After riding my first ever long distance bikepacking event I was hooked! At the start of 2020 I rode the Vic Divide in Australia and just love the idea of exploring across a state or country with fellow bikepackers and you are all conquering this route together.
Personally I am not one to race or be the fastest. But if that is what you are looking for. In this article I have searched all over to see what the most popular and best performing bikes are for these biking epics!
I am talking about self-supported bike races that are generally around 500 km or more in length and the time keeps ticking! The ones I picture doing are unpaved gravel and MTB off-road trails or even tackling snow, in some cases!
Wether it is the Tour Divide to the Vic Divide, to the Hunt 1000 or Trans Am. Even the Tour Aotearoa Brevet or what about the all new Tassie Gift? There are so many epic endurance races and events to do! And below are the best bikes that will allow you to tackle these routes!
Most importantly these bikes have all been proven in some of the most challenging bikepacking endurance events on the planet.
Watch while you read: Check out this video that I just made about the best bikes to win this year’s Tour Divide! Which is an Ultra Endurance Bikepacking Race in the USA.
I made the mistake of riding my stock Kona Sutra LTD on the Vic Divide
The gearing on my bike was not ideal the 1×11 SRAM Rival 1 setup had a 30T crank and 10-42 Cassette which gave me only a 24.45” climbing gear which made it hard on the very steep sections with all my potatoes
Also, the tires that came with this bike are WTB Venture 700c x 50 tires. Some of the riding was very jarring and tough on the gear. I got a couple of punctures. 50mm wasn’t quite enough, which is why I later opted for 2.3” MTB tires which do the trick!
All these bikes are the perfect steeds precisely for the Tour Divide, with ample rubber and tire clearance, as well as adequate gearing often 20” or lower for ease when climbing the steeper stuff
But my point is that you need to invest in the right gear if you plan to take on these grueling events! Make sure you have the right bike that is going to be capable enough to get you over the finish line and be as comfortable as possible.
Also speaking of comfort!
Less for the aerodynamics and extra efficiency but more so for comfort, offering more hand positions and the ability to stretch out.
But one issue I have always run into with aero bars for bikepacking is how much stretching happens. Resulting in discomfort and I just never end up spending that much time in the aero bars while riding!
Until now!
This product is the perfect solution to aero bar comfort!
I’ve been testing out the Fred Bars and I use my aero bars all the time now! Raising the aero bars and bringing them back, results in less reach allowing you to rest in a more relaxed, crouched position.
Let’s get into these bikes!
- Bearclaw Beaux Jaxon
- Salsa Cutthroat
- Curve GMX+
- Salsa Ti Fargo
- Binary Cycles SuperB XC
- Niner Air 9
- Specialized Epic
- Curve UpRock
Bearclaw Beaux Jaxon
The Bearclaw Beaux Jaxon is a rather popular bike choice when it comes to these more demanding bikepacking events. It is essentially a fat tire gravel bike! Coming in two main options; either the high end Force One ($5,790) or Rival One ($3,990).
A titanium gravel bike which is another popular material choice for these types of rides! Force One features hydraulic disc brakes, while the Rival has mechanical. This is the only drop bar bike to accept 27.5+ and 29+ tires whilst maintaining gravel road geometry. It features that Ramhorn Gravel + Boost fork which has a 415mm axle to crown and many of eyelets for mounting gear at the front.
You might think this is a mountain bike with drop bars? No! It’s a gravel bike with MTB tires! Allowing you to fit up to 27.5×3 or 29×3 tires. The important thing to note about this bike is that it has a “Ultradistance Gravel Friendly Geometry”.
Using the 55.5 cm frame size with 650b wheels, you get a 1.48 stack/reach ratio (which is not the most upright of some other bikes here). A 71 mm trail and 448 chainstay length. Meaning that it would feel rather stable in the front being a higher trail than most gravel bikes. And chill and stable in the rear which is a longer stay than most gravel bikes. But this change in geometry means better comfort on the ultra long adventures! Priced from $3,990
What about gearing you ask? Often a very important aspect of an endurance rig. With a SRAM X-Sync 32T crankset and SRAM XG-1150 10-42 cassette. If you opted for the 29er wheels with a max 3″ tire you can expect to get a climbing gear of 23.17″ with a overall ratio of 0.76 : 3.20
Salsa Cutthroat
The Cutthroat is one of the most popular bikes in this category and is a high favourite in my personal choice for an endurance bikepacking bike! That carbon build gives the bike a weigh from 21.6 lbs / 9.8 kg to 23.3 lbs / 10.6 kg depending on what model you choose.
Waiting for another month or so until October 2020 for the new 2021 to be released. But the 2020 models feature four models including; Apex 1 ($2,699), GRX 600 ($3,299), GRX 810 1x ($4,199), GRX 810 Di2 ($5,799). All options come with the Teravail Sparwood 29 x 2.2″ Durable, Tubeless Ready tires.
Either one of the 1x or 2x options have the same cassette and crankset teeth numbers, respectively. This roughly works out for the Apex 1 and GRX 810 1x to have a climbing gear of 24.84″ (0.86 : 3.27). While the GRX 600 and GRX 810 Di2 climber gear is 25.42″ (0.88 : 4.18)
From Salsa’s experience riding the Great Divide Mountain Biking Route they have used this experience to develop the perfect Tour Divide bike that’s capable of much more! With all that carbon from the carbon frame and fork it soaks up all the road chatter allowing you to ride for as long as you want or can!
The bike could fit up to 29 x 2.8” tires, though the official clearance from Salsa is 2.4” for both frame and fork.
Geometry wise you get a nice upright riding position thanks to a stack/reach ratio of 1.61 mm (for 56 cm frame). A 445 mm chainstay and 79 mm trail. A little shorter than the Bearclaw making it sill rather chill. But that trail in a very high trail in theory making it sluggish for tight cornering.
Curve GMX+
An Aussie favourite when it comes to all the rad adventures to be had in the natural wonder that is Australia. Curve Cycling make a number of different bikes that are able to go the distance and plus some!
The Curve GMX+ is called by Curve, the “ultimate titanium bikepacking bike”. From riding a cruisey overnight gravel spin to such ultra-endurance racing events like the Tour Divide, or off-road touring through the desert. Allowing for room to fit up to 3″ tires and all the water and gear you need for an epic adventure! And ultra wide drop bars and innovative new fork geometry. This bike was originally designed to tackle the Race To The Rock.
This rig is the ultimate go everywhere, do anything bike!
Salsa Ti Fargo
The Salsa Fargo is considered a in general great touring bike. But the Titanium option is your go to choice for the Fargo model when it comes to endurance events.
The Fargo Ti is available as a frameset, if you are looking to build out an ultimate endurance bike this would be a good starting point! Priced at $2799. This bike is Salsa’s drop bar mountain bike that is a classic! The frame is made from 3/2.5 seamless triple-butted Titanium tubing and paired with Salsa”s new Firestarter Carbon boost fork.
The Titanium gives you stiffness and compliance for an overall incredible ride quality. Frame fits up to 27.5 x 2.8-3.0 or 29 x 2.2 tires.
Binary Cycles SuperB XC
Some XC bikes are also a good choice for these types of events! This is a hardtail titanium bike that has the option for 29″ tires up to 2.6″, and 27.5″ tires up to 2.8″. The fork build is made from a light and beautifully crafted titanium. The recommended fork for this frame should have a fork length of 490mm A/C, and up to 120mm travel suspension.
The bike works as both a short travel or rigid bike for smoother trails, or as a technical singletrack racer with the longer suspension fork. It is recommended for someone looking to blend the likes of a gravel bike with a trail bike.
The frame has a 1.37 stack/reach ratio, which is much lower than something like the Cutthroat. And a chainstay of 420 mm for the medium size. Meaning it is rather jumpy and quick in the rear. Frame starts from around $1,699.00
Niner Air 9
The Niner Air 9 is a carbon Cross Country bike with a Fox Performance Elite Float 32 suspension fork with 100 mm travel. With hydraulic disc brakes and a 1 x 12 SHIMANO XT groupset. RACEFACE TURBINE 12SP, 32T crank and SHIMANO SLX M7100 12SP, 10-51T.
This bike is a full-on XC race machine! A truly capable rig for ultra endurance events, read more here.
Specialized Epic
The Specialized Epic comes in a huge range of different options. But this bike is a 29″ carbon frame hardtail cross country bike. My go to option would be something like the all new 2021 Epic Hardtail Expert!
It seems that Specialized have found a balance between lightweight, fast and comfort. As it is as capable as it is comfortable with aggressive singletrack-inspired geometry, increased tire clearance and a frame obsessively engineered for increased vertical compliance.
The bike comes with ultra high-end components priced at $4,425 and there are cheaper options. With a RockShox Sid fork and carbon frame. Fast Trak, Control Casing, 29×2.3 tires with clearance for up to 2.4″ tires!
Curve UpRock
Last but not least is the Curve UpRock, named after the rock Uluru which is featured as the finish line for the Race To The Rock. And as the name suggests it gives you the super powers to get to the rock through the challenging Australian desert.
Called “A 29er mountain bike that conquers all”. The UpRock 29er titanium frame backcountry beast has proven itself in the Tour Divide (USA), OffRoad Finnmark (Norway), The Race to the Rock (AUS). Find out more here.
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