traildonkey – Page 2 – Rodeo Adventure Labs, LLC

A Season of Lessons, Pt II

Summarizing a 10-month season of racing is complicated, but in an effort to take you all along with me through 2023, I’m going to try. Events like Mid South in mid-March now seem so distant compared to the more recent sweltering heat of Foco Fondo in July. Now it’s December, and I’m deep into prepping miles for the 2024 season. My brain wanders while on the trainer: What is it that defines a season as a success or a failure? Is it really either-or, or is it neither-nor?

Four improvements with TD4

Bike brands spend a lot of time obsessing over details that distinguish their product from others. They hire PR firms, bring in R&D to discuss and verify the finer points. They hire athletes to say they ride faster because my gear is better than other peoples, or something close to that. Comparison is important in a market place of ideas and products, after all.

Adventure Colorado Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs Trail donkey review traildonkey

Everest (ing) by Donkey

Everesting is a ride wherein riders ride a single hill over and over until they’ve climbed the height of Mount Everest. That’s 29,032′ or 8848m.

I decided to do an Everest attempt after doing a last minute Instagram poll just throwing it out there to see if I should give it a go. 100% of you said yes. I wasn’t sure if I would do it up until this point and since this was the day before I was pretty ill-prepared.

Adventure Cycling Gravel Bike Mountain Biking Rodeo Labs traildonkey

The Rodeo Newsletter, Vol 3

Summer has transitioned to fall, and with the change of seasons a lot of change has also come to Rodeo Labs, even more than I had anticipated, it seems! So before we dig into any product or event news, let’s talk about the biggest news at Rodeo Labs right now:

We’ve moved!

Adventure Colorado Cycling Cyclocross Flaanimal Gravel Bike Mountain Biking Rodeo Labs Rodeo Rally traildonkey

The Rodeo Newsletter, Vol. 2

It has been a hot minute since I last published a Rodeo Newsletter, and there is a whole summer worth of activity to bring everyone up to speed on, so let’s get started!

Adventure Colorado Cycling Flaanimal Gravel Bike Newsletter Rodeo Labs Rodeo Rally traildonkey

Robididn’t: Open Range Tornados

I experienced a wide range of emotions after standing on the podium at Unbound. Climbing up there and fulfilling a long journey of hard work and sacrifice filled me with elation. However, it also left me with a lingering question of “what’s next?” The following four days were mostly filled with snacking and sleeping as I basked in achieving my biggest goal of the year, only touching the bike to clean it.

Colorado Cowtown Gravel Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs traildonkey

Unbound: The Gloopy Glamour of Gravel

When you’ve been living in a place for ages, it’s easy to overlook its charm. Growing up just a couple of hours outside Emporia and spending most of my life in Kansas, I couldn’t fathom why people would travel from far and wide to race on seemingly dull and unchanging roads. But then, amid a grueling nearly 25-hour journey, a realization hit me like a lightning bolt. As I pedaled along the ridge, the undulating emerald hills stretched for miles while ominous thunderclouds loomed above—a quintessential Kansas storm rolling in to welcome me back. There was nothing to do but smile and hope it wasn’t too harsh. Soon, a refreshing 30-minute drizzle came to my rescue, and I found myself grateful for the momentary respite from the heat and electrified by the surrounding beauty.

Bikepacking Gravel Racing kansas Luke Hall Rodeo Labs traildonkey Ultra Racing Unbound XL

Lucas’ Unbound 200 singlespeed winning TD4

Lucas Clarke’s Unbound 200 single speed ride had us speechless, and the numbers tell the story impressively:

1st place Singlespeed 200miles.

Fastest 200 mile singlespeed time in the history of Unbound.

First singlespeed to break twelve hours.

FIRST athlete / bike, period, through the mud to the first timing point.

Adventure Cycling Gravel Bike Gravel Racing Rodeo Labs Singlespeed traildonkey

Luke Hall’s Unbound XL podium TD4 Build

Update: Luke took his bike to 2nd overall at this year’s XL, and we couldn’t be more proud of him and his ride!

Elizabeth Wilcox Photo. Luke Hall Unbound 2023 finish.

This year, I will be going back to Unbound to race the 350 mile XL. I chose the XL because I have history racing ultras out of Emporia, Kansas and I think the format of less than 24 hour ultras is pretty exciting. It requires a ton of focus and persistence. Last year, I was signed up for the XL and made it through 185 miles. A couple of weeks before the race I had to get stitches on my elbow and was on a wide variety of antibiotics. It really messed with my stomach and I wasn’t able to eat like I wanted. I’ve put in a lot of work this season getting prepared, both physically and mentally. I think I have a pretty strong chance at the top step. My bike setup is second to none and one of my favorite, unique builds.

Cycling Gravel Bike Rodeo Labs traildonkey Ultra Distance Cycling Unbound XL

Naked means Naked with TD4.

Traildonkey 4, TD4, Naked unidirectional carbon fiber,

We’ve offered “Naked” frames at Rodeo for a long time, but naked has never really meant NAKED, because practically speaking carbon bikes are often not precise enough to show in their naked state. There are almost always small aberrations and flaws in a frame once it leaves the mold, Those are mostly covered with putty and then paint. Some sections of the weave or layup come out smooth and those may be clear coated, but very few bike companies will offer their frame in its visually naked state because clear coat doesn’t only show the beauty of carbon fiber, it also shows the abnormalities.

Gravel Bike traildonkey Uni Directional