Friday Debrief: 2025 Brother Mehteh, Hardtail Pack Lists, Your Favorite Bike Shop, and More…

The weekly Debrief highlights small but important bits of news, products, and things that caught our attention on the website, in the conversation, and elsewhere around the community. These include upcoming events and interesting items our readers shared in the comments. Check out this week’s findings below.

Bits & Bobs

New products that are worth highlighting but didn’t make the Dispatch…

Brother Cycles Stealth Black Mehteh Pre-Orders

Made in Taiwan / £1,199 inc VAT at Brother Cycles

• 
• 

Pre-orders for the 2025 Brother Cycles Mehteh are open as of this morning, and the updated frames now feature SRAM UDH dropouts. The 2025 paint options include a new Stealth Black colorway and the popular Tequila Sunrise version that sold out almost instantly last year. Frames are expected to arrive by late April, so act fast to ensure you get your pick.

PAUL Short-Reach Canti Levers

Made in California / 134 grams / $209 at PAUL

PAUL Components has introduced the new Short-Reach Canti Levers, designed and manufactured in Chico, California. Building on their popular dual sealed-cartridge bearing, CNC-machined Canti Lever, the updated version features a redesigned lever blade that sits closer to the handlebar, offering a more comfortable fit for smaller hands straight out of the box. The new Short-Reach Canti Levers complement the existing Standard Reach option and are available now through PAUL Components’ website or at local bike shops.

Smith x Wild Rye Women’s Collection

$18 at Wild Rye

Smith and Wild Rye just announced their collaborative roots-themed collection of women’s technical cycling apparel, complemented by co-branded unisex protective helmets and performance eyewear for spring/summer 2025. The vibrant collection pulls inspiration and coloration from the abstract cross-section of roots and includes the launch of Wild Rye’s new Frankie Bike Short along with Smith’s much-anticipated Forefront 3 helmet.

Sklar Socks Back in Stock

Made in North Carolina / $24 at SklarBikes.com

Adam Sklar’s “Squiggly Sklocks,” a wool adventure sock made by DeFeet in North Carolina, is back in stock. Featuring a Sklar original lined design, this set of socks is a wool garment made for adventure. These were out of stock for quite some time and have only become available again as Adam finally found the lost package, so if you’ve been eyeing these, now is the time.

• 
• 

Esker Lorax SRAM Apex Builds Now Available

Made in Taiwan / $3,000 at Esker Cycles

Esker Cycles recently added a SRAM Apex build kit option to the Lorax, their do-most-everything drop-bar mountain bike. The Apex build is the most affordable option, coming in at $3,000 with a SRAM Apex1 Eagle 12-speed drivetrain, Stans Flow S2 Comp wheels, a PNW Loam dropper post, and Maxxis Ikon 29 x 2.2″ tires.

Wolf Tooth Waveform Pedals now offered in Gold

Made in Minnesota / $200 USD at WolfTooth.com

Wolf Tooth’s Waveform pedals are now offered in this stunning gold color, expanding their pedal color offerings to nine distinct options. This is a long-awaited arrival for those who like to color-match every aspect of their builds, and this gold really nails it.

Ornot Gravel Sweater

Made in California / $145 at Ornot

• 
• 

While it looks like it would be suitable for much more than just “gravel,” the new Ornot Gravel Sweater is made in the USA with deadstock Polartec Power Wool, making it antimicrobial, moisture-wicking, warm. It has a concealed 5″ x 7″ rear zip pocket for your snacks, sunglasses, or phone, and it’s available and men’s and women’s sizing.

Bicycle Adventure Field Guide for Kids: Chattanooga

$12 at Kickstarter

• 
• 

The Bicycle Adventure Field Guide for Kids: Chattanooga Area Edition takes the guesswork out of how and where to have a bicycle adventure in the Chattanooga. The pocket guide is full of safe riding tips, challenges, games, and suggestions on where to ride in the region, and it’s available to back via Kickstarter. For this first edition, 10% of all proceeds will benefit White Oak Bicycle Co-Op for the purpose of getting more kids on bikes and advocating for safe spaces for children to ride.

Bags by Bird Navy Waxed Canvas and Blue

Made in USA / $215+ at Bags by Bird

Bags by Bird in Arizona just released a limited run of blue Goldbacks and Piccolos, made using blue webbing, trim, and thread on navy waxed canvas. The Piccolos start at $215, and the Goldbacks start at $235. Stock is limited and will likely sell out quickly.

In Conversation

Exchanges and ideas that caught our attention in the site’s conversation section…

Your Favorite Bike Shop Survey

Miles: In the bikepacking world, not all bike shops are equal. While most shops these days have a small selection of bags, it’s exciting to walk into a space that’s stocked with independent bikepacking bag brands from small, often locally owned, businesses. We want to hear from you! Do you have a local shop or one you’ve visited that has a good selection of bikepacking bags, camping gear, and other essentials that bikepackers should know about? How about a local gear library or bikepacking bag rental place? Fill out the quick form below to send in your submissions, and stay tuned for more on the topic next week.

Pack Lists in Bike Reviews

Logan: A regular reader commented on my Bird Forge review yesterday, mentioning that we should have gear lists with bike reviews. This is something we do sometimes, but Ben was right, maybe it should be a standard part of it. What do you think? Leave me a note in the conversation below, and in the meantime, find my pack list for the Bird Forge as shown kitted up on a trip into the Sierra Norte below.

Around the Community

News from around the bikepacking world…

Bikepacking the Lanna Kingdom

Last year, Simon Brain and his fiancee pedaled our 400-kilometer Lanna Kingdom bikepacking route in Thailand, and the nine-minute video above captures their journey from Chiang Mai to the border of Myanmar and back again “with plenty of hills and plenty of adventure.”

Pedal to the Peak in Santa Barbara

The one and only Dirty Dan is hosting an everesting event in Santa Barbara, California, to raise money for the Wilderness Youth Project. With our public lands under greater threat than ever before, it’s great to see those with a voice in the cycling space organize to raise money for organizations that can help protect our sacred spaces. Between March 7th and 9th, Dan and anyone who shows up is welcome to attempt this hillclimb with Dan, with proceeds from donations sent to his Venmo (@Daniel-Connell-1) going to the Wilderness Youth Project. Dan also has a GoFundMe on his Instagram if that’s more your speed. Go Dan!

PBP Stories: Jan Heine Edition

PBP stories is quickly becoming a favorite podcast in cycling circles with guests like Fergus Tanaka and BikeFarmer making past appearances. Now, Jan Heine details his relationship with PBP on the latest episode, touching on his journey as a randonneur and bicycle tire company owner. It’s an insightful look at one of the most eclectic people in bikes and always a great listen with host Peter Curley.

Scouting the Arizona Monster 300 Course with John Schilling

John Schilling, race director of the Arizona Trail Race series, was a guest on the latest episode of the Like a Bigfoot Podcast. They chat about John’s history with bikepacking and designing amazing routes (like the Queen’s Ransom) and get details about some sections of the Arizona Trail that co-host Thomas Mullins will be running in April.

2025 Analog Cycles x Fifth Season Ride and Race: March 22nd

• 
• 

Join the Analog Cycles x Fifth Season Ride and Race, a mud-soaked celebration coinciding with Maple Fest in Poultney, Vermont. The event features a challenging race with maple-themed challenges or a relaxed pace, scenic ride through snow-covered roads with sugar shack tours. This year’s event includes breakfast with fresh homemade donuts and pour-over coffee and a post-ride party at Analog’s downtown location with a catered lunch from the Poultney Pub. They’ll have beverages, shop tours, and music at the end of the day’s adventure. More info at AnalogCycles.com.

Events Starting Soon

What to watch this weekend and bikepacking events starting soon…

Cloudride Prologue

The intention of the Cloudride Prologue in Australia is to provide an entry-level ride for first time bikepackers to test gear, navigation, and themselves over two or three days and gain an experience of the terrain and fatigue levels they’ll encounter on the full 1,000-kilometer Monaro Cloudride. There are 70 riders registered for live tracking and you can follow their progress live here.

Scratch Ankle Gravel

Scratch Ankle Gravel is a day of gravel rides and races in Milton, Florida, with routes ranging from the 23-mile fun ride to the 200-mile XL route. The event starts tomorrow morning, and you can follow the 200-mile riders live here.

Wish We Were Here

Shedding a little light on a route one of us is dreaming about riding at the moment…

Lucas Winzenburg: Sage and Saddles

Rather than dreaming of far-off places, as it warms up here in Colorado, I’m looking forward to summer rides through the mountains. Among our many routes around the state, Sage and Saddles has spoken to me since it launched in 2024. I may not be able to squeeze in the full loop this year, but I hope to pedal at least a segment of it on my trip to the area in July.

Please keep the conversation civil, constructive, and inclusive, or your comment will be removed.