Longtermers: Tyler Boucher’s do-it-all, semi-custom Fairlight Faran 2.0 steel machine

The longtermers series takes a look at Cycling Weekly's staff and contributors' personal bikes.

I’ve had my Fairlight Faran 2.0 since late 2020. I don’t remember why I was drawn to the Faran initially, but since we had 1-year-old twins when I placed the order, I can’t remember much at all from that time. It turns out your body isn’t capable of forming memories if you don’t get enough sleep. I’ve since managed to catch up on sleep, mostly, and found time to ride more again. I’ve enjoyed putting miles on my Faran all over North America.

Fairlight Cycles has made a name for itself by offering contemporary steel bicycles with exceptional design details. The company highlights these features on its website, with notes about the design process and intent behind each aspect of its frames. Poring over these notes was one of my favorite parts of the ordering process and I promptly put my name down for the first batch of these updated frames when they were released. After a few months’ wait, it arrived on my doorstep in Seattle.

Other reviewers have been equally smitten with Faran’s offerings, which seem especially well-equipped to match the riding conditions of the Pacific Northwest as they closely mirror those of many parts of the UK, where Fairlight is headquartered.

The Spec

• Frameset: Fairlight Faran 2.0 56R (modified by Rodriguez Bicycles in Seattle, WA)
• Groupset: Shimano 11-speed 1x (a mix of GRX, Ultegra and 105, with Paul Components Klamper cable-actuated brakes)
• Stem: Specialized S-Works SL stem
• Handlebars: Zipp Service Course 70 Ergo, 40 mm width
• Saddle: Ergon SR Pro M/L
• Seatpost: Deda Elementi Zero 100
• Wheels: DT Swiss GR 1600 Spline
• Tyres: Schwalbe G-One 45 mm
• Pedals: Shimano SPD M8100 XT
• Bottle cages: King SS
• Bell: Spurcycle Original
  

A do-it-all build

The beauty of this bike is that it can do everything. And mine has done so. Initially, I built my Faran with 700 x 35 mm tyres and fenders and used it as an all seasons road bike. Sometime later, I decided to purchase a dedicated winter road bike, and morphed my Faran into a more commuter-friendly rig with wide 650b tyres and a 1x SRAM build. Then, when Shimano’s 11 speed GRX groupset was released, I used this bike to test out that groupset, all the while switching back and forth between wheel sizes and tyre profiles depending on the terrain at hand.

Despite these many changes, some things have stayed the same. Like many longtime riders, I’ve found certain products that work just right for me, which can be found on nearly all of my bikes. They are as follows: My favourite Zipp SL-70 Ergo handlebars, which combine a pleasing top profile and short reach with just the right amount of drop; Ergon’s SR Pro saddle in the M/L width; Zipp’s CX specific bar tape, which is thin and grippy, and lasts; Spurcycle’s Original bell, Shimano’s XT SPD pedals, and my favourite aluminium gravel wheels, the DT Swiss GR 1600 Spline which combine DT’s bombproof 350 hubs with a 24 mm internal width rim.

My Faran’s current iteration—I won’t say final—was prompted by my changing schedule. As I started to travel more often as a bike journalist, I decided to make this bike easier to break down and pack, and switched from Shimano’s GRX hydro levers to 105 7000 series cable-actuated levers paired with Paul Components Klamper brakes. With this combination I don’t have to worry about issues with pistons or hydraulic fluid while I’m shuttling between planes, trains and automobiles on the road. Since 11-speed Shimano components are cross-compatible, the switch was seamless.

Around the same time I decided to switch up the groupset, I also happened to stop in at R+E Cycles near my house in Seattle. R+E is a long-time (50 + years) bike shop that builds custom bicycles under the Rodriguez name and does all its own painting and repair work in-house. The shop often has the capacity to take on fun projects in the slower winter months, and since they had the time to squeeze me in, I decided to have them rebuild the front half of my bike to improve the fit. By adding about a centimetre to the reach I was able to almost perfectly match the geometry of a custom frame I own, which fits me like a glove.

Though this rebuild seems drastic, it was surprisingly affordable, and Rodriguez had it completed in about a week’s time. The builders were even able to match the custom tube shapes of the Fairlight to maintain the ovalized down and top tubes of the original.

What I couldn’t decide on, however, was paint colour, so I decided to leave the front half of the bike raw. I plan to ride it like this for a while (don’t worry, it’s coated with boiled linseed oil) until I choose a colour I know I’ll be happy with for a while. In the meantime, it should patina nicely. I was quite tempted to have R+E add couplers to the frame, but the cost would have been significant.

What makes the Faran so useful as a travel bike is that it rides very well with a wide range of tire sizes. For trips where I’m riding chunky gravel, it can fit 48 mm tyres without issue. And for trips where most of the riding is on roads, 35 mm tyres feel great. The steel frame and fork are durable and, although heavy, are up for whatever I can throw at them. It is equipped to carry all manner of racks and bags, but also rides nicely unencumbered. Without any carbon parts (save for the seatpost) I don’t have to worry too much about this bike, even in the hands of less-than-cautions baggage handlers or overly zealous customs agents.

Thus far, I’ve ridden this bike thousands of kilometers around my home state of Washington, as well as on journeys to Oregon, Colorado and Utah. I’ve also ridden it on multiple trips around New England, with and without bikepacking bags. I’m not sure what the future holds with this bike (maybe something crazy like a front derailleur?!) but I’m happy to have it along for the ride.