Ahhhh, the Trek 69er. Geoff, a connoisseur of fine singlespeeds, had coveted this bike when it first came out, and then many years passed and he finally scored one in his size. A kooky conglomeration of lightweight frame design, various wheelsizes, rapid acceleration geometry, and a punishingly stiff ride. What can we say, it’s a hoot to ride!

For the uninitiated the 69er runs a 29″ front wheel and a 26″ rear wheel with a latticework of hydroformed aluminum tubing between the two. Rediculously stiff tubing and a smaller rear wheel translates a whole lot of pedaling power to the forest floor, and the 29″ front wheel and suspension front fork provide some much-needed cushion and control to this snappy whip. It has cleverly engineered sliding dropouts, and Geoff has cleverly added a dropper post to his bike (really, who has a hardtail without a dropper these days? Someone who hates fun. That’s who!)