BikeTiresDirect, 3T, and Watt Wagon have partnered to give away a brand new 3T Exploro Ultra — in the oh-so-tasty coffee colorway — fully kitted out with SRAM AXS components!
Throw your hat in the ring for a chance to be the lucky grand prize winner who walks away with this ultra-capable gravel steed. In addition to the grand prize, nine other winners will receive a $50 BTD gift certificate. The deadline for entering is Sept. 2, 2024, and winners will be contacted that week. The contest is open to US & Canada only this time around, apologies to our friends in other countries!
The Grand Prize 3T Exploro Ultra
Get to the worst roads fast with the aero frame & road-inspired riding position of the 3T Exploro Ultra Gravel Bike. Many riders these days love riding in rough terrain but live in a more urban jungle. So you need a bike that’s fast on the road and capable off-road. Keep your grip with massive tires and go for a standard round, dropper, or suspension post inside the Ultra’s aero seat tube. Add a few packs and the Ultra will be ready for epic overnight adventures.
The Ultra is 3T’s most extreme bike. Starting with 55-61mm wide 650b tires, they then designed the whole aero package around those to keep the on-road speed high. If you ride on less extreme terrain, you can also fit 700c tires up to 45mm WAM (Width As Measured).
The Ultra was 3T’s most difficult aerodynamic challenge to date: starting with massive 55-61mm tires and then making the bike aero. There’s nothing to be done about the tires, they’re big and the knobs don’t help. What can be done is to take the airflow mess that comes off the front wheel and try to catch and redirect it. That’s why you will see the 60mm wide downtube placed closely behind the front wheel, going even wider as it gets closer to the bottom bracket.
Blending this into the headtube with an off-center aero profile along with loads of other tricks gives you a bike that feels so much faster than your brain can compute. And thanks to the aggressive riding position, the aerodynamics, the bottom bracket stiffness, and the narrow Q-factor, the Ultra actually feels 100% like a road bike when you want to go fast, even when muddy.
Does this sound like a bike you need to have? Maybe you just want it. What are you waiting for?
ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
More about the partners
BTD has been selling 3T bikes and sponsoring Watt Wagon (aka Cynthia Carson) for nearly a year now, and the company is looking forward to what the years ahead hold. In part, this giveaway is a celebration of their approaching anniversary with both parties. For those who might not be familiar, here’s a brief introduction to everyone involved:
BikeTiresDirect
BikeTiresDirect is an online retailer based out of Portland, Oregon, and home to the world’s best selection of bicycle tires, plus tons of bikes, frames, components, and other cycling gear.
They have humble roots as a cycling club selling excess tires on eBay back in 2002, and have evolved over the past 20+ years to not only have one of the very best selections of tires in the US, but an excellent selection of products across all cycling-related categories.
The BTD customer service team is at the heart of their business. With decades of bike shop sales and mechanic experience, the team is made of diehard cyclists with a knack for connecting customers to exactly the right product. Additionally, everyone on staff, across all departments, believes in bicycles as a force for good in the world.
3T Bikes
3T makes absolutely stunning bicycles. The brand, formerly known as Tecno Tubo Torino, got its start as a premier handlebar manufacturer in Italy in 1961. The lightweight, durable, and aesthetically pleasing components gained popularity among Italian professional riders before sweeping across the peloton, and before long 3T was developing stems, forks, and other bicycle components. A landmark success was achieved with the setting of the hour record in 1984 on their “Aerodinamica” bars. Their focus on research and development with continuing innovation led them into lighter and stronger steels, aluminum alloys, and eventually carbon fiber.
The modern 3T was born in 2015 with the arrival of Cervelo co-founder Gerard Vroomen as co-owner and head of design. And in 2016 they debuted their first bike, the Exploro, a carbon gravel bike designed not only to be as aerodynamic as possible, but also rugged and capable of taking its rider anywhere.
Today the Exploro and its variants are the heart of 3T’s lineup, offering uncompromising designs for the way you gravel.
Cynthia Carson / Watt Waggon
Cynthia Carson is an Ultra Endurance Cyclist whose journey into the world of Ultra Cycling began in 2021 with first place at Rockstar Gravel 250 followed by a fourth place at Unbound XL. Since then, Cynthia has found herself in the top step at some of the biggest ultras in the world including Unbound XL, Badlands, Across Andes, Atlas Mountain Race, GranGuanche Gravel, Transcordilleras, and Memory Bike Adventure.
BTD supports Cynthia’s race season with wearable drivetrain components like chains, cassettes, rotors, brake pads and more.
You can check out BTD at biketiresdirect.com, follow them on Instagram @biketiresdirect, and subscribe to the BTD YouTube channel. Stay in the know as Cynthia travels the world racing ultras at WattWagon.cc, subscribe to Watt Wagon on YouTube, and follow along @watt_wagon on Instagram. See the latest and greatest from 3T over on their website 3T.bike, or @3tbike on Instagram.
