I’m down to two bikes now. I have my daily driver, the All-City Nature Boy, and my touring bike, the Surly Pugsley.

These aren’t boutique bicycles; these are built to be ridden hard and put away wet. I bike-camp, tour, and commute on both bikes, and each bears the marks of a life well-ridden (well, the Nature Boy is still pretty new). These are built from ebay auctions, used parts bins, sponsorships and trades, so they’re about as unique as an off-the-shelf bike can be. And, of course, both are steel and both are singlespeed.

Surly Pugsley

My Surly Pugsley is the newest edition to the stable, and now my only other bike. It’s built as an expedition touring bike, with clearances for those awesome fat tires and a durable, overbuilt steel frame. I have a second 29+ wheelset for mountain biking, adding to the utility of an already awesome frame.

I made my parts list as extensive as possible, since many of the parts included here are very specifically chosen, and I get asked a lot about the bits and bobs. The pictures may or may not be up to date with the current build listed.

Frame: Surly Pugsley

Fork: Surly Moonlander

Crankset: Surly O.D. Crankset

Chainring: Surly 31T outer, Sugino 24T inner (both stainless steel).

Chainring Bolts: Problem Solvers Stainless Steel

Chain: KMC Eco-Proteq 8-Speed Rust-Resistant Chain

Rear Cogs: Chris King 18T Splined Cog Endless Bike Co. 24T Cog Surly Spacer Kit

Tensioner: Surly Tuggnut

Pedals: Shimano Saint DH Pedals

26″ Fat Wheels: Front Hub: Surly Ultra New, 6-Bolt Disc w/ 180mm Rotor, 32H Bolt-On Rear Hub: DT Swiss 350 6-bolt Disc w/ 160mm rotor, 32H QR Rims: Surly Marge Lite 65mm Tires: 45NRTH Hüsker Dü 4.0″ Rear, Surly Big Fat Larry 4.8″ Front

29+ Wheels: Front Hub: Surly Ultra New, 6-Bolt Disc w/ 180mm Rotor, 32H Bolt-On Rear Hub: DT Swiss 350 6-bolt Disc w/ 160mm rotor, 32H QR Rims: Surly Rabbit Hole 50mm Tires: Maxxis 29 x 3.0″ Chronicle, 120TPI, Front and Rear

Stem: Bontrager Rhythm Elite, 60mm

Seatpost: Thomson Elite 27.2 x 360mm

Seat: WTB Pure-V

Handlebars: Thomson Titanium 31.8 x 730mm, Control Tech Terminator bar widener plugs, 40mm (770mm total)

Headset: Cane Creek 40

Grips: ESI Chunky

Brakes: Avid BB7 MTN S Disc, Jagwire Compressionless Housing

Levers: Paul Components Love Lever

Rear Rack: Old Man Mountain Phat Sherpa, Rear Eyeleted

Bottle Cage Mounts: Downtube: King Cage Manything Cage, Universal Support Bolts Top Cap: King Cage Top Cap Cage Mount, Lezyne Power Cage Fork: Salsa Anything Cage (2) or Lezyne Power Cage (2)



All-City Nature Boy 853

My All-City Nature Boy is my do-everything singlespeed cyclocross bike. I’m using it for exploring, pleasure cruising, commuting, racing, light touring, and daily riding. It’s built for reliability and durability, with sensible components. It’s not particularly light, but it still moves fast.

Frame: All-City Nature Boy 853, 58cm

All-City Nature Boy 853, 58cm Fork: Whisky No. 7

Headset: Cane Creek 40 ZS44/EC40

Crankset: SRAM Rival 1x

Bottom Bracket: Wheels Mfg. SRAM Road

Chainring: SRAM 42T Narrow/Wide

Cog: Endless Bike Co. 20T

Hub Spacers: Surly

Chain: KMC Ti Nitride 10SP

Brakes: Paul Klamper, Short Pull

Levers: SRAM S500 Alloy Lever

Housing: Jagwire Mountain Pro

Handlebars: Salsa Cowbell 3, 46cm

Stem: Thomson Elite X2 Road Stem, 70mm

Seatpost: Thomson Elite Seatpost 27.2

Seat: Brooks Cambium C17, No Cutout

Pedals: Crank Brothers Doubleshot Pedals

Rear Wheel: Hope Pro 4 Trials Rear SS Hub, Stan’s Notubes Grail Rim, DT Swiss Champion spokes, brass nipples.

Front Wheel: Surly Ultra New Disc Hub, Stan’s Notubes Grail Rim, DT Swiss Champion spokes, brass nipples.

Tires: Teravail Cannonball 700x38mm, Tubeless w/ Stan’s Valve and Tape

Rotors: Shimano

Bar Tape: Brooks Cambium Rubber

Past Bikes

Soma Double Cross Disc

Full Review Here!

This is my all-road bike. Sometimes 1×10, sometimes 2×10, friction-shifting, disc brakes, sturdy wheels and a steel frame. After riding my Raleigh Port Townsend into the ground over three years, the Soma Double Cross Disc was a welcome upgrade. Soma’s DC is a Tange Prestige steel frame with exceptional build quality, seamless welds, great middle-of-the-road geometry between a race bike and a touring bike, and a paint job I immediately marred with stickers. The fork is from a Salsa Vaya, and both frame and fork have rack mounts and huge 41c tire clearances. It’s a do-everything bike that I do everything on.

Frame: Soma Double Cross Disc, 58cm

Fork: Salsa Vaya Classico Cromoly, 45mm Rake

Crankset: SRAM Apex

Chainrings: FSA CX Compact 46/34

Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT Rapid-Rise, Long-Cage (1999?)

Front Derailleur: SRAM Red Titanium

Cassette: Shimano XT 11-36T

Chain: Shimano XT 10-speed

Pedals: Shimano Hybrid Flat/Clipless

Hubs: Shimano XT (135mm rear)

Rims: H + Son Archetype, 32H

Tires: Variable

Stem: Salsa Guide Stem 70mm

Seatpost: Thomson Elite

Seat: WTB Rocket

Handlebars: Salsa Cowbell 2, 42cm

Shifter: Dura-Ace Bar End 9-speed (Rear), Shimano 105 Downtube (front)

Brakes: Avid BB7 Road Disc, Yokozuna Compressionless Housing

Levers: Cane Creek

Racks: Racktime Top-it front, Axiom Streamliner rear.