Fat News

Sub-Grand Fat Bike!!!

Fat Bike Sale:

If you've been on the fence about this fat bike thing, and needed a shove, well now is the time. We've reduced the prices on all remaining fat bike inventory, including a smokin' deal on the Origin 8 Crawler, which is marked so low I can't tell you on-line. Seriously!

We've got two Mukluk 2's and a couple 3's on the floor and when they are gone, they are gone. They won't last long at the prices we've marked them at, in fact- one sold already! 

The new full suspension Bucksaw

 Bucksaw Full Suspension Fat Bike:

We've known for three years that Salsa Cycles was working on a full suspension fat bike, but we had almost given up hope of  ever seeing it. Well, recently Salsa Cycles introduced Bucksaw full suspension fat bikes in the "1" & "2" levels. Based upon the highly acclaimed "Split Pivot" rear suspension design by Dave Weagle, the Buckshot is no novelty. It is a serious, trail oriented mountain bike.

The question we keep hearing is "Why the fat tires mated to full suspension? Aren't the big tires enough?" Great question, and here are a couple of reasons why Bucksaw makes great sense:

• Big tires have Big Grip: Mountain biking is all about traction and keeping your traction under control. Think about that. Without traction, you are either out of control, or not going anywhere. Fat bike tires have a huge contact patch with the ground. A much larger contact patch than an ordinary mountain bike tire could ever have. More knobs equal more grip. You can go faster, climb better, and brake harder. 
• Big tires are Undamped Suspension: While it is true that big fat bike tires have "springs" of air that can absorb a lot of trail deformities, that energy that is absorbed has to be returned either as heat, or an equal and opposite force. In terms of pneumatic tires, that energy returned will cause the tires to bounce. Suspension can arrest that energy and dissipate it, instead of your arms and legs doing that job. (Which I think sounds better than me having to deal with that energy!) With Bucksaw, you not only have superior traction, but you have a system to keep it under control as well. 

Bucksaw models will be available in the Fall of 2014, but if you want one, you may want to pre-order the bike, as these will be in high demand, being the first out of the gate with such a design on a wide scale. Come in and talk with us about these or any of the other excellent Salsa Cycles bikes we have or that we can order in for you.

Spring Will Be Springing!

Playing teacher for a day.

Here at Europa Cycles we are fixing up things in preparation for Spring to come. It's going to be here before we know it!

We helped several folks recently get their rigs readied for Spring and put some knowledge and tricks of the trade into their hands recently. Europa Cycles hosted a maintenance class which provided the knowledge and tools to help these lucky folks learn about repairing and adjusting their own bicycles. They even got to take the tools home with them that they used in the class.

We'll probably do this again during the "pre-season" next Winter, so stay tuned if you are interested in learning how to wrench on your own rigs.

We've been busy primping and preening the store recently as well. If you haven't been in lately, you'll see several details that have been added or subtracted from what you might remember. Come in and see how we've tweaked out things soon! We've also been busy doing some administrative changes that should make for a better customer experience. We've streamlined the service department, we've changed the way we do some procedures, and we've added some structures to hold items in a more efficient, more pleasant to look at way. Small things, maybe, but all will improve the customer experience at the shop.

Need a fat bike? Here's a smokin' deal!

We have a few really smokin' good deals on fat bikes and some left over 2013's at the shop yet. Here's one that I'm featuring today. It's the Origin 8 "Crawler" fat bike.

This is a unique bike in the fat biking world as it is equipped with a super low maintenance Nuvinci hub and has no derailleurs hanging down to get snapped off, iced up, or clogged with mud. It may be the perfect "bushwhacking" bike! Come in and we'll show you this bike, or any of the other great deals on left over bikes. Of course, we have a ton of new 2014's as well to check into.

Hope to see you soon. Ask for the tour of new things, and a cup of coffee!

Salsa Mukluk 2 In!

Going, going....

Our Salsa Cycles fat bikes all should start showing up now that we have seen the first one hit the door. This time we have a Mukluk 2 in the fantastic gold metallic hue that Salsa spec'ed the bike with this year.

Salsa made a few minor spec changes for this model over last year. The biggest change is the front hub. Going forward all Salsa Cycles fat bikes will utilize a front hub with front disc brake standard mounting. This means that older Salsa hubbed front wheels will not be compatible with the Bearpaw aluminum fork without an adapter that is available from Carver Bikes.

It's a good move that will bring Salsa in line with all the other fat bike marques besides Surly in this regard. The Bearpaw fork is astounding, by the way. Far lighter than the previously used Enabler fork.

Front hubs now will be convertible to 15mm through axle with an end cap swap. Maybe for a sus fork? (Hint) And it will cross over to the Beargrease frame should you get a Muk 2 and want to upgrade in the future. Same thing for the rear hub as well, by the way.

Last year the Muk 2 used an e-13 crank, but this year Salsa specs the Surly OD crank, which in my view is a better deal from the standpoint of bottom bracket compatibilities and upgrades. The e-13 was a dead end and in my view, had its own peccadilloes in regards to reliability.

The drivetrain is SRAM X-9 which is great stuff. Brakes are the good ol' reliable BB-7's, only now in a special all black colorway. It looks "right" with everything else on the Muk 2. We've got Surly Nates in the 120TPI folding bead variety, which are excellent tires, and the Holy Rolling Darryl rims. Seat post is a Thomson set back topped with a WTB saddle.

Complete, this Size Large with heavy test pedals installed is right at 32lbs. Priced fairly at $2400.00, this is a great, turnkey set up for all around fat biking anywhere. The Salsa geometry is dialed for soft conditions, (snow, sand, or mud), to trail riding in Summer. The fork is sus corrected for the future. Parts are solid, and high performance. Plus, it looks killer! 

We should have a size Medium coming in, then we'll also be getting in both colors of Mukluk 3's. Right now we have the Muk 2 and the Origin 8 Crawler fat bikes on hand. Stop in and see these rigs or take one for a test ride. We'll have some hot coffee and some good tales to share with ya..... 

The "Thick" & The "Thin" Of It

Today I want to introduce you all to two new, and vastly different, bikes we just got in at Europa Cycle & Ski recently. The "thick" one is Origin 8's "Crawler" fat bike and the "thin" bike is Salsa Cycles new "Warbird" model. Let's take a look at the Crawler first...

Origin 8's Crawler fat bike

The Crawler is a bike I am somewhat familiar with having ridden the previous pre-production version two years ago at Interbike and the final version you see here last year at Interbike. The Crawler is in the"fat bike" class of bike, sporting 26" X 4" wide rubber, but it diverts from the Surly/Salsa type fat bikes you may be familiar with from that point on. This is a very unique bike, even without the ginormous tires and wheels. I'll detail ot all the nuances for you now..

Note the derailleur hangar

This bike's drivetrain is very unique for a fat bike. It has a NuVinci 360 hub that features Constantly Varying Transmission, (CVT), for a wide range of drive ratios. Notice that I didn't say the word "gears" here. That's because the NuVinci transmission doesn't have "gears" inside it. It also gives the rider a very different sensation at the pedals.

Without going into deep technical jargon, the deal here is that you have the ability to vary your ratio without "steps" that a traditional drive train would feature. Even internal geared hubs have "stepped ratios" and you feel this as a change to your cadence/pedal pressure as you change gears. With a CVT, you have no such "steps", only a smooth change from "easy" to "hard" and anywhere in between.

Massive tire clearances

The other distinguishing factor here is that the Crawler is not a "symmetrical" rear triangle frame, although it uses a 135OLD spacing, like a traditional MTB. It is also not as offset as a Pugsley by Surly is. It is offset very slightly to the drive side to optimize the chain line with the 100mm bottom bracket/crank set fitted to the bike. All this allows plenty of clearance by the tire.

The hydro-formed aluminum frame is also designed with plenty of rear tire clearances, so while I do not know that bigger than 4.0" tires would work, it looks like they may with the 80mm rims the bike comes with. Also, more versatility is offered with the provided rear derailleur hangar, which with a traditional geared set up and rear hub, may allow for a truncated drive train and therefore a slightly lighter set up. Obviously, single speed set ups are supported as well.

Clearances at the chain stay

The frame also has rack mounts on the rear and on the CroMoly steel fork up front for load bearing duties. Braking is handled by the ever reliable Avid BB-7 mechanical disc brakes, and the Origin 8 Devast8er fat tires are a good all-around snow/sand/mud/dirt tire for year round fat biking. Of course, Surly tires in the 3.8" range or Big Fat Larrys will be okay here. The larger Bud and Lou are unknown fits at this time.

Finally, the icing on this fat cake is that the retail price for owning this unique 20" framed monster is less than anything currently available in fat bikes. MSRP $1400.00 is over $300.00 cheaper than anything else out there. Check it out! These Crawler's are hard to get right now and we expect this one examnple will be all we'll see until Fall. Don't wait! Check this out now.

Salsa Cycles Warbird 2

I've talked a lot already about the next "thin" bike for this post. It is the racing gravel grinder bike by Salsa Cycles: The aluminum Warbird 2.

The Warbird 2 is a disc brake bike bred to deal with the rigors of rough gravel and go really fast doing it. It features a hydro-formed, lightweight aluminum frame that has been tweaked to allow maximum front triangle space so a frame bag and water bottles will all fit there with no problems.

Carbon fork

The Warbird 2 also features an Enve Composites carbon fork with tapered carbon steer tube. Yes- it is super-light! The tapered head tube hides an inset sealed bearing head set from the harsh elements. Braking duties on this bad bird are handled by Avid Road specific calipers and rotors are 160mm front, 140mm rear to help keep the weight in check.

You'll note that all cables run under the top tube in full run housings. This is done to beat inclement weather, mud, and dust while you enjoy perfect shifting and braking despite the conditions.

Frame fitments are sparse, as Salsa believes that a top tube type frame bag and a seat bag are how most garvel racers will carry the goods they need. There are three water bottle mounting points: One on the seat tube, down tube inner triangle, and one underneath the down tube.

Geometry is slightly relaxed for stability on loose surfaces like gravel and dirt. Tires are the excellent Clement USH, which features a smooth center tread strip allowing for fast pavement riding, yet has some aggressive "diamond file tread" on the sides for stability and purchase in dirt and loose gravel. These tires are 35mm wide, but the Warbird 2 can swallow up to 38mm rubber if necessary.

Nice orange ano appointments

The Warbird 2's drivetrain features a 2 X 10 set up with Tiagra "brifters mated to a rear derailleur from Shimano's excellent 105 group. Hubs are Formula for Salsa and anodized a nice orange hue to match the bike.

The tubing on this frame is shaped for some comfort to the rider and for maximum mud and tire clearances. The bottom bracket is a PF-30 type and it allows the FSA Gossamer 46T/36T crank set to spin freely. This sort of gearing is really great on gravel roads.

So- is this only for gravel grinding? Oh no! This is a lightweight, disc brake equipped rig that will go on any road, fast and efficiently, with nary a blink at bad weather, mud, dirt, dust, or whatever you can throw at it. Commute, use it as an "all road", all weather bike, or just as your hard core road rat rig. Whatever you want, really. I think of the Warbird 2 as the road bike that fears no road or weather.

This one is a 58cm, and we also have a 56cm on hand. Either will run you $2499.00 and are available now at Europa to scope out and take home. Hit the road on a Warbird 2......any road!