This weeks Debrief features the new Orbea MTB lineup for kids, Revelate Ultra Joeys, Curve's new HQ in Spain, wide alloy rims from Reynolds, the Surly Lowside in Blue Monday, an event to follow live, and much more. Find it all hereThe post Friday Debrief: Tiny Mountain Bikes, Blue Monday Surly, Brands Making Moves, and More appeared first on BIKEPACKING.com.

Electric tandems might have more uses than you originally imagined... find out in this introductory guide to a bike genre that perhaps shouldn't be quite so niche

For INEOS Grenadiers, the question ahead of Milano-Sanremo is no longer whether Tadej Pogacar will try to break the race on the Cipressa, but how to be ready when it happens. That shift in thinking was made explicit by sport director Leonardo Basso, who outlined a plan built around the expectation t...

Comment & Analysis: The International Energy Agency (IEA) has today outlined a range of demand-side actions that could be taken by governments, businesses and households can take to alleviate the economic impacts on consumers basically, the experts in this sort of thing are saying loudly to act now rather than have people suffer. The US-Israeli Iran War threatens the worlds economy and is perdicted it will cause a food-price shock across the developing world, but Western governments are taking a wait-and-see approach rather than acting now. Here are the IEAs bullet-point recommendations, and an irreverentlook at why its impossible for Ireland to follow the expert advice (at least until things get much, much worse here)1. Work from home where possibleDisplaces oil use from commuting, particularly where jobs are suitable for remote work.Reply: If we did this so quickly, itd show that the push to get people back to the office in recent years wasnt needed in the first place. This would have all the wider benefits of working from home, but some middle managers and office owners might be upset. So, sorry, but no.2. Reduce highway speed limits by at least 10 km/hLower speeds reduce fuel use for passenger cars, vans and trucks.Reply: Average speed cameras are effective on the M7, speeding went from 32% of motorists to just 4% and the cameras can be deployed across the motorway network with ease. Its also been known for a long time that driving at 100km/h instead of 120km/h reduces fuel consumption by 20-30%. But none of that matters, nor do the road safety benefits. Because drivers would be mad, and so would the rural independents and Independent Ireland might say something hurtful to the Government, like they are worse than the Greens or something of that sort.3. Encourage public transportA shift from private cars to buses and trains can quickly reduce oil demand.Reply: Our trains are generally full at peak times, and the new ones are delayed while some people keep saying Irish Rail should add carriages to this and that service, when there are no extra trains just lying around, the suggestion is about as helpful as magic beans in the real world. Buses are also largely full at peak times. The installation of electric chargers for replacement buses is also delayed, leaving buses unused. Is it too much to ask to accelerate that process and extend the use of the diesel buses? Yes. Yes, it is. 4. Alternate private car access to roads in large cities on different daysNumber-plate rotation schemes can reduce congestion and fuel-intensive driving.Reply: Were not Communist. And we dont want to be accused of being cyclists, thatd be worse.5. Increase car sharing and adopt efficient driving practicesHigher car occupancy and eco-driving can lower fuel consumption quickly.Reply: Maybe a few more pilot projects are in order? Followed by a delayed report or two. Then a Minister will explain it on national TV that people can voluntarily carpool, and theyll be accused of saying everybody should do it all the time. And Independent Ireland will probably accuse the Minister of being a Communist.6. Efficient driving for road commercial vehicles and delivery of goodsBetter driving practices, vehicle maintenance and load optimisation can cut diesel use.Reply: Every single driver is already driving nicely and easily; theres no need to insult hard-pressed working motorists by accusing them of anything less than perfectly efficient driving. And load optimisation sounds like code words for State-controlled transport have we mentioned that were not Communists already?7. Divert LPG use from transportShifting bi-fuel and converted vehicles from LPG to gasoline can preserve LPG for cooking and other essential needs.Reply: We didnt care enough about fresh air or lower emissions to start using LPG vehicles in any meaningful way, so it does not matter. And, anyway, our essential use of gas is for data centres, not cooking or heating homes. 8. Avoid air travel where alternative options existReducing business flights can quickly ease pressure on jet fuel markets.Reply: Once the Dublin Airport cap is gone, we can have more flights what do you mean we were already running flights way above the cap? 9. Where possible, switch to other modern cooking solutionsEncouraging electric cooking and other modern options can reduce reliance on LPG.Reply: Sound, sure, everybody has an air fryer now. Just make sure you dont use them at the same time; we need to reserve energy for data centres. 10. Leverage flexibility with petrochemical feedstocks and implement short-term efficiency and maintenance measuresIndustry can help free up LPG for essential uses while reducing oil consumption through quick operational improvements.Reply: Essential uses = AI-generated cat videos. Look, we all know the real solution is that everybody should cycle everywhere all the time.Postscript: If you got this far and are annoyed by this article, you probably shouldnt take it too seriously, especially since it was marked as irrelevant. But theres a serious point to it regardless of the issue being climate action, the widespread impact of inactivity, the misery of peak congestion in many of our towns and cities, our ongoing issues with power demand vs capacity, and now another oil crisis:Leadership seems to be all too often missing, action is nearly always deferred, and short-termism is usually favoured over whats good for the country. The latest crisis would not be as severe on us if there were already more substantive action on the crises we already face.

This week's Reader's Rig comes from Kobkit in Bangkok, Thailand, who shares a surprising Surly Straggler build that visually summarizes his journey through the world of bikes. Learn a little about Kobkit and scope out his unconventional Straggler here...The post Readers Rig: Kobkits Surly Straggler appeared first on BIKEPACKING.com.

Bike Ahead is known for its unique offerings. Lately, that has been in the 32 world, with their six-spoked BiTurbo 32 wheels. Now, they are teaming up with Maxxis and Raderei Bautzen, a German bike shop.With Max Noack of Raderei Bautzen spearheading concept and design, bit by bit, a 32 gravel bike was pieced together. It features a steel-lugged frame with carbon tubes manufactured by Rotor Leipzig and, of course, Bike Aheads BiTurbo wheels.The special build also included a custom Bike Ahead cockpit and the latest Shimano groupset offerings. Rounding out the build are 32 x 2.4 Maxxis Aspen tires and an incredibly unique paint job by XS Design Chemnitz.Design inspirationBig wheels have been at the forefront of Bike Ahead since Maxxis unveiled its 32 Aspen tires. Since then, they have been toying with and experimenting with bikes equipped with 32 wheels. According to the partners, test and practical experience showed how much potential the larger wheels have.So, Bike Ahead, working with Maxxis and Raderei Bautzen, built an experimental bike and wheels and featured them at Eurobike 2025. The design, testing, and discussion surrounding the build reminded those involved of the transition from 26 to 29 wheels. And so began the Size Matters Project.The frame is handmade by Rotor Bikes, drawing inspiration from early bike makers who used steel lugs and carbon. Initially, the entire frame was steel, with the main tubes removed and replaced with carbon. Carbon specialist Ingo Barthe is responsible for the carbon tubing, including the marbled look.As standard nowadays, the frame is equipped with a UDH (milled) dropout and internal cable routing.The Columbus Futura Adventure fork is actually designed for 29 wheels. However, there is enough room to squeeze in the larger wheel and tire (not sure about rub), and it looks damn cool.If the frame isnt the star of the show, the Bike Ahead BiTurbo wheels are. These 32, six-spoked beauties feature single-piece monocoque construction, providing significant advantages for larger wheels. Where a normal wheels spokes exert a tremendous amount of tension on the rim, Bike Aheads design doesnt, allowing rim construction to be around 30% lighter.The BiTurbo wheels weigh 1,495g.Bike Ahead is also responsible for the cockpit. They use an innovative molding tool to design a cockpit to a customers preferred geometry. Similar to the wheels, the cockpit features monocoque construction, has fully integrated cable routing, and weighs only 299g.The Size Matters Project will be on display from March 20-22 at Cycling World in Dsseldorf, located at the Maxxis booth.bike-ahead-composites.deThe post Size Does Matter? Bike Ahead Certainly Thinks So With This 32 Gravel Bike appeared first on Bikerumor.

Dutchman Bart Brentjens became the first ever Olympic mountain bike champion back in Atlanta 1996, and hes still racing now (occasionally). We spoke with Bart about the evolution of his own bikes and the sport over the last 30 years

Dylan Groenewegen delivered a commanding performance to win the Bredene Koksijde Classic 2026, launching a long-range sprint to secure victory after the final breakaway was reeled in late on the streets of Koksijde. The Dutchman timed his effort perfectly in a fast, flat finale, opening his sprint f...

Designed in partnership with Salsa Cycles, the new Old Man Mountain Manzanita Cradle takes the Anything Cradle to a new level thanks to a number of new features, including a matching side-load or top-load dry bag. Take a closer look here...The post The Old Man Mountain Manzanita Cradle is an All-in-One Handlebar Bag System appeared first on BIKEPACKING.com.

Who can challenge defending champion Lorena Wiebes for the win in this second modern edition of the race?