So while Russ was away shooting (being shot?) for a documentary on Shand this weekend, I thought I’d head away for a couple of days and put the Stoater through it’s paces as a loaded camping bike.

When designing the Stoater, it was always the intention that this would be a bike that could do almost anything. From racing ‘cross to multiweek tours with everything in between, centuries, sportives and commuting.

Of course I’m biased, but I had a real blast riding the bike this weekend. It’s always weird when loading up a bike with camping gear as it tends to dull everything down a bit but even with camping gear, cooking gear and (nearly) enough gear to keep me warm on a very chilly night, the bike still felt really light and on a very long descent down into Comrie on some appalling roads, the Stoater felt really stable.