I made a trip to what I like to call the belly of the beast, Schaumburg, Illinois, yesterday to browse groovy cycling wares at the CABDA Midwest Expo. CABDA has been around for a long, long time. Way back in the last century, the shop that I worked at (ABC Cyclery) used to prep and […]
Archive | FatBikes
Wyatt Maverick Product Spotlight by Aristotle Peters
I am delighted to bring to you the new and improved Wyatt Maverick. They have completely redesigned the rear end of the bike with a cnc’d seatstay yoke to match their chainstay yoke. This is all matched to rectangular stays and machined dropouts. This is all beautifully manufactured from blocks and tubes in their new […]
Defiance Frameworks AK Bike Project # 4 Review – By Travis Hubbard
Our Fatbassador to Alaska and the Yukon Territories shares his thoughts on the Defiance Frameworks AK Bike Project # 4 in a long term Bike Review – ala choy
2020 Kona Woo – Long Term Review by -JP Syverud-
This past November we introduced you to the new Kona Woo Fat Bike. The version we received came with the 12-speed NX Eagle kit. Here is the link to the first review article for all the specs and initial thoughts. https://fat-bike.com/2019/11/first-look-2020-kona-woo-by-jp-syverud. I decided to test this bike out on every style of trail condition. Someday I […]
Why That Bike? – John Trusky’s Review of the RSD Sergeant V3
This article originally appeared on the Everyday Cycles (where John purchased his RSD Sergeant with his own hard-earned money) website and is used with permission. The Sergeant has been in RSD’s line up since 2016, occupying the niche that’s known to us as a mountain bike, the regular trail ripper for regular riders to have […]
First Look – 2020 Kona Woo – by JP Syverud
The fine folks from Kona bikes sent the Fat-Bike Test Labs a 2020 Kona Woo fat bike for some testing. This is the overlooked middle child between their Wo and the Wozo in their fat bike line. This model is spec’d out with SX Eagle and has a rigid carbon fork with three-pack cage mounts […]
2020 Giant Yukon 1 Review – by Tony Grande
One day after work, before dinner was on the table, I check my email to see that Tio Gomez sent a call out to the Bike Black Ribbon Test Squad asking if anyone wanted the opportunity to test out the Giant Yukon, why, and what size. Knowing that the Yukon rolls on 27.5 wheels is […]
Is it time to Upgrade Your Legacy Fat-Bike? by Jeff Price
Editor’s Note – we should probably try to set some parameters for what we’re referring to when we talk about a ‘legacy fat-bike’. Legacy fat-bikes usually have a drive train with more than one front chainring. They generally have quick-release skewers instead of thru-axles. They might have a fork with front axle spacing that is […]
2020 – 9:ZERO:7 Lynx Carbon Fatbike News Release
Building on the Original Whiteout Carbon The following is a news release from 9:Zero:7 Bikes… Anchorage, AK. October 30, 2020 At 9:ZERO:7, we take fatbikes very seriously. In 2013, our Carbon Whiteout led the industry in high performance racing fat bikes and we wanted to make sure that our new Lynx was an improvement on […]
Reader’s Ride(s) – Quadangle Fat-Bike
Custom Quadrangle Fat! made in Kalispell Montana.
Otso Announces Four New Flavors for the Voytek
Our amigos at Otso just announced four new colors for the (plus+fat) Voytek with new graphics and new drive train options that feature Shimano and Sram 12-speed propulsion systems. The Voytek hasn’t changed from the bike that we loved both times that we published reviews in 2017 and 2018. We’ve tested the Voytek with both […]
Product Spotlight – Defiance Frameworks AK Bike Project #4 – by Travis Hubbard
It’s not often that hand-built custom fat bikes arrive in the test hopper at Fat-Bike.com. I got a message from Daniel Countiss, owner of Defiance Frameworks, that he would like to have one of his titanium bikes reviewed last spring. I jumped right on it and contacted Gomez, we’re all in. Defiance Frameworks is based […]
Borealis Tejon Review – by A. Amstutz
Alice & the Borealis Tejon It’s been a busy summer. Parts of the family spent time in Central America, others spent time in northern Ontario, and some did the premiere midwest mountain bike road trip. Between all the coming and going, we still made time to hit our local trails and what’s left of our […]
First Look – Borealis Tejon Fat-Bike – by Andy & Alice Amstutz
It’s been a while since the Black Bike Ribbon Test Pilot – Youth Division was put to work but with the recent release from Borealis Fat Bikes, Uncle Gomez hired Alice to test out their 24in kid’s fat bike….The Tejon. Kids get older and grow faster than a good night’s sleep so this’ll probably be […]
Borealis Telluride Review – by Ron Stawicki
PUTTING SOME TIME ON THE BOREALIS TELLURIDE In early March, I received this Colorado designed beast of a fat bike from the gnome master himself, Gomez, to put through the paces for a couple months. You can find his initial impressions and unpacked review here. My duties were to feel the bike out in two […]
The Danger Gnome Podcast – Jamison Stachel from Alpine Valley Resort
On this episode of the DGP we ‘Ask Adam’ a question from Eric Owsley. Eric hails from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. After that, we focus in on the subject of Ski Area Bike Access with the General Manager of Alpine Valley Resort, Jamison Stachel. We close the show with band and cult leader, […]
RSD Mayor Review – By Andy Amstutz
For the past two months, I’ve been riding the newest version of the RSD Mayor Aluminum fat bike, appropriately named V4 (version 4). If my local riding crew is any indicator of how much I enjoyed riding and testing this fat bike, I’d bet they’d all agree that I was thoroughly stoked during the time […]
Quiring Rhymes with Bike Bling
Editor’s Note: There are so many builders of exquisite bicycles located all over the US that can’t take the time or expense to hit NAHBS every year. Other shows like the one in Philly draw regional builders. The great lakes or the mid-west area doesn’t have a regional handbuilt show and it’s been a while […]
Borealis Telluride Preview
Back in February, we received a Borealis Telluride demo to ride and review. We took the bike down into the shop and built it up just in time for our product tester (Ronsta) to be headed out of town on vacation. Since the bike was the size I ride, I decided upon a short term […]
My New Trek Farley – By Will Ross
(Editor’s Note) – The following is from our old friend Will Ross! Will recently made a career move to the Trek Store of Anchorage and that means that he’s riding a new bike! We asked Will if he could write a story about his new whip and the rather fantastic results are below. I have […]
Giant Bicycles Jumps into the Fat-Bike Arena with The YUKON!
Giant Bicycles has finally joined just about everyone else and is offering a fat-bike called the Yukon. It will come in two models the Yukon 1 and the Yukon 2. The two new models are both aluminum with 27.5 wheels. MSRP is $1630 for the Yukon 2 and $2100 for the Yukon 1. Yukon 1 […]
First Look – RSD Mayor v4 – By Andy Amstutz
I like being medium. Medium is good. Vertically…I’m medium. I’m about halfway between two extremes of height. In other words, I’m average. Doors open up for those above me and those below but recently, one opened up for me in the form of a fat bike to test and review. Medium has its benefits […]
Spy Photos – Quiring Cycles – Project Abominable
Last time that I was up to visit Scott & Christina Quiring we talked a lot about 27.5 fat-bike wheels and Scott told me that he was working on a bike specifically designed to run the new sized wheels with the new gargantuan Terrene Tires 4.5″ Cake Eaters…(Project Abominable) We left an asset in place […]
Builder Profile – Wyatt Bicycle Company – LaCrosse Wisconsin
Just before the Holidays hit (with a thud), I day tripped out to where the cheese curtain meets the mighty Mississippi River to visit the Wyatt Bicycle Company in LaCrosse. Back in the day, LaCrosse hosted mtb races out at a private campground called Blueberry Springs. Way back in like nineteen 89? a bunch of us […]
Reader’s Ride(s) – JP’s Ti REEB DonkaDonk
JP gets REEB’ed by JP Syverud Well, it finally happened. My dream has finally come true. I got REEB’d! I have always wanted to have a custom fat bike built just for me. I sold a few bikes and other things lying around the house just to gather enough acorns to get this thing built. Be warned, this isn’t for the faint of heart. It took some sacrifice, but in the […]
Business Spotlight – Bearclaw Bicycle Co. – Michigan
The final stop of my December trip to visit three Michigan bicycle companies landed me in Traverse City, Michigan. I made arrangements to meet at Einstein Cycles with both Keith Conway, who manages the shop and Jason Lowetz who owns both Einstein Cycles and the Bearclaw Bicycle Company. Einstein Cycles (Jason) launched the Bearclaw Bicycle Co. […]
Builder Profile – Quiring Cycles – Free Soil, MI
The last time that I’d visited Scott and Christina Quiring at their shop in Free Soil Michigan was back in the spring of 2012. Free Soil sits between hundreds of thousands of acres of National Forest and one of the best Lake Michigan beaches that I’ve ever ridden. It’s a veritable Fat-Bike Paradise. I’ve been fortunate to […]
Builder Profile – RAD Bicycle Co.
Earlier in December, I visited three Michigan bicycle companies on a short press junket and this is the first story that I’ll write from those travels. My first stop on the trip was to RAD Bicycle Company which is run by Matt Craig and Mark Major in Pinckney Michigan. RAD is focused on making handmade steel plus […]
Fatback Corvus FLT – One Year Review
A year has passed since I first rode my Fatback Corvus FLT for the first time. I swear that time just goes by faster and faster when you’re having fun. The road that set me on the path to riding a Fatback Corvus FLT goes back even further than that, but you probably started reading […]
2019 Surly Ice Cream Truck Review – By Tony Grande
Sometimes I’m not sure of who I am. A father, a husband, a surveyor, or just Kato’s roadie who drinks for free (even if it means stealing L7’s beer, but that’s a story for another time). We all have different parts to play throughout our lives, sometimes balancing out multiple facets of ourselves within […]
Road Trip 2018 – Visit to Why Cycles – Carbondale Colorado
This is the second report from a Road Trip to points west of the Mississippi last month. After spending a rainy weekend in Fruita, to visit some friends, I made my way to Carbondale Colorado to get a peek behind the Titanium Curtain at Why Cycles. It poured rain all the way there and my […]
2019 Salsa Beargrease Carbon X01 Eagle Review – By Leia Schneeberger
It’s been a long and sometimes strange journey that’s led to my review of the new Salsa Beargrease. Back in March of 2017, I had just won the Fat Bike Birkie and right after I rolled over the finish line was when I first met Gomez. He was standing there, staring at me with […]
Framed Minnesota LTD Review – by DosRenshos
First things first. Fat bikes and skate parks do not mix. (with my skill-set) Well…more to the point, super knobby fat bike tires (look’n at you Terrene Wazias!) and skate parts do not mix; for the general reason of causing me to scrub too much speed up the transition, further causing me to stall out before […]
Otso Voytek Plus/Fat Review By Seth Bell
Back in July, we received a beautiful Otso Voytek Plus-Fat rig for review. If you missed the introduction and specs, you can find that post here: https://fat-bike.com/2018/08/first-look-otso-voytek-plus-fat-rally-sport-by-seth-bell/ Now that Summer is officially in the rear-view and the crisp days of Autumn are here (my favorite!), we wanted to share with you what a few months of […]
First look at Surly’s New Plutonium Sparkle Green Machine AKA the 2019 Ice Cream Truck By Tony Grande
So, there I was, in the middle of a serious negotiation for a new camper. The wife and I were working the salesman over, trying to better our trade-in when I happened to look at my phone and see a message from everyone’s favorite uncle, Tio Gomez! “Any interest in testing out the new ICT?” […]
Why Cycles Big Iron Review
You may ask yourself who is Why? Why Cycles is a fairly new company, being about 2 years old. Their focus is making high-performance, titanium bicycles, with their newest release being the Big Iron fat bike. Why may be fairly new, but the company is made up a number of individuals that have extensive […]
Product Spotlight – 2019 Framed Alaskan – by JP Syverud
Product Spotlight- Framed Alaskan Carbon By JP Syverud The story of how I became the test pilot that gets to field test the new Framed Alaskan Carbon goes back to last winter. Tio Gomez and I were sitting at the bar at the Sawmill Saloon up in Seely, Wisconsin. It was the day […]
First Look – Otso Voytek – Plus/Fat – By Seth Bell
Otso Cycles hails from Burnsville, MN., which is a long ways from where the brand’s identity is rooted. In Finnish mythology, Otso is the Spirit of the Bear; the noble king of the forest, a spirit of strength and courage, and also a relative with whom we share our adventures in and out of the […]
Framed LTD Bruh! by DosRenshos
I had just hooked my daughter up with a brand new 29er, and was feeling some serious bike envy, when I received a timely phone call from a certain Mr. Gomez. My pleading instruction for my next bike to test was “gimme somethin baller” so I could stop feeling so left out of the cool […]
2019 Salsa Beargrease Carbon XO1 Eagle First Ride Impressions
We got our hands on Salsa’s ‘top of the line’ Beargrease a couple of weeks ago. The idea was to assign a test pilot with race credentials and experience with riding the previous model of Salsa’s proven (fat bike category) race whip. So we sent the Beargrease to Leia Schneeberger. Leia: aka – the […]
Salsa’s 2019 Fat-Bikes Released
The new Salsa Fat-Bikes have arrived! Today we’re here to share what will likely be, a hot ticket come this holiday shopping season….the 2019 Salsa Fat-Bikes. BEARGREASE – completely redesigned for 2019 The Geometry of the 2019 Beargrease gets a subtle tweak with the goal of not turning off any of the folks that already know […]
Product Spotlight Why Cycles Big Iron
The Big Iron, is the newest addition to the fleet over at Why Cycles. Named after a Marty Robbins ballad, this titanium bike has our stoke levels off the charts. Last Monday, a pair of Big Irons’ showed up at our doorstep. A size medium, for Becky to test, and a size XL for […]
Fat Camp – Interview With Adam Miller of Why Cycles
Where the hell ya been? Some of you may have been wondering about the Fat Camp podcast and what the heck Captain Ken and his sidekick, Andy, are up to these days. Let’s just say it’s been an interesting spring…but the boys are back with some technical talk about fat and plus bikes. In […]
Salsa Blackborow Review by DosRenshos
The Family Truxter. The Shaggin Wagon. The Grocery Getter. I’m a wagon guy so the idea of this bike appealed to me right off the bat. Plenty of room out back to toss a bunch of junk in and go. I made it a point to use it for as many local errands as I […]