Ultra Talk with Hannah | Episode 2: My Bikepacking Go-Bag!

In this second episode, Hannah Simon shares her Go-Bag, a kit of her ride essentials. Her take on the bikepacking go-bag is a great idea and has numerous good reminders! Sometimes, it’s also nice to know you’re not the only one crazy enough to jam a few more items into the frame bag, too!


NOT an exhaustive list, by any means. These are the essentials that I have amassed over the years.

Body things:

Passport

Hot Hands (or toes)

Caffeine pills (200mg)

Excedrin (Extra strength, 250mg Acetaminophen + 65mg Caffeine)

Ibuprofen (250mg)

Gauze roll

Ear plugs

Tampon (Euro-style, sans applicator)

Non-stick gauze pad

Alcohol wipes (lots of them!)

Aquatabs

NOT MENTIONED: butterfly closures for closing larger wounds

Bike things:

Extra Dynaplugs

Super patch, preglued patch kit

Roll of Gorilla tape with string and a hooked needle

Spare brake pads (at least one, sometimes 2)

2032 watch batteries (at least one, sometimes 2)

Safety pins

Valve core remover

Presta to schrader adaptor

Gorilla super glue mini tube

Tweezers


Also, if anyone wants to go see ShaLayne on their Tour Divide run, be sure to stop in at Squirrel Creek Elk Ranch. She was there for me when I needed someone most, and based on the reviews, I’m not the only one. It’s memories like those that are nice to keep in your essentials go-bag. You never know when you’ll need the reminder.


Comment on the video to let me know what other questions you have! Thanks so much. - Hannah Simon

2026 Announcements and January Deal!

Let’s start the new year off right! Plan a bike with us today!

  • Our sale on Sendero Ti and SLACKR Ti frames continues for now! Don't miss out—pair our Sendero Ti and Slackr Ti frame sales with our frameset deals to get the newest fork designs and enjoy great savings of up to $700!

  • See you at the Philly Bike EXPO! We are excited to announce we will be attending, and hope to see you at the show! March 14-15, 2026.

  • Rare In-stock frames below! We can send these as a frame only or as a complete bike with custom components. A great option to get something fast while still getting the custom experience. Contact us to plan or order below to reserve the frame! support@chumbausa.com

Ready to Ride Frame: Slackr Titanium Medium
Sale
Ready to Ride Frame: Slackr Titanium Medium
$3,250.00 $5,070.00
Ready to Ride Frame: Sendero Titanium M/L SALE! Ready to Ride Frame: Sendero Titanium M/L SALE!
Sale
Ready to Ride Frame: Sendero Titanium M/L SALE!
$3,995.00 $4,600.00

What's next for Team Chumba in 2026!

You and our riders inspire us to push our designs continually. With everything from community rides to international ultra races! We are incredibly proud to be part of their stories and yours. From Chumba staff and our rider ambassadors, thank you all for your support this year! 

2025 was a massive year for team Chumba riders!

Scroll below to see what they are looking to accomplish in 2026 and their 2025 recap! Links to follow each rider on Instagram precede their recap, give them a follow, and see what they’ll do next on their Chumba Bikes!

Hannah Simon - Chumba Ultra Team Rider

In many ways 2025 has felt like a dream. I got to live off of and race my bike all through Europe. In these months, I was able to see pieces of the world alongside the people that mean the most to me. While there are always hiccups along the way, I got to accomplish everything I set out to do. I have stretched and grown so much further than most years would allow.

So much of this is possible because of the support I have received. From Chumba, along with other sponsorships, as well as the encouragement of my friends and family. I am overjoyed that I get the chance to expand these experiences into 2026.

I have several international races lined up, with Highland Trail kicking the season off in May. I’ll travel to France for the Alps Divide in September and I plan to go to Turkey for the inaugural Taurus Mountain Race in October. I am still piecing together my domestic race schedule, but I am for sure going to be at Mid South competing in the Double (50k run, 100 mile bike), so if you’re out in Stillwater, be sure to say hi! IG @hannahsimon_

Shout out to Hannah for podiums at the Hellenic MTN Race, El Piri, West Texas Showdown (to name a few!)

Andrew Strempke - Ultra Team Rider

2025 notes

  • Got a Terlingua! Had fun going fast with friends.

  • Grand Loop Race, 3rd place overall

  • Oregon Timber Trail Race, 1st place overall

  • Did my 2nd annual Whole Enchilada with extra salt ride. I want to get a group start organized for this next year. 

  • A couple White Rim laps and big rides in the La Sals with friends

  • I've been working on longer routes near home but got derailed with a big fire in our valley this summer that closed some connections.

2026 plans

  • Colorado Trail Race 

  • Bones to Blue bikepacking race

  • More overnighters and bikerafting with friends

  • 1,000,000 ft climbing for the year - something I've wanted to do a for a while but never put down on paper!

  • IG @strempke

Eric House - Chumba Ultra Team Rider

2025 What a year… With nine ultra races, five tours, four events, two alley cats, one running race, and thousands of miles covered, it is nearly impossible to choose just one accomplishment from 2025. I am incredibly proud to have been the first single speeder to complete over 2,500 miles and nearly 300,000 feet of elevation across the three mountain races a single year (Hellenic, Atlas and the Silk Road MTN Race) The appreciation I feel for the community and connections built along the way has filled my soul, and the memories continue to occupy my mind. Heading to Europe this past summer with a packed schedule and a fully loaded Sendero was an exhilarating experience that has deepened my appreciation for what bikes can offer and the incredible places they can take us.

The 2026 schedule is already shaping up to follow a similar trajectory. The Mid-South Double, Trans Balkans, Alps Divide, Taurus Mountain Race, and the Texas Triple Star are all on the agenda for me and Freddo, my single speed Chumba Sendero. In between races, I also plan to tour parts of Europe and North America. I am so stoked to continue building friendships, spending nights under the stars, and experiencing new landscapes while exploring the world by bike! IG @drlovehouse

Katie Strempke - Chumba Ultra Team Rider

2025 Review: 

The Drift 100: 

In March, I raced The Drift 100, my first fat bike race! Its location starting in Pinedale, Wyoming and the overlap of part of the course on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route piqued my interest and I was ready for a new type of puzzle to figure out on my bike. Here's a link with a summary of my experience and lessons learned and a link to a YouTube video with clips from during the race.

Oregon Timber Trail:

This summer, I raced the Oregon Timber Trail, a 669-mile National Scenic Route across the state of Oregon from California to Washington passable by mountain bike, foot, and horse. The terrain varied from rugged with lots of blowdowns, to some of the most beautiful and flowy trails I've ever ridden. It's one of the harder bikepacking routes I've taken on! A race still gaining momentum, I was the only woman signed up for the full distance this year. Here's a link to a blog post with a full write up about my ride and a link to a YouTube video with GoPro footage from the trail.

Green River Bikeraft Trip:

In the fall, I went on a multi-sport bikeraft trip with Andrew and our friend Eszter near Moab. We rode our bikes down a canyon to our put-in; floated, hiked and camped along the Green River for a couple of days; and rode out a canyon downstream. I love combining boats, bikes, and hiking to complete a special type of triathlon! 

2026 Plans: 

In 2026 I plan to race the Fat Pursuit 200k in January and Pinyons and Pines in the spring. I have a long list of big rides I'd like to do around home in Southeast Utah. My oldest niece is old enough to come to her first "Aunt Camp" this summer and I'm looking forward to planning some biking, hiking, and camping adventures with her! 

*I'd love to do another race in the fall - maybe tandem if that's a possibility! Assuming I complete Fat Pursuit, I'll have the qualifiers needed for ITI in February 2027, hoping I can get in!* IG @katie.strempke

Ariel Marlowe - Chumba Ambassador - Gravel, CX, Route Building, Community

2025 felt like such a long year, likely because it was packed full of events, races, and amazing rides with friends. So grateful for the support from Chumba and Astral, it’s been such an honor to show up and show out on the Terlingua and Stella!

While I don't have a dedicated race season until the fall, my year activates early. In February, we held our annual Black Women's History ride with Black History Bike Ride (BHBR) and kicked off our Spring Bikepacking program for our local shop, Dogspeed Cycles. In March, I was able to represent Chumba at Philly Bike Expo in collaboration with Bikepacking Roots, at Midsouth via Chamois Buttr, and at East Texas Showdown as the media coordinator and DeathStar FTK holder.

In June, we hosted BHBR's annual Juneteenth Ride and Celebration and also began filming for BHBR's 3rd documentary, "Cycles of Resilience, which features my beautiful custom Terlingua. I also joined Patrick Farnsworth of BikeorDeath for an adventure in Arkansas, riding the Arkansas Graveler for 6 days through Central AR and the Ouachitas. Ended the month with a 3rd place SS at SBT's gravel circuit race, which they aren't bringing back for 2026.

September found me traveling to Burlington, VT to share the BHBR documentaries and host a ride. While the ride was cancelled, the screening was very successful. Grateful to Chumba for offering raffle prizes, putting more shirts and hats onto new fans! The rest of the fall flew by with Texas CX season kicking off, Central AND West Texas, and I launched a new media and events production company, Hi-Vis Productions. I also started a new team based in Austin and focused on off-road called Hi-Vis Pro! We released our inaugural kit at Outside City Limits, a refresh of the old Six Shooter course at East Metro Park. CX is alive and well in Austin, with lots of momentum going into 2026

TXCX States is next weekend (Jan 10/11) and I'm hoping to end the season on a high note. As I write this, it's impossible to look back and not be so grateful for the opportunity to join the team. What a group of badasses and thank you for supporting us as we look to the future!

IG @amarlowe89

Catherine Jaffee - Ultra Team Rider - Adventurer!

2025 accomplishments: fell in love with gravel riding during the Ted Scripps Environmental Journalism Fellowship, completed several short tours of the CT solo and with friends, made a list of all the San Juan rides I’ve never done and tackled 3/4 of the list, took my bike for a few tours with the dogs in Bears Ears and Big Sur which felt like I meaningful way to share what I love with my closest friends.

For 2026, I got into Unbound, and I’m looking forward to riding with a friend who is new to gravel. It will be her first race. She birthed a stillborn and we are using the ride to move through grief together. I’m also training to go back to Turkey for the Taurus Mtn Race. I hope while I’m there to return to some of my villages and reconnect with old friends and community. 

I am also waiting to hear back from a Nat Geo grant to produce a long-form docuseries about the Rio Grande and the Clean Water Act. If we do not receive the grant, I will be essentially unemployed, and I plan to take the time starting in March to loosely follow the Rio from Durango, Co to Durango, Mx on my Terlingua Steel, documenting the sounds of water from Durango to Durango. I would leave end of March if that ends up happening and try to ride until mid-May. IG @naturevert

Henley Phillips - Chumba Ambassador - Route Builder - Storytelling

This year was a full year in terms of hosting community events. I continued to host the #tucsonchillride, a monthly group ride that starts with coffee, ends with tacos, and explores new sections of Tucson in between. It’s been going strong for four years now, and our rides are consistently around 40-50 people.

The New Year’s Gasline Gramble will happen for the third year in 2026. It’s a mountain bike race with a potluck at the end. The route is quirky and runs on a gasline road that features singletrack, dirt roads, back alleys, and parking lots.

2025 was also the inaugural year for the SAUER, a 315 mile bikepacking race starting and ending in Tucson. The route dips down into the borderlands and highlights the beauty and diversity of the Sonoran Desert. For 2026, we’re introducing a shorter route for those with less time off or those looking to try racing for the first time.

Personally, I didn’t complete any races. I signed up for the Mid South double but only completed half due to the wildfires. I scratched from Dark Divide, but still made it to Portland on a different route. My wife and I toured in northern California for a couple of weeks. I toured in Baja for a week. 

Lastly, I published a beginner’s guide to bike birding on bikepacking.com, something that had been on my mind for a couple of years. Really happy with how it turned out.

2026 goals: continue hosting all events above. I’ve applied to race the Speed Project solo (on foot). If I get in, I’ll be 100% bike supported. No vehicles. Katie and I plan to tour in South Korea in the latter part of the year. IG @henley.phillips

Shout out to Jerod Foster - Chumba Ambassador and route builder for the co-launch of new incredbile route! The Great Plains Bikepacking Route

IG @jerodfoster