mountain bikes

Framework Bicycles isn’t afraid to say it’s making its frames a little differently from usual. In fact, the Canadian company is not only extremely proud of that, but feels its unusual methods are also integral to what makes its frames what they are. In this week’s members-only episode, James sits down with Framework founder – and one-person fabricator – Jonathan Kennedy for an ultra-deep dive on his philosophy behind what makes a good bike.

Framework Bicycles isn’t afraid to say it’s making its frames a little differently from usual. In fact, the Canadian company is not only extremely proud of that, but feels its unusual methods are also integral to what makes its frames what they are. In this week’s members-only episode, James sits down with Framework founder – and one-person fabricator – Jonathan Kennedy for an ultra-deep dive on his philosophy behind what makes a good bike.

Geek Warning is back, with Dave and Ronan on hand to discuss the latest happenings from the world of cycling tech. James is currently roaming the halls of the Taipei show, so this week, you get two-thirds of our geeky Geek Warning trio discussing the Fraser Group's acquisition of whatever is left at Wiggle-CRC after another round of layoffs and the latest questions as the hookless conversation rages on following what appears to be another failure.

There's also news of Look's new Keo Blade and X-Track power meter pedals and Rapha's latest aero jersey that might save you 7 watts, four watts, or both; we're not sure. 

Later in the episode, the conversation changes to Ronan's concerns we may be headed for an automotive industry-style "approved service centre only" model for our bike's servicing and maintenance needs. While the conversation throws up some potential positives from such a move, worryingly, Dave suggests we are already there. 

Finally, Dave has another reason to buy more tools dressed up as a PSA. 

Time stamps:

5:20 - Frasers Group's Wiggle-CRC takeover
10:00 - Hooked on hookless 
16:50 - New Giant TCR
21:55 - Stupid helmets everywhere
28:10 - Look's new power meter pedals
32:50 -Rapha's new Pro Team Jersey
37:40 - On Your Mind - "Approved service centre only" 
48:00 - A PSA from Dan Bigham's mechanic 

Geek Warning is back, with Dave and Ronan on hand to discuss the latest happenings from the world of cycling tech. James is currently roaming the halls of the Taipei show, so this week, you get two-thirds of our geeky Geek Warning trio discussing the Fraser Group's acquisition of whatever is left at Wiggle-CRC after another round of layoffs and the latest questions as the hookless conversation rages on following what appears to be another failure.

There's also news of Look's new Keo Blade and X-Track power meter pedals and Rapha's latest aero jersey that might save you 7 watts, four watts, or both; we're not sure. 

Later in the episode, the conversation changes to Ronan's concerns we may be headed for an automotive industry-style "approved service centre only" model for our bike's servicing and maintenance needs. While the conversation throws up some potential positives from such a move, worryingly, Dave suggests we are already there. 

Finally, Dave has another reason to buy more tools dressed up as a PSA. 

Time stamps:

5:20 - Frasers Group's Wiggle-CRC takeover
10:00 - Hooked on hookless 
16:50 - New Giant TCR
21:55 - Stupid helmets everywhere
28:10 - Look's new power meter pedals
32:50 -Rapha's new Pro Team Jersey
37:40 - On Your Mind - "Approved service centre only" 
48:00 - A PSA from Dan Bigham's mechanic 

The time has come for the geeks to share their strong opinions on road tubeless and the movement toward hookless rims. In this episode, and off the back of a high-profile failure, James, Ronan, and Dave dive into the growing concerns related to the many caveats around hookless road rims.

Later in the episode, the conversation changes to fancier ways to hide cables through smaller headsets and the problems this may present. Then there’s a polarising PSA many probably won’t want to hear.

In many ways, this episode is just our geeks ranting about the issues of modern bikes, but hopefully, it proves useful!

Time stamps:

3:15 - Digging into the big topic of road tubeless tyres blowing off hookless rims
36:00 - A little promo of a podcast series not to miss
37:12 - Baum and slotted steerer tubes are on Dave’s mind
43:55 - The only good fix for contaminated brake pads
47:10 - New things from Cadex
48:05 - A new endurance road tyre from Vittoria

The time has come for the geeks to share their strong opinions on road tubeless and the movement toward hookless rims. In this episode, and off the back of a high-profile failure, James, Ronan, and Dave dive into the growing concerns related to the many caveats around hookless road rims.

Later in the episode, the conversation changes to fancier ways to hide cables through smaller headsets and the problems this may present. Then there’s a polarising PSA many probably won’t want to hear.

In many ways, this episode is just our geeks ranting about the issues of modern bikes, but hopefully, it proves useful!

Time stamps:

3:15 - Digging into the big topic of road tubeless tyres blowing off hookless rims
36:00 - A little promo of a podcast series not to miss
37:12 - Baum and slotted steerer tubes are on Dave’s mind
43:55 - The only good fix for contaminated brake pads
47:10 - New things from Cadex
48:05 - A new endurance road tyre from Vittoria

Silca’s new StripChip claims to take (most) of the hassle out of properly immersion-waxing your chain, but while it sounds promising, Dave’s got his doubts. Favero unveiled its long-awaited SPD-compatible power meter pedals for MTB and gravel, and although they tick a lot of boxes, pedals in general may not be the best power meter format for everyone.

In big-brand component news, we read the tea leaves on Campagnolo’s new Ekar GT midrange gravel groupset to see what it might indicate for the Ekar family in general, and SRAM’s new Maven mountain bike hydraulic disc brakes could signal a sea change.

Silca’s new StripChip claims to take (most) of the hassle out of properly immersion-waxing your chain, but while it sounds promising, Dave’s got his doubts. Favero unveiled its long-awaited SPD-compatible power meter pedals for MTB and gravel, and although they tick a lot of boxes, pedals in general may not be the best power meter format for everyone.

In big-brand component news, we read the tea leaves on Campagnolo’s new Ekar GT midrange gravel groupset to see what it might indicate for the Ekar family in general, and SRAM’s new Maven mountain bike hydraulic disc brakes could signal a sea change.

Colnago recently debuted its latest C68 model – the C68 Gravel – and while it seems like a pretty nice gravel bike in its own right, what’s more interesting is understanding more about what that new bike means for Colnago’s strategy in general moving forward, particularly since being bought by a UAE-based investment group in 2020. In this members-only episode, James sits down with Colnago CEO Nicola Rosin and Colnago’s head of marketing, Manolo Bertocchi, to get the scoop on how things have been going there (shockingly well), where Colnago wants to be (“the most desirable”), and who the brand sees as its customer base in the years ahead (hint: probably not you).

Colnago recently debuted its latest C68 model – the C68 Gravel – and while it seems like a pretty nice gravel bike in its own right, what’s more interesting is understanding more about what that new bike means for Colnago’s strategy in general moving forward, particularly since being bought by a UAE-based investment group in 2020. In this members-only episode, James sits down with Colnago CEO Nicola Rosin and Colnago’s head of marketing, Manolo Bertocchi, to get the scoop on how things have been going there (shockingly well), where Colnago wants to be (“the most desirable”), and who the brand sees as its customer base in the years ahead (hint: probably not you).

It’s time for another episode of Geek Warning. Dave and Ronan are back to discuss the latest happenings in the world of cycling tech and what’s on their minds.

Ritchey and Factor have new bike (frame) releases that sit near polar opposites of the road market. Ritchey has brought back its well-loved Road Logic frames, while Factor’s Ostro VAM, a bike we’ve looked at before, is now officially official.

There are new shoes from Trek and Specialized, with the former leaving Ronan a little confused over what size his feet are. And Dave shares what’s on his mind (hint, tools), and then there’s a quick wrap of other interesting tech and industry news.

Timestamps:

5:03 - Ritchey Logic brings back its rim brake road frames
8:03 - Factor’s new Ostro VAM is now official and Ronan has built one
23:43 - Black Inc’s 1,270 g aero wheels
26:45 - Specialized’s new mid-price helmet and shoes
28:45 - Trek’s many new shoes, many new fits
41:45 - On Dave’s mind
46:58 - 4iiii’s new Pro 3+ dual-sided powermeter
50:40 - KMC gets into cassettes
52:05 - F+B Shift wheels bring thermoplastic carbon to a lower price point
54:52 - Giant Bicycles to be sold by Dick’s Sporting Goods

It’s time for another episode of Geek Warning. Dave and Ronan are back to discuss the latest happenings in the world of cycling tech and what’s on their minds.

Ritchey and Factor have new bike (frame) releases that sit near polar opposites of the road market. Ritchey has brought back its well-loved Road Logic frames, while Factor’s Ostro VAM, a bike we’ve looked at before, is now officially official.

There are new shoes from Trek and Specialized, with the former leaving Ronan a little confused over what size his feet are. And Dave shares what’s on his mind (hint, tools), and then there’s a quick wrap of other interesting tech and industry news.

Timestamps:

5:03 - Ritchey Logic brings back its rim brake road frames
8:03 - Factor’s new Ostro VAM is now official and Ronan has built one
23:43 - Black Inc’s 1,270 g aero wheels
26:45 - Specialized’s new mid-price helmet and shoes
28:45 - Trek’s many new shoes, many new fits
41:45 - On Dave’s mind
46:58 - 4iiii’s new Pro 3+ dual-sided powermeter
50:40 - KMC gets into cassettes
52:05 - F+B Shift wheels bring thermoplastic carbon to a lower price point
54:52 - Giant Bicycles to be sold by Dick’s Sporting Goods

Welcome back to Geek Warning. In this episode, Dave and Ronan talk through a bunch of the biggest tech news in the cycling world and cover a few test products at the top of their minds.

It’s hard to find a new racing product today that doesn’t at least tease the “aero” word, however, TuboLight may just be the first to make such a claim for a product that goes inside the tyre.

The recently seen shoe and pedal system from Ekoi caught unwanted attention from the UCI, but them’s the rules. One that is UCI-certified for racing is Ridley’s new X-Night RS cyclocross machine.

SRAM has officially issued a recall related to all aftermarket 12-speed dropbar levers, but the fix is one you can likely do yourself. Another you could probably do yourself is convert an existing Specialized Crux or Roubaix to run SRAM’s 1x Transmission (typically requires a UDH-frame); it’s a new product offered by 5Dev.

The conversation then turns to the weirdly named premium thermal skinsuit that Ronan is testing from Q36.5. And Dave has a little rant related to the new Trek Domane AL just reviewed.

All that, and more, on this week's Geek Warning.

Timestamps:

3:55 - Tubolite gets aero, inside the tyre
11:35 - Ekoi pedals and UCI rulings
21:08 - Ridley’s new X-Night RS, aero(ish) meets cyclocross
28:49 - A DIY recall related to SRAM’s brake lever
33:07 - 5Dev’s adapter to install SRAM Transmission on a Specialized Crux or Roubaix.
36:53 - Ronan is testing a £808 thermal skinsuit from Q36.5
43:05 - What Dave is testing and a rant on entry-level bikes
53:35 - A PSA related to dropbar levers, and another related to crockpots
58:30 - A quick wrap of other news, including Amer Sports, Curve’s carbon Walmer handlebar, and BeSpoked to be held in Manchester.

Welcome back to Geek Warning. In this episode, Dave and Ronan talk through a bunch of the biggest tech news in the cycling world and cover a few test products at the top of their minds.

It’s hard to find a new racing product today that doesn’t at least tease the “aero” word, however, TuboLight may just be the first to make such a claim for a product that goes inside the tyre.

The recently seen shoe and pedal system from Ekoi caught unwanted attention from the UCI, but them’s the rules. One that is UCI-certified for racing is Ridley’s new X-Night RS cyclocross machine.

SRAM has officially issued a recall related to all aftermarket 12-speed dropbar levers, but the fix is one you can likely do yourself. Another you could probably do yourself is convert an existing Specialized Crux or Roubaix to run SRAM’s 1x Transmission (typically requires a UDH-frame); it’s a new product offered by 5Dev.

The conversation then turns to the weirdly named premium thermal skinsuit that Ronan is testing from Q36.5. And Dave has a little rant related to the new Trek Domane AL just reviewed.

All that, and more, on this week's Geek Warning.

Timestamps:

3:55 - Tubolite gets aero, inside the tyre
11:35 - Ekoi pedals and UCI rulings
21:08 - Ridley’s new X-Night RS, aero(ish) meets cyclocross
28:49 - A DIY recall related to SRAM’s brake lever
33:07 - 5Dev’s adapter to install SRAM Transmission on a Specialized Crux or Roubaix.
36:53 - Ronan is testing a £808 thermal skinsuit from Q36.5
43:05 - What Dave is testing and a rant on entry-level bikes
53:35 - A PSA related to dropbar levers, and another related to crockpots
58:30 - A quick wrap of other news, including Amer Sports, Curve’s carbon Walmer handlebar, and BeSpoked to be held in Manchester.

With much of the industry languishing under the post-Covid, brands are trying harder than ever to carve out a niche for themselves to stay afloat. Colnago’s new C68 Gravel bike is super premium by design, but based on their sales figures, the focus on luxury is clearly getting the job done. Campagnolo seems to be falling into the same strategy almost by accident, but is it working as well? That’s not so clear. Hunt also debuted its latest aero wheels and they look like they could be quite the performance bargain – as long as you’re ok with hookless rims – and just when you thought clipless road pedals couldn’t get any better than they already are, French brand Ekoi’s new road pedal-and-shoe system might actually move the needle.

And finally, have we finally reached a stable point for road bike tire sizes? Maybe. Or maybe not.

Timestamps:

6:45 – Colnago’s got a fancy new gravel bike, and they’re ok if it’s out of your reach
20:19 – Campagnolo’s new aero road wheels are absolutely gorgeous
27:53 – Hunt’s new Sub50 Limitless Aero Disc road wheels could be an incredible performance bargain
38:45 – Ekoi has a truly novel new road pedal-and-shoe system in development, and they might actually be good
48:04 – Noble Wheels tools are back! Well, sort of
49:55 – More musings on using candle wax to lube your chains
51:39 – Vittoria’s got a new Corsa Pro Speed go-fast tire
52:52 – Want to stand out from the crowd? Bossi has expanded its range of titanium gravel frames
54:28 – Orange Bikes is back in business
56:49 – Road tire sizes seem to have stabilized (and yes, James is getting old)

With much of the industry languishing under the post-Covid, brands are trying harder than ever to carve out a niche for themselves to stay afloat. Colnago’s new C68 Gravel bike is super premium by design, but based on their sales figures, the focus on luxury is clearly getting the job done. Campagnolo seems to be falling into the same strategy almost by accident, but is it working as well? That’s not so clear. Hunt also debuted its latest aero wheels and they look like they could be quite the performance bargain – as long as you’re ok with hookless rims – and just when you thought clipless road pedals couldn’t get any better than they already are, French brand Ekoi’s new road pedal-and-shoe system might actually move the needle.

And finally, have we finally reached a stable point for road bike tire sizes? Maybe. Or maybe not.

Timestamps:

6:45 – Colnago’s got a fancy new gravel bike, and they’re ok if it’s out of your reach
20:19 – Campagnolo’s new aero road wheels are absolutely gorgeous
27:53 – Hunt’s new Sub50 Limitless Aero Disc road wheels could be an incredible performance bargain
38:45 – Ekoi has a truly novel new road pedal-and-shoe system in development, and they might actually be good
48:04 – Noble Wheels tools are back! Well, sort of
49:55 – More musings on using candle wax to lube your chains
51:39 – Vittoria’s got a new Corsa Pro Speed go-fast tire
52:52 – Want to stand out from the crowd? Bossi has expanded its range of titanium gravel frames
54:28 – Orange Bikes is back in business
56:49 – Road tire sizes seem to have stabilized (and yes, James is getting old)

It’s time for another gathering of the geeks for an episode of Ask a Wrench. In this member’s bonus episode, Zach (of Boulder Gruppetto), James, and Dave answer more technical questions submitted by Escape members.

This week, the geeks answer questions related to using alternative cassette options, fitting bigger cassette ranges than allowed, selecting parts for the Paris-Roubaix sportive, replacing a Cannondale Lefty, and using saddlebags with carbon saddle rails. Then the conversation continues with questions related to swapping Shimano brake components, bike packing with waxed chains, learning to bleed brakes, and torque wrench calibration testing.

Our weekly Geek Warning podcast remains unchanged and open to all, we’re now providing additional bonus episodes each fortnight. Only members and paid readers of Escape Collective can access the full versions of these bonus podcasts. These bonus episodes are a mix of Ask a Wrench, deep-dives, or interviews with the people behind popular products.

It’s time for another gathering of the geeks for an episode of Ask a Wrench. In this member’s bonus episode, Zach (of Boulder Gruppetto), James, and Dave answer more technical questions submitted by Escape members.

This week, the geeks answer questions related to using alternative cassette options, fitting bigger cassette ranges than allowed, selecting parts for the Paris-Roubaix sportive, replacing a Cannondale Lefty, and using saddlebags with carbon saddle rails. Then the conversation continues with questions related to swapping Shimano brake components, bike packing with waxed chains, learning to bleed brakes, and torque wrench calibration testing.

Our weekly Geek Warning podcast remains unchanged and open to all, we’re now providing additional bonus episodes each fortnight. Only members and paid readers of Escape Collective can access the full versions of these bonus podcasts. These bonus episodes are a mix of Ask a Wrench, deep-dives, or interviews with the people behind popular products.

There’s always something going on in the world of cycling tech. This week, James and Dave discuss a bunch of news items, what their favourite clothing is for shoulder season, and a little safety warning related to new tyres.

It’s been a busy week of tech news out of Europe and the UK. First up, the heritage brand of Eddy Merckx is back, but looking at the range today, it looks a lot like business as usual from when we last saw the name on downtubes.

French cycling brand Look has officially released its new Keo Blade pedals. Meanwhile, the two-speed hub maker Classified has updated the rims of its carbon wheels.

In the UK, Mason has a new version of the Definition aluminium dropbar bike. Plus we cover further news regarding Schwalbe, Holding, Wolf Tooth, and candles, yes, candles.

Timestamps:

5:25 - Eddy Merckx bikes are back
11:25 – Our obligatory segment related to chain waxing
16:50 - Look release its new Keo Blade pedals
22:30 - Picking one, our favourite shoulder-season kit (all disciplines)
34:45 - PSA on brand new tyres
40:20 - Classified’s own carbon wheels get lighter and wider rims
41:12 - Schwalbe consolidating its manufacturing
42:39 - Mason’s new aluminium dropbar bike
43:54 – Hovding files for bankruptcy
45:15 - Wolf Tooth ReMote Pro now in colours

There’s always something going on in the world of cycling tech. This week, James and Dave discuss a bunch of news items, what their favourite clothing is for shoulder season, and a little safety warning related to new tyres.

It’s been a busy week of tech news out of Europe and the UK. First up, the heritage brand of Eddy Merckx is back, but looking at the range today, it looks a lot like business as usual from when we last saw the name on downtubes.

French cycling brand Look has officially released its new Keo Blade pedals. Meanwhile, the two-speed hub maker Classified has updated the rims of its carbon wheels.

In the UK, Mason has a new version of the Definition aluminium dropbar bike. Plus we cover further news regarding Schwalbe, Holding, Wolf Tooth, and candles, yes, candles.

Timestamps:

5:25 - Eddy Merckx bikes are back
11:25 – Our obligatory segment related to chain waxing
16:50 - Look release its new Keo Blade pedals
22:30 - Picking one, our favourite shoulder-season kit (all disciplines)
34:45 - PSA on brand new tyres
40:20 - Classified’s own carbon wheels get lighter and wider rims
41:12 - Schwalbe consolidating its manufacturing
42:39 - Mason’s new aluminium dropbar bike
43:54 – Hovding files for bankruptcy
45:15 - Wolf Tooth ReMote Pro now in colours