The 2023 Tour de France kicked off last weekend but while the rest of the world can’t seem to see past the maillot jaune riding the latest carbon fiber creation, we’ve only got eyes for Donhou Bicycles’ sunflower-hued Utility Bike.

Tom Donhou has, quite literally, set up shop in Athens: the Donhou Store is his retail therapy where, alongside a fully equipped frame building workshop, he purveys a curated collection of sustainable cycling products — including their Utility bIke.

The exceptionally-versatile Utility Bike is offered as a frame set (which includes frame, fork and handle bar/stem combination), a complete bike or a custom build. The geometry is optimised for a front load, yet is still lively and stable riding unloaded and carefree.

Built from strong and dependable Reynolds 525 tubing, it has all the rack and mudguard mounts you’d require — even a kickstand mount. ISO disc mounts are standard and horizontal dropouts mean you can run it single speed or geared.

Donhou Bicycles has deservedly won numerous awards over the years from all the big shows, and all that experience has been poured into their Utility Bike. This is one bike to do it all, from commuting around town to a leisurely grande boucle around France.

Head to the Donhou Bicycles website for prices and ordering information.

The post All Eyes On Yellow: Donhou Bicycles Utility Bike appeared first on The Spoken.

You gotta hand it both partners in this collaboration: both State Bicycle Co. and The Grateful Dead have smashed it out of the Golden Gate Park with this smokin’ klunker and a psychedelic range of accessories.

Coincidentally, the collection dropped today: 4/20 also being a celebration of cannabis culture. Fun fact: one of the original Waldos was a roadie for the Dead’s bassist Phil Lesh.

Oh man, if we weren’t already hooked on klunker kulture, this one hits that high point of history when cycling’s counter-culture took to the hills.

The klunker is available in two guises: our favorite is featured here, emblazoned with Dead iconography, and a goddamn bottle opener on the seat tube.

There’s a beautiful black version too, decorated with the Dead’s ‘Dancing Bears’ icons, although don’t get us started on the accompanying apparel and accessories.

The list is long but, needless to say, our favorite is the 4/20 bar ends. And we’re a sucker for the tie-dyed jerseys. And saddles. And bar tape. Oh, man. This is one bike I’d like to take on a long, strange ride.

See more on the SBC website.

State Bicycle Co. | Instagram

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It finally happened: ENVE, our favorite composite component maker has announced the commencement of its own custom frame program — and while the name and livery might be one of the most uninspiring yet, the bare bones are looking beautiful.

The addition of the ‘Custom Road’ to the catalog was a logical next step for ENVE who, up till now, has stuck mainly to the production of wheelsets, forks, and finishing kits.

It’s made-in-the-USA with completely custom geometry from a versatile molding kit and will be available in Race (up to 25-31mm wide tires) and All Road (29-35mm) modes.

The integrated frame and finishing kit are what I'm most stoked about. It's an ethos that hearkens to the LOOK 795 and even further back to that of the French constructeurs.

Inside ENVE’s one-piece, SES AR Bar/Stem Combo is Chris King’s new AeroSet™ headset that allows the cabling to be routed straight down through the bars and frame.

A complete comes with SRAM Red or Force AXS, Shimano Dura-Ace or Ultegra Di2 and disc brake drivetrains only. Frame-only is also an option, as is a custom travel case.

Custom paint? Oh yes: four templates, two finishes, and thirty-eight colors. Pick one. I’d love one, but could I please have it in raw carbon so I can admire its construction?

Head to ENVE for more information and pricing:

ENVE | Instagram

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Not many would choose a fatbike as a first choice of vehicle to take on a long distance tour, but it depends on what type of terrain you intend to tackle. Marc traversed a good chunk of Europe to realize a fatbike was his ideal carriage.

Marc’s list of conquered countries include France, Spain, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Holland, Iceland, Sri-Lanka, Morocco, Mauritania and half of Africa.

All of his travels had been aboard a touring bicycle, but a new cheap fat bike changed the game, awarding the ability to float over everything from fesh-fesh to deep snow.

He destroyed that cheap fat bike, but he was working as a mechanic and, subsequently, frame builder at a Parisian travel bike brand before accepting the same role at Victoire.

He’s been working at the Auvergne workshop for two years now, developing his dream bike that’s now a reality. It’s stout enough to handle Marc’s 120kg frame and 5″ tires.

Orange HOPE components flash like autumn leaves against the camouflage paint, which took thirty hours of sanding, priming, painting and clear-coating to apply.

Marc intends to ride the 2021 Grande Traversée du Massif Central à VTT aboard his new Victoire before returning to Iceland to ride from Akureyri to Reykjavik. But meanwhile he’s carousing around the Puy-de-Dôme region that surrounds the Victoire workshop.

Victoire Cycles | Instagram

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It’s been two years since Cameron Falconer blew me away with the fat-tyred mini-velo dirt shredder he built for a Japanese customer. This new lemon sherbet cruiser again proves Falconer’s focus on fabricating insanely fun and functional bikes.

Cameron can build you a rock-solid roadie or a sure-footed back road tourer, but he also has a reputation as the go-to builder if you’re after something, well, a little different.

Travis of Paul Components contracted Cameron to build him a klunker-inspired mountain bike — the grandparent of the modern MTB — and there are others, too.

Building up freaky pedal-powered ensembles that break out of boxes is something Japan’s Blue Lug bike shop is also famous for, which they did with this new cruiser.

Like Travis’ Falconer, the components are almost all made in the USA. The headset, cranks and bash guard, freewheel and chain ring were made by White Industries.

Paul Components manufactured the Boxcar stem, hubs, brake levers, Klamper brakes and the Tall and Handsome seat post. Nitto made the handlebars.

My favorite detail is the 1990 Selle Italia Flite saddle — another complete juxtaposition to the overall perceived style of bike but, for some, it’s kinda the Holy Grail of saddles. Classy and iconoclastic, just how we like it.

Falconer Cycles | Instagram

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It’s been a strange last few months but, if anything, they have proven that bicycles really are the best form of release from a locked-down lifestyle. This 650b+ Explorer from Dorset’s Sven Cycles is the ultimate escape plan — and it could be yours.

The Explorer is one model in Sven’s Semi-Bespoke range, developed by Darron and the team to carry you away from a world of nervous crowds, masks and sanitiser, offering the best form of social distancing possible.

The heart of the Explorer is a TIG welded Reynolds 921 stainless steel frame, dressed in matte green military paint with Paragon Rohloff dropouts. It’s fronted by a thru-axle Columbus unicrown fork with all the necessary mounts.

There’s a Rohloff Speedhub in the rear and a SON 28 Dynamo in the front, surrounded by stealthy WTB KOM Light rims, Sapim Race spokes and Schwalbe G-One rubber. Yes, that’s a custom matching X-Pac frame bag by Spoked UK.

There’s a HOPE headset up top with a Jones H-Bar and a black Brooks Cambium. A pair of TRP Spyke brakes haul everything up and the drivetrain consists of Middleburn cranks and chainrings.

Sven Cycles’ portfolio of previous work reveal a true passion for craft and innovation. The Explorer is a noble steed, like every bike manufactured by the Dorset workshop, one that epitomises the spirit of adventure and the desire to commune with the outdoors.

This one in particular was built for a customer but as a result of these ‘unprecedented’ times, it is now up for sale. With this spec it has a retail value of more than £6,000 but is being offered for a substantially lower amount — head to the website to find out more.

Sven Cycles Website | Facebook | Instagram

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Six years ago in Adelaide during the Tour Down Under we had the pleasure and honour of meeting local frame builder JR of Rogers Bespoke and photographing his first build. Today we feature what may be his last custom bicycle — for his fiancé Gloria.

The TDU is the first leg of the UCI World Tour, held in Adelaide’s searingly-hot summer. Hardly a holiday for the pros. It is for fans, though, who converge on the South Australian capital to enjoy a weekend of racing and to celebrate the cycling community.

In January during the Tour Ebenezer Place in downtown Adelaide is the place to meet. It’s a small strip of cafés and small shops which, in 2014, included the Treadly Bike Shop — the best LBS in South Australia and a hub for the local scene.

It was outside Treadly that I met James Alderson by his moniker JR. Or rather, I met Proto, his first handmade frame, a matte black track frame with a gold retro-inspired downtube logotype. Even standing still, the bike silently screamed like a Hemi-6.

Over the years since, we’ve featured many of JR’s builds and admired the finish of his frames, from the cyclocross bike that was a collaborative work with artist Sam Songailo, a tourer built for Sam Neeft of Treadly, to the production-style Ronin bikes.

There are more than a few Ronin riding around today underneath highly impressed owners. The quality of construction is up there with the world’s best handmade steel road-riding frames and, what’s more, they’re Australian-made.

James recently made the decision to move on from the custom frame building scene and sold off all of his tooling to focus on other avenues. He didn’t call his enterprise Rogers Bespoke for nothing — he’s hinted at work in the motorcycle arena.

Today we’re honoured to feature the last Rogers to leave the workshop, built for none other than his partner Gloria, who James will be marrying in less than two weeks. It’s to replace her own faithful steed and will carry her for many more years of commuting.

Gloria rode her last bike everyday for eight years, so JR built her something that will withstand heavy duty riding. It’s a utilitarian but comfy commuter with 32c Panaracer rubber, mounts for fenders, a 1×11 SLX groupset and Chris King and Thomson hardware.

The paint, however, ain’t utilitarian, it’s out of this world. It’s a pearl bomb effect applied by motorbike painter Daniel Stone, who painted every one of JR’s frames bar two. As far as I’m concerned, and I’m sure Gloria will agree, this is where dreams come from.

The Spoken would like to congratulate Gloria and James on their engagement and wish them good luck for the future!

Follow Rogers Bespoke on Instagram for updates. Big thanks to James Raison for the amazing photos.

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