Journal | Hunt Bike Wheels

World traveler and bike packer, Josh Ibbett, has just spent the last six weeks in Europe mostly riding through the Iberian Peninsula. At the time of writing he has caught a plane to New York and now managed to ride up to the Canadian boarder at Niagara Falls. We managed to check in with Josh and catch him for a journal entry on his experiences so far.

Enjoy. 

Roman is one of our latest additions to the Hunt OpenDev Team. Hailing from the Big Apple, Roman can be found blasting through traffic, passing over Brooklyn Bridge and heading into the woods aboard his ‘cross bicycle. When the snow melts and the temperature rises Roman takes to the tarmac aboard his road bicycle to discover the ever-changing New York City. With a clear talent for photography which document his rides, Roman’s Instagram page (which can be found here) is one of the most stunning pages out! Capturing the city from a cyclist’s perspective his distinct style shows that his talents extend well beyond the bicycle.

Roman is extremely valuable to HUNT to help move forward how we can develop our wheels. Putting in huge efforts on his 38Carbon Gravel Disc equipped 'cross machine and his road steed rolling on 50Carbon Wide Aero wheels, Roman pushes his equipment to the absolute limit. His crazy effort in last year's festive 500 saw him push through snow blizzards, rain and extremely cold temperatures. You can rest assure he is putting in hard miles in tough conditions, giving us invaluable feedback. 50Carbon Wide Aero Wheels are Roman's road weapon of choice.

Roman is extremely valuable to HUNT to help move forward how we can develop our wheels. Putting in huge efforts on his 30Carbon Gravel Disc equipped 'cross machine and his road steed rolling on 50Carbon Wide Aero wheels, Roman pushes his equipment to the absolute limit. His crazy effort in last year's festive 500 saw him push through snow blizzards, rain and extremely cold temperatures. You can rest assure he is putting in hard miles in tough conditions, giving us invaluable feedback.

As discussed in part one; tyres strongly influence how your bicycle rides. With the advent of tubeless the benefits which more and more riders are appreciating include:

Riding the road less travelled offers an entirely new opportunity to explore beyond where the tarmac ends. Heading out for a big day with only a loose plan is certainly a great way to spend a Saturday. Meanwhile, 'cross bikes make for a fast option to blast out an hour cutting through fields, parks and everything in between. This type of riding is quite varied and places unique demands on how a tyre needs to perform. Not quite as beefy as a mountain bike tyre but larger and more grippy than a standard road tyre - the rubber rings for your mixed surface bicycle is ironically a little more specialised but made to be super versatile. PART 2 of this tubeless tyres round up series gives you some more information on these tyres and the differences between them.

Tyres are a highly significant factor in influencing how your bicycle rides. With the advent of tubeless, the benefits which more and more riders are appreciating include:

The increasing popularity of this new (to some) technology to road bicycles has shifted the landscape in terms of the right tyres for your riding, so see below a round-up of the key info on the current road performance and 4Season tubeless tyres (which can be fitted with sealant to your tubeless-ready Hunt wheels). Part 2 of this guide will cover fatter, gnarlier, crossier and gravelier tyres so if you like off-road thrashing keep your eyes peeled.

The Ras is a uniquely Iirish race. Passing through the narrow shop lined streets, out into the open fields and across seaboard boulevards bordering the Atlantic, the race attracts some of the most promising up and coming riders to the emerald isle. The Ras is no ordinary contest. Not by a long chalk. Capping teams with five man limit forces riders to attack with an all or nothing attitude. The European formula is tossed out and leaves riders constantly fighting for position across the entire eight days of racing.

A huge effort was made by the BIKEChannel Canyon team. Esspecially considering that five riders were reduced to four after Max Stedman was forced to abandon the race due to a fever. Dexter Gardias managed to take home two top ten finishes. A race well spent from the young BIKEChannel Canyon Team.  

Please enjoy this photo gallery from the Ras.

As Hunt has grown, so too has the number of people putting in the hard graft behind the scenes. Our latest recruit describes himself as ‘just another cycling junkie’ but really does know his stuff. Stan Bolyarov is a Robert Gordon University Management with Marketing Graduate who races road and cyclocross. He has even raced the Bulgarian National Road and TT Championships. To say the least… he is very handy on a bicycle. With experience of Dutch and German markets, having lived in both countries, Stan’s role will lie in pushing forward our website usability to give you the best access to tech information, spares and support you need. He will also be found in the customer service, tech and dispatch areas.

We have managed to catch Stan for our latest On The Drops interview... enjoy!

Former Hunt employee now turned professional bike packer, Josh Ibbett, has just passed on over his first video blog. Months if not years, before planning the trip, Josh has been deliberating over what to take with him on his world wide adventure. Whilst many long haul tour cyclists are heavily loaded with large panniers and even small trailers, Josh has tried to keep with the FastFar concept his Mason Bokeh and 650B AdventureSport Wheels laced to a front Dynamo Hub were designed for. So far this set up has carried Josh from Cambridgeshire right down into the Basque Country of northern Spain.

One of best days had out on the bike we have had with the Hunt Team was filming for the release of our newest wheelset - the Superdura Dynamo Disc as well as our farewell to Josh, our first full time employee. Having a helicopter fly above our heads as we snaked down the South Downs on our Mason Bokeh bicycle was certainly something we had never experienced before (and probably never will again!) 

Last weekend, former Hunt Brand Manger Josh Ibbett, left the UK and headed for the continent to commence his riding trip around the world. At the time of writing, he is currently down near Bordeaux but knowing Josh, this can be more accurately described as 400km radius from the coastal French city.

You can check out the final video by clicking here.

We decided to put together a short photo gallery of the cold morning spent on the Downs trying our best to keep things rubber side up.

Prepare for an onset of dot watching excitement across Italy.

First thing that came into my mind when I woke up this morning.

“I’m going riding.”

Second thing that came into my mind;

“My medical insurance probably doesn’t cover this, best not crash!”

I had only made contact with Himalayan Singletrack the day before I left the UK so I was really pleased that they managed to come up with a single day trip for me to get out of the city and see some of Nepal from a bike. Expecting the terrain to be somewhat mountainous I also tentatively asked if it could not be too gnarly as I had a course to teach the following week!

ROB HARWOOD has been a rider for the Hunt Open Dev Team since it was first announced. Hailing from the lanes and b-roads of Essex, UK, there is nothing more Rob likes than a long day spent out on the bicycle (and finished off with a few beers). Until recently, Rob has been keeping things on the tarmac, however, the draw of gravel has brought this roadie to enjoy the adventure that venturing off the beaten path offers. Spending weekends in Scotland and Wales, as well as being co-founder of a bunch of great guys as ColVelo Collective (read below for more) - Rob sets a bench march for being an ambassador for not only Hunt Wheels but the wider cycling community in general. 

We managed to wrangle in Rob to answer a few questions for the latest edition of On The Drops. Enjoy.

Early this morning in Australia, Hamish, our Hunt Australia and NZ Manager was meant to meet the highly respected Ultra Endurance Cyclist Mike Hall for a rolling interview for Kinesis UK as he raced the Indian Pacific Wheel Race. As you can see from his Instagram feed below, tragedy had struck Mike Hall's ride.

RideInPeace Mike Hall, an inspiration to us all.