Surly Trail Sale (Insert Your Preferred "Steel" Pun Here)

Surly is putting four exquisitely rad trail models on sale. If you feel like reading about them, click on the links below. If you don't feel like reading about them, just absorb the prices below without going into shock.

Karate Monkey Ops  $1382  (Originally $1749)

Krampus (and Krampus Ops)  $1342 ($1453)  (Originally $1699 and $1849)

Ice Cream Truck  $1775  (Originally $2700)

Instigator 2.0  $1312  (Originally $2900)

Yawp! Kits and Wool Jersey Pre-Order

As someone who often rides his bike in jeans, clogs, helicopter hats, and other assorted bits of clothing poorly-suited to the activity, I'm happy to announce that Yawp! is ordering some fancy clothing. We're getting both a Helix kit from Primal and a wool jersey from Soigneur. If you're interested in any of these items, you'll need to place your order by February 24th, 2016 at 6pm.

The Primal Helix kit is one of the most comfortable and durable that they make. If you like, you can read more about them on Primal's website. They are in the process of tweaking the design and adding some sponsor logos, and we'll post updated photos as they become available. In the end, though, the kit will look something like this:

Revisions for the bibs will be a little more involved, but this will give you the general idea:

If you don't know what size you are, there will be kits of every size for you to try on at Yawp! until February 19th. Also, to see some sizing information, click here.

If we reach a minimum of 10, we'll also be ordering women's kits! Yay! If we can hit a minimum of seven, we'll but the extra kits for the shop.

Cost of the jersey is $88. The bibs are $105. They hope to have them ready for us by the end of April.

We will also be ordering a wool jersey from Soigneur. They will look something like this:

    Cost of the wool jersey is $150 and they should be ready for us in mid-April. The sizing info for these is as follows:

    ▪    XS – < 34.6 inches

    ▪    S   –  34.6 - 36.6 inches

    ▪    M–  37 - 39 inches

    ▪    L – 39.4 - 41.3 inches

    ▪    XL –  41.7 - 43.7 inches

    ▪    XXL – 44.1 - 46.1 inches

If you want any of this stuff, give us a call or stop by the shop to place an order. If you're happy with your cutoffs and tank tops, we can certainly understand.

Moab (and a Little Schmaltz)

The Yawp Company recently took a trip to Moab. Depending on traffic and the lead content of your foot, driving to Moab usually takes about 5-7 hours from Denver. This time, driving to Moab took 22 hours. At least it was pretty.

Missing a package? Here it is!

Thanks to an interstate closure, Rebecca and I were a day behind the others, and we missed what sounded like a great ride at Mag 7. We had our own short ride on Pipe Dream, near town. It runs along the side of a mesa and is extremely well-designed. You never gain more than twenty or thirty feet of elevation at a time, and the trail takes advantage of the hillside's best features. The front range could really benefit from a similar trail that would traverse the foothills instead of climbing straight up them. 

Style.

There's a no-dab challenge on this trail, which was kind of fun. It seemed fairly easy until I fell into a yucca bush on the flattest, smoothest section of the entire trail. I later dabbed on this leafy path through town:

On Sunday, we drove out to Amasa Back in order to ride Captain Ahab and harpoon the white whale.

This here is a slideshow of Rebecca descending a section of pretty nasty jeep road:

Cullen took a bunch of great photos, too. Some of them you can see below and others you can see in this here video:

Just in case you missed this incredible group photo.

Ahhhhhh! Moab!    Photo: Cullen

We haven't any photographs of the excellent trail called Captain Ahab. If you were to believe one particular bold-faced lying member of the Yawp Company, Captain Ahab begins with seven punchy climbs and then descends all the way to the end of the trail. However, the truth of the matter is that there is one strenuous climb at the beginning of Captain Ahab, and then lots of descending punctuated by many punchy climbs. Because there are no pictures of that awesome trail, here's more of this:

Moab was our seventh trip this year and it marks the end of the Company season. Of course I have something obvious and sentimental to say about it.

When Yawp opened, we made building community a goal of ours. I was a little nervous about it--to an extent we don't get to have a say in the community that forms around the shop. As a hermetic introvert, I was especially nervous about the Company and spending precious weekends away from the shop with people I didn't know very well.

The folks who've joined us on these trips have really been a joy to spend time with. Thank you to every one of you who rode with us, and who hung out with us but didn't ride. Thank you for sharing without being asked, for playing well with others, for showing kindness to strangers, for allowing space for contrasting opinions, for riding at the speed of a group, and for never complaining about anything (except Itch and Scratch in Eagle, which more people should complain about). It's been a pleasure getting to know all of you, and next year's trips are the high points on my horizon.

Video of the Week

Gift Guides are Useless; Enjoy our 2015 Gift Guide

There are a few problems with gift guides. Some of them are full of cliché or underwhelming items. Some are too expensive, featuring things like a $90,000 trip to space. The biggest problem, however, is that even the coolest gifts usually don't fit the people for whom you're shopping. 

Oh well. So what? They're fun to look at anyway. We've put together a list things we think are pretty great, including a few things we don't sell but wish we could. Please enjoy!

Oskar Blues Death by Coconut Irish Porter

Flavory beer shouldn't be so good. If we sold this, we'd always be out.

 

J. Paks Ruksak

This is the most convenient bag we've ever used. It's great for beverages of any kind or size, snacks, sunglasses, maps, water balloons, or a million other thins. We even stuffed an entire Icebreaker hoodie in there without hassle. We have these in black and black/red for $50. Also, J. Paks is a local company with top-notch craftsmanship. 

 

Sweet Bloom Coffee

In Denver, we have a lot of great coffee options. Sweet Bloom is one of the best! We sell their coffee, but you should check out their cafe, too. 

 

Folding Locks by Abus

U-locks have been preventing bike theft for decades now, but they do have some drawbacks. They're heavy, awkward to mount to the bike, and noisy. We started using these folding Bordo locks by Abus, and haven't looked back. They're always with the bike, so we never forget them. They're quiet during the ride, and just as (if not more) secure as a u-lock. We have these in lots of colors for $80.

 

A Trail Map and Corresponding Vacation

Does your significant other have everything they need already? How about a trip to someplace they've always wanted to ride? A map will cost you a mere $14 now and give you time to save for the trip. We have these in stock. Singletrack Maps is another Colorado company.

 

Surly Clothing

Surly makes some excellent wool base layers, wool jerseys, wool hoodies, and a killer waxed cotton jacket. $60-250. All of their garments were designed for riding, but most are equally suited to sitting around, drinking beer, etc. If you had two base layers, two jerseys, a hoodie, and a jacket, you could get rid of all your other clothes. (Keep your pants).

 

Repair Stand by Feedback Sports

Whether you enjoy working on your own bikes or just hate kneeling to clean it, Feedback offers a variety of repair stands that are stable and height-adjustable. We recommend the sport-mechanic model at $169. Feedback Sports is yet another Colorado company.

 

Hours Upon Hours of Fun

Because duh.

 

Who Rides the Tiger

If you like guitars that plug in, and if you like 12" musical discs that warp in the oven, order your copy of Who Rides the Tiger's LP Transylvania Baby from All Hail the Black Market. 

 

Bona Vita 1.0L Electric Gooseneck Kettle

Though I use this every day, I never would've purchased it for myself (which is why it made such a great gift). For the first few months that Yawp! was open, I used a measuring pitcher to heat my water in the microwave. I though my life was fine. Then, Scott gave this kettle to me, and I've realized I was living in darkness. This thing heats water in a heartbeat, and thanks to the precision of the gooseneck I no longer spill boiling water every time I make a pourover. You should buy yours at Sweet Bloom Coffee. 

 

Salida: More than Pretty Much Okay

The Yawp Company recently went to Moab, but before I can blog about that I need to blog about our trip to Salida, which happened months ago. Instead of writing about the trip immediately when my memory might have been more accurate, we're stuck with whatever vague details I can retrospectively invent. Therefore, let this be mostly a photo blog. But first:

There is one particular event I can vividly recall because it resulted in what some might call a "life lesson." The lesson was twofold: a) do not store your sunscreen and your tingly chamois cream in the same pocket of your backpack and b) putting chamois cream on your face is not unpleasant.

Monarch Crest Trail

Nate is always smiling. If you ask him why, he just smiles.

Cottonwood Trail

Arkansas River

 

Video of the Week