The Radavist

There’s no shortage of drop-bar, dirt-oriented, MUSA titanium frames to choose from these days. Yet, one company’s consistently impressive designs continue to stand out in this somewhat crowded market: No. 22. John got his hands on the latest member of No. 22’s Drifter family, the Drifter Adventure, which became his “get into shape” bike this spring and summer. After logging miles on his favorite loop in Santa Fe, he’s ready to discuss what makes No. 22 and this new Drifter Adventure so special.

Read on for a fat gallery full of details and scenery, and his review…

The Arna Westfjords Way Challenge is an ultra-endurance cycling race that traverses the seaside perimeter of Iceland’s Westfjords region in four stages over five days with 600 miles of mixed surface riding and 37,000+ feet of elevation gain. The route was originally established by accomplished endurance cyclists Lael Wilcox, Chris Burkard, Payson McElveen, Nichole Baker, and Rugile Kaladyte and formatted into a stage race by the team at Cycling Westfjords in 2021. Now in its second year, the event features a variety of innovative aspects that make it unique in the world of ultra cycling, which benefits the local communities and also the riders’ experiences. Josh Weinberg was on the ground covering this year’s event and, below, shares an insightful event recap and massive image gallery from this strikingly beautiful part of the world.

Since the Cannondale Compact Neo e-bike launched last fall, I was certain I had to review it. I always wanted a Hooligan (how did they not call this the e-Hooligan and where’s the Lefty?!?), their previous compact 20”-wheeled model, and as more e-bikes become available I have grown increasingly curious about trying one out for commuting. The more I looked at Compact Neo, the more I thought that its folding design and utilitarian features might just make it the perfect bike for Portland: fenders, lights, and plenty of mounts for racks. And, it’s not too flashy. After a few months riding the Compact Neo for daily commutes and “car-free” family weekend adventures, this entry level e-bike has unexpectedly re-energized the way I view the commuting and the point-to-point side of cycling.

Wowzers… Okay! Sean Talkington of Team Dream coming in a bit late on this one but hopefully it is worth the wait?! It’s been two months since the second installment of the Los Angeles Invitational, a two-day event hosted at The Cub House that included a day of riding on Saturday, then a Bicycle/Car Show and parts swap turned block party extravaganza on Sunday. This started off eight years ago as a half-baked and half-assed excuse to BBQ with friends and sell some old bike stuff. It has somehow grown into a pretty sensational (though maybe still a bit half-assed), fully-loaded weekend for thousands of people to enjoy. I can’t believe we pulled it off again AND managed to do it even bigger this year. Read on for a recap of the festivities, check out the video, and be sure to peruse the stacked gallery of cars and bikes from Traece Craig and Thibault Linossier.

Cyclotourists, bikepackers, and other backcountry travelers love shaving down their gear to just the bare essentials, splitting toothbrushes in half, or rationing the squares of toilet paper with every wipe. But, when it comes to personal hygiene, I feel like I owe it to myself to splurge a little, given how much I put my body through day-in and day-out whilst on a long, multi-day journey.

It wasn’t until recently that I became aware of the lack of information around the topic of personal female hygiene and bikepacking. As I’ve been approached by more women with different questions on the subject over the years, I began to realize that there’s a need for this kind of information sharing, and that actually, there’s no distinctive guidance out there to help.

So, I want to share my knowledge and experience with the hope that it will help other riders better understand what female hygiene on a bike looks like. There’s no universal solution for everyone, and I can only speak from the anatomy that I know about, but perhaps you’ll find good tips and advice to integrate into future trips based on your needs.

Today, we continue Petor Georgallou‘s coverage of Eurobike 2023. In his second installment from this year’s convention, Petor looks at an ensemble of beautiful bikes, in addition to what Eurobike considers the future of mobility. While shocked at first, the more Petor peeled back the layers of what was on display, the more interested he became… 

Eurobike is a massive convention that takes place annually in Frankfurt, Germany, and is described as “the central platform for the bike and future mobility world.” Petor Georgallou was on the ground at this year’s event and, below, uncovers the latest and greatest from the longest-travel downhill bikes to the smallest-wheeled folding bikes. But, first, he had to get in…

This is a long story. It is a story of Blue Lug‘s influence on me, an interview with the co-founder, and hopefully it will lend some inspiration to American bike shops.

The photos you are seeing are of Blue Lug employee bikes that I shot one after another as we visited each location. We thought it would be cool to document the personal bikes of the build artists whose handiwork you see each day on the Blue Lug Instagram softcore porn for bike nerds.

We will begin with the story of my 650b leather and canvas activation as a lead in…

Today we are back with part two of Spencer Harding‘s ENVE Grodeo and Builder Round-up coverage. If you missed the builds featured in yesterday’s post, we’d recommend going back and giving them a gander—3D-printed parts (most ti but some steel, too!) seems to be the unofficial theme for the year but there’s plenty to see across the creative spectrum! Today, we finish up with the remaining frame builders in the showcase—with a few more overseas features—then we head out on the weekend’s main event, a 92-mile gravel ride on some of the best dirt in the northern Wasatch Mountains. Let’s dive in!  

Every summer, ENVE Composites hosts a massive open house at their HQ in Ogden, Utah with an accompanying gravel ride. The 2023 ENVE Grodeo, which went down just one week ago,  featured an impressive list of 24 frame builders from around the world. Spencer Harding was on the ground documenting all of the beautiful bicycles and riding festivities and, below, he presents Part One of his event recap with a stacked gallery of bikes, some snapshots from the builder ride, and Trackline time trail at the Grodeo. Let’s get to it!

We’re not in Kansas anymore. Certainly not. Unlike the hard bedrock of the flint hills and similar gravel roads that pattern the Midwest, The Mid South (or “Mud South”) hosted in Stillwater, Oklahoma is characterized by its rich red clay. Second only to race director Bobby Wintle‘s finish line hug for every rider, The Mid South has become infamous for its often wet weather that turns that beautiful red clay into drivetrain-eating mud. Re-routing the course is never even a topic of conversation.

Geographic locations and riding can add a lot to the picture when considering what your dream bike may be. Massive tire clearance? Tall or low bottom bracket? Slack or steep head tube angles. Well after riding in an area for so long you figure out what works, what doesn’t, and what you wish someone could just get right. With these thoughts in mind Bobby collaborated with Wilde Bikes to develop a bike that is Mid South approved. How so? Read on to find out a little bit more about this bike from Jarrod Bunk and check out some flicks on the red dirt.