Ritchey Outback: Getting Rolling- by Grannygear
Ritchey
Ritchey, as in Tom Ritchey, is no stranger to anyone who has been paying attention to bikes for the last couple of decades…more actually. So to see his version of a gravel bike sitting in mi casa’s el garage-o is a pretty cool thing indeed. It’s steel, of course. What else? Well Tom does offer some carbon road/cross frames in his break-away models, but the Ritchey name is synonymous with steel bikes. And in a world gone crazy for gravel/adventure/all-road/any-road bikes…this one looks to be a player with a nod towards ‘sportiness’. Let’s see what we have here…what Tom has wrought from his forge, so to speak.
From the Ritchey website:
“In the vein of all-terrain versatility, Tom Ritchey designed an adventure bike that is equally at home in the dirt as on the pavement: the Outback. The perfect tool for any ride, anywhere. The Outback features a lower bottom bracket for confident stability, yet it still is high enough to get over any road/trail furniture. This versatile bike also enjoys generous tire clearance and Ritchey Logic heat-treated, double-butted directional tubing.”
“The Outback frameset includes the new Ritchey Carbon Fiber Gravel thru-axle fork for a confident and precise front end, and it can accommodate tires up to 40mm wide. The Outback’s impressive handling is more than capable on- or off-road—in any situation. Riders seeking a bike able to effortlessly switch between fire roads, trails, tarmac, long distance mixed-terrain adventures and everything in-between will find the Outback a prime specimen for enjoying such differing and distinct disciplines of riding.”
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As I read this bit of marketing blurb off the inner web, I am sitting in my garage amongst way too many bikes and bike parts…”Velo Clutter“…and I am staring at this pretty, blue colored, steel gravel bike with the very familiar name on the down tube.
Ritchey
It always strikes me when I see them, those skinny steel tubes, but not in a bad way. Bikes used to all be made of skinny tubes, but in the carbon saturated marketplace of today, with all those huge, shaped, forms, well…it is not the norm. The lines of the new Outback are sleek and clean. Tom knows steel and I would wager his Logic tubing is a very refined set of steel sticks. The head tube is oversize but not tapered and the fork steerer remains one diameter, something that, if I had to wager, dispenses grace to the rider over rougher roads. The fork has lovely lines and blends well with the dimensions of the tubing, not looking like at all like the proverbial wart on the prom queen.
Neither brake fixing is flat mount, but rather the post type, but they are integrated well into the design. The seat post binder, built into the seat stay junction, is just soooo pretty. Thru-axles of course, front and rear with no ugly handles to remove the axles…tools required here. Less convenient, but nicer looking. There is no sign of rack mounts, fender mounts, or third bottle cage mounts, etc.
The fork looks to have a pretty low axle to crown (A/C) measurement and while tire clearance looks decent, it is not nearly as generous as many other bikes of this ilk on the market. Ritchey says a 40c tire will work, but the Speedmax 700x40s on the Zeta rims are 41mms wide and have pretty much 8mms clearance in all the close places, rear and front. If it was very dry, you could run bigger meats on there, but this seems to be a decent place to settle. The one thing that stands out to my eye with this 58cm/XL frame is what looks like a rather short stack due to the minimal length head tube and short-ish fork. We shall see how that works out as we get it set up and begin riding.
The test bike is set up with Shimano Ultegra 6800 (mechanical) with a 50/34 crank and an 11-32 cassette. I think a 50T chain ring is a bit much for most folks with a gravel bike, but until Shimano actually comes out with a better option, then it is what it is. I find it interesting that it was spec’d with a double crank at all. But then again, it’s Shimano and that means no good 1x option that works well with the drop bar shifters and road shifty bits. Sigh. Come on guys….give us a 105 based adventure bike group set for crying out loud.
Anyway, 160mm rotors on hydro brakes, some Ritchey bars, stem, seat post and saddle and there you go. I weighed it out of the shipping box at 21lbs 2oz. Not bad. My Ti Lynskey is in that same range.
We shall see how this Outback runs down the road. I have owned a Ritchey Road Logic frame and I enjoyed it very much, finding it a good option to the cheaper and heavier steel bikes such as you might find from All City or Surly, but yet quite a bit less than a full custom. At $1359.00 dollars frame/fork/headset, it is not a cheap beginning to a bike build, but I think the cost is justified for the refined product Tom typically makes. I know my Road Logic frame was right at 4.25lbs (non disc) and I have heard this is around 4.5lbs (not an official weight) so that sounds about right.
Looking at the geometry numbers, one thing that stands out to me is the 73 degree head tube angle in my frame size. Wow. Tom must like a quick handling bike (his road frame geometry is a bit on the steep side too) My road bike is only 72.75 degrees at the head tube angle. With a nominal bottom bracket drop of 70mm, I expect the Outback to be on the sporty side of handling, even with the pretty average length 437mm chain stays to keep things planted. Will it be too sporty? We shall see. I am quite curious.
So nice steel tubing, a fighting weight, great to look at, decent size tires, and what looks to be aggressive geometry. Hang on as we get outback on the Ritchey Outback.
Note- Ritchey sent over the outback bicycle for test and review at no charge to Riding Gravel and we were not paid nor bribed for this review. We strive to give our honest thoughts and opinions throughout.
About The Author: Grannygear hails from SoCal and spent most of his cycling days as a mountain biker from the formative years of mountain biking all the way up to the present day. His day job is in the tech sector, but he has spent time writing about off road 4X4’s, 29″ mountain bikes, and cycling in general. Grannygear and Guitar Ted have worked off and on together since 2009 after a chance meeting at Interbike. With gravel cycling on the rise, Grannygear has been exploring how this genre’ works in SoCal and now does guest pieces for RidingGravel.com in his spare time.
…. “The perfect tool for any ride, anywhere.”
Not without rack or fender mounts, and no 3rd bottle cage it ain’t. I imagine the ride is typical Ritchey awsome, but holy hell did they really miss out.
Ted I know it’s probably not up to you but I’m really interested in a review by you of the new all city gorilla monsoon. It seems to tick all my boxes.
@Kenny Cyphers- You got that right- It isn’t totally up to me, but that said, I can ask. Ultimately it’s up to them. Then there can always be folks like yourself asking them (All City) to consider it as well.
Ticks all your boxes, eh? Most of mine as well……..
I for one am very intrigued by this rig for sure. Each gravelist desires a few things others don’t. Personally here in the midwest, I want a rig that is light, traditional in geometry to that of my road bike, with just fat tyres (38+mm) that can be accomdated. That being, yes, what I am looking for is longer reach than most gravel rigs and shorter stack, and that is what this Ritchey outback seems to deliver. Weight…not so much on the outback. But if the geometry is spot on, can fit the larger tyres, I think I’m going to jump on one soon. The kicker is Ritchey probably is speaking to a small group of gravel riders frankly. Most like the carbon eye candy, and frankly the weight as well, other little things, which I understand. Most make a big deal over bb heights and forget about other aspects of geometry, and for me, this outback really is intriguing to me in that. That partly is what makes this niche hard for manufacturers to figure it out. Each of us have a flavor to satisfy, mine is a bit tart, others maybe salty, still yet others much sweeter….overall, some will like it, like me, some won’t
Thats the first picture of the underside of the bottom bracket and driveside chainstay I’ve seen, is it asymmetrical? looks like it. Can you please confirm or deny 650b wtb byways or elwoods in there, ive been wondering and haven’t found an answer.
@Jason…yes, it is quite assymmetrical. I fitted some Byways in there and they are very much out of the ‘pocket’ of the chainstays. They do fit but with maybe 5mms of clearance. It would be OK for road touring I guess, but nothing with any mud possibilities. The front had tons of room.
Pics will be in the article, most likely.
gg
@souleur….brother, I think you have found your rig. Looking at your priorities, and as I am in the middle of writing the review, and having just ridden it again last night on one of my Strava ITT segments, and having yet another PR…I would say don’t let the weight bother you unless you are truly podium material and if you are, then you already know that. It’s a peach, this bike, but yes, I agree it is a bit niche within the current genre.
@Jason…I will look at that more closely and let you know. I also plan on slipping in some WTB Byways (or an equiv.) to see what is up. Ritchey says it was not designed for 650b but they did not say not to either, and with only 70mm of BB drop, that helps a bit.
gg
Thanks man!! whats your thoughts on the speedmax 40s??? is it the new tubeless version?? and yes, I am all over it, prob in a few months. Just bought the road logic and whittled her down to 17.4lb, so……I bet there is room on this baby too to trim
@souleur…I am not in front of the bike now, but I had assumed the tires were tubeless ready. I like them, but I am not in awe either. I would just as soon have something like the Gravel King SK on it although sizing might be iffy. That said, I would not ‘kick them out of bed for eating crackers’ either.
The wheels on it have been crackin’ good though.
My Ritchey road bike was 18lbs with pedals and very little carbon…actually no carbon at all come to think of it. That was with SRAM Rival 10spd and decent wheels. My custom steel bike was 17.5 pounds with pedals and SRAM Force with better wheels (no carbon). Steel does not have to be heavy, but once you go disc the weight creep begins.
My new carbon road bike, a disc brake Orbea Avant, is actually heavier than my rim brake steel bikes were, but it is also faster so far according to STRAVA. Bigger tires too. Not as nice a ride though, but also a better ride in many ways.
Hard to have it all.
gg
sweet dude, thanks!!
+1 on Shimano being behind the curve for these types of bikes. Holy heck! I love their stuff and I’ve been a loyal customer for decades but that may change if they don’t start offering stuff that’s more appropriate for the demands.
What’s the problem with two chainrings?
Hi there, How tall are you @grannygear? My local shop puts me between the L and XL, I’d just like to hear from someone who’s ridden the Outback. Thanks : )