It may not seem like it on the surface, but according to OPEN, the company has a lot in common with Yeti Cycles. According to OPEN co-founder Andy Kessler, he and Yeti owner Chris Conroy frequently crossed paths early on in their career and they would both go on to create companies based around “bikes they wanted to ride.”
Even though one company focuses on full suspension mountain bikes and the other on all terrain gravel bikes and super light rigid mountain bikes, both have similar customer-centric business models. When you buy a Yeti, you become part of the Tribe, when you purchase an OPEN, they’re working to develop the same sense of community with events like the Crossfondue.
All of this leads up to the new Yeti-inspired OPEN U.P. painted in Yeti Turquoise. The frame is the same highly acclaimed all carbon gravel bike with aggressive geometry and clearance for 27.5 x 2.1″ tires, just with yet another color option. Priced at $3,200, the Turquoise U.P. sells for the same price as the recently updated U.P., which added flat mount brakes, and a new fork. The new color should be available in time for the holidays, if you’d like to give yourself a new ride.
