Latest / Full Spectrum Cycling / Weekly Dose of Fat Radio – Show #67 – Special Guest Nick Frey From Boo Bicycles

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Weekly Dose of Fat Radio – Show #67 – Special Guest Nick Frey From Boo Bicycles · Full Spectrum Cycling

• 0:00
  Weekly Dose of Fat, show number 67 for Friday, August 14th, 2015.
• 0:05
  [upbeat music] Welcome to the Weekly Dose of Fat radio program. Hey, welcome, everybody.
• 0:24
  Hey, hey, it's Uncle Gomez. Say hello to the young and restless, JK Livin. Greetings and salutations. We have a special treat that rocks to his very own beat, our Milwaukee honky-tonk maestro, Uncle Dick. Dick!
• 0:42
  Bro, welcome, Dick. [laughs] Dick does all his talking with the guitar. He don't say much out of his mouth hole. A lot of music here in the studio. It's something we've dreamed of for quite a long time.
• 0:52
  Yeah, actually, Dick was a, uh, guest on the show talking about show sponsor Uncle Dick's Speed Slip- Yeah, right on. That's great... at one point in the past, so you probably have heard his voice in the past.
• 1:03
  Fat Bike Radio and the Weekly Dose of Fat is brought to you by Surly. I spent last weekend camped [laughs] in the same parking lot as those animals.
• 1:11
  I bore witness to the very real in-the-field research and development process that goes into every Surly bike. Learn more about bikes and kung fu at surlybikes.com. Hallelujah!
• 1:23
  [laughs] So JK, what's on the show this week? We will be taking call-in guests all show long to ask the question, what's your favorite aspect of fat adventure mountain biking?
• 1:36
  We'll have this week's special guest, Nick Frey from Blue Bicycles- Or Frey... or Frey. Either way, we'll ask Nick when he calls. [laughs] Yeah. You just never know. It's just not Theory, we know that.
• 1:47
  Yeah, I already [laughs]... Nick Theory... I already tripped over that one. Although that is a good name. Yeah. [laughs] I would go with Nick Theory. We will reveal next week's kung fu call-in question. Wa-ta! Wa-ch!
• 1:57
  We'll talk fat bike and plus-bike news in the Fatty Farm Fielder Report. And as always, we've got fat and plus-sized links from all over, all over the internets. Cheers, boys. Cheers. Cheers, everybody. Clink.
• 2:12
  And we'll be right back after this quick break with Mr. Nick Frey. [upbeat music] You're tuned to Fat Bike Radio.
• 2:30
  Hey, we got a phone call. Who is on the line with Gomez, Sven, and JK? I wanna talk to the fucking referee. [laughs] Wait, let me put, let me put the striped shirt on.
• 2:45
  Uh, how can I help you there, uh, uh, uh- [laughs] Did you get a chance to read the rule book now since you've been home for a while and maybe sober?
• 2:52
  I got, I got these, I got these new reading glasses, and, you know, things are much clearer now. I didn't have those on the, when I was- Obviously, I got... Everybody saw me getting mugged. It was ridiculous.
• 3:04
  If I was gonna call the police, it was so bad. [laughs] And- And you didn't see anything. It was ridiculous... they, they had me distracted. But- There was a girl in a bikini. Yep. Were you the jam- Oh...
• 3:15
  were you the jammer or were you the, uh, the bounce, the what, the bouncer? I was the jammer. What do you call them? Blocker. I was the jammer. The blockers. Yeah. Blockers.
• 3:23
  Chewy was the jammer quite a few times, but he's- And, and I've got a problem with, the bikini didn't even bother the other team. What the hell is wrong with those guys from Pennsylvania? I don't know. I don't know.
• 3:33
  You know, that's, that's pretty wild. That's, uh, that's, it, I just don't know what to- [laughs]... I, I, I just don't know what to say. [laughs] You left him speechless, this guy over here.
• 3:45
  [laughs] You know, I'm just, I'm just, uh, ready to say something really filthy [laughs] and I'm just, I'm, I'm, I'm trying to be nicer. It was fine. I don't know. [laughs] I don't know anymore.
• 4:00
  So how was your, uh, SingleSpeed USA there, Chewy? Was it good for you? Yeah, I mean- Overall... when you're, when you're helping the promoters it's, it went smooth. It went really good, you know?
• 4:09
  And it's, I think every, as much as anything else, it's the group of people. Oh, yeah. You know, they went with the flow. They did, they did what, what was going on.
• 4:17
  Um, the roller derby really did have me nervous at first until Thursday night, Spinner and I and, um, the group from Texas and the group from Tempe, Arizona went and checked it out, and that place was so rocking cool.
• 4:29
  That was so fun. Yeah, that- And we had, um-... that place was rad... we, uh, we rented, we even rented- Will somebody please shut the dog up? [laughs] Oh, is it buggy? Your feast! No, it's not. Raw meat. I'm kidding.
• 4:44
  I just, I just hear your dog. What's happening? What's up with the dog? So, well, it's either that- What's the doggie?... it's either that or the jukebox, so I got, I got options here.
• 4:51
  [laughs] We got Uncle Dick in the studio playing our, uh, electric jukebox. Yeah. Or actually, acoustic jukebox. Yeah. My, uh, my jukebox selection isn't very good this time.
• 5:04
  This is stuff that I've never heard of, and I've got all these 45s and I've never heard of these songs or the artists, so I've just been playing them and they're really bad, some of them.
• 5:14
  [laughs] Are they from the '60s, '70s, '50s? Um, most of these are '50s and '60s in this batch. I got- No Jan and Dean or anything? I got- Uh, surf music, you like that? Oh, I got some of that on here.
• 5:28
  I've, I had, this, I get 1,200 45s from this guy, and there is- Wow... everything on there. Wow. It's pretty cool. Yeah, it's, it's really fun to go through, actually.
• 5:37
  I hope- And anybody comes into the shop and the first- Chewy... the first thing they do is run over to the... What? How, how does it work out- [laughs] How did it work out, I didn't know that you were from Texas.
• 5:49
  How did you end up on the Texas team? In the roller derby, did they draft you? Because the bikini was afraid that she would get hurt- Oh, right... with the bikini on the hardwood floor. Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 5:59
  So they gave me the- So she was supposed to be the, the jammer? They, they, they put in a, yeah, they put, yeah, and- You were the ringer... my, my thought was, no, she would, I thought she would be the blocker because-
• 6:08
  The guys from Pennsylvania wouldn't dare touch the bikini. Yeah. So she could just skate those guys and I'll stay behind her. That was my plan. Well- But she, uh- Well reasoned...
• 6:17
  she was a little nervous because- I didn't know-... they were gonna take her out anyway... I didn't know goalies could skate like that. You were tearing it up. Like that? Yeah.
• 6:26
  You were like, I swear to God, you did like a triple loop or something at one point. It was like Tonya Harding- [laughs]... and- [laughs] Well, he's- should be more like Nancy with the stick, shouldn't he?
• 6:38
  [laughs] Or no, she's the one that got the stick. This is like- Right, right. Okay, Tonya, gotcha. And Bruce Boitano- Brian... all re- Brian Boitano. Brian Boitano. [laughs] Sorry. That's it.
• 6:47
  Brian- I went to high school with... True story, I went to high school with Brian Boitano. No way. Absolutely, when I moved to California for- I went to school with-... a year and a half.
• 6:55
  [laughs] Hey, well listen, Chewy, we gotta cut you short because we have Nick Fry from Boo Bicycles as our special guest. But you could call back, or you could just hang out. Right. Yeah, you could hang out.
• 7:08
  Welcome, Nick- I can hang up and-... to the conversation, and we got Chewy hanging out on the line. Hey, guys. Am I on? You're on, man. Yeah, you're on. How are you? Wow, cool. I'm honored. I love this show.
• 7:20
  [laughs] I listen anytime I have my mechanic, Adam, on there. [laughs] Yeah, he's been a reasonably regular guest. Yeah. We try and- Yeah...
• 7:30
  we, we try and make this as much like the t- the real Trailer Park Boys as possible. Yeah, absolutely. [laughs] You know, I, we, this is show number 67 now, and I was... We were talking about, you know, do we keep going?
• 7:43
  'Cause we're at 67 already, and so obviously 69 is a goal, and there's other goals ahead of that. 100. [laughs] But, but w- we just were like, "Well, you know, it's actually fun to do this thing." It is fun.
• 7:53
  It isn't like it's really doing much [laughs] for anybody's opinion of us or anything, but it's a, it's a fun show to do. Yeah, absolutely. So we should let our listeners know that we have Mr.
• 8:02
  Nick Fry, he's the founder of Boo Bicycles, as our special guest today. Welcome to the show, Nick. So, uh- Well, thank you, guys. I really appreciate it. No problem. We appreciate you calling in.
• 8:14
  Are you in, uh, where are you at, up in Copper Hill? I'm in Colorado. I'm in Breckenridge. Breckenridge. Yeah. That's the word I'm looking for. Right on. Yeah.
• 8:24
  So we asked Nick to come on the show because, uh, when I visited out there in Fort Collins, Nick, uh, was tackling [laughs] some crazy gravel race that has a strange name. Like 10,000 feet of climbing.
• 8:36
  Is that the name of the race? Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It is The Crusher in the Tushar. Uh, that it is, The Crusher in the Tushar, in the Tushar. Yep.
• 8:46
  It's in the Tushar Mountains in Beaver, Utah, and a crazy old bike racer friend of mine, Birch Lindlhurst, puts this on, and I was there for the inaugural edition in 2011, and we actually, a Boo won the overall- Killer...
• 9:01
  with my good buddy, Tyler Wren. And I'm not gonna ever do that [laughs] But I had to go there and still make myself look silly. Well, you do race quite a bit.
• 9:11
  I, you know, I see you on the Facebook in your, in your- I'm on, yeah... in your tight pants and, and- I know, Facebook allows you to make yourself look more important than you are. Don't I know it.
• 9:24
  [laughs] Yep, case study number nine right here at Fat Bike Radio.
• 9:29
  [laughs] Well, we wanted to follow up with you because I know we've, we've had some email conversations, and it really kind of opened my mind because I had never heard someone from Boo say, "Hey, bamboo is the thing.
• 9:46
  You know, it is- Oh, yeah... it has characteristics." So, uh- Yeah... you could- Yeah, people usually have like a three things they'll say about it that are not Nick, but Nick's the guy with the original idea. Right.
• 9:58
  Right. Quite right. And- Well, I mean, my, my background's engineering, and, like, we were kind of inspired to do a bamboo bike because of Calfee Design.
• 10:09
  But, um, we kind of wanted to make a more racy bike out of it because we just knew about the material properties of bamboo, and we were like, "Holy sh..." I don't know if I can say bad things on this show.
• 10:22
  Yeah, you can say, "Holy shit." [laughs] It's, uh, internet, it's, it's internet radio. Holy shit. [laughs] This, this is an incredible material to make a bike frame out of.
• 10:31
  And so we were really inspired m- by the material more than anything, and we, we were like, "Man, there's nothing that has this kind of stiffness but also has this kind of, like, give to it, this, like, initial flexibility."
• 10:48
  It's like a progressive shock dampener. Mm-hmm. Um, and, like, I, you know, used to race on a 26-inch hardtail Cannondale with 70 mil of travel and V brakes. They were parallel pushed, though.
• 11:01
  Yeah, tho- those were- Nice But my God... those were some stiff frames, weren't they? Yeah. Not a whole lot of feel- Oh, God... to a Cannondale, in my opinion, back in the day.
• 11:09
  I didn't even have fillings, and I thought they'd been rattled out, you know? [laughs] Like [laughs]
• 11:14
  and so, like, we, we really wanted to make a bike that had a lot of the racy properties that make, you know, super light carbon bikes really fun. You know, they feel really fast.
• 11:27
  Um, but they also kind of beat the piss out of you. Mm-hmm. And what I found with bamboo is- And if you beat the piss out of them, they really don't survive very well. So- They don't survive...
• 11:38
  yeah, they don't take hits very well. [laughs] They make you unhappy until they're dead. Right. [laughs] Which can happen, which can happen in a big hurry. [laughs] Yes. Yes.
• 11:46
  And, and I went through bikes, I went through carbon bikes like water when I raced on, on the road, and I was just like, you know, b- because we don't just make fat bikes, right? Right. So, like- Right, right, right...
• 11:58
  my background's road biking, and mountain biking is something I started out with, and it's what I enjoy doing now, and I don't even-- I own no bikes with less than a 40 millimeter tire now, right? Mm-hmm. Right on.
• 12:10
  So I- Even fat road bikes. Mm-hmm... my, my thing-
• 12:14
  I, I just love, um, riding dirt, and bamboo actually excels at that kind of thing because it has this kind of softness to it, but then when you stand up and accelerate, or you go through something technical, or you need to rely on it to be an efficient bike, bamboo is unrivaled in, compared to any other material I've used.
• 12:37
  Wow. H- you know, I got one question about this, and I actually have been thinking about this for a while.
• 12:42
  Because bamboo by nature, all of the, you know, they're all different, how can, how do you get consistency in the property of the bamboo to make it, you know...
• 12:52
  Or do you tune each bike based on what you're getting out of the, the bamboo? You kind of do both. That's a great question. So first off, you have to have a very good bamboo supply.
• 13:04
  So we actually have our own plantation that we own in bamboo, or, I'm sorry, in, in Saigon. It's a very special bamboo, and it isn't really grown by anyone else because it's very difficult to make into a laminate.
• 13:18
  And if you look at, like, everything in, you know, the first world made out of bamboo, it's a laminate. So the bamboo we use actually breaks machines. Um, it's an extremely hard, dense, kind of bitchy material, honestly.
• 13:36
  And so no one grows this. [laughs] Like, we're one of the last places that actually grows this bamboo. Oh. And it's incredible in a raw form, and we grow a lot of it.
• 13:47
  So you have to have a lot of extra bamboo because we have kind of a natural selection process, and we do, um, humidity cycling. So part of the treatment process is when you cut down the bamboo, you have to dry it out.
• 14:04
  Well, there are ways of drying it out properly, and then there are ways of doing it improperly, and then there's the way we do it, [laughs] which is kind of like almost like the toughest bamboo survives. Mm-hmm. Okay.
• 14:18
  Like, any bamboo that is not going to make it through this process is going to explode. Got you. Wow. So it actually splits and explodes kind of like, sounds like a gunshot going off. Wow. J- We pre-stress the bamboo,
• 14:34
  and we have this process. So you end up with, like, the cream of the crop. It, it's- And then you tune it for what frame it is...
• 14:39
  it sounds like you must have had to develop some, like, special tests just to do this, 'cause, like, nobody else is really using bamboo for bicycles. Are they using it for- Yep...
• 14:49
  anything elsewhere it needs a similar property to what a bike frame needs? Or did you kinda have to invent- Well-... everything yourself as far as how it works, basically? Yeah, that's the hardest thing.
• 15:00
  So we really have to kind of figure everything out from scratch because there is no guidebook. Um, it's not TIG welding, it's not carbon molds, it's not, um, there's essentially no information on doing what we're doing.
• 15:17
  And, and like you said, Greg, it's like that's where, that's why we don't have anyone else doing this. Which it's, it, you know, it's a double-edged sword.
• 15:26
  Um, people are like, "Well, is it, you know, is it a bike I should consider?" Because there isn't, like, a bamboo bike industry, you know. Like, no one else is doing this,
• 15:37
  and honestly, the reason isn't because it's not good, it's 'cause it's really, really hard.
• 15:44
  So we've had to kind of come up with all of our own testing procedures, all of our treatment process, all of our different technology with getting the bamboo prepared to make it into a good frame.
• 15:56
  And we've almost considered, like, opening it up, you know, an open source type of thing where, like, we could approach another company and say, "Hey, look, bamboo is an incredible material.
• 16:06
  You guys might wanna try working with it. You know, we can provide some good bamboo," 'cause that's really the difficult part. Right. No, that sounds like a great idea. Um, like the secret sauce.
• 16:15
  Yeah, I can imagine- So I don't know... you would have a lot of extra bamboo, so. One of the things that- Yeah. Um-... that came out when I was, uh, meeting there with Adam was that
• 16:26
  I had really only ridden fat bikes, that I rode a Bulaso and a Lubiya, but
• 16:34
  the charac- the ride characteristics that we want you to expound about, uh, really are much more noticeable in the thinner tired bikes. Your cross bike, your road bike- Mm-hmm...
• 16:48
  would be, so I would, I'd, I would love to ride that, but I really get the feeling when I've ridden your bikes that the bamboo keeps the bike going straight. Like, the bike that you described- Mm-hmm...
• 17:01
  that Cannondale- Even after a bar stopper tree? [laughs] Could be, you know, when you hit a [laughs] You're just gonna be smoother after that bar stopper. Right.
• 17:10
  But the, you know how sometimes your bike can get kicked sideways?
• 17:15
  Well, I've ridden on really slick ice and snow and, and had one of the best crust rides of my life on one of your bikes, and it just seems like the bike doesn't get deflected that much, and it has almost a, a- Well, so-...
• 17:31
  a dampening effect... dude, I don't know if you've, like, read our secret manual or anything, and honestly, I don't know, like, how technical everyone listening or how much of a total nerd.
• 17:43
  I mean, I didn't get laid in high school, you know? [laughs] [laughs] I don't know. [laughs] Maybe I, I read books. You know, maybe we should call Ken and Andy if they wanna talk nerd talk with Nick.
• 17:51
  I bet he can go on for a long time. [laughs] No, absolutely. I, we'd love to hear about this because, again, you're the guy that knows the most about this, and- Yep...
• 18:00
  it's an interesting topic, not just from a fat bike perspective, but from a material- Yep... perspective, so. Yeah, so when you're riding a fat bike, a lot of what's going on is down at the tire level. Right.
• 18:12
  So that's why tire pressure, tread pattern, casing, um, you know, tubeless, not tubeless, all that, all those things are extremely- Um, important and they greatly, they drastically affect how the bike feels, right?
• 18:24
  Mm-hmm. The thing that you're feeling, Gomez, is that bamboo has a lot of bending stiffness, but it does not have as much torsional stiffness. Um, so there's three modes of stiffness.
• 18:39
  There's bending, there's torsion, and there's compression- Mm-hmm... or tension.
• 18:45
  So when you're looking at a bike frame, um, a lot of what makes the bike feel snappy when you stand up and accelerate is how stiff is the frame in bending, so lateral bending stiffness of the frame. Mm-hmm.
• 19:01
  And bamboo's very good at that. Um, but when you start talking about handling, a lot of it has to do with the torsion of the front end,
• 19:12
  especially on a mountain bike when you're running a wide handlebar, you have, you know, a 29-inch diameter tire, which a fat bike is, too. You've got a lot of torque going on on the front end. Mm-hmm.
• 19:24
  And bamboo actually does not have as much torsional stiffness as it does bending stiffness if you compare it to other frame materials. Gotcha.
• 19:33
  And what that means is when it hits these different things, you know, whether it's a breakable crust or it's different rocks or roots or whatever, you know, summer/winter riding might throw at you, it doesn't get deflected as much because the front end allows the front wheel and the rear wheel to almost track a little bit differently.
• 19:52
  And depending on what you're going for, that can feel really freaking weird. Um, if you're not used to it and if you're used to an extremely stiff full carbon frame, the bike's gonna feel almost disconnected sometimes.
• 20:05
  It's like it's alive [laughs]. It's, it's totally alive. I mean, it was until we killed it. [laughs] Um, so, like, the, the stuff-- I mean, that is honestly the biggest thing I've noticed in our two-niner- Mm-hmm...
• 20:20
  um, and it's similar in the fat bike, is it's an easy bike to ride fast. That's the best thing I can describe it as. Mm.
• 20:28
  Um, it doesn't punish you, and it might not necessarily feel overtly fast because it doesn't, it doesn't make you feel everything,
• 20:39
  but it actually is getting you from point A to point B much faster and much more comfortably. And honestly, a bike's a freaking inanimate object. A bike isn't fast. The rider is fast or not fast. Yeah.
• 20:54
  And that's one of the things that we really fight against, is this idea that the bike is fast. It's not. It's, it's zero. [laughs] Yeah, when, when, when nobody's riding it, it's not going very fast. Yeah.
• 21:05
  The only other people- Yeah... that I've ever heard say that in the bike industry are our friends at Surly. They, they said it's not the bike. [laughs] It's, the bike is, like, five-tenths of 1%.
• 21:18
  [laughs] It's the rider, rider, rider, rider, rider. [laughs] Yeah. You know? So- So, so you're talking to- So I've always thought it's kind of like the bike is like a car without the engine.
• 21:30
  Um, so, you know, you might buy a Ferrari- Mm-hmm... but a Ferrari minus the engine is not fast. That's true. And you are the engine, you know? Yeah. You, the rider.
• 21:40
  And if you're the engine, but you don't fit very well and you're not comfortable or it do- you know, it vibrates or, you know, whatever happens, if the engine's not comfortable, the whole experience is gonna suck.
• 21:51
  And to me, a great bike is one that you don't necessarily think about all the time. Mm-hmm.
• 21:56
  It's, it's something that disappears underneath you, and then all of a sudden you pick your [censored] head up and you look at what you're doing, and you're excited to ride the trail, and you're looking at what line you're gonna ride instead of looking at your bike or thinking about your bike or, like,
• 22:11
  you know.
• 22:12
  Your bike needs to be an extension of you, and I haven't found another material that feels as much of an extension of me as bamboo does, and that's why we still use it, 'cause otherwise I'd make carbon bikes or I'd make ti-- You know, I'd do something that's a lot easier.
• 22:27
  You know, I'd make ti bikes- Maybe, maybe not even make bikes at all [laughs]... to be on our catalog. That'd be way easier [laughs]. Yeah [laughs]. I might-- I probably wouldn't make bikes.
• 22:32
  I'd probably, probably do an actual job [laughs]. Right. [laughs] Hey, you know, we've been talking about fast stuff a lot, and, um, I know that you're involved with cyclocross a lot and- Mm-hmm...
• 22:44
  you know, I think that's, you know, an area where a lot of people are interested and, you know, I've seen bamboo bikes at cross events, which, you know, but you're-- you've got a program going with this.
• 22:55
  What's, what's that all about? Yeah. Like, back when we started, I really focused on cyclocross because it's the most treacherous-- Honestly, it's more treacherous than fat bike racing by a country mile.
• 23:09
  Oh, yeah, and super competitive too. I mean, if you ever go to a cross race- Yep. Got a- Yeah, it's like, you know, it's just- Yeah, we've had nationals here right outside Milwaukee, and it was awesome.
• 23:16
  I mean, that- Oh, yeah... that's a lot of competitiveness there. Yeah. Like, go take your bike and, like, race through a cornfield in the middle of February, you know, with sleet. Right. And I mean, it's just ridiculous.
• 23:29
  Well [laughs] So, like, we always wanted to prove our bikes and say, "Hey, bamboo can take it. You know, whatever you're gonna do, this bike can handle it."
• 23:38
  And so we always focused on cyclocross as proof of that, and also because it's really cool in terms of, like, individual racers versus, like, a team. Mm-hmm. You know?
• 23:48
  And so we always wanted to have, like, a really good individual on our bikes who was, like, you know, well-spoken and good guy, good girl.
• 23:58
  Um, we actually have, like, you know, almost entirely female racers at this point, which is kinda cool. Yeah, that's cool.
• 24:05
  And, like, so we've really focused on cross to prove the bikes, and ever since then I've started just to, you know, realize, like, man, the bikes really do well at cyclocross too.
• 24:16
  I mean, it's not just that they can survive it. It's like bamboo gets more of an advantage the gnarlier, more disgusting the riding gets.
• 24:26
  [laughs] Man, it- So cyclocross is perfect So here's what, a thought I just had while you were talking, and we were talking about fat bikes and then made the transition to cyclocross, and you're saying, "What kind of idiot goes out in a corn field in the middle of February and races?"
• 24:40
  Well, the thing about fat biking a- and cyclocross, I think, is it's kind of people are doing it on fat bikes, and then they're going like, "Oh, there's other people out here riding, too."
• 24:49
  And there's commuters and there's a lot of other people riding besides fat bikers in winter, but I just think it's like, "Oh, yeah. Hey, look at those guys having fun on those cyclocross bikes." Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah.
• 24:59
  And the reason that we went there is- And high performance bikes, fat bikes- Yeah... they're exploding.
• 25:03
  Well, the reason why I went to the skinnier tires is because I think that I would like to, to continue my personal journey of feeling [laughs] what this bamboo actually rides like.
• 25:15
  I would love to ride one of your road bikes or one of your cyclocross bikes. Yeah, for sure. So- Oh, man. We'd love to... or maybe we could get Kim- We'll make it happen...
• 25:22
  we can get Kim West tandem and then both Gary and I- Right... can ride on the same bike. [laughs] See, kill two birds with one stone. Do you think that thing would actually hold Gary and I at, at, at- I'm on a diet...
• 25:32
  at a combined weight of well over 182 pounds? I'm, I'm on a diet, Nick. [laughs] Um, if, I'll say four words: bring your own wheels. [laughs] Good idea. Yeah, right?
• 25:46
  Well, I'm just thinking, you guys put that, that bus on the road. You have a schedule up, right? You're gonna be out this fall. You even gonna be at Jingle Cross, maybe? Yep. Oh, man. We've been there.
• 25:56
  Um, you know, I really... So I'm from Des Moines, if anyone, you know- Oh... cares. And- Oh, yeah... I really like it. You know, I love Iowa, and, um- Yeah, you remember- I'm not too far. Our shop's not too far...
• 26:07
  those Q7 girls. That's what you like about Jingle Cross. [laughs] Oh, man. Hey, you know, I cannot speak out of class about that.
• 26:17
  [laughs] I understand, you know, wives, girlfriends- But we, I would love more than anything to get out there... ex-wives, future ex-wives.
• 26:24
  So- Well, yeah, and Ad- and Adam's- If we get a- Adam's from Iowa, too, so it makes like a big old homecoming. Yeah, it's a bunch of Iowegians. Oh, yeah, Kar Mechanic, Ben is- They all crazy...
• 26:33
  yep, Kar Mechanic, Ben's Iowa City. Um, you know, we have Jeff Spikes in Iowa City. Um, we have a lot, a lot of love for Iowa and the city called Iowa City. [laughs] Right on. Yeah, yeah. Yep.
• 26:47
  So, uh, so do you think you'll be going to Jingle Cross this year, or...?
• 26:52
  You know, I, I, I never like to commit, um, you know, relationships or life or it, you know, but I definitely think we're gonna- [laughs] I didn't ask to marry you, Nick. For Christ sakes.
• 27:04
  I get myself into trouble for the- No, it's just kidding. Um, so we'll figure it out, but, uh, when you get that schedule up, let us know and we'll share it with- Oh, man... our readers.
• 27:13
  And maybe I can, you know- You and the interwebs- Yeah, yeah... will, will be really excited, and I, I hope we can, and the bus loves being there, and I'm, we will have such a homecoming. Yeah, that would be cool.
• 27:27
  And we travel around. You know, we, uh- I go to Iowa a lot. I love that place... we're going to, we're going to Las Vegas. I'm going to- Oh, Las Vegas... Washington. Ore- Oregon. Oregon. Yeah, man. Yeah.
• 27:39
  If you guys wanna drive the bus some places, we'll, uh, we'll just give it to you. How about that? There we... Oh, man. [laughs] Oh, next summer, Gomez and Sven on tour. [laughs] Gomez on a little adventure.
• 27:50
  Oh, I think this- You know, we c- h- here, we could, we- We have this on tape now, Nick...
• 27:53
  we could like, we could fight- [laughs] Yeah, we could, we could, like, fly JK out for like a week and he could travel with us, and then we could get Dirty in for a week or two. He could travel with us. Oh, God. Yeah.
• 28:04
  W- and we'll represent, we'll represent. Then I'll get some- The caveat is we need to actually get the bus back, and it needs to be with six wheels on it still. [laughs] Is it a diesel- It's a diesel...
• 28:15
  or is it a, a gas? It's a diesel, right? Uh, it's a diesel. Yeah, there you go. It's a- So I, I can- Yeah... I feel pretty confident we couldn't really kill a diesel school bus unless it rolled into a ditch or something.
• 28:24
  [laughs] I mean, I, if it was a gas motor- No, I could do that... though, I would be a little more like, "I don't know about that." Dude, I just drove my car- Hey, uh-... from- Okay, wait. What?
• 28:33
  Ask, ask Chewy about gas-powered buses. [laughs] Chewy? [laughs] I was, I was just gonna say, uh, does that include if you're, if you guys get to take the bus, then you have to take care of all the repairs on it too?
• 28:44
  'Cause there's no such thing as a school bus that doesn't break down. Yeah. Well, then I'll- [laughs]... I'll get a lot of time in writing to go ride to the next town. [laughs] Uh, that's what I was figuring.
• 28:54
  "Hey, I could take out those bamboo road bikes. I'm, you know, the Army, this is like a six-week training, training program." It's gonna feel good carrying- It's like a little quest, right? [laughs]...
• 29:02
  that Jerry can back on bamboo bike. Yeah, for sure.
• 29:05
  Gomez, I mean, we don't have Jerry cans, but we have a tow strap and that can go around a seat post quite easily, so- So you could pull- You know, it's, you could, you can tow it... tow the school bus to the, uh, town.
• 29:17
  [laughs] Yeah. [laughs] Just put a, just hang a burrito in front of me on a stick. I think I see a, I think I, I think I see a future competition at Single Speed USA with, uh- Oh... pulling a school bus or something.
• 29:28
  World's fattest cyclist. [laughs] There was, there was, there was one, one of the blue bikes was at Single Speed USA. I didn't see it, dude.
• 29:36
  We, we had a guy race single speed, uh, he's a customer of ours in Marin County, and he raced in a panda suit at Single Speed Worlds for cyclocross. Oh, nice. I like that. We have been- I like pandish. Yeah.
• 29:51
  We have no problem with self-deprecation. [laughs] I'll see you there. All right, man. That's, that's our radio program.
• 29:59
  [laughs] Actually, speaking of, speaking of touring, we're probably gonna come out to the Fat Bike Birki. Um, we're gonna- Oh, yeah... yeah. That's a great- Yeah, we're gonna-... a great time, a great event...
• 30:10
  bring our gentleman named Dan Miller. He's pretty thick. We, we've been a sponsor the, of the first two. Somebody, somebody ripped off our banner last year. But it was the old- We were so-...
• 30:18
  it was the old logo anyway... we're so popular they ripped our banner off. [laughs] They have it in their, they have it in their, like, man cave now. Yeah, no, it's the old logo, too, so.
• 30:26
  But anyway, we- They used it for toilet paper. [laughs] Or a slip and slide It'll make a nice slippery slide That's what I call toilet paper. [laughs] Well, listen, Nick- JK11, ladies and gentlemen...
• 30:38
  we, we really appreciate you coming on the show and geeking out about bamboo, and for, uh, signing the contract for Let us take the bus out next summer. [laughs] Yeah. [laughs] Bamboo. Bamboo bus.
• 30:54
  Hey, you know- Hey- Hey, Nick, they, they have these really cool drones now that can actually follow you- You know, Nick- [laughs]... so that's gonna be fun. Yeah.
• 31:03
  [laughs] Well, you know, Nick, they're just gonna keep replaying this show until you let them use the bus. [laughs] Well, you know, I- He'll keep calling... if it were Chewie, I would- He'll keep calling [laughs]...
• 31:12
  I would be shaking in my boots right now. Chewy, Chewy, you can come, too. Right. Yeah. Who, who better to- I can drive the bus... break in a bus? I'd love to do that. There you go. Sweet. See, we already got a driver.
• 31:22
  Chewy's very reliable, Nick. And, and super- [laughs]... totally very responsible, as well. Exactly. I mean, come on, man, he's named after Chewbacca. He always drove the Millennium Falcon, and it never came back.
• 31:35
  That's like... That's in every movie, right? So come on. He flew the Millennium Falcon. [laughs] I had the Hot Wheel collection at, uh, CineSpeed USA. I know. You, you drove the short bus to the- Oh, no...
• 31:49
  roller derby... our bus was not short. No, no, it wasn't. It was a really long one. Well, listen, Nick, thanks for being on the show. We're gonna bid you adieu. Well, hey, you guys. Party on, Wayne. Peace.
• 31:58
  Party on, Garth. Awesome. Super stoked to talk to you guys. Thank you. Yep, talk to you again, Nick. Thanks for all the info. Absolutely. See you, guys. All right, Chewy. We still got you on the horn.
• 32:14
  He was really interesting. Yep. Yeah. He was really interesting. How did you get him to talk to you guys? [laughs] He's- [laughs] He has, he has, I think, a master's in engineering from Princeton, yo. So...
• 32:28
  The only thing... I didn't wanna cut in 'cause it was so interesting, but the only thing I wanted to ask him was about how he figured out how to build the bottom bracket. Oh. Yeah. Well, they do it two different ways.
• 32:37
  I know they do it w- w- with an aluminum subsection on the AluBoos and a couple of the, you know, less expensive versions, and then they're carbon fiber at the junctions, some special lay-uppy method. But they... Yeah.
• 32:51
  What... So there's, like, an aluminum insert inside the carbon of the bottom bracket. Right. And do, do they just, like, l- lay... Do they, like, lay it in with, with bamboo then around it?
• 33:00
  It has carbon fiber around it for some short distance. I don't know how far, and I don't know the exact process. But you can look at one, and you can kinda s- you can kinda guess kind of how it's done.
• 33:10
  'Cause they make your favorite carbon and bamboo, or they make- [laughs]... the, your even more favorite, aluminum. As soon as somebody mentioned carbon, I just let him take over, and I didn't jump on.
• 33:19
  I just blew up and go crazy. [laughs] You're so restrained. Yeah. I really appreciate it. I know. Hey, I don't know what's going on- That's cool... but we have another caller that's on the line.
• 33:28
  Dude, let's rock to that other caller. Hi. Whoa, what? [laughs] Man, you've been hanging out for a long time. [laughs] What's up? That's 'cause I was eating dinner, drinking beer. No problem.
• 33:41
  [laughs] See if, see if Gomez can discern the voice. I think this is, uh, Haile Selassie. The- Haile A- They're, they're from Alaska [laughs] No? This is Gunnison, Colorado. Oh, right on.
• 33:59
  Oh, it's 970, not 907. [laughs] Well, hello. My area codes, yes. I, I, I'm dyslexic, so don't listen- Gunnison, Colorado... don't worry about it... I caught me a big trout there once. Right on.
• 34:10
  So who, who do we have on the line from Gunnison, Colorado? No, my name's Alan. I've been listening to your show. I totally enjoy it. It makes me laugh all the time. [laughs] That, that's one- So- That's one person...
• 34:21
  we, it makes us laugh, too. [laughs] I swear half the show- Yeah... is just me laughing. And then, and then JK snorts or we look at each other- [laughs]... and it's all over. I'm telling you. So how's it going, man?
• 34:31
  Are you, uh, are you calling to answer the question of the week? I am, although I'm, I'm kind of not that qualified. I mean, I've got a mountain bike and a road bike and a few other bikes, but I don't have a fat bike.
• 34:46
  Well. That, that can be changed. But they all work. Exactly. [laughs] Yeah. Although I'm looking. I'm looking.
• 34:52
  But when you're, but when you're on two wheels mountain biking, 'cause fat biking are, is just a mountain bike, what's your favorite aspect? Yeah. Is it adventure? Is it discovery? Is it a lot of chafing?
• 35:05
  [laughs] Are you into the chafing? [laughs] No, I'm into riding the trails around Gunnison, going up to Crested Butte a little bit, and, uh, it's a great place to ride around.
• 35:17
  Why were we just talking about Crested Butte today? We were just talking about it for some reason. There's a world championship of fat biking going on in Crested Butte this, this winter. Oh, there you go. Yeah, okay.
• 35:28
  I remember- Yeah, I remember the place. I've been out there before. It's a really cool area. There is no air there, dude. Yeah. [laughs] Yeah. [laughs] There's no air.
• 35:37
  I, the, I could- [laughs] I, I've ridden there, I've ridden there once, and you start riding up, and you basically can use two gears, and you can use about 10% of your impulse engines.
• 35:51
  And if you go to 11%, you have to stop, lean over your top tube, and pant for a while. [laughs] Yeah. But then you, but then you can get back on. I imagine after a few days of that- Yeah...
• 36:02
  you're like, "Hey, I got 10 feet further before I could pant," and eventually you're like- [laughs]... skinny fit and like a flying squirrel. Yeah.
• 36:11
  Yeah, BoJack Horseman, he does that with the, the running hill outside his house, and the old guy runs up it. And BoJack goes, like, 10 feet and stops. Turns around, heads home. Yep.
• 36:21
  But- The next day- But each day he gets-... 11 feet... just a little bit further. [laughs] Don't know if anybody catches BoJack Horseman- Yeah, I love that show... on Netflix, but that's a funny-ass show.
• 36:31
  I do not know what you're talking about So, so what's your favorite aspect? What do you think? You just said getting out on the trails around Madison.
• 36:39
  You know, I got a new mountain bike this summer, and, uh, it's a Salsa Horsethief. Oh, really? Not that pony thing. [laughs] That's, now I am, that's not here yet. Pony rustler. But the, the Horsethief. Yeah.
• 36:52
  Well, that's what, that's what both the Bucksaw and the- But that Horsethief is so much fun... yeah, the, the Bucksaw fat bike and- And the Pony Rustler... and the Pony Rustler- 27 plus bike...
• 37:00
  are both based on that design. Yep. And it's a good design. I mean, they're- [laughs] What are you doing over there? Sorry, I had to cough. [laughs] I got this thing. Oh, my God.
• 37:16
  But y- but yeah, I, I've, the Horsethief is a good riding bike, for sure. Oh, I tell you, I test drove a, a Bucksaw, but, you know, I was a little worried about it, you know?
• 37:27
  I wasn't quite sure that that's what I'd wanna ride all, all summer long. And now I'm kinda having second guesses.
• 37:35
  But some guy came from Alaska that the bike shop owner knew, and he bought two of them, so that was the stock. Oh, cool. So he was happy. So your decision was made without you making a decision.
• 37:46
  [laughs] It's like, well, can't quit. Well, it was a, yeah, it was on sale. You know, it was last year's model. Wow. So. Oh, cool. So you- I'm into on sale... you don't have a fat bike.
• 37:57
  If you were to go out today- I do not... and somebody, somebody just like, uh, Obama just rebated you 10 Gs. [laughs] What? 'Cause I don't think there's a fat bike that costs more than 10 Gs. No. So. That I know of.
• 38:11
  But y- although you could build one for, that would drive all that. Sure. Absolutely. So what, what would you buy? Well, you know, I would, you know, I was looking at that Boo fat bike 'cause that guy was on the show.
• 38:22
  Uh-huh. And it looks pretty darn nice. Yeah, the Boo looks- I bet it's a ton of fun. Yeah. Both, both those bikes I liked very much. I wish I could spend more time on the Boo lasso.
• 38:33
  Yeah, I got to ride it, but not that long. I'd like to ride them more. I, I got a good three-week test in on the a-loo-boo-yah, and- Aloo-boo-yah.
• 38:41
  [laughs] I, I kinda like fell in love with that little bike, was like, "Damn, this thing..." And the thing that, that I thought, I thought that people would be like, "Holy crap, dude, that's a bamboo bike."
• 38:53
  But nobody ever said a word to me, probably because I ride by myself and my imaginary friends don't like me. [laughs] Yeah. [laughs] Here he comes again. Down the trail, man. [laughs] God, this guy smells.
• 39:08
  [laughs] So right off- So is it beer o'clock tonight? Sorry. Are you drinking, drinking beers? I am- No... drinking a Coke Zero 'cause- That's the only way you can tolerate those guys. Yeah.
• 39:20
  Well, that's, we got, we got the Old Milwaukee going here tonight, JK and I. Yeah, JK- Oh, there you go... and Uncle Dick and, uh, Sven got Old Swill-waukee. Yep, 16 ounce cans. Tall boys. In my surly tall boy koozie.
• 39:35
  Yeah. [laughs] It's a 16 ouncer. I even have a Lefty Brewing Sawtooth. Oh. Oh. Well, there you go. You're drinking good beer. We're drinking Swill Water. [laughs] 'Cause w- 'cause we got wine to drink later tonight.
• 39:47
  [laughs] Beer water. [laughs] And I have a diet soda. We're going to a wine tasting a little bit later this evening. [laughs] Uncle Dick's- I got to put on some clothes...
• 39:56
  gonna put on a little, uh, open mic at, uh, what's the name of the k- place? Linneman's. Linneman's. Linneman's in River West. It's a- In Milwaukee... it's a nice venue.
• 40:04
  Uh, he really did a good job with that back room, making that stage area. It's really sweet. So, uh, Uncle Dick is gonna go and do some riffing over there for a little bit. Swing by, ha- order a Rusty Nail.
• 40:14
  Yeah, Marcus wants to go out, so we'll probably stop over there after the show. So there you go, after hours. He'll have to be on within five minutes of walking in the door, otherwise I'm leaving though.
• 40:23
  [laughs] You can, uh, just- Is the show done in 30 seconds then? [laughs] I don't know. Uh, he, he's gonna do like three songs. Hey, thanks for taking every Wednesday and working, you know? I'm really loving this show.
• 40:38
  You guys get down there and it's really entertaining. Does this work? [laughs] That's kinda what we always say, "Is this really working?" Yeah. Does this really work? See, okay, well, wait.
• 40:45
  To, to, to be- It really is, is- But to be work, we'd have to get paid for doing it. Yes. [laughs] There you go. But it really is as fun as it sounds.
• 40:53
  I, sometimes I get in my car and I'm just like, "Goddamn, that was fun." [laughs] That's why we do it. Can I ask you a question? Sure. Sure. Sure? How mu- how much do they pay you to come in and brag them up like this?
• 41:05
  Nobody else does that. I know. I know. Well, you guys always talk about beer, so I threw it out there. [laughs] [laughs] I mean, like, isn't that, like, 20% of your show, beer?
• 41:17
  Well, we kinda thinned the beer thing out a little bit. We could bring it back if you liked it, though. Yeah. We- Oh, yeah. We actually, uh, you know, we- And, and drinking an Old Milwaukee as we're doing the show...
• 41:26
  yeah, we just do a cheers, and we let people use their imagination. And we do have a, often have a designated drinker, although Travis- Yeah...
• 41:33
  is, uh, this week, uh, doing some shuttled 11 mile down Alaska mountain run on his bike. Yeah. Who, who are we really kidding? We, we s- [laughs] He's the designated drinker. We just don't actually talk about it as much.
• 41:47
  We could bring it back, though. But we still, you know- I- We still are- I just polished off a growler while hanging around here.
• 41:53
  [laughs] Hey, do they still have those fort- I was- Do they still have the 40 packs on sale at Costco of, uh, Old- I saw-... Old Rhinelander or whatever that stuff was called? [laughs] No, no, n- no.
• 42:04
  It's, it's Kirkland Special Light. Ah. Special Light. I saw some- 48 cans for 20 bucks. I saw some of those. Yo. Yep. I'm in the- I went through a bunch of it last weekend... that's Single Speed USA. I'm in.
• 42:16
  There's a, there's a Costco, like, not 15 miles from my house, so, uh, right on. I'm not allowed in Costco anymore. We have
• 42:25
  a- [laughs] We have a new microbrew around here called, uh- Well, it, was that pile of whipped cream cans on the floor, was that why they finally [laughs] kicked you out? They just, they just refer to it as the incident.
• 42:36
  Cool. So did we get an answer to the fat bike question? I was just having fun and I, [laughs] I don't know if I- He was thinking about the Boo bike, dude. Oh, yeah. There you go. I want to get a Boo bike or a Salsa bike.
• 42:45
  Awesome. Yeah. Yeah. There's a, a lot of cool bikes out there. Salsa man's coming in September. I'm gonna test drive some Salsa bikes when the rep comes through. Killer, man. So- Take some snapshots of those- Yeah...
• 42:57
  of those Salsa guys. Like, take mugshots of them, like, face forward. Like Justin Justin- Face to the right. And, and then send them to us. I will. I will. And we'll, we'll put them up on the site. I'll send them to you.
• 43:06
  Yeah. Or maybe call the show back- I will... and give us another shout-out, bro. Yeah. 'Cause you're the only person that ever told us- Thanks so much... that we did any good. [laughs] Our best listener ever, dude.
• 43:18
  Plus, you know, Gunnison is a, is kind of its own little enclave, so a Gunnison ambassador would not be a bad thing. Exactly. You know, we're looking for folks to call in- Oh...
• 43:26
  regularly, so if you wanna call in once a month or twice a month or whatever and just let us know what's going on in Gunnison or Crested Butte. I will.
• 43:33
  You know, fat bike oriented, but maybe not just, like meteor showers and, and- And-... I don't know... dig through- Illegal drag strip racing and- Dig through the beer... and beer... dig through- Or beer...
• 43:43
  dig through the couch- Or beer... and- Yeah... sell your blood... well, Gunnison's a small town... do whatever it takes to get a fat bike, you know? Okay, I will. Yep. While the music is playing- [laughs]...
• 43:54
  con- consider your fat bike with Uncle Rich. All right, man, we're gonna try and finish this show off here. Thanks, man. Yeah, yeah, thanks for calling in. 10-4. Woo-hoo. 10-4.
• 44:06
  All right, Chewy, we gotta wrap this piece of show up here. [laughs] Okay. My growler's gone, so I gotta go buy another one, so- 10-4. You're not gonna drive all the way down to Toppling Goliath, are you?
• 44:17
  [laughs] No, um, I... There's actually a new one in Rochester called Life's Too Short, and it's not bad stuff. Cool. And that's an actual b- they brew it right there? Yeah, it's- That's really not- Yeah, it's-...
• 44:28
  not that great of an endorsement. "It's not bad stuff." [laughs] From the man that drinks Kirkland Special Light.
• 44:35
  [laughs] Well, currently, well, there's one other one, currently the other one being added down here is really good stuff. Yeah. All right. It's way- I just have, I just have their ale. I mean, I got nothing fancy yet.
• 44:42
  They just, they just opened up a week ago, so they're, uh, still trying to- It's w- it's way more, more better than Kirkland Special Reserve Klaus Lite. Lite, yeah. Yeah.
• 44:54
  You know, 'cause we're all watching our figures there, you know? Yeah, we are. I know I am. Well, if somebody was watching your figure- All right... you're a damn jammer. That's all I'm saying. Okay, Chewy.
• 45:02
  All right, bubba. See ya. Yeah. Bye. All right, guys, great talking to y'all. See you next week. All right, bye. Boy, after all [laughs] that, we better take a break. I need a break.
• 45:11
  I d- I don't even know what the hell we're gonna do. Actually, a real break. No, you gotta take a real break. [upbeat music] When it comes to fat bikes, Zion Cyclery in Zion, Illinois, has you covered.
• 45:27
  They stock fatties from Surly, Salsa, 907, Borealis, and Trek, as well as everything from 45 NRTH.
• 45:36
  The staff is friendly, the mechanics are top-notch, and they stock the largest selection of fat bikes in the Chicago-Milwaukee area.
• 45:43
  There's a mountain bike park and some great beach riding in Zion, so come, make a day of it. Call 847-746-2200 or visit zioncyclery.com.
• 45:57
  [upbeat music] You're tuned to Fat Bike Radio.
• 46:05
  [upbeat music] Thanks to, uh, Uncle Dick for sitting in and providing a little, uh, ambient, uh, action on the old guitar over there.
• 46:32
  And, uh, might remind you folks that Uncle Dick's does make Uncle Dick's Bead Slip, which is a pretty kick-ass tool when you're dealing with feisty tires. So go ahead and check it out, especially for a shop.
• 46:45
  This is, like, one of those things, you're like, "What the hell? Give me some Uncle Dick's." Uncledicksbicycleshop.com. Hey, ladies and gentlemen, we're back.
• 46:55
  Gomez and, uh, JK are both, uh, not satiated, but they're relieved at least. Expatriated. Yeah. Something like that. And, uh, we just... We got... We talked to Nick for a while there from Boo. Yeah.
• 47:07
  Boy, that's some interesting stuff. Had Chewy on the line. We got, we g- we got callers, man. But now you know what? We don't got no callers no more. So let's, uh, go ahead and, uh, reveal next week's call-in question.
• 47:22
  If you could do one major upgrade to your current fat bike, what would it be? And buying a new bike doesn't count, and we're talking about improving your already kick-ass fat bike.
• 47:34
  Call in next- At least that's what I'm talking about... so you can't replace your frame? [laughs] You can't replace your whole bike. Oh, all right. You gotta sneak out and buy a brand-new bike. All right.
• 47:41
  Yeah, you can replace your frame. Okay. Sure. All right. How- however you wanna do it, just we're not talking about brand-new bikes. We did that last week. Remember what happened then? Oh, I do. Who won?
• 47:50
  Somebody won- I do... last week... somebody won something. No. You know, uh, you know who should win is that guy from Gunnison. Yeah? So if you're listening, dude, [laughs]
• 47:59
  you should probably email us your, uh, like, your info. Oh, yeah. We don't have... We d- we have Richard the, uh, guitar player now. We don't have Richard the, uh, address writer-downer anymore, though. That's all right.
• 48:09
  So now we need another person. New contact info. Now we need five people to do this show. [laughs] Five people.
• 48:14
  And, and really, to be, to be truthful, we need six 'cause we should have an engineer do this too 'cause we're, we're just a bunch of idiots, and they can cut out all this stuff. [laughs] Probably. But anyway.
• 48:25
  So, so yeah, that's the question: If you could do one major upgrade to your current fat bike, what would it be? Call in next week, Wednesday- 8:00 to 9:00... 8:00 to 9:00 Central Daylight Standard Time to 818-918-246...
• 48:37
  2453. 2453. I, I know that. That's 818-918-BIKE. Yeah, that's where the 2453 is cool. And then- 'Cause it spells bike... let's chew the fat. Yeah.
• 48:47
  [laughs]Well, we'll chew some fat about that tomorrow That's, that, that's a real thing So we had our- We can get blubber. We can chew it. Right on. So we had our caller- Chicken gum... from, uh, from Gunnison.
• 48:57
  Maybe he was kind of a definite maybe on calling in pretty often, maybe telling us what's up. He may be an ambassador from Gunnison. But he's gotta get a fat bike, dude. Well, that's- Or at least rent one. Right.
• 49:07
  [laughs] Or borrow one from a friend. Yeah. I think that's- Something... yeah, you're gonna have to go ahead and do that to be an ambassador. We got, uh- Totally... we got Dominic from down there in, uh, Ohio.
• 49:16
  Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. He was the third place winner with the set of steak knives, and wanted to relate to you how much he enjoys those steak knives. And that is, that is...
• 49:24
  He's a good sport, 'cause we really gave him a [laughs] hard time. Does, w- and I didn't send anything else. I realized that, you know, I was like, "Oh, shit, I didn't even, like, put a sticker [laughs] in there."
• 49:34
  So, D- We owe you, bro... I got Dominic's address. Yeah. We can send him some, some- We should, we should... plusbike.com stickers and- Once again, you are cleaning up my mess. Thank you.
• 49:45
  So I'm just checking the, the old Twitter board, and, uh, uh, yeah, nobody's tweeted us, bro. Okay. Well, [laughs] next time [laughs] you, uh, bring a pearl of wisdom out like that.
• 49:56
  Well, it, well, it's- I should tweet it? [laughs] I, I'm looking at it, and I got no Twitter tweeters. Yeah. What, what the hell? We axed you people. [laughs] Uh, just kidding.
• 50:08
  So, uh, it's time for this week's Fatty Farm Field Report. Oh, is it that time already? It's that time. I know we've pimped him before, folks.
• 50:17
  I know we've, we've talked about Uncle Nick a lot, but, uh, the Fatty Farm Field Report is indeed sponsored by Uncle Nick's Bead Slip. Check that shit out at uncledicksbikeshop.com..com.
• 50:30
  Just a little dab of Uncle Nick on the stubborn spot makes it all, all, like, gives it pretty much a chill, and then you just, like, slide out that, just that one little spot. Uh-huh.
• 50:42
  And then- So it las- it lasts a while... bam, pop. It, uh, uh- You can use it for other stuff too, though. [laughs] I'll leave it up to you folks to figure out what, but it's good stuff. When I seated my tire
• 50:55
  last week, that noise is so [laughs] freaking, like, a bullet going off. And you know you got the valve on there, you're like, [imitates engine revving] pow. Yeah. Like, it was like that.
• 51:08
  Popping a tube or putting it into a, the bead? On those head wheels, they, they- Oh, yeah, they snap in like a rifle... they come back to...
• 51:15
  They, and then they, and it, you get, like, 20 PSI, and it's between 20 and 30, where they swap. Nice. I, I, I'm- Swap... pantomiming on the, uh, on the radio. Swap and- Nice job... swapping, though.
• 51:28
  That was a good visual word. Somebody stop me. I swapped the hell out of that thing. So what happened on your field trip out west? Do you still have unfinished business to tell people about?
• 51:38
  Yeah, I got this, uh, my, my last stop was at Borealis, and, you know, we did this thing where
• 51:44
  everybody told what was the three things that people need to know about their bikes, and Steve, being the eloquent, uh, spokesman for the company, he- Well-... listed this off, uh-... not the unicorn, though, is he?
• 51:57
  He's not the unicorn. But, uh, anyway, this is, uh, where we play. We play the videotape that's just audio tape right here. Audio-video. Hey, this is Gomez, and I'm on the last stop of my Western field trip.
• 52:11
  I'm at Borealis Bikes, and I have Steve Kaczmarek, the owner of the whole shebang, right here with me. Hi, Steve. Good morning.
• 52:19
  Steve is gonna tell us the top three things that people need to know about Borealis Fat Bikes. Thanks, Gomez. Glad you could make it, uh, all the way to Colorado Springs.
• 52:28
  Uh, you know, when we first started the company, the first priority always was quality. We simply wanted to make the best bike, uh, we could, so we always looked for the best components.
• 52:40
  We wanted to make sure our frames were buil- built with the best technology, and that really starts the platform for us to build the company. Cool. Number one is quality. What's number two?
• 52:50
  The, the next thing that I really wanted to do was make sure that we didn't, uh, have such a high-quality bike that also had a really super high price point. So for us, it's about getting the best value.
• 53:04
  So we hope that if anybody checks out our bikes, uh, not only are they gonna immediately see the quality and the higher-end components, uh, but they're gonna compare us, uh, to all of the other players, and they're gonna say, "You know, dollar for dollar, uh, the Borealis is always better equipped."
• 53:23
  Right. And right now you have the, the, uh, Echo GX right now for 2999, right? That's exactly right. Yeah, and we had a lot of people asking us, uh, if there was a way to get sub 3,000.
• 53:35
  I know it's a dollar under, but for a carbon bike, uh, with the, the SRAM GX components, uh, it's a super offering, and you can always start there.
• 53:44
  And then if you wanna upgrade to a Lauf fork or a Bluto fork, um, you can do that. Sure. So number two is value, and what is the penultimate number three?
• 53:54
  [laughs] Number three, uh, this is what I call the Burger King approach for those of you that remember the special orders don't upset us.
• 54:02
  Uh, the custom configurations, we think, has really been a, a big key to our success. Uh, from day one, we offered multiple tire options.
• 54:10
  We now have three fork options, uh, different color options, you know, SRAM with the GX, XO1, XX1. Um, we don't see as much of the XO, X9s anymore, but we still offer that.
• 54:23
  Different saddles, different grips, um, you know, carbon rims, uh, aluminum rims, tubeless, not tubeless. And every dealer can order it any way they want, um, because every bike is built custom or to order.
• 54:37
  Uh, we just don't believe in pre-building. Uh, that adds a lot of complexity for us, um, but we think it's the right way because every dealer has specific needs.
• 54:47
  People in Alaska or Canada want the 100 mil rims with the big fat tires, five-inch tires, and, uh, people, let's say, south of, uh, you know, south of the old Mason-Dixon Line are gonna want something a little narrower, a little lighter.
• 55:00
  Uh, so we wanna make sure that we can offer that and not force them into a box. Well, cool.
• 55:04
  And I saw that all of that is available, because I just toured both your old and your brand-new facility, and, uh, all of that is in stock and ready to deliver.
• 55:14
  So, thanks for recording this little session with us, Steve. I appreciate it. Yeah, thank you very much. Over and out. All right, man. Steve from Borealis. Right on. And also from Wisconsin- Damn straight...
• 55:27
  which makes him, you know, kinda... We, we're happy about that. Exactly. It's kinda like- I guarantee we'll have him in this here studio at some point between now and, like, the end of January or something.
• 55:37
  You know, sometime he'll be here. Steve's a good cat. I got to meet him and... Or I got to- You got to beat him? What did you... What? What? [laughs] I got to get to know him a little bit better because, uh,
• 55:47
  of my visit, so. Yeah, absolutely. Good guy. We, we hit it on all, all four cylinders. You were all like, "Brap." [laughs] Summed up that. So- So you would like to revisit the, uh, week's, last week's question?
• 56:02
  Well, we kinda talked about it a little bit earlier. Mm-hmm. But yeah, we did. You know, we asked last week what fat bike would you buy.
• 56:08
  That's why this next question [laughs] is what would you do to your current one- Right... to make it more pimpin'? Yeah. But yeah, a Bucksaw was a clear winner. Right. For sure. But there's Ice Cream Truck- Yeah...
• 56:18
  907 Whiteout, Pugsley, Moonlander, 11 Nine, and today, Blue Bicycles. Right. So, there's a lot of choices out there for fat bikes. A couple of dual suspension fat bikes. That seems to be- Mm...
• 56:31
  something that consumers are curious about. I think they're curious about it, for sure. I'm, I, I'm curious about it.
• 56:37
  I can just say that, uh, I would ride more of them if I lived in a place where it was a little more conducive to that kind of bike.
• 56:44
  Honestly, in the Midwest, I really don't feel the need for one, but- I tell you, man- I haven't been up to Copper Harbor recently, so [laughs] Copper Harbor. Copper Harbor.
• 56:51
  Last, last weekend, I got to ride Moon Men number nine, and- Number nine... I, I think I wanna change my answer. To? To [laughs] that bike was so much fun. What was your... You didn't even answer last week, actually.
• 57:05
  I didn't, did I? No. I don't think any of us answered last week. I, you know, I, I think that- It's not fair for me to answer, 'cause I... Well, it is. Yeah, yeah.
• 57:12
  It is, because I would, I, I would love to have a Boo for a friend for- Sure, yeah... an extended period of time. Yeah, I agree. My current can't refinance my house situation says- [laughs]...
• 57:23
  I ain't buying no damn Blue Bicycle, so I'm gonna have to ride shit- Well-... we either make or get for free. Yeah. That's kinda where I'm stuck [laughs] Poor, poor darling cherub.
• 57:32
  [laughs] I've been riding the hell out of that fat, uh, 27 plus-ified Ape, which I- 27K, yeah... I love that thing. Well, I mean, I designed it so that I would love it. Right.
• 57:44
  But I do love it, and it's- I think my answer to last week's question- Still Moon Men number nine... no, not Moon Men number nine. [laughs] I, and I ha- and it's a bike I haven't even fricking ridden, so how...
• 57:55
  This is, like, pure, like, my- Mind construct? Yeah. [laughs] It is. I already know I'm gonna- That Frost, Frost Hammer Moots, because it's- Uh-huh... it's just so pretty. It is.
• 58:08
  I mean, I- We're sorry, but the show hasn't ended. [laughs] Hey. Hey, are you trying to tell us something, lady? Wait, wait, wait, wait. Uh, it looks like we're being repossessed. I'm, I'm s- [laughs]... I'm sorry, lady.
• 58:19
  I have to disagree with you. [laughs] The show's not quite over yet. [laughs] Cramity. So, uh, okay. What a pushy broad. So, so, yeah, right? Just kidding. It's, it's 9:02 now. Just kidding.
• 58:30
  Just kidding, all of our 10, 1/10 of one female listener. [laughs] All right, so we talked about the, uh, the Moon Men, so- But then I would go with, uh, Ice Cream Truck. Stop simply- When I'm passing by [laughs]...
• 58:42
  oh, my, my. [laughs] There's that reason. There's that reason. This is David Lee Roth? [laughs] That's one reason. That's one reason, yeah. Reason number one. And, uh, seeing Colin Ford having a- Oh...
• 58:55
  hell of a good time- Yeah... tearing around, like, urban-wise. So you fancy yourself a Colin Ford, do you? And I was just like, "Yeah, well, look, like Fort Collins." That Colin- That Colin, that fort full of Collins.
• 59:06
  There you go. [laughs] Indeed. But yeah, yeah, it, it's just- So that's another vote for Ice Cream Truck. Yeah. That still doesn't put it past Bucksaw, though. But- And you were super crazy Whiteout, which- I-...
• 59:15
  people don't even know about yet, but I... That was actually currently available fat bikes, but I'm gonna put it on there anyway. Uh-oh. I have honorable mentions, though.
• 59:24
  I think that what I'm, like, l- looking super forward to, and I know it exists because I actually got to ride on one, is that Borealis Crestone. Um- Can you say that yet? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Oh. It's, yeah.
• 59:36
  I can say the word, but you can't see the picture. Till Friday. Yeah. Which is today. Yeah, exactly. Oh, no. Yeah, today. No, Saturday. Saturday. Saturday.
• 59:45
  So at 2:00 in the morning, if you wanna see all the new, uh, stuff, on Saturday morning, boom, shaka-laka. Right on. So, uh- See how that- But that gets an honorable mention, and that Moon Men, dude.
• 59:57
  That Moon Men was so much fun. Was it set up single speed? No. Ah, geared. One, 1x11. Good call, 'cause those guys are into single speed. With a, with a 28 in front. Mm.
• 1:00:09
  And, uh, Nextie carbon wheels with Bud and Lou, and maybe 7 PSI in there, so just juicy, bouncy, flouncy.
• 1:00:21
  And a, and I know that some people don't like it when cyclists use the word brat, but the 30- You know what I say, tell it them... 30-inch wide handlebars that just put you in the ultimate brat position.
• 1:00:36
  So there's a little... Uh, the front end wanted to come up a little bit, just even seated climbing, going up stuff, but it was geared low enough that, no problem.
• 1:00:45
  You get that thing going down, it was just, like, hard not to make motorcycle noises. [laughs] Yeah, man. And then I tried to do a wheelie, and the thing just wheelied, like, with...
• 1:01:01
  I needed about one third of the amount of jerk that I gave it, and, uh, uh, there's actually a really good picture- [laughs]... of me wheelie-ing and screaming like a little girl.
• 1:01:10
  [laughs]More, more video next week coming, ladies and gentlemen...
• 1:01:15
  yeah, no video 'cause, uh, there was only just, whsh, one picture, and it caught me [laughs] like at the perfect moment before, you know, I ended up in, uh- Panic mode? No, I ended up- On my ass?
• 1:01:25
  [laughs] Uh, no, not on my ass, but I ended up on my feet- Yeah... 'cause it, just the whole thing went out. But- Right... that thing, and then I rode some more wheelies, and it was like, whoop, whoop, whoop.
• 1:01:33
  I, you know, there's, there's- First wheelie in 10 years, like the first boner in 10 years. Oh. [laughs] Well, there, there are some fat bikes, like the, uh, the, the, uh, Salsa Blackbourough. Mm-hmm.
• 1:01:45
  I rode the longest wheelie I think I've ever ridden in my life going up a slight incline- Mm-hmm... on that bike out at Saddle Rally last year, and it's like, I j- I'm not good at finding that balance point. Mm-hmm.
• 1:01:55
  But for some reason it was easier with that big tire and whatever, and I was just like, "Wow, I'm, I'm still going." Normally, I'd either fall on my ass or be, you know, on, on the front wheel again. So it was fun.
• 1:02:04
  It's good to have a bike that wheelies well. Hell yeah. So, uh, last week, uh, we gave some stuff away. Oh, yeah. Nick from Ride Alongside won last week's fabulous prize package.
• 1:02:17
  Yeah, he does some video stuff and some plus bike stuff, and- Yeah, he's got-... so he's got a website out there. I may remember to put the link in the show notes. Indeed.
• 1:02:26
  He's a, he's a bearded gentleman, much like ourselves. I, I had to look at him when he was doing his video to go, "Oh, yeah, he's kind of a medium large. He's definitely not an extra large.
• 1:02:36
  Or what [laughs] size shirt should I send him?" We sized you up, Nick. Right. And so- And we sent you out, uh, what, the, the Bike Black Ribbon manzier. Yeah.
• 1:02:46
  [laughs] Along with a plethora of other stuff from Surly, Borealis Advocate Cycles. Um, I think there were some Wrightan utensils in there. Yeah, some Surly, uh- I think there were some stickers and stuff...
• 1:02:58
  cargo straps. We sent him a nice little package. We gotta get like a- For, for what he had to do to get it, I think he did all right. All right. [laughs] His twee- you tweeted us, and we sent you some stuff.
• 1:03:09
  That's pretty- We should try that again. Let's see if it works a second time- Indeed... with player number two. We're onto that, uh, linkage-y thingy thing here. Oh, yeah. All those on there. You upgraded that Mook-rook.
• 1:03:23
  Right. I was wondering if the video of the guy going splashing into the water was indeed Olav, and if so, was he riding his brand-new 11-speed Muckluck into the muck? [laughs] Muckluck muck. See what I'm sayin'?
• 1:03:35
  Uh, sayin' that, uh, our man, Olav, is last of the Swedish playboys. And- He's, he's a groovy cat with a new 11-speed Muckluck... yemen. Stand, stand back. And then I got these couple of, uh, foreign, uh...
• 1:03:50
  There's a beach-riding German. Don't, don't be alarmed, just browse- [laughs]... browse in Chrome and translate, and everything'll be fine. Mit- Read that... Mit dem fat bike uber die- Yeah... sabba to sabba to sabba da.
• 1:04:03
  Straight up. Yeah. From all over the place and- Straight out of Anchorage, straight up to Dusseldorf. And then there's a Brazilian one, Red Bull, man, Red Bull. Check it out. Tastes bad, and, uh, I don't know.
• 1:04:18
  [laughs] And- [laughs] And there'll, there'll be different swimwear on different countries- Oh. [laughs]... and you don't know which one it'll be which. [laughs] Yeah, there's a Speedo shot in there, so, uh- [laughs]...
• 1:04:29
  I'm warning, if you're sensitive- Maybe... to that sort of thing. Hey, Tony Lund is back. Yeah, he is. Holy, holy kishmoe. He's, like, what, the f- the Finnish fat biker. I know. He's been around for ages. Yep.
• 1:04:41
  And does a lot of- He's a-... like, overnights and camping trips, and always has really cool photos, and this is no exception. He's totally sponsored by- Yes... 45 North and whatnot. He's got a whole list of sponsors.
• 1:04:53
  I don't know if they're all, you know, throwing cash his way, but he does a good job and represents, so somebody ought to pay the man. Damn straight. Get your cheese, Tony Lund. Uh, moon and beach there. [laughs] Cheese.
• 1:05:06
  [laughs] I want some cheese, too. I like mine sharp. We're in Wisconsin. I like cheese. I like corn. [laughs] Hashtag. [laughs] Hey, our man, Bruce, thinks that, uh, we should call plus bikes three-inch fat bikes.
• 1:05:25
  Six fatties. Six fatties. [laughs] No, that's a tw- he rides a 29er, so it wouldn't be a six. It'd be a nine fatty. Nine fatty. 29 plus, three-inch fat bike, n- nine fatty. That, I think that's a first. Nine fatty.
• 1:05:37
  I'm gonna go ahead and trademark nine fatty. Oh, yeah? Just, then Specialized can't have it. Should we order the T-shirts?
• 1:05:42
  [laughs] They're gonna come after me with their lawyers in the morning just for thinking that stuff. So yeah, uh, we have three Bruce, uh, links down here.
• 1:05:50
  So, so three-inch fat bikes are indeed, in our parlance, plus bikes, which we also have a website that does stuff with plus bikes.
• 1:05:57
  Right, plusbikes.com, and we mentioned that, uh- And we should probably start throwing three-inch fat bikes in some of the- In some of our nomenclature... we gotta get, we gotta get them Google search terms.
• 1:06:05
  [laughs] Yes. All right. I'm on it. Nomenclature. Exactly. We're experts in nomenclature according to some people. So on that fa- plus bike site we were just talking about, we do have a couple of new stories.
• 1:06:20
  Andy from Fat Camp shares his steelquiring story. That was a cool-looking bike. Right. The Judas Goat, the one that can run fat four-inchers, 29 plus, 27 plus. It's got a, it's got a, uh, adjustable headset on there.
• 1:06:35
  It's, uh, it's- You know, that, that King Creek, uh, headset is really cool, and I, I would recommend if you're gonna build a fat bike, for sure make that head tube big enough to accept that thing. Mm-hmm.
• 1:06:46
  Because you could, you could use the same bike for soft condition riding as well as trails if it were as easy as changing that in five minutes- Sure... which it is. Right.
• 1:06:56
  You know, if, if you're experienced at it and you have the right tools, I can swap that thing out in, in five minutes- And when you, uh-... and totally change the character of the bike...
• 1:07:04
  when you add those Paragon sliders, too- Oh, yeah... you can adjust your, uh, wheelbase. Right. And that's what really- Are you ready to adjust your wheelbase? [laughs] I don't think you are.
• 1:07:13
  I think I might be I probably am. [laughs] I'm ready to adjust it right now. So that's that Scott Quiring guy that, uh, you know, we should probably have him on the show. Right on.
• 1:07:25
  We should go over there and visit him and take a little mobile recording studio with us. Last time I was there, dude, they like, they gave me water and, and I sat on a chair. It was really nice.
• 1:07:36
  Sounds like they really liked you. [laughs] I got to take- You like me... I got to take some pictures of, of that Di2 or whatever you call that electric shifting freaking titanium fat bike- Ooh...
• 1:07:48
  tandem that is now finished. All right. Can you picture this? What? That thanks again to Surly [laughs] For sponsoring the radio portion of today's broadcast. Be sure to check out our new website, plusbikes.com.
• 1:08:01
  Join us next week when the question of the week is, if you could do one major upgrade to your current fat bike, what would it be? I want, I want a license plate that says Gomez.
• 1:08:15
  [gentle music] [laughs] And thank you very much to Uncle Rich for sitting in the show today and doing a little picking on a guitar. Take us out of the show today, young gentleman. Yee-haw.
• 1:08:40
  [upbeat music] You've been listening to Fat Bike Radio's Weekly Dose of Fat. Find us on the web at fat-bike.com/radio.
• 1:08:57
  We'll see you next time.
• 1:08:59
  [upbeat music]