One-Sided Gravel Pedals & Mid-South Chaos

We’ve got a new addition this week. Well, kind of. Logan Jones-Wilkins was on a recent episode but now he’s officially a part of Velo and we start by welcoming him, then we dive in. Logan just survived the red dirt of Oklahoma at the Mid-South gravel race, and he brought back stories. We dig into this year’s new format that splits up the start times and we also unpack the scary camera vehicle incident that nearly took out the leaders of the women’s race.

Next, we talk about listener questions and give Logan a chance to revisit some of the discussion from previous weeks. We take some heat for our mid-ride 7-11 choices and Logan keeps the controversy high with his scientific-ish suggestion for something that will definitely be polarizing. We also address accusations that I advocated for vehicular property destruction in our last episode (for the record, I just wished I could snap off car mirrors), and we settle a heated debate about whether saddlebags belong anywhere near an aero road bike—even if they claim to save you 8 watts.

Then, it’s my turn to talk about metal. I’ve put miles on Cannondale’s new CAAD14 and my opinion has only gotten stronger. On paper, you might wonder why anyone would drop real money on a metal frame when there’s a flood of cheap, aero-optimized carbon hitting the market but that’s the wrong way to look at this. I break down exactly why riding the CAAD14 feels like “zone three turned into a bike” and why you should buy a premium metal frame rather than settling for price-point carbon junk. I also take a moment to slam a terrible tire choice in the specs for the CAAD14.

Logan also walks us through Otso’s fresh Waheela R gravel bike. It hits all the modern benchmarks with clearance for 50mm tires and aggressive geometry, but there are a few design choices that had us arguing. We debate the necessity of its unusually high-placed down tube storage door and discuss why the frame’s ability to clear a massive 50-tooth chainring might actually be its most important feature.

Finally, we tackle the latest trend the bike industry is trying to sell you: gravel-specific pedals. French brand Look just dropped a new one-sided pedal called the X-One-G. It joins Wolf Tooth and suddenly it seems there’s a trend. Are you being fleeced by the bike industry or is there something interesting here?

Give it a listen, and let us know in the comments if you’re ready to ditch a side of your pedals.

0:00 – Intro
0:00:35 – Welcome Logan and Mid-South
0:18:10 – Listener questions
0:34:18 – CAAD14 first impressions
0:45:34 – Otso Waheela R launch
0:58:27 – Single sided gravel pedals