Geek Warning

Geek Warning is back for the new year! In this week’s episode, Dave and James chat about some mysterious Boa dial failures and how some pros are using gravel bikes this cyclocross season, how 3D-printing is becoming just as much a marketing tool as a manufacturing one, and what we look for in our favorite handlebar tapes.

You might also just want to head out to the shed and check your disc brake rotor thicknesses, and the story of a lost bike in Colorado may help restore your faith in humanity.

Timestamps:

5:01 – What’s going on with Boa dial failures this cyclocross season?
11:54 – Even the pros don’t think gravel bikes are all that different from cyclocross bikes
16:35 – Everything that can be 3D-printed is being 3D-printed
20:40 – Pick One! Our favorite handlebar tapes, and what we look for in them
35:45 – PSA: Disc brake rotors don’t last forever
40:04 – A lost bike, and restoring your faith in humanity
44:30 – Rotor’s got a new dual-sided power meter for Shimano crankarms
45:45 – Look, ma, no ears! Kask has a mysterious new aero road helmet
46:30 – Bora-Hansgrohe has officially confirmed they’re on SRAM and Hammerhead this year
46:40 – Chris King has added a new Microspline freehub body option for its R45 hubs

Following a break for our inaugural Awards episode, Dave and Ronan return with an episode of a familiar format. There’s plenty on the minds of the geeks, plus a sprinkling of new tech to know in this final Geek Warning episode for 2023 ...

The biggest news is that the UCI wants to control just how weird racers can get with the angles of brake hoods. Dave and Ronan discuss the claimed safety concerns, and what are arguably the far larger concerns, too. For a detailed report, check out our coverage of the latest tech rulings.

The geeks discuss whether the term “endurance” may be holding people back from buying the best bike for them. Ronan dreams of adjustable crank length being more mainstream. Then, the conversation turns to road tyres for the Pick One segment.

In other news, it looks like a new SPD-compatible powermeter pedal is on the way from Favero, although for now the Assioma Pro MX is only available in Italy. Tacx recently released a new flagship trainer, the Neo 3M, a now motion-based trainer comparable to the Wahoo KickR Move –  a comparison that DCRainmaker has already made. Meanwhile, Classified now has an app for its Powershift hub, although its limited usefulness may be a better tease of what’s possibly to come.

In mountain bike news, Niner is being moved out of Colorado and to the not-so-cycling-destination of Ohio. We're also seeing further examples of integrated cable routing on mountain bikes, with the Bike Ahead Composites Wonderbar being an example.

Timestamps:

2:05 – Biggest tech trend
7:59 – Biggest surprise
12:13 – The “It’s about time” award
16:42 – The “most wanted” award
20:00 – Our favorite bike-related purchases of the year
25:46 – The “What the hell were they thinking?” award
32:10 – The “problem solver” award
36:20 – The “more of this, please, bike industry” award
38:49 – The “meh” award
43:36 – The “I am so here for this” award
45:59 – The “Oops, I put my foot in my mouth” award
48:04 – The most exciting new tool of the year
53:57 – What products are we anticipating most in 2024?

The Geeks are back for another round of Ask a Wrench. In this member’s bonus episode, Zach (of Boulder Gruppetto), James, and Dave answer a bunch of technical questions submitted by Escape members. 

This week, our geeks discuss how to find a good mechanic, how to torque bolts when there are multiples, change of crank bolt material for easier removal, servicing of cartridge bearings, rattling saddle bags, how to prep a bike for winter use, and plenty more.

We’re skipping the usual news this week because it’s once again time for our annual tech awards! 2023 was certainly a memorable year for a multitude of reasons, but what were the cycling tech-related things that stuck in our minds of our resident geeks, James, Dave, and Ronan? What were the biggest trends? What were our favorite products? Who was doing things right? What was the biggest flop? What was the best thing we bought this year?

We’ve got all of that – and much, much more – in this don’t-miss episode of Geek Warning.

Timestamps:

2:05 – Biggest tech trend
7:59 – Biggest surprise
12:13 – The “It’s about time” award
16:42 – The “most wanted” award
20:00 – Our favorite bike-related purchases of the year
25:46 – The “What the hell were they thinking?” award
32:10 – The “problem solver” award
36:20 – The “more of this, please, bike industry” award
38:49 – The “meh” award
43:36 – The “I am so here for this” award
45:59 – The “Oops, I put my foot in my mouth” award
48:04 – The most exciting new tool of the year
53:57 – What products are we anticipating most in 2024?

Hoo boy, it’s been a big week in tech, and our resident geeks had a lot to talk about.

It was just a matter of time before Cervelo jumped into the e-bike market, and that day has finally come with the new Rouvida. The same frame is used for two road and two gravel models, but Cervelo has incorporated flip chips in the front and rear dropouts to adjust the geometry accordingly. Despite the sizable battery hidden away inside the down tube, the carbon fiber frame looks pretty good, too – not entirely unlike Cervelo’s original Soloist Carbon, in fact. All versions are powered by Fazua’s Ride60 mid-drive motor for smooth and quiet running, and James has just received a gravel test sample so stay tuned for a proper review in the weeks ahead.

Looking for some marginal gains on your SRAM Transmission-equipped mountain bike? CeramicSpeed has released a new version of its OSPW oversized pulley cage assembly with 14T upper and 20T lower pulleys, smooth-running hybrid ceramic bearings, and a novel self-cleaning design. But while the eye-watering price is getting all the attention, what you might really want to think about is the lifetime warranty.

Fulcrum’s new Red Zone Carbon+ mountain bike wheels tick a lot of boxes: low weight, an inventive rim design that supposedly produces perfectly even spoke tensions, a solid outer rim wall for easy and reliable tubeless setup, and low-friction adjustable angular contact hybrid ceramic bearings. The pawl-type rear hub engagement is on the slower side, though. Does that matter? Maybe – or maybe not. It depends.

Gravel bikes have unquestionably been the hot segment of the bicycle market for the past several years, and the progression in the product has been astronomical. But with such a narrow gap between road/all-road bikes and XC mountain bikes to fill, how much space is there really for innovation? Not that it’s at all a bad thing to reach this level of maturity this quickly, but have we already hit peak gravel?

The geeks are rarely in agreement over everything, but in our Pick One! segment this week, there’s surprisingly little debate among us when it comes to our favorite mountain bike pedals.

James just received a bike he’s especially excited to test, and it’s also one of the least-expensive ones he’s tested, too: Trek’s entry-level Marlin 7 aluminum hardtail. It might not be fancy, but it’s arguably far more important than any bike that costs ten times as much.

And finally, Wiggle has dramatically contracted its business, the MADE handmade bicycle show has also announced its dates for the 2024 event, Strava has launched a new direct messaging function, Campagnolo is out of the World Tour, Ag2r moves to Van Rysel bikes, TotalEnergies is now on Enve, and Bora is supposedly switching to SRAM components.

Timestamps:

3:24 – Cervelo’s new Rouvida e-bike looks pretty good
9:40 – CeramicSpeed is coming for your Transmission rear derailleurs
18:03 – Are Fulcrum’s new Red Zone Carbon+ XC mountain bike wheels fast (engaging) enough?
23:09 – Has the bike industry reached peak gravel in terms of product development?
31:55 – Pick One!
38:12 – Cheap bikes are good
42:40 – Wiggle’s mighty fall from grace
44:22 – MADE is coming back for 2024!
45:27 – Strava is sliding into you DMs
46:33 – Pro team sponsor musical chairs

It's time to treat our members to another bonus episode of the Geek Warning podcast. This week, Brad Copeland – former World Cup pro mechanic and now service director at Hush Money Bikes – joins James and Dave to geek out on all things related to building a dream home workshop.

In this episode, you'll learn about how to build out a tool kit, our thoughts on tool organisation, what to do if you don't have a dedicated workspace, and a whole lot more.

While the weekly Geek Warning podcast remains unchanged and open to all, we’re now providing additional bonus episodes each fortnight. These bonus episodes are a mix of Ask a Wrench, deep-dives, or interviews with the people behind popular products. The Geek Warning bonus episodes are exclusively available to Escape Collective members, though select segments of certain episodes will find their way into our free feed. 

Good chain lubes can extend the life of your drivetrain, and bad ones can shorten them – but do you know how much that might actually cost you? A new online calculator using Zero Friction Cycling’s data aims to tell you just that. Our crew of geeks also pick their favorite road helmets, Ronan has some thoughts on stock component sizes, the UCI is at it again, 3T and Bianchi have some fancy new gravel bikes, and if come across some new Pinarellos that seem way, way too cheap, there might be a reason for that.

Timestamps:

6:03 – The UCI has updated their penalties, but it’s probably not going to change anything
10:07 – That cheap bottle of chain lube might actually cost you $5,000.
17:20 – More bad news from the bike industry
18:19 – Pinarello needs a better fence – and maybe a stronger door
20:25 – Stock component sizes, chickens, and eggs
32:54 – Our favorite road helmets
47:50 – Bianchi’s new Impulso RC gravel bike actually looks really good
48:21 – 3T is going really, really big with its new Extrema Italia gravel bike

This week's regular (and free!) episode of Geek Warning has James Huang, Zach Edwards (of the Boulder Grupetto), and Dave Rome back on the mics. With only a small amount of news to discuss, much of the conversation surrounds bigger and broader-reaching topics.

Seeing so many sales out of the bike industry is great for those in the market for a new bike, but it's a worrying sign of financial struggles ahead. It's obvious the boom is over, and it may be a few years for stock glut to clear.

The mountain bike brand Guerrilla Gravity (GG) quietly ceased operations in September. Now fellow American company Canfield Bikes is providing aftermarket product support for owners of the thermoplastic bikes.

Zwift has announced new annual pricing options for those looking to save a little with a year-long commitment.

The episode then turns to what's on our minds, including Dave's recent boiling point over squealing brakes and a deeper conversation about lower-cost race bikes off the back of Caley Fretz's Trek Emonda ALR 5 review. The geeks then discuss their favourite mountain bike dropper posts.

The episode wraps up with Dave Rome at a Wera Tools media event, where he interviewed employees Lutz Buchholz and Ralf Joesch about the company's increasing presence within the cycling market.

Geek Warning is produced with the support of our members. Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to our new exclusive podcasts. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer.

Timestamps:

5:03 – It’s a buyer’s market at the moment
14:17 – Guerrilla Gravity is closing shop
17:03 – New pricing options from Zwift
19:45 – Squealing brakes are on Dave’s mind
24:19 – Lower-cost alloy road race bikes used to be better
36:39 – Pick One, our favourite dropper posts
45:55 – a PSA related to tubeless valve stems
49:30 – an interview with Wera Tools

It's time for another bonus episode of The Geek Warning podcast, exclusive to our members. This week, Brad Copeland – former world cup pro mechanic and now service director at Hush Money Bikes – joins James and Dave to answer member-submitted questions.

This week, the geeks answer questions related to chain waxing, degreasing, what grease goes where, removing stuck cassettes, tool tips, how we store small parts, how to solve noisy brakes, and plenty more.

While the weekly Geek Warning podcast remains unchanged, we’re now providing these additional bonus episodes each fortnight. These bonus episodes will be a mix of Ask a Wrench, deep-dives, or interviews with the people behind popular products.

The Geek Warning bonus episodes are exclusively available to Escape Collective members, though select segments of certain episodes will find their way into our free feed.Your membership makes this podcast possible. If you are already a member, you can follow this link to receive a unique RSS link to add the Geek Warning bonus episodes to your library in your chosen podcast app (this is very easy, promise). If you are not yet a member but want to hear, support, and enjoy the Geek Warning bonus episodes, join Escape Collective today.

Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to exclusive podcasts and ad-free episodes. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer!

A quieter week in the world of tech news means Dave and Ronan have more time in this week's episode of Geek Warning to ramble about what's on their minds, their favourite eyewear, and servicing pedals. 

Princeton Carbon Works has released its 5th iteration of its Wake 6560 wheels. Perhaps best known as the wheel company used by Ineos over their sponsor-correct Shimano options, Princeton continues with its wavy rim design, plenty of colour options, and a whole lot of choice in hubs, too. As we discussed, the 28.2 mm external width is narrower than we thought we’d see on a new aero-focussed hoop. 

We chat about the saddle that’s already received too much attention. The SaddleSpur is undoubtedly a silly saddle.

Well-priced and easy to install, the Asssavers Win Wing has been updated. The new version is stronger, more subtle, and now with paint-protecting stickers. As Dave and Ronan discuss, this one is likely an excellent option for keeping your kit clean, but it won’t do much for pleasing anyone riding behind you. 

Raleigh UK, owned by the Accell Group, has been “restructured”, or, more specifically, greatly consolidated into its parent company’s operations. It’s yet another sign of the tough times facing the bicycle industry. 

Sure, Black Friday is good for a deal, but we’re all for the companies using the day of consumerism to promote something more positive. Ortlieb is just one example, with its repair week offering 40% off repairs for any of its bags that fall outside of the five-year warranty period. 

All that and plenty more in this week's episode. 

Plus, we're having an introductory sale for new members. Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to exclusive podcasts and ad-free episodes. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer!

Timestamps:

3:00 – New Princeton Carbon Works 6560 wheels
11:05 – A silly silly saddle
15:22 – Asssavers improves on an interesting fender
22:20 – Accell Group massively downsizes its investment in the UK
25:03 – Ortlieb doing Black Friday in a way we’re happy to discuss
28:09 – Ronan has Tear-Offs on his mind
36:23 – What we’ve been testing
45:05 – Pick One, the eyewear edition
53:48 – Your pedals need love, too