Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
Our Reader’s Rig of the week comes from Adam in Idaho, who shares the Esker Japhy hardtail he built up with a mix of old and new parts for day rides through the surrounding foothills and extended bikepacking getaways alike. Learn more about Adam and find photos of his loaded bike on the Sun Valley High Country Loop here…
Words by Adam Ridley, photos by Miles Arbour
Hi, I’m Adam. I’m originally from the Upper Midwest (ND>MN>WI), but I have lived around the West for the last 20 years. I’ve worked in a variety of federal land management roles throughout those years, and I’m currently a remote sensing specialist for the Bureau of Land Management.
Cycling has been an important part of my life since I was a kid. Growing up, we would take bikes along on most of our vacations or weekend trips, and my Dad had a nightly rail trail ride he would do after work, which I would sometimes join him for. Nothing serious, but it was a regular escape and source of freedom. I was MTB-curious in high school and dabbled a bit in college, but I didn’t get the chance to ride that much until I moved to Hailey, Idaho, in 2009.
In 2013, just after we met, my wife and I went on our first real off-road bikepacking trip on the White Rim, hauling BOB trailers with full-suspension bikes, and I’ve been hooked ever since. We live in Boise, Idaho, now and have access to many great riding and bikepacking opportunities.
The bike is a 2023 Esker Japhy frame that I put together this Spring with kinda half new parts, half stuff I stole off of a Surly Ice Cream Truck I had setup for bikepacking. I’ve got a Tumbleweed Stargazer that’s my primary bikepacking rig now, but I found myself wanting something a little shreddy that I could still load up. I was debating between the Japhy and the Cotic SolarisMax but went with the Japhy due to the greater flexibility in tire diameter. It’s proven to be just what I was hoping for: fun to ride around in the Boise Foothills and a capable overnight+ rig.
- Frame: Esker Japhy (S4)
- Fork: Rockshox Pike Ultimate 120mm
- Rims: WTB Proterra Tough i30 29″
- Hubs: WTB Proterra
- Tires: Maxxis Minion DHF 2.6 (front) / Maxxis Reckon 2.4 (rear)
- Handlebars: Hunter Smooth Move (low-rise)
- Grips: Wolf Tooth Fat Paw
- Headset: Wolf Tooth Premium
- Crankset: Race Face Turbine
- Pedals: Wolf Tooth Waveform
- Cassette: SRAM GX Eagle
- Derailleur(s): SRAM GX Eagle
- Brakes: Shimano XT 2-Pistons
- Shifter(s): SRAM GX Eagle
- Saddle: Ergon SM Pro
- Seatpost: PNW Components Loam w/ Loam Lever
- Stem: Paul Boxcar 35mm
- Front bags: Swift Zeitgeist
- Frame bags: Revelate Ranger
- Rear bags: OMM Elkhorn rack with dry bag and Rockgeist Armadillo
- Accessory bags: Rockgeist Cache top tube bag
- Other accessories: Tailfin SFM, King Cage Manything, Spurcycle Bell, White Industries BB
I’ve had it out on the Sun Valley High Country Loop trip that Tom Lilly and Miles Arbour published earlier this summer and on a solo overnighter into the Maze area of Canyonlands in April. I had to slap a The Greatest Generation podcast “There’s coffee in that nebula…” patch on my Zeitgeist, which perfectly marries my deep and abiding love of Star Trek, comedy podcasts, and all things coffee.
I’ve been riding the Japhy with a set of WTB Proterra Toughs (purchased with my Bikepacking Collective membership discount!) that have moved between it and the Stargazer. They probably saw a few too many heavily loaded miles without maintenance as I burned out a freehub bearing on the Sun Valley trip, so it’s pictured with a Hunt rear wheel with 2.6″ Ikon I pulled off my Stargazer. I’ve got a couple of fall/winter upgrades in the works: Logos Eudae 29 HD wheels and a new SRAM GX Eagle AXS Transmission, which I think will make it an even better ride. Might cap it off with a Rockgeist custom frame bag to match the top tube bag…
You can see more from Adam on Instagram.
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Further Reading
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