Soma Double Cross Disc 2016

The multi-duty Double Cross Disc gets a slight makeover this year going from the stealthy gray decals on gloss black paint to something -- that's also black and --- let's just say 50% less stealthy.  As we were taking the location photos on the streets of SF and in the lovely Presidio, we had more than a couple of people coming up to tell us "that's a good looking bike". Hopefully some of you will feel the same. Click on photos for closer viewing.

The Double Cross Disc can handle tires up to 700 x 42c. (38c if you want to run fenders).
The optional fork is compatible with low rider pannier racks.

The Double Cross Disc is sold as a frame set and you or your bike shop can build it to suit your style and
type of riding. This build has SRAM Apex shifters and derailleurs, a Sugino 50-34t crankset, 11-32t cassette, 
Avid BB-7 mechanical disc brakes. and Soma Cazadero tires. An ideal set up if your commute connects with a
few sections of dirt or gravel paths

Copper finished Soma Citoyen Du Monde pedals with MKS stainless clips -- look right at home on this
frame and with the copper railed Cardiff Mercia saddle.

Like the rest of our line, the Double Cross Disc is constructed from Tange Prestige double butted heat-treated CrMo steel.

Like reviews? Here's Max's long term review of his Double Cross Disc. (Disclosure: Max did purchase this frame at a discount, but we did not pay him cash for a positive review.)

Using Strava to Review a Soma Smoothie

Taken at the Upstate Forever Preservation Ride (South Carolina). Built by Boyd Cycles.

Brian of the Wunschreiten blog recently picked up a Smoothie. See what he thinks of it coming off an aluminum frame/carbon fork set-up after 3 years. He used his Strava to test its climbing and general speed abilities vs. his old ride and had no problem finding some distressed tarmac to see if the Smoothie lived up to its name. Check it out.

If you don't have the attention span to click over there, here's what he said to us via Facebook:

"After my first few rides, including a couple of long rides, I can say that this bike completely lives up to its name. Its so smooth that I doubt that my old aluminum bike is going to get many more miles on it."

The Soma Smoothie is our most responsive road frame. It is available in Slick Black or Pearl White. A lugged steel or carbon fork are available as options. It is made of heat treated Tange Prestige double butted CrMo steel.

Soma ES Complete Bike

If you follow Soma on Twitter or Facebook you may have heard that we just received our first batch of complete bikes. This is somthing we've been working towards for a long time, so we're very happy to say they're finally in stock and available to order. If you live in the Bay Area, you'll be able to check them out at one of our local dealers such as American Cyclery or A Bicycle Odyssey. If you're somewhere else they'll be available through a few of our distributors via your local bike shop.

We only ordered a small run for this first batch, so if you're interested in getting one for yourself be sure to let your dealer know so they can get one on order before we run out. The next run probably won't come until sometime this summer. So, now that we've got that business out of the way, here's what you really wanted to see.

When we set about designing our complete bike line we really wanted to make the same kind of bikes we would build for ourselves, not a dumbed down, generic, "stock bike", built to hit a price point.

We worked with our suppliers to make sure we could use as many of our favorite parts as possible. That means Soma bars, stem, seatpost, saddles, IRD long reach brakes, Sugino Alpina Cranks, Tange sealed bearing headset and BB, and sealed bearing Suzue wheels.

We like our bikes to look classic, so we went for mostly high polished parts, which provide a nice contrast to the black Sram Apex kit. The IRD B57 dual pivot calipers give you ample clearance for fenders with the 28c Kenda Kwick Tendril tires. Starting this year, the ES fork has an additional 2 eyelets in front of the fork dropouts for mounting a front rack such as the Soma Mini Alloy or the new Champs Elysees stainless racks.

These bikes are set up to provide a good starting point that's not too aggressive until you get a chance to put some miles on the bike and or talk to a bike fitter. For the mechanics out there, the headsets come pre installed, with plenty of spacers so you can get the bikes put together without too much headache. Of course you can always trim the steer tubes later if you want. What you see in the pictures is exactly how the bike looks right out of the box. Just install the bars, front wheel, and seatpost and the bike is ready to go up in the stand for adjustment.

These Suzue wheelsets really bring the builds together. Sealed high flange hubs, with low profile graphics that don't scream "I'm a racer wannabe". High polish, machined rims, without annoying decals for you to peel off. They'll be available aftermarket later this year from what I hear.

Over all, we think these are some of the all around best complete bikes around, and they ride as nice as they look. In addition to the ES, we're also offering the Saga, Double Cross Disc, and the Buena Vista (with 650b wheels!). They're all in stock now, and we should have more pictures as soon as we get them built up. 

2014 is shaping up to be a great year for Soma, and we hope you'll take one of these bikes out for a spin at your local Soma dealer. And of course, we'll continue to offer all our models as frames only if you prefer to go with a custom build kit.

A Soma is Born

This is my new Smoothie, still nameless, that was birthed this Sunday. Up until then I had been trucking around on a Peugeot mixte (a lovable bike until you're cursing it as you scaling one of SF's hills) . It's not fair to compare these two bicycles but I will say that since Sunday I have been a born-again biker.
First a few words on the Smoothie:
Let me preface this by saying I'm one of the graphic designers here at Soma. I've been here for 5 months now and before then my bike knowledge was scant. I'm at a conversational level in bike language. I love riding though, and I've started to appreciate the technical aspects of biking more since working here.

Smoothie definitely lives up to its name, my neighborhood is rife with potholes but since Sunday, riding's been a whole lot more enjoyable. While my Peugeot (Lucille 2) lagged on hills, climbing with the Smoothie is a breeze (maybe I should name it Ms. Moss). I love it so much that I keep it in my office with my all day-it's too beautiful to be tossed about in the communal bike parking area.

Why did I wait 5 months for biking bliss? As I mentioned above, having just stepped off the plane in Bike Land, the idea of building a bike was intimidating. I have become more comfortable with the parts, knew what I wanted in a bike and felt I was at the point when I could make a thorough shopping list.

My Shopping List:

Soma Smoothie Frame 54 cm (I'm 5'7") in Pearl White
Soma Fork 1 1/8" CroMo Lug White
Soma Thick and Zesty Bar Tape in Pear Green
Soma Toe Clips 2-Gate Chrome
Nitto Dynamic 626 Seatpost
Tange Headset Threadless in Black
The new silver Soma Shotwell Stem
Nitto Noodle Handlebar 41/26.0
Soma New Express Tires 700x26 w/ Skin Wall
Soma Ensho Saddle --the new Electric line in "Mutha of Pearl"(ridiculous saddles call for ridiculous names)
The SRAM Apex Group
and Velocity Deep-V rims

I love the Smoothie in Pearl White because of the versatility you have with handlebar tape and saddle color (as I mentioned, I'm a designer). I chose kind of crazy colors, I know, bright colors please me. My coworkers have given me a lot of grief over the tape/saddle combination... there's quite a variety of white Smoothie builds out there-check out our flickr pool. The possibilities are endless!

Having never built a bike before but wanting to get a taste of the process, I lured my coworker Keith (the resident mechanic) into helping me (his only currency is beer). We listened to some Lisa Lisa and Keith built my bike-explaining the process along the way. If you're a novice to building, I definitely recommend having a mechanic help you-it's pretty complicated and involves a few of odd/expensive tools.

Here are some pics from the process:


The first trimester



Keith pressing the headset



Shotwell Stem and fork... lost without their frame


Prepping the fork...


The third trimester...OOO!!!

Yes, building a Soma is intimidating to those unfamiliar with the process (me and many others). Yes, it would have been easier to head down to the local bike shop/shop the interwebs and pick up a Trek or Specialized bike already built. But when you assemble your own, every time you ride it you will be in heaven-relishing every decision you made. And Somas are so much more awesome!!

That's all....I promise. Have a great weekend, and for the love of Mike, go test ride a Soma!