ENVE GRODEO 2022

A year later, Juan and I returned to the second edition of the Enve Grodeo in Ogden, Utah. It was another amazing weekend with many great learning experiences; spending some time with friends in the trade and a good load of suffering in the saddle during the epic gravel ride on Saturday.

Friday — Custom Builder Showcase

This is the perfect spot to indulge in the latest in engineering and beauty. Over 20 custom manufacturers from around the world presented some outstanding bikes on Friday afternoon. With a cold local microbrew in hand, we had the chance to discuss the latest in bike design, spectacular frame finishes and component packages with the builders themselves, it doesn’t get much better than this!

For Juan and I, this was also a great opportunity to reconnect in person with several of the brands we represent at Signature; like Scarab, Fiftyone, No 22 and Enve. It was also a great to keep an eye out for new partners in this strong field of custom bike builders, and there are definitely some strong brands that caught our eyes.

It’s 6:30 am and we make our last adjustments to our bikes and gear before rolling to the starting gate for a hard day in the saddle. The registration read:

“GRAVEL, PAVEMENT, SINGLETRACK, AND ENOUGH CHALLENGE TO TEST EVEN THE TOUGHEST GRAVELEROS”.

I can absolutely vouch for this header based on my last years’ experience. For me it was also the perfect testing grounds for a new tire set up. I was amazed on what a gravel bike can handle in challenging terrain, but it wanted to have some more traction and comfort for this year. So, I switched from a 38mm ReneHerse Steilacoom to the new 40mm Pirelli Cinturato Gravel Mixed Terrain. It worked great!

Not only did I have more traction in critical sections, but it also allowed me do descend through some rough and technical singletrack down hills with more confidence. The best part was that due to the excellent center profile design of the tire, this wider Pirelli rolled even better on the hard pack and pavement.

Two more teeth on my rear cassette compared to last year, improved my climbing to a point where I was almost able to keep up with Juans exuberant youthful energy! 10 hours later, exhausted, and happy, we crossed the finish line celebrating with beef barbeque in one hand and a cold one in the other.

Rocky’s, we will be back!