vest, a short-sleeved jersey, my Twin Six bib knickers, and I wore normal cycling shoes. A bandana and Bontrager Circuit helmet rounded out the kit for the day. 

There were a lot of people enjoying Big Woods Lake on Friday

 

First gravel on Mt. Vernon Road. 

I saw the breeze was out of the Northwest before I left the house so I decided to use my "Northwest Passage" route out of town. It essentially follows the Cedar River along quiet city streets and bike paths, stays out of the wind, and allows me to get out of town without expending a lot of energy.Once I get away from Big Woods Lake I only have about two miles worth of headwind. 

The roads are nice! No fresh gravel......yet!

Not much snow in the ditches anymore here. Probably none now!

It's amazing how quickly the snow disappeared. Tuesday the ditches were full last week. Now on Friday, during my ride, snow was hard to come by, and most of it was stained black from dirt blowing into it during the storm. The winds scoured the snow off  during the blizzard and picked up the black dirt afterward. 

Angles in the Sky and angles on the ground. 

 

It felt like a Summer ride. I almost took the wind vest off a few times to stuff it into my jersey pocket, but I never did. I stuck it out. Because the heat was so unfamiliar to me at this point of the year for around these parts, I decided not to take a longer route. Later on, after I was at home for a while, I was happy I made that decision. 

 

One example of the rolling hills North of Waterloo.

Now we are back to what feels like Spring. This past weekend, well Friday and Saturday, at any rate, were straight out of Summer. It's too early for Summer! Hopefully Spring will be good. I need to get some miles in. 

Stay tuned.... 

The Path To Discovering Gravel Grinding: Part 2

This is Part 2 of a mini-series of posts telling the story of what it was like to attend events in the early days of the Modern Gravel Era. This story will focus on the part the Dirty Kanza 200 played in those days from my perspective. Please read Part 1 also to help with the context of this post. 

Researching on the internet concerning an unknown entity (gravel racing) in a fairly desolate part of the USA (Flint Hills) was not very rewarding. Most of what was on the internet in 2005/2006 centered around cattle grazing, the National Grasslands, and the Native American ancestors who once lived there. 

Bicycles? There was precious little information regarding riding a bicycle in the Flint Hills of Kansas. Even the event's predecessor, the Flint Hills Death Ride, was barely mentioned and it was, at that time, considered a mountain bike event. 

So, I had to guess the best that I could. Weather was a wildcard. What hills would be included, and how often, and how many, were all mysteries. The event organizers had one checkpoint where riders could have a drop bag sent and waiting for them. There were very few towns and villages. Getting resupplied was supposed to be done at convenience stores, but there were only three for the entire 200 miles. Council Grove, Cottonwood Falls, and then a long haul down to Eureka, and then back to Emporia. 

I decided on a single speed. Less stuff to go wrong in the middle of nowhere. Plus, I was going with zero support. If things went upside down, well..... If I could still walk, I was going to have to do that. Cell coverage was iffy to nonexistent. I had no idea if there were farms, like we had in Iowa, or just vast, empty spaces. 

The 2005 On One Inbred single speed 29"er as I rode it at the inaugural Dirty Kanza 200.

I decided to run a hydration pack, mostly because this was the only way to hope to have enough water for the long stretches between resupplies. Things like fork mounted bottles, "feed bags", or other commonly seen accessories for endurance gravel/road riding today weren't available yet in the mid-2000's. 

Nutrition was another reason to haul a rucksack with you. Your jersey pockets would also provide some space to carry food, but not enough for 200 miles. Plus, you needed repair items, just in case, as well. Those had to go somewhere. I think I settled on a Topeak seat bag, as I recall, for the spares. 

And navigation. Ha ha! People would throw a fit today if they were sent out on a forlorn, desolate route with just a map with a highlighted route on it. This is what we were led to believe we'd have to navigate by previous to the event. In the end, Joel and Jim marked the entire 200 mile course so well a map was barely a necessity, unless you made a wrong turn somewhere. 

So, a wired or wireless computer was a necessity. GPS? Yeah...... Think again. This was 2006. Such devices were not quite a thing yet in those days. Calibration of your computer was a fine art. Then you also had to account for how you wanted to carry your maps. Early gravel events had cues or maps and there was no agreed upon standard sizing for such things. So sometimes this was a late decision based upon whatever the event directors landed on for sheet size. Zip-loc food bags were your best bet along with a clip to hold all the sheets together. 

Decisions, decisions! Then added in was whatever you thought you'd need for clothing going into a night time finish. It was pretty crazy trying to navigate all the unknowns then! But this is what made these events so fun and memorable. 

Next: Learning lessons as a rider and event director.  

C.O.G. 40: Updated Route News

 The main point of this post is to point out the news of a route update. If you uploaded the route previously to seeing this post, you will want to discard the route and replace it with THIS ONE. 

The correct route is called "C.O.G. 40" so you should see that as the name on the file. If you have any troubles uploading the route file, please let me know. There will be NO CUE SHEETS, so plan accordingly. (Meaning: you can draw up your own cues like I am going to do from the route file. )

The reason for the change was due to some recently received intel from local-ish rider, Ben Petty, who has put together many routes in Grundy, Hardin, and Tama Counties and knows the area well. He warned of some nasty dogs in the beginning miles of our original route, and he suggested some changes. I actually am borrowing the opening miles of a route of his out of Reinbeck for our ride. Thanks Ben!

There still will be three miles of dirt, so if we have to bail out on those our "rain route" will still work and be put into effect. As of this writing, it doesn't look as though we will have to worry much about doing that. 

N.Y. Roll tells me you folks should PIN the route, and do not SAVE it. This will allow any last minute changes to be pushed to your devices. (See example shown)

I do not expect anything to change, but you never know, right? So please be aware of this detail. 

The route ended up being just a hair over 40 miles, but this is mostly due to how I have it leaving and reentering Reinbeck. On the way out, I have the route going past the park near the Southwest side of the town to make sure we do not miss anyone who may have parked there. Coming back I directed the route to Broad Street more directly so you can get back to your car without dealing with going out of your way to the park previously mentioned. (There is a direct route to the park area but you will peel off before the actual end of the route to reach the parking area.) 
 

Speaking of weather, it will be chilly to start, a pretty decent wind will be coming out of the South, and so you will want to be prepared with warm cycling gear like booties, Winter cycling shoes, gloves, or maybe even pogies if you have sensitive hands. Definitely wear gloves! 

Okay, that should wrap up the news. I have heard from a few would-be riders. So, we will at least have a small group and probably a mid-sized one if the weather holds out. I will see whomever shows up at about a half an hour before the 9:00am start time.  See all the ride details HERE. 

Change Of Pace

Long time readers of the blog here probably will recall my "pilgrimage" to the Green Belt every Fall. The ride I generally do to see Fall colors and celebrate my beginnings in cycling in the Cedar Valley. I wasn't always a "gravel guy"!

Sometimes I do this ride on a fat bike, sometimes on a mountain bike. This year I pulled The OS Bikes Blackbuck off the peg, aired up the tires, and went seeking leaf-peeping opportunities on a Summer-like day in mid-October. 

So, before I get on with the story, I probably should explain this OS Bikes thing. Every time I post a picture of this bike I get questions about it, so please bear with me if you already are aware of the history. 

OS (Of Spirit) Bikes was a side project of WTB's Mark Slate. Around 2007 he designed a single speed 29"er frame and fork, had 500 units made at Maxway in Taiwan, and bought some components to sell completes and some frame sets. These became available late in 2007. I bought mine in January of 2008. 

Unfortunately for Mark, he spec'ed original Rock Shox Rebas on the completes, which by 2008 were superseded by Fox's new 51mm offset 29"er fork. It also coincided with a less favorable view of single speed 29"ers and an uptick in geared offerings. Finally, the Blackbuck was only available in a single size. The OS Bikes Blackbuck subsequently wasn't in high demand. 

Mark made a second version of the Blackbuck, made at a different factory, with three sizes available, in 2010. These are easily identified by their white "darts" paint job, where the original Blackbuck was almost all black save for a silver colored dart on each seat stay and chain stay. I've no idea how many v2 Blackbucks were made. And no....you cannot buy one new. Unless there are some NOS ones around, which I am unaware of. 

So, there ya go..... 

The OS Bikes Blackbuck as it sits now in 2025.

Now on with the ride....

I decided to head out after lunch for a quick look at the meadow where I usually go to see the Fall colors. I started from the house and took the alleys and side streets over to the dog park and then went up and over the dike to enter the Green Belt. N.Y. Roll reported the Green Belt had received its annual Fall mowing, so I knew it would be fairly clean with little debris to deal with. 

The Fall colors are a bit behind this year. Usually by the 17th we are either done, or right at peak Fall color.. With the extension of Summer into early October, I think the colors were put off until around the latter part of last week. Then I noted a big change in the neighborhood, which was the prompt for me to go check the Green Belt. 

However; once I got out there, it was pretty obvious we are not quite at the zenith of Fall colors. I'd guess it will be next weekend when we reach the peak of leaf peeping here. Barring any stupidly windy days which may strip the trees before the colors come in.

Hopefully this will coincide with the C.O.G. 40. That would be awesome to have a bit of that Fall color happening for the ride, but it would be quite late in the season for the peak. Maybe.... We'll see.

I was scheduled to meet with N.Y. Roll around 3:30pm, so I didn't have a ton of time to explore the Green Belt for more color, but the meadow did not disappoint, despite it being on the early side for colors. I stayed a while in the meadow and contemplated a few things before I set off to come back home again. 

I've had these old Kenda XC tires on this bike for ages now. They are big, voluminous, and have fast tread. They don't work great in anything other than hardpack, which is what I generally encounter if and when I ride off-road. However, with recent rains the Green Belt had some greasy spots and standing water which made the bike a bit tail happy. I could definitely feel the tires slipping a bit in some corners! 

 It was a short, but good Fall ride. It wasn't peak color, but it was a great balance of the greens of Summer with splashes of Fall color. The trails had some leaves, but it wasn't swimming in them. All in all, it was a great change of pace from the gravel I normally am out on. 

Friday News And Views

32" wheel of a SE Racing cruiser (Image courtesy of SE Racing)

MADE Show Features 32"ers:

The MADE Show, which happened last weekend in Portalnd, Oregon, finished up with not much news other than the buzz surrounding a few 32 inch wheeled custom bikes which were on display.

The stories online were kind of interesting for the narratives which were being pushed. "Will this be the Next Big Thing?" is basically what was being asked coming out of this show.

Comments: This has been the cycling industry's question since the "Bike Boom" of the early to mid 1970's. What will drive sales in the future? The "next big thing" after the Bike Boom was MTB's, then it was 29"ers. Then the internet came along and pretty much flooded people's eyeballs with every sort of contraption known to mankind. This was when "The Next Big Thing" was pretty much killed. Fat bikes made a stab at it, but faded quickly. Gravel? This is more difficult in that there ended up being a bike for it, but Gravel, as a thing, predated the bike for it by several years. So I would be hesitant to point at a gravel bike and say it was the "last Next Big Thing". In my opinion, Gravel would have kept growing with or without a specific bicycle for the activity.

Now electric two wheeled contraptions have taken off, but this has been mostly outside of the traditional bicycle industry 'food chain'. (In the USA, at any rate)  So, the 32"er comes along and people are seemingly thinking (in certain circles) that this will be the "Next Big Thing" like 29"ers were. Bzzzzt! I'm sorry, but this is incorrect. Next!

Why is this wrong? Look at most 32"ers and if you are paying attention you can see the ways these bikes are being designed to fit. Small to Medium folks? Not a chance this is a thing for you. Large? You are on the fringes. There just are not enough people who might benefit from this large a wheel. I think there will be a small, niche market for them, but like fat bikes, once those who benefit most from 32"ers have them, the market will nosedive significantly. I just don't see this as a sustainable market. 

And searching for the "Next Big Thing" in terms of a type of bicycle in cycling is the wrong thing to pursue anyway. 

Comments On 2025 Gravel Worlds:

Gravel Worlds happened last weekend, and while I was not there, I couldn't help but notice a few things. Mostly because of all the social media posts they put up. An odious amount of them, by the way.

First, there was some grousing about the muddy MMR road from the viewpoint of the Pro's and some media covering the event. I was pointed to a video on Instagram by N.Y. Roll concerning the woman's event. Yeah.... So here is a brief thought concerning this, which I have expressed here before.

Gravel events (The BIG ones getting all the media coverage now) used to be about Adventure, Challenge, Competition, and Camaraderie.  The Pro/Monetary element, introduced to gravel events in a big way since COVID, has reduced some of these events to just being about Competition. So, there is no room for something as integral to gravel events as muddy conditions, or Challenges, or Adventure, not to mention Camaraderie. It's about Results, Money, and Competition at these events now. 

So, they are not really "gravel events" anymore. They are merely Pro roadie events on a different surface. And that is my stance on this faction of so-called "Pro Gravel" categories. .(I'm not commentating on the other categories, which probably are not as affected)

Then there is all the coverage. Gah! You may have heard the theory which states that you should always leave people wanting more, yes? Well, I could not wait for my feed to clear out all the glut of Gravel Worlds coverage. Another interesting note was looking at the likes each post was getting, and in many cases it was less than 200, and in more than a few, less than 100. Maybe it's just me, but my money is on "less is more". And this goes for Mid-South and Unbound as well.   

Wahoo BOLT 1 (Image courtesy of Wahoo Sports)

Remember Y2K?

Maybe you are not old enough,to remember, but this recent story concerning original Wahoo ELEMNT ROAM, and BOLT GPS devices reminded me of those Y2K times. Apparently, a "limited ten bit clock" in those original Wahoo GPS devices ran out on time in mid-August, reverting the internal clocks to 2015. This caused the devices to fail in function, becoming essentially useless.

Fortunately, Wahoo has been able to update firmware for these old GPS devices and if you happen to own one of them, you can access the fix HERE. NOTE: This page only had firmware updates for the original ROAM and BOLT devices. They state they are still working on a firmware update for the ELEMNT at the time of this writing.

One wonders if the original developers of the Wahoo GPS devices figured that by now almost all of these platforms would be so out of date, or broken, that no one would care to be using them. Apparently there are more than a few folks still rocking these units.  

Which, in a way, is heartening. I like that people want to extend the usage and lifespan on these as far as possible, and also I like that Wahoo is willing to help those people out with a firmware update. Wahoo did not have to do this. So, kudos to Wajhoo for being nice about this and not killing off these first gen units making them nothing but fodder for the landfill.  

Image courtesy of Esker Cycles

 Esker Shows New Single Speed Specific Frame/Fork:

A dedicated to single speed bicycle is always going to grab my attention. This beauty was released by Esker Cycles on Wednesday this past week. Called the Solitaire, (Perfect name, by the way), this bike is based on their popular Hayduke model. Esker says there will only be 50 made and each will have a numbered Jen Greene headtube badge in brass. 

Prices start at $1,250.00 and go up with options. See the details on Esker Cycles site HERE.  

Comments: This is a cool looking bike with reasonable geometry which would work for a variety of off-road pursuits.  There are plenty of accessory mounts, and the rigid "Fork-Yeah!" steel fork appeals to my sensibilities while the design does allow for a suspension device if so desired. Plus, it has clearance for up to 29" x 3.0" tires. Nice!

Thank You:

I just wanted to take a minute to thank everyone for reading through the GTRFJ posts this week. This ride was important for me, which you probably can understand why this was the case, and for so many folks to have read through the report also was meaningful for me. So, thanks for doing that and for your support of myself and this blog.

As far as this Ride For Jacob thing goes, yes - It will happen again next year in August. Also yes - I am going to invite people along who may wish to join me in this ride to honor my son's memory. So, I will be talking about this next year and I will have details regarding the ride when I feel it is time to start talking about this ride again.

All I know now is a this ride is important to me. I want to share it with others, but I'm going to do it regardless of anyone else's attendance. So, mark it down for next August if you are interested and stay tuned for more on this in the future. 
 

 That is a wrap for this week! Get out there and ride those bicycles! Have a safe and fun Labor Day Weekend if you are in the USA!

Coutry Views: Starting Down The Long Road

Escape Route: Sergeant Road Trail

 It had been awhile since I had been out in the country again. Everything that has been going on since our son's death has been eating into time I'd take to ride. And anyway, I felt it would have been incredibly selfish of me to not spend the bereavement time off my wife had with her. Not to mention my daughter.

So, I was okay with just getting a few short urban rides in and with my riding to work three days a week. But on Saturday, my wife could feel that I needed to ride again, and so on Sunday afternoon I dared to take a short ride out into the country. 

Also, it was very hot. I saw it reached 92°F and with the humidity it felt like something in the low 100's. The strong Southeast wind took a bit of the edge off, unless you were going South or East up a hill. Then it was terribly hot! It probably didn't help that I was riding a single speed. But I was, and the Honeman Flyer has endeared itself to me to the point which I find it hard to choose another of my bicycles.

 

The heat was brutal. I tried to take it easy on the front end of the ride so I would maybe keep the kettle from boiling over. I was probably on the right track, but when I reached the "usual rest stop" on Aker Road, I stood and contemplated my options. Since I was pretty overheated already by this point I made the choice to cut back over to Washburn Road and head back toward town. 

Besides, this wasn't about making big miles, training for an event, or evaluating a component. This was for me. I needed to process some feelings and think through some stuff. This ride provided just enough solitude to get me to that place where I can do those things. 

Then there was a storm brewing in the West which began to concern me. By the time I was getting close to town again I could hear the distant rumble of thunder. I stopped for a minute or two in the shade of a tree and checked the radar. Yep! Headed straight for me. 

So, it was good that I had decided to head back when I did. And yes- I beat the rain handily. I think I got one drop on me right as I turned the corner to the house. Fifteen minutes later it was pouring rain.

I was glad I was able to get the ride in. It is only the beginning. The first of many rides I am sure I will need to take in the future to think some stuff through. I know I am very blessed to be able to ride a bicycle and do these things. 

Country Views: A Search For Solace

Escape Route: Dead end of Falls Avenue.

 This week has been a tale of mountain-top highs and the deepest valleys. A whirlwind of emotions and things to take care of, including ourselves. (If you just clicked in here and you don't know the context of these statements, see HERE)

We had a slew of visitors which I and my family really did appreciate, but I was itching to ride a bicycle since I hadn't ridden at all for three days. Which, I know, doesn't sound like much, but combined with my current situation, I was in desperate need of some mind-cleansing and a chance to do some reflecting on the tragedy.

So, I cleared out some time on Tuesday afternoon to get on my bicycle and ride. I chose the single speed Honeman Flyer. I decided to head out North of town, despite the Southerly wind, and see the old church at the corner of Burton and Marquise Road. 

The first gravel I'd ridden on in quite a while. (For me, at any rate)

Looking up Mount Vernon Road to the West

It was a typical Summer day. Hot, not too humid, and breezy. I headed up out of town on Burton Road with the thought in the back of my head saying, "Be careful! The last thing we need is another tragedy or trouble!" I was extra nervous around cars. More than normal. Maybe it is a good fear, and a heightened awareness maybe was due. 

Local honey for sale here. Take a jar, leave your cash. 

I started rolling over what happened Saturday morning in my head, but I had to shut those thoughts down. It's very difficult to ride a bicycle with tears in your eyes, as it turns out. My thoughts have been to consider my time with my son as a blessing. Something I never thought would happen when I was younger, and an experience that was, for the most part, very enjoyable. Things could have gone very differently. I just need to look around me to see many examples of this, including my own relationship with my father. 

First rest stop.

My experience didn't last as long as many other father-son relationships have. But I'm okay with what I was blessed to have. I didn't deserve such a thing in the first place, and the way it turned out for Jacob, well, I thought it was a smashing success.

I mean, I considered what I was doing at 22 years of age, and what preceded those days for me. Whew! Yeah.... Let's just say I'm very fortunate to have lived through it. I shouldn't have, Jacob should have. Life isn't fair. You do what you can with what you have, and hopefully you maximize your potential, not squander it. Jacob did the former, I did the latter.

Things are not looking so great up at East Janesville Church these days. 

The road goes forever on and on down from the door where it began.... (JRR Tolkien)

I had a long bit of thought during this ride. I wondered aloud why some things Jacob did, which I felt were awesome, were making me cry. Why? Because I am selfish. I won't get to experience those things again. But shouldn't I be happy I did get to experience those things when I consider them in the future? Shouldn't those things make me happy, put a smile on my face, and bring me joy instead? 

Can it be both things at the same time? Mountain-top highs, and deepest valleys......

 

I turned East on Marquise Road, flew down the hill with the wind in my face. It was a beautiful day out. One of those you yearn to experience on a bicycle ride, if you are like I am. The crickets sang there creaky songs in the weeds and the wind masked everything else. Vehicles would appear, seemingly out of nowhere, from behind me. Lazy dust clouds flew off into the ditches in the breeze. Dappled Sunlight chased me on the road going North, but now was rushing past me.

 

It's a big rock, but it isn't my Rock. 

I felt alive. I was breathing the fresh air. Wildfire smoke was cleansed from the area. Blue skies appeared on this day where before they were a washed out white. I was riding well. Better than I had expected. But I carried a weight on my soul which was heavy. I felt an emptiness inside. A big hole is healing. It will take time. It may never close up. I don't know. 

You can look at my son's life in one manner where it can be said he was cut short. He never had the experiences an adult person maybe should be able to have in life. He never held a woman close. He will never get to have children, as I have. But he won't have to bear the burdens of this World. The sadness, The heartache. The nights of worrying about those you love. Disease. Sickness. You get the picture.

I'm not angry. I am sad, yes, but I am glad he is free. He is Home now. 

And that is good. 

Friday News And Views

 Note: This edition of the "FN&V" will be a bit of a 'catching up' due to not having a FN&V last week. Some of the 'news' will be a bit older than usual as a result..

A view of the inner workings of an Ochain unit (Image courtesy of Ochain)

Last week SRAM announced the acquisition of MTB component maker, Ochain. The company is well-established in the down hill and enduro circuits. Their claim to fame is a device which decouples the direct interface between a chain ring and chain. The Ochain device allows for a certain degree of rotation of the chain ring without the crank moving, thus allowing full-suspension bikes to achieve a more efficient and 'chain free' operation.

Ochain is a device which solves the age-old problem of suspension 'kick-back' and makes suspension work 'freer' due to the decoupling aspect. SRAM claims the Ochain device results in a 'calmer and quieter' bike.

Comments: SRAM has, in the past, filed various patents on chain ring design to address various aspects of 1X drive trains and suspension use. None of which, to my knowledge, have come to see the light of day....yet. However; it is interesting to note SRAM's history of innovation by acquisition. Ochain being the latest brand to be acquired by SRAM. Many people forget SRAM bought brands like Rock Shox, Sachs, (thus bringing chains into their catalog), and TIME (for pedals), along with Hammerhead for GPS/controller duties.

I doubt SRAM will sit with Ochain only being used for MTB and full-sus e-Bikes. I look for some sort of further development to make this acquisition more versatile. Just what may come of this should be interesting. 

Image courtesy of Wheels MFG.

Wheels MFG Announces New Single Speed Kit For Hyperglide:

Wheels Manufacturing announced last week that their Solo Cog single speed kit will be available for Shimano HG style free hubs on August 22nd, 2025. The SOLO HG Single Speed Kit will be available in various anodized colors. This kit will have several spacers for centering your cog, or Wheels MFG Solo Cogs, which will be sold separately.

Both the kit and the cogs are machined from aluminum. The spacers are from 6061 aluminum and the cogs from 7075 series aluminum. The spacer kit, which comes with a color-matched lock ring, goes for $51.9 USD.

The Solo Cogs come in 16T, 18T, and 20T for now with more sizes promised. These cogs are going for $46.99 each USD. 

Comments: At $99.00 for the full set of spacers, lock ring, and cog, this is not a "cheap" option. (You can get a Surly spacer kit and cog for around $75.00 - $80.00), but it is in line with others I can find in aluminum and anodized hues. 

Image courtesy of Ortlieb

Ortlieb Announces New "Quick Rack" System:

If you have a bike which you'd like to have a rack on, but only occasionally, or a bike that doesn't have rack mounts, you might want to check out Ortlieb's new Quick Rack. 

This rack attaches via a unique collar and axle attachment design, (please click the link for details) and Ortlieb claims this can be installed in fifteen seconds. So, an applicable solution for anyone who may need a rack at a moments notice.

With a load capacity of 44lbs, and ability to accept any of Ortlieb's bags for rear racks, this seems like a pretty cool way to add some versatility to a bike you use for any mission.

The Quick Rack sells for $130.00 USD.

Comments: At first I thought this rack attached with an ordinary alloy type seat post collar, but it is not anything like this. (Again, check Ortlieb's site for details) I'm in a situation where I do not have to rely on one or two bicycles for everything, but, if I were in this sort of situation, the Quick rack might come in pretty handy.

I cannot vouch for the incredible quick change out time, but even if it took three times as long, it would be a pretty easy to consider swap, in my opinion. The only other curious thought I have here is if this would be a steady enough platform to rely upon for commutes, or errands, or even touring.

Rough Stuff MTB Rally:

Wilde Bicycle Company is sponsoring the Rough Stuff Rally August 1 -3, 2025 at Copper Harbor, Michigan. Jeffrey Frane, of Wilde Bicycle Company has this to say about the festival:

 "The Rally is two days of riding, revelry, and community on some of the best trails in the world. Friday we have shuttle runs from 4-8pm accessing legendary trails such as The Flow, Danimal, and Overflow followed by a bluff top sunset Happy Hour. Saturday is the main event, a 22 or 43mile loop of the trail system taking in a highlight reel of singletrack followed by a gourmet dinner at the Campground hosted by Chef Adam Blake with bonfire, music and free refreshments from Fat Tire to follow." 

Interested? Registration is open now and you can join in for $120.00. by checking in HERE. Entry gets you free shuttle service on Friday, an event t-shirt, an stocked aid station on Saturday, the free meal, and free refreshments Friday night and Saturday night. 

A schedule of events for the Rally can be found HERE. 

Image courtesy of Surly Bikes.

Surly Shows Updated Ogre:

Surly Bikes showed on Thursday an update to their Ogre 29" inch wheeled commuter/bike packing bike. With tire clearance for 29" X 2.5" tires, or 27.5" X 2.8" tires (with fenders!!), this bike could be a very versatile bike in a person's bike stable. Or it easily could be your only bike.

As one might expect from Surly, the Ogre has a plethora of mounts, is Rohloff compatible, and has a mount for Surly's own Bill or Ted trailer. This version of the Ogre is in a hue Surly calls "Orlock's Shadow". Se mor about the Ogre and other surly products by clicking the link HERE. 

Comments: The Ogre has, in my opinion, "old school" 29"er geometry. If it looks like the front end has been pushed in, this is because the Ogre has a 72° head tube angle, which most 29"er's haven't used for well over a decade now. Not that this is "bad", but it is unique now in 2025. 

This Ogre reminds me a lot of what a modernized version of my 2003 Karate Monkey would maybe look like. It even is close to the same color, which is Campstove Green. So, the comparison is easier for me to make, I suppose. 
 

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! NOTE: A press release from Pinarello will be featured at 7;30am CST today here. Stay tuned...