Ridley Reincarnated Now for Sale

We like to say that the most versatile bike is the fixie but if we’re honest we’ll admit that versatility is not 28mm slicks and no gears. Your fixie is only as versatile as you’re though.

I first built this Ridley X-ride in 2019. Later, when we were moving into our van fulltime it was the bike I took as my only ride with me. It was the weirdest setup. Super wide flat bars for prying steep and technical ascents with a TT bar on top for long tarmac stretches. SPD pedals sometimes with little platforms clipped in for city rides. I cycled through couple pairs of tires from 35mm Schwalbe G-Ones to 45mm Conti AT Rides.

I never considered disc brakes necessary. These Shimano mini-Vs were overpowered even in rain. However, this was a second pair of wheels I had to re-lace recently for worn-down rims. That made me reconsider. I took the chance and rebuilt the bike completely. Mostly in the same configuration because, well, it’s so versatile and so fun.

I tried to spray-paint it again. This time buying some proper paints, proper hardener, layering with filler on the bottom and clear coats on the top all with a proper spray gun. I’m never doing this again. It’s a fucking mess and the outcome is at best mediocre. It’s a fucking alchemy and if you screw up any of the layers there’s no fixing it up later. You end up with a bunch of toxic unused chemicals to dispose of. A note for future me: just pay a pro to do it for you.

The result is still very much an ugly weirdo of a bike that’s a great all-rounder for commuting, bike-packing, mountainous road rides, forrest explorations… I’m selling it to 1) make room for more bikes 2) replace it with something that has disk-brakes so that I never have to throw out a pair of rims again.

I will never forget any of the seven thousand kilometers with this bike. And in case I do, here’s a little reminder: