We bobbed down Brizzle way earlier this week. Amidst plenty of charming retro guff, there was plenty of super modern stuff on display too.
Here’s the highlights…
No big product updates here – the news is all about increased availability. With Saddleback as the UK distributor (only just – the ink on the deal is still drying!) you’ll soon be able to order from Saddleback’s stock. In the first instance the focus will be on their brake pads, with brake set availability to follow. They’re now making the Maxima in black too, because apparently some people don’t like shiny things. Who are these people?
ENVE had the Fray all-road bike and MOG gravel bike on display.
The max tyre clearance on the Fray is 40 millimetres. ENVE says a lot of people will take it on smooth gravel, but they don’t sell it as a gravel bike, because they have a gravel-specific bike – the MOG.
The MOG has clearance for 50 millimetre tyres, reflecting the tyre choices ENVE has seen in US gravel racing, where up to 2.2in mountain bike tyres are not uncommon.
It’s got 12 millimetre axles on both the front and rear. On display the bikes were fitted with wheels that have a new hub called an ‘inner drive hub’. ENVE says it’s an all new design based on years of working with DT Swiss or I9 or Chris King – ‘we took the best of all those things that we’ve learned and developed our own hub, which is called an inner drive hub’. It’s on a ratchet system and the ratchets can be tuned to anywhere between a 40 tooth ratchet up to a 100 tooth ratchet, depending on the level of engagement that you want.
The MOG uses a T47 bottom bracket, same as all the ENVE bike models. ‘We use a T47, which has become one of the more popular bottom brackets just due to the reliability It’s a threaded bottom bracket and we just had really good success with it.’
Cabling is internally routed, but there are ports for if somebody wants to run a Di2 wire or a mechanical system. The headset is what ENVE calls ‘in-route’, where you see no cables to the front of the bike. ‘So everything is routed internally, which keeps the front end very clean, more aerodynamic, and it’s just a really nice look’. There’s also a bypass routing option, using a spacer that fits underneath the stem, for those who want it routed externally.
Behind the bottle cage there’s a cargo box. ENVE makes a couple of neoprene carriers or bags that fit inside the cargo area so you can stash your stuff in there.
If you want to add a dropper the bikes take a 27.2 post, and ENVE has their own dropper post that will fit.
One of ENVE’s pro racers, Alexi Vermeulen, likes to change back and forth between one by and two by depending on the course he’s racing, so you can fit a front derailleur (or drop stop) on the MOG if desired.
Showing its ‘more than smooth gravel’ intentions, there’s a substantial bolt on chainstay protector, as well as another protector under the down tube.
A new brand for Saddleback, expect to see more Rudy Project helmets and eyewear making their way into bike shops in the coming months. This Italian brand makes all its own eyewear (they’re not part of the Luxottica behemoth that makes almost every other pair of specs you’ll find in the world). This means they’re particularly able to offer a range of options for prescription glasses wearers. I got the run down on these from Simone from Rudy Project – note that not all are pictured because there weren’t samples of each. Check their website if you want a clearer picture of the options.
We have, in total, 7 families of different solutions so not 7 models, but 7 families of solutions for prescription wearers. So, RX Direct is the family where we cut lenses with our partner laboratories. So, direct in the frame, this is really the peak of the technology because we do it with our material called Impact X which is an unbreakable material.
It’s photochromic, so the colour changes automatically according to the light. And you can have this solution for any kind of prescription wearer. Very light, super performance. Of course, this is also the most expensive solution because it’s the most technological one. So, for people who want to spend a little bit less, we have a second family which is RX inserts.
So, before we move on to the RX Inserts, which I think is something that’s a little bit more familiar to people – they’re used to getting that kind of clip-in extra lens. The RX Direct, that basically is just going to look like a pair of prescription glasses like you might get from the opticians, but you’d have made them and it’s this impact resistant lens and it’s also photochromic. There’s a whole array of frames to choose from, depending on your prescription. Some prescriptions are suited to a narrower range of frames, but there’s still a fair amount of choice.
If you do have extreme prescription, you should use the Optical Dock.
This is different again! The RX Insert is a separate lens that you clip in. Then the RX Optical Dock, it means that you don’t have two layers of lens, it’s just one lens that you clip into the frame.
We developed this solution with a special clip that has a different base compared to the frame. It’s a little bit less curved, so that the optical store can themselves cut the lenses according to your prescription and put it inside the frame that we supply.
Okay… so this is a Rudy frame. It’s like the legs and the eyebrows. And then the eye bits, you get your optician to fill that bit and then you slot them in. So you end up with a single glazed pair of glasses, just like you would in a normal pair of off-the-peg sunglasses or prescription glasses, and you don’t have that double layer which you get with the RX insert.
Yeah, correct.
Okay, so that’s three options. Then we have the RX Direct Clips. So, what’s the difference between those and this Optical Dock version?
Okay, this is similar. The difference is that on Direct Clips you have a nylon mount, so it’s a traditional nylon wire that keeps the lens here.
Whereas the Optical Dock is a little bit more sporting?
Yes, correct.
Okay, and then I know these are going to be of interest to readers: the RX Readers. This is for the sort of short-sightedness where you want to be able to read your map or your computer in front of you. So, this has a prescription patch down the bottom, but then the rest of the lens is just non-prescription. This is more like what you go and get from the supermarket. You don’t go to the optician, you just go and try them on, figure out which is the right setting for you and away you go?
Correct.
Okay. Now then, we still have another one! The RX Flip-Up. What does that one do?
Okay, this is a frame that you can use every day and you can clip this flip-up system that lets you put the sun lenses over.
So, this is a standard prescription lens in the glasses, but then you can put different coloured sunglasses over the top. I used to have a pair like that back in the early 90s! And then you do the RX Ophthalmic, which are not necessarily a sporting glasses, they’re just glasses like we would go and buy at the opticians really.
We like to call this family ‘active lifestyle glasses’, meaning that they can be worn every day, but we call it active because they incorporate features that are coming from the sport world, like the adjustable temple tips and the safety materials and shapes. Even if you crash, you don’t injure yourself because you don’t have hinges on the inside. So, they’re very, very safe for this reason, for everyday use.
Okay, I like the look of them. Where would we find these? Are we going to get these down at opticians or do we have to get them online?
Basically, it’s opticians. We just started with Saddleback, so our aim is to expand a lot in the UK in the next months.
Well, thank you very much for that rundown.
We’ve seen a few new things from WTB this year – some in prototype form at Sea Otter, some in secret boxes in the office. These 750D tyres are 40x750mm. Before you go into meltdown about new standards, these are firmly in the experimental category, although we hear that some taller riders are interested in them for gravel riding. It makes sense if you think about it – if everything else on your bike is proportional to your height, why limit the wheels to a smaller size? How long until we’re just 3D printing entire bespoke bikes to fit our own particular dimensions?
Talking of dimensions, WTB was also demonstrating a saddle fit system based on wrist measurements. It’s not quite as accurate as a sit-bone measured version, but it has the advantage of being a little less intrusive if you’re not keen on proffering your behind for measurement.
SILCA’s chain waxing system has been grabbing a lot of the attention this year – expect to see bike shops offering regular waxing treatments as part of their servicing options. Or you can buy one and do it yourself at home. But we think these titanium treats deserve a little attention. Does having light weight cleats count as reducing rotational mass…?
There were lots of secret shoes in a big room upstairs, but we can’t show you those. So get your peepers round these Primaloft insulated Goretex boots. Very cosy looking.
Some new pliers might find a space in your workshop, but this Pro E Lift is probably only for the very keen home fettler – or bike shop. Designed to be stable enough to safely support a 50kg ebike, but still under 32kg (which apparently means you can post it with couriers a lot more easily), it’s an electric bike stand that will lift a bike to whatever height you need. The mechanism is based on industrial strength adjustable desks – like you’d get in a fabrication or factory setting, not because your work PC is really really old.
You probably didn’t want to know there’s another way your chain is breaking, did you? Or, that you could spend some money buying a nice new thing to see just how worn out it is? Well, sorry, but now with the Abbey Tools chain checker you can check stretch as per usual – but also on flat top chains – and lateral stretch. Because your bike is tired in ways you didn’t even know about. But now you do. Argh.
Saddleback was founded 20 years ago by Andy Wigmore, who has quite the retro bike collection. Part of his collection is housed at the Saddleback HQ, alongside a whole stack of other retro bikes and accessories owned by the various bike geek employees. We had a little peek while also taking the chance to ask him a bit about the business.
What kind of bike are you riding?
Okay, so if we’re talking about vintage, because I happen to be here with all these vintage bikes, I have a 1992 Klein Attitude in Gator Fade, which was an employee bike. So it’s got a couple of nice features, and it’s got a simple 7-speed Thummy XT groupset, so I like riding that. I’ve got a Moots Route 45, which is my gravel bike, and so with the wet weather that we’ve had all year, that’s been a favourite. And I’ve got an ENVE Melee that I don’t ride too much, but I’d like to change that.
And in terms of what you have brought on board here in the last year or so, what are you really excited about?
I’m excited about a return to some degree of normality in terms of trade, but in terms of new products, obviously, we’ve added some new brands, and every one of those are here for a good reason. They’re all going to do a different thing.
WTB is a brand that’s very close to my heart, because I worked for the original distributor of WTB when they launched in 1994. So I’ve kind of got a fondness for those guys there, and I want to see them do well. But all of the brands are here because they deserve to be here.
Rudy Project is a nice one for us, because with SIDI and Castelli in our portfolio, it literally outfits the entire cyclist in premium Italian apparel and eyewear. So that’s going to be nice, and we’ve got some exciting brands to unveil as well before the year is out.
What about Trickstuff?
Trickstuff is literally not announced yet, which is why I didn’t mention it! The press release goes out in about two weeks! We’re excited to have them, and the reason we’re excited to have them is because up to now there’s just not been available products. You just couldn’t get them in this country. Now they’re at a point commercially where they can do that, and DT have obviously helped with that. And their pads and rotors should be on everybody’s bike because they are achievable and attainable.
I noticed you have a sophisticated inventory management and fulfilment system. What have you done to innovate on that front?
So everything in here was kind of custom designed when we moved in. We had this place built for us in 2016, so we’ve been here eight years now. And this whole building is built for a distribution center, centered around cyclists. From the minute that you get into the door, if you’ve ridden in, you’ve showers, a changing room, breakfast – all of those things are about cycling. Then in terms of the way that the flow of product goes, where the production facilities are for wheel building, for bike assembly – there is design there. Obviously, everything is as automated as we can make it, and we continue to invest in whatever systems that we need to be more effective. But I think the key bit that I should say and will always say is that the best investment is having the right people.
Has anyone of those right people ridden the slide on a bicycle? [There is a slide between the levels of the building, designed for delivering packages quickly to the despatch area]
My wife rode the slide at one of these house events with a Troy Lee helmet on! There is a video of that… She then banned everybody thereafter from doing it and was heavily bruised for many days also. But yes, I think she has got legendary status for doing that! There is a video. And I think the entertaining part is that she is responsible for HR, for safety and well-being in the business. And so, not really sort of preaching what she’s teaching, but nonetheless…
