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Thanks for your patience. All orders have shipped as of today. You should have received a shipping confirmation email, keep in mind, the USPS tracking system kinda sucks, so by the time shipping information is on the site, you’ll probably already have your jersey.
Enjoy the weekend!
It’s spring and that means for builders like Kris at 44 Bikes, their clients are eagerly awaiting their new shred sleds to take on their newly-dried out trails. His latest build from the 44 queue is this 27.5+ Marauder hardtail, with a rather impressive powdercoat job and build kit. View more from this bike’s life thus far at the 44 Bikes Flickr.
Custom bikes are often the result of a person’s opinions formed by their lifelong experiences. Oftentimes, a custom bicycle does its best to address many problems or functions, resulting in a Swiss Army Knife of vehicles, aka jack of all trades, master of none. Personally, I’ve always tried to work with a builder to design a bike specific to one job, rather than fit in a slew of other functions. Over the years, I’ve relied on scalpels, versus cluttered, do-it-all devices to take on whatever kind of riding I’m interested in and while I’ve got a few mountain bikes, none of them were ideal for the kind of bikepacking or off-road touring I enjoy.
… with a new rig from Kris at 44 Bikes for a few rides down in Tasmania. There’s more to come, so hang tight!
Since this bike first showed up at my door here in Los Angeles, I’ve really enjoyed riding it. While the kit that Kris from 44 Bikes delivered for the review interim was more than acceptable, it felt good putting both my old parts on it and new wheels, which made a world of difference. Wheels are like that though. You think everything is peachy-keen one day and the next you’re rolling on new wheels, having your mind blown. Call me naive but I didn’t think a wide rim like the Ibis 941 would make that big of a difference on a hardtail. Truthfully, it didn’t feel like it until I seat the WTB Trail Boss 2.4″ tire on the 41mm outer, 35mm inner width rims.
To say it was like a whole new bike might be over-doing it, or perhaps it captures my enthrallment or excitement. Either way, I do not want to take them, or these tires off my 44 Bikes Marauder anytime soon.
Having lived in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, two very active hunting states, Kris Henry of 44 Bikes just wrote a piece about staying safe while riding during hunting season. Prompted by yesterday’s post from Washington State, Kris brings up a lot of points that can help keep you and others safe while riding in the woods. Head to 44 Bikes to check it out!
Beasts of the Southern Blanca
Photos and words by Ryan Wilson
After finishing up the circuit around Huascarán, I landed in Huaraz. This is the capital of the Ancash region of Perú and the central hub for all activities related to the big snow and ice capped mountains that dominate the landscape. While Huaraz is not totally flooded with tourists, it is certainly the most visited town in the area, and a “gringo” barely gets a second look there when compared to the surrounding villages. Most importantly, Huaraz has pizza, so it makes for an obvious place to spend a few days taking it easy and swapping stories and routes with fellow cyclists and trekkers passing through the area.
Photo by Morgan Taylor
In between reviewing mountain bikes, I still get to ride some of my own from time to time. After reviewing the 44 Bikes Marauder, I decided to buy the frame from Kris and built it up with MTB parts I had laying around, which resulted in a really rad build. Every time I throw my leg over this bike, I’m always smiling ear to ear, even if I look serious in this shot. Thanks to Kris for making such shred-worthy bikes!
This spot is my favorite dive in LA!
Urgent but Rad! Kris Henry of 44 Bikes on Ryan Wilson’s 27.5+ Tourer
Words by Kris Henry, photos by Kris Henry and Ryan Wilson
Urgent but RAD! That was the start of John’s email this past April of 2016. Coffee fresh in hand, what followed was a request for commission that instantly caught my attention: A 27.5+ bikepacking frame and fork with all the trimmings for a Mr. Ryan Wilson. Was I interested? Now, I know John. He’s always up to something rad. And I’ve seen a few images here and there of what Ryan’s been up to… More radness. What followed were a series of emails and phone calls with Ryan as we put our heads together, hammered out the details discussing his set up, riding style and terrain he’d be tackling. It would be my job to listen to what Ryan wanted and distill that into what he needed. This wasn’t just any bikepacking trip. This was something different. He’d quit his job of 10 years. Pack this bike with the bare essentials. Point it south and head for an extended stay in Peru. This bike needed to be designed and built to handle the rigors that lay ahead. Of course I was in!
Golden Saddle Rides: 44 Bikes 27.5+ Rigid MTB
Photos and words by Ryan Wilson
As I was planning for this trip to South America I started thinking about what bike would be ideal to tackle a broad range of terrain and would be comfortable over the long haul. I went back and forth through a number of options, but I never quite found a stock option that fit all of my criteria (and fit me). I knew I wanted a rigid steel frame that could fit a plus sized tire, have loads of mounts, thru-axles, ample mud clearances, and a good amount of space for a frame bag. I started to focus in on B+ as the happy medium between 29 and 29+. I also liked the versatility of being able to put on a standard 29er wheelset at some point in the future without it throwing the geometry way out of whack.
Kris at 44 Bikes has written a great manifesto on why made in the USA matters. Here’s an excerpt:
“…Having a healthy, prospering U.S. manufacturing base that employs skilled workers and invests in that same workforce ensures we have a strong middle class with good pay. This strengthens the very foundation of our society which creates mobility and even more important: Stability in the market because workers who have money in their pocket spend that same money on goods and service. That’s why I take some time, care and pride in partnering with local manufacturers when and where I can. It’s a two way street. What goes around comes around.”
I’d say more, but I’d like you the read the whole article, so head to 44 Bikes to check it out. Also, I’d like to note that it’s not just that made in the USA matters, it’s that domestic production matters. I support products made in Japan, Germany, Italy, etc. It comes down to companies who manufacture products in their native land, where environmental regulation is upheld…
When Ryan Wilson @RMDub told me that he was quitting his job to go bikepacking around South America for the unforeseeable future, I was stoked. When he mentioned wanting to do Reportage for the Radavist while he was down there, I couldn’t resist but to get on board. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been helping him put together this 44 Bikes OD green 27.5+ bikepacking rig and Kris just posted completed photos of the frameset. There’s more to come but for now, head to the 44 Bikes Flickr to see more!
The Whisky Six Select Frames
Photos by Jarrod Bunk, words by John Watson
Photo via Whisky
Each year at Frostbike, Whisky builds bikes, both custom from frame builders and production from one of the QBP brands. This year Whisky had six builders and brands at the Frostbike booth to show off their new rims, bars and seatposts. Dubbed the Six Select, the collection debuted a variety of veritable dream bikes, including: Rock Lobster, 44 Bikes, Retrotec, Moth Attack, Salsa and Engin.
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Follow Jarrod on Instagram.
Kris at 44 Bikes just relaunched his website, with new landing pages for his updated models, including the Marauder, my personal favorite. If you’re thinking about a no-nonsense, custom, made in the USA bike, be sure to consider Kris and 44 Bikes. I loved the Marauder review bike so much that I bought the frame from him after I wrote my review…
While I already wrote a lengthy review on the 44 Bikes Marauder hardtail, Kris over at 44 Bikes wrote his explanation for the bike. I always enjoy reading Kris’ thoughts on frame design and component selection. If you do as well, then head over to the 44 Bikes Blog for more.
If you’re interested in the problem solving that accompanies a custom bike like this 44 Bikes Huntsman Super Trail, then you’ve gotta head to the 44 Bikes blog for the backstory. It’s well worth it!
As a Radavist, I swear to shred and recently that word’s been used a lot in terms of bike reviews. Shredding doesn’t imply you’re the fastest, or the best at hucking, it’s subjective, dependent upon your skill level and the trails you ride. Here in Southern California, the landscape is arid, exposed, rocky, rutted and loose. Having a nice and nimble bicycle underneath you aids in that ever-elusive atavistic urge to play.
Hardtails are my favorite form of mountain bike. Sure, there’s a time and a place for a full sus, when the trails are steep and technical, just like there’s a time and a place for a rigid, when you want to hone in your skills like a sharpened battle axe. Having just gotten my Rosko 29r dialed into what I would consider perfection, I was a bit hesitant to take on anymore hardtail reviews.
Then Kris from 44 Bikes up in New Hampshire came knocking at my inbox with a proposal. He’d build me a Marauder 29r to demo, Fox, SRAM, Thomson, WTB, RaceFace, Industry Nine, ENVE would supply the goods and I’d get to try it out for an extended review. Nice! What’s the catch? Well, when you review a bike and you like it so much, you might just end up wanting to buy it. Dowhhh…
This was an interesting experience. It wasn’t part of the festival and it didn’t look like anything special at first. Matt’s commuter has the #4 serial from Kris at 44 Bikes. It’s a singlespeed made for zipping around town with three unique details: a Mike Flanigan fork with a custom 44 Bikes rack and a special cable hanger Kris machined and mounted to the Thomson stem.
My favorite thing about bikes like this is the amount of use it has seen…
