Matt’s Gnome-Fest Raffle Winner – “Babe the Blue Ox”

There’s a wild mountain bike festival every September called Gnome-Fest in the north-woods of Wisconsin and last year Surly Bicycles donated a Pugsley frame and fork to be raffled off to support the local trail group at Levis-Trow Mounds. As luck would have it……. one of our amigos (Matt Sylvester) won the raffle and has built it up into a bike that we’ve named Babe – the Blue Ox.

This project started out as a stock white pugs. Matt had Fred Lange apply ‘Park Tool’  blue powder coat and the build was on! I sent him some Gnome-Fest Stickers and Matt started to collect components and build wheels. Surly’s new drilled Rolling Darryls mated to a pair of Larrys along with a carbon White Bros. fork, keep Babe rolling.

Here’s a short interview with Matt about his – Blue Ox –

G~ What kind of drive train are you running?

MS~ I’m currently running a 1×9 gearing 32 up front and 11-34t out back. XT derailuer and shifter. I’m using the Origin8 9×2 cranks and a FSA Platium BB. I’m saving my XT thumb shifters and 7 spd cassett for running a BFL. I’m using a WHub to accomodate the White Brothers fork. It’s kinda racist “White Brothers”?!

G~ Did you build the bike to match your eyes or do you just have the blues or what?

MS~ I went with Blue, becouse I picked up a pair of light blue grips at CAMBA Fest. Blue also makes my eyes POP!

G~ Have you always been too sexy for your shirt?

MS~ I taught Justin Timberlake how to bring sexy back.

G~ Enough about you….Tell us about how Babe Rides!

MS~ The Babe is quick steering and likes to get some air under it’s shoes. I sort of turn my brain off and just keep it rolling and everything is good.

G~ One last question, Matt….How does Paul Bunyan feel about you riding Blue?

MS~ Bunyan feels oddly comfortable mounting an Ox.

Matt added this at the end of our conversation…

There are some people that need to be thanked.

-Gomez for putting on the best festival.
-Sov and Surly for offering up the frameset and Stickers.
-Jack @ Ediscount for denying DSO the WHUB so I could get it.
-Thomas @ Angery Catfish for building the wheels.
-Morgan for being just as excited as I was everytime Brown dropped off a box with parts.