Reader’s Rig: River’s Velo Orange Piolet

Words and photos by River Murdock

Hey! My name is River Murdock. I am from Utah and currently work as a mechanic at the Salt Lake City Bike Collective, a nonprofit that promotes cycling in the community. In my free time, I also make bike bags under the name Kawa Designs. I grew up in Moab, Utah, and exploring the redrock desert by bike has always been one of my favorite hobbies.

Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve been strapping bags on bikes and heading out on multi-day trips with my friends. After college, I took a year off and did a four-month bike tour across Asia, which really cemented my love of long-distance cycling. My favorite thing about being on a bike is feeling completely independent. When you’re riding, you carry everything you need to live and can cross huge distances, all while remaining completely self-powered. The excitement of what the day will bring, the landscapes you’ll see, and what you will learn about the places you travel through keep me getting back on the bike.

My current bike was inspired by my previous go-to bikepacking bike, an old On One Inbred. The Inbred was perfect for going just about anywhere. I loved the bike’s feel and look, and when I saw the new Piolet frame from Velo Orange, it seemed like a perfect modern successor. The wishbone seatstays and segmented fork were a perfect homage to my old frame, and it had all of the other features I was looking for in a modern bikepacking bike.

The first thing I did when I got my frame was repaint it. I wanted to give it more character and had the idea of giving it a pitted-metal look after seeing a similar paint job on a classic track bike. I made the underlying color a muted green. In the sunlight, it looks like a mossy boulder, but my favorite part of the new paint is its nice pebble texture. I tried to find as many other naturally colored parts to match the aesthetic, like brown anodized Wolf Tooth cages and brown cotton grip tape.

For the components, I wanted to make the bike as durable and functional as possible. Many components I have used on other bikes, and I know they are tried and tested. My Thompson stem, for example, has been on three other bikes of mine and was given to me by a friend who used it on his old race bike. But some components I’m trying out for the first time, like the new Cues drivetrain. I was excited about its durability claims, but it seems the red desert dust is destroying it just as fast as any other drivetrain I’ve had. I chose the Velo Orange Campeur rack for its solid attachment and fender integration, and it also looks great. I have Tanaka fenders mounted to the underside of the rack, cut extra short for off-road use. With the rear fender, I could use only the rack as support. My hope for the fenders is that they will prevent at least some mud and sand from splashing onto the drivetrain, and they are also very nice to have in Salt Lake winters.

My dynamo hub and Sinewave light enhance the bike’s self-reliance. On long rides and tours, I can generate my own power and never need to charge my light. My pedals are the MKS Pretzels. I’ve used MKS pedals for many years now and love how durable and serviceable they are. The new pretzel shape is also comfortable, and the natural curvy shape adds a fun look. For brakes, I wanted to make the best-feeling mechanical system I could, so I could feel more confident while loaded on steep descents. I’m using Paul levers and Growtac brake calipers with Jagwire Elite Link housing. With this setup, I get more than enough power, and it feels better than many hydraulic brakes I’ve used.

• Frame/Fork: Velo Orange Piolet (custom powder coated)
• Rims: Velo Orange Voyager
• Hubs: Shimano Dynamo (front) / Velo Orange (rear)
• Tires: Vittoria Mezcal
• Handlebars: Velo Orange Crazy Bars
• Headset: Wolf Tooth
• Crankset: Paul Components with SRAM GX chainring
• Pedals: MKS Pretzel
• Cassette: Shimano Cues 11-speed
• Derailleur(s): Shimano Cues 1×11
• Brakes: Growtac
• Brake levers: Paul Components
• Shifter(s): Shimano Cues 11-speed
• Saddle: Brooks B17
• Seatpost: Thompson Elite Setback
• Stem: Thompson Elite
• Frame bags: Leather Kawa Designs Custom
• Rear bags: Kawa Designs Custom
• Accessory bags: Kawa Designs Custom
• Rack: Velo Orange Campeur
• Other accessories: Tanaka fenders, Spurcycle Bell, Sinewave dynamo light

With my bags, a big inspiration was classic horsepacking equipment. I worked for the Forest Service for a couple of seasons, where we extensively used horses to carry our equipment deep into the wilderness. We used leather and canvas bags that had been used for many seasons before. With proper care and maintenance, these bags had lasted longer than most synthetic materials would in the same environment, and after all of the years of service, they looked beautiful. Leather and cotton canvas saddlebags took on a patina that told the story of their use, and gave them a look that you could never recreate with modern materials.

I wanted to give my bike the same timeless, sturdy feel and look, and was interested in testing how far you could push natural fabrics like cotton and leather. I designed my panniers to look and function like many of the horse panniers I have used, with a flap-covered roll-top, waxed canvas, metal hardware, and dowels in the back keeping structure. Part of the reason I liked the Piolet geometry is the extra-long chainstays, which keep panniers more stable. I made them wider than normal to use some of the frame’s extra length, while keeping them low profile. This shape gives the panniers a large volume, makes it easy to walk next to the bike, and keeps them from getting caught on brush. So far, they have been solid and stable on any terrain.

For the frame bag, I decided to go with leather. This was a first for me as I had never worked with leather before. It was tricky to learn, but it was a super fun bag to make, and I will be working with leather more after this. One of the hardest parts was the final step of turning the bag inside out. With the thick leather and reinforced edges, it was a real workout to get everything in place. After sewing it, I waxed it to condition it and help keep it waterproof. I’ve taken the bags on quite a few trips so far, and they have exceeded my expectations for natural materials.

I recently took the bike down to Moab for the White Rim Trail, a perfect test of what I built it for: all-day riding across rough, mixed terrain. The Piolet handled everything I threw at it, and it looked right at home against the sandstone, the natural colors and curves blending into the desert rock. Riding over that landscape gave me the same feeling of exploration and independence that made me fall in love with biking in the first place. The bike rolled smoothly beneath me, letting me take in the miles of redrock passing by, and brought me back at the end of a long day, ready for the next ride.

You can see more from River on Instagram.

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