Brilliant Bikes of Concours de Machines 2024 (Part One)

France’s beloved Concours de Machines event has returned for 2024 with what will likely be a reader-favorite theme: bikepacking-ready mountain bikes. Already in its eighth edition in its modern form, this year’s Concours is set amid the beautiful Pyrenees, based out of the old Escaladieu Abbey. As part of the event, bikes were tested on a demanding two-day route that included an overnight campout and summiting the area’s highest peak at 2,877 meters (9,438 feet) earlier this week.

There are 17 bikes on display this year, mostly from first-timers, which is heartening to see. In addition to being suitable for off-road, self-supported bikepacking with at least 50mm tires, the criteria for judging also specifies that bikes should ideally use low-impact manufacturing, feature original suspension solutions and clever carrying solutions, be easily transportable by train, have integrated tools built into the bike, and other considerations. You can find a full PDF of this year’s rules here. In short, bikes need to be “completely autonomous, driven by a spirit of conviviality, and favor a soft approach.” Many of them were built up with trusted and even used parts, and from what I’ve seen, the builders fully embraced these values with their own unique spins. Some took inspiration from the history of mountain biking with klunker designs and coil suspensions, and the components range all the way from XTR V-brakes to SRAM Transmission and an AXS dropper.

If I could sum up the three main trends I’ve seen this year, they would be that steel remains the favored material among independent builders, most bikes feature a non-suspension-corrected rigid fork, and the custom bags on display feature heavily across just about every bike and harness more recycled and technical materials than I’ve seen before. The show is truly a feast for the eyes, and I’ve rounded up six of my favorite bikes for this first of two posts from the show. You can dive in below, and stay tuned for more next week!

CLIPAINS – SALAMANDRElink

Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France

“Les clipains” is the French contraction of clients (customers) and copains (friends). The term sums up a joint-venture where a pilot, a shop, and a framebuilder join their forces to create an MTB for the event. It’s really a six-hands bike, build by Guillaume with the support of Pascal and paint by William from Parlons Cycles in Trelins, France, with a bi-tone, exploded paint. They nevertheless received the help of a fourth, the late Yann Thomas, builder of the legendary Salamandre fatbikes.

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The crew use the workshop and tools lent by Salamandre in Ardèches, and pursue its philosophy of self-sufficient bike that suit perfectly the year’s theme. They choose a dinglespeed design, with an old road derailleur as chain tensioner, 27.5 x 2.8″ tires, and a rigid, five-segment fork that Yann would probably have enjoyed.

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CYM VTTlink

Lazer, France

It could not be a real Concours de Machine without a bamboo or wood bike. This year, we got both. The entry from CYM is made from larch wood. Builder Yoann Massot is a carpenter in the southern Alps, and he sourced the larch from Abriès, Queyras. He constructed the frame from laminated/glued plywood, and then CNC’d it into 54 pieces that he glued together to produce the final frame.

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Building CYM bikes is an extensive progress that takes at least 80 hours in the best-case scenario without and hitches in the process or knots in the wood. It’s unquestionably labor-intensive, the material is inexpensive and takes “local” to a new level.

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PURPLE DOGlink

Rueil-Malmaison, France

Nikola is a bulgarian builder based near Paris. He created the only gravel bike on display this year, which uses proper 29er wheels/tires. The frame is striking in its proportions and use of the same 28mm diameter top tube and down tube, which are thinner than the seat tube. To resist the stress, the tubes are straight gauge. And the result looks particularly elegant. Nikolai is not shy about doing advanced metal work, having created his own couplers to split the frame and also a segmented fork with tubular head.

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But where Nikola is really pushing the technology is in the electronics department. While his bike is one of the few using and electronic transmission in the form of 11 speed GRX Di2, it’s equipped with his own “Savior,” an embedded Di2 charger that can be powered by a dynamo hub or battery pack. Along with the Savior, Nikola also developed the “Companion” head light that complies to the German StVZO automotive rules. Both products are hand made by Nikola and will be soon available (395€ for the Companion, 135€ for the Savior).

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ROUBAMlink

Lyon, France

Coming from Lyon, David Baroud took the Concours rules to heart. He challenge himself to use only used or NOS parts (like the MBK saddle), and so created a bike based on a V-brake area XTR groupset on a very tight budget. On the other hand, as a show bike, it’s also equipped with S&S couplers. Despite the appearance and components, the wheels are 27.5″ and the unorthodoxly stealthy crank is from Campagnolo.

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A specific yoke was necessary to create sufficient space for a three-ring crankset and the relatively big wheels mounted on a 130mm rear hub. He also designed a klunker-inspired bar/stem steel combo. The fenders are 3D printed by a local company named BA3D. It’s worth noting that, as seen on several other bikes this year, the luggage was custom made by Pop Pins using recycled fabrics.

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BAPTISTE PELLETANlink

Montreuil, France

Baptiste is another young builder who already has a wealth of riding experience and a well-established point of view. For him, it’s clear that short wheelbases are a thing, and he designs his own rigid MTB with 400mm chainstays and room to spare. Despite the extremely curved seat tube, he doesn’t hesitate to cut the T47 bottom bracket to gain another 7 mm, while also using a long BB with integrated bearings.

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It’s another of this year’s bikes that isn’t suspension-corrected, and it has a rather slender appearance, in part because Baptiste is a fan of the Columbus Max tubeset. While the Max series tubes aren’t available in long enough sections to be suitable for MTBs, he emulated the famous bi-ovalized tubes using Zona tapered tubes he ovalised himself, bent, and reamed to the seat post size. He also welded his own light and GPS mount from steel and sewed the bikes bags from leather, rounding a stylish approach of the dirt world.

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CYCLES ROUGE GORGElink

Liege, Belgium

The Rouge Gorge from Liège, Belgium, built a burly mountain bike using Zona and Life Columbus tubeset. Thomas Roba brazed steel tubes and presented one of the few MTBs with a classical 29er diamond geometry and dropper post at this year’s show. Still, it’s paired with a strong five-segments fork to carry water, attach bags, and affix a front fender. The stem and decaleur for the handlebar bag are also made from steel.

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All the bike’s steel is brazed but not polished, leaving the brazing visible under a coloured clear coat, as well as the Deroy brand, which is the name of Thomas’s mentor. Like most of this year bikes, it comes with a super custom set of bags also from from Belgium, sewn by C. Pouki in Liège.

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Which bike is your favorite? Let us know in the Conversation below!

Further Reading

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