Summer Recap and Bike Packing Trip

Despite the world being turned upside down by Covid-19 the summer at New Hope Bikes has looked pretty normal. We had a great group of summer staff supported by the federal governments Canada Summer Jobs program and the provinces Summer Experience Program. We were able to hire three university students and one high school student for 8 weeks of the summer, all of whom were essential to the organizations success during the busiest summer ever!

Two of the students spent their time at Gage Park at the Pump Track staffing our Ontario Trillium Foundation sponsored bike lending program. Staff lent out bikes, completed basic repairs and fit helmets at the pump track. This program was a huge success with 316 bike sign outs, 201 basic repairs, and they counted 991 track users during their 8 weeks staffing the program. , and the other worked in the shop to keep our busy repair queue under control.

To cap off the summer, our staff team and a few friends took an overnight bike packing trip to Rockwood Conservation Area (just east of Guelph). The route was great, there was a grocery store nearby, swimming at the park and everyone got to tryout their bike packing set ups. Some opted for the traditional rack and pannier set ups while others opted for the newer style frame bags and ultralight camping options.

The Marin Nicasio

Did you know we sell new bikes? Well we do!

We realize that our used bike inventory doesn’t always have what people are looking for. We also appreciate that there’s lots of great bike shops that you can go to for a new bike in #HamOnt.

We became an authorized Marin Dealer in 2018 and this relationship has helped us source nearly 100 high quality bikes for our programs and also allows us to fill some gaps in our storefront, primarily in the hybrid and gravel bike segment.

The thing about hybrid bikes is that everyone wants one, and once they’ve got one their not keen to give it up for donation. For most people riding around the city, a hybrid bike with medium width tires, a wide range of gears and a comfortable riding position is a bike they’ll ride for a decade or more. People hold onto hybrid bikes because they just work great as all-round do it all bikes! A hybrid is great for rail trails, commuting, bike paths and fitness riding.

All of our used bikes that we sell through our storefront come in as donations. We don’t buy any bikes, or offer consignment services. This means we receive a couple dozen hybrid bikes per year through donation, but the demand far outweighs the supply.

Enter Marin Bikes.

Marin offers great off-road and beyond-road bike options at really reasonable, maybe even the best price points that you can find. So if you’re going to spend $500 or more on a bike from a box store, come see us first because we guarantee you’ll get better service and a properly assembled, safety checked and warrantied bike. Box stores also like to offer their poor quality bikes at massive discounts like 50% off a bike that was originally $900! In reality the discount price is probably much closer to the real value of that bike.

Gravel Bikes

Gravel bikes have been a recent trend in the bike market. They are essentially the road bike version of a hybrid. Where most proper hybrids take controls and handlebars from mountain bikes, a gravel bike takes road bike controls and adds a wider hybrid type tire. This makes for a go anywhere road bike, that’s great for rail trails, gravel back roads, pavement and cycle touring. The larger tires smooth out the bumps better than skinny tire road bikes but still roll well on smooth pavement.

The Nicasio - Jack’s Take

It’s natural to want to get off the beaten path and explore with this steel frame go-anywhere bike

Marin’s price point entry into the Gravel Bike market has about the best component spec and build quality that you can find across any of the bike brands. The steel frame makes for a more comfortable ride than aluminum, but still weighs in around 28lbs. With the sun shining on a warmer than usual March day it was time to get some dirt on the tires of one of our Nicasio bikes.

In the saddle, the bike feels nimble and surefooted, able to quickly flick around road hazards and pot holes but stable enough to really settle in and spin with no need to pay a second thought to holding your line.

The Nicasio sails over unmaintained asphalt, gravel, and other assorted rough stuff with a practiced ease and doesn’t feel at all sluggish while whipping down the road to wherever you’re going. On the bike, your body is at a comfortable angle, you don’t feel doubled over on yourself like you’re competing the Tour de France nor do you feel like a vertical wall, catching every slight gust of breeze that happens along. It feels built for long days in the saddle, and the plethora of rack and fender mounts (including some thoughtful mid-blade fork eyelets and a study pair just below the seatpost collar) attest to this.

The Nicasio is practically begging to turn down that overgrown side trail and get into some trouble, or at least it will be after you replace the stock tires. It comes specced with 30mm Schwable Spicers which feel a bit anemic considering the way this bike begs to be ridden. We replaced our demo bike with 40mm Donnelly Strada USH tires and they really opened up the possibilities of this bike. We’d recommend 35mm tires with knobs if you intend to be getting into the mud, and 40mm slicks if you’ll be spending most of your time on drier surfaces. Overall the Nicasio is quite capable, very close to a “do-it-all” kind of bike. It’d be well suited as a fast and fun commuter, a dedicated gravel bike, a fully loaded tourer, or a general purpose fitness bike. It’ll certainly make you smile every time you throw your leg over it.