Tree In The Road Ride: Update

Well, since we had stupid wind, temperatures in the 40's, and now rain, I didn't get a whole lot of time to ride of late. Not out in the country, at any rate. So, how about a Tree In The Road Ride update instead? 

I guess it doesn't really matter what you think, because you are getting it anyway! Ha! In case you were not aware of what this is, please head back to this post and read about the details there. (Follow links back to previous posts there.)

I don't have a whole lot different to share, but there are two bits of information here which should get you squared away for this event coming up in about a month from now. The first is the route, which I think is pretty much going to be what Sarah Cooper gave me which is based off of Rob Evans original route design. The Ride With GPS files and route can bee seen by clicking This Link. Put that into your device for route finding. There will be no cue sheets handed out so if you'd rather navigate old school you'll have to draw up your own.

The Fargo Gen I version 2025 or....

...or the Gryphon Mk3?

The next thing I wanted to share is that we (N.Y. Roll and I) are planning on hanging out a bit post ride, but we have decided to roll back to Waterloo Saturday evening now.  We thought staying two nights is a bit much, and I have to play at church on Sunday.  So we just wanted to put that out there in case anyone had designs on having breakfast with us on Sunday morning. 

Now I am on to bicycle choice, and I've whittled it down to two rigs. The Gen I Fargo and the Singular Gryphon Mk3. I am looking at these bikes from the standpoint of comfort, stability, and both have triple crank sets, which I probably will need. I'm guessing I'll not have had any hill training going into this ride, given how my schedule and the weather have lined up over the past several weeks. And it doesn't look promising for the few weeks I have ahead of this ride.

I guess I'll just have to 'embrace the suck'. Ha!

Weekly Top Five

  Welcome to the weekly Top Five" showing links to five of the week's most read articles on the blog.
Sometimes those will be current posts, but sometimes not. I will also post commentary with perspective on some of the older posts, and try to give some context as to why I wrote what I wrote then, which may not reflect what I'd say in 2025. With all of the above said, here is this week's list.

 Wide Tires On Gravel: The Effect Of Wider Tires On The Bike - Tuesday May 13th, 2025: This is one from the Wide Tires On Gravel series. Anything having to do with tires seems to pique interest here and elsewhere on the web. No surprise then....

Friday News And Views - Friday, May 18th, 2025: Perennial weekly top-views getter. This last week's must have been a good one

Continental Terra Adventure 700 X 45mm Tires: Update 1 - Thursday May 15th, 2025:  Tires. What did I say about tire posts? Oh.....yeah, right then.

Wide Tires On Gravel: Alternative Bikes - Wednesday May 14th, 2025: You know the drill..... Tires again!

How Wide Should Your Drop Bars Be?: Monday November 20th, 2023 - Oooo! Not tires! A reappearance of this old post. Must be some articles out now concerning narrow bars for gravel. This would be my guess as to why this popped up yet again.  

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Two Things

Clik Valves from Wolf Tooth (Image courtesy of Wolf Tooth)

 Clik Valve Gains Traction:

On Thursday Wolf Tooth  Components released news that they are supporting Clik Valve with a mini-pump, tubeless valve stems, and cores to convert Presta valves along with pump heads.

Of course, I am testing Clik Valve on a wheel set along with a pump I have converted over to the system. You can read my latest update on the system HERE, but suffice it to say that I am bullish on this new standard. 

I'm also trying out the Stan's Exo Core valve stems, a "traditional" valve in the sense that it works with standard issue pumps, such as you may already have. The idea being that they flow a higher volume of air due to their unique design.  

Which is better? Well, the better question is "Which is easier to use?" Also, which would create more satisfaction with newer users? In my opinion the answer is Clik Valve with no debate. Both the Stan's and Clik Valves flow air quite well, so I think this is a bit of a wash, but if you want to use tire inserts, I'd stick with something like Stan's valves for now. However; I've no doubt, given the ease of use of the Clik Valve, that this system will end up finding favor with many casual cyclists and cycling enthusiasts alike.

From an email sent to me by a Trek dealer

How Long Before We Need A License & Insurance?

Trek dealers are email-blasting their customer lists concerning this new eBike with a throttle control which, apparently, does not require "assist".

The new Trek FS+ 1S also comes with turn signals and brake lights. Coupled with the throttle, what does this make you think of?

I can't blame Trek. I mean, how many other niche eBike companies offer something like this, and have, for well over five years now? Trek, and other traditional human-powered bicycle purveyors wanted to pretend for years that "assist" was going to be what appealed to riders. And make no mistake, it does to cyclists. But many people who are buying brands like Aventon, Rad Power, and others of this ilk are not typically "cyclists" in the sense that they were/are rabid about pedaling something with two wheels.

Of course, there are exceptions, and spare me all the "If it weren't for eBikes I/my____ wouldn't be riding" stories. I get it. This matters. I'm not talking about this use scenario. I'm speaking about the perceptions "non-traditional", shall we say, cyclists are looking at this type of product.

This user group outweighs the "need to pedal" group by a large margin, at least around here. I also hear this from other areas of the country. Mechanics reporting how eBike users slam the bike into the highest gear, and leverage the motor to do "work". Reports of throttle eBike users who never turn the crank arms. Users who are clearly disregarding traditional cycling "rules" on their eBikes, if they ever knew the protocols in the first place.

Younger folks who see eBikes as the "latest tech" and traditional 100% human powered bikes as "antiques" akin to penny farthings. These user groups want to sit and be moved. They are not very interested in "working to move". I'm not saying they are "lazy", nor am I saying they are "cheating", but humans take the path of least resistance, given the choice, and throttles are easier. Period.

I've said it all along. These motorized bikes would eventually evolve into electric motorcycles. This new Trek does nothing to convince me otherwise.

Guitar Ted Lube-Off 2025: The Introduction

 NOTICE:  The Guitar Ted 'Lube-Off' is a comparison of different lubrication products for bicycle chains that is undertaken in 'real world' conditions in a set way. Then I compare and contrast the results with past 'Lube-Off' products to see "which one is best for me". This is done for entertainment purposes and the reader should apply their own reasoning and discernment while reading my 'Lube-Off' entries. What works for me may not work for you at all.  

Okay, it is high time to kick off this season's Guitar Ted Lube-Off competition! Last year I tried a new lubricant from Effetto Mariposa called "Flowerpower" which did okay. Actually it did better than okay, it was one of the best lubricants I've tried for dry conditions. The final results of last year's contest can be seen HERE.

This year I have a new contender and I am going to pitch it against the Flowerpower lube, SILCA's Super-Secret lube, and DuMonde Tech, the latter two of the three being perennial "best lubes" in year's past. The idea is to see which lubricant will be best over a riding season in dry, dusty gravel riding conditions.

The Stan's BioBased Dry Lubricant is the new lube on the test and while it doesn't really say what it is, I am pretty sure I am safe in saying this is not a wax-based lubricant. There are no real detailed instructions for application for this lubricant, nor any idea given for what to expect for longevity. Essentially I will be on my own in this regard. My plan was to strip the chain down, (already done), apply the BioBased Dry sparingly, (done), and wipe down the chain after application (done) then start riding, (also done).

I'll have some first impressions soon. I want to log a few more rides before I chime in with any  first impressions. I will say my expectations are that this lube will end up being dirtier in the long run since it isn't wax based, but then again, neither is DuMonde Tech and I have seen really clean results with it in the past. So, maybe Stan's lube will surprise me here.

All chains will get stripped clean, reapplied with their individual lubricants, and then the riding shall commence! One minor point: The Honeman Flyer single speed bike is currently running Flowerpower so I'll keep running that chain as is and do a long-term report with that bike.

So, to recap: Effetto Mariposa's Flowerpower Wax Lubricant, DuMonde Tech, SILCA Super-Secret Lube, and Stan's BioBased Dry lube are the contenders this year. I also will be updating my over all lube post detailing all the different lubricants used for a reference. The last update to the post was in 2022.  

Stay tuned for updates.

Friday News And Views

The Great Plains Gravel Route Released:

The gravel version of The Great Divide Route, (well, this new route was inspired by the GDR, which itself is basically a gravel route), is finally out now. You can check it out HERE.

Comments: I know a lot of people are excited about this route. I am not one of them. I just don't see this project as being a cohesive route. It's essentially a highlights driven exercise with connectors to make it work as a route from end-to-end across the nation. The serpentine nature of the route is pretty much a tell-tale that this is the case here.

Not that this route is a bad idea, it just lacks an overarching theme for me. The Great Divide Route is a ride along the spine of the Great Divide. This makes sense. The Great Plains Gravel Route is a series of highlights which are not all parts of the Great Plains. (Black Hills, Big Bend area of Texas). The "need" to connect the highlights makes for a weird route, in my opinion. Again - in my opinion. This is "Friday News And Views", after all. So, you may not agree, and I understand this.

I would ride parts of this route. But I probably would research my own version of parts of it. So, this isn't something I'd jump at the chance to do as it is written. Maybe you are excited about it? Let me know in the comments.

Where We Came From Featuring Mike Marchand:

In case you missed this, The Guitar Ted Podcast released a new episode last weekend featuring early gravel pioneer and racer Mike Marchand.

Mike shared some incredible stories of events on gravel which pre-date the Modern Gravel Era by a few years, both examples being in Kansas. 

It was fun talking to Mike as I ended up learning a lot about him. It is funny, in a way, how preconceived perceptions of a person can be shattered  once you hear their story, and in Mike's case, I found I had him pegged wrong.

Mike won the 2009 Dirty Kanza 200 and the 2010 Gravel Worlds. Because of this I was under the impression Mike was some kind of racing honch, and had been for years. In fact, the DK200 in 2009 was Mike's first gravel race! Had I known this, I probably would have had a completely different idea of who he was in terms of gravel riding and racing. It was not that Mike wasn't good at gravel racing, because, obviously, he was. I was just under the impression he'd been at it for a long time, when in fact, it was all new to him, for the most part.

Anyway, give the episode a listen and if you like hearing about old, grassroots gravel events, you'll enjoy it, I think.  

A Borealis fat bike in 29"er mode I tested/reviewed in 2014

Borealis Pauses Business:

According to a Colorado news report seen on Facebook, Borealis Bicycles has decided to pause doing business effective at the end of July. 

Citing issues induced by the Trump tariffs, Borealis will sell through remaining stock and the owner said he'd wait to see what will happen after that.  Unfortunately the building Borealis uses and their employees will all be gone at the end of July.

Comments: Honestly, I thought Borealis was gone several years ago. But apparently they were still selling bikes assembled in Colorado. At any rate, this company joins Revel Bikes as recent casualties of tariff policies.

With still soft sales nationwide, I suspect this will not be the last we hear about a bicycle business shutting down.  

Nitto Introduces New Gravel Flared Drop Bar:

As seen on Soma Fabrications Facebook feed, it appears Nitto will have a new gravel oriented flared drop bar coming available soon. It will have "about 15° of flare, minimal reach, and drop. As you can see from the image, it will come in two colors. Soma says the bar will be available in only two widths in 31.8 mm clamp diameter and soon it will come in a 26.0 mm clamp diameter.

No price was listed and as of the time I wrote this, neither was it on Soma's site yet. 

Comments: The name? Uggh.... Whatever. There has always been a certain element of the cycling community which seems to think things having to do with gravel cycling need "cutesy" names. If you like this, fine. I think it is unnecessary. "M138" works for me.

As far as this offering is concerned, I think it is notable only because it is a Nitto product and that it is available in their silver anodized finish, which is really nice. If you are at all familiar with Nitto, you know what I mean.

Beyond this, it is a fine drop bar, but nothing unusual. there was a time when a bar like this would have caused quite the stir. This was when a flared drop bar was rare, and a Nitto offering then would have been a big deal. (I believe they had something early on in a flared drop, but I cannot recall now.)   

Image courtesy of Ritchey Design

Ritchey Announces Their First Platform Pedal:

The Ritchey Bigfoot pedal just dropped on Wednesday and it is a nice choice in a flat pedal.

Boasting replaceable steel traction pins, a reinforced nylon body with an inner bushing and outer cartridge bearing, the Bigfoot should work across four season use. (Metal bodied pedals suck heat from your feet in Winter!)

The pedals will be available now in black with a Desert Sand color coming later in the  year. Price for these is a modest $44.95USD.  

Comments: This is great news. I love my Fyxation Mesa MP's and these pedals are very similar to my favorites. I have no doubt that these will be a great pedal for anyone looking into a flat pedal option and who doesn't want to spend a lot of money on them. My Fyxations hold up really well. In fact, I've yet to have a pair wear out or fail on me, but I do use them sparingly across several bicycles, so my usage case might be skewed a bit!

However; I stand by my recommendation, and especially if you want a nice pedal for cold weather riding. These will not act like a heat sink, sucking warmth from you feet through your boots/shoes like metal pedals can in colder weather.  

UnPAved of the Susquehanna River Valley Announces Cash Purses, More Rider Options For 2025:

A press release sent out late on Wednesday  announced new tweaks to the unPAved of the Susquehanna River Valley Event. While all riders will receive a Whoopie Pie if they finish, now the full, 130 mile course riders will have a shot at a cash prize as well. Racers will vie for this prize over 13 hills, 11,500’ of climbing, and the infamous Longwell Draft “road” that was part of “The Difference” in the first few years of unPAved.

But if this is not for you, don't worry. unPAved routes are made up of interconnecting loops, so many options will be available to any rider. Here's a quote from the presser:

“It’s amazing to see the wide variety of gravel cyclists that come to unPAved,” said Cimarron Chacon, Race Director. “So, we’ve built the event to be with a lot of options. For those that want a big day, the Big Lick-200 is for the experienced backcountry adventurer. My favorite, the SlumberPArty, is a ride focused on camaraderie with a group camp-out and catered breakfast provided by Backyard Beans Coffee Company. And for those not quite ready to explore off road, we even have our FUNpaved rides on Saturday. There really is something for everyone at unPAved.”

Registration is open now HERE. unPAved of the Susquehanna River Valley will be October 10 - 12 in Lewisburg PA.

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! Get out and ride those bicycles! Special shout out to anyone going to The Heywood Ride tomorrow, Have a good time!

Continental Terra Adventure 700 x 45mm Tires Review: Update 1

 Note: Continental Tires sent Guitar Ted Productions two Terra Adventure 700 X 45mm tires for test and review at no charge. Guitar Ted was not paid, nor bribed, for this review. All opinions are Guitar Ted's.

 
The Continental Terra Adventure tires were introduced a little over a month ago HERE for review. Please check that post out for all of my impressions and the technical side regarding these gravel tires. In this post I will give my testing impressions of this aggressively treaded gravel tire from my riding on various surfaces ranging from pavement, dirt, and all sorts of gravel types.

I'll also get to my opinions on the width question later in this review, but for now, I wanted to share my mostly good impressions on this tire. It does several things quite well.

First of all, at lower pressures, it runs so smoothly with a damped quality which is very nice. In fact, I thought the tire was going flat after having ridden a stiffer tire for a bit on the same bike. (I am swapping wheels and tires for another story here on the blog) This smoother ride quality enhances comfort and reduces the amount of chatter reaching my hands to a great degree.

Continental doesn't talk much about what is going on with this casing or the rubber used, but whatever it is, I like it. I could not ask for a better feeling at the handlebars or saddle while riding these tires. For what it is worth, (which I would caution you is probably not much) I run these at 30psi. However; my pressure should not be yours and vice versa. There are a lot of reasons for this, but this is not the article for that discussion. (Read THIS if you want to dive into the subject.) 

These tires are also extremely quiet. I was very surprised by this as any gravel tire with an aggressive tread design usually has a singing quality on pavement. Not so with this tire. It makes a sound, but it is very subtle. 

Continental is using the "3-3-4 Center Stud tread design here. This is something borrowed from their XC MTB line of tires which is supposed to give you great low rolling resistance without compromising traction or braking as the shoulder knobs are angled for better grip.

What this means in reality is that the central rows of knobs account for the contact patch while riding in a straight line. The cornering knobs are almost on a different plane, or stepped down, from that centralized section. It is almost as if the central section, which is about 30mm in width is the "main riding portion" of this tire, and the rest is only applicable in deeper grounds or in turns where you would lean the bike over.

This works great on hard pack and on dirt where I was railing corners with a confident level of grip most gravel tires do not display. If I were running single track which was more dirt than not and pretty buff, this would be a great tire to consider.

However; this same characteristic works against the Terra Adventure when the gravel gets loose and chunky. The minimal amount of tread hitting the gravel, coupled with the rounded "C" profile of the tire on my 23mm inner width rims, makes for a nervous handling bike. A tire with a flatter profile would handle this sort of gravel much better, and not want to push rock aside and "hunt for the path of least resistance".

Okay, so now let's talk about this tire and the claimed width. Continental sells this as a 45mm tire. I have yet to reach this width with the tires I have being a bit less than 44mm wide each. Now, yes - On a wider internal width rim this tire might eek out a 45mm width. I'd be a lot more comfortable calling these 43mm tires than I would 45mm tires and the volume of the casing speaks to a 43mm tire more than it does a 45mm tire as well.

I know this Terra Adventure is a "sample of one", but I also have been testing tires since 2005 and mounting hundreds, if not thousands, of Continental tires over the span of a 30+ year career as a bicycle mechanic. My experience tells me this is commonplace for Continental tires to be "undersized" for their stated width. Use this information as you will. All I am saying is this undersized characteristic Continental tires have does not surprise me in the least.

So Far... From the viewpoint I would use for a 43mm tire, the Terra Adventure is a great tire for dirt, hard pack, and it rolls 'okay' on pavement. Deeper grounds in terms of sand, loose rock, or the like, can upset this tire and cause some handling quirks. Soft ground, some mud types, and wetter gravel (as long as the base is hard) would be fine with this tire. Surprisingly it lets loose of packed in soil pretty nicely. However; I'm still skeptical this tire would make a good mudder tire.

The ride quality is very good. Maybe one of the most damped tires I've ever used on gravel. If only the casing was not quite so rounded. Perhaps a wider inner rim width would solve a couple of issues here. This is something I think I will try now with the Terra Adventure. Look for a new update in about a month.

Wide Tires On Gravel: Alternative Bikes

Fat bikes make great gravel bikes. This is from 2012

Welcome back to the series on why wider gravel tires may or may not be a good idea for you. In this post I am going to run over some alternative fat tired bicycle choices which work really well on gravel. In the last post in this series I went over some things in terms of geometry when bigger tires are used and how a common gravel bike might be leveraged as an option to run fatter tires. Check the post out HERE in case you missed it.

This post will end with a bit of my opinion on the entire fat gravel bike idea and why we may be not seeing the forest for the trees. 

Okay, let's dive in on some alternatives to traditional gravel bicycles which can be utilized on gravel with great success. First up we have the fat bike.

Fat Bikes:

As soon as fat bikes were introduced as turnkey, out of the box options to ride in 2011, riders were trying them out on gravel roads. I know I did this and so did several other folks. I held a fat bike gravel group ride in 2012 which we tried as a gag, in a way, because all of us were pretty sure we'd be slower and working harder than we had on the bikes we typically were using at the time.

Rider Josh Magie on a single speed, drop bar fat bike during a race in 2019. Image by Jon Duke

Much to our collective surprise, we covered the 40 mile route in the same average time we usually did on lighter, skinnier tired bikes, and we were far more comfortable and fresh at the end of it. Since then, fat bikes took over as the bike of choice on gravel for several riders, fat bike categories were put in place at many gravel events, and to this day, fat bikes are often an advantage in certain conditions and for certain courses. If you have a fat bike, you may not even want to mess with trying to modify your gravel bike, or think about getting one of the new-fangled fat tire capable gravel bikes. You already have a unique gravel solution which should be fun and comfortable while retaining a decent amount of speed.

Image courtesy of Jones Bikes

 Plus Bikes:

So-called "Plus" bikes are another avenue which people go down to find gravel nirvana. Those 2.8" to 3.0" tires, and in some cases even wider, are a great alternative to full-on fat bike wheels and tires and are versatile in that they can not only tame gravel, but a lot of MTB terrain as well.

One of the most commonly mentioned brands when it comes to plus-bikes is Jones Bikes. Jeff Jones created a very unique, very comfortable and versatile machine which has found plenty of passionate fans who ride gravel.

Jones is not the only game in town here though. Bicycles like the Trek 1120, late model Salsa Cycles Fargos, and Singular's Gryphon Mk3 all can be set up with big, poofy 29"er or 650B plus-sized rubber and dominate gravel, dirt, and sand.

The advantages of these bikes is that you don't have a specialist, niche bike good for only one task. Plus-bikes and fat bikes can do other things very well also. So, maybe instead of modding your current gravel bike, or dropping big bucks on a brand new rig just for the chance to run fatter tires on gravel, a versatile fat or plus-bike may make more sense and be more fun. 

2025 Salsa Cycles Fargo. Image courtesy of Salsa Cycles

Maybe We Don't Need This:

Finally, maybe all you really need is your current gravel bike. Bigger tires is a fashionable trend right now and in terms of the less than 1% of racers who ballyhoo this idea, who really is going to be out there winning races because they have the biggest tire on the latest, greatest gravel bike? Probably not you or I. We're probably in this not to make a living, or get high-impact sponsorships. So, keep in mind what the Pro's are doing is mainly for the less than 1% of gravel riders. Your bike is probably just fine as is.

Perhaps the thing you "need" is to just go out for a ride, forget all about this fat tire, racer driven stuff, and have a good, fun time on a bicycle. It is most likely the reason you started riding in the first place. "Fun" and the pure joy of riding is paramount and when this gets lost in a haze of chasing a trend or anxiety about doing well at the next event is when we've gone off the rails.

"Gravel" as a way to ride or race was never started as a way to mimic Pro set-ups or be locked into any certain way of "doing it". This was more about the experiences and friendships formed through common striving to reach goals we set personally. How you crossed that finish line was unique and special and was partially defined by how you did it in the end. In a way, back then, the odder and more freakish the set up the more one was revered for their perseverance in making it to the end. It is partially responsible for why folks used fat bikes and Schwinn Typhoons, and Motobecane road bikes with 27" wheels. The whole thing was a thumbing of the nose to the previous "cock of the walk" way folks strutted about with their high-dollar machines at the start lines of road races and XC MTB events.

This isn't saying you shouldn't try things, and it isn't saying Pro riders do not have good ideas ever. No, but it is too easy to fall into that trap of having to "chase the next best thing", and this is something to watch out for with this fat tire trend. As long as people keep the main thing the main thing (fun, joy of riding, personal challenge) then we're going to see gravel riding continue to be a healthy segment of cycling.

I hope you all enjoyed this series. Now back to our regulary scheduled blog programming!

Wide Tires On Gravel: The Effects Of Wider Tires On The Bike

The bike I used for testing: Noble GX5

 Welcome back to the series on why wider gravel tires may or may not be a good idea for you. In this post I will look at what wider tires can do to your bicycle's geometry if you modify a current bike, and what those bigger tires can do to handling. I wrote a bit in the last post in this series about what wider tires can do to your gearing and more. Check that out if you missed it HERE.

Now, let's dive into this subject again by taking a look at whether you can do a wider tire to your current bike, what you can do to gain some advantages via modification, and how this may affect geometry on your bike.

You may not realize this, but any bicycle you purchase through a major brand has probably been made to comply with several European standards so they can be sold in Europe. Typically those standards which must be met are more stringent than Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standards which hold sway in the US. Specifically to tire clearance, the CPSC standard is 1.6mm clearance from the tire to a fork or frame member. (According to a Google search) I was told several years ago by a product manager for a mid-tier brand in the US that the Euro regs. were 5mm clearance. So, your bicycle may be equipped with tires which are not really the "maximum" size that you could use. Of course, what I am about to share here is all what I have done. I do not recommend that you do this, and if you push tire clearances, that's on you. You are responsible for any choices you make here.

Do You Need A New Bike? 

Many newer gravel bikes are turnkey wide tire capable rigs. However; you may not "need" to go out and grab one of these bikes, and this may be determined by a few options you have available to you. First, as stated above, it is highly likely that your current bike can be fitted with a wider tire. I'll tell you about my bicycle, but as for you, you are on your own! 

My Noble GX5 was designed in the late 2010's, long before this wider, almost 29"er XC tire thing was popular. The designer of the bike told me maximum tire size for the frame was 40mm. Now, keep in mind this is probably advice coming from a mind thinking within the bounds of test parameters to get a bike sold worldwide.

I discovered that the Noble GX5 can easily handle 45mm tires. That is already a pretty significant difference, but then I decided to push the limits and I found I could squeeze in a 47mm tire with about a millimeter of clearance at the chain stays.

So, in dry conditions, not anything wet, I can run a 47mm tire without any issues for myself. I understand the risks of doing this and I can sleep at night with this knowledge. Now....if it were wet? Yeah, I am running a different, narrower tire, but so do the Pros! Dylan Johnson isn't going to run a beefy 29"er tire at Unbound if it is wet. (I've heard him say this exact thing on a YouTube video)

So, think about this. It might be an option for you. In all likelihood your stock tires were very conservative spec and you probably can use a wider tire on your current bike. Especially in the fork, since forks have very little technical hurdles to allowing for clearance. Maybe you can use a LOT wider tire up front, and for some folks, this may be all you need. Wide front/narrow rear tire setups were very commonplace in the 1990's for XC MTB usage, so this idea has merit for gravel bikes as well.

29" x 2.3" front, 700 x 47mm rear in a bike spec'ed as a 40mm tire bike.

I tried this on my Noble Bike GX5. I should also mention I changed out the front fork for a State Bicycle Co Monster Gravel Fork V2. This allowed for a ridiculously sized, (for a gravel bike) 29"er tire to be installed. My stock fork would have easily taken a 50mm tire though. 

So, what is this like? Well, there are a few things to consider if you want to use the bicycle you have and go with a fatter tire up front. First off, the geometry is going to be affected a little bit. In my case, I went from a 70° head angle with the Monster Fork installed fitted with a 700 X 45mm tire front/rear to a 69° front end with the 29" X 2.3|/700 X 47mm set up. I also raised my bottom bracket slightly, and I found my saddle was tilted up a tiny bit as well due to the change. So, keep in mind that a bigger tire up front can affect more than you might think.

In terms of handling, I got a tiny bit of "wander" while riding really slow, so this is when your handle bars want to fall to the right or left a bit. Technically it is called "wheel flop", but I wouldn't be put off by this in my case. Once up to riding speeds I could not detect this at all. Obviously, a slightly slacker head angle will stabilize the bike, with no other geometry changes, so I did gain a tiny fraction of stability here as well as getting a poofier front tire with more comfort and traction.

Next: What alternative bikes do similar things, why these are great choices, and why you may not want wider tires in the first place.

Country Views: Dry and Rough

Escape Route: Church Row Historic Neighborhood

'Picture perfect' is a term which has become something of a cliche', but I don't know how else to describe this recent stretch of weather we've had. Low humidity, light breezes, and copious amounts of Sunshine. Temperatures scratching the 80's with lows at night into the 40's. Glorious!

And who could let this stretch of weather get away without a ride in the country? I know I couldn't! So, on Friday, I saddled up the Noble GX5, headed North, and let grand ideas of a big loop dance in my head. Nevermind the fact I haven't had any sort of consistency in riding longer distances yet.

Leaving North I ended up on Burton Avenue. This is, more or less, a long climb out of the Cedar River Valley. Sure, you get rollers but always with the downhill side shorter than the climbing side as you head away North out of town. Sometimes this is no big deal. Then when the wind is out of a Northerly direction, it can be a pain. The wind was light, but it was out of the Northwest.

The leaves have fully emerged from the tress now. This is the Cedar River near the John Deere Foundry.

The corn is mostly in now. Next up will be the finishing up on the bean planting.

The first mile and a half out of Waterloo is chip seal on Burton Avenue so at this point I am feeling confident. I was climbing and the legs were feeling okay, I guess. I take forever to 'warm up" to riding at times so I never know how exactly things will be on a ride, sometimes for the first half an hour or more. 

That creamy colored gravel is fresh, deep, and very loose. I rode in the margin next to the ditch!

This is a view from.... Well, you can read the sign for yourself!

I rolled off the chip seal and suddenly the bike was dancing underneath me and wanting to swap ends. Fresh gravel! Really fresh gravel! It must have been laid down that very morning. There were no car tire tracks on it yet. This wasn't what I was expecting at all! 

Fortunately there was about a foot to two feet wide space next to the ditch's edge which had not been covered with the fresh, cream-colored gravel. I stuck to this tiny ribbon which sometimes would disappear under fresh gravel to come out again several yards later. And remember, this is a mostly uphill stretch.

 

The chunk persisted all the way up past Mt Vernon Road and I was feeling not so great. I stopped to reconsider my grandiose idea for a big ride and swallowed my pride. Remounting, I decided to head one more mile North and then head East on Bennington Road.

The roads were really dry heading East. I was back on older gravel, so it did not have the moisture in it like the fresh rock had. The few vehicles I saw were really kicking up some big clouds of dust. Farm implements were as well. Not a good sign with a stretch of little to no rain in the forecast here.

Wait....What?! I haven't noticed this before!

It looks as though they've done some grass seeding at the old one-room school house.

I decided to ride as far as Sage Road. The intersection with Sage Road and Bennington Road is where Bennington Township Schoolhouse Number 2 is at. This relic of Iowa's past was almost lost when it fell out of service and was being used by a local farmer to store hay in. Finally some locals decided to restore it and now it stands as one of the two remaining country school houses in Black Hawk County and the only one on its original site.

Freshly planted fields were everywhere.

Sage Road was not laid over with fresh rock yet so it was quite nice coming back South. The dust was awful though, and the Noble got a good coating of it!

I stopped at the Big Rock and took a quick break, then I headed back to Waterloo, glad to have not put myself through the wringer. It was a 'just right" ride on a "just right" day. These do not come around all that often, so I was glad I was able to take advantage of this chance. 

Weekly Top Five

  Welcome to the weekly Top Five" showing links to five of the week's most read articles on the blog.
Sometimes those will be current posts, but sometimes not. I will also post commentary with perspective on some of the older posts, and try to give some context as to why I wrote what I wrote then, which may not reflect what I'd say in 2025. With all of the above said, here is this week's list.

 Wide Tires On Gravel: An Overview, May 6th, 2025 - The series opener tops this week's Top Five most read posts for this week. 

WW4M: Trek Circuit Helmet, May 5th, 2025 - The previous day's post to the above checks in at Number Two. 

Friday News And Views, May 9th, 2025 - A perennial top post every week. This week's FN&V checks in at Number Three on the list. 

Wide Tires On Gravel: Why and Why Not, May 7th, 2025 - Another from the series which will pick back up this week. 

Reflections On Twenty Years Of Blogging, May 10th, 2025 - The first of two anniversary posts celebrating the start of my 20th year of blogging.

That is a wrap on this week's most popular posts. Thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions.

Welcome To The Twentieth Year

 Welcome to the Freakshow that is Guitar Ted Productions! It is here that I will be at liberty to espouse my verbiage in an unbridled, yet entertaining fashion. I have previously been a guest on Jeff Kerkove's site, and I would like to thank him for his incredible generosity. Look for further upgrades to this site as they become technically possible for me to execute! 

_________________________________________________________________________________

What you just read above the line is my first post on May 11th, 2005. I actually posted twice on that day, and I received my first comments on this blog on the second post welcoming me to the blogosphere.  

By the way, today's header is based upon the last header Jeff Kerkove designed for this site and was the header which ran the longest. I think I used it until at least 2014, maybe longer. This anniversary edition variant, (modded by your's truly), will be there for the remainder of the week. 

The oldest image I have of the Karate Monkey I bought in 2003. This is from May 2005.

My second post from May 2011 was about my 29"er, probably the first one in this part of Iowa, which I put together about two years prior to this image. There are a couple of parts here which tell an interesting story.

I noticed there are Ergon grips on the bike. These would have been the original GP-1's which were given to everyone participating in the first Trans Iowa. The next thing I noted was the orangey stem, which represented a component color popular in the late 1990's. The stem is a Control Tech stem. The saddle is a short-lived WTB effort aimed at commuters. It was shorter and slimmer in profile than most saddles around at the time. I really liked it, but it must not have caught on.

That saddle was given to me at Frost Bike by a WTB rep to try out, a "big deal" at the time because I never had anything given to me to 'just try out' up until that point. This was without any possible way for me to review it, since when I received it I didn't have a blog!

Finally, the Nokon segmented housing. It did make the brakes work great, but it was expensive  and really fiddly to work with. Unless you enjoy stringing beads, I'd not recommend it.

Okay, back to the anniversary.... 

I really am not 'proud' nor do I feel some feeling of 'major accomplishment' as I cross over into having done this for twenty years using my two second fingers on each hand. I mean, I am such a terrible typist, I am really just amazed I fought through the typing difficulties, the technical hurdles, and setbacks which came along the way. I mean, I could have just quit at any time and would anyone care after a while?

So, I am amazed I've stuck to this for two decades more than anything else. I am humbled to have helped, inspired, or entertained along the way. Maybe I made someone mad and they never came back. Well, at least I inspired some passionate reactions from those folks! That is better than not having mattered at all.

As for the future, I always address this subject at the end of each year here on the blog. Suffice it to say that I will address the subject at the end of 2025. 

For now? Ride on!

Thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Reflections On 20 Years of Blogging

 Public Service Announcement: I am entering the final day of this series of posts. May 11th, 2025 will mark the start of my 20th year of blogging here on "Guitar Ted Productions". There will be a special post for this tomorrow. 

I never thought I'd have my image emblazoned on a t-shirt.

Tomorrow marks the twentieth anniversary of this blog. As I close out this series of posts celebrating the stories of the past twenty years of blogging, I wanted to make a few points and thank a few people for helping me get here and for supporting me throughout all of this.

Thanks: Obviously, the success of this blog and the things which have come out of it are multitudinous and I am incapable of singling out every important person, company, or group which had a hand in this success and the benefits which I have enjoyed. So, I think it is safe to say if you are reading this, you are to be thanked. 

I know this may seem like a cop out, but twenty years is a long time and I would feel badly if I left anyone out of a "thank-you list". I'm sure many of those folks who are part of this blog's success probably wouldn't feel as though they needed any recognition anyway, such is the character of the folks I know. But you do deserve thanks, so please, accept my humble gesture here.

Many things happened to me as a result of the blog. Doing reviews, becoming a figure in both the early twenty nine inch wheeled mountain bike scene and in the gravel cycling scene. Getting to fly across this country from one end to the other to cover events. Meeting famous cycling personalities. Meeting top-tier athletes. Getting bicycles, gear, and more as gifts or from reviews. Meeting fans of the blog from all over. It has all been far more than I would have ever hoped or dreamed. In fact, I never imagined any of it. I didn't really think anyone would notice what I wrote, much less care about any of it. I guess Jeff Kerkove was right to think people would find what I wrote interesting. Had he not goaded me into this, you would not be reading this now.

Getting into a Hall of Fame wasn't on my "to-do" list in 2005.

I will also say I never wanted or expected anything from this blog. There was no plan, desire, or scheme to make money, get things, or to enjoy benefits. In fact, I don't make a dime off the blog - Never have. You'll also note that there has never been a sponsor, ad, or "click here" Google thingy ever on this blog. I'm not monetized here, and never will be. Yes....I am a bit proud of this.

I decided early on to do a daily blog. This was hard in the beginning, but now I find this is not a burden, although you might see it differently. I still enjoy writing things up, thinking about topic ideas, and the process of planning ahead for the blog. It is fun. I enjoy all of it yet. One day this may change. Obviously I won't be blogging forever. Things beyond my control may make the decision for me, but I hope to graciously bow out under my own terms at some point in the not too distant future. Is that a hint? No, it is a recognition of a reality which I can accept or have forced upon me.

But leaving this for another day, the past, my past, has been heavily influenced by this blog. Some of you dear readers can probably say you've also been influenced by what I have been doing here. I am eternally thankful for the mostly positive outcomes of this blog on people. This has been greatly satisfying to me.

I hope you enjoyed the looks back in this series. Tomorrow I will post the entire inaugural post of this blog with the original header in the post. The header tomorrow will be the modified header inspired by Jeff Kerkove's last effort for me which he placed on the blog around 2007 or so and was used until probably 2014 at the least, maybe a bit longer than that. I cannot recall!

Thanks, as always, for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

Friday News And Views

Twenty Years Celebration:

If you've been reading here recently you are most likely aware that this weekend marks the 20th year anniversary of this blog. The actual date is May 11th, which is Sunday.

I've been celebrating each weekend with stories culled from this blog's past. I have been using headers from the past ten years to celebrate as well since earlier this year.

Tomorrow and Sunday will be special anniversary themed posts which will attempt to convey my feelings regarding this auspicious occasion! Ha! So, look for those posts to go up and then the look back will be concluded. I'm not sure what series will replace this, or even if there will be a series! One thing of note about this blog is that many times I have no idea which direction the blog will take until it rounds a corner.

The Latest On The Guitar Ted Podcast:

Last week N.Y. Roll and I recorded a conversation regarding a few different subjects. We really nerded out over geometry for gravel bikes. N.Y. Roll brought the geometry chart in for a 1989 Specialized Rock Combo, a drop bar 26"er MTB many regard as an example of the first "gravel bike". (By the way, and for the record, I do not regard the Rock Combo as anything but a 26"er MTB with drop bars.)

We comped this bike against a current Specialized gravel bike and found some interesting points to discuss. Then we moved on to discussing the tariffs and their impacts on the cycling scene.  There is more to listen to, so I won't spoil it all here. Listen to Episode 74 HERE.  

Episode #75 is recorded but I won't have it out until later this weekend. It's a great chat with Mike Marchand, former DK200 and Gravel Worlds champion. Mike was also a part of the first industry backed gravel racing team. We talked about early events on gravel which inspired events you made have heard of before. All that plus more in Episode #75 coming soon!

Is this a Sensah (Sentyeh) 14 speed rear derailleur? Image nicked off  the web

Moar Gears!

Long ago now, back when DynaSys 10 speed Shimano MTB drive train bits were introduced, I was able to go to Minneapolis, Minnesota for a super-rare Shimano tour/marketing event. At this event were several Shimano "Skunk" riders - Riders Shimano had retained as test riders for the product development.

I was told a LOT of eye-opening stuff while I was there. One Skunk rider told me Shimano had working prototype group sets in every gear range from 11 speed to 14 speed! At the time, I thought 14 speed was probably something I'd never see in my lifetime, but here we are.

While it isn't Shimano, (yet), this Chinese brand known as "Sensah" in the West has shown a 1 X 14 speed group, which is electronic, (natch!), at the recent Shanghai Bicycle Show. Images I've seen, shown on a You Tuber's channel I sometimes view, made the group set look pretty finished and consumer ready. In that same video it was mentioned that SRAM will likely be dropping a 2X13 road group set this Summer. (Didn't they just drop 12's?) 

Gear Wars? I guess... But it seems the march toward more cassette cogs is inevitable. Heck, I haven't moved off 11 speed yet!

Fiber Spokes:

Another 'trend' which seems to have legs now coming out of the Shanghai Bicycle Show are Aramid/polymer fiber spokes, like the BERD spokes I have mentioned here on the blog. Another alternative company making these now from China, called Goosyn, is pushing the idea big time at the show. Used mostly to absorb vibrations from gravel and rougher roads, these spokes are not seen as a road biking alternative, but are used on mountain bikes.

Traditionally BERD spokes have been something of a luxury item since they cost about $8.00 each. That's going to set your wheel price at a pretty premium level, even if you don't consider the carbon fiber rim. 

Now with this sort of push, it will be interesting to see if the competitive market between BERD and Goosyn might start to drive the prices down a bit. Obviously, with the chaos induced tariff situation, things might be a bit murky for the near future, but hopefully more affordable options will be presented because this idea really does work.

Image courtesy of Cannondale

New Cannondale Synapse: Road, All Roads, Or Gravel?

Maybe this bike is everything, eh? Check this thing out. Cannondale's new Synapse, which traditionally has been their "endurance road bike" for over a decade or more, is now a new design with a claimed 20% better ride quality than the outgoing model.

Most of the range is carbon, and eye-watering expensive. But there are reasonably priced models in the range like the one pictured here which is mechanical 105, 2X, with 50/34 gears up front and a 11 - 36T cassette. Pretty decent gearing for most places, and definitely gravel friendly. Oh, and all this for a very decent price of $3,999.00 USD.

But what about tire clearance, and what about the geometry? Well, Cannondale says you can stick a 43mm tire in the back and a 48mm wide tire up front and still have 4mm of clearance around the tires. Yep. That'll play on gravel. They also have pretty decent geometry, with my only nit being the bottom bracket drop is a bit conservative on the two largest sizes. With a hair steeper than 71° at the headtube, I'd say this will work just fine on gravel.

So, here's the deal: Why are we fooling around with anything else?  I mean, this is the all -around bike which most people should buy. Maybe add some utilitarian features to make it more practical, but this is more in the world I think we all wanted when "gravel" bikes were first talked about, at least on this blog. 

The Synapse is not trying to be the next "bro MTB thing", it isn't trying to be super-aero at the expense of versatility. Yes- it could be more practical. (Internally routed cables through the head tube? Yuck!), However; this bike speaks to me as where the whole gravel thing should be headed, especially in how Cannondale is marketing it. Good job here, C'dale! Now let's improve upon this ideal going forward.  

That's a wrap for this week. Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! get out there and ride those bicycles! 

Stans Exo-Core Valve Stems: Update 1

 NOTE: Stan's sent the Biobased Bike Care Products, Stan's Exo-Core valve stems, and Stans DART tool for review to Guitar Ted Productions at no charge. GTP is not being paid, nor bribed for this post and all opinions are Guitar Ted's.

In my last update on this review I told you how this unusual valve stem works and showed a pictorial view of the parts of this valve stem. If you missed the introduction, you can go back and review it HERE. 

In this post I will detail the installation of the valves and how they worked when pumping up two different tires tubeless. I also did a test ride and I plan on using this wheel set off and on throughout the riding season. I plan on doing a final conclusive review later on, but at the end of this post I will give my basic opinion on these valve stems so far. I do not expect to have any changes after riding these for a season, but just in case....

Installation: Since these valves are constructed so differently from anything else I've used, installation was a bit new to me. You may recall from the previous post on these valve stems that you can uncrew the upper portion of the valve to "open" the system to allow for air to be introduced to the tire. Well, as you might also recall, you can keep unscrewing this upper part and remove it, which takes the valve core out, leaving a larger bore stem for higher airflow.

I mention this as this upper portion of the Exo Core must be removed to install the valve stem through the rim valve stem hole. You can see this in my image below.

You will also notice the inner seat of the valve stem is a saddle shape. I suppose the inner rim well will dictate how to orient this elliptical shaped seat in a rim, but in this case you can see it was best oriented in the way you see it above.

The next step is obvious. The valve stem nut must be threaded on to secure the stem to the rim. This was easy, but there are two comments I have concerning the nut. First: It is, as stated in the previous post, a bit stiff to turn on its mating threads on the stem. Perhaps this was intentional. A sort of way to insure the nut does not rotate/vibrate loose, I would guess.

Secondly, and this is not aimed at just Stan's, as many company's stem nuts have this issue, the nut is too small a diameter to turn easily or get a grip on well enough to really get it snugged up firmly. But then again, this also may have been designed in so a person couldn't reef that nut on too tightly. At any rate, those are small negatives I have and are not really that big of a deal.

As you can also see, the inner portion of the valve does not stand too proud of the rim sides, so it is unlikely you might strike it while riding low pressure and hitting something pretty squarely. Of course, these stems are compatible with rim inserts should that be a concern.

Now at this point I could have mounted the tire, introduced sealant, and pumped up the tire with the core removed. But that would be too easy! No, I decided to put sealant in, put the core/top part of the stem on, and see if I could leverage just the bigger bore and different nozzle of the valve stem's end to get the tires to mount.

I used my SILCA Terra pump, which is a higher volume floor pump, and I have to say, this was the easiest tubeless tire installation I've ever done. It was honestly no different than pumping up a butyl tube. Really. I was impressed!

Note: The core's end does not touch you pump's head because it is shielded.

Another interesting thing I noted about the Exo Core stem is when it is opened up, the valve core is not exposed. This means that when you attach a pump head it does not depress the core plunger and release any air, Same goes for when you remove the pump head. So, in theory, you should be able to get more accurate air pressure settings.

So, using these valve stems would seem to be an advantage in a couple of ways. First, it seems to be a good, high-air flow stem, making stubborn tubeless set up combinations a little less stubborn, or, as in my case, really easy. Secondly, with a non-exposed valve core, you don't accidentally release air when you don't want to.

 I used two different tires, as previously stated. One is a notoriously stiff, and generally harder to set up Teravail Sparwood. The other was a big volume Teravail 29" X 2.3" Ehline. I mounted both on WTB Proterra wheels with a 23mm internal width.

Final Words - For Now: I like these valve stems. They are different, but in a way which makes them better than a traditional valve stem. My hope going forward is that they will not clog up easily with sealant. Otherwise I see no reason these stems would fail me going forward. But as they say, "You never know", so I will keep using them off and on throughout the riding season. If anything pops up which would be noteworthy, I'll report on it, but otherwise I feel these stems, while insanely expensive, do have some merits which are benefits other valve stems don't have.

I am annoyed by the stiffness of threading things on and off with these, but how often am I really going to be taking everything apart? Hopefully only if I want to disassemble the stems, not because I have to do this. Then the stiff threads are no big deal. The valve caps are a bit dorky, but maybe this is just something which offends my eyes and you may not mind them.

It is hard to knock these stems, at least at this point, besides the expense. You can get by for less, that is for sure, and in these times, I feel many won't want to spend the fifty-five bucks for a pair of these stems. I understand this. I can also totally see why these stems cost the amount they do because they are so different. There are no other stems made in this manner, although, I will say I think this design is superior to traditional tubeless valve stems. From this standpoint, they are worth the asking price.

Check in later this year for a final look at these stems, unless something happens which would warrant an update.