Archives: Review

I had the absolute pleasure of diving deep into the world of Gevenalle the weekend of the Cross Crusades PIR race. My goal was to truly understand what the company is all about and how Gevenalle creator Adam Clement lives his life to support cyclocross and improve the components used.

Based out of Portland, OR Gevenalle creates or modifies existing products to work better in the harsh cyclocross conditions. When I got to Gevenalle, Adam’s crew was building the BURD (Blatantly Upgraded Rebranded Derailleur) with his specific engineered modifications to make his derailleur’s stronger. This is to ensure each BURD will push through the mud and grime cross provides as you’re thrashing the course. I had the opportunity to ride Adam’s Rock Lobster Cross during the race; testing out every component Gevenalle makes. Not a single issue even with jam packed Portland mud in every crevice the Rock Lobster had. If there is one way to truly understand why Gevenalle kills the competition it would be race proven testing! And it nailed it!

This last shot really shows off the mud love that was going on. I raced CAT C’s with about 100 racers on the course. There was a slight rain that that turned the mud on the course to ICE!! Not because it was too cold, but because of the thin layer of mud on top of hard packed ground.

The Gevenalle tent was perfectly placed in the middle of the heckling pit where I had a few solid heckles thrown at me. It was frustrating, and encouraging, and hilarious all wrap into a 200 meter stretch! The switch backs were not horrible at all… mixed with the mud that covered them… HORRIBLE!! Lost all traction and was forced to run about half way through them.

My drive train was so packed down I had to stop 3 times to clear out the mud but there was no undoing what was done. It felt like I was peddling through sand even on the fast sections of the course. With that said, Gevenalle’s derailleur’s pushed right through each gear like a dream even with the packed in mud! Impressive!!

Anyways, you can find out all kinds of great write ups and Gevenalle gear review links on Gevenalle’s main page, I highly encourage you to do so. I want to talk about how Adam Clement is a one stop shop of cyclocross radery!!

Step one in Adam’s cyclocross support radness… COFFEE:

Adam got to the race around 7:00 a.m. to set up his portable coffee set up. His grinder filled with FREE beans provided by Stumptown Coffee (thanks Stumptown!!) and ready to caffeinate the field. No coffee requested was turned away. All were wide eyed and ready to race or heckle or both! That mixed in with the fact that we were neighbors to Trusty Switchblade (who Gevenalle has sponsored riders with) that provided VooDoo Donuts… everyone was happily coffee and sugar filled to get the race started!Step two in Adam’s cyclocross support radness… NEUTRAL SUPPORT:

When I say support I really mean full mechanic on duty! Seriously… from blown tires to tune ups to full shifter replacement… Adam nailed it! and in a super timely manner. Folks flocked to him for quick quality repair needs pre/post race. Step three in Adam’s cyclocross support radness… FIELD PHOTOGRAPHER:

In between everything listed above, Adam was all over the course capturing racers in the pain cave. One minute I look back and he is replacing a shifter, the next he’s across the course doing this! Solid!Step four in Adam’s cyclocross support radness… SPONSORED RACERS:

Erika Miranda took 1st in her Athena category, Aunika Miranda took 11th in Womens A’s in her first race since moving up from B’s (she’s 13 and killing it), Peter Newlands team DEVO took first in the Cat B’s (he is 16), just to name a few.    Aunika MirandaThe fifth and potentially the most important step in Adam obtaining full cyclocross support radness… POST RACE BEERS!!:

I couldn’t be more pleased after racing to show up to the Gevenalle tent with warm amazing food and solid Portland beer!! It was a perfect race ender and prepped me to heckle/shoot photos the rest of the day!Adam is seriously one hard ass working dude for the soul purpose of making cyclocross better!! His passion is intoxicating!! His sponsored racers regular step on the podium and range from pro level elite to enthusiastic juniors!! This fact alone speaks for Gevenalle and the solid strong products they have!!

If you haven’t looked into Gevenalle before this write up I highly encourage you to do so now. What you will find is a very affordable, strong, and nearly indestructible cyclocross components that will last you season after season; and if you do just so happen to get too rad and break a Gevenalle part… send it back to Gevenalle to be repaired at minimal cost! That’s pretty great!!

Low cost, high strength, solid mud thrashing… nailed it on all levels Adam!!

RIDE x CREATE

I had the brief pleasure of meeting Vaughn Brown (Creative Director and Founder of Parker Dusseau) at West End Bikes as he walked me through some of his Parker Dusseau pieces.  I gotta say, I’m pretty impressed!

West End Bikes (Portland, OR) just put together a fresh display of Parker Dusseau’s cycling purposed suits. They are sleek and provide the ability to commute looking quite dapper without sacrificing function. There are a few brands out there that offer aesthetically pleasing and functionally designed appareal, but non that provide business ready suits that won’t hinder you on your commute.

Below are a few quick shots as Vaughn informed me of the accents and function of the Commuter Suit… OH!!! and did I mention that the suit is 97% MERINO WOOL!!! Mind. Blown!

Go to Parker Dusseau and check out all the fun facts about their apparel. If you’re in Portland make sure to head over to West End Bikes and get a hands on experience.

I’ve had the pleasure of using the TOPO Designs blacked out Field Bag for the last couple weeks. I found two stellar locations (pink and yellow) to capture the TOPO Field Bag in all of its black beautiful glory, so I shot both. Not even gonna apologize for it!

I’ve used and reviewed a few bags since FOLLY’s inception, this is the first camera’esk bag thus far. It’s smaller, simple, a no brainer choice to use on the go. It has a padded exterior, if you are housing your camera, you won’t have to worry about it getting dinged up as you cruise from spot to spot.

There is a removable divider about center of the interior that helped keep my camera nicely separated from the canned adult beverages I carried with me on these little excursions.

The velcro front makes securing the Field Bag’s large securing flap simple. The velcro is monkey grip strong so you won’t have to worry after flapping the flap shut and it not securing before you hop on your steed and ride out.

There are compression straps, D rings, and clippable locations all over this little guy!! If need be, you could attach a lot more goodies to the Field Bag upon filling the interior… and that’s what I love the most about it!! The availability to expand and keep it simple at the same time.

At one point I had 6 cans of brewskis, lock, camera, film, and my shades inside. Not an issue to hold it all.

As you’ll see below, there is a removable waist strap. When I got the Field Bag in I took that off immediately thinking I’ll never need it. Shortly after I took off via bicycle to cruise around town I noticed the Field Bag constantly shifting to the front. As this is happening I thought… “oh TOPO… you think of everything”. First thing I did when I arrived at mi casa was throw that sucker back on. For anyone that is going to be using this bag in the field… make sure you have that waist strap in place. You’ll be happy you did.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my few words on this solid American made bag by the great folks at TOPO Designs. Their company as a whole hits home for me, being based out of Denver, CO and creating very solid exploration apparel and bags to assist you in getting out there.

Go to TOPO Designs and check out other shots and info on the Field Bag. I promise you won’t be disappointed you did. 

This weekend killed all other weekends! So much fun having everyone out racing these gravel grinding endurance races!

Last year I hosted this race the weekend before the BAMACROSS series took off. Everyone had a blast and loved stretching their legs over the Wheeler Wildlife Refuge 12 mile loop for 3 laps. I wanted to host it again this year and as I was planning, continually exploring my area for farm lands/refuge sections that are acceptable to race, I came across a second location that was perfect to add on as a second race day.

Day 2 Men’s top 3 (1st Patrick Casey, 2nd Jacob Tubbs, 3rd Hardwick Greg)

Brent Marshall BAMACROSS Director

Arthur Wilke

The new race route was pretty secluded and GPS/Phone service was not present. I’m thankful for all that stuck it out and fought through the poor directions to race Saturdays race. Next year I will make it much less challenging to locate.

With that said, everyone was amped to go dominate new gravel roads! I don’t think anyone at that point had ridden this area. I know very few locally that even knew of the spot we were at… and that was the point. Bring folks out to race the unridden! BAMLast year I hosted one race. This year two. “Consistent x Progressive” is a motto that Kyle and I live by with this thing we call FOLLY. I have no background in race directing and maybe that’s why this was so much fun. There was no pressure or guidelines for the race other than, go out, kill it! and win cool stuff from our very rad sponsors!!  I think we ended up raffling off 10 bad ass prizes and that’s after everyone’s podium prizes!

Below are the race results for both days. The images in this recap are some of my favorite from the 55 film shots that made the cut. Go to FOLLY x FILM and check out the rest (DAY ONE, DAY TWO)!

Race results are as follows:

Saturday October 11th Race

Men’s:

1. Chris Edmunds
2. Chad Hubbard
3. Terry Jacks

I’ve had the pleasure of using the Kammok Roo for the last couple weeks. Kyle and I have set up the Roo in all types of city environments to chill, drink coffee, and watch the sun rise/set. The point is not only to chill with friends over a beverage of choice, but to show how easily accommodating the Kammok Roo is in all environments.

The Roo comes in this nice little self containing roll top pouch that keeps it protected from the elements. The pouch is secured to the Roo so you will not have to keep up with it when you pull your Kammok out. What most new people to the Kammok experience will do (wink wink) is open the roll top bag and pull the Roo completely out only to have it flapping in the wind, dangling on the ground getting dirty where your head is about to be. This may not be that big of a deal in some environments, but not all environments are made equal (i.e. I would not want my Roo to be hanging out on the ground where used oil has saturated the concrete).How do you avoid this potential issue?

First make sure your Python Strap’s are set up and secure.Then, making sure you have packed your Roo in a manner that the Kanga Claw carabiners are at the top of the pouch (very easy to do), you walk over to one Python Strap, secure the Roo to it, and walk away. Letting the Roo pull itself out of the compression sack until you reach your other Python Strap. BOOM!! You’re all set up and ready to enjoy your Roo!! OH! and don’t worry about falling through the Roo, It may feel like taking a leap of faith the first time you get in it, but once you do, you won’t want to get out.

The Roo is “made of Kammok’s proprietary diamond ripstop fabric, LunarWave, the Roo is incredibly lightweight, tear resistant, breathable, and roomy enough for two.” – Kammok

With its 500 lbs. copacity, you’ll be able to fit a small family and the dog comfortably. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my two cents. Go check out Kammok’s Instagram page for other rad snaps! Kyle and I have had the pleasure of taking over Kammok’s account this week, posting out take on the Roo.

Being that I’ve just recently built up our FOLLY x BRYANT FaTRoB to ride all over the land for bikepacking trips… the Kammok Roo couldn’t have landed in my lap at a more perfect time.

Thanks a ton Kammok!! You guys are nailing it on all levels. Super pumped to see what you come up with next! Cheers!

RIDE x CREATE

So… these are pretty great! They are my first pair of clippable sneakers and I’m in love! Super comfortable and clip in seamlessly giving you solid control and power transfer without walking around click clacking stiff footed.

Although these are my first clippable sneakers and I have nothing to reference that these are better or worse than other options… I’ve gotta hand it to DZR; they are stiff in all the right places and soft where you want them to be for kicking around town after you ride to your destination.

The DZR Minna’s have a perfectly placed shoe lace retention elastic strap that has proven to be very useful. When I first saw this feature I figured I’d never use it and it’s probably super tight not easily allowing you to stuff your laces into the shoe, thus keeping the lace out of your crank… but I was wrong; very useful and very easy to use.

When I first got these in I easily unscrewed the cleat cover and screwed in Crankbrothers cleats, hopped on my steed, and went to pedaling. At first it’s a weird feeling being so comfortable and clipped in.

Go to DZR and check out the specifics on the Minna’s. If you are in the market for a clippable sneaker, you just found it. If the Minna’s aren’t the style your prefer, no need to worry… DZR has several other options that may fit you better. Cheers!

This heavy hitting speaker nails it on several levels. It’s bluetooth, loud, has a 12 hour battery life, and the capability to charge USB devices.

The JBL Charge is solid for longer rides or bike packing trips. I don’t like to drown out my surroundings with tunes on long rides… rather listen to the wind and nature that I’m cycling in. The Charge works best for me when I get to the camp site or party spots that my not have jamz yet would like too, all while making sure you phone stays well charged. With that said, this sucker will blast tunes very well as you smash the streets. It will definitely help you keep the stoke!

Go to JBL Audio and check out more info on the Charge. It will easily fit in you bottle cage, blast jamz, and keep you powered up for many hours.

Good ol’ Boreas and their space age get rad packs never cease to amaze. They always pack way more than they appear to hold. This is due to everything on the pack having compression areas that expand to fit what you need to bring with you once you step out the door.

Two of my personal favorite features on this pack are the front koala bear’esk pouch that allows me to throw my lock, or a burrito, or camera, or a couple canned beverages, etc. quickly with easy access; it’s very convenient. The second is the signature waterproof upper pocket to protect my phone, camera, or any smaller electronics you don’t want to get fried in a downpour.

As always, you have the sneaky well placed daisy chains that run up each side of the pack. The Excelsior 30 has one loop that extend to give you more room to attach what is needed on your multi-day packing trips.

Speaking of sneaky rad design… there are two bottle holding areas on each side of this pack that if you weren’t looking for them… they may be overlooked. They blend seamlessly into the design of the pack and I love that!

All things breathable and comfortable will be found on this side. I’ve worn a good bit a packs. Boreas’ breathable back pad really does its job well. It helps minimize back sweat so you don’t take off your pack riding around town with a perfect sweat print of were it was.

Ok… now onto what the Excelsior 30 will hold. My personal style for filling a pack is the “throw and go” method. The Excelsior 30 is not build for that type of packing methodology. With that said… all you people out there that LoOOove organization… this thing nails it! It was hard to try and capture the innards but believe me, it has 6 separate compartments that will keep you nice and organized on the go. Not to mention the VERY nicely padded separate laptop section in the back.

I’ve loaded this pack down with 12 bottles of adult beverages (18 if canned), camera, laptop, lock, rain/wind jacket, change of shirt, cap, charging devices, over night goods (tooth brush, deo), change of shoes (from my Giro’s after riding), and hit the town for a couple days without a problem.

To truly test a new pack (in my opinion) you need to load it down and go on an over night ride sesh. After about 40 miles or so, popping in one place to the other, you will start to feel how a new pack will respond to your riding style and backpack holding needs. The Excelsior 30 passed the test with flying colors.

Thanks Boreas for making bad ass packs!! I will enjoy this one for many moons. Go to Boreas and check out the Excelsior 30. This one is in “Truckee Green” that most of my friends around town have started calling Ninja Turtle Green (Editor Note: Check our IG with #boreasninjaturtlepack to see of this pack in action).

**Also… if you missed the Boreas Lagunitas review, feel free to check it out now (aka #boreasironmanpack)

RIDE x CREATE

Another rad weekend of mountain thrashery brought to you by Blevins Bicycle Co. x Giant Bicycles. Such a great time. Mountain bikes (a.k.a. squishy speed machines, a.k.a. no limit BRAAAAPmobiles) are so effing good! They’re like… big ass cross bikes.

Being that I’m new to the mountain scene I invited Davis Yarbrough to escort me around Alabama State Park Monte Sano. So many great technical trails. We rode pretty hard for about 2 hours and only hit up 16 miles. It was so good!

Alright… on to the Giant Anthem X 29er 3 review, comparing it to the Anthem 27.5 3. Right off the bat I noticed I was riding a 29er vs. a 27.5. Very different feel in this bike model for sure. The set up on the entry level Anthem 29er model is $500 less ($1,750 vs. $2,250) than it’s entry level brother in 27.5; this made a big difference. Why Giant did this… I’m not sure. 

I gotta be honest with this one. When I first hit the trail I was not amped on the Anthem X. Comparing the 27.5 to 29 back to back… you will not enjoy the change. I was up higher on the 29 (or atleast felt like I was) with downgraded components. Really it’s like riding a totally different bike so it’s a bit hard to compare the two even though they’re in the same family. So lets not.

What I loved about the Anthem X 29er 3:

– So… FAST! The rolling momentum just kept on! I picked a line. I dominate that line! It was so rad.

– You will roll over anything… ANYTHING! Climbing/Descending… it handled both very well.

All in all… about half way into the ride I adapted to the change. It was great. Davis and I would whip around the mountain laughing all the way (not really… I was wheezing most of the time). I loved being out on a squishy speed machine thrashing new trails.

I hope you will go check out the Giant Bicycles Anthem X 29er as well as the Anthem 27.5 and develop your own opinion. They will both serve you well. My opinion for purchase… if you have an extra $500 and wanna get into a bad ass entry level full suspension mountain bike… go with the Anthem 27.5.  If you’re on a budget or a hardcore 29er fan and would rather take that extra $500 saved on the 29er vs. 27.5 to upgrade components… the Anthem X would work well for that.  Jah blessed!

RIDE x CREATE

As soon as I saw this bag drop I knew I wanted it! Simple design with a wide ass mouth to house all my junk while keeping said junk totally water proofed.

Some of the more valuable features I’ve found are the padded back that I’ve learned to love with other Chrome Industries bag like the Yalta (for reference… it’s the only other bag I’ve owned with the same backing), the “wide ass mouth”, the padded laptop sleeve, the longer handles (if I were to fill up the bag to its capacity [no easy task] I still have an easy way to pick it up. It’s the simple things), the front buckle clip has a little extended metal piece PERFECT for cracking open my beverage of choice, and the strength to weight ratio. This bag is so light and strong (aka Knurled Welded).

If you look closely to the two clips on each side of the rolltop you’ll see they are alternating clips. What does this mean? It means that you can either utilize securing the rolltop the way it comes… OR you can roll it and clip it to itself thus utilizing the side straps to wrap around the front to secure whatever packages you may have. I was blown away when I found this out and have yet to capture it being utilized this way.

When I first loaded the bag for a longer ride It appeared to have a limitation of separation within the main compartment. This was easily overcome when you look at the padded laptop sleeve as another compartment to house your cell chargers, wallet, keys, and so on. It does really well to keep electronics protected from those ice cold cans of adult beverage you don’t want sweating all over your cables or computer.

Really this bag embodies everything I love in a bag. Style, easy access, large capacity, and the throw x go mentality that works really well for my “organization” skills all while keeping protected from the elements.

Go to Chrome Industries and check out other snaps and features. You can also follow along on our Instagram and look up #FOLLYxCHROME for other Chrome products we’ve reviewed. I will be using the Knurled Welded Excursion Rolltop 37 exclusively so make sure to follow along to check out all the ways this bag can be used and abused. OH… did I mention this bag is covered for LIFE!! FOR. LIFE!! Chrome… always nailing it.

RIDE x CREATE