“UNFORGETTABLE DAYS. UNRIVALED COMPANY. UNBELIEVABLY FUN BIKES.” – Obed Bikes.com
“The world is full of incredible places. Some of them are thousands of miles away and take multiple flights to get there. Others are a short spin from your doorstep. Either way, life’s too short to leave them undiscovered.”
“Ocoee was born out of a passion for exploring the hard-to-reach routes that lead to breathtaking views. We believe one of the best ways to experience the outdoors is on two wheels. With our range of bikes, you can tackle tougher terrain, plan bigger expeditions, and discover new destinations.”
Obed Bikes is a sister brand of legendary titanium bicycle manufacturer, Litespeed Titanium of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Ocoee Bikes is a direct-to-consumer brand, meaning no dealer network. Visit the website, order and the bike is shipped directly to you. The bike are prepped and built on-site at Ocoee’s facility in Chattanooga.
Obed Bikes Boundary Gravel Bike
“A rugged and dependable gravel bike ready to kick up some dust as you redefine what’s rideable. The Boundary has the geometry of a road bike with the heart and handling of a trail bike so you can rumble confidently across all kinds of mixed terrain.”
“According to the Federal Highway Administration, there are 1.4 million miles of unpaved roads in the U.S. just waiting to be explored—and we haven’t even looked up the international mileage. So take the roads less traveled, or the ones that don’t even show up on the map. Are you ready to push your boundaries?”
In this video, JOM of Gravel Cyclist unboxes and runs through the key features of the Boundary, with a full review coming later.
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Hi Jom,
I am considering building a bike starting from the ground up with a light carbon frame and going with the Shimano GRX goupset. I have read allot of good things about the OPEN UP and UPPER frames (though pretty expensive) and was wondering if you have any thoughts on these.
Thanks,
Tom
Hello Tom, I have only ridden the Open U.P. a short time, not enough to formulate an opinion. Thanks.
Tom,
I too was pondering the same thing 3-4 months ago.
I chose the OPEN U.P. and Dura-Ace components with the RX 805 GS rear clutch derailleur to build my light weight dream gravel bike. I also looked at the GRX group, but the components were heavier than the Dura-Ace group. If you are keen on having 1x up front, then GRX it will be for you for the front crankset.
The final build (size L) was 17 lbs 9 oz all in with Rambler 700C x 40 tires and sealant.
This is 4.5 lbs lighter than my previous Litespeed Gravel bike and the OPEN U.P. is just a fantastic riding bike. I’ll need all winter to work on getting the engine up to high enough spec to do the bike justice.
Good luck with your research and build!
-Sean P.
So does Lightspeed have the Remot and Ocoee?
The Remot name is no longer.
Hi Sean,
Thanks for your comment about the OPEN UP bike frame – it is very helpful.
Do you have any thoughts about the UPPER vs the UP? Much more expensive but lighter and better built according to the literature.
Tom
Tom,
No worries, happy to help.
I wouldn’t say “better built”, more appropriately it is lighter built. The UPPER uses a higher grade pre-preg carbon fiber, so less is needed in critical areas of the frame to obtain the strength and ride quality specified by the design engineer. This basically adds up to lower total weight and a higher price for the frame.
I personally could not justify the extra cost for the UPPER, but it’s your bike and your money, so do what makes you happy and what keeps the peace on the home front, should that be one of the criteria for your choice. ha-ha
Every thing you need to know about assembly is available on the OPEN website. If you are going Di2, you’ll need to purchase the grommet for the chainstay where the Di2 cable exits the frame. It’s not included with the frame, but everything else is there.
When communicating with OPEN by email, you’ll most likely hear back from Andy Kessler, one of the owners. I love that you get this level of customer service and it makes me as a customer feel really appreciated.
OPEN CYCLE is a great company with a great product!
-Sean P.
I have the UPPER. It’s lighter and also has a different layup so while the geometry is the same it’s a whole different animal. They could use some frame armoring similar to what OCOEE has done around the BB. I put a hole the size of a quarter in mine from a few rides with chain suck. OPEN says the largest tire size is 700×40. I’ve been running 700x45s with plenty of room but watch the seat stays, I holed both sides on one wet ride with 42s and a fender.
Regardless, it’s a fast machine and a high quality ride and it’s not just the weight. At 17lbs it’s the lightest bike I’ve ridden but that’s not what makes it so fast. It’s built like a high end sports car and can tackle pretty much any thing you throw at it. Check out the latest Bicycle Quarterly for a side by side review between the UPPER and the WIDE. They did a pretty good job of describing the ride characteristics.
The battle between innovation and price. I wasn’t aware the potential market could support another contender at a $3K price points for gravel bikes.
Not sure how altering the geometry on vanilla carbon frame warrants a new product line.
Have you ever reviewed any Raleigh gravel bikes eg Willard/Amelia?
Sorry, only the Roker, of which I own one, and has since been discontinued. Sadly, Raleigh did themselves a huge disservice by firing all of their performance-minded staff a few years ago, and dropping at least two really good bikes – the Roker and the Stuntman. I have paid them little attention since then. However, I understand the Willard is a pretty decent machine, at least from others I have spoken to.