Gravel is the new black. Anyone who’s had a look around the woods and fields of Germany and followed cycling media in recent years can’t help but get this impression. The industry has declared the gravel bike to be a jack-of-all-trades: somehow suitable for everything, yet not really designed for anything in particular, and often expensive enough to require a serious explanation to your bank balance. At the same time, mountain bikes haven’t exactly got any cheaper. Full-suspension trail bikes with decent spec tend to settle in the four- to five-figure range, and even decent hardtails quickly cost more than you can recommend to a beginner without feeling guilty.
This is exactly where the Marin Bobcat Trail comes in. The US brand is launching a hardtail that costs a modest 799 euros, is well-equipped – and at the same time looks as though someone has let a London Underground shaft loose on the frame.
A bike that catches the eye before you even touch it
The Bobcat Trail in the artistic ‘Thumbs Edition’ is a collaboration with the London-based street artist Thumbs. Bold lines, garish colours, that chaotic energy that you either love straight away or consistently ignore. Thumbs has worked with Virgin Galactic, Xbox, Looney Tunes, Deadmau5 and Blink-182. Now he’s painted a bike frame – and, in this context, that’s not so far-fetched after all.
What makes the project interesting is that Thumbs isn’t just a name they’ve bought to lend credibility to their marketing. He actually grew up riding BMX, spent years working in a skate and bike shop in West London, and – as you might have guessed – sold Marin bikes there, amongst other things. So the collaboration has a certain biographical logic to it that goes beyond the usual influencer deal.
Technical specifications at a glance
- Frame: 6061 aluminium, trail geometry, internal cable routing
- Suspension fork: SR Suntour XCM, 120 mm travel
- Circuit: MicroSHIFT Advent, 9-speed, with clutch rear derailleur
- Brakes: Tektro hydraulic disc brakes, front and rear
- Wheels: 27.5 inches (XS, S, M) and 29 inches (M, L, XL)
- Design: Entirely hand-drawn by Thumbs; colourway in electric yellow and cobalt blue, based on a vintage Marin design from 1990; hidden Easter eggs throughout the frame
- Price: 799 euros
The Artist Edition runs on the same tried-and-tested setup as the standard Bobcat Trail 3 – a decent entry-level hardtail package that offers good value for money. And the special paint finish comes at no extra cost.
Mountain biking for everyone
Marin has designed the Bobcat Trail from the ground up as a “proper trail bike” for those on a tight budget. The Artist Edition carries on exactly that ethos, but with a bit more personality in the paintwork. The fact that Thumbs has always focused on accessibility in his own work – he started out making stickers because everyone can afford them – fits almost too well to be a coincidence.
The design itself is anything but a quick branding overlay. Before putting pen to paper, Thumbs delved into Marin’s archives and found a colour palette that feels like a tribute: The electric shades of yellow and cobalt blue reference a Marin colourway from 1990. Chequered flags on the head tube allude to Marin’s role as one of the pioneers of mountain biking. Redwood trees wrap around the bottom bracket as a tribute to Marin County, California – where the brand was founded and where mountain biking as a sport has its origins. Hidden on the seat tube is an outline of the local mountain silhouette for anyone who looks closely enough.
And then there are the ‘hidden images’. These are the artist’s personal references to music culture, the tattoo scene and urban art, scattered throughout the frame. Where exactly? That’s not going to be revealed.
Florentin Vesenbeckh
Editor CvD