Nordest Britango

This one is a little unique. Unique for a couple reasons… One being that this is a personal build, and that’s generally not something I post, and secondly because this bike was built during the Great Bike Parts Shortage of 2021. If you look verrrry closely, you’ll notice very little matches, and that many parts are used. See it now? Yeah, me too. But nonetheless this bike works really well and is a great option for bikepacking and general singletrack shredding.

This frame was chosen for bikepacking and bikepacking races. Granted 2020 and 2021 aren’t the best years for this, but hey, here’s to wishful thinking. The frame is classified as a “downcountry” frame, if you can call that a classification. But generally speaking this is an XC frame with a penchant for going downhill, nearly as much as going uphill. Throw on a few bikepacking oriented hits such as a slightly lower BB height and third bottle cage mount, and you’ve got a daily-shredder that can head of into the sunset in the weekend.

The bike is using Shimano and SRAM components because of availability obviously, but at the same time, a SRAM derailleur can control the chain just a hair better, but the choice of 10-45 and 10-51 tooth cassettes on Shimano’s Microspline freehub is pretty choice for a bike that can use 27,5+ and 29” wheels. The larger of the two will be combined with 2,4/2,5” tires and a dynamo hub for long distance KM eating.

The big thing of this frame is the paint… or lack thereof actually. See, this frame has been coated with Cerakote, a super thin ceramic film. Now, this isn’t some fancy aero ceramic hype, this is a super hard and resilient coating generally used in other industries to protect mostly metal (carbon also). Cerakote isn’t bothered by chemicals, heat, or rubbing, so that makes it perfect for this sort of rig… plus it’s just beautiful. Another bonus is that you can use Cerakote to create similar effects to wet paint (logos etc.), while being about half the price and double the durability. Neat, huh?

Questions about this build? Keen to start your own, or just want to talk possibilities? Send Parallel HQ an email today!

Transition Spur

"Cross-country bike". What does that even mean anyway? I mean, this is a cross-country bike, sort of, but two minutes test riding this thing and it's immediately apparent that it’s ready to get rowdy. Fun geometry combined with 120mm travel front and rear means that you’ll tire long before this @Transition Spur wants to head to back to it’s stall.

Transition makes some really rad bikes, mostly for my gravity-fed disciplines, but the Spur is their uppy-downy bike, but like, an uppy-downy bike made by people who like to fool around. Ride this thing up whatever crazy climb you can dream up and back down. For in the Netherlands, Ardennes, or even German bikeparks, the Spur is good to go.

This rig is kitted to the gills. @srammtb XX1 Eagle AXS, including dropper post controlled by your TV remote, probably. @Ingrid takes care of the rest of the drivetrain with their truly stunning POP crankset and 10-48t cassette-that-is-actually-just-art. Throw into the mix a cockpit by @Beast Components and their 30mm wide boxy-boy tire holders... and I'm starting to sweat behind the knees... Wondering why we went for an enduro rim instead of a 30mm trail rim? Yeah, this bike is that rowdy.

Seriously, what a pleasure it is to get to build a rig like this. And I'm not only proud of the work here, but also being able to finish a project like this, it takes a ton of trust from the client, and crazy amounts of diggin’ around to find these parts. In the current state of affairs, finding components is basically witchcraft, and building a bike like this, magic.

Lester Cycles Allroad

I could never get behind the whole Amsterdam v. Rotterdam, Feyenoord v. Ajax thing. I mean, I'm not really into basketball anyway... But putting sport aside, and leaving airports out of it, Lester can really build bikes. And more importantly, Lester can work your dreams in steel and make a bike that fits exactly how you want it to.

I talk about "custom" a lot here, and what custom means to me, and honestly I have a pretty low standard. Some custom wheels, swap your saddle, and put on some bling tubeless valves? Yeah, that's custom for sure. But nonetheless we all have those sorcerers of flame and brass in the back of our minds. Those seemingly medieval metalsmiths melting molten brass, shrouded in smoke and dunking the still warm frame into a tub of water. Now that, is truly custom.

I'm thrilled to be building up Lester frames from this point forward, as an option for his clients. By working together, I can help translate a client's wishes into technical language when needed, and when it's all done, and the builder has worked their magic, I can then work mine. I can take the frame and make sure it's done proper justice by mounting and tuning the setup to its maximum potential with the components to match the adventure.

Working locally, supporting other builders and makers is still one of my most important ideas, and I am proud to support Lester as he supports me. And I'm f-ing jealous of this bike. I mean, wouldja look at it!?

PS, don't worry, I know that Feyenoord and Ajax aren't basketball teams. But seriously, who even watches cricket...?!