Bikes of Doom 2025

jason lytle

Age: 56

Cap number: 111

Location: Montrose California USA

Bike: IBIS DV9 that is the color of oatmeal. For this event....soggy oatmeal.

Key items of kit: Mix of bags by Alpkit,Cyclite,Revelate,Ride Forward and Evoc. Dynamo hub light/usb charging set up,Profile Designs "Aero" bars mounted onto some kind of carbon flat bar. Ergon Sport gel for the saddle and their GP1 grips as well. Vittoria Mezcals (2.25 in front and 2.1 in rear.) A sleep kit that somehow weighs less than 320 grams A big bag of (suspicious looking) Tailwind,date syrup and a bunch of Payday bars. Inevitable low points will be helped out by a 26 hour /380 song music playlist of my favorite music set to random shuffle.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Tyler Higgins

Age: 34

Location: Knoxville, TN

Bike: State Bicycle 4130 All-Road

Key items of kit: Coros Dura for line tracing capabilities, Oveja Negra bags for snackies, Knog lights for beams.

Frame type: Gravel

Frame material: Steel

Wheel size: 650b (27.5")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Kevin Kruse

Age: 27

Location: Golden CO

Bike: THE BIKE: I’m racing on a Yeti ASR. A simple build with SRAM mechanical shifting and a 30t oval chainring. The bike has Rockshox suspension including a handlebar lockout and alloy DT Swiss wheels rolling on 2.35 Mezcals.

Key items of kit: BAGS: There is a smorgasbord of bags on this bike. The frame bag is custom and fits perfect. The Thule rack is a random find off Facebook marketplace and it actually works really well on the fork. An Ortlieb saddle bag and a long Tailfin bag up top complete the set up.

GEAR HIGHLIGHTS: I’m stoked to ride a full sus bike that weighs less than most hardtails so I can enjoy the fun singletrack on this route. Shout out to the Yeti crew for making such a versatile bike and to AAron for making the frame bag that ties it all together.

Frame type: MTB - Full Suspension

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Randy Windle

Age: 46

Location: Hot Springs, AR

Bike: BIKE: I’ll be racing the Doom course on my Buena Onda Ti hardtail paired with a Cane Creek Helm coil fork up front. Running an Oddity Razorbar along with 2.4” Schwable Nobby Nic’s mounted on Enve wheels. 32 x 20 SS gearing.

Key items of kit: BAGS: Full length top tube bag, 3/4 frame bag and front roll were all made by Zach at South City Stitchworks out of St. Louis, MO.
GEAR HIGHLIGHTS: Full sleep kit in the front roll consisting of bivy, sleeping bag, and Thermarest sleeping pad all mounted to a Goodday Spacer-Cradle. A Sinewave Beacon headlight powered by a Son dynamo hub and external battery pack will help light the way.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Zachary Loudon

Age: 35

Location: Russellville, AR

Bike: 2021 Salsa Cutthroat, Bontrager Line Elite wheels with SON dynamo. SRAM gx mechanical 10/52 with a 28t front oval. Rockshox SID brain fork. Continental Race Kings and Aeroe Rear Rack BAGS: Aero, front roll, top tube and frame bag are all custom from Zach at South city Stitchworks. Special thanks to Zach for putting on my patches. They remind me what’s most important in my life. The rear bag is a ride forward designs bag by Jay Petervary

Key items of kit: Sinewave front and rear lights. rogue panda harness up front. Holds my clothes and spare kit. Aero bag has my rain gear. Rear bag has Six Moons lunar solo tent with big Agnes bag and Nemo Tensor pad. Fram bag has food and electronics. Trying to travel lighter.

Frame type: Gravel

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Jack Davidson

Age: 54

Cap number: 666

Location: Fort Myers, FL and Oak Park, IL

Bike: 2021 Santa Cruz Highball hardtail with 30t x 52/10 gears.

Key items of kit: Tailfin Aeropack, Garmin 1040, Outbound Lights, Infinity Seat, DT Swiss Three Decades hubs with We Are One hoops, RaceKing/CrossKing tires.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Jesse Smith

Age: 30

Location: Columbus Indiana

Bike: 2025 Specialized Epic World Cup

Key items of kit: Carrying an SidLuxe shock in my bag to allow for the Flight attendant fork to operate. Increased fork travel to 120mm Custom South City Stitchworks Bag Specialized Control World Cup wheels Wireless blips on the aero bars

Frame type: MTB - Full Suspension

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Alex Kowalski

Age: 31

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas (USA)

Bike: This is my second year in a row tackling DOOM on my Black Sheep Hardtail. We will be rolling on Conti Cross Kings laced onto Nox Teocali rims with BERD spokes around Industry 9 hubs. SS always. 30x19 ratio. I'll be running my well loved Dispersed frame bag and full top tube bag. These have been through it over the years, and are now donning a healthy patina.

Key items of kit: Slapped a Botched Bikes bottle cage adapter on the downtube for the ability to run two water bottles on the downtube with a full frame bag in use. Very stoked on the look and burliness of the adapter. Recently adopted a Thomson dropper post, and I've been super pleased with the fun gains!

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Nick Gilbert

Age: 29

Location: Boulder, CO

Bike: I’ll be riding my Surly Krampus hardtail, set up single speed (32x21t), with 150mm of travel up front, rolling on 29x2.6" rubber. The Tumbleweed Persuader bars: 840mm wide, 50mm of rise and 30deg backsweep keeps me pretty upright and comfortable on big days out. I've got a nalgene bottle cage on the down tube and some King Cage universal support bolts enable me to mount a bottle cage on the boss-less seat tube.

Key items of kit: The Transit saddle bag holds my sleep kit (bivy, quilt and sleeping pad). The Oveja Negra Super Wedgie (half frame bag) fits my repair kit and snacks, with extra clothes, food, and electronics going in my Swift Industries Zeitgeist up front. I'm most excited about my new bike computer, the Coros Dura, with its fabled long battery life. No more recharging my little wahoo every night on multi-day rides. I also love my Spurcycle bell and I'm hoping all the dogs on route will too :)

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Steel

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Shannon Sanders

Age: 54

Location: North Little Rock, AR

Bike: Esker Hayduke Ti with AXS shifty bits.

Key items of kit: Full length top tube bag and feedbags both from Southcity Stitchworks. Swift Bandito bar bag. Swift seatpack could get switched to the waterproof Tailfin Aeropack given the excessive rain in the forecast.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Katherine Anderson

Age: 50

Location: Tulsa, OK

Bike: Bike- My little pony “Dewdrop Dazzle”is a standard 2025 Salsa Cutthroat SRAM Rival GX AXS trans build; 1x12 drivetrain with a 34T chainring and 10-52 cassette.  She sits on 29 x 2.4” Maaxis Rekon tires with cushcore liner; DT Swiss wheels. Big thanks to the crew at Bicycles of Tulsa for getting her ready!

Key items of kit: Bags- beautiful custom full frame and top tube bag from Zach at South City Stitchworks.  Apidura 7L saddle bag, USWE hydration pack and Revelate feed bags for carrying up to 3L.  Katadyn 1 L water filter and Anker powerbank to manage long resupply points. Highlights- custom message board noting enduring climbs and waist high creek crossings at night.

Frame type: Gravel

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Jesse Turner

Age: 31

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas (USA)

Bike: I'll be riding a custom Slow Southern Steel (sss.bike) Warhorn that I made. For Despair I've set it up with a 28 tooth chainring to help me out on the climbs and Maxxis Dissector/Rekon Race tires for ripping the single track. This bike also features custom steel handlebars, homemade computer mount, SQlabs Inner and Cane Creek outer bar ends, Helm 130 fork, Wolftooth seatpost, Profile cranks and hubs laced to Reserve alloy rims. Framebags by Buckhorn, handmade I Love Misery hydration pack and homemade drybag harness for my sleep kit on the handlebars.

Key items of kit: My favorite piece of kit right now is the I Love Misery hydration pack, it was made custom for me and has lots of extra storage for layers and items I'd like to keep on my person.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Steel

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Zeno Molteni

Age: 43

Cap number: 666

Location: Arlington Heights, IL

Bike: Litespeed pinhoti iii

Key items of kit: Power locks, power mirrors, AM/Radio with cassette player, rear view camera, radar detector with dog collision warning. All backed be a 5 year extended warranty

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Jack Peck

Age: 32

Cap number: 69

Location: Palatine, IL, USA

Bike: I’m riding the Ritchey Ultra hardtail with 50cm Beacon drop bars. It’s a mix of SRAM AXS components with a Fox 34 fork and matching 210mm Kashima coated dropper. Rolling on Enve wheels with i9 Hydra hubs and Thunder Burt 2.35” tires.

Key items of kit: Staying simple with two custom Assbags - a local Chicago startup. Using the Long Assbag on the top tube and the Full Assbag inside the frame.

I’ve got the Exposure Six-Pack light to turn night into day and a Zenith on the helmet for more lumens on the single track sections. I’ll be kitted out with Assos bibs and jersey and an emergency blanket in case I need a rest.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Steel

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Nick Elliott

Age: 36

Location: Minneapolis MN

Bike: Salsa Cutthroat

Key items of kit: Son Dynamo Hub Sinewave Beacon V.2 Redshift seatpost & Stem

Frame type: Hardtail - Fully Rigid

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Jacob Waterman

Age: 32

Location: Springfield, Missouri

Bike: Mosaic GT-X

Key items of kit: Dispersed Bikepacking bags and Outbound Lighting headlight

Frame type: Gravel

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: Yes

Jeremy Hornberger

Age: 40

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas

Bike: 2023 Stumpjumper Evo Expert RS with 160/150 suspension travel. I figured with all the singletrack, I needed something with suspension and this was my only bike with it! The drivetrain is a SRAM Eagle groupset with 30T chainring. After doing a test overnighter, 30T seems to be just right for this route. I upgraded the rear wheel to a Reserve 29″ carbon wheel, the front is factory Roval 29″. I have the Cane Creek bar ends for extra hand positions.

Key items of kit: For the saddle bag, I’m running an Ortlieb. For the top tube I got a Rhinowalk extra long bag holding all my food. The Rockbros wedge bag fits perfectly in the frame, it is holding a battery, extra light, and charging cables. Up front is another Rhinowalk product, the handlebar cradle. Using a light Sea to Summit bag to hold my sleeping kit and some other random stuff.

Frame type: MTB - Full Suspension

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Jonathan Vota

Age: 43

Location: Coal City, IL

Bike: Niner One 9 RDO

Key items of kit: BIKE: I'm riding Ugly Duckling v3.0, a Niner One 9 RDO hardtail that's been with me through many adventures over the last ten years. SRAM Eagle XO1 with 28x10-50 gearing, ENVE Mountain Fork, Redshift Seatpost, ISM Saddle, SON Dynamo front hub, and Teravail Sparwood 2.2s. BAGS: Revelate Designs Mag-Tank, Jerrycan, Joey, 2x Feedbags, and a Spinelock GEAR HIGHLIGHTS: CrankTank, Nemo XL sleeping pad, RAB Neutrino 200 sleeping bag, aero bars on 70mm risers because my wrists are naughty, emergency catamaran hull deployment for torrential flooding.

Frame type: Hardtail - Fully Rigid

Frame material: Carbon

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No

Joshua Shouse

Age: 33

Location: Louisville KY

Bike: 2023 Revel El Jefe

Key items of kit: I’ll be riding my 2023 Revel El Jefe, X01 12 speed running a 30T oval chain ring, 120mm SID Ultimate fork, Ergon GP3 grips, bar taped handle bars, Crankbros Dropper post. Tires anre currently Aspen ST (but may swap out last minute for Vittoria Peyote XC or something more puncture resistant).

Bag set up will be a Tailfin Aero rack (aluminum), Revelate frame bag, Apidura Handbar bag, Apidura food pouch bag, Cedaro top tube bag and a Apidura downtube bag with tools, tube etc.. I have two tail fit cargo cages on the fork that will be used for my Grayle water filter bottle and spare water bottle.

Stoked to be bringing a Durston X-Mid 2 tent for this event. Decided on a 30T oval chainring due to the amount of vertical, spin to win as they say. Bringing along Pretty Great Instant coffee for early mornings and mid day breaks. Also first event using the Coros Dura and looking forward to putting it through the paces.

Frame type: Hardtail - Front Suspension

Frame material: Titanium

Wheel size: 700c (29")

Tyre width: 50mm+

Electronic shifting: No