Denver – Rodeo Adventure Labs, LLC

Traildonkey 3.0 // Hometown Trails

Having come back recently from Dirty Kanza I was struck by the sheer energy and growth that the gravel riding genre currently has. There were a number of new gravel bikes announced at the race itself, each eager to have or gain credibility in the genre. Watching it all made me think about our bike and the more I thought about it all the more I was amazed at how we’ve been swept along by this gravel wave. Reflection also reminded me that our bikes didn’t start with gravel, they started with Trail. Ours is a story that intersects with gravel but also but also deviates from it whenever a trail can be found leading away from a dirt road.

Traildonkey was born in 2014 in Denver, Colorado. At the time we were spending a fair bit of time riding on paved roads but had begun to detour onto the local trails in and around the foothills of near our city.

Green Mountain, Mount Falcon, Lair Of The Bear, Colorado Trail, and Table Mountain. These were our original Lab. These were all singletrack playgrounds that factored more and more into our regular rides. Why? Because variety breathed fresh life into what would otherwise have been routine. At first we took our road bikes off road because these were road ride detours. Then we took cyclocross bikes because we needed bigger tires and better gearing out in the dirt.

Eventually we decided that we wanted to have a go at developing a bike around the exact style of riding we were doing: A little bit of road, a little bit of singletrack, and anything else that looked fun. We wanted quick on the road and agile on the trail.

We developed Traildonkey around Colorado riding and Colorado trails first. We made it for ourselves and only later decided to start a bike company so that we could offer the bike to others who had since started eying their local dirt and needed a worthy steed.

Since then gravel has caught on in a big way and we’re excited about all of the people and diversity that it has brought into the mixed terrain genre. Traildonkey loves gravel riding and racing but here in Colorado we still continue to ride them on our local roads and hometown trails exactly the same way we did when we started in 2014.

Every bike has an origin story. This is ours.

Spork 2.0 // Drew’s Alchemy

For the third bike in our Spork 2.0 builder series we’re featuring a stunning bicycle by Drew Van Kampen and Alchemy Bicycles.

Alchemy Bicycles All Road Colorado Denver Gravel Bike Handbuilt road plus Rodeo Spork 2.0 Titanium

Table Top Tuesdays

It has been a very busy year at Rodeo and that in itself has been exciting and exhausting at the same time. We haven’t quite had the time resources to plan Rallies or Roundup this year but we did kick off a weekly Tuesday night ride in Denver called Table Top Tuesdays. The rides are open invite to anyone who wants to go wring themselves out on the local roads and trails in and around Denver, Golden, North Table, and South Table mountains.

Colden Colorado CX Denver Gravel Group ride Mountain Bike SloHi Bikes Table Top Tuesday

Every ride is a good ride.

We’re always looking for another reason to throw around the word “epic”.

But most rides are not epic. Some rides are merely good, or great, or fun, or “I’m glad I got outside today”.

If everything is exceptional then nothing is exceptional.

So three cheers for good rides with friends both old and new, on roads both old and new.

Hat tip to Rocky Mountain Road Club. They know how to put together a good ride.

Denver DIA fall Gravel bikes Gravel roads Wildlife Refuge

Highline Midnight Rally

Beer, watermelon, cool air, way-past-midnight tacos, are the natural ingredients to fuel the night ride. When the light fades and the dark blankets the trail, some go to bed. Others heed the rally cries to pedal. We all came looking for something – what I’m not sure – but I reveled in mystery riding at night. Rarely do I feel lost while riding a bike. When your vision is dulled, your other senses heighten, and your sense of place is muddied. Throw in good company, old + new, and you have a night rally.

Adventure Castelli Colorado Cycling Denver Dirt Exploring Gravel Rodeo Rodeo Labs Rodeo Rally traildonkey

To The Plains

The mountains are, by default, the place that I go to for inspiration and replenishment on a bike. The challenge, variety, and beauty of rolling hills and jagged peaks can’t really be matched by anything else.

Or can they?

Aurora Colorado Cycling Denver East Elizabeth Gravel Parker Prairie Steel Bikes

Colorado: Rodeo Team Night Nov 10th

RSVP HERE:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rodeo-labs-2016-colorado-team-hangout-night-tickets-29023844099

2016 is drawing to an end and we haven’t yet had a proper team party and get together. We need to fix that! If you are Rodeo or if you might be Rodeo but aren’t sure then come on out and meet your team mates and friends in the real world. Rodeo does a lot online but one thing we want to do is get better at getting the crew together in the real world. We’ve got people flying the colors all over the world so it’ll be difficult to get everyone together, but if we could get a solid crew of Colorado people under one roof that will be a great place to start!

Dinner and some drinks will be provided. Currently we are leaning towards some sort of taco setup from a local food truck but that isn’t quite locked down yet. If you have a favorite drink or brew bring a six pack to share.

YOU REALLY NEED TO RSVP if you are coming so we know what to plan for. You CAN bring friends, etc but you need to RSVP them. Kids are allowed but it might not be the best idea to bring them because there is finite space and they tend to get a bit bored at bike hangout events.

On the agenda:

1. Hang out and meet more of the team in real life. Connect names and faces.

2. Talk about what it means to be on the Rodeo team.

3. Talk about what we’re getting right and what we should be doing better such as:

– Group rides

– Rallys

– Communication

– Including more people

– Drawing out lurkers

– Road trips (2017)

– Races? (2017)

– Etc

– Ideas from EVERYONE are welcome.

4. Discuss the possibility of a team board of some sort to help break leadership into bite sized chunks.

5. Talk about leadership incentives.

6. Talk about how Rodeo the bike company relates to the team.

7. Eat food

8. Drink things

Colorado Denver Labs Party Rodeo Team

Mid Season Cyclocross Musings

Words by Nik Van der W00ts, Photos by Brett Stakelin (@das_guy)

Cyclocross is a niche within a niche, but there is something I love about this high energy, gritty sport. I got started grinding my gears on the grass, sand, mud and barriers on the east coast. Some would cite this as the unofficial heart and home of American cyclocross. The days spent racing and volunteering in Gloucester and Providence were cold, muddy and certainly epic affairs. Those memories have stuck with me and often are the first that come to mind when I think of cyclocross.

After a hiatus from cyclocross (prompted by grad-school and a 2,000 mile relocation to Colorado) I re-tested the waters. I was in for a shock. The climate and terrain were unfamiliar compared with my first dirt-covered memories. Gone were the days of racing in parks with pristine grass that turned to rutted muddy lines. In Colorado if a race is on grass, it is spiky unfriendly blades. All the moisture is evaporated, leaving dusty loose conditions. Many a time I have come home from racing and felt like a miner, hacking up dust for the next few days. Some of the rugged courses tested my nerves on cantilever brakes and left my hands sore from trying to modulate my speed.

Cycling Cyclocross Denver Dirt Race Race Report Racing Rodeo Adventure Labs Trail Donkey traildonkey

30 miles of white… knuckles

Yesterday was sketchy. Not “this is fun!” sketchy, more like shaking-when-I-got home sketchy. There was something unusual about the snow that fell in Denver this week. I think the combination of quantity and the consistently frigid temperatures combined to make it more treacherous than I’ve ever seen. It was extremely dry snow but simultaneously as slick as snot. After a hand full tense slides and maneuvers of I probably should have turned around at mile 10 and cut my losses, but the allure of Cherry Creek State Park when it is covered in a layer of white perfection baited me on.

Castelli Cherry Creek State Park CO Cycling Cyclocross Denver ice Photography Ride Rodeospork Snow traildonkey

Cowboy Cross

Cowboy Cross at the Western Stockyard Complex. The smiles won’t soon fade.

In my opinion it is the best CX race and best atmosphere of any race in the Front Range. The labyrinth course in, through, under, and around the stockyards is SO. MUCH. FUN.

Colorado Cowboy Cross Cyclocross Denver MUCCY Racing Speedvagen traildonkey Western Complex