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When Ruben Torenbeek founded RAAW back in 2016, he had a clear vision for the sort of dependable, no-nonsense bikes he wanted to build. He clearly wasn’t alone in wanting a bike in that vein, because RAAW is going strong with an expanding model lineup, a bigger team, and so on.
So Ruben and I sat down to chat about all of it, including why things like carbon fiber frames and fancy details don’t necessarily equate to higher performance; his philosophy on bike design and how he’s gone about designing bikes to both ride well and be easy to live with; the expanding RAAW lineup and how it’s evolved over the years; and a whole bunch more.
TOPICS & TIMES:
Founding RAAW (2:12)
The original concept for the brand (6:36)
Bike weight & its relevance (or lack thereof) (11:03)
The V1 Madonna (14:59)
Cable routing (19:34)
Ride feel and being “in the bike” (23:53)
Launching RAAW & the initial reception (30:41)
Evolution and growth of RAAW (37:15)
The Jibb (44:05)
The Yalla! (45:38)
The Madonna V3 (47:15)
Totally agree with (pretty much) everything Ruben says!
Especially about the tall stack. 2 things going on there. You two discuss how it’s better to have a tall head tube than raising the bar in a different manner.
For almost every other bike, in the biggest sizes, head tubes are too low. I’m a bike fitter, and no customer wants to ride their enduro or trail bike with the bars 4” lower than the saddle, yet this is what you get with the stock bars on many bikes, for riders over 6’2”.
The part he only kind of goes into, is what posture you are trying to achieve (irrespective of frame/rider size). In general, I’m am in favor of a more upright posture, less hinged at the hips. For the vast majority of people, a more open hip angle is much easier to have good mobility, strength and be able to look ahead. Not surprisingly when we evolved as bipeds. Great apes would probably do very well in a more hinged position.
So, I am glad to see RAAW’s push for more upright postures in general, and taller head tubes for big sizes especially, and hope other brands follow suit.