This week’s Debrief features a 32-inch handmade Big Kev, Party Bars, the end of MTB YouTube’s Golden Age, a question about your oldest gear, multiple events to follow live, and much more. Find it all here…

The weekly Debrief highlights small but important bits of news, products, and things that caught our attention on the website, in the conversation, and elsewhere around the community. These include upcoming events and interesting items our readers shared in the comments. Check out this week’s findings below.

Bits & Bobs

New products that are worth highlighting but didn’t make the Dispatch…

Stringbean Bags Fayot

Made in USA / $110 at Stringbean Bags

The new Stringbean Bags Fayot is a zippered stem bag that doubles as a shoulder bag for carrying accessories while hiking or fishing. The Fayot has an exterior stretch pocket on the front, a snap-closure pocket on the back, an all-over daisy chain, and each bag comes with two small Voile straps and a lower strap for attaching to the bike. It’s available in a range of stock and custom colors and holds approximately 2.5 liters.

Nutrak Gravel Tire Range

£34.99 at Nutrak

In partnership with Vee Tire Co., Nutrak’s latest gravel tire lineup features four purpose-built tread patterns designed to cover everything from fast road and hardpack riding to technical backcountry adventures and mixed-surface exploration. Most tread options are available in 700 x 40/45mm sizes, and the Swift Frenzy tire is offered in 26″, 650b, and 700 x 50mm sizes.

Price Reduction on OG Rene Herse Knobbies

Made in Japan / $79+ at Rene Herse

Faced with rising costs, Rene Herse Cycles looked for ways to reduce prices, rather than increase them. In addition to further streamlining their operations, they realized that R&D and mold costs for their original dual-purpose knobbies are (almost) paid off. Now, Rene Herse has lowered the prices by 10-15%. Demand for 700C x 38 Steilacoom, 700C x 42 Hurricane Ridge, and 650B x 42 Pumpkin Ridge tires remains strong, since they feature the same large, flex-free knobs and round profile as Rene Herse’s newer models.

Introducing Party Bars

Made in Taiwan / $34.99 at Party Bars

Party Bars is a new bar tape company owned by Heather of White Industries and her husband, Matt of Marin Bikes. Party Bars’ mission is simple: make bikes less boring, one handlebar at a time. They soft-launched last week with two bar tape options: Serape and Sprinkled Donut, and both kits come with wooden bar end plugs.

Too Tired Cycles Flipside Chainring

Made in Europe / $136 at Too Tired Cycles

Too Tired Cycles, a small bike shop in Germany, has just released an interesting new chainring. It’s a modern narrow-wide offering designed for 94 and 110 BCD five-arm cranks, and can be flipped to adjust the chainline. With an integrated offset, the chainring can be mounted on either side, allowing riders to fine-tune chainline by ±1.5 mm simply by flipping it over. The chainring is available in 36T, 38T, and 40T sizes, is made of 7075-T6 aluminum, has a narrow-wide tooth profile, and fits all 7-12 speeds and all chains (Shimano HG+, SRAM Eagle, SRAM AXS Flattop, T-type, KMC).

Pre-Orders Open for the New Trail Worm

Made in Japan / $260 at Stomplox

Pre-orders have opened for the new iteration of the Stomp Lox Trail Worm. Nic reviewed these barefoot flat shoes earlier this year, and they’ve changed things up for the next batch. Made with stronger rivets and a lower heel pad height, the shoes are also available in a smaller size. Ideal for small feet, the US5 size tries to cover the gap for women and smaller riders.

Rene Herse Ultralight Organizer Bags

Made in Japan / $29 at Rene Herse

The new Ultralight Organizer Bags from Rene Herse are simple, cinchable ditty bags designed to help keep small bits and pieces organized on the bike. They are made from ultra-tough Silnylon fabric and come as a set of four: a small, two medium, and a large bag. The set weighs just 29 grams.

In Conversation

Exchanges and ideas that caught our attention in the site’s conversation section…

Tell Us About Your Oldest Gear

Yesterday, Lucas shared his ultra-long-term review of the Snow Peak Titanium Spork he’s been using for almost two decades. It’s an inexpensive, easily replaceable piece of gear, but it’s come to have a lot of personal meaning over the years. A few readers mentioned having the same spork for nearly as long, which has us curious: what’s the oldest piece of bike or outdoor gear you still use regularly? Let us know in the Conversation below!

Around the Community

News from around the bikepacking world…

32″ Handmade Big Kev

Curve has been experimenting with oversized wheels for years, dating back to its memorable 36-inch Titanosaur that we documented at Bespoked. With 32-inch wheels becoming one of cycling’s latest trends, the Australian brand has applied its knowledge to a new handmade steel Big Kev drop-bar prototype. The bike also highlights Curve’s hybrid approach to frame production. While much of the company’s lineup is produced with manufacturing partners in Taiwan and China, Curve continues to build select projects in-house. This prototype was fillet brazed by technical lead Jimmy Rostlund, with TIG welding completed by mechanic Taylor at the company’s Melbourne headquarters. In a testament to the project’s last-minute nature, the final brazing work was completed less than 24 hours before the opening of the SPOKEN show in Sydney this weekend. Find more details at CurveCycling.com.

The MTB YouTube Golden Age is Over

Seth from the Berm Peak YouTube channel recently published an opinionated retrospective on the halcyon days of mountain bike YouTube. Reflecting on his own rise in the space, he analyzes the material conditions that made home mechanics and trail-goers into household names.

90s MTB Santa Cruz Pizza Tour the Hard Way!

Mack and their friend RayRay decided to ride to a bunch of pizza places they hadn’t tried yet, and it turned into a 50-mile ATB ride on Mack’s 95 Marin Team Marin. This was also Mack’s first time using an action cam, which they won through a work program, and we think the results are fantastic. Nice work, Mack! See more from Mack on Instagram here.

Axel Keller’s European Divide Trip: Bikepacking with an Ostomy

Photo by Chariot Bike Shop

After living with Crohn’s Disease for three years, Axel Keller made the difficult decision to remove his colon and get an ostomy to take back control of his life. As Axel puts it, “Living with an ostomy has opened my life to so many things I once thought I had lost forever.” Last week, Axel arrived in Norway to start a 5,000-kilometer journey on the European Divide Trail. Follow his inspiring trip on Instagram here.

Lael Rides Around the World Podcast

Earlier this month, Lael Wilcox started her second pedal-powered circumnavigation of the globe, this time attempting to be the fastest person ever to do so. With help from her partner, Rugile (Rue) Kaladyte, they’ve been releasing daily podcast episodes that offer an intimate look at each day. The episodes are short and provide a great sense of how Lael is doing. Listen to episode 10 above.

Josh Reid Tours the White Industries Factory

Ultra-cyclist Josh Reid was invited to White Industries for a factory tour. Looking at each part of their process and everyone involved, it’s an insightful, in-depth look at one of the most well-known US-based component manufacturers in the bike industry. For more, be sure to check out our recent shop visit.

Starling Cycles’ 10-Year Campout

Starling Cycles in the UK is celebrating 10 years of business with a weekend-long campout, and everyone is invited. From July 10th to 12th in Monmouth, South Wales, Starling will be hosting group rides, enjoying good food, and probably having a few drinks to celebrate this important milestone. Learn more and get your tickets here.

Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship Fundraiser

The Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship in Quincy, California, just launched their 5 Bucks a Foot Fundraiser, where every donation of at least $5 puts you into a draw for a custom-built Evil Chamois Hagar. The bike features a bunch of high-end parts, as well as a full set of Loam Equipment bags. Learn more and make your donation here.

The Return of Troutmoose

After a four-year hiatus from making gear, Madison, Wisconsin’s Troutmoose is back. The one-man brand already has a selection of Wald 137 basket bags available, with more models and colors on the way as he settles back into the workshop. See more at Troutmoose.com.

Events Starting Soon

What to watch this weekend and bikepacking events starting soon…

Dead Ends and Cake

Dead Ends & Cake is a self-supported bikepacking event set in the breathtaking landscapes of eastern Switzerland, starting and finishing in St. Gallen. Over roughly 500 kilometers with about 9,000 meters of climbing, participants must ride to five remote checkpoints, each situated at the end of a dead-end road deep in the mountains. There are over 80 riders participating, and you can follow their progress live here.

San Juan Ultracruise

The San Juan Ultracruise is a self-supported bikepacking challenge that links the best and sometimes hardest trails around Durango, Colorado. This year’s route is just over 200 miles with over 31,000 feet of elevation gain! A small group of riders started earlier this morning. Follow their progress here.

Veneto Trail

The Veneto Trail is a self-supported bikepacking adventure, designed for mountain bikes, in the SE Italian Alps, mostly in the region of Veneto. The 2026 route (11th edition) will take you from the Po Valley to the Dolomites through a mix of doubletrack gravel roads, rocky singletracks, and secondary paved roads. The route is approximately 500 kilometers long with 10,000 meters of elevation gain. The Grand Depart kicked off earlier this morning, and you can follow the riders live here.

Kenai 250

The Kenai 250 is an epic endurance bikepacking race… Alaskan style. It’s 100% self-supported and has lots of singletrack. The ride includes the historic Resurrection Pass, Russian Lakes Trail, Lost Lake Trail, Johnson Pass, and so much more. Just under 20 riders are participating in today’s Grand Depart. Follow them live here.

Great Northern Colorado Route Race

The Great Northern Colorado Route Race is a 460-mile self-supported bikepacking race through the wildest corners of Northern Colorado. This year’s grand depart takes off from Boulder tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. local time, and just four riders are registered for tracking. Follow along here.

NorthCape-Tarifa

The NorthCape-Tarifa is a 7,400-kilometer self-supported bicycle race starting at the North Cape in Norway and finishing in Tarifa, Spain. The race starts at midnight tomorrow, and you can follow the riders live here.

Weekly Social

Some things we found around the ‘gram and elsewhere. This week, Fauna Components walks us through their superstitious corn snack and Agave Finish Works with an excellent mustache ano job…

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