When it comes to commissioning paint, many people express apprehension because they aren’t designers and don’t know how to exactly communicate what they want. We always try to reassure: It’s ok that you don’t know what you want yet. It’s our job to learn about what you want in any way that we can and then turn that into a design that is unique to you. We often ask “what inspires you, what colors do you like, what places do you like, what cars, teams, or art do you like?”

When Evan sent us his inspiration, it was simply the cover of this book: The Japanese Garden, by Sophie Walker. At first glance it was not obvious how this would translate to a bike, but it was very clear that it was sublime inspiration to work from. We quickly got to work first on the basic design in 2d, and then later the design has to be draped over the complex contours of the frame in real life by our painter Brad.

You never quite know how a completed design with turn out in real life. It takes a bit of faith and optimism that a will all come together as something special in the end.

We’re thrilled with the result on Evan’s TD4, and we are also so glad that he trusted our team and our process. This isn’t the most complex paint we’ve ever done, but in its simplicity it stands out as one of the more unique.

Happy New Bike Day, Evan!

#traildonkey
#rodeospork
#rodeowheels
#rideexplorecreate

SassSquatch was one of the best colors that we ever offered, and it only adorned the TD3.1. Chris commissioned a one-off homage to it on the latest 4.2 platform, and we’re so glad that he did! We missed those subtle tans and browns, set off by that hot pink accent color. For Chris’s bike we also had a bit of fun extending the pink into the derailleur cage, and adding a personal riding mantra of his to the top tube. When it comes to the details, this build lacks for nothing, all the way down to the semi integrated headset built with @zenobicycle hydraulic quick connectors which will make the bike easy to travel with.

Welcome to the Pink Donkey Club, Chris! This one is extra pretty in pink!

#traildonkey
#rodeospork
#rodeowheels
#gravelbike
#newbikeday

It’s been a minute since we’ve posted a flat bar Rodeo. Seems like a good moment in time to change that. This beaut of a 52cm 4.0 features an AXS mullet drivetrain, 3.0X carbon wheels, a three color custom fade, and yes, a fleeeet bar 🙌 for fun and ergonomics.

#traildonkey
#rodeospork
#rodeowheels
#gravelbike

(Dark) mocha choco-lata ya ya.

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#rodeospork
#gravelbike
#custompaint

This is a public service announcement: Despite the fact that our feed is a nearly nonstop gallery of colorful bikes, we do in fact offer black. In this case, it’s not just black, it’s black on black on black on black, with black reflective logos, because In certain situations it is actually good to be seen.

Happy New Rodeo day, Dave!

PS, you’re looking good with that new Sram Rival AXS E1!

#traildonkey
#rodeospork
#rodeowheels
#newbikeday