Friday Debrief: Fresh Faran 3.0 colors, Frysauce, Creak-free BBs, 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…

Updated Fairlight Faran 3.0 Colors

£999 at Fairlight

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Fairlight has introduced a refreshed and refined version of its most utilitarian model, the Faran 3.0, showcasing a new graphic direction and subtle branding update. The logo now sits discreetly on the top tube, embedded within a redesigned pattern that builds on the original Anni Albers-inspired textile theme. Created in collaboration with design studio FIELD.IO, the new motif began as a generative artwork, then was abstracted and reinterpreted through a series of carefully selected angles and countless paper cutouts. There are three colorways: Moss, Burnt Orange, and Black. Full design notes are available for those interested in the extensive thought process behind the Faran 3.0. Find our recent post about it here.

Bags by Bird Flap Musette

Made in USA / $63 at Bags By Bird

Tucson’s Bags by Bird, owned and operated by Jay Ritchey, just restocked the recently updated Flap Musette and they are ready to ship. Jay’s take on the musette has a 12L capacity, simple velcro flap closure, a small interior pocket/stuff sack, and a three-point strap system that keeps that bag in place while walking or riding. This round is available in several different UltraGrid fabric colors and they weigh approximately 141g (5oz).

Ride Concepts Dissent and Deploy Helmets

$140-190 USD at Ride Concepts

Ride Concepts jumped into the helmet ring this week. Their new Deploy and Dissent helmets offer purpose-built protection for different levels of mountain bike riding. The Deploy is a relatively lightweight, ventilated helmet designed for XC and trail riders who value all-day comfort without sacrificing safety. It features a full polycarbonate shell with added lower coverage, 16 large vents for airflow, and the MIPS Evolve Core system for rotational impact protection—all at a $140 price point. Meanwhile, the Dissent is built for aggressive enduro and gravity riding, with a rugged four-piece shell, oversized vents, and extended coverage. It includes high-end features like a Fidlock magnetic buckle, anti-odor X-Static padding, and an integrated FS6 fit system, retailing for $190.

GH000ST Flowers added to Simworks, RonsBikes

Made in Japan / $10 USD at RonsBikes.com

GH000ST‘s signature flower twists, typically used to shore up loose cables, have been officially added to not only Ronnie Romance’s distribution site, but SimWorks USA! Based in Japan, those looking to spruce up their loose cables no longer have to pay excess shipping charges for such a small good.

Salsa Journeyer CUES 1×10

Made in Taiwan / $1,699 at Salsa Cycles

Salsa just added a fresh build/color option to the wallet-friendly Journeyer lineup, and it’s built up around Shimano’s CUES 1×10 drivetrain and 700c wheels. The new Journeyer CUES 1×10 comes in a summer-friendly Teal Green colorway, and includes 700c x 42mm Teravail Washburn tires, a full Shimano CUES drivetrain and brakes, and a matching Waxwing Carbon fork.

Seach and State Tec Vest

Made in NYC / $175 at Seach and State

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Our friends at Search and State just released the Tec Vest, purpose made for chilly mornings, cold descents, and unexpected foul weather. The Tec Vest is the first addition to SAS’s vest line-up in over a dozen years with the original S1-V being one of the brand’s flagship staples. The new Tec Vest builds on the S1-V with the ability to stretch, and it’s weather resistant, packs down to a stow-able size, and features a camo design. And, like all of SAS’s products, it’s made in New York City.

Reserve Frysauce

Made in Taiwan / $1,699 at Reserve Wheels

“Like mixing ketchup and mayonnaise to create the perfect french-fry accoutrement, the perfect wheelset may require combining seemingly disparate things.” The Reserve Frysauce wheelset aims to provide the perfect balance of compliance and stiffness with their 30|SL and 30|HD, built into the respective front and rear wheels.

COROS Launches Repair Program

Made in China / Coros.com

Attempting to keep perfectly good products in circulation, COROS has announced their new repair program. Giving customers the chance to recycle their tech, the repair program allows COROS users to send in their old, potentially slightly broken units, pay a small repair fee, and select a refurbished, “like new” product as a replacement. With repair costs ranging from $60 USD to $120 USD, it’s a small price to pay that allows some peace of mind for the environment.

Silca Synergetic Race Grease

Made in USA / $25 at Silca

Silca just released the new Synergetic Race Grease, a high-performance lubricant designed with Silca’s ultra-synthetic Type-V oil base and thickened using synthetic wax technology from SpeedChip. Silca claims this advanced formula incorporates nanoscale additives for low friction and exceptional wear resistance. The result they claim is a versatile, low-viscosity grease that performs exceptionally well in bearings, bushings, suspension pivots, and press-fit assemblies, boasting up to 50% less friction and 90% less wear than standard greases. Free from unnecessary dyes or fillers and made in the USA, Synergetic Race Grease comes in a 100cc tube and retails for $24.99.

Four Pack Forager Cable Cherries in All Colors

Made in USA / $33 at Forager Cycles

Forager Cycles recently updated their Cable Cherry stock with a new option to purchase a four pack in a cute little reusable tin, which also saves you a few bucks compared to purchasing two pairs separately. The kit includes an extra wrench and set screw, and are available in all of Forager’s colors. For those unfamiliar, Cable Cherries are durable, reusable cable ends, and are CNC machined from aluminum bar in Port Townsend, Washington.

In Conversation

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

Are Certain Bottom Bracket Standards Actually “Creak-Free?”

Earlier this week, we covered the release of Wolf Tooth’s new bottom bracket! Within the conversation, folks chimed in with their thoughts on bottom bracket standards and their susceptibility to “creaking.” We all know it, we’ve all heard it—the dreaded “creak” of a dirty bottom bracket. But, does it happen more consistently to one kind of BB standard than another? In a general sense, BB creak is most commonly associated with pressfit BB’s that abide by an interference fit. That’s to say, one that is more reliant on the tolerance of the BB shell that comes out of a mass-production facility. Typically found on carbon bikes, these standards can be known to be “creak-ier” than threaded BBs because of some QC inconsistencies. As alluded to by one of the commenters, “isn’t a creak-free BSA BB sort of redundant?” But, is that really true? Have we not all experienced some degree of creaking across square taper, outboard BSA threaded, and pressfit BB standards? Let us know in conversation below…

Around the Community

News from around the bikepacking world…

Ray Franks Trans America Ride

Ray Franks is cycling from Los Angeles to New York City in support of the LGBTQ+ community, specifically to raise funds for The Trevor Project and Lambda Legal. “I’ll be pedaling out of Griffith Park in LA at 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 20th for the Trans America Ride… I want to thank all of you who’ve donated to The Trevor Project and Lambda Legal. The Trevor Project reports that the number of LGBTQ+ youth reaching out for their crisis services is up more that 400%, and Lambda Legal is being overwhelmed by the number of new laws and executive orders it is fighting in court. Please donate if you can. Also consider joining up and riding a few miles either with me or wherever you live.” Learn more over at Ray’s website, Trans America Ride.

Robert Axle Project/Old Man Mountain Turn 12

12 years ago this week, “two dirtbag mountain bikers saw a need for a new part for our bikes, and in a 1,000 square foot 95-year-old house on the west side of Bend, Oregon we came up with a solution. It involved giving a napkin sketch to a machinist and asking, “can you make this?” The payment was a six-pack of beer. With just enough (barely) experience, we built a website. We thought it would be a fun side gig, and that we might get some deals on bike parts.” Those are the words of Katy Bryce, co-founder of the Robert Axle Project and Old Man Mountain. Read Katy’s full piece about their anniversary over at Linked In.

Otso Bikes: A Note on Tariffs

Since most Otso frames are designed and assembled in Minnesota, USA, but manufactured in Southeast Asia, they are subject to the new tariffs put in place by the Trump administration. This affects pricing on their frames, as well as the components that go into building a complete bike. Beginning June 1, a surcharge will be added to four of their bikes to accommodate for the increased tariffs. It will be roughly a 5% price increase on Warakin, Warakin Stainless, Warakin Ti, and Fenrir Ti. Read more on their blog here.

Events Starting Soon

What to watch this weekend and bikepacking events starting soon…

RWGPS’ Cutty Cap Challenge

Ride with GPS is back with their annual Cutty Cap Challenge—this time with a twist! Where past Cutty Cap Challenges have asked cyclists to go about town using clues to search for Cutty Cap merch, this year’s scavenger hunt will contain a live element hosted via the RWGPS app. Though caps will still be hidden by participating event leaders in participating cities, there will be a points system that allows users to compete globally for a grand prize. The ultimate prize includes a $500 gift card to the winner’s local bike shop, a lifetime RWGPS subscription, a limited edition merch pack, and more. The hunt is on Saturday, May 31st!

2025 Highland Trail 550

The Highland Trail is a self-supported mountain bike route 890 kilometers (550 miles) in length with over 16,000 meters of climbing. It was inspired by events in the US like the Tour Divide and particularly the Colorado Trail Race (CTR). This year’s grand depart takes off tomorrow morning from Tyndrum, Scotland, and there are currently 60 riders registered for live tracking. Follow along live on our Tracker here.

Headstock 500

The Headstock 500 is a multi-day bikepacking adventure traversing the breathtaking landscapes of South and Mid Wales. The 2025 event started earlier this morning with around 60 riders participating. Learn more about the event and follow along live here.

Odyssey of the VOG

The Odyssey of the VOG (Valley of the Giants) gets its name from the 51 acres of massive old growth forest found on the North Fork Siletz River at the western edge of Polk County, Oregon. The route is about 350-miles and features some of the most rugged terrain on the Oregon Coast. This year’s grand depart kicks off tomorrow morning and you can follow their progress along live here.

Weekly Social

Some things we found around the ‘gram and elsewhere. This week…

Reaching Out To Local Representatives Works!

In a stroke of good news this week, it turns out reaching out to your local representatives does actually do something. Per the Outdoor Alliance, we were alerted to the last minute proposed sale of nearly 500,000 acres of public lands crudely tacked on to a larger bill earlier this week. However, amid writing a post to alert people to reach out to officials to voice their displeasure and opposition to the sale, a number of people had already done so, and the sale of said lands were removed from the bill.

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