Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
This week’s Debrief features Brooks’ new porter-specific saddle, bronze rims, gator skin bags, merino wool socks, four events to follow live, and much more. Find it all here…
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…
WTB Original Trail Grip in Tan
$12.95 at WTB
WTB’s original grip, now known as the Original Trail Grip, is now available in tan. Here’s more from WTB: “A nod to our roots with a fresh coat of heritage, it’s got that same minimalist shape, ribbed traction, and timeless ride feel that earned its stripes on the bars of ’90s mountain bikes (yes, even those OG Phoenix builds at HQ in ’97).”
HPA Cargo Dominos from Send Cut Send Marketplace
Made in USA / $38+ at SendCutSend Stainless Steel Aluminum
High Performance Athlete, or HPA for short, recently partnered with SendCutSend to offer their Cargo Dominos through the new Marketplace feature on the site. The SendCutSend Marketplace allows small makers like HPA to list products they’ve designed to be laser cut, bent, and powder coated on demand. This saves the need for inventory (and the environment from potentially wasted inventory of a product flop), and it’s also a great way to market test ideas and generally get loads of variations in the hands of the people. The Cargo Dominos are available in 5052 Aluminum, Grade 5 Titanium, 260 Brass, and 316 Stainless Steel, and they come in packs of two. Learn more about the Cargo Dominos here.
Buffalo Bags Bar & Ale in Gator skin
Made in Thailand / $200 at Buffalo Bags
In their never-ending quest to find unique materials to make bags from, Buffalo Bags from Bangkok, Thailand, just made a limited run of Bar & Ale bags polyurethane “gator skin” material. They are paired with a classic X-Pac X50 in black and are only available in one version with a front pocket and G-hook. The gator skin Bar & Ale bags cost $130 and are available now.
Broosk C17 Porter
Made in England / $165 at Brooks England
The Brooks C17 Porter released a few years ago was recently subject to a marketing refresh, and it was a perfect reminder of how great it could be for bikepacking purposes. Complete with a rubberized handle located beneath the nose of the saddle, the C17 porter makes an already great saddle even better for hike-a-bike and everything else.
Wilde Aposematic Merino Wool Socks
Made in the USA / $20 at Wilde Bikes
The latest Wilde collaboration with artist Brett Stenson features three pairs of socks. One olive, one burgundy, and one “fog” color, these trippy merino wool socks are made in the USA and feature pretty cool designs from the artist. There’s also supposedly another collab coming just around the corner, so get these socks while they last.
Kumo x Simon Riviere Bottle Pre-Order
Made in USA / $33 AUD at Kumo Cycles
Kumo Cycles in Australia just opened up pre-orders for their new water bottle, and we think it’s a home run. The “Combini-Chaser” bottles are a collaboration between Kumo and Simon Riviere. They’re an homage to bike touring Japan and the wonder that is the Combini.
“You’ve just spent 2 hours cresting a brutally steep mountain pass… and suddenly you spot one of the magic glowing signs. is it 7/11? Lawson? Family Mart? does it matter?! Entering the magical doors, enveloped in the jingle, you now have to decide which calorie bomb you want to fill up your tank. Of course the correct answer is to buy it all, stuff your bike bags and pedal off with a smile on your face.”
Industry Nine 20th Anniversary Collection
Made in USA / $1,700+ at Industry Nine
In celebration of 20 years of business, Industry Nine has launched a special, limited edition wheelset collection that combines subtle touch points from their beginnings with advancements in custom anodization. The anniversary wheels feature a unique hubshell colorway (Lunar) complemented by custom laser application of i9’s heritage Industry Nine logo. Faded spokes complete the package for a truly unique look.
The collection includes six wheelset options: Hydra2 Enduro, Hydra2 Enduro Carbon, Hydra2 DH, SOLiX UL250G, SOLiX Trail, and SOLiX Trail Carbon. The A35 and A318 stems are also available in the limited edition Lunar color finish, and there are some softgoods available for a limited time.
SimWorks x Velocity Standalone Bronze edition
Made in USA / $139+ at SimWorks
After releasing their bronze Taco pedals and the bronze Bubbly Pedals, SimWorks couldn’t resist creating a Bronze version of their Standalone 001 rims, made by Velocity. These stunners are available in all your favorite wheel sizes, 26”, 27.5” (650b), 29” (700c) and in machined sidewall and non-machined sidewall. They are priced at $139 for the non-machined option and $149 for the machined option.
In Conversation
Exchanges and ideas that caught our attention in the site’s conversation section…
Pad Pedantics: What’s Your Best Pad?
Last week, Nic put out his summer Editor’s Dozen and got some solid traction in the comments. Surprisingly, most centered around a mutual appreciation for the often under-appreciated TRP Spyre mechanical brake. Some commenters pointed out that the brake was not only entirely sufficient but pretty stellar when the stock pads are replaced with something that has a little more bite. This got us thinking: what are your favorite pad and rotor pairings? It’s something that often goes overlooked nowadays as component companies look to own the whole lot, but mixing and matching pad compounds based on real-world experience is a skill people don’t often speak to anymore. So, we want to know: salmon-colored Kool Stops? Sintered? Metallic? What’s your compound of choice and why? Let us know in the Conversation below…
Around the Community
News from around the bikepacking world…
Sofiane Sehili on his World Record Ride
Gregor Mahringer recently pedaled 200 kilometers through Slovenia and Croatia with Sofiane Sehili, during which he captured detailed insights into Sofiane’s mindset, gear, and motivation for his ongoing attempt at the world record for the fastest crossing of Eurasia by bicycle. Watch it above, and check out our recent post about Sofiane’s journey here.
Ozark Gravel Cyclists FUC
The Ozark Gravel Cyclists are back with another ultra in the rough and tumble hills of northwest Arkansas, and this one looks as fun as ever. The FUC, Fayetteville Ultra Circuit, features three routes: a 435-mile, 206-mile, and 115-mile series of routes meant to show the best and most brutal sections of the Ozark cycling community. For more on this unique set of routes, click here.
Buckhorn Bags has new Owners
We were happy to learn that Buckhorn Bags is living on with new owners, continuing the legacy that Sam Lutz created. Here’s what the new owners had to say about the news: “Hey there! We are Stefan and Cayti Blair! We recently purchased Buckhorn Bags in Fayetteville, Arkansas, from our good friend, Sam. We look forward to bringing Buckhorn to more awesome bike events, and continuing the tradition of quality handmade bike bags. Our hope is that we can build something that our two kiddos would love to be involved in one day! See ya’ll out there!” See more at BuckhornBags.com.
R.I.P. Ozzy
I’d be remiss not to mention the passing of Ozzy Osbourne this week, not because he was a part of the cycling community, but because he was someone who influenced so much of the fringe culture that bikes are a part of (including the sticker above). You ever wonder if your life would be completely different if you made a minor alternate choice somewhere along the line, and whether that tiny divergent decision would have completely changed the people you met, your sphere of interests, or the place you live? I think my life would be entirely different had I never heard Black Sabbath, and the world would be quite different without it, too. I used to have a DVD bootleg of a 1969/70 Black Sabbath show in Europe, similar to the 1970 show in Paris which is now on YouTube (below). I recall a scene showing the audience dressed relatively prim and proper—perhaps expecting something a little more Beatles-esque—having their minds blown; they looked slightly terrified, but you could tell it was the beginning of something different. That pretty much sums it up. R.I.P. Ozzy. -Logan
Events Starting Soon
What to watch this weekend and bikepacking events starting soon…
Hot Taco
Hot Taco is a women-only (and those identifying as women) bikepacking race, beginning and ending in Boise, Idaho. It’s 200ish miles with 20,000ish feet of elevation gain. The 2025 grand depart took off yesterday morning, and 16 riders are signed up for live tracking. Follow along here.
Montana Bike Odyssey
The Montana Bike Odyssey is a 1,800-mile loop through Montana, starting and finishing in the city of Bozeman. The route covers approximately 1,100 miles of gravel and just under 650 miles of remote paved county roads and bicycle paths with over 100,000 feet of climbing and descending. There is a small group registered for the 2025 event, which takes off tomorrow at 6 a.m. local time. Follow along here.
Transcontinental Race
Founded by Mike Hall in 2013, the Transcontinental Race (TCR) is a self-supported ultra-distance bikepacking race across Europe. The route varies for each yearly edition, and participants are free to choose their own route between the mandatory checkpoints. The 2025 grand depart starts Sunday in Flanders, with over 400 riders registered for live tracking. Follow along live here.
Basajaun
Basajaun is an 800-kilometer self-supported bikepacking adventure in north of Spain connecting wild forests with desert areas. There are nearly 200 riders registered for the grand depart, which takes off from Álava on Sunday morning. Follow along here.
Wish We Were Here
Shedding a little light on a route one of us is dreaming about riding at the moment…
Lucas Winzenburg: Switzerland
With the 2025 Tour de France nearly wrapped, I can’t help but dream of pedaling through the Alps. A return to one of my favorite European countries for a couple of weeks on the Hope 1000 sounds like just the ticket, even if its 100,000 feet of climbing would likely have me regretting the decision at some point.
Weekly Social
Some things we found around the ‘gram and elsewhere. This week, a throwback to a bygone era. One that saw SPD Birkenstocks…
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