The New Yorker article on Grant Petersen and Rivendell

[gravelreformist]

Nice article, I thought, from a non-industry source. The "reader" function of your browser should get you past the paywall, if necessary.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2...taking-it-slow

[bikinchris]

Grant is so funny. He's SO anti exercise and anti-sport riding that he's laughable. It's just as bad as someone who ONLY road races talking crap about anyone who races track or off road or gravel and laughs at people commuting, cyclo-touring or just riding for fun.

[benb]

It's a good article. I'm not through it yet but have been reading it on and off today.

I have gone for a bunch of "no bike clothes" little rides around town with my son the last few weeks. Those kind of rides remind me of Grant. He has always been right that dispensing with a whole bunch of the "ceremony" and "ritual" of cycling brings back that childhood sense of freedom. Riding with a kid will definitely remind you of that. (My son is 11 and wants to ride a lot but usually doesn't want to go more than 10 miles)

I wish I had test rode a Rivendell back when Harris Cyclery was still around. I bought my All City at Harris Cyclery back when they were around and they had lots of Rivendells when I was shopping and test riding. Grant says he doesn't want to be like Filson selling ranch wear to urbanites but that's definitely the way I saw Rivendell back when I bought my All City from Harris. My All City is really one of only 2 bikes I've had in the last 25 years that mostly follow Grant's philosophy and I have mostly rode them that way. But the Rivendells were like 3x-4x the price of the All City's and Surly's that Harris was also selling, and that definitely had a huge effect on who was buying them and how often they went out the door, the cheaper bikes did a pretty similar thing for a lot less money and actually had a pretty similar upright fit, what you were paying for was the fancy looks of the Riv, and they sure did look a lot fancier.

Especially for a bike I'm going to ride around town and lock up places, stuff I have done a lot of on my All City, the price of a Rivendell is a negative. I am not sure if they are really high theft but the price will still make them more painful to have to replace if they're stolen.

I am still 75-90% the kind of cyclist Grant doesn't care about, but I totally get the idea of wanting a bike that excels at what he loves. Today I'd have to travel to try a Rivendell. Newton (where Harris was) is affluent, if it turns out most of the Rivendell dealers are in affluent areas than I guess that wouldn't make him that happy cause it makes the Filson comparison ring more true?

To a certain extent I think the eBikes are what threaten bikes like Rivendell, and for Rivendell money I could have an eBike that did the utility thing really well.. though it would surely not last or be as easy to maintain like a Riv.

[Peter P.]

Excellent journalism. Thanks for posting.

[marciero]

Originally Posted by Peter P.

Excellent journalism. Thanks for posting.

I'm a fan of this writer. Her "Uncanny Valley" is a great read.

Thanks to the OP for sharing. I share many of the sentiments expressed. I only take the Grant thing so far, but Rivendell was a resource when I started doing non-racing cycling in the aughts. I even have one of his books- Eat Bacon Dont Jog.

Edit: Reading the article I am reminded that I also have "Just Ride".

[MikeD]

There's an old podcast where Sheldon Brown interviewed Grant at an Interbike show. The discussion they had about carbon bikes being "plastic" bikes was funny. I think it's still available on the Sheldonbrown.com website.

I think Grant is a bit too much a retrogrouch, but don't like the direction bikes are going these days, taking away simplicity and repairability from the user, and upping the cost.

[EB]

Grant's take on bike history suffers from gaps brought on by his own biases - the "just so" stories he tells are not always just so. Reading his newsletter can be an exercise in Gell-Mann Amnesia.

That said, I am glad Rivendell exists and nurtures the niche that they have created. He is an original and an innovator, and he has found a way to exist as such in an industry that eats its young and old alike. Long live Rivendell.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by EB

Grant's take on bike history suffers from gaps brought on by his own biases - the "just so" stories he tells are not always just so. Reading his newsletter can be an exercise in Gell-Mann Amnesia.

That said, I am glad Rivendell exists and nurtures the niche that they have created. He is an original and an innovator, and he has found a way to exist as such in an industry that eats its young and old alike. Long live Rivendell.

I quit reading years ago, I just look at the stuff he sells on occasion.

[raygunner]

No mention of his New York Times bestseller, "Eat Bacon, Don't Jog"? And did I miss anything about long chainstays?

[fourflys]

Originally Posted by raygunner

No mention of his New York Times bestseller, "Eat Bacon, Don't Jog"? And did I miss anything about long chainstays?

I think there was a mention of "luxurious chainstays" somewhere in the article..

[p nut]

I absolutely respect what Grant has done. Great advocate in the cycling world and great human being as well.
I’ve had multiple Rivendells and they all rode well.

In the end, the only riding they got were on casual rides with my kids and wife and occasional short commutes. Otherwise, they just sat. I really wanted to like them, especially the “hillibikes,” but even they performed poorly on the trails around here and were too heavy/slow everywhere else.

I’ve now sold them all. I use a Surly for commutes and bikepacking and proper road, gravel and MTB for specific rides, which I enjoy more than I did on the Riv’s.

But best wishes to Grant. I’m sure people will continue to buy and ride his bikes.

[fourflys]

Originally Posted by p nut

I really wanted to like them, especially the “hillibikes,” but even they performed poorly on the trails around here and were too heavy/slow everywhere else.

this is what I was trying to think of when I wrote my earlier response (except for the hillibikes, they are ridiculous IMHO).. I've owned 3 Rivs: a Bleriot (new to me), an orange Ram (used to me), and my current Homer (from my Dad). All just never seemed to ride as well as a more modern bike.. and I've never owned a pro-peloton race bike, mostly endurance or cross bikes, many of them steel.. I currently own the Homer, my Anderson (lugged stainless), Serotta Couer D'Acier, SL4 Roubaix, and a B-Stone RB2 (too long and low for me).. all of these bikes, with the exception of the RB2, ride "quicker" than the Homer.. the B-Stone does as well, just not comfy..

I'll never get rid of the Homer (since it was my dad's), but I will eventually put alt bars back on it and the rear rack with the massive Riv trunk bag and just use it to ride leisurely around town or with the family.. and that's ok with me.. but I will always have a sportier bike for sure.. I agree with pretty much all of what Baron Blubba said (and Happy B-Day to the wife, Mike!!)..

[prototoast]

A few thoughts:

-I'm always happy to have more characters in the bike community.

-The article definitely makes the riding around here seem better than it actually is.

-I get that a niche brand is going to appeal to a niche rider, but some folks I see on Rivendells don't seem to be served well by them. The other day I was coming down a hill of 10+% and there was a rider coming up riding a Rivendell Sam Hillborne. The bike was set up with a very upright position, but he was climbing with his hands in the drops. He was also pushing what looked like much to hard a gear for him, struggling to turn the pedals. Maybe this is how he wants to ride, but it sure looked like he could have walked into the local Trek or Specialized dealer and walked out with a bike that worked better for him--even for Rivendell-style non-race riding.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by prototoast

A few thoughts:

-I'm always happy to have more characters in the bike community.

-The article definitely makes the riding around here seem better than it actually is.

-I get that a niche brand is going to appeal to a niche rider, but some folks I see on Rivendells don't seem to be served well by them. The other day I was coming down a hill of 10+% and there was a rider coming up riding a Rivendell Sam Hillborne. The bike was set up with a very upright position, but he was climbing with his hands in the drops. He was also pushing what looked like much to hard a gear for him, struggling to turn the pedals. Maybe this is how he wants to ride, but it sure looked like he could have walked into the local Trek or Specialized dealer and walked out with a bike that worked better for him--even for Rivendell-style non-race riding.

So much energy lost pedaling in Crocs...

[EB]

The hillibikes are peak Grant.... or perhaps the nadir of Grant.