I had thought about asking a fellow with a sweet Forbidden if I could take some photos. The colour reminded me of a buddy’s ’90s Cannondale, which I just right now recognized was a rip-off of a ’90s Klein. Woah, late to the party. Also, one of my temporary neighbours had an eyeball-worthy Geometron that I’m certain he’d have let me photograph. But alas, sag wagons get pretty much all the love, all the time, anyway so I figured I’d make the bikes of Cumberlandworx just about the hardtails. Because hardtails are perfect for Cumberland.

So I’m certainly trying to do my part to show that they’re not just for the kids, beginners too poor to buy a full suspension bike, and the collection of hardtail weirdos like yours truly. As you can see, I’ve been really successful here. Ha.

The Sharon

I didn’t know that bike theft was such a big concern in the Comox Valley, but clearly, Sharon and Vik are big on the year-round rear-mounted anti-theft devices. Ah, I’m teasing. I do suspect that the only reason it rained on the day we pedaled together was so I’d get a bit of muck on the seat of my shorts though. You know, just to shut me up.

The Sharon is generating a bunch of extra comfort from the 27×2.8″ Maxxis rubber which eyeballs out a bit bigger than Nina’s 2.8″ Butchers or my 2.8″ Vigilante thanks, I think, to the set of wider i46mm rims rather than the i40s that we run. 

From the high bar to the gearing, to the Plus rubber, to the fenders, to the stays slammed short it’s clearly a rig for someone that’s confident in what they’re looking for and doesn’t need affirmation from the trend police. 

One thing that is immediately noticeable in Cumberland is what a high percentage of riders clip-in relative to other places I’ve ridden. I can see how foot-retention would be an easy sale with all the bump-up technical climbing sections on Blue-XC trails, but I’ve had zero regrets about running flats and can’t think of a single move I would have made if I had different pedals. 

I think the neatest part of Sharon’s bike is the USA Made Selle Anatomica saddle. I had fully forgotten this brand existed but I actually met the founder many years ago at Interbike when he was just progressing from cutting holes in Brooks saddles to having his own line. This is an R2 which has a waterproof covering instead of subjecting a leather saddle to the rigors and upkeep of year-round mountain bicycling.

Selle Anatomica saddles are certainly not for everyone, but they are also surprisingly comfortable and adaptable for mountain bike usage and the people who make and sell the product are as passionate about what they’re selling as anyone in the bike industry – which can either be incredibly annoying or count for a lot when making a purchase. 

Either way, if you’re super uncomfortable on your bike seat and seeking a more comfortable saddle you haven’t “tried everything” to solve your perch problems until you’ve tried one of these. 

The Clairebarian

I wanted to toss Claire’s bike into the mix because the San Quentin 24″ – stock or custom – is an awesome rig with great geometry and decidedly missing from the collection of kids rigs we’ve seen at Cumberlandworx. 

There have been much more expensive bikes like a couple of full suspension Chromag setups and both hardtails and suspension rigs from Commencal. And also a huge collection of kids getting it done on bikes that cost between a grand and a heck of a lot less than that. 

Lots of Chromag Radar pedals all around being amortized over many years and multiple groms. 

I feel really grateful whenever I’m working on this rig. There’s a mix of used parts that were gifted to us by friends, bits that I had from previous NSMB.com reviews and products like the new OneUp V3 dropper remote that Claire’s helping review herself. 

Even the fact that we were able to order a frame through Marin so we could make the most of the parts we already owned is a privilege not lost on me. Though I do think if Marin had a readily-available frame-only option they’d be surprised how many folks would take advantage of it.

The geometry is excellent and most brilliantly designed around a 26″ fork and tapered steerer so there are actually good more-affordable options – like the RockShox Judy – for kids who don’t happen to have their mom’s ten-year-old fork kicking around. They do need to drill more convenient dropper post routing for the next generation and I’d like to see the little seat-mast removed so the saddle can go lower, but it’s still a cut above the other options we looked at. 

I didn’t have 15x100mm front and 135x10mm rear hubs kicking around to lace rims too, but also in the two-thumbs-up for a frame-only option is the fact I have a number of friends who do. The 24″ Sun rims we have laced up nicely, are lightweight and aired up great with the Maxxis rubber. In terms of building up a frame from spares, only the cranks, pedals, rims, and tires are specifically kids’ sized.

The Vik

Vik and I trade thoughts on mountain bicycles fairly regularly and, having never seen it before, I could have picked his rig out of a lineup of a hundred bikes from a kilometer away. The (very) high-rise bar setup makes me laugh. Not because I don’t think it’s awesome that that’s what works for him but because I can picture his face when I asked him if he ever gets ‘corrected’ about his setup.

It reminds me of my friends Sarah taking a mountain biking skills course many, many, years ago where the instructor insisted that she had to stand up to ride skinnies. I’m not saying she didn’t try it with an open mind before going back to her preferred in-the-saddle technique, but by then she’d already cleaned both the log rides on 7th Secret, all the woodwork on Pipeline, at least most of Cunning Stunts on the Sunshine Coast, and numerous skinny wooden features on Burke and at the Woodlot. 

Anyway, Vik seemed to be having a ton of fun riding his mountain bicycle and I didn’t see him wash out the front tire in any loose corners, and the combination of backsweep and rise are keeping him comfortable on the bike, so it sounds like a fairly rad setup to me. 

Well, I mean, other than those chainstays look really short (HAHAHA, sorry Vik). Speaking of chainstay length and personal preference, and not telling folks what to do. Well, I’ll just say this one time, and then a bunch more times, that single-speeding in Cumberland is awesome. I’ve ridden quite a range of gearing options and bikes – from a very lightweight Kona Raijin to my current beast of a V2 – and the only advice I have is to let go your ego and figure out what #1FG gearing works for you. 

One thing that really surprised me about Vik & Sharon’s rigs is that The Clairbarian didn’t have a million questions about their frame bags. I carry most of my gear in a pack with tools either stashed on my bike or in my little tool bag and all the folks we ride with regularly either have a hip-pack or a backpack. 

I was curious enough to ask Claire about it last night and she gave me ‘the look’ like I was trying to catch her with some kind of trick question. Apparently, it’s quite obvious that if someone doesn’t want to wear a pack or hip-pack they’d put all their stuff in bags on their bikes. Go figure. 

Then today I rode with a fellow named Nick who was rocking an HMPL handlebar bag setup and it dawned on me that I’ve seen more folks at Cumberlandworx using on-bike-baggage than I’ve seen wearing backpacks. The hip-pack is still clearly reigning supreme for the moment but between in-frame storage and on-frame storage, I wonder what will be most common five years from now. Maybe just a tiny hip-pack for easy on-body access to a wallet and phone? 

Anyway, I’ll conclude this edition of the bikes of #Cumberlandworx here with the sad (at least for me) realization that there’s only going to be one more of these for 2022. I haven’t even rolled out of town yet, and I’m already very much looking forward to next year’s edition.