The Radavist

Anna’s Gunnar Hyper X Covered in Paul Comp
Photos and words by Jarrod Bunk

I’ve seen a lot of bikes built around a theme, one where you wonder where the mind of the person wanders.  This bike is one of those.  Initially, an Ocean Air Cycles Stem Top sparked this build which then turned into one of the best uses for gold and blue ano on a bike.  The mash-up is so good, I had to double take.  Anna’s Gunnar is covered with matching Paul Component from top to bottom, but my favorite pieces are definitely the Klampers. From there its built with a wild set of Gevanalle shfiters, White Industries headset and a mix of SRAM components.

I visited town a little while ago, granted it’s still snowy in some parts of the world, but I’m sure this will be ripping the River Bottoms shortly, probably with some different rubber.  I love this bike!

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Leading up to the Land Run, I was advised by all to put 700c wheels and a fast rolling “dirt” tire on my bike of choice, that way, if it was muddy, there would be plenty of clearance. I knew I wanted to ride my Crema on the course, with its more upright riding off-road position, versus the Firefly which is more elongated as per a road fit. When carrying a camera pack, being more upright really helps out in terms of soreness and the Crema has been my go-to for such outings.

Los Angeles’ riding needs no introduction to the readers of this website. In fact, active readers and followers on our Instagram will recognize some of these spots. When people express an interest in coming to LA to escape the brütal winter months, I kindly oblige, especially when it’s people like Jeff Kendall-Weed. We’ve all seen him riding in videos, but I was curious to witness it in-person. His trip fell in-between a few other photo shoots, so it was going to be tricky, but I made sure to clear a few days of my schedule to take him out and show him some of my favorite trails in Los Angeles. Oh, and he was bringing down a brand new Ibis Cycles Ripmo, a long travel 29’r, which was just icing on the shred cake!

When you’re dead set on breaking the Tour Divide single speed record this year, ultralight is the way to go. Bailey, who is currently working at District Bicycles, recently built up his 2018 TDR race bike. He chose the Salsa Woodsmoke for the geometry, tire size, and most importantly weight. Even though he’s racing single speed, he still needs to keep the bike as light as possible. As it sits now, the bike weighs 30lbs on the nose, with everything he needs. It’ll weigh 35lbs on the trail, with water. The parts selection is spot-on, with components that will withstand the 2745 mile trek from Canada to Mexico.

An unexpected snag Bailey ran into while building this bike was that the elevated chainstay caused a lot of lateral sways and without a large chainring and large cog, would cause the chain to kick. Problem-solving like that is always best to do before you find out on the trail…

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Second up in the Distict Bicycles crews’ personal rides is Crystal‘s Scissortail single speed ‘cross bike. This build came together at the absolute last minute before she raced the Dirty Kanza. Crystal didn’t have any time left to paint the frame before building it up for the race. What are ya gonna do? Even if you paint a bike, racing the DK will leave it chipped, with paint damage from all the dirt and gravel pinging off the frame, so Crystal built it raw, raced it and liked the way the patina looked, so her and Bobby got it clear coated with a nice, thick coat, to ensure this “pain patina” would remain.

I love bikes with a story, and this one, in particular, made me excited to document the bike!

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While in Stillwater, Oklahoma, I got the grand tour of a few of District Bicycles employees’ personal bikes. Included in this mix was Bobby’s own custom Moots Farwell 29’r. Custom in the sense that Bobby didn’t like the swoopy tubes. Luckily, he convinced the crew there to make the straightest Farwell to leave the Steamboat facility. He also didn’t want raw or bead blasted titanium.

For that, he pinged Rudy at Black Magic Paint to coat the frame with an Oklahoma Red Dirt-themed wet coat. Topping the build off with XTR Di2 and a build kit tuned for Oklahoma singletrack, this MTB actually looks damn good clean. Usually, I prefer them good’n’dirty!

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I last saw this kick-ass woman at the first Grinduro. That’s over three years ago and in that time, she’s continued to crush races with what always seems to be such finesse. Hell, even at the start of this year’s Land Run 100, I hooped and hollered at her in the first few miles, to which she returned a smile and pedaled off into the dusty abyss.

Dani‘s endeavors in the cycling industry are proudly supported by Tenspeed Hero and Firefly. This year, she’s upping the ante by starting a team of all-female dirt road racers. These ladies are looking to travel to events like Land Run 100 and others, in search of competition and glory. The team is dubbed Bitch ‘n’ Grit, and is sponsored by BitchStix, a company that makes lip balms and sunblock, while donating all net proceeds to organizations that raise awareness for domestic abuse and sexual assault prevention programs.

This is the bike Dani will pedal as she joins her teammates in races. It’s Firefly number three for her, hence the SHRED SL3D and is the bike that’s dedicated to dirt road racing. I could go on for a bit longer about the bike, its integrated seat post, and her perspective, but I’d rather send you to her blog to read all about it.

Oh, and she got third place in the women’s category on this bike… Dani, we’ll see you again soon – sooner than three years! – and good luck this season!

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The Rodeo Labs Flaanimal 4.0 is what the people want in an all-road bike. The people who want provisions and braze-ons for racks, even on their carbon fork. Ample tire clearance, belt-drive compatibility, and sliders, with a geometry tuned for the long haul, without riding like a tourer. It’s easy to see why these bikes are so appealing to dirt road racing contingency, with all those aforementioned details, and it’s why Rob chose one to race at this year’s Land Run 100.

Last year, Rob finished Dirty Kanza as DFL, with literal seconds left on the clock and this year, he looked towards Land Run as prep for the DK. From Fort Worth, Texas, driving to Stillwater, Oklahoma for the event was the perfect weekend escape and a worthy shakedown ride for his Flaanimal 4.0.

I like his use of the Redshift stem, Sinewave Beacon, Wolf Tooth B-Rad double bottle cage system and the Panaracer Gravel King tires. Yep. That’s one capable rig, ready to roll Rob over the finish line, with plenty of time to spare.

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The Land Run 100 draws people from all over the world, including Texas. Austin drove in from Austin, with his brand new Chumba Terlingua, ready to roll 100+ miles single speed. With no rain in the forecast – #RIPmud – he packed in a big tire and got ready to ride the rolling hills, through the red dirt countryside.

While there were many exceptional builds at the event, I have to say, this was one of the most original I saw. With Onyx Racing Hubs, an Absolute Black ring, Paul Klampers, Hope Rotors, WTB Riddler tires, matching spoke nipples and a mean, race fit, this bike looked as good in motion as it does sitting here.

Austin, great to meet you, pardna’, tell the grackles I said I miss them!

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Good steel frames never die, they just get repaired. Mary got this Humble Frameworks years ago. She raced it and eventually, the frame developed a few stress risers and cracks. It took a while, but she eventually took the frameset back to Michael at Humble and he repaired the bike. Liking the way the repair marks looked, Mary clear coated the reparis and turned this ‘cross bike into a single speed dirt road bike. She now rides it at races, including the Land Run 100, where I was able to document this unique race machine.

UPDATE: Mary got third in the single speed category this year!

Best of luck to all the racers taking on the 100 mile course this year. It’s a dry and dusty one out there!

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Stu made the trek from the wintery north to Oklahoma and the Land Run 100. He’s the owner of Freeport Bicycle Co, a shop in Illinois, and this is his Moots Routt 45 with a Lauf Grit fork. Stu and Bailey, the new mechanic at District Bicycles throw an event called the Ten Thousand. It’s a dirt road race that combines dirt roads in the Driftless area of Northwestern Illinois. The elevation gain of the event exceeds 10,000′, making for one tough day on the bike.

Stu is here in Stillwater to support Bobby from District Bicyce’s event, the Land Run 100, because Bobby has frequented Stu and Bailey’s event in years past. It’s always interesting to see how bike shop owners equip their bikes for events like this and I love seeing bike shop owner’s supporting each other’s endeavors. Roll safe, Stu!

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Land Run 100 Rides: Addison’s Stripped State Single Speed
Photos and words by Jarrod Bunk

Thirty-hours, nope that’s not the travel time from Quebec to Land Run 100.  It is the amount of time it took Addison to hand strip his State Bicycle Single speed and leave behind some beautiful layers.

Devoid of paint, and the tensioner that caused him some issues last year, Addison is ready for a rowdy and dry time.  Built with one goal in mind, going fast, Addison’s bike is built with a mix of Zipp, Quarq and SRAM road parts, this eccentric bottom bracket bike can be run as a single speed or a geared bike for any situation.

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I’m here in Stillwater, Oklahoma at District Bicycles for the Land Run 100 where Salsa Cycles just launched a new all road bike platform, dubbed the Journeyman, which offers the 27.5 or 700c platform in an affordable package, opening this exceptional wheel size to a lower pricepoint. As someone who has thoroughly enjoyed the 27.5 x 2.1″ wheel platform on my personal bikes, I’m stoked to see a sub $1,100 bike adopting this platform.

The Journeyman comes in a 27.5″ or 700c option with drop bar models, or a geometry-tuned flat bar version. There are two pricing options, beginning at $899 for the Journeyman drop bar Claris, flatbar Claris 700c or 27.5″, and $1,099 for the Sora build kit options, which comes with a carbon fork. These frames come with all the provisions you could want, flat mount brakes and most importantly for events like the Land Run 100, ample mud clearance. The rear spacing is 135mm, with QR front and rear so even “older” wheels will work. The model I photographed is the Journeyman Sora 27.5″.

This bike has so much potential yet at the moment Salsa is not offering it as a frameset, so if you want to deck it out with a balleur build kit, expect to part out the Sora option. Other than that, I have no critiques of these pricepoint, path-finding bicycles. Head to Salsa for more information and your local dealer for test rides and purchasing.

“I just wanted a touring bike.”

That was Jimmy’s response when I asked him to sum up his Crust Bikes Dreamer build. The thing is, this is not just a touring bike and whether Jimmy wants to admit it or not, a lot of thought went into this bike. Just look at the build kit!

Nick Was High in LA on His Purple Haze 160mm Sklar Hardtail
Photos by Kyle Kelley, words by Nicholas Haig-Arack

I first met Adam Sklar a few years ago while riding bikes with a bunch of frame builder friends in Santa Cruz. I was impressed by the character of Sklar’s bikes – those flattened swoops are pretty sweet, can’t deny it – but it was Adam’s personality and lighthearted approach to riding that made me really appreciate his brand. Our paths crossed again in Moab for the most fun week ever and I was convinced that I wanted a bike from Adam. Fast-forward a few months and imagine my stoke when he asked me to do drawings for Sklar Bikes! Since then we’ve been cultivating a cross-country creative partnership, one that emphasizes creativity, exploration, and good times.

The Slate was a gamble for Cannondale. My review of the bike generated a lot of controversies and it’s understandable. Questions along the line of “why?…” still pop up when I see photos of Slates online. Yet, there’s something about riding one that injected a bit of fun on even the most mundane dirt road rides. Jossue loved his Slate. I first saw him riding it on a TGSCIF Ride earlier in the summer, where he ripped the derailleur hanger off. Shortly after, he broke the frame. He was bummed out and wanted to assess his options.

After talking to Kyle at Golden Saddle, Jossue decided on a Niner RLT9 fork with a Lefty adapter for the tapered headtube. The entire Slate kit was easy to swap over and he even gained a little more room in the chainstays with the RLT9 to be able to ride a beefier tire. The Lefty Oliver didn’t alter the geometry too much, and in the end, injected the RLT9 with a bit more fun, perfect for this Cherry Canyon loop.

The Northern Frameworks Process
Photos and words by Jarrod Bunk

While Minneapolis might not be on everyone’s list for travel plans in the middle of winter, mine was a little bit different.  You see, I wanted to finalize some stuff for an upcoming build of mine.  I took the opportunity while in the fridged midwest to spend some time getting a fit at Angry Catfish catching up with friends, and documenting some of the build processes that go into a custom Northern Frameworks.

Alex Cook started building bike under the name A-Train a few years ago now and honed his craft to the point at which the collaboration with Angry Catfish was born, which is Northern Frameworks.  Each Northern Frameworks is built around custom geometry for the rider and comes in a stock color palette to simplify the process and allow Alex to make his bikes the best they can be.  Tight miters, sharp tungsten and a steady hand are apparent in his welds and a meticulous work ethic which I watched first hand.  I have to admit it was great to watch someone who cares so much about their craft, work. Inside of  Alex’s shop, he has a backlog of builds but keeps the lead times small thanks to the process he’s developed with his time behind the torch.  If you’re interested in your own bike, give him a shout.

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