Written by:In the world of online video, this is an oldie dating back to October 2016. Having said that, the content still reflects what we feel about the whole Adventure Bike category, and just how capable these bicycles really are..
The Plot
The OPEN Cycles guys plan to ride 60km of the Grand Raid course in Switzerland, taking in the fun bits and jumping onto the road to avoid the (less entertaining) hike-a-bike sections. The OPEN U.P. is the one breezing past quite a few MTB riders pushing their bikes along the trail.
Engage Rule 5?
To abandon the official course just before some technical descents, where a mountain bike would obviously be more capable, might be seen as a bit chicken. On the other hand, maybe they’re just sensible…
The volume of riders in a lot of MTB Marathon events will often reduce even relatively easy descents into a dreary walk. All it takes is for one lead rider to falter and unclip. Behind, everyone stalls and then walks. There is some clever science behind this. It is all down to Traffic Fluid Dynamics. Anyway, the bottom line is that it is no fun having to push a bike along a trail you could easily ride. Why not wait ’til the next day, when it is not blocked by hundreds of riders?
Open the fun valve
So the Open guys decide to peel off before the inevitable hike-a-bike to find some sweet road descents. And here’s the magic of an adventure bike; you can incorporate a little of everything into your ride and never feel like you are on the wrong bike. Keep the fun levels high!
And fun is what it’s all about. It’s fun to do trails you would normally do on a mountain bike, and it’s fun to do roads you would normally do on a road bike, and do them all in one ride, on one bike.
Want to find out more about the OPEN U.P. adventure bike? Head on over to the OPEN Cycles website. And if the Grand Raid tickles your fancy, pop on over to office Grand Raid site.
Last modified: 24th November 2017
