A small company from Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, was one of the first to start and/or promote many of the current bike trends: 29ers, gravel bikes, bikepacking. Maybe it's because the Minnesota River with its Wildlife Refuge is right on their doorstep. And the staff are all "bike people". In any case, the Vaya off-road racer from Salsa, with its durable, high-quality titanium frame, is a nimble piece of sports equipment for (almost) any terrain.
In contrast to a high-bred racing bike, the Vaya only really blossoms when the tarmac ends. Its lightweight 28-inch wheels with welded rims are robust, the Surly tyres (a sister brand with a similar profile) easily take on, for example, a Racing Ralph from Schwalbe: they roll easily and smoothly on tarmac, but grip firmly on loose surfaces and bring horse and rider safely over gravel roads and dirt tracks. The lightweight carbon fork with thru-axle skilfully guides the front wheel with lateral stiffness and slight flex comfort, and offers the mechanical discs sufficient braking stiffness. This is our only point of criticism: good hydraulic brakes would require less maintenance. With mechanical disc brakes, you have to keep an eye on the wear and tear of the brake cables, especially as you'll occasionally have to take them off-road and get them dirty.
The pleasantly shaped handlebars of the Vaya are narrower at the top for aerodynamic reasons and wider at the bottom in the grip area. This keeps the front wheel well under control even in difficult situations. The SRAM derailleur works extra-crisp, absolutely on a par with a top-class Shimano and with MTB-like gradation. You have to get used to the DoubleTap shifters: A quick flick of the single lever on each side shifts to smaller sprockets, while a deep flick shifts to larger sprockets. The Avid disc brakes, also from SRAM, decelerate flawlessly. The Vaya shines with nimble acceleration, a balanced riding position and steering, and problem-free riding characteristics on and off the tarmac.
Conclusion: The masterminds at Salsa mix borrowings from racing bikes, cross bikes and MTBs to create a lightweight, competent and sporty road and off-road racer. With frame bags, the bike is ideal for bikepacking adventures from the front door. Its titanium frame and carbon fork provide high stability and a comfortable ride at a low weight. A classy vehicle on all trails.
