I've always loved racing my bike but my long torso meant that finding a race bike that fit was nearly impossible. This season I decided I wanted to change that. As a result, the Adrift test bike was born.
Adrift is a project that combines my passion for mountain biking and my interest in materials engineering to create a bike for riders with long upper bodies.
The project had a slow start. First I had to find a manufacturer that would make what I wanted. After months of emails and language barriers I finally found a match. I put money down. Things were getting serious.
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After a month of uncertainty I finally got to see a picture of the finished product. I was stoked! Things were coming together.
I wanted to capture the uncertainty I had in the process as well as an adventurous feeling in my branding. I chose Adrift as a brand name. After being sent photos by the factory I started designing a logo and head badge for the bike.
I wanted the logo to be organic but still simple enough to apply to the bike. I wanted the vinyl to be one piece.
After building up the bike I was nervous for my first race because I had so much time and effort invested into the project. After a few days getting everything set up I felt prepared to race. Luckily things went well and I managed to take the win at my first race of the season with a solid lead!
After the race I began putting the bike through rigorous testing. I managed to crack the carbon fiber linkage while filming a video and I quickly relayed the information back to the engineers in China. A new prototype began production with the hope of being ready in time for the next race.
The current prototype is performing flawlessly and I'm so glad to have such a comfortable bike for this season. I will continue improving upon the bike throughout the year. It's been such a fun project so far. I've learned so much, especially about how long projects can take.