Why Does Everyone At The Lost Co Have The Same Bike?

    If you’ve been checking out The Lost Co’s bike checks lately you may have noticed a recurring motif. This theme has even stemmed it’s own joke, “If you want to be employed at The Lost Co, your bike frame better be alloy.”

    Now this is simply a joke, but anyone at The Lost Co who has gotten a new bike this year has ended up on an alloy frame - most of us opting for raw frames rather than painted. What may seem like a lack of individualism is actually quite thought out bikes for where and how each of us ride.

    Everyone wants a carbon bike, or at least that’s what bike companies want us to believe (It should be noted two of ten employees do have carbon bikes, and there are many good things about carbon bikes). Every year carbon bikes take another small step towards perfection, while alloy bikes are falling farther behind. I, along with seven of my coworkers, prefer an archaic frame material because weight is less of a concern and we can use the money saved for better components.

Money saved on frames = amazing suspension, drivetrain, wheels, brakes....

    One of the biggest selling points of a carbon frame is weight. I can’t speak for everyone but a heavy bike isn’t going to limit the fun I have riding. I love fun techy climbs. A few extra pounds won’t see me claiming uphill KOM’s but that’s not why I throw my leg over a bike. When I chose to get the new Transition Patrol, I was looking for something that would excel at descending. The extra weight isn’t going to hurt that at all, and some even argue an extra pound or two might actually help.

    Most of the trail riding you’ll find around Bellingham has the perk of either having a easy climb on a gravel road or it can be shuttled. With limitations on how steep a gravel road can be, the extra weight doesn’t add up much over a 1-2 hour climb. As for the latter of the perks, I’ve never felt any discomfort by pushing down the gas pedal when a bike weighs more. This lowered my need for a light bike even more. The trails that you reach once you've gotten to the top of these roads tend to be a little rougher and steeper. I’d like to boast that I never crash, but it does happen. Any frame can be broken but getting a dent in an alloy frame, when compared to a crack in a carbon frame, is a much easier pill to swallow. I’ve had a few modern carbon trail bikes and I’ve cracked more than half of them.

Now, I am not a TIG or MIG aficiando, but I do appreciate some fine crafstmanship

    Rather than replacing frames which would crank up the dollars I spend on bikes, alloy frames are normally less expensive. Keeping the price low allowed me to put a few more boujee components on my bike too. I wanted an extra quiet bike compared to my previous one, and the ability to remove as many cables as I could. By using an SRAM X01 AXS drivetrain and the RockShox Reverb AXS dropper post, I cut down on both cables and noise. The extra touch of some handbuilt wheels with Onyx hubs makes the bike a silent killer on the trail. On top of that, having dialed suspension with a RockShox Zeb Ultimate and Super Deluxe Ultimate has done more for how my bike rides, when compared to dropping a few pounds. All these upgrades add up to a ton of value and consistency of a good bike.

    Everyone, including us at The Lost Co, have been experiencing issues with getting bikes or bike parts. As alloy bikes are overlooked for their fancy carbon siblings, they tend to be easier to find too. There’s been at least one of us who’s changed their order from a carbon bike to an alloy bike to get it more quickly.

Heavier bikes? Perhaps.. Top of the line builds? Definitely.

    Alloy bikes aren’t the fanciest option out there, but if you’re not worried about keeping up with Joneses then don’t scoff at alloy bikes. Next time you see another Lost Co’s employee bike check swing across your social media feed, don’t be surprised if it’s another alloy bike. That is, if they want to keep their job...

Current Bikes: Transition Patrol Custom Build

Bike Size: Medium

Favorite Trails: Downieville DH, Downieville / World Cup, Santa Cruz / Space Wolf, Galbraith

About Me: Have you ever placed an order with us? Well chances are I was the one who packed and shipped it out. In addition to shipping a ton of packages out every week, I am the official good-times manager. Have an issue with your order? Got a warranty issue you need a helping hand with? Maybe just having a bad day and need someone to talk to? I am your man!