The Allied Able was designed for versatility. Not many bikes perform well on a wide range of the terrain. The Able is dialed for sprinting for a city limits signs and stable threading through rocks. Part of the reason you’ll feel so capable regardless of the terrain is the frame design of the Able itself.
- Geometry plays a big role. The Able chainstays are 420mm – which is why is feel so sharp on the road and when you’re flying in big gears on gravel.
- Tech is just as important. No detail on the Able is as eye-catching as its elevated drive-side chainstay. By raising the chainstay and designing the frame around a 1x chainring, it allows the Able to accept fat gravel tires. When the surface gets rough and technical, you’ll feel the difference.
Beyond frame design is your choice for setting up the bike. As versatile as the Able is, you can really alter its capability by answering a few key questions.
- What’s your gravel like? If it’s mostly packed gravel, you might use a slick 700 x 38mm tire, like the Rene Herse Barlow Pass Tire in the image above. But if your local gravel is chunkier and rocky, then we’d recommend 42mm knobbies like the Rene Herse Hurricane Ridge.
- Do you have singletrack nearby? Linking together rides by cutting through mountain bike trails is a blast. The Able can do it most capably with 42mm tires, or with 650 wheels and even fatter tires.
- A second set of wheels? We recommend this for customers who do a wide range of mixed surface riding. Ideally, you would have one set of wheels with 32mm -38mm slicks for road and packed gravel rides, then another set with 42mm knobbies for rough dirt and single track adventures.
Other choices let you go even further in fine-tuning the bike for your riding style: On the Able you can mount two bottle cages or three, frame bag(s), fenders and have the bike dialed whether you are aiming to race the Dirty Kanza or head off on a rustic bikepacking adventure.
At Mariposa, we can discuss the options with you based on the riding you do. We can help you navigate your decision, and ensure your Able is built with ideal specifications.
