Friday Debrief: Floral Dyneema, Taiwan Tour, Lael Around the World, ENVE Hex, 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…

Fresh Helmets from Fizik

$199+ at Fizik

Earlier this week, Fizik debuted four new helmets suited to a wide range of disciplines. Among them are the Kassis, a lightweight, highly protective off-road and MTB helmet, and the Kudo, a high-performance, cross-discipline cycling helmet for road, gravel, and XC MTB. The colors and designs look great.

Rene Herse TPU Tube Sealant

Made in Japan / $15+ at Rene Herse Cycles

Rene Herse’s new TPU Tube Sealant is for riders who want the performance and convenience of TPU tubes with the flat-proofness of tubeless. They call it “truly the best of both worlds.” Rene Herse sealant is specially formulated to seal small punctures in TPU tubes, and since the sealant is enclosed inside the TPU tube, it lasts a long time before it needs to be replenished.

Veloci JAW Lifter

Made in Taiwan / $65 at Veloci Cycle

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The new Veloci JAW Lifter is designed for big handlebar bags that need a little extra help staying off the front tire. It’s made from lightweight AL-6061 aluminum tubes, adjustable legs, an L-shaped aluminum bracket, and has flexible installation options. The horizontal bar also features an M6 boss for mounting a front light, which is a nice touch.

New OneUp V2 Carbon Handlebar Lineup

Made in Taiwan / $160 at OneUp Components

The redesigned OneUp V2 Carbon Handlebar was tested against the most popular carbon bars on the market, and the results were a 21% increase in vertical compliance (comfort) coupled with a 28% increase in steering stiffness (responsiveness). The V2 comes in 760mm or 800mm widths and three rise options: 20, 35, and a new 50mm version.

Fairweather Packable Sacoche and Dry Sack in Floral Dyneema

Made in Japan / $23+ at Blue Lug Dry Sack Packable Sacoche

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Fairweather in Japan recently expanded the color options of two of their signature items to include a funky floral-patterned Dyneema composite fabric. The floral pattern is used as an icon by the plant shop Sai Botanical Works near the Blue Lug Hatagaya store, and Fairweather is offering their Packable Sacoche and Dry Sack with the new fabric, availably exclusively from Blue Lug.

Fresh Topo Mountain Hydro Sling Colors

Made in Vietnam / $55 at Topo Designs

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The Topo Designs Mountain Hydro Sling can be used as a shoulder bag and also has attachment points to be used as a stem bag on your bike. It’s big enough to fit a 32-ounce Nalgene, has a paracord cinch closure on the top, and features a sneaky zippered pouch and mesh pocket on the outside. Just in time for spring, Topo Designs just added several fresh colorways to the lineup, and they’re available now.

48mm ENVE HEX Gravel Tire

Made in Czechia / $75 USD at ENVE Tires

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Though the Hex had previously been released at 40 and 44mm widths, ENVE’s sole gravel tire offering now comes in a 48mm size. We’ve yet to put any miles on their largely road-focused tires, but the HEX tire is said to offer greater pinch-flat protection, features a kevlar bead for hookless rims optimization, and sports de-coupled tread blocs that enable the casing to flex and conform to terrain. The HEX comes in at 460 grams per tire at the 48mm width.

Cane Creek 11O Ceramic Headsets and Fifty headset

Made in USA / $73.99+ at Cane Creek

11O Ceramic is an all-new headset that resides at the top end of Cane Creek’s lineup. It features the new, Hellbender Ceramic bearing that brings ultimate smoothness and longevity to the headset. These new bearings use ceramic Silicon Nitride balls, which are multiple times harder than steel and will not corrode. The 110 Ceramic headsets are available in several sizes, a single black with silver finish, and prices start at $199 USD. The Cane Creek 50 Headset has also received a refresh and affordable price point, with an updated machined on top cover and cups, custom ZN40 bearings, a full complement of weather seals that help keep the headset running smoothly and quietly.

In Conversation

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

Reader’s Rig Week Reflection

Through our Reader’s Rig series, we’ve highlighted a bike from the community every single Friday for the last six years(!), adding up to an unparalleled collection of interesting, well-documented bikes. It’s an amazing resource that’s only made possible because of our readers. To celebrate the series, this week was Reader’s Rig Week, and we shared one every day. As always, the conversation was full of positivity, exchange of ideas, and photos of similar bikes. We love to see it every week, and we encourage everyone to submit their bike for a Friday spotlight. Explore the full archive of 330+ bikes here.

Around the Community

News from around the bikepacking world…

Bikepacking Pitkin Passage

The latest video on the Colorado Biking Adventures YouTube channel documents a three-day ride on our Pitkin Passage route. The 15-minute video offers a detailed look at the trails, terrain, and landscapes found along the challenging but picturesque track. Watch it above.

Allied Able and a Move Away from US Manufacturing

On the latest episode of Payson McElveen’s newly rebranded podcast, With Pace, the professional gravel racer talks to CEO Drew Medlock and director of product Sam Pickman on their new Allied Able. While the bike itself has generated some conversation about the cost of bikes in 2025, what’s all the more interesting about their conversation is its context within the company’s shift to overseas manufacturing. Starting off as a US-made carbon, performance bike brand, Allied—owned by the billionaire Walton family—has shifted the lion’s share of their production to an Asian production partner. Though the podcast is certainly not rife with hard hitting questions, as Payson is a brand ambassador for the company, they dive past the surface level on topics that higher-ups are usually more than happy to dance around.

Daniel Yang’s Taiwan Tour

Daniel Yang, designer and engineer at Neuhaus Metalworks, recently visited Taiwan to dive deeper into their production partners and their processes for creating their production bikes. Given Neuhaus is relatively new to the production game, Daniel wanted to find out more about every aspect of how these products come together. In a visit to ORA manufacturing, Daniel got an inside look at how the tubes used on their Hummingbird model are made.

Rekki DX35 is over 200% Funded

Launched via Kickstarter on Tuesday, the Rekki DX35 is the brainchild of Luke Cardew, co-founder and designer of JACK the Rack. We had the chance to get our hands on one before the launch and shared our thoughts here, and it’s exciting to see another successful crowdfunding campaign. The project already over 200 percent funded. Find the Kickstarter page here.

Congrats 2025 Stagecoach 400 Finishers!

Congrats to everyone who participated in this year’s Stagecoach 400 event in California. There were nearly 70 riders out taking on the challenging 400-mile route, and most were able to finish. Jocelyn De la Rosa took the first-place spot with a time of just 46 hours and 57 minutes. Find the top finisher times below:

*Zachary Morvant (first in but with deviation, got lost and took wrong dirt into IDY) 46:28

Lael Rides Around the World (Trailer)

In 2024, Lael Wilcox set a new world record for circumnavigation of the Earth by bicycle. For 108 days, 12 hours, and 12 minutes she rode, joined by friends and fans, with her journey documented by Rugile Kaladyte. We reported on this massive accomplishment here, and we’re excited to share the full film when it becomes available next month. There are a handful of in-person film screenings happening before the online premiere, which you can register for here.

Dark Divide 2025 Registration is Now Open

This year’s edition of the Dark Divide, a 330-mile route with 30,000 feet of elevation gain, is now open for registration. In typical Evergreen Gravel Racing fashion, race director Ben Everett has opened up registration in waves. Prioritizing FTW/NB and BIPOC racers, the second wave is set for those subscribed to their Patreon, with the third wave open to the general public. It looks an amazing event, and I hear a few hooligans may be trying to take down the whole route in a single push just a month or so after the grand depart. Learn more here.

10% off Dyed in the Wool

Poland’s Dyed in the Wool is offering an extra 10% off all products with code “TRUMPSUCKS,” to help compensate for the new taxes the Trump administration has imposed on everyone. Together with the 23% Vat deduction it makes if 33% discount! Shop now at DyedintheWool.eu.

Co-Op Corner

A handful of weekly buy/sell/trade finds from our new Bike Camp Co-Op…

A $100 Big Agnes Copper Spur

Chip in Oregon listed this Big Agnes Copper Spur 1 tent for just $100, and someone snagged a hell of a deal on it. We love to see folks giving great deals to their fellow Bikepacking Collective members! See the original ad here.

White Industries G30 Cranks

There’s a good-looking pair of low-mileage White Industries G30 cranks for sale by Lance in Vermont. Here’s a good chance to save a little on some expensive US-made cranks that will stand the test of time. Find the ad here.

Complete Salsa Woodsmoke Carbon

Mark in New York is selling a fully loaded XL Salsa Woodsmoke rolling on 29-inch wheels and sporting a full Salsa frame bag for $975 all-in. Quirky as it may be, it’s a lot of bike for the money. See it here.

Events Starting Soon

What to watch this weekend and bikepacking events starting soon…

2025 Gran Vertical

Gran Vertical is the little sister to the CAT700 event, following a 360 or 400-kilometer route that starts and ends in Segorbe, Spain. This year’s grand depart took off yesterday evening (Friday morning local time), and there are nearly 50 riders participating. Follow their progress live here.

Norfolk 360

After a successful first event, Norfolk 360 is back for 2025 and is designed as an introduction to bikepacking and ultra-racing. The 360-mile route is made up of four distinct loops that showcase the best of the the flatlands of Norfolk in the United Kingdom. There are just under 70 riders participating in this year’s event, and you can follow their progress live via the event page.

Wish We Were Here

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

Miles: Northern Vancouver Island & The Tree to Sea Loop

With warmer temperatures on the way here in the Pacific Northwest and my first spring overnighter of the year under my belt, I’ve been dreaming of getting back over to the north end of Vancouver Island. It’s wild to think it’s been nearly four years since I first scouted the 1,000-kilometer Tree to Sea Loop, and I’m eager to get back over to explore some new roads and connections. Seeing a map of the route, illustrated by Alex Hotchin for the last issue of The Bikepacking Journal really sent me over the edge. It’s Tree to Sea season, baby!

Weekly Social

Some things we found around the ‘gram and elsewhere. This week, a few photos from Slow Spokes’ Bikepacking 101 workshop. Topics included setting goals, choosing routes, and packing bikes. Slow Spokes is Missoula, Montana’s bikepacking community for gender-expansive and women riders. Learn more about them here.

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Further Reading

Make sure to dig into these related articles for more info...

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