Alex's Coyote

After years of owning and riding a number of road bikes from the 70s and 80s, my attention has shifted towards bicycles capable of something else, something new.

The road surface I’ve most evolved on is pavement. After my first old racing bike, I acquired a randonneur with a geometry that accommodated significantly wider tires, which opened the door to touring, trails, and the joys of riding alongside roads and far from cities. Even then though, my bike and I sometimes encountered obstacles that were unfortunately insurmountable. To get over them, I needed a bike that could. That’s how, albeit only a prototype at that point, my focus landed on the Bassi Coyote.

Despite not quite being one, I wanted my Coyote to be a mountain bike. With a SRAM and Hope drivetrain, DT Swiss wheels, parts from Title and Wolf Tooth, and Michelin enduro tires, I chose European and American brands because until now I’ve mostly been familiar with Asian component manufacturers that have near exclusivity on my main bike (Shimano, Dia Compe, Nitto, Panaracer…). For these reasons, the bike is totally novel to me. It makes the previously inaccessible ridable, and brings me happiness I can’t hide every time I get on the saddle.

Originally built with its rigid fork, it’s since been equipped with a 130mm travel suspensions fork that lets me get into the rough stuff. And despite the intent and design for 27.5” wheels, I chose to mullet it (with a 29” in the front), to improve its acceleration and capacity to get over obstacles. This setup is perfect for me, who loves fast downhills while maintaining playful and sporty nimbleness and control from the rear end of the bike. As we all know, mullet is “Business in the front, party in the back”.

To maintain the frame’s geometry, I also used an offset headset that removes a few degrees to the head tube angle, which modernises the geometry even more towards contemporary mountain bike geometry trends of slack head tubes.

That said, with its components (short stem, wide bars with a little rise, a 27.5 rear wheel, and quick rear hub engagement), it has the quick handling that I’ve always enjoyed from my other bikes. It’s reactive, steers quick, and allows me to change my position quickly and intuitively.

In short, the Coyote is my first Bassi, and even after 5 years at C&L Cycle, I don’t regret waiting this long before getting one.

Also, since I’m passionate about frame paint, I decided to personalize it myself with a unique design that matches my taste. I wanted to achieve an elegant sobriety that discretely highlighted the presence of the steel. I added the colour red here and there, in light and periodic notes, that add dynamic to the base tone.

If you’re interested in a paint job, reach out, it’s something I’m keen to share.

Photos by Troy @killiskii