Fara Cycling F|disc

A frame from a Norwaybased company for roaming or racing

A frame from a Norway-based company for roaming or racing

In July, I was on a ride that featured some jamming on gravel roads, a double helping of pastries and good conversations – a perfect summer outing. It was well matched to Fara Cycling F|disc bike I was testing. You might ask, though, isn’t that type of summer ride that all bikes are for? Sure. But they’re not always positioned that way. Some are designed for winning races. Some are designed for tackling the bumpiest surfaces you can find. Some are made specifically to carry you to the top of a mountain pass. The F|disc – it has its own vibe.

When I test bikes, I try to get beyond a company’s marketing. It’s not that I don’t believe a company’s message, but it’s my job to look at it and compare it with what I experience on the bike. With Fara’s message, I was caught a little off guard by just how straightforward it is.

Jeff Webb, from Huntsville, Ont., is the ceo of the Oslo,

Norway-based Fara. He raced bikes as a kid and young adult in the late ’80s and early ’90s. He even landed on a French team for three years. After he stopped competing at a high level, he got into the sporting-goods field. About four years ago, Webb and his partners started Fara Cycling. They wanted to sell the types of bikes they wanted to ride directly to customers. Webb also credits Rapha, the clothing company, with providing some of the inspiration for Fara.

“About four years ago, you could see a transition from pro-race-oriented bikes and kit to products that were more fashion-inspired. Cycling in general was becoming more fashion inspired,” he said. “The apparel industry had taken that to heart, but the hardgoods side had not yet responded to it. I use Rapha as category, but it could be Rapha or Maap. If you look at the rider who’s dressed in those brands, he then goes into the garage and there’s a flashy, yellow-and-green bike. It doesn’t really match. People want emotional connections with their equipment, especially something you spend that much money on.”

Webb often rides his Fara Cycling rigs in Nordmarka, a vast forested area just north of Oslo. A trip to Nordmarka features pavement as you leave the city and a lot of gravel through the woods. My perfect summer ride on the Fara F|disc was as Nordmarka as I can get leaving from my home in Toronto. During the past five months, I’ve also taken the bike to other parts of the province on main highways and back roads.

How did the bike handle? I outfitted the carbon-fibre frame with full sram Red etap axs and Zipp 303 wheels with 28-mm tubeless tires. The full rig (including pedals and bottle cages) was 7.95 kg, pretty light and easy to take up hills. I rode it in the Sea Otter Canada Gran Fondo in July, where it was as lively as the event itself. The bike was wellbalanced, cornering nicely and feeling good when I was out of the saddle or sprinting in the drops.

While Fara Cycling has a direct-toconsumer model in E.U. countries, the bikes from the Norwegain company come to Canada via Blacksmith Cycle in Toronto. That shop sorted out my Fara bike with a sram build, and it’s with regret that I’m preparing to return that far-out frame.

“People want emotional connections with their equipment.”