Last week you had the opportunity to purchase Albert Einsteins bicycle saddle:Well, go fetch your wallet and some chain lube, because now heres Mick Jaggers bicycle:[Via Alpacas sister publication]It even comes with an obsequious thank you letter from a Rolling Stones lackey to Condor Cycles:Im not sure why this is a selling point. Not to impugn the heritage of Condor Cycles, but how difficult could it possibly have been to fulfill the Rolling Stoness cycling requirements? Between touring, album recording sessions, and debauched bacchanals, I highly doubt that the entire bands annual cycling mileage exceeded a mile and a half a year. Now if you showed me a similar letter to Mick Taylors luthier, or Keith Richardss drug dealer, then I might be impressed, but a letter to the Rolling Stoness bike shop is about as meaningful as one to Yul Brynners hair stylist.The eBay listing also includes this video of Jagger riding the bike in a floppy coat while employing a highly unorthodox hand position:This is like selling Eddy Merckxs guitar and showing a video of him attempting to play it with his feet.But wait, theres more! Heres Jagger and his retinue looking at the bike (or one like it) like a bunch of cavemen pondering a microwave:This photo was taken moments before they started poking at it with sticks and running away.All of this is to say I find no compelling reason to pay a premium for Mick Jaggers bicycle. However, if you do, the first thing Id do is swap the saddle for Einsteins. Then you can auction off Mick Jaggers bicycle seat, which I suspect would fetch far more in the fetish marketplace than the entire bicycle would on eBay. Speaking of leather saddles and lugged steel bicycles, the retrogrouch movement has now spread to the car market:This is because everything automotive has become electronic, overcomplicated, and expensive:Car companies boast its exactly what modern buyers crave: More iPhone on wheels, less rumbling, mechanical machine. It can be a boon for them, too. Some features are anchored in subscriptions, aimed at giving automakers a source of recurring revenue.Even as the price of a new car soarsnow hovering around $50,000automakers argue buyers are getting more bang for their buck, including more safety and entertainment tech features.For many buyers, thats exactly the problem.Sound familiar?And at least one car company might be listening:NissanCEO Ivan Espinosa says the industrys approach to new technology is a bit backward. Automakers tend to put the techiest features in their priciest models, but buyers of those cars skew older and may be more likely to reject new technology, he said.Sometimes, actually, your entry cars should start adopting these technologies because thats where the younger customers are trying to go, he said.So which automaker will be the first to launch the Rivendell of Cars?And if youre wondering what that would like, heres how the AI envisions it:I think it got a little confused there, though Clark W. Griswold would certainly approve.

Weighing 8.99kg, Dangerholm's new Scott Spark is brimming full of interesting tech

The Tour de France Femmes puts to the front the best in the world and amongst them are Marlen Reusser and Demi Vollering. From inequality in the sport to a route that speaks to the heart; both maillot jaune contenders have shared some of their thoughts ahead of the race. It is a huge topic and som...

Our Reader's Rig of the week comes from Noah in British Columbia, who shares the first bike he ever built under the Serious Bicycles name. Meet Noah and learn more about his one-of-a-kind rigid ripper here...The post Readers Rig: Noahs Serious Bicycles 001 appeared first on BIKEPACKING.com.

UPDATED July 31, 2026 BY Henry Gold IN Road to Valhalla no comments A Rest Day In Oslo On The Road To Valhalla Cycling TourNothing is impossible that one desires with an indomitable will. Henrik IbsenThe inaugural Road to Valhalla Cycling Tour from Helsinki to Trondheim has reached Oslo, the midpoint of the tour. Wonderful, compact, and almost traffic free, Oslo is ideal for my regular rest day walkabout. And as in Helsinki and Stockholm, there is much to see and explore. It was a windy, rainy day and so with some wonderful companions, I chose to take a ferry to see two museums knowing very little about them.It turned out that much like my blogs on Helsinki and Stockholm, this piece is essentially about two remarkable Norwegians who are the central figures in each of the museums. The Fram (meaning forward) Museum houses the 39 meter schooner which was designed and built specifically to prove that you could make a ship that northern ice will not destroy. More importantly, it would also prove the natural eastwest current of the Arctic Ocean. It was an audacious idea, with many sceptics and nay sayers but, as the Wikipedia page notes,In the face of much discouragement from other polar explorers, Nansen took his ship Fram to the New Siberian Island in the eastern Arctic Ocean, froze her into the pack of ice, and waited for the drift to carry her towards the pole.The man behind building the ship and the leader of the expedition was a remarkable man of action, Fridtjof Nansen, who was an explorer extraordinaire, a polymath, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and, eventually, a Nobel Prize winner. I had never heard of him or any of his many exploits and activities and I was most fascinated to learn about him and the multiple stories connected to the expeditions of the ship and its crew. And, of course, walking on the actual ship was an experience in itself. Frankly, I could have spend several more hours in the museum.Right across the Fram museum is the Kon -Tiki Museum which houses the balsa raft that the Norwegian explorer, Thor Heyderhal, and his remarkable crew used to cross from Peru to Polynesia to prove that an ancient civilization had the knowledge to cross the Pacific Ocean. It also houses the totora-reef boat built for the subsequent voyage to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The museum tells the story behind the construction of the boats, the hypothesis for the raison detre of the expeditions, the crew, and Thor Heyderhals story and his determination to implement his projects.I started this blog with a quote from perhaps the most famous Norwegian author, often referred as the father of modern drama. If you have read any of his books or seen his plays, you will likely agree that he had an excellent understanding of human nature. There are no better examples of indomitable will than Fridtjof Nansen and Thor Heyderhal. Walking around the museums, learning about these two individuals, also reminded me of the indomitable will of many of the participants on our tours.What a wonderful way to spend a rainy day in Oslo.RELATEDTOURRoad to Valhalla Valhalla, also known as the Hall of Heroes, was the goal for all real Vikings. Ruled by the Norse God, Odin, only the bravest and fiercest of warriors... Related Posts:Leave a Comment for "A Rest Day In Oslo On The Road To Valhalla Cycling Tour" Cancel reply

People of a certain age myself included are always going to have a place in their heart for the Raleigh Chopper, but no matter how much you might love these iconic 70s bikes, they were never made for long-distance cycling. Pulling wheelies and jumping off planks yes, bring it on, and stick a card in the spokes while youre at it, for Evel Knievel sound effects. But expeditionsno. However, no one, it seems, told Tim Bright about this. As Cycling Weekly previously reported, in April this year Bright, who has chronic myeloid leukaemia, set off on a mission: to ride a Raleigh Chopper around the coastline of Britain, raising money for cancer charities. When I spoke to him in May, Bright had ridden from Norfolk to Wales, via the lovely but horrendously hilly South West counties of Dorset, Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. Hed already had two frame failures, and despite a natural optimism to suit his name, in all honesty, I rather wondered whether hed really make it all the way. I mean a Raleigh Chopper right the way around the country. Its nuts.Well, shame on me, because tomorrow Bright will roll into Cromer in Norfolk to be met by the mayor and a town crier, and hopefully a load of well-wishers, because hes only gone and done it, and he deserves a big fanfare. Bright reaches the border (Image credit: Tim Bright)Its been the most mind-blowing experience of my entire life, Bright tells me as he nears the end of his epic ride. I did hit a bit of a wall in Wales, he admits. I just felt so ill with the chemo, and I wasnt sure the bike was going to make it.But he banished the Doom Monster, as he calls the voice that whispers negative thoughts into his mind, and just kept going. The frame has snapped in eight different places in total, he reveals. But people have fixed it for free every time, the support has just been amazing. And every time its fixed, the weld is stronger than the metal around it.Bright too, seems to bounce back from severe adversity with remarkable resilience. Doing this ride has changed how I live with my leukaemia, he tells me. Its changed not only my physical but my mental condition as well.He was hospitalised with gastroenteritis in Dumfries, and had to take a week off to build his strength back. But then he was back on the road, in that unbelievably uncomfortable looking riding position.Its actually sorted my back right out, he tells me, ever ready with a positive take. Ive always suffered from a bad back, but now it seems to be fine.Bright has been supported all the way around by his wife Sue (Image credit: Tim Bright)Bright did have to cut out the Highlands section of his planned route, after being told that more frame breaks were inevitable and that he wouldnt be able to get it fixed in the far north, so he re-routed along the Forth and Clyde Canal.However, as of 10am tomorrow, he will have ridden 2003 miles on a Raleigh Chopper. Which is extraordinary and may even constitute the furthest distance ever cycled on a Chopper. And he has brought in over 11,000 for charity through his fund-raising page Giving Cancer the Chop...per, which remains open. If youre near Cromer tomorrow, go and see Bright in The Shoreline caf/bar (which is donating 1 for every coffee sold while he is there to the cause) and give him a slap on the back but make it a gentle one he had to ride around the whole country on a kids bike to sort that out.

The Cycling Market is as active as ever. On the 1st of August, this Saturday, the transfer market opens officially and the rumour mill is running hard. Dozens of riders are on the move and new names have been reported on since the start of the Tour de France. The market only officially opens on th...

The 2026 Colorado Trail Race follows a challenging 514-mile route winding through the Rocky Mountains between Denver and Durango. Riders in this years grand depart are set to take off early Sunday morning, and with their help, we gathered details on more than 40 loaded rigs tackling the trail. Explore the full gallery here...The post Rigs of the 2026 Colorado Trail Race appeared first on BIKEPACKING.com.

Tire giant Goodyear has launched some new bicycle tires, expanding their Ultra High Performance (UHP) line of cycling road tires. If going fast and having great traction are you goals, then the new Eagle F1 SuperSport RS and Eagle F1 RS are made for you.(Photos / Goodyear)Goodyears UHP tires represent the brands dedication to cutting-edge tire research, development, and production techniques. They also use the most advanced fabrics and compounds to manufacture their tires. Lets take a look at some common features of these two new tires. Power TensileGoodyears Advanced Profile combines a non-overlapping double-layer casing architecture with a reinforced shoulder turn-up and an extended tread profile. So, by eliminating the traditional casing overlap within the main contact patch, the tread deforms more efficiently. This reduces localized stiffness and internal energy loss. At the same time, the reinforced shoulder structure increases lateral support. The wider tread profile creates a smoother, more predictable transition from crown to sidewall.This could help deliver:Lower rolling resistancePredictable handling across wet and dry conditionsOptimized fit for modern wide-rim systemsUUHP CompoundThe UUHP Compound (Ultra Ultra High Performance you know theyre serious when theres two ultras) utilizes high-surface-area silica combined with a proprietary rubber compound formulated for maximum grip, speed, and durability. Goodyears upgraded UUHP compound claims to reduce internal energy loss and limit heat generation during dynamic loading. When Goodyear improves the efficiency of the compound, rolling resistance is reduced while reportedly enhancing traction in wet and dry conditions.Goodyear says the result is a compound with: Improved rolling resistanceSmoother high-speed behaviorA balance between energy return, grip, and thermal stabilityEagle F1 SuperSport RSThe Eagle F1 SuperSport RS is Goodyears lightest road tire. Its designed to provide ultimate race-day performance in multiple disciplines like road, time-trial, and triathlon competition. It utilizes a revolutionary newPower Tensilepolyamide casing material. And thats combined withUUHP Compound andAdvanced Profileconstruction.The evolution of Goodyears cutting-edge technologies results in a claimed 15% reduction in rolling resistance (at 72 psi) compared to the previous Eagle F1 SuperSport R. For those of you who care, this 1.5-watt reduction in rolling resistance, combined with improved grip and handling characteristics, results in the fastest tire Goodyear has ever made.Compound: UUHPCasing: Dual-Layer 120 TPI Power TensileSpecification: Tubeless Ready 700 x 28 mm / 28-622 260 gTubeless Ready 700 x 30 mm / 30-622 275 gTubeless Ready 700 x 32 mm / 32-622 300 gRRP: $99.95 / 89.95 / 84.95Eagle F1 RSThe Eagle F1 RS is Goodyears all-around road race tire. It was developed to perform at the highest level of cycling. Just like its sibling tire, it too utilizes a newPower Tensilepolyamide casing material,UUHP Compound, andAdvanced Profileconstruction. Except it addsR:Shieldpuncture protection.Goodyears cutting-edge technologies result in a massive 32% reduction in claimed rolling resistance (at 72 psi) compared to the previous Eagle F1R. That means a 4.8-watt reduction in rolling resistance, combined with improved grip and durability characteristics.Compound: UUHPCasing: Dual-Layer 120 TPI Power Tensile with an R:Shield breakerSpecification: Tube-Type 700 x 25 / 25-622 200 gTube-Type 700 x 28 / 28-622 220 gTube-Type 700 x 30 / 30-622 240 gTube-Type 700 x 32 / 32-622 265 gTubeless Ready 700 x 28 / 28-622 290 gTubeless Ready 700 x 30 / 30-622 305 gTubeless Ready 700 x 32 / 32-622 330 gTubeless Ready 700 x 34 / 34-622 345 gRRP: Tube-Type $84.95 / 74.95 / 68.95Tubeless Ready $94.95 / 84.95 / 79.95GoodyearBike.com

The 2026 Tour de France has just come to an end, but the race organizers are deep in the making of the routes for the 2027 and 2028 editions. Amongst the climbs that are set to be ridden should be the Col du Granon and the Col de la Loze. Three legendary climbs have been recently put on the table,...