This week’s Reader’s Rig comes from James in Washington, who shares the Salsa Fargo he picked up secondhand several years ago and recently took for a 24-day ride along the Arizona Trail. Get to know James and check out his lovingly customized Fargo here…

Words and photos by James Karrasch

My name is James; I live in a tiny house on Orcas Island in Washington state, where I work for a forestry and tree care company. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania but moved out west in 2019 after a cross-country road bike tour. During that trip, I learned to handle long days in the saddle, keep my bike running, and developed a deep love for all things cycling.

Nowadays, I enjoy road riding, gravel grinding, and mountain biking; however, most of all, I love bikepacking. This year, I biked the whole Arizona Trail over 24 days in April, but I usually get my bikepacking fix on extended weekend trips and overnight rides throughout the year. The highs of bikepacking are incredible; getting out into the backcountry on my bike to see the mountains and forests helps me decompress and find peace. On the other hand, the lows I’ve felt during a trip, such as mechanical breakdowns or adverse conditions, have helped build my grit and taught me that I can push myself much further than I had believed was possible. Whether I’m doing routine maintenance or swapping out parts, tinkering on my bikes lets me enjoy turning wrenches and gives me a real sense of satisfaction.

Since getting into cycling in 2019, I’ve owned a handful of bikes. I started with a Fuji Touring, moved on to a Marin Four Corners, and eventually found my pride and joy, a 2020 Salsa Fargo named Large Marge. I bought Marge secondhand on Pinkbike in 2022, and since then, she’s gone through several rounds of upgrades to turn her into my ideal do-it-all bike. My first trip with Marge was the Cowichan 8 route on Vancouver Island. While on that trip, I couldn’t get over how well I fit on this bike, but there was room for improvement in the components.

After that ride, I replaced the 11-speed Rival groupset with a 12-speed GX AXS setup and hydraulic brakes for easier climbing gears and more stopping power. A couple of years later, I accidentally snapped the carbon Firestarter fork and replaced it with a used Fox Factory 32 off Pinkbike. Before leaving for the Arizona Trail, I made the most recent round of upgrades: a PNW dropper post, a Marzocchi Bomber Z2, and Hope RX4+ calipers with 180mm floating rotors. I also swapped the stock dropouts for UDH-compatible ones, so I could run the GX Transmission groupset from my mountain bike. While stealing parts from that bike, I also moved over the carbon We Are One rims, which I have little intention of returning.

• Frame: 2020 Salsa Fargo, XL
• Fork: Fox Factory 32 100mm
• Rims: We Are One Union 29”
• Hubs: Industry Nine Hydra Classic Gold
• Tires: Teravail Sparwood 29 x 2.2 Light & Supple
• Handlebars: Salsa Woodchipper
• Headset: Cane Creek 40
• Crankset: RaceFace Ride 34T
• Pedals: Shimano Kona Wah Wah 2 Composite
• Cassette: SRAM GX Eagle Transmission XS-1275 10-52T
• Derailleur(s): SRAM GX Eagle Transmission Derailleur
• Brakes: Hope RX4+ Calipers w/ 180mm Floating Rotors
• Shifter(s): SRAM Rival eTap Brifters
• Saddle: Brooks B17
• Seatpost: PNW Components Pine Dropper
• Stem: Salsa Cycles 80mm
• Front bags: Kasy Bag Handlebar X Roll
• Frame bags: Oveja Negra Bodega
• Rear bags: Revelate Designs 14L Portage Panniers
• Accessory bags: Road Runner Auto-Pilot Feedbag
• Rack: Salsa Alternator Plus Rack
• Other accessories: Quadlock Phone Mount

As much as I’d love to own a bike for each scenario (N+1 and all that), living in a small space doesn’t allow for that. Fortunately, having Marge feels like having three bikes all packed into one. For everyday commuting, scooting around the island, and mellower bikepacking trips, I run 29 x 2.2 Teravail Sparwoods with the Fox 32. For rougher adventures, I switch to 29 x 2.6 Vittoria Mezcals and the burlier Marzocchi Bomber Z2. I also occasionally use 700 x 35mm Schwalbe Marathons for longer road rides and tours.

Marge has truly become a quiver killer for me; she’s just as happy rolling down smooth pavement as she is descending chunky singletrack. Between the endless customizability and the tall, upright geometry, I couldn’t ask for a better bike. Although I do wish Salsa would spec the Fargo with a larger-diameter seat tube and internal dropper routing—it feels like that’s long overdue.

Further Reading

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