2019 Salsa Cutthroat

As purchased used in Marin

Carbon fiber frame gravel bike, 1x mixed drive train and components

This one has become a bit of a Ship of Theseus. It was originally sold to a guy in Iowa as a 2019 Salsa Cutthroat Apex who enjoyed it there before moving to Marin and selling it to me. He'd upgraded the derailleur and brifters from SRAM Apex to Force but left the TRP Spyre cable-operated brakes (more on that later). He'd also put on WTB Venture 50mm tires and set them up tubeless (a new one for me) and installed a dropper post. I bought it as a way to get riding off-road and on bikepacking adventures. Very first ride was into the Marin Headlands right after I picked it up.

It immediately became my adventure bike to go wherever and everywhere short of bombing real MTB trails. Everything from cruising along the bayshore gravel trails to Marin dirt to overnight adventures.

Lunch stop at Mountain View Baylands

Baylands lean by Moffett Field

Sunset ride at Coyote Hills Regional Park

But, I found a few things I wanted to change and the transformation began:

Brakes: The first one was fortuitous. I was not pleased with the performance of the Spyre brakes (downright scary in demanding use). They have a good rep and I'd lived with cable-actuated BB7s on my MTB for years. But for me on this bike they just weren't getting the job done. Then I saw a guy selling some takeoff brifters and hydraulic Force brakes. Perfect swap and a huge increase in stopping power.
Gearing: This was my first 1x setup. It worked well but the 11-42t cassette and 34t simply wasn't low enough for steep hills, particularly when carrying stuff. Unfortunately, that's as big as the rear derailleur could handle and SRAM doesn't offer an 11s HG cassette with more teeth. Research ensued and I found some nice conversion parts from Garbaruk. Read more here. I also tried a 30t and then settled on a 32t chainring for normal use.
Carrying capacity: You can see from the pictures that I started experimenting with various ways to carry gear for trips. Panniers on racks, bar bags, frame bags, trailer. Each has its advantages and challenges and I mix and match for purpose.
Comfort: I got to test a suspension seatpost on my Klein and found it fantastic for knocking the 'edge' off of rough roads and got to thinking how great it would be on a gravel bike but didn't want to give up the dropper. After a bit of research, I found the PNW Coast Suspension Dropper post complete with the external routing this frame needs. Fantastic. lightweight, simple solution gives comfort similar to early rear MTB suspension. Eventually, I also swapped the stem out for a Reshift Shockstop suspension stem. It is configurable with replaceable elastomers to just take out the roughness without being 'squishy'. Both recommended
Wheels and tires: The original 50mm WTBs were nice in that they were good rolling while still offering some supple ride offroad. But for the bikepacking kinds of use, a more conventional/classic sized gravel tire seemed better. I eventually picked up a second set of wheels and mounted 38mm Taravail Washburn tires on them along with a second cassette and rotor so the two sets can be quick swapped for the mission of the day. Later, I had an 'incident' at the Lassen Gravel Adventure where the original rear wheel was destroyed. After replacing, I decided to take advantage of having two sets to go even beefier with 2.25" Vittoria Mezcal MTB race tires. Still decent rolling (since they are race tires) but with much more grip and capability.
Torn SRAM shifting spool
Drivetrain #2: After two trips ruined by a shifter with a failed cable spool and endless fussiness of keeping modified 11s adjusted correctly, I started to wonder if electronic shifting would be a better option. But the costs there from SRAM or Shimano are very high. But eventually, I decided to give the newer LTWOO eGR system a try (read more here). Very compelling for the price.
Power meter: I got used to running a power meter on my road bike and wanted to be able to see what was going on riding dirt. But I didn't want to spend a fortune. (sense a theme?). Then SRAM released single-side crankarm upgrade power meters for their DUB cranks. Technically, it's for road groupsets but the Truvative crank on this bike uses the same DUB splined interface. So the only trick is finding the right spindle length (DUB Road Wide fit well enough. SRAM, please use measurements not names) So I found a used one and put it on. Presto. It even looks the same as the Truvative crank unless you look closely.