TITANIUM ALL ROAD ADVENTURE

The Titanium All Road Adventure with Ti fork is ready for the long haul. This customer wanted all Mechanical drive train components for ease of repair and maintenance on long, remote trips. Clearance for 700x55 and mounts for front and rear racks. This bike is equipped with a Ti segmented fork from Bearclaw bikes in the mid west and it makes a great companion to the all Ti frame. 1.5” tapered steerer with a 44mm head and down tube. bikes this a beef cake for carrying all sorts.

GRAVY DAYS GRAVEL RIDE / CAMPOUT

Gravy Days gravel ride hosted by the Horse Cycles workshop will be July 15th in the Catskill mountains of upstate, NY! Come ride one of the two optional routs that meets your vibe! There will be beer after the ride donated by Founders Brewing and some great giveaways by Enve. We asked 4 other local bike builders to come join the ride and each will have a bike on display. Lemarch Cycles, Weis MFG and Vicious Cycles and the legendary Garbaggio. Wild Common Wine will also be donating a few bottles of wine to the event. Swimming and summer hangs all day and party starts at 5pm Sat. Campers welcome Friday and Saturday. Let us know if your planning to camp! Details below. Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.

20 AND 40 MILE ROUTS LINK TO RIDE WITH GPS :

20 MILE - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/43473355

40 MILE - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/43473423

CAMPING WELCOME. WILL HAVE WATER AND BATHROOMS AND FIRE / FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

Ride begins at 10 am at the Horse Cycles Workshop

ADDRESS LINK:

https://goo.gl/maps/PbwXCEVgeyFi3VKK8

376 Burgin Rd, Andes, NY 13731

TITANIUM ALL ROAD

This is the first Generation of Horse Titanium, made in house, one at a time, at the Horse Cycles Workshop.  An "ALL ROAD TI" Geared toward speed while still providing allowances for 48mm x 700c tires.  The bike maintains the classic lines, tube diameters and Geometry of the steel frames produced for the past fifteen years while utilizing titanium alloys to increase positive ride characteristics. The titanium provides a lighter overall package making it a clear choice for climbers and longer endurance riders. The bike is painted with a multi-tone sunset horizon and reveals the bushed material on the lower end of the frame.  We are very excited to offer this new material in limited quantities. Feel free to get in touch with any questions or just to chat bikes!

Nik Climbing dirt on his new Titanium All Road in the Catskill Mountains of NY

This bike comes in light as a feather. Fully decked out with an ENVE gravel kit including Color matched stem, G23’s and the AR handlebar. We also decided to go with a Cane Creek E wing to get the whole titanium experience, linked up to a Wolf tooth chainring and a Sram Red AXS - XLPR 1x.

We were honored to be invited to show this new bike in Utah at Enve Composites annual builder round up highlighting the synergy between Alloy and Carbon.

THE MOUNTAIN - MOTO

The MOTO is the third iteration of the Horse E-bike. Its built with the new Bosch Cx 4 Gen motor platform and its a beast. Coming in under 47lbs its comparable if not lighter than most full sus e bikes on the market. This capable hardtail is a wonder every time i get on it and what a ride to have in the stable. It is build around super progressive Geometry including Uber short, super responsive rear end and the stout front end braced front triple triangle giving it a classic MOTO vibe. Its paired here with a 140 fork here, but will gladly shred with 10-20mm more travel.

Perhaps just as noticeable on this new iteration is the 64.5 headtube angle. By pushing that front axle out, it really gives you control and confidence descending at ridiculous speed hitting all sorts of variable terrain. one of the things that was most surprising is how floaty it feels, especially landing when landing small airs, lips and hips. There seam to be no downside to this laxed out angle as the stability lost when climbing with slack headtube angles is non-existent on the MOTO. the power from the Assisted Bosch motor negates most all instability climbing.

We have been using it as a pre-runner for building new trails, berms, jumps, drops and flow. Great for bushwhacking and exploring places previously unfathomable. It’s surprisingly light, stiff, and nimble under power. Its the beast that keeps giving,

GRAVY DAYZ GRAVEL RIDE / HORSECYCLES HOUSWARMING

After 3 years of building the new shop we decided to celebrate and host a Gravel ride!!!

The new workshop is located in the heart of the Catskill mountains in upstate NY about 3hrs from NYC. We still have a space down in Brooklyn and paint all of our bikes in the city.

The Gravy Dayz Gravel ride was awesome! We had a great turn out and people from far and wide came to link up with other riders for a day of views, beautiful gravel roads and hangs.

The workshop was open to everyone and we had a few bikes on display. Beers were sunk, swims were had, and general stoke was abundant.

That night we hosted a party with music, food, drinks, Fireworks and an amazing land sculpture by a talented local artist named Jessie Lee Wilson.

It was truly a party to remember and an epic celebration of community. So many people came together to make the day and evening increadably special and there was an consistant feeling of warmth and kinship.

Thank you Tara for the amazing food, thanks to Founders for slinging us beers, thank you to Wild common wind for the case of tasty bubbles, thank you to Catfish John for the fireworks, thank you to Jesse for the artwork and thank you to Jess and Steve for playing music with me up on the flatbed.

Thank you to all who came from far and near to celebrate with us!

GRAVEL RIDE SHOP HANG

HORSE CYCLES HOUSEWARMING

DESERT DAYZ

The desert is rad! An incredible place to ride and to adventure and explore, what a place to remember. Driving across the country this summer to see friends and rid was entirely worth every mile. Ian Matteson took these incredible shots of some of my personal bikes. if i had two chose two things to take on a desert island it would be these two rigs! So stoked to have shared such an amazing few days riding and hanging with these legendary humans. Kevin, from Pine Cycles, Steven Bukowski who is a furniture designer from brooklyn and Ian Matteson who is as talented as they come. Love ya boys!

PHOTOS BY IAN IN THE LITTE GRAND CANYON, UTAH

ENVEY BUILDER ROUND UP / GRODEO

The Enve Builder Round up and Grodeo was the first time getting back to and in person showcase where builders can meet up and ride with other builders, industry nerds and past, and hopefully future customers.

Enve is a gracious host and the event is top notch. 25 builders from around the world and some of the nicest most interesting builds are all on display for a visual feast.

Along side the show and just as impressive is the Enve Grodeo, A 100 mile gravel ride through the the desert, past mountain streams and large meadows of wild flower.

This year we worked with an amazing customer, Sacha, on a tuned in custom Gravel monster and the lupin flower design really came alive against the desert landscape. The real highlight this year was just getting the opportunity to connect with some amazing people. We got to see all of our long lost friends, drink, talk and ride together once again. Thanks to Enve for Hosting an epic event. if you ever have the opportunity to sign up for the ride or swing by the show, its highly recommended.

MURAZU'S DI2 GRAVEL MONSTER - GODZILLA

Photos by Murazu

When Murazu first contacted me about making a bike, not that I don’t love all my US customers (you’re all great!), and found out Murazu was Japanese and that we would be shipping the bike over to him, I was extremely stoked. I have tremendous respect for Japan and Japanese craft, perhaps because I have been making knives for so long and Japan has such a strong history in crafting some of the most capable blades known.

The bike Murazu ordered was the Gravel Monster, no doubt my most favorite bike to build. We upgraded the bike with internal DI2 and brake routing and a custom CNC’d tapered head tube.

Murazu recently sent me some photos of the bike being built. It was so great to see a Horse frame being assembled on the other side of the world, and you could tell the EFFECT workshop, where he took it, was a place oozing with talent and a love for craft. The coolest parts are definitely the DI2 shifting points integrated into the TRP shifters and the HOPE RX cranks. Honorable mention goes to the Philwood seat post collar and readhead shrink on the brake and shipping cables making it all nice and neat upfront :).

I’ve affectionately named this the Godzilla build. And though it may be cliché and a bit warn out, Godzilla was a force and could roll anywhere he liked and was also pretty awesome.

Photos by Murazu

A few words from Murazu:

“I live in Tokyo. And was in Monokusa Racing. Now I cut people's hair for a living.

I like to ride a bike and ride any surfaces. I especially like dirt riding in the past few years.

If you live in Tokyo, you have to ride 50 kilometers to the mountains. So I needed a fast bike. I decided to ride the Horse cycle where I visited the workshop when I went Brooklyn. It's a beautiful bike. (Thomas wasn't there 😆)

The bicycle was assembled with EFFECT. I trust his skills. He did a great job this time too.

Recently, I often go to dirt in Odawara and Hakone. There are seas and mountains, and the great view. I would like to ride on a Catskill in the summer someday.”

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STAINLESS ALL ROAD ADVENTURE

Nik K’s All Road Adventure is pretty dialed. So much so that I have bike envy The go anywhere shiny lightweight boss that seams to taunt you every time you looks its way, saying… “ When are we headed out on our next adventure pal?”

This build Highlights the new Enve Adventure fork that has gobs of clearance and All the mounts. We slapped some King Cage Ti Anything cages on each blade, which are so sweet. That together with the Sinewave dynamo light mounted to a Soma rack fitted especially for the fork makes this Pony -Biz in the front and all party in the back.

Speaking of a party in the back… The build also rocks a hefty mullet in the E-tap axs configuration sporting the rainbow cassette/chain combo.

The frame consists of hand picked Columbus XCR stainless steel tubing and a custom bent seat and chainstay to balance the clearance’s of the fork upfront. We do this with a 72mm BB that allows a larger welding area and gives room for rubber, in this case 2.3” Taravail Ehline’s. The tapered head tube uses stainless reinforcement rings top and bottom and was turned on the lathe in our shop here in Brooklyn, NY.

The pictures taken here were done so up in the Caskill mountains of upstate NY, the future home of Horse Cycles, by the talented photographer Donalrey. Big Thanks to Don who Captured this bike and its stomping grounds so well. God speed people, good riding and here’s to our next adventure.

JOHN'S DUSTY APPALUSA

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John has been riding his Speedvagen Road bike all around the Texas as he’s been held up, like most of us during this time, close to family. John wanted a gravel bike that could handle anything that came his way. He also wanted something he could ride on trails where he could bring his best dude, Hank the Dog. From what i understand hank is a little ripper, cattle dog mix. John, with his love for both his dog and horses, wanted a paint job that would resemble a bit of both. Hank is a dusty mix of gray and light brown with spots of white all over. we tried to capture the essence of both hank and the Roan and Appaloosa horse breads in the paint scheme by layering color and sanding away top coats with aggressive sandpaper leaving course hair-like markings. The paint is set off with the matching Enve stem and the Chris King Matte Bourbon headset (hubs to match once built.)

Johns 650B GRAVEL MONSTER is just what he was looking for to take advantage of the amazing terrain offered in the American west. From the single track in the mountains of steamboat springs Co to rolling gravel roads of Montana. This steed will let him limitlessly explore the opportunities that lay in front of him giving him time to clear his mind and spend his best days with his best pal, Hank the dog

The GRAVEL MONSTER comes standard with a custom 3D printed stainless steel dropout now with a brushed logo for a bit of added bling. Also standard are the custom Dedda s bend seat stays. Check out the GM page for more details.

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All thee photos here were taken down at Rockaway beach at sunset.

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John Montesi is writer and photographer for an active outdoor company (Steamboat Springs, CO)

JAKE'S BABY BLUE BROOKS GRAVEL MONSTER FOR NAHBS

This baby blue Beauty was headed for NAHBS. Brooks and i are sharing a booth in Dallas. With all the goodies equipped I had to snap a few shots. Brooks sent me some fiery Cambium bar tape and a matching saddle which really popped against the matte blue paint. Needless to say this Gravel Monster for Jake came out great. Brooks also visited the shop in preparation for the show and hung out for a few days. They posted a great STORY on their site. Here are a few shots of the days spent with Jason Norton.

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Jake decked this build out! He opted for the custom tapered head tube and double internal cable routing on the frame, finishing it off with a dusty matte blue paint scheme. For components we have a Full Enve cockpit, Enve G-27 wheels, sram force drive train. White industries crank and headset, Brooks saddle and rap and some slick Switch back Hill tires from Rene Herse. Check out the full photo set of this build below.

STAINLESS - ALL ROAD ADVENTURE

XCR Stainless steel Adventure - clears 650b x 2.8” rubber. Custom tapered headtube, internal hydraulic cable routing, flat-mount disc mounts and an anything cage mount on the under side of the down tube. Configured for a AXS Eagle drivetrain and drop bar shifter front end. We will be putting a new carbon fork on this rig with internal dynamo routing, rack, fender and anything cage mounts.

I wanted to get some shots of this bike in the raw without fork, without headset, without any parts. I think I’m as close as you can get to being in love with some shiny bits of metal.

Tapered Stainless head tube EC34 / EC44 with machined reinforcement rings. The finish is a brushed satin over the complete frame. For the logos on the head and down tubes we did a combination of polished fine lettering with a bead blasted drop shadow creating depth with three different textures.

More to come from this build but I wanted to document it in its raw state, pared down to the bone, no parts, just steel.

GARY'S BLUE-EYED LADY

Gary came to us looking for an ultra light silky steel road machine. At 6’4” and 215lbs with a relatively short torso, a rig with custom geometry was right up his ally. After the design and fabrication of a custom frame, you can really take the bike to the next level by thinking about complete build, paint, color, and components.

This was the first build we have done with the ultra light Titainum Cane Creek eeWing Crank. The raw titanium really pops on the black backdrop of the rest of the bike.

The blue accents on the down tube and seat tube together with the matte turquoise headset from King create a balanced and subtle composition.

The ENVE AR disc wheels and the Road Racer Plus were destined to be together, in this case with the deeper 4.5 profile for the more stout rider. The hoops, in conjunction with Sram’s Etap really make this a build to remember.

Without compromising durability this 64cm Road Racer Plus came in at 18lbs flat. When looking at the weight of a bike the components are a huge consideration, more than 75% of the weight of the bike comes from the parts. By replacing the aluminum Thomson seat post, stem and handle bar with carbon, this bike would come in under 18lb all day. That being said, Thomson makes great stuff and, manufactured in Georgia, a fair amount of this bike is homegrown. That’s something we love to see. How could you not give this blue-eyed lady a second look? This bike was a pleasure to build, and working with riders like Gary who value form as much as he does, function was a real treat.

DESERT RIDE + HAPPY ENDING = LUBER FOR LIFE

Matt and Andrew are both good friends of mine, and one of them rides a trusty Horse (”good boy”). They recently adventured out into the desert through the great unknown. “We saw some horses. We ate a lot of dust.” Two friends on the road less traveled making a memory or two. These photos are taken from the Sky Island Loop out in Arizona.

The two friends moved out to LA about a year ago, both are writers, Andrew previously for the New York Times and Matt for Gear Patrol. Matt, who’s a close compadre of Horse, ventured out to start his own company. I have a lot of respect for people who take that leap. Running your own venture takes a lot of work and fortitude. Producing a good product and staying true to quality in the face of the daily challenges of independent business is not an easy task.

The best part about this tale is that Matt didn’t start a bike shop or a tech start up. He’s in the lube business. And no, not chain lube! He started a skincare company that puts out super high quality small batch plant-based products that are (I never thought I’d hear myself say this about mens skincare), actually really good. West Skincare is a CA based outfit that you might see at the next gravel event you attend. I never thought I’d delve into a beauty regime beyond beard balm, but at the end of the day scrubbing the grease off my battered face has never felt better. Luber for life!

All and all Matt is a great guy, he rides a rad Horse, and is following his dreams.

The best lube money can by - WEST

GREEN MACHINE - 3D PRINTED DROPOUT - GRAVEL MONSTER

After 12 months of design and testing we are now using 3D printed 5-15 on all gravel monster frames. This allows a super strong connection that is corrosion free. It allows the shop to continue to stay at the forefront of the industry pushing the limits of technology and performance. Even though it is a large cost, It saves time on the overall build which means I can build more bikes and get your bike out to you faster. Big thanks to Steven Bukowski for his help with prototyping and printing. One of the best parts of working in Brooklyn is being able to collaborate with such talented people who also love bikes. Check out some of the process photos below and a few glam shots of this new Gavel Monster in Land Rover Green.

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DEAN'S "OC" GRAVEL MONSTER: HOT ON YOUR TRAIL

Shiny now… not for long. Dean grew up riding with his dad and soon got deep into the roots of the road racing scene in Orange County. After years on the road and with a passion to expand his riding pallet, he turned to the growing mountain bike circuits of Southern CA. Racing primarily cross country, Dean grew an affinity for what the dirt had to offer.

Enter the GRAVEL MONSTER. “A true race machine.” Not built for the peloton or the technical rock garden and NOT a cross over. From fire roads to single track, built for speed and for the likes of Grinduro and the Dirty K. The Monster is the purest gravel rig.

This is what Dean was looking for, starting with above platform: the lightest selection of tubes available, optimized power transfer, hand turned tapered head tube, T47 bb, and ENVE-G fork. Dean added both internal hydro cable routing, custom paint and deducted weight by dropping cable routing and opting for SRAM’S newest wireless electronic shifting, AXS etap. Top it off with Enve AR hoops and cockpit and this is one light machine.

As well as a seasoned racer, Dean also works in the bike industry and I was super stoked when he got in touch for a build. It’s certainly an honor to build bikes for people who clearly love to ride, and this build truly came out lovely. A shiny lady only once, calling for dirt and speed. A visual from the old westerns I grew up on comes to mind - a dusty plume only seen in the wind above the trees, created by a man on his horse. A single rider, maybe hot on your trail. Better giddy-up.

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HELL CAT 27.5 + HARD TAIL

After a Year of riding, the Hell Cat Lives on. We took a few of the first new models out to Montana to Sklar headquarters for a week long Builders camp. There we rode are tails off. Here are a few shots our buddy John Watson took still dusty from the Montana trail. Head over to the HELL CAT bike page to check out what this rig is all about. - Happy trails -

LOST AND FOUND + KEVIN'S GRAVEL MONSTER

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Sierra Trails puts on a number of events every year. This past weekend was the 2019 Lost and Found Gravel race, where they do a great job of hosting an event that is across-the-board a super fun time. It focuses on the natural beauty of the NorCal wilderness while putting emphasis on supporting the maintenance, creation and restoration of trail systems we love to ride and hike.

One of the entries this year was Kevin McClelland riding his Custom Gravel Monster. Kevin is a good friend and avid rider, and I was super stoked knowing he was pushing his limits entering the 106 mile category. No small feat.

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Starting and finishing this year in the town of Portola allowed more of a community vibe. Camping in the town park along the lazy river and immersing in the community is part of what gravel races are about. A lax environment geared toward getting out in the woods and putting miles on your rig. Take it as fast or slow as you want, hang with friends or push your limits.

Out side of Portola the race takes you deep into the the wilderness of the Sierras where you can find your self riding isolated miles through a mountainous pine tree landscape on some amazing trails. This year with the rains the night before and combined with the snowmelt of the late spring season made for mixed conditions and challenging wet terrain.

Kevin said his rig performed beautifully and made for an amazing race. For this ride Kevin slapped on a set of 27.5 x 2.25 Continental Speed Kings. The higher volume fast rolling mountain tire proved to be a great choice for the mixed surface gravel race. The light, plush characteristics at 22psi made for a more enjoyable 106 miles. “From the wet and wiled climbs through the eroding and rutted single track to the high speed descents on slippery kitty litter gravel, the bike rode like a dream. The tire choice for the day worked out great too, and I’m super happy with the extra tire clearance this rig allows,” says Kevin.

Getting out in the wild, hanging with friends and giving back is what its all about. Sierra Trails does a great job of setting up a platform to accomplish all of these things. All the proceeds from the race go back into the community and into the wilderness. Connected to the race is a raffle called Builders for Builders. All the proceeds again go back to the community that continues to allow access to existing trail systems and fund the development of new trails. If you're interested in giving back and the opportunity to win one of five amazing handmade bikes follow this link and enter the raffle. Thanks to the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, the builders for donating bikes, Kevin for ripping his Horse and Ian Matteson for these amazing photos.

"SURF THE DIRT"

Nicky came to me looking for a do anything, go anywhere long distance gravel rig. This bike, built about a year ago was destined for Oregon, where Nicky was finishing up his last years of school. Just after that, and after many miles on the lush fire roads in the Oregon outback, Nicky moved back home to LA county and with him came his steed. Two years later and nick has his rig dialed. The bike that was calling Nicks name back in 2018 was the All Road adventure machine. Nick went with a stock size rig and opted for custom paint in a forest service green matte finish.

A year later i saw the bike pop up in Golden Saddle Cyclery’s IG and it looked great and well broken in. Now living in Echo Park with quick access to the parks just out of the valley, Nicky is rips his rig. I picture him Caked in dirt dropping down the single track of the LA County trail systems and one thing popped into my head. That boy can “Surf the Dirt.” I’ve been following nick since we connected a year ago and as always its a pleasure to build bikes for riders and athletes who push the envelop, push themselvs and push the machines that come out of the workshop.

Thanks Nick for riding the rig and “Surfing the Dirt,” and for sending me updates on all your adventures.

Also thank you to Jimmy Rosas for taking these dusty shots of the well used machine from Brooklyn.

Both of their IG’s can be found here:

@nicholascolasuonno

@yung_jaime

@goldensaddlecyclery

Some Nicky’s favorite rides in LA: 

1. Henninger Flats up to Mt Wilson Toll Road to Mt Wilson (gravel) LINK

2. Starting in Monrovia Canyon Park past White Saddle up to Rincon and back (mostly gravel) LINK

3. Up Glendora Mountain Road in Glendora across Ridge Road to Baldy Village to the ski lifts (all road) LINK

4. Up hwy 39 starting in Azusa through the canyon past Falling Springs to Crystal Lake Cafe LINK

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LUCUS'S 18LB. GRAVEL MONSTER

18.2 lbs is pretty light for a steel bike for sure, and extra super duper light for a gravel bike. How did we get it so light? We use the very lightest and strongest tubes possible without compromising durability; the frame utilizes Columbus Life and Dedda heat-treated alloy tubing. We drill out the tube intersections to reduce weight wherever we can. This bike being around a 55cm frame also helps keep the weight down. We are able to chose lighter tubes for lighter riders and get the same end performance. The main reason for the weight savings are the components, namely the carbon components. The marriage between the ride quality and durability of steel and the beneficial characteristics of carbon is ideal.

If the frame and fork weigh 3lbs, then most of the total weight is the components. 15.2lbs in fact. Nothing special about the sram force group, and though the White Industries G-30 cranks are my choice over any other, they are not the lightest out there for sure.

The Enve Gravel fork, G-bar, stem and seatpost rule for performance and are a huge factor in keeping weight down.

The biggest advantage in weight savings and the one component that really adds to the performance of this Gravel Monster are the wheels. Keyed up with Enve G27 - 650-b front and rear really complete the picture and allow this bike to perform at the front of the pack wherever you may ride. The Wheels are the first and best upgrade I recommend when helping chose gravel components for customers. if those are out of the question, the G-bar is my 2nd.

If you can roll with the cost of carbon components i would highly recommend it. Lighter is better because you feel more connected to the road or lack there of. Most noticeably it offers an advantage while climbing. It’s pretty special to come out of the saddle and feel the acceleration as you rock back and forth; less poundage to hold you back, allowing you to float as you climb.

This custom Gravel Monster for Lucas Dowers (his 2nd Horse) is a gem. This rig pushing the boundaries of the modern steel machines made in the U.S. today and we couldn’t be more happy to be making rad bikes for amazing people.