Mondays aren't all bad.

Usually Mondays involve a mountain of email and at least two pots of coffee. One pot is usually enough to perk a person up to where they can get some work done, but a second pot is always needed on Mondays to give us something to do while we re-hash the weekend and all it' sordid details. Since we don't have a water cooler, the process of making and drinking coffee keeps us looking busy and keeps Gran Muff Tarkin (the boss) off our backs. This Monday was a definite two potter, but this time we had a little extra pick me up in the form of some new wheels to come into the Unreal Inner-Planetary Headquarters.

Grammo sent us the first set of their new wheels to hit the market and I have to say, I now have some deep seated wheel lust.

The Factors have been vaporware (ooooh, Grammo hates that word!) for about a year and a half since they first showed up at Interbike in 2007. I guess there were multiple designs to be dialed until the wheels were just so and ready to go. They even had time to make two versions, the TT and the SL. The TT is the super aero one with the crazy bladed carbon spokes. The SL is the (suprise!) lighter of the two and still uses carbon spokes, albeit less bladed. Both sets are truable and you can even replace the spokes if you needed. Not that you would, but we're just saying you can. Like all good innerwebbery gossip, it's worthless without pics so here ya go.

This is the Factor TT Front. Carbon everything. Hub, Spokes, Rim. Stupid Fast.

Here's the rear. Imagine a wheel almost a fast as a disc, but able to be used on regular road stages. This is it.



These bad boys are the Factor SL's. Pretty much a great all around road race wheelset. Light, aero, all the regular goodness. If this blog were a bike magazine, I'd be contractually obligated to say something like, "laterally stiff and vertically compliant" by now.

Here's the rear

And here's the front
Mmmmm. Sexy.

Both sets of Factors use all carbon bits, but the SL's are a bit lighter and are probably a bit better in extreme crosswinds. The TT's would be the choice when it's all about speed. The cool news? The TT's are on the water and on the way to us and the SL's are in the last rounds of Beta testing and should be following soon. I need to see how I can get my grubby fingers on a set of these babies to thrash, I mean ride.

These next babies are the the new Flow 5.2. wheels. The Factors are going to grab all of the headlines and the press, but the Factors are going to be the go to wheels for day in and day out racing. Grammo pulled out all of the stops when it came time to design the rim. It's spoke holes and valve hole are molded, so it makes a really stiff and durable rim. The rim also has a little groove in the tire bed, so the seam on tubulars doesn't sit up all high and crooked. I already have a set of tires stretching and ready to be mounted up on these. I can't wait for the spring road races to start.

Once again, the front

And the back.

Now all I have to do is convince the Gran Muff Tarkin I can go ride longer at lunch. You know, for testing purposes. Wink Wink Nod Nod.

Welcome To The Unreal Blog

Since everyone else jumped on the blog bandwagon a few years back, we decided it was about time to get in the game. Better late than never we always say. (We always say it because we are always late!) Watch out web, in a few short years we'll have Facebook figured out and might even try that crazy new fad, Twitter!

Anyway, a little backstory to give the innertubes a bit of our history and who we are. Unreal Cycles was started by a guy named Ben way back in the days of flannel and Pearl Jam in the grunge capital of Seattle. Ben carried the torch selling mostly hardcore urban and freeride hartails before selling the business to Lewis a few years back. Since then Unreal Cycles has shifted its focus of the products it sells a bit. While we carry a lot more roadie and fixie stuff, it's still all focused towards the hardcore rider who wants a great product.

Boy, this is starting to sound like a sales pitch. I'll make this long story short, and just get on with a brief howdy-doo on what we carry. If you are a fixie fiend, we have all of the Soma and Pake goodies your hipster heart could desire. We are constantly adding new stuff for you guys and gals. Keep your peepers peeled for some sweet new stuff like Nitto, MKS, Oury, and Sugino.

If you are a roadie, you owe it to check out the sweet wheel goodness from Grammo. They have some of the nicest wheels at the best prices out there. Whether you need a set of alloy training hoops or a full blown set of carbon race wheels, we have you covered. Plus, the prices are nice enough to leave enough coin in your pocket to be able to afford the Euro PRO white shoe covers and bib shorts. Check back in for some spy shots on their new super duper, top secret, wheels coming in late spring '09. Plus, keep your ears to the ground for some upcoming info regarding some info on frames using lugs, steel, and some Japanese handbuilt craftmanship.

The mountain side of the site is fully covered with great product. We are carrying Orange and Whyte bikes out of the UK. They both take a slightly different route in design and manufacturing to make some of the best performing and sweetest riding rigs on the market. Plus, we've picked up Arrow Racing rims and tires to meet the most picky freeriders and DHer's needs. Oh yeah, there will probably be an announcement of some sort regarding a brand or two. Perhaps something along the lines of, "who wouldn't want to be on one?" Hint, hint, wink wink.

So cheers for now. It's the weekend. You need to get out there and ride. It's what were about to do. Signing out, Tom