27.5+

We talk to filmmaker Jay Ritchey about his 27.5+ Tumbleweed Prospector, the camera gear he carried on a recent tour of the Peru Divide, and find out about the rack and bikepacking bags he custom made to accommodate it.

With Eurobike in fully swing, Bombtrack Bicycle Company has a few of its new bikes on display. We had a chance to gather some intel from what looks to be an impressive 2018 model year lineup. Most interesting to bikepackers are the adventure-centric 29+ Beyond+ ADV, the full carbon Hook EXT-C, and the all new road-plus Audax… see details here.

Surly updates the ECR, including a rigid-specific geometry and the choice of 29+ or 27.5+ wheels, depending on frame size. Meanwhile, the Troll goes Pea Lime Pie Soup and there’s a Receptacle for your Moloko.

Niner has just released the latest drool-worthy steel hardtail with a bikepacking predisposition. The all new Niner Sir 9 was reengineered from the ground up with a mount-laden Reynolds 853 steel frame that fits 27.5+ or 29er wheels and tires…

The all new Santa Cruz Chameleon is capable of shifting from a trail rig to a bikepacking mule using an elegant swappable dropout system — and 29er or 27.5+ hoops. It’s not too shabby to look at either. What do you think?

Following the Troll’s recent revamp, it was only a matter of time before Surly’s 29er all-rounder, the Ogre, underwent a similar transformation. Read on to discover details of its 2017 incarnation and thoughts on its frameset, set up with 27.5+ wheels. Also included are musings on the relative merits of different Plus sizes, depending on the style of your backcountry explorations.

Over the last year, full-suspension 27.5+ bikes have exploded into the marketplace. At this years Fall Cyclofest demo event, this was especially evident. Here are five we rode that possess some serious backcountry exploration potential…

At SaddleDrive this week, Surly reintroduced two of their classics — each completely overhauled with a few very interesting features. We had a chance to look them over and take a few rides… here are our initial impressions.

Lines ignored. Corners railed. Roots degreased. Rock gardens manicured. Are trails being over-tamed by full-suspension plus tire bikes such as the Salsa Pony Rustler? Preface: this article is one part opinion, two parts review…

Sometimes I think back to my childhood, when I returned hastily from school to board the USS Enterprise with Captain Kirk and “explore strange new worlds, to seek other forms of life and civilization… to go where no man has gone before.”

We were obviously happy to see a bikepacking rig win the top award at NAHBS 2016… and we’ve been drooling over this steel 27.5+ hardtail ever since. So here’s a detailed look at the build kit, and a QA with Black Cat’s founder, metalmaster, and builder, Todd Ingermanson.

In August 2015, I was lucky to get my hands on one of the first pairs of pre-production ARC 45 rims. Easton’s design team let them slide with the promise that I’d get some photos of them in use, in the wild. I was never expected to write a review, but after almost 4000km of hard, loaded riding, I feel compelled to do so. Its combination of features, size options, and a competitive price, sets the full ARC rim series apart as a potential “staple” mountain bike and bikepacking rim.