warm December day

warm December day, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

66* on December 3?

66* on December 3?, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Surly Krampus: Ridden!

One of the happy denizens the Surly Empire happens to live not to far from me over in Decorah, IA. He also happens to be a giant, like me! Aaand, it so happens that he just took delivery of his very own special Krampus! Joy! So I says, can I ride it? Sure! Says the giant gnome. Color me happy. See, for those who don’t pay attention to the intarwebs, or the cycling press probably don’t know that Surly has done it again. First, the Karate Monkey, then the Pugsley, and the Big Dummy. They have this knack for creating bikes that fill a niche, or create a whole new niche. Obviously, the niche we’re interested in here is the Fat bike realm. The one created by what can arguably be called one of the greatest mountain bikes made, the Pugsley.

Those 4″ wide tires opened up a whole new world of terrain to us adventurous types. Snow, sand, lake shores, river banks, river beds, open forests, serious rock crawling. It was [ and frankly IS ] cool. I love what they can do, where fat bikes can go. Supremely capable bicycles for sure. About the only issue though, is that pushing those honkin’ big tires around can get kind of old and tiring after a while.

I heard a few rumors of a fat 29″ tire roaming around the QBP facilities, then I saw some of the first grainy images, and I got real interested. I knew that I’d be real interested in what came out of these thoughts from the diabolical [to your wallet] minds of Surly. At this point we know what this was, and the fat bike geeks and 29er geeks alike are just itching to get their hands on one.

And I just did. So what’s it ride like? Pretty damned good. Pretty damned good. Rolling through town, it felt pretty much like any old fat bike. Big squishy tires, a bit of hum, but rolled faster cause there’s less resistance. If you ride Nates, you know what I’m talking about! Once the tires hit dirt[hero dirt no less!] things got decidedly more interesting. The trail went up, over loose shaley limestone. The kind of climb that on a normal bike is difficult. Fat bike no problem, and the same thing with the Krampus. It climbs really quite well. The lighter tires certainly make climbing an easier chore on this bike. Normally, I’m a fan of short chainstay bikes. In order to fit the big ass 3.0 Knard’s, Surly had to lengthen out the stays on this bike. Yet it remains well balanced. Bonus there. Once up top, the trail mellows and begins dancing through the trees. With the 30″ bars this bike had, I was a bit worried about my knuckles. That width was nice on the climb, but here? I dunno. I shouldn’t have been worried though. the bar width was minor, and once used to it, was fine. I was expecting a bike with such a slack headangle to a be a bit slow in the twisties, kind of like the Mukluk I own. Sure wasn’t though. I had to keep in mind the bar width, but that was the only thing slowing me down there.

Slowing down on this bike is something that I doubt will happen much, especially when you get it pointed down hill. This thing just flat out RIPS. Other than the few FS bikes I’ve ridden, this is the most fun bike going downhill that I’ve had the pleasure of riding. Stable. Steers from the hip with just a flick of the bars. Comfortable, confidence inspiring in the bike feel. The Krampus is easily lofted over roots and drops. If you have the room to let this bike free, you will be quite well rewarded. It wants to go fast. Just let it go. It won’t bite you. Good luck with your impatience. Now that I’ve had a bite, its gonna be even harder for me to wait.

sun dappled

sun dappled, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

morning trail ride

morning trail ride, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

I have had more than a few Singular fans request when a Kite will be available here in the states. Due to the purchase of the Osprey frames, I wasn't able to bring in Kites in any significant numbers. Sam has several in England though, and he'd love to get them over here into the States and ridden! As such, lets get some over here! Fact of the matter is, the same goes for the Swifts. I'm out of the Larges and Mediums, and Sam has several he'd like to get over here. To do that I need your help. Half down on the Kite/Swift will pay for it and the shipping over here. When they get here, we'll get the rest of the frame cost covered and I'll get them shipped right out to you. To start the process, click one of the corresponding Paypal buttons below. In the comment fields be sure to let me know what size you need! Time line for this should be on the sooner side. I want delivery of these to come with in the first few weeks of cyclocross season.

Singular Kite

Singular Swift

Lets get this going!

morning ride.

morning ride., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Gryphon top

Gryphon top, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

gryphon, side view

gryphon, side view, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Gryphon, front 3/4 view.

Gryphon, front 3/4 view., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Singular Osprey's and Gryphon's: IN STOCK!

We have both the new Osprey lugged road bike, and the Gryphon's in stock right now! The Osprey is the newest frame in the Singular line up. Its got quite a few really nice features. First, of course is the classic lugged frame, and matching flat crown fork. Interesting thing, in this age of oversize this and stiffer that, the head tube is a 1" unit. Forks are available in either threaded or threadless options. Build up a retro mod bike, or something fully retro. Like all Singulars, builds are aimed at being practical. Tire clearance, to say the least is generous. Set up as a winter bike, this will take full fenders, with 28c tires. Run those durable big tires with out worry! Take the fenders off, and its easy to get the fantastic Rivendell Jack Brown on the bike. This certainly expands the range of the bike. The Osprey certainly fits into the "everything bike" theory. Road? Of course! Gravel and Dirt? Won't slow you down at all. Even mellow singletrack can be tackled with this bike. Price for these frames is a reasonable $700. But since I have more than a few, and I'd LOVE to move them out into your hands and bring in more Singulars, I have an intro price of $580. OR I can include an installed threaded Velo Orange headset or a threadless Ritchey Pro for $640. Your choice. I've also got The coveted, mystically smooth riding Gryphon drop bar 29er in stock too! These make of course great mountain bikes, or some thing that can be used as a gravel crusher. A nice upgrade that the Gryphons have now are rack mounts on the rear. Set your rig up with Salsa's minimalist rack and do some S24O's! Price on these is $590. A reminder, I have a couple small, and a couple Large Hummingbirds in stock that I need to move out too! $450 takes those off my hands and gets them into yours! If you're looking for a super quick, agile singletrack slayer, set one of these up with a 650b/29" wheel combo, and drop all your riding buddies! I'd like to move as many of these as I can so I can order up more Swifts, and bring in some Kites as well! If you know someone who's looking for a really nice, distinctive rig, have them give me a call!

gravel in morning is as good as granola.

gravel in morning is as good as granola., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

singular osprey.

singular osprey., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Untitled, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

fat bike ride

fat bike ride, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

A beer. A dog. A fat bike.

A beer. A dog. A fat bike., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

A beer. A dog. A fat bike.

Easter weekend ride.

Easter weekend ride., a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Easter weekend ride.

Mi madre's new city biek!

Mi madre's new city biek!, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Mi madre's new city biek!

Untitled, a photo by unclefuzzy_ss on Flickr.

Swift XL frame sale!

Good morning! I'm sitting on some first gen XL Swift frames I'd love to send out to some new owners! Cool, you say! But how much? $500 cheap! Standard prep included, I face the headtube and disctabs, as well as coat the tubes with frame saver.



Need to make some room, pick one of these up soon!