Indeed, Sky King has a new love. I happen to be quite spoiled and spend many happy hours on my ” Excellent Creative Riding” machine also known as the “Extremely Cool Ride” and for those of you who don’t know me, just call it my Surly ECR.
Surly ECR “Extremely Cool Ride” now with Maxxis 29+
We ventured out in August for a S24O to Crutcher Crossing. The road/trail/path is two track, dirt and rock. The first 7 miles pass through a Juniper forest. Juniper’s are invasive species in the Owyhee Mountains and this section is currently being logged. Given that, the road had impressive ruts, especially on hilly corners. We hadn’t traveled far and as I negotiated a rutted corner my tires slipped out and boom, on the ground I go. While I don’t consider myself the most technical descender – especially on a loaded bike – I should have negotiated the corner just fine. Back on the bike, half mile down the road and boom, slipped out again. After a few choice words I take a serious look at my tires – the original Surly Knard 29+3 27tpi. Yep, the side edge tread is pretty much worn to zilch – oops.
I’ve never had a big complaint with the Surly Knard tires. Some of my riding buddies have commented on the lack of a grippy edge but I never mind hopping off and walking some of the steep. The rest of the trip I certainly paid attention and took a less aggressive approach to the rest of the rutted corners.
Did I mention I was spoiled, oh yeah, I did. A few days after the trip the Bike Hermit surprised me with a set of Maxxis Chronicles. This is a relatively new 29+3 so I had some trepidation. Ha, silly girl. The tread is perfect for a wide variety of terrain. I have the 120 TPI casing and the tire is lighter than my Surly Knards. The roll on pavement is excellent. On our very technical ride to Pipeline crossing, in the Owyhee desert the tires, hands down, out performed the Knards. The side grip is great. I didn’t have any slips, any spin outs or questionable traction issues. The Excellent Cool Ride bounced and jostled along happily – almost as if the person riding had advance to “pro” status. Look out Bike Hermit!
Technically a road…
(Logan, over at bikepacking.com has a detailed review of the Maxxis Chronicle)
This is the Surly Straggler bicycle. It’s similar to a Surly Cross Check but with a few crucial differences; most notably the Straggler has disc brakes and comes stock with Surly Knard 700c x 41 tires. Surly sent us this bike to try out after the Interbike trade show in September and I have had the chance to ride it a few times now. The first thing I notice is that the handling is different than my Cross Check. The steering feels more nimble and responsive. The other thing is that although this is a 56cm frame and my Cross Check is a 58 this bike seems to feel fine fit-wise. Not surprising once I look at the Surly geometry chart and see that the 56cm Straggler’s effective top tube length is identical to the 58cm Cross Check top tube.
But why does the handling feels so much different I wonder. The seat tube and head tube angles are the same on both bikes, so I’m thinking the bigger tires change the fork trail pneumatically. Also, the bottom bracket drop on the Straggler is 6 mm greater than on the Cross Check and the Straggler’s chain stays are half a centimeter longer- both of these are probably in consideration of the bigger tires for which the Straggler is designed (the increased bottom bracket drop makes the standover height manageable),but they can’t help but affect the handling of the bike.
There are a couple of quirky details which I think are unique to Surly (no surprise, that);
-The rear dropouts are a “partially closed, horizontal design” made to accommodate single speed set ups or derailleurs. When used with a derailleur, the rear wheel slips up into the vertical part of the dropout where it is held in place partially by the clamping force of the quick release but also by the set screw threaded in from the rear of the horizontal part of the dropout. In a single speed application the wheel slips into the vertical part and then slides back in the horizontal part to tighten the chain and is partially held in place by the same set screw which in this case is threaded in from the front of the dropout.
-The front hub is Surly’s Ultra New Hub which features a hollow axle for standard quick release but the inside ends of the axle are threaded. Surly provides two stainless steel bolts with caps which thread into the ends of the axle and clamp the wheel in place. This setup gave me a sense of added security over a quick release- especially with disc brakes which place a lot of torque load on the hub.
The “partially closed horizontal” dropouts.
The fixing bolt cap on the Surly Ultra New Hub is heavily knurled to help hold the wheel securely.
The Salsa Cowbell 2 handle bar felt very good with the Shimano Tiagra brifter hoods. The bars have a very short top ramp but it mates nicely with the hoods creating a nice flat cradle for the hands.
Overall Impression and Conclusion.
I already noted how even with the big Knard tires the bike’s steering is nimble and responsive but these tires roll nice too. The bike feels quick in every way, and the tires felt nice and stable on the snow packed trail I rode.
I am in my retro-grouch phase now but I have to admit I like the brifters on this bike. Even though they are Shimano Tiagra level, the shifting is precise and easy and being able to shift without moving the hands is pretty important on any technical terrain. Like all Surly bikes there is nothing especially fancy about this bike but everything works and the bike is solid. This “Glitter Dreams” color is a love it or hate it proposition- I happen to love it- but they also make the bike in black.
It’s not technically a touring bike but it has all the braze-ons and clearances for racks so one could call it a camping bike. It also is a great bike for just ripping around in the hills on single track or gravel roads. It makes me want to go for a ride and that can’t be bad. I like this bike a lot- in fact when Surly asks for it back I will probably buy it.
In a previous post I compared and contrasted the Surly Pugsley and the Pug Ops. The Moonlander is Surly’s fattest fatbike with mammoth 4.8″ Surly Lou and Bud tires with 120t.p.i. (25% bigger than the Pugsley tires) on 100mm “Clown Shoe” rims. In order to make room for the fatter tires the Moonlander’s rear triangle is offset a little bit more than the Pugsley or the Pug Ops with a corresponding additional offset in the rear wheel. And the Surly Offset double crank gets a few more spacers so the chain won’t rub on the tire in the lowest gear. Surly Nate 3.8 tire on Pugsley is on the left. On the right is the Surly Bud 4.8 on the Moonlander. Both bikes use the same Moonlander fork.
You can see the 180mm brake rotor on the front of the Moonlander compared to the 160mm rotor on the Pugsley. A little more leverage to deal with the momentum of those taller, wider tires. The Pug Ops is spec’d with 180mm front rotors too.
The huge tires on 100 rims on the Moonlander can be ridden at very low air pressures for more flotation and traction on snow, sand, gravel and/or roots. Surly claims this bike is “designed from the ground up to ride where there are no roads, no trails and no people.” When the sandy single track gets wet in the Boise foothills two inch wide mountain bike tires dig in and cut up the trail, but the Moonlander barely leaves a mark! A bike like the Moonlander can expand the riding season as well as the areas and terrain that can be explored by the bicycle traveler. If you still think fat bikes are limited, look at this article in bikemag.com about the Walmart fat bike tearing it up at Sea Otter. The 4.7 inch wide Big Fat Larry tires (top) leave a very low impact footprint compared to a standard mountain bike tire below.
Surly rolls out bikes in new colors each year (or so). They continue to sell bikes in the previous year’s colors until they are gone. For 2014 the new Disc Trucker color is burgundy. We just finished this bike for a customer: A 62 cm Surly Disc Trucker with 26″ wheels Tubus Logo rear rack and Surly front rack The Tubus Logo rear rack; simple, strong and practical.The Surly front rack can be fined tune to clear the disc brake caliper and there is a special hole for the fender stays.
We had a chance to take the Surly fat bikes out this Labor Day weekend and this is my report.
From Bike Touring News H.Q. we did a quick 10.6 mile loop that took in some single track so we could see how the bikes handled.
I rode the standard Pugsley and Sky King was riding the Pug Ops bike. The main differences between the two, besides the color, are tabulated below:
Component
Pugsley
Pug Ops
Rims
Large Marge Lite 65mm
Rolling Darryl 82mm
Tires
Surly Nate 3.8″ 27 t.p.i.
Surly Nate 3.8″ 120 t.p.i.
Crankset
Sram X-5 36/22
Surly Offset double 36/22
Rear Derailleur
Shimano Deore RD-M591
Shimano LX RD-T670
Cassette
shimano HG61 9 speed 11-32
Shimano HG62 10 speed 11-34
Shifters
Microshift Top Mount 3×9
Shimano SLX Rapid Fire 3×10
So the Pug Ops gains a little more footprint by using wider rims and tires with a higher thread count. The higher thread count should make for a stronger and more supple casing for better handling at low tire pressures. Even though the tires on both bikes have the same nominal dimensions, the wider rim on the Pug Ops means that the tire is wide enough to potentially interfere with the chain when riding in the lowest gear. That’s why the Pug Ops comes with Surly’s offset double crankset.
The Ride
Surly Pugsley in the Boise foothillsThe smile says it all. Sky King on the Surly Pug Ops, Boise foothills.
We started with about 20 p.s.i. in the rear tires and about 15 in the front but I let a little bit out for the downhill sections. (I need to get me one of those low pressure tire gauges when QBP has them back in stock)
The single track on this particular ride, and most of the other trails in this area, is sand….some of it smooth and hard, some of it with washboard stutter bumps and some short soft and loose sections.
Impressions
Well, as Ed Sanders of The Fugs said (but not about riding fat-bikes); “Shit, it was more fun than squashin’ tadpoles.”
–Gearing; The two chainrings combined with a 32 or 34 tooth big cog in the back provided low enough gearing for everything we did on this ride. I don’t know if the lack of a larger front chainring will be too limiting with regard to top-end speed.
–Handlebars; Let’s just say the Salsa bars that come stock on these bikes are less than optimal from a standpoint of comfort. The sweep angle is anti-ergonomic and made my wrists and the joint at the base my thumb ache after just a few minutes. That prompted a call to Jeff Jones the next day to order some of his Loop Bars. We will have those in stock for customers wanting a comfortable bar with multiple hand positions for their fat bikes.
–Shifters; I am a fan of top mount thumb shifters and not a fan of under the bar trigger shifters. ‘Nuff said.
–Handling;
–Climbing; Another fat bike I rode one time had the tendency for the front wheel to bounce around and/or become unweighted when climbing anything technical but this Pugsley stayed planted and it was easy to get the front wheel to go where I pointed it. And traction, obviously, is not the limiting factor on any climb with 4″ wide tires sprouting aggressive, wide spaced knobs.
–Descending; I’m not a fast descender on any bike but the Pugsley made me smile. Some of the chatter bumps were a little jarring and the chain slapping on the chainstay was annoying, but lower tire pressures could help smooth that out. The bike felt magnetically attached to the ground on the bigger rollers and knobs, it just sucked them up without trying to buck me off. Again, the traction is astonishing when going around corners with some speed. These tires have a round profile and the big buttress shaped knobs on the shoulders of the tread bite into the loose stuff.
Conclusion
This bike makes me want to ride more and that’s a good endorsement. My original feeling towards fatbikes was that they might be a little limited in versatility, but these things are fun! They roll over anything and make it possible to ride terrain you would have to push or carry other bikes over. Single track, dirt roads, snow, deep sand, wet sand, and loose gravel all become fair game. Actually, now that I am thinking about it these bikes may be more versatile and less limited in many ways than non-fatbikes. And the market segment seems to be growing which is good news for the consumer because that means more innovation and products down the pike. Get a fat-bike. You won’t regret it, if you live. (apologies to Mark Twain)
Surly Bikes introduced a few new models for 2014 at the annual SaddleDrive event in Ogden, Utah last month. It was invitation only for “top dealers from across the country” and the seemingly arbitrary selection process for invitees left us out. Just so I know where I stand! I had to find out about the new Surly bikes after a customer came in looking for one which I had never heard of. Guess I don’t spend enough time surfing the web either, because several media outlets already had reviews out, which is where our customer heard about the bike. I think I am up to speed now and my rep even sent me an advance copy of the catalog pages for the new bikes which, in what I believe is an internet scoop, I am sharing with you lucky lot. We put in our pre-season order too so not only will we get some of the first ones but we should be first in line when the bikes come back in stock after the first shipment sells out (which I am predicting will happen). We are also supposed to get a couple of the Interbike display bikes after Interbike the end of September and should be able to keep them for a few weeks. Thanks Kory! You’re exculpated.
The Surly E.C.R. is designed to roll on 29″ (700c), 3 inch wide tires on Surly’s 50mm wide Rabbit Hole rims. The inflated tire diameter approaches 31 inches. The large contact point, high volume, big diameter should provide tractor like grip and traction. The bike is not just an Ogre with big tires and it is not the same as the Krampus. The geometry has been tweaked slightly from either of those and there are plenty of attachment points for racks and bottle cages making it suitable for off road adventure bike camping. Surly ECR Catalog Page Surly ECR Complete Bike Specs ECR Frame Geometry and Specs
Surly Straggler
The other new bike we like is the Surly Straggler, which is basically a Cross Check with disc brakes and a few other differences:
-The rear dropout spacing is 135mm rather than 132.5 because most disc hubs are 135mm.
-The rear dropouts are a partially closed horizontal design with a set screw which can be threaded in either from the front of the dropout or the rear, depending on whether a derailleur or a single speed setup is being used.
I know, I can’t figure it out either. The set screw goes in from either direction but shouldn’t the axle be up in the horizontal part?
And the complete bike comes with the new Surly Knard 700×41 tires, placing it squarely in the monster cross category (For those of you who are into categories. You know who you are.) Also suitable for precious Gravel Grinders.
In conclusion, this is some innovation right here, not just bafflement of the people with lighter, shinier and more expensive versions of the same old shit. Surly is exploring the the edges and pushing the boundaries. Bike Touring News is a Surly Intergalactic Dealer and we are excited about the new bikes. We think they have the potential to open up new areas…. in a physical sense as much as a mentality or attitude about riding bikes.
God’s first language is Silence. Everything else is a translation.
–Thomas Keating
The Bike Hermit’s alter-ego has been alive to witness April 17 fifty eight times as of today. In recognition a ceremonial excursion into the high desert has been planned. He will be taking Chief on a ride to Celebration Park south of Kuna tonight and then on to Swan Falls Dam on the Snake River before returning on Thursday. The chance of rain tonight and tomorrow is ever increasing and so the plan will have contingencies. There are less than 20 miles to cover between the two stopovers and so it should be workable even with the rain, although the preferred route along the Snake River to Swan Falls may not be passable if it rains too much, in which case an alternate route is available (at least I’m pretty sure there has to be a pub nearby). Chief is chompin' at the bit.
Earlier, Travis came in to pick up his new Bob Yak trailer. His Surly Ogre frame is spaced for 135mm hubs, the ‘dropouts’ are just like Troll’s…rear load horizontals with a derailleur hanger, slotted disc brake mounts, M10 x 1mm threaded holes for mounting Surly Bill & Ted trailer-connecting hardware (or B.O.B. Nutz), and a dedicated anchoring point for a Rohloff OEM2 axle plate. The right rear dropout on the Surly Ogre with a cut off section of solid steel axle inserted into the threaded trailer attachment hole The Bob Nutz attached to the threaded axle bit. Here is the Bob trailer attached to the Bob Nutz
The threaded holes in the dropouts will also accept the proprietary anchors for Surly’s own trailers, the Ted and the Bill. Like everything Surly these details are well thought out and very functional, which seems as though it should be easy to do but Surly is the only company that consistently gets it right i.m.h.o.
The Surly Moonlander
There is this dog sled race in Alaska. At some point somebody decided the same race could be done on bicycles. Riding in the snow on normal mountain bike tires was more than challenging though so some early innovators would weld two or three mountain bike rims side by side and mount tires on each rim in order to be able to float over the snow. Over the years wider rims and tires were developed and now there are a number of companies making so called “fatbikes”. Now Salsa Cycles has a fat bike in their lineup (Mukluk) as do a dozen or so other smaller builders. In Alaska, where the concept originated, two companies are making fatbikes. Chain Reaction Cycles sells the 9:Zero:7 and Speedway Cycles has the Fatback. And there are a few good blogs about the fat bike experience, notably Fat-Bike dot com and pugsley on patrol
Giving credit where credit is due here is a link to a little fatbike history.
Surly bikes entered the market with their Pugsley model and recently raised the bar with the Moonlander, designed from the ground up to go where the Pugsley can’t. The Moonlander takes 26 x 4.7 inch tires!
Designed from the ground up to go places the Pugsley can’t the Moonlander comes with 100 mm wide rims designed to fit 4.7 inch Big Fat Larry tires. To make these work Surly had to design and tool for the manufacture of some specialized components, notably the Mr. Whirly Offset Double crankset and the Clown Shoe rims. The left crank arm of the Mr. Whirly crankset gracefully matches the curve of the chainstays. The wide rim has cut outs for weight savings. That is the rim tape/liner bulging out of the cutouts.
The 4.7 inch wide Big Fat Larry tires (top) leave a very low impact footprint.
There are plenty of brazed on eyelets for mounting racks but the only rack that currently fits without modification is the Surly rear rack, and it only fits, without modification, on the rear. The front fork does have eyelets for the Salsa Anything Cage though, so a rear rack with panniers and a couple of Salsa Anything cages on the fork should be enough to carry gear for most adventures. Revelate Designs in Anchorage , Alaska specializes in building frame bags for these bikes too.
Surly Long Haul Trucker, the best touring bike for the money.
They are here and ready to ride! As of January 2, 2012 we have in stock six complete Surly Long Haul Trucker touring bikes. 50, 54 and 56 centimeter bikes with 26″ wheels. 56, 58 and 60 centimeter bikes with 700c wheels. We are providing these as bikes for prospective Long Haul Trucker owners to test ride. It’s sort of a leap of faith to plunk down almost $1300 sight unseen for a touring bike and there are very few places (are there any others?) that have such a large selection of sizes. Bike Touring News is listed on the Surly Bikes site as a dealer, a “shop filled with folks who know our products at an ‘above average’ level“. We have years of experience selling these bikes and suggesting the proper sizes for people, but this should eliminate any guesswork.
Surly Bikes does not allow new complete bikes to be shipped because: “We think a bicycle in its built form should come from a bike shop that knows how to assemble and adjust everything so that your ride is ready to go. It only takes a couple of frantic e-mails from customers wondering why their steer tube is so long or in which order the headset parts should go on to cause concern in our hearts. Buying a bike locally gives you a place to go for adjustments, for warranty concerns should they ever arise, and for sizing assistance. Buying locally also helps your neighborhood economy grow, it can help you find a network of riding friends, and sometimes even provide a clubhouse. From our perspective buying bikes through a shop keeps the liability concerns to a minimum and helps keep our products from being simple commodities. We like to think they have a little life in them.” We think that is a good policy and we abide by it.
So, here’s the deal. If you are in the area come in (you might want to call ahead) and we will determine the best size for you based on some observations and measurements we will make. Then you can ride a bike and see how it feels. If you are between sizes you can ride one size bigger or one size smaller. After we have determined your size and know the options you prefer, and after you slap leather for a 50% down payment, we will order your bike. If the supplier is out of stock, or if you need the bike right away we will sell you the demo.
We can still sell all Surly frame sets and components online, so if you know what you need in those departments, give us a shout. If you don’t know what you need, then definitely give us a shout and we will help you sort it out.
The Surly Bikes website has a dealer locator which is updated regularly and lists “shops we know have ordered a lot of Surly stuff or who we know to be knowledgeable in all things Surly”. Bike Touring News is the only shop listed within a 50 mile radius of zip code 83703. Yes, we like Surly stuff – and I am even surly. surly,surly,surly
We currently have these customers Surly bikes/frames in the shop:
I talked about the Deluxe Trucker frame in this post. We consulted with the owner and came up with a build kit for this frame. Now I’m going to have some fun putting it together. The deluxe version (with SandS couplers) only is available as a frameset, which means the buyer gets to spec the parts the way he/she wants it. This always ends up costing a little more than buying a complete bike, but allows the opportunity for customization. The Trucker Deluxe from Surly has two stainless steel couplers which make it possible to take the bike apart for travel. The Trucker Deluxe with build kit is on the counter.
This customer bought the Long Haul Trucker complete version. This bike comes with the parts that Surly specs, and those parts are good. This machine is meant to be taken out of the box, put together and ridden across the country, and many, many people do that. Surly Long Haul trucker, complete
This customer needs a solid, predictable and reliable commuter bike. He needed to look no further than the Surly Cross Check. We helped him determine the correct size which hopefully avoided some wailing and gnashing of teeth. These bikes too are available as complete kits, but the design features of the frames makes them especially suited for custom builds. The main feature I’m thinking of is the semi-horizontal rear dropouts, which make a single speed setup a no brainer. Although I think he will be building this with parts he already has and with a single chainring and 8 rear cogs. Very sensible! And, as with all Surlys the frame clearances allow for big tires and fenders. “Fatties Fit Fine”! Surly Cross Check frame
This is a relatively new 29+3 so I had some trepidation. Ha, silly girl. The tread is perfect for a wide variety of terrain. I have the 120 TPI casing and the tire is lighter than my Surly Knards. The roll on pavement is excellent. On our very technical ride to Pipeline crossing, in the Owyhee desert the tires, hands down, out performed the Knards. The side grip is great. I didn’t have any slips, any spin outs or questionable traction issues. The Excellent Cool Ride bounced and jostled along happily – almost as if the person riding had advance to “pro” status. Look out Bike Hermit!
