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When Ibis Cycles released the Ripmo AF people were excited about the future! Speculation had started to run high on what bike in their lineup would get the aluminum treatment next! After all, the Ripmo AF is the first aluminum offering by Ibis Cycles and they knocked it out of the park! You got the same technology and design of their carbon offering Ripmo but in a more budget-friendly metal option! The Ripley AF was no different and we saw the release of a bike very similar to their carbon Ripley offering however it also got the aggressive treatment of being a degree slacker and metal! "It is nothing like the carbon Ripley" On paper, a degree change to the head angle and a different frame material wouldn’t seem like it makes much of a difference however after testing this bike over a wide variety of terrain and some very aggressive miles we can say that it is nothing like the carbon Ripley and instead almost as if the carbon Ripley and the carbon Ripmo had a baby! Upgrades Out of the box the Ripley AF comes in at $3000 dollars for a solid build that has everything you would need to hit the trails! However, no long-term review would be fun without a few upgrades to unlock a bike's full potential and that is what we did. Bumping the fork travel up to 140mm and using a stiffer fork (the DVO Diamond) added a lot of all-mountain capability to this bike. Pairing that with a DVO topaz rear shock with a piggy gave the bike even more downhill potential. SRAM AXS Eagle drivetrain helped us explore how this bike would feel with a top-of-the-line drivetrain. Carbon Ibis wheels with i9 hubs and carbon One Up handlebars also added a bit of stiffness and familiarity to the overall ride! Interested in the Ibis Ripley AF or another Ibis bike? Call Shaun from N+1 Bikes and tell him you're a friend of Awesome MTB. 502-718-7246 The Review After many miles over a wide variety of terrain, the Ripley AF continues to blow our minds as a truly do everything mountain bike! On climbs, the Ripley AF has the efficiency traits Ibis is known for! Even with the weight penalty the alloy frame has over its carbon offering and the more aggressive rear shock we put on there, we still found ourselves out of the saddle on climbs and not feeling like we were wasting our energy! However, with that being said you can feel the weight penalty overall on climbs, and acceleration isn't as quick. But this same weight penalty transforms how this bike performs on the downhill! When it comes time to point this bike downhill is when the serious fun begins! Who knew that a short travel bike could be so capable! The added frame weight combined with the degree slacker head angle had us constantly trying to figure out where exactly the limits were on this bike and always coming up empty-handed in our findings! The best part was even though this bike had a tremendous amount of stability and confidence, it still retained the poppy nature of the Ripley as well as the quick reaction in and out of corners that a short travel bike provides! The ultimate do-everything bike label came to mind a ton as well as desert ripper! We can't even imagine how fun this bike would be in Moab or Sedona! Final Thoughts... If you are looking for the ultimate bike to take from everything from desert trips to bike park laps and don’t want to break the bank the Ripley AF is a strong contender. And if the metal is your thing you will be stoked about how this bike looks and performs out on the trail! Great job Ibis! Interested in the Ibis Ripley AF or another Ibis bike? Call Shaun from N+1 Bikes and tell him you're a friend of Awesome MTB. 502-718-7246

*purchases through some of the bellow links help support the channel at no additional cost to you! It is finally here!!! A lot of you probably already know but we are huge fans of Sram’s AXS electronic shifting! So we were stoked when we found out that Sram GX had gotten the trickle down electronic treatment! SRAM just announced the new GX AXS kits available for pre-order now! It looks like MSRP for an upgrade kit (derailleur, shifter, battery and charger) is coming in at $600 USD! And it looks like besides a little bit of weight and a few differences with certain materials on things like the pulley cage, you will still be getting all of the cool tech that AXS X01 and XX1 offer! This is an awesome way to get your feet in the water when it comes to electronic shifting since you can use your existing cassette (assuming it is 12 speed) and get rid of some cables! SRAM GX Eagle AXS Upgrade Kit: https://bit.ly/31i9i0j Sram GX Eagle AXS Rear Deraileur: https://bit.ly/3lUYnmL SRAM GX Eagle AXS Shifter: https://bit.ly/3cjyKsL Check out our full XX1 AXS Long Term Review here!

Learning to ride a bike for the first time is for most kids their first taste of freedom. The feeling doesn't go away when you pick up a mountain bike as an adult. Mountain biking is a very liberating sport where you can escape the stress of everyday life by pedaling off into nature and leaving the chaos behind! However, your dad won't be there to pick you up if you get a flat tire (or maybe he will- I'm not judging), you're most likely on your own and could be hours away from your car or any access point. If you want to be prepared for accidents and mechanicals you need to bring a few things with you. Over packing for a short ride isn’t a bad thing but after adding everything to your riding pack you might feel overburdened for your quick sunset ride or dawn patrol quickie! So how can you pack just the right amount of gear without overdoing it? We have you covered! Let's start off with what I think is the easiest way to carry tools and the best way to ditch a bag all together. Specialized Swat Bib The Specialized Mountain Liner Swat Bib has been our go to bib for most every ride! With a super comfy fit and a nice padding, the main stand out feature of the Specialized Swat Bib is the Swat carry system! Featuring storage on the lower back area that is nice and snug you are able to carry the essentials and ditch the fanny pack or backpack set up! There are a few different versions of the Swat Bib and we love the Mountain Liner Swat Bib to wear underneath baggy mountain bike shorts. Stans Dart The Stans Dart is an amazon light weight tire plug system that is very easy to use! If you get a puncture on the trail and you are running tubeless this is going to allow you to “plug” the puncture and keep on rolling without having to put a spare tube in! Some people opt for "bacon plugs" like these but from our experience they are more difficult to use and way less effective. The Stans Dart has saved us multiple times! You can also order a refill kit as well! Tubolito Spare Tube Sometimes you get a puncture so bad that no tire plug system will be able to fix. That is when having a back up plan is important. The Tubolito S-Tubo MTB Tube allows you to bring a spare tube that is both reusable as well as insanely lightweight! No more excuses on why you do not have a spare tube! The Tubolito tube might seem expansive but if you have tire plugs, a tube is a last resort option that you'll hopefully not have to use often. Since, you won't have to use it often and you can reuse it, you don't need to buy it often. Personally I think it's well worth the investment because of how lightweight and convenient it is. Multi Tool Very few mechanicals can be fixed without a multi tool. There are a lot of multi-tools out there but we recommend bringing a tool with at least a chain breaker and all the common bike allen sizes. One mistake people make is buying ordinary, not bike specific multitools and they end up having extra allen keys they don't need and no chain breaker. We really enjoy the Crank Brother F15 multi tool, you can find it here. C02 and Chuck Flat tires are no fun and no amount of plugs and tubes will help if you don't have something to inflate them! While some riders prefer a small tire pump, we love C02 for their ease of use and efficiency as well as overall small size. In order to use C02 to inflate your tires, you need to use a C02 cartridge and C02 chuck. The C02 chuck is what connects the C02 cartridge to your valve stem. Genuine Innovations is the brand of C02 chuck and cartridge we use, you can find them here! We recommend the 20g or 25g cartridges (16g is better for road) and to bring 2 on a ride! Quick Links Quick links will make your life significantly easier if you break a chain. While you can jimmy rig a chain back together without one, having one will not only help speed up the repair time but will also allow you to reuse your chain down the line! Figure out how many speeds you have and pick the right quick links! You can find sram 12 speed quick links here. Pro tip, you can take the quick links out of their packaging and wrap them with electrical tape. The cardboard packaging won't get soggy in your back pocket and you'll have tape to use in case of a mechanical or accident! Windbreaker (optional) We find ourselves bringing along a windbreaker more nowadays with how small our Specialized windbreaker is! A perfect addition to wear at either the start of dawn patrol rides or the end of sunset rides, its tough to leave behind! You can find our favorite windbreaker by clicking here. And just like that you are set to ditch the pack and hit the trails knowing you are ready for what the ride throws at you! Did I forget anything? What do you essentials do you carry on rides?

I finally finished building my Ibis RipMo V2!! It's hard to believe it's been a year since I last had a RipMo in my quiver. Up until 2020, the RipMo was undeniably my favorite bike but after I sold my RipMo V1 at the beginning of 2020 in preparation for the new RipMo V2 the bike industry experienced a huge boom! Through most of 2020 and into 2021 both parts and bikes have become a bit hard to find, and with so many people loving the new RipMo V2 I waited in line for mine! In the mean time I built up my Ripley and rode it, only for that bike to become the best bike I have ever owned (who knew short travel bikes were so fun). The Ripley holds a very special place in my heart and it still is a bike I grab for a lot of rides! But even with this new found love for the Ripley I still couldn't shake the desire for more travel and that is where my new RipMo came into the picture. I could not be more stoked!! Save 15% off your first order with Competitive Cyclist! Use code AWESOMEMTB15 (Exclusions apply) Disclosure: Some of the links below may earn us a small commission but it's at no additional cost to you. Frame Ibis Cycles RipMo V2 In the market for a new RipMo or any Ibis bike? Contact our friend and partner Shaun from N+1 Bikes and let him know we sent you! Suspension DVO Diamond Fork DVO Topaz Wheels and Tires Ibis S29 Wheels Industry Nine Hydra Hubs Maxxis Minion DHF 2.6 Maxxis Minion DHR II 2.4 Cockpit Industry9 A35 stem 50mm Oneup Components 20mm Rise Handlebar PNW Components Loam Lever PNW Components Loam Grips Braking Sram Code RSC Brakes Shimano XT ICE Tech Rotors (203 front and 180 rear) Drivetrain Sram XX1 Oil Slick Cassette 52t Sram XX1 AXS Derailleur Sram XX1 Crankset 175mm Sram 32t GX Chainring Sram Oil Slick Chain Pedals and Saddle Diety Black Kat Pedals Bronze Specialized Women’s Power Pro Mimic Saddle 143mm Dropper Post PNW Components Loam Post 200mm Extras Lezyne Sideloader Cage Better Bolt Titanium Oil Slick Bolts To learn more about my RipMo build watch the video down below!

To kick off our East Coast road trip we left California for one of our favorite destinations, Sedona, Arizona! From the beautiful red rock, vortexes, and killer technical trails, it's really hard to go wrong here. Hogs trail in Sedona Arizona is an all-time favorite for visitors and locals alike. High on The Hog, Hog Heaven, and Hog Wash all combine to make the 3.5-mile infamous Hogs Loop. To ride Hogs Loop it's best to park the Broken Arrow parking lot. It's one of the few parking lots in Sedona you don't need to buy a parking pass for and it so happens to be the best place to start your ride for Hogs Loop. From Broken Arrow parking lot take Broken Arrow Trail to High on the Hogs the first of 3 trails in Hogs Loop. You can also take Broken Arrow all the way to Chicken Point. If you've never been to Sedona, I recommend doing this. Chicken point is an extremely popular spot for Jeepers, mountain bikers, and hikers. Chicken point got its name from the many Jeeper's who've taken their jeeps as close to the cliff as they dare. You can also view the White Line from Chicken Point. For those of you who don't know what the White Line is, it's basically a sandstone line on a rock formation... Watch this video from Seth Bike Hack's it'll tell you all you need to know about it. If you are lucky someone might be riding it when you arrive! This 3.5-mile loop takes riders on average an hour to complete. You climb approximately 410 ft and descend about the same.Broken Arrow, High on the Hog, Hog Heaven, and Hogwash are all Black (advanced) rated trails. There are a few significantly hard features, one of them being the first main feature on High on the Hog. This is the feature I crashed on in the above video. Be warned! Always scope out features before hitting them and make sure you are comfortable riding them before you do. When in doubt, walk! Watch our video from Hogs Loop in Sedona! SPOILER ALERT I crashed hard!

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYPyzlAmkCtoNx3yNXRpffRkEPmb0JpK4 Multi-day bike touring has always been one of those things that we never thought we would be able to do. Too much gear needed, too many logistics, too many things to go wrong, and too much time needed to do it. We would see pictures of friends on these epic multi-day adventures and think to ourselves “wow that looks so awesome” but never once would the thought that we could be doing the same thing occur to us. We are van lifers who ride mountain bikes for a living. It seems adventurous but to us it’s not that crazy. Your home travels with you and wherever you are, a bed and a kitchen are waiting for you as soon as you finish your ride. Bike touring was the real crazy thing that always seemed outside of reach for us. However all this would change for us during our time in Thailand. This past winter we had the pleasure to spend a few months living in Chiang Mai Thailand, an adventure that would require a book all on its own. Normally we live in a van full time however we traded van life for international life and made our way to Asia. We had flown to Thailand with 4 bikes total (a gravel bike and an enduro MTB each) and our only goal was to experience the culture and get as much riding in as we can. While our original ambitions had led us there in search primarily of great single track MTB trails, we quickly realized that the road cycling was too good to not ditch the dirt in search of miles of perfectly paved roads and hilly climbs through the mountains! One thing led to another, and after befriending a few cyclists who were also visiting, we became aware of an adventurous loop called “Mae Hon Song”. This route goes through the mountainous region of Northern Thailand and through a few remote villages along the way. We were warned that it is very strenuous and at times does not give up. Coming in at 340 miles with about 33,000 total feet of elevation over a span of 5 days (this would be the route we chose). Originally we dismissed the idea. Neither of us had ever done any multi-day cycling adventure, we had no gear, and neither of us spoke Thai. However in typical us fashion, the smell of an adventure had already kicked in. The more we looked into the route the more we began to convince ourselves that maybe we had a chance. After all, we were in Thailand, a country where the US dollar stretches very far. In the US a hotel would cost us about $50 a night minimum where here the cost was about $10 a night. We didn’t need a tent if we just brought a bit of cash right? And if the hotel has a shower we could just wash the riding kit we are wearing, saving the need to bring any extra riding clothes, right? Little by little we started to convince ourselves that we were ready to take on the challenge! But what we didn’t know is just how painful the challenge would be. And man were we in for one hell of an adventure! The Route Distance: 340.0 miles Total climb: 33014 ft The more we looked into the route the more we began to convince ourselves that maybe we had a chance. After all, we were in Thailand, a country where the US dollar stretches very far. In the US a hotel would cost us about $50 a night minimum where here the cost was about $10 a night. We didn’t need a tent if we just brought a bit of cash right? And if the hotel has a shower we could just wash the riding kit we are wearing, saving the need to bring any extra riding clothes, right? Little by little we started to convince ourselves that we were ready to take on the challenge! But what we didn’t know is just how painful the challenge would be. And man were we in for one hell of an adventure! Now you might be thinking to yourself surely we would bring a little gear with us right? Spare jacket, some tubes, maybe a few extra parts. Where would we keep these without any backpacking gear? While the original plan was to travel lightly, and just stuff everything in our pockets that we did choose to bring. Luckily Hannah was able to construct a bike bag by taking one of our shoe bags and zip tying it to my handlebars. This would prove to be essential as we could now bring jackets, chamois butter, and a few other essential items like flip flops to walk around town in when we got to villages. Cheap and practical, all of the excuses had now been thrown out the window and we were ready to embark on an adventure of a lifetime! Day 1: Chiang Mai to Pai Distance: 78 miles Total climb: 7132 ft The pace was sporadic on day 1, with neither of us entirely sure of whether it would be better to crank it out to have more time to rest our legs when we got there or to take the slower approach and conserve energy. After all today was just going to be 1/5th of the entire loop and we would still have 32,000 more feet of elevation to climb in the next 4 days. Regardless we were on our way and the views started almost immediately, as did the stops for food and drinks. That was the nice thing about this route, we had heard there were plenty of little shops that would sell water, food, drinks, and other essentials. We were also told the first day would hurt and about halfway into the day we started to feel it. Hills that never ended, climbing straight into the mountains. The hills tired us out so much that we fo Our gearing wasn’t ideal, something we knew would be an issue but ignored leading up to the trip, somehow hoping it would magically change come time for this route. Well, as we grinded our way up the never-ending climbs, we can reassure you that never happened and we found ourselves constantly wanting a bailout granny. We quickly realized maybe we should have put the XT 11 speed cassette on with a 46t granny, but it was too late. The route to Pai proved to be a very good idea of what to expect the next few days and after many pit stops, hills climbed, and beautiful views taken in, we made it! Pai was beautiful but also very touristy. We would have liked to spend more time in the town, however, the bed in our 400 baht a night hotel (approx $12 USD) sounded a bit more appealing than exploring the town. We stayed at Pai Friendly Resort and loved our stay! Day 2: Pai to Mae Hong Son Distance: 66 miles Total climb: 9159 ft Waking up on day 2, the reality was quick to slap us in the face. We have never had a better understanding of where the phrase “it feels like I got hit by a truck” had come from then on that morning! Sore, tired, hungry, and exhausted we packed what little gear we had and began to make our way to Khun Yuam. Today would be another big day in the saddle, with about 9k feet of climbing in front of us. We needed coffee badly so we made our way to a coffee shop in Pai, but first wanted a photo with the sunrise. A random monk thought we wanted him in the photo when we asked the man next to him, so we ended up with an even more epic photo and a story of that one time a monk photo bombed our picture! After fueling up on overpriced tourist coffee, we hit the road again. One thing we knew about the day is that there were going to be some walls to climb. That and we were also combining what for smart people would be two days into one. Right off the back we also started to realize how much steeper the climbs were today. Maybe it was the fact that we had climbed close to 9k feet the day prior, but the climbs no longer looked like climbs, but rather walls of pavement! The saving grace here was that at the top of most of these climbs was a food stop area where vendors from the local villages sold things like potatoes and corn, as well as water and sugar drinks. Full disclaimer, lots of sugar was consumed during this trip. Copious amounts of sugar… The highlight of the day was running into a group of older Thai men who were doing the same loop as us. They were taking a few more days than us, and the atmosphere was very relaxed and fun! They were amazing to meet and gave us a little bit of energy from their encouragement after learning what our plan was time-wise for the loop! We would try to fill in the rest of the day here and how it went, but a lot of it was a blur. All that we remember was lots of hills, more hills, some more hills, lots of potato breaks, and then just like that we were at Khun Yuam! There were a few vegan-friendly restaurants here as well as a really nice night market where we found lots of sticky rice! Our hotel room here was another very friendly family home turned hotel and the cost was once again around 400 baht or 12 USD. The place we stayed at was called was Boondee House Guesthouse, we loved our stay, the owner was extremely nice and accommodating as well! Day 3: Mae Hong Son to Khun Yuam Distance: 43 miles Total climb: 4107 ft If we thought we had woken up sore and exhausted after day 1, waking up on day 3 felt like we had gotten hit by the same truck we felt like we got hit on day 1, but then ran over by the rest of rush hour traffic. Food was needed right away so after talking to our hosts, who were extremely friendly, we found an amazing all-vegan restaurant. We tried to talk to them and they tried to talk to us but we did not get very far besides smiles and laughs. The food was amazing and we were really starting to appreciate the Jae religion, which is a form of Buddhism incorporating a vegan diet. This made finding food pretty easy for us as we would either look for the sign or just show them the one that we had saved a screen saver on our phone. Day 3 was supposed to be the milder of the days and a bit of a rest before tackling the final two. The climbs were also much less steep and it seemed like the entire day was actually somewhat pleasant in comparison to what we thought it would be like. With minimal fruit and food breaks needed we ended up making it to our destination with good time to spare. The one thing that became quickly apparent to us was how far out of the way of the tourist sections of Thailand we were. We received many stares while walking through the town here, and we could tell that not many tourists did make their way out this far. The vegan options were also not exactly plentiful here, and we definitely found ourselves eating a lot of white rice! Day 4: Khun Yuam to Mae Chaem Distance: 62 miles Total climb: 10,939 ft Do you know those moments when you wake up and know how crazy the day ahead of you is going to be so you close your eyes and pretend that the day is not going to happen? This was day 4. We knew that day 4 was going to be the biggest challenge for us, with some of the biggest elevation we have ever climbed in a single day. And even though we had felt well rested from the casual day previously (funny how 5k feet of climbing had now become casual), we knew we hadn’t taken in enough calories, primarily because at this point our bodies needed so many just to sustain themselves. We hadn’t figured out the food situation in the town we had stayed in either as the town was really small and English was much rarer than the bigger towns we had come across on the earlier days. Regardless, our spirits were high! We had decided to start off before the sun rose to make the most of the day. We knew each of us was probably on the verge of the biggest leg cramp of our life and we wanted ample time to be able to deal with it. What we did not realize is starting off before the sun would trigger so many stray dogs, and we definitely had our fair share of scares. However even with the stray dog scares and somewhat hilly start, the crisp morning air felt really good, and we found ourselves making progress! Day 4 went through a fair amount of villages and towns, some more remote than others and we did run into the issue of not knowing exactly what to order for our meal brakes, as vegan options were still scarce. We were able to find lots of rice and bananas which became a staple during this trip along with sprite and pure sugar! At this point of the journey we were just surviving as neither of us had ever ridden this far before consecutively. One thing was certain though, the hospitality of every single town and village we stopped at was second to none. The locals were so curious and even though we spoke no Thai and they spoke no English, we could tell they really wanted to help us however they could. With what little we were able to translate through hand gestures, we explained our route to them and realized how ambitious we had been because everyone seemed to think we were crazy! With lots of amazing views, interesting geographical terrain changes, weird animal encounters, the day was very engaging, however, there was no getting over the fact that the hills were relentless! They did not stop and each time you made it to the top of one and had a quick descent you were faced with another mountain to climb. But after what seemed like an eternity, we somehow stumbled into the last town we would be staying at. And stumbled was an understatement as I literally toppled over as I got off my bike from exhaustion. With the biggest day behind us now, we knew the following evening if all went well we would be back in our apartment in Chiang Mai. But boy were we in for a treat on the final day. Day 5: Mae Chaem to Chiang Mai Distance: 86 miles Total climb: 9330 ft Remember that analogy where it felt like we got hit by a few cars? Well waking up for the 5th and final day felt like what we think it would feel like to be a couch that could feel pain and to be in the back of a pick-up truck, before falling off while on a freeway, toppling over a few times before getting slammed by an 18 wheeler. Over exaggeration? Maybe, but in reality we were hurting and definitely not in the shape to climb to the tallest mountain in Thailand, Doi Inthanon. Could we have spent an extra day in the village resting and getting our legs back? Maybe. But we knew not making the schedule we had outlined for ourselves would lower the overall stoke so we set off for what would be one of the hardest days of cycling for either of us. The road to the beginning of the mountain climb of Doi Inthanon was fairly pleasant and we had a good time warming up and stretching the legs. We didn’t have many snacks on us as we assumed we would run into a few locals selling things on the side of the road and we could just buy some more food and water. What we did not know is the way we were taking up to the top of Doi Inthanon was the back way, much steeper and less forgiving than the front way up the mountain and with absolutely no one selling anything except one stop that had some villagers selling some potatoes. The lack of food and water supply combined with the brutal elevation gain would lead to the bonk of a lifetime for me. Hannah was a bit more fresh as she had been doing a better job staying hydrated as well as fed. I on the other hand was not a fan of potatoes and had turned down the one food stop we had, assuming there would be another soon. Fast forward 5k feet of climbing, and we were still only 60 % of the way there and I had lost any patience I had for this trip. I don’t bonk often, which is what made me realize how bad of a position I was in seeing how much further I still needed to go. Luckily we did eventually come up to a rest stop area where after almost getting into a fight with a security officer (this was entirely my fault, I’m an angry bonker and the language barrier plus being fully annihilated by the 5k of elevation I had just climbed with no water or food had removed any patience I had) we managed to understand that there was a food stop a few hundred feet from us. We scarfed down food and water before making our way up the last steep bit to the top of Doi Inthanon and the beautiful view you would think would be at the top of the highest mountain in Thailand. Sound sarcastic? It’s because it is. The view from the top wasn’t really a view at all, and it was probably one of the biggest letdowns of the trip. However the amount of stoke we had while taking our pictures with the sign that told us where we were was incredible, and after hugging each other and taking it all in, we checked the map to see how close Chiang Mai was and realized we had miscalculated how much time we needed to make it home. Chiang Mai was still another 40-50 miles away from the base of the mountain, a journey that would take a few hours, not the 1-2 we had allocated in our mind. Realizing we had a long road ahead of us we made our way down the mountain, but by the time we were back on flat road, ready to start the pedal out bonk number 2 hit us, and we quickly found a restaurant to eat at. The owners must have had quite the show as we both looked just as bad as we felt. The food was amazing (or at least amazing to our current state, I’m sure it was great but anything would have tasted good at that moment). We then started the journey back to Chiang Mai thinking all we had to do was keep our heads down and pedal. However nothing came easy and my tire punctured and was losing air fast. Out of Dynaplugs, too tired to put a tube in, and with only 1 c02 cartridge left, we put a zip tie around the puncture which seemed to do the trick! Slowly, painfully, and with much effort, we put our heads down and grinded out the next 2 hours. And just like that we made it home!!! Looking back on this trip now, we can’t seem to figure out what exactly is wrong with us. No bike touring experience, no idea where we were going, or a guide with us who knew the exact route, no gear, and no ability to speak Thai. Yet in our minds not making it or finishing was never a thought. And in turn, the memories we made by just going for it are going to last us a lifetime. We still think about moments through the trip that make us laugh as well as cringe. And looking back at the photos there is not much we would change if we could go back in time. Well maybe that’s a lie, we would probably bring a little bit more gear and maybe some proper hydration and nutrition. But also sometimes in life, the best memories can be made by just going for it, and we now have some awesome ones! Strava Routes: https://www.strava.com/athlete/routes

Some time at the beginning of this year, we were presented with the idea of signing up for a Ramble Rides event. In particular the Steamboat ramble! What is a Ramble Ride? It's a bike packing/adventure ride series that takes place over the course of 3-4 days in various locations across the U.S.! The ride we were interested in was their Steamboat ramble, it starts in Fort Collins Colorado and takes you on gravel roads all the way to Steam Boat Springs! You can find more info by going to their website: https://ramblerides.com/ The total ride would be around 240 miles and 23k feet of climbing! If the ride itself wasn't challenging enough, Mo and I had both never fully bikepacked before. We had done a similar route in Thailand called the Mae Hong Son Loop but that was on the road and we credit card toured that one. This route would be different, Ramble Ride would offer support in the form of route signs, sag vehicles, cooked meals at camp, and plenty of rest stops with water and nutrition! You also have the option of bringing a small bag in one of the sag vans for when you get to camp each evening. We opted to carry all of our gear (sleep system, clothes, cameras,etc.) on our bikes. We went for this challenge because we wanted to take advantage of this "low risk" environment and test out how unsupported bikepacking would feel (minus the rest stops and catered food). Bikepacking has been on our bucket list for quite some time now but until now we never had all of the gear necessary to do it unsupported! A month before the event we started gathering all of the gear we would need. We purchased our tent, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and pillows from REI during their semi-annual sale. Apidura supplied the bike bags, we went with their expedition series which turned out to be super durable and fitted our Ibis Hakka's perfectly! They even have a sizing guide where you can look up your bike to see what size packs would fit best on it! Our Gear (scroll to the end of the post for what we would change on the next trip) Ibis Hakka Mx Gravel Bikes Apidura Expedition Saddle Pack 17L Apidura Expedition Frame Pack (3L for Hannah's 53cm Ibis Hakka and 5L Tall for Mo's 58cm Ibis Hakka) Apidura Expedition Top Tube Pack 1L Apidura Expedition Handlebar Pack 14L Apidura Expedition Accessory Pocket Big thanks to Ibis for the bikes and Apidura for supplying us with all the bags! Nemo Hornet Elite 2P Tent Nemo Forte 35 Women's and Men's Sleeping Bag Nemo Tensor Insulated Sleeping Pad Nemo Fillo Elite Pillow Not sponsored by Nemo! Let's clear one thing up, lightweight bikepacking gear is EXPENSIVE and you don't have to have all of the top of line gear to go bikepacking. When we were in Asia we used a shoe bag to hold everything we needed for 5 days of riding. Granted we were credit card touring but you get the point. If money is stopping you from bikepacking, buy some straps to hold on to your sleeping bag or buy an inexpensive bivy instead of an ultralight tent. You can get as creative as you'd like, just make sure you have some kind of shelter, food, and water. Go for an easy 20 mile, one night out and back! Keep it simple. Day 1: Leaving Fort Collins The ride started at 7 am in the Rei parking lot in Fort Collins. Ramble Rides fed us breakfast burritos to give us enough energy to embark on what would be the hardest day! Day 1 was 65 miles and nearly 8k feet of elevation. https://www.strava.com/routes/2720755208823297158 We were split up into 4 different cohorts, each cohort was to arrive and leave the REI parking lot at different times. We were cohort 4 so we left last around 7:30. The different cohorts helped ensure that we were all socially distanced from each other at the start of the day as well as on the ride although, that wasn't a huge issue since each day was long and naturally we all fell into a different pace. We were greeted on day 1 with the most amazing views we've ever seen. We stopped a lot to take pictures and took our time. The first 20ish miles were pavement as we headed towards the gravel. We had a quick water break before the gravel started and a 20mile climb to the top of Pennock pass. At the top we were thankfully greeted with an aid station and then started a long descent to lunch at Crown Point. Somewhere on the bumpy gravel descent, Mo's rear brake pads fell out. He had built up his Hakka only a week prior to the event and didn't really get to do a proper shakedown beforehand. We don't recommend doing that. Unfortunately we didn't have a spare set of pads and neither did anyone else so he sucked it up, pushed the pistons back in and road his bike for the rest of the route with no rear brake. Yea. I know. He is an animal! Seriously.. who does that? Lunch couldn't have come at a better point. Thankfully, the lunch stop was just after Mo's brake pads had fallen out. For lunch they served us the best peanut butter and jelly we've ever tasted... definitely had nothing to do with all the climbing we had just done! They also served us the best water and coke we've ever had! Soon after lunch, we got to Poudre Canyon Road where we pedaled our tired legs past a seriously beautiful creek (pictured below). We definitely would have jumped into it if we had more time! We peeled off the canyon road for a steep gravel road climb that would eventually take us to camp #1. We were delighted to arrive at camp and quickly set up our tent and sleep system. The tent was surprisingly easy to set up. This was only our second time trying to set up the tent. Yea, I know, not the smartest. Other Ramblers opted to bring a bag in the van for each evening at camp. They wouldn't need to carry this bag on the ride. A pretty good idea... Dinner was served shortly after we had set up our camp for the night. We ate veggie burgers and a kale noodle dish Christine the Ramble Ride chef prepared. Thanks, Christine! Quick riders meeting to conclude the day presented by Pete, the Ramble Ride organizer, and founder! Day 2: Up Deadman's Lookout and into Walden Remember when I said that day 1 would be the hardest of all 4 days? Well, technically speaking this is true, we climb the most on day 1. But with day 1 underneath your belt, day 2 felt much harder. Day 2 was only a little bit longer than day 1, coming out to 72 miles and 6600 ft elevation. https://www.strava.com/routes/2720755991914248300 On day 2 we were met with a LOT of gravel, the only pavement we road was at the end of day 2 when we road into the small town of Walden. The gravel roads were beautiful! Day 2 started off with the biggest climb of the day! There is something about climbing at the beginning of a ride that is much easier than at the end. We climbed for a while and eventually made it to the top of Deadman's Hill where the elevation was 10,269ft! I honestly couldn't have named this peak anything better, what a perfect name. Thankfully Ramble Rides strategically placed an aid station at the top of Deadman Hill. We filled up our bottles and started the descent down! We stopped a lot on the way down for a few pictures and some epic drone shots. The descent led us to a huge basin where we road past some farmland and a dirt country road. We stopped a lot here too, it was too beautiful not to! We eventually made it to lunch where we again had the best PB&J and Coke we've ever had. After lunch, the ride got really hard for us. We didn't do an amazing job documenting from there on out because honestly we were beat. I (Hannah) started to develop a very bad sunburn on the top of my thighs and arms. Sunscreen is a must on this ride even Mo who doesn't burn easily developed a terrible burn on his nose, arms, and legs! It was a VERY long slog all the way to Walden. There was an extra credit 10 miles near the end of the ride but like many others, on the ride, we opted out. We were happy we did, we still had another 2 hard days of riding ahead of ourselves. Camp for night 2, Waldens city park. It was a lot nicer than it sounds, it doubles as a campsite for Walden. Thankfully it had outlets, toilets, and plenty of water spigots. For dinner Chef, Christine cooked us some lentil Pasta which is just what we needed. Lots of protein, carbs, and good flavor! Mo did have a craving for french fries so we went into town to get some as well as some more riding snacks. We are pretty particular about what we like to eat while riding! Day 3: Getting lost and Entering Wyoming Day 3 was the shortest day of all 4 which was what we needed. Even though it was still a long day, we kind of felt like we recovered a little bit on Day 3. Day 3 came in at 62 miles and 3700 feet of climbing. https://www.strava.com/routes/2720756157708148920 The day started out with about 20 miles of pavement which we enjoyed. Pedaling pavement is nice sometimes! I (Hannah) pedaling out of the quaint town of Walden the morning of Day 3. Everyone there was super friendly! Pavement miles made the day a bit shorter and gave our bums a little rest! After about 20 miles of pavement, we finally hit a turn off onto a gravel road. Pete the event organizer had warned us that there would be a detour since some cattle were being moved on the original route. Unfortunately, the detour ended up being a little confusing. I don't blame the event, this was a last-minute detour that they had to do, completely not their fault. The detour took us on a very unpopular single track that had a lot of sand which forced us to get off and walk in certain sections. Eventually, the single track broke off into what looked liked several new ones but they all connected to the same spot. We did reach a point following the single track where it kinda just stopped, leaving us pretty lost but we kept our tires pointed straight and tried our best to follow the other Ramblers tire tracks. We made it out just fine. Soon after, we reached our first rest stop where you had the option of splitting off for an extra credit route that would add an extra 1k of climbing. As appealing as that sounded (this is sarcasm) we said no thank you and kept on keeping on! Mo at the top of a short and gradual climb. What a view! We pedaled this gravel road for a bit before entering farm country. We stopped a lot there to take photos with the cows.. we couldn't help it! Near the end of our ride, we entered Wyoming where we were greeted with another rest stop (yay!) before heading into camp. Day 4: Leaving Wyoming for Steamboat Day 4 felt like the hottest out of all 4 days. I don't think the awful sunburns we had both developed by day 4 helped. Day 4 was 66 miles with 4,600 ft of climbing! https://www.strava.com/routes/2720756358169858182 Pandemic approved breakfast to start off the final day of the Steamboat Ramble Ride! Day 4 started off with a climb which again we were grateful for. Eventually, we popped out onto a highway that we descended to Steamboat Lake State Park, which was beautiful! For the first time in days, we saw other cyclists. We saw two ladies on mountain bikes that were also finishing up a bikepacking trip, we chatted a bit with them and then arrived at lunch were we scarfed down some veggie dogs! We took a couple of dogs to go as well which proved to be a great idea since that was the last aid station! After a painfully hot 20 miles or so we rolled into the Steamboat Springs KOA campground where we of course took a celebratory "finish line" photo! The KOA campground was amazing, there were hot showers, a creek to swim in, outlets, and running water! The city of Steamboat also has a free bus that runs throughout the town and makes a pit stop at the KOA. After some delicious Mexican dinner Chef Christine made for us we took the free bus into town to explore a bit. The town was really nice, Steamboat is a mountain town but one of the bigger ones in the area, they have loads of tourist shops, grocery stores, and bars. The 2020 Steamboat Ramble Ride was more than we could have ever asked for, It was seriously rad and took us through some of the most beautiful mountain roads that we would have never seen if it weren't for this ride. The ride also challenged us in a way we never thought possible, it pushed us through our breaking points and taught us what we are capable of. Thanks to Pete and Christine for having us, we can't thank you guys enough! Also, thank you to Ibis Cycles, Apidura, PNW Components, and our other sponsors DVO Suspension and Industry 9. What would we change on our next trip? Tent tent tent! Sorry Nemo but your ultralight Hornet 2P tent is not a 2 person tent, it's a 1 person tent. Although both of our regular sized sleeping pads fit (barely), it was extremely crowded. With both of us inside the tent, we only have a small amount of space at our feet and absolutely none at our sides. We are planning to either sell this tent or return it to REI and get a Big Agnes 3 person, we'll take the 1-2 lb weight penalty any day for a comfortable night's sleep! Sleeping pads! This one we are 50/50 on. The Nemo Tensor Insulated pads we got were kept us warm and were mostly comfortable but they were really annoying at night. We both constantly found ourselves taking turns getting stuck in between the 2 pads. The pads just wouldn't sit still. We also felt like we were waking up the entire campsite every time we adjusted ourselves or got up to use the bathroom. We are thinking about trying out a Thermarest pad or just sucking it up and getting a closed-cell foam pad but we are reluctant to do this because it will be pretty bulky and we aren't sure we would want to carry that on the outside of our seat pack. Any recommendations are highly appreciated!!

The holidays are here and we got you covered with the ultimate gift guide for the mountain biker in your life! get your shopping done early and make sure you are the ultimate gift giver this holiday season! *Some of the links below are affiliate links which means purchases through the link help support the channel and no extra cost to you! Gifts Under $100 Stans Dart Tire Repair: The Stans Dart is the perfect stocking stuffer to help out with any time the mountain biker in your life gets a puncture while on the trails! You can use it to plug the puncture so they can keep on riding and save the ride! SAVE 15% off at Competitive Cyclist with code "AWESOMEMTB15" Tubolito Light Weight Tube: The tubolitio is another great stocking stuffer! This super light weight tube is nice and compact and also more durable than a normal tube and will be the gift that keeps on giving! Available in both 29 and 27.5 wheel size! Genuine Innovation Nano C02 Tire Inflator: Another great stocking stuffer, the Nano C02 Chuck is perfect for all cyclist and is nice and compact so it won't take up too much space in your cyclists pack! Pit Viper Sunglasses: This is a classic gift and will be a hit both on and off the bike! Pit Viper glasses are sure to make not only look fast but feel fast on the trails as well! Get 15% off your order at check out as well through our link! PNW Loam Lever: Give the gift of one of the most comfortable dropper post lever on the market! With lots of colors to choose from this is a sure win among mountain bikers! Tailwind Nutrition Starter Pack: Nutrition is something everyone can appreciate and the Tailwind Nutrition starter pack is an amazing stocking stuffer to keep everyone hydrated on the trails! Gifts $100-$300 EVOC Stage 18L Riding Backpack : The perfect size riding back pack for a majority of riders, the Stage 18L is not too big and not too small but just perfect for most rides! SAVE 15% off at Competitive Cyclist with code "AWESOMEMTB15" Feedback Sports Pro-Elite Repair Stand: This is the gift that keeps on giving! The Feedback Sports Repair stand will help the mountain biker in your life to fix their own bike saving time and money! Pair it with their tool kit for the ultimate combo! GO PRO HERO 9 Black: The GoPro hero 9 is the best action camera on the market right now. Super easy to use and amazing footage is made possible with this action camera that keeps the footage stable and easy to share! Garmin Edge 530: The Garmin Edge 530 is an amazing cycling computer that helps you navigate your ride and also get data from your ride as well! You can sync it with Trailforks to see all the mtb trails when your riding and also download routes the the Garmin as well! Gifts $300+ Garmin InReach GPS Satellite: This is a gift for everyone! Garmin inReach gives you peace of mind knowing the mountain biker in your life is safe on the trails! DJI Mini 2 Drone: This drone is perfect for the mountain biker in your life as it is so small it can easily fit in a pack and also is really easy to use! EVOC Bike Travel Bag: Give the gist of traveling with this mountain bike travel bag! Super easy to use, this bag is the ultimate way to make sure your bag is safe while traveling! Now the mountain biker in your life will be able explore more trails all over the world! SAVE 15% off at Competitive Cyclist with code "AWESOMEMTB15" DVO Suspension: Give the gift of amazing suspension with some new DVO suspension! These forks and shocks are sure to make any bike feel amazing! And if you give them a call, they should be able to help guide you to what suspension you need! Let them know we sent you to save some money too!