Writer's rig: Chris Hunter's Planet X Tempest Ti

Perhaps better known for his alternative cycling club ARAF, ‘advocating steady as fuck adventures‘, we chatted to Chris Hunter about his go-to rig. As a designer, Chris has an eye for detail and is also known to enjoy some pretty bright colours too, which you’ll notice here. This year hasn’t been great for getting out there, but we’re hoping he can make the most of this gorgeous – and very patiently built – steed.

Introduce your rig

Planet X Tempest Ti gravel bike with flared bars and purple Hope hub, standing in a timber-framed shelter. — Chris’ Planet X Tempest Ti gravel bike: the Project Forever Slow bike

This is my Project Forever Slow bike. It’s my do it all bike for life. I can swap the wheels out for my 700c set for road riding and touring, or go pretty much anywhere with the 650b set. I’ve done long distance road riding, bikepacking adventures, to hitting up (tame) MTB trails on it. It really does do everything I ride.

Box-fresh or deep custom? Run us through your mods

Close view of the Planet X Tempest titanium frame with Zefal pump, two bottle cages and the custom-painted fork. — With parts collected up over a year, a build well worth the wait

This was a slow burner build. I’ve always wanted a titanium bike, so when the frame came up cheap (£480) I started collecting bits to build it up over about a year! I transferred a fair few bits over from my existing gravel bike.

The only really custom bit is the fork. Again a cheap second hand purchase, which meant I wasn’t so precious about it. This resulted in me stripping it down and doing my own custom paint job on it. Nice from afar, but far from nice!

Bikepacking, riding or racing: do you have any different set ups?

Planet X Tempest set up for road riding with 700c wheels, tan-wall tyres and mudguards, on grass beside bracken. — With a wheel switch and mudguard addition, the Planet X Tempest becomes a super rando machine

Definitely adventures, I’m not here to race. As mentioned above, I have two different wheelsets, and swapping them out totally changes the bikes riding style.

Do you have one component or aspect of your setup that you really love?

FARR AEROGRVL flared handlebars with a bike computer and SRAM Force levers on the Planet X Tempest. — The FARR AEROGRVL bars are a real hit

The biggest game changer for me has been the FARR AEROGRVL handlebars. The numerous riding positions really improve comfort and control, resulting in less fatigue when riding too. I’m also now a convert to flared bars, so much more control when descending!

What’s your one most outstanding memory with your rig? Good or otherwise…

Front view of the Planet X Tempest with FARR handlebars and SRAM levers, seen through blurred foliage on a woodland track. — More adventures in 2021, please

Unfortunately I’ve not gotten to ride this as much as I would have liked over the last year, but one of my highlight memories was chasing the sun down for a coastal sunset ride. The bike was flawless and fun.

The full lowdown

Rear view of a knobbly Panaracer tyre between the titanium seatstays of the Planet X Tempest.

Hope Fortus 23 rim with black spokes and a Panaracer 27.5 x 2.00 tyre on the Planet X Tempest.

Brooks Cambium C17 Carved All Weather saddle in black, seen from above on a black seatpost.

Close-up of the iridescent lightning-bolt decal on the Planet X Tempest top tube, above the Zefal frame pump.

Red Crank Brothers Candy 1 pedal on a black SRAM crank arm of the Planet X Tempest.

Purple Hope front hub with a 160mm disc rotor and carbon fork leg on the Planet X Tempest.

Cinelli Ant stem with a doughnut-themed top cap and FARR handlebars on the Planet X Tempest.

Frame	Planet X Tempest V3
Fork	Kinesis ATR — Carbon, Custom Painted
BB	SRAM
Chainset	SRAM Force 1 w/ SRAM Apex 1 Long Cage
Brakes	SRAM Force
Bars	FARR AEROGRVL
Stem	Cinelli Ant
Tape/grips	Lizard Skins DSP V2 3.2
Headset	Selcof
Saddle	Brooks Cambium C17 Carved All Weather
Seatpost	Selcof
Tyres	Panaracer Comet HardPack 27.5 x 2.00
Wheels	Hope Fortus 23
Accessories	Frame Pump: Zefal HPX Bottle Cages: Arundel Stainless Steel Pedals: Crank Brothers Candy 1