Journal | HUNT Bike Wheels

Bombtrack bikes are cool. There we said it. Not one to follow the pack and come out with bikes which are high on the fun factor. This new build from Bombtrack might be exactly what you need to compliment long days spent exploring anything which comes your way.

We haven’t seen much of Hamish over the past two years… mostly due to him being located down under in Wollongong, Australia.

Having worked in a bicycle store since he was 14 after lying about his age to get a start on the wrenches, Hamish now handles media enquiries with us at Hunt, pieces together our weekly Hunt Journal and is the creator of our On The Drops Interviews.

This time round we have called upon OpenDev rider Rob Harwood to show us some tracks which keep him going on a long gravel ride.

Presenting THE CASSETTE #1: An exploration into the the sounds the people who make up Hunt are listening to. Shift up and spin this one out.

There are bikes, and then there are Storcks... no matter your flavour, the German manufacturer knows how to make a head-turner. This particular one belongs to Dan Pullen, who we interviewed in On The Drops just last week. After coming back from its maiden voyage (less than 24 hours since the time of writing) we thought it only fitting to feature it in this week's reader's ride - oh and did we mention it is a Storck!?

It is safe to bet that most of us first became hooked on bikes in a woodland nearby our childhood household. The first sense of freedom, the sketchy wooden jumps, skid competitions and endless exploring became what we use our bikes for. Then some of us found road bikes, some found cars and study eventually became full time work. But those who did not stop playing in the woods are now affectionately called 'mountain bikers'.

For them nothing has really changed... only the jumps have become bigger, the trail systems more extensive and the 'home before the street lights come on' rule has gone out the window (for some). The life of a trail is more than just when you ride it; it is hours spent by unknown volunteers who have raked, dug, cut, sawed, shaped and sculpted what some of us call our local trails.

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Climbing is an art. Striking the balance of pushing up a gradient without popping before reaching the summit and being able to stay deep in the red zone requires experience which many cyclist's never master. Climbing is, in this sense, a very personal form of cycling. Passing over the point where the gradient stops pointing upwards comes with a sense of accomplishment... and relief... especially when the summit just reached is atop of some of the hardest climbs in Eastern Europe.

Our very own tech guru, Stan has translated his dad's blog from Bulgarian describing his experience of climbing Romania's climbs. By the looks of it, the hills here look to be highly underrated.... although we will pass on the bears crossing the road!

Going to go against the grain here, but I am a Hunt employee who doesn’t like camping. There, I said it.

I’m not of the same rugged cloth of our fabled (and former) Josh Ibbett, or either of the Marchment brothers who kicked things off a couple of years ago. They all love it. The cold, the damp, I’m not sure what the appeal is – but they dig it and they dig it big. Luckily, during our visit to Eurobike this year I had company in the ‘hating camping’…. errr… camp. Luisa, our new senior engineer, spent most of her time either moaning about having to sleep in a tent whilst visiting a trade show, or listening to me doing the same. My idea of touring just means stopping at a different hotel each night. A TCR contender, I am not.

This is going to be a quick one. The primary (achieved) aim was for me to vent about the sleeping in a tent thing. Beyond that, I thought it would be nice to show you all some of the pictures I took whilst roaming around (usually on the way to the next meeting). Most of the stuff that took my eye was high-end road stuff, but I tried to capture some of the bikes/things that your regular media outlet wouldn't notice! Not forgetting the occasional ‘Alligator’ (this won our internal award for Most Eurobike Bike of Eurobike).

Enjoy!

Ollie Gray

Hunt Service & Dispatch Manager

“Grinduro is a ridiculous event. Nothing about it makes sense. Thanks for blowing it... I’ll be back..."

Adam Craig

When you read something like this the day before you set out for a race, how should you feel? This 'ridiculous event' was exactly where I was heading... not exactly confidence building. 

There has been an explosion in the popularity of gravel riding. Once existing on the fringes with gruelling events like the Dirty Kanza 100 and the Rouge Roubaix, gravel has now become its own and developed well beyond the days of riders modifying their 'cross machines or mountain bikes. And gravel events are no different. Grinduro has been a product of this hype and caught the mixed surface, drop bar, wide tyre fever. Combining the format of enduro mountain biking but on a course suited to this new breed of go anywhere bikes... the race is only a small percentage of the course. The rest is a trip around a spectacular route.

For the first time, Grinduro has stepped out of its birthplace and taken to the Isle of Arran off the west coast of Scotland. The event provided the perfect stage for the HUNT Team to test out different wheel combinations, gain insight into wheel technology in this emerging category and put the wheels through some seriously muddy conditions. 

While race reports provide great information and insight into the race, I am sure there are many, many more out there telling a very similar story... so here you are, the "Doodle Do's & Don'ts" of Grinduro Scotland.   

The Team. Post Grinduro, caked in mud, wet and cold but still smiling! Top Effort.