I’ve been lusting after REEB’s Hooptie since it premiered a couple of years back. The Hooptie is a blend of a mid/long-travel hardtail along with a classic Klunker. After the editorial board gave the green light to launch Project Klunkedelic (this here series of articles), I contacted Tim at REEB to see if we could buy one. That’s how stoked I am about this bike.
The Hooptie is like a cataclysmic collision of progressive mountain-bike geometry, singlespeeding, and (dare I say) #klunkybuttsauce! The wait time for a new Hooptie pushed past this summer, so I asked Tim if REEB had any demo bikes that we could borrow so we could feature the Hooptie in our new column. Tim Let us borrow his personal bike so we could share it here. So here’s a little introduction to Tim’s Hooptie!
- Frame – REEB barn built 4130 Chromoly steel, 29” mountain bike Ideal for skids, wheelies, bar hopping, and handlebar rides.
- Fork – MRP Ribbon Coil 130mm Travel
- Handlebar – REEB Hooptie Bar #motoaf
- Stem – BroMax
- Headset – Cane Creek
- Brakes – Shimano SLX Hydros
- Post – KS Dropper w/remote
- Saddle – Chromag
- Cranks – RaceFace Turbine
- Wheels – Stan’s ZTR Flow EX 29″ rims laced to a Sram Hub upfront and a Surly Hub outback
- Tires – Teravail Honcho 29×2.6 Zapatos
- Grips – Chunky ODI Lock-ons
The Day that the bike got delivered, I tore it out of the box and assembled it like a kid on Christmas morning. The next morning I took it to our local twisties and got familiar. The first ride with a demo bike is usually hit or miss. I tend to get excited and bolt out the door without tools and my brain gets stuck on all of the little tweaks that need to be made to make everything work just right for me. This time, I put a multi-tool in my pocket and because of the simple nature of any good Klunker, I had the Hooptie sorted out in the first couple of miles. There’s something magic about a steel bike that get’s stronger when you ride it on dirt and the Hooptie is no exception. The first thing that I noticed about the Hooptie was how easily it manuals. The hooptie is confidence inspiring on small jumps and drops. It had me launching off stuff that I usually bypass. It made all of my gnome senses tingle with delight!
I took a little road trip with the Hooptie and that’s where I wrote this. I’m sitting at a campsite grilling some brats after a couple of days of riding at some of my favorite trails. I spent some quality time at Levis and Nine Mile with the Hooptie. Tomorrow, I’m headed to some new trail that’s supposed to be super flowy. I can’t wait to ride Mayor’s Playground on this thing! We’ve got Tim’s bike for another five weeks…but in ‘Summertime’ that’s gonna feel like two – (time flies faster in the Summer). So any of you REEB Super-fans that are nearby (That means you JP) that want to ride a REEB Hooptie should just hit me up and we’ll let you scratch that itch. I’ll be posting some final thoughts in a total Rock Opera about what the next month is like with the Hooptie. So stay tuned to this Klunkedelic station!
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