The Radavist

Yes, those astute readers of this website will recognize this bike. Kyle photographed it at Grinduro Scotland already, along with the bikes of other builders. It was the only mountain bike in the bunch and it coincidentally won the People’s Choice award at Grinduro Scotland, which is why it’s here in California right now. Adeline makes Mercredi Bikes in the UK. Her torch time is usually spent on road and ‘cross bikes, but this mountain bike was her first, in terms of building and the first MTB she’s owned. A serious cyclocross racer, it didn’t take much for Adeline to adjust to racing this mountain bike at Grinduro, where she won. I’ve always been of the opinion that riding mountain bikes will enhance your ‘cross skills and she’s quickly finding that to be true.

Finding Friends on the Isle of Arran at Grinduro Scotland – Kyle Kelley
Words and photos by Kyle Kelley

You can read race reports all over the internet about Grinduro Scotland and that’s exactly why I’m not going to give you that here. It was Scotland, so of course, it rained! It was on the Isle of Arran, so of course, it was beautiful! It rained, so of course, it was muddy! And did I mention… it was Scotland, so of course, we drank whisky!

It was with a heavy heart and lots of FOMO when I admitted to my friends at Giro that I wouldn’t be able to attend Grinduro Scotland. That’s when the gears began to really spin…

Let’s backtrack a bit. Grinduro debuted two years ago in Quincy, California as a new race format. Rather than racing a course in its entirety, there would be a handful of timed sections, of which, the leaders would be chosen before ultimately awarding winners in various categories. This allows for plenty of on-course downtime, which leads to camaraderie, substance consumption of various forms, jackassery, playful shit-talking and other social activities often absent from competitive cycling events. For two years, Grinduro California has proven to be a success, leading Giro’s UK partners to begin exploring options for an exotic Grinduro getaway.

Paul Errington is part of the Focal Events crew. They put on some of the best events in the UK, like Dirty Reiver and all of these rides have a reputation of being very difficult. His race course ingenuity has undoubtedly inspired his personal bike. Before we jump into the rest of the Scotland reportage, we’re going to take a look at Paul’s beautiful Shand Stooshie all-road bike.

If you can pull your focus away from the Lauf fork, you’ll see a very simple, yet thought out build happening here. The Stooshie is Shand’s do-it-all drop bar bike. You can race cross on it, ride dirt (obvs) and even do some light touring, thanks to the rack provisions. Paul has his set up as a 1x with the Lauf fork and 45mm tires, perfect for absorbing the rough, rocky and rooty trails found on the Isle of Arran, where Grinduro Scotland is taking place.

Paul’s bike is rolling on Halo Wheels, utilizes probably one of the best adaptations of Di2 with the ability to run a long catch, clutch, XTR rear mech with road shifters. It really comes in handy when the road or trail gets steep. This bike has been in the muck, the mud and the inclement weather associated with riding in the Northern UK. Best of all, it looks like it wants more!

Has it really been a year already? A full year since Giro’s Grinduro debuted in Quincy, California. Grinduro is a 63 mile route through Sierra Nevada – you know, those rad mountains, not the beer – with four timed segments. There’s a fire road climb, a fire road descent, a road time trial and a ripping section of singletrack. The event takes place on Saturday, but many people make it a weekend endeavor. Mostly because if you’re going to drive all the way to Quincy, you might as well stay a while. It costs money to race, but all proceeds from the event go to support the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship. If it weren’t for their organization, or the volunteers, this event would have never taken off like it has.

Set in the Quincy Fairgrounds, the layout of the event stayed mostly the same. There were car camping spots, RV spots, a marketplace, food vendors and plenty of places to party.