Getting lost in the stunning colors of a sunset can be a mesmerizing experience. For some, it can be a sight so breathtakingly beautiful that the vision haunts them. Exactly this happened to Sami Sauri, so she decided to turn her vision into a customized bike. Read on to hear Sami's thoughts about her "Fading" bike and to get a behind-the-scenes look.
Photos: Sami Sauri & Jean-Baptiste Delorme
Being captivated by a setting sun is a universal sensation. Seeing this enormous circle of warmth and light settle down has the power to put our own existence and place on this earth into perspective. No wonder that our ambassador Sami Sauri has named the sunset as her favorite part of the day.
Sami is not only a bike rider she's also an artist. A former crit racer turned photographer/producer, adventurer, surfer... (we can't wait to see which passion she throws herself at next), Sami has a soft spot for exploring nature's great beauty. Her love of sunsets was the starting point of what has become a truly unique bike; "Fading" as Sami herself has named it.
The foundation of Sami's Fading bike is a Track frame from Megamo, which Sergio Vergel Escribano, also known as Scolors, has used as a canvas for creating an amazing fade paint job in the warm palette of a setting sun. Sami's bike is fitted with our Coated OSPW and BB (supported by our Lifetime Warranty) to make sure she can ride in one sunset after another after...
Sami has poetically penciled down her thoughts about the bike in the following text:
I remember this day like it was yesterday. I had a big meltdown, mentally I was not in the right place. I had spent all day at home and there was only a short amount of time that the government was allowing us to leave the house for sports activities in the afternoon.
It was the 4th of May 2020. I planned a route very meticulously as I wanted to get the best views of the sunset. So, I packed some of my bags and of course remembered a hip bag with my camera and a few lenses, got my MTB ready, checked it and put some oil on the chain, removed the front wheel so it would fit in the elevator, and opened the door to a new adventure.
When I started to put this bike together I wanted it to reflect my favorite moment; a sunset. This was mainly because for me it’s the best part of the day, it’s that moment when you look back and realize all the things you’ve done. It moves me when I look at that certain pallet of colors in the sky and realize that the day is winding down but has not ended yet. Sunsets are romantic much in the same way as my feelings for the bike. It’s a passionate relationship that started many years ago, and even if I sometimes want to, I can’t leave it behind. So, I keep going just as the days keep going too, and one sunset follows another.
When I ride in the sunsets I fill myself with those amazing colors and even when I am at home, looking at the sunset on a photo on my wall, I can see all the beautiful mountains getting darker by the second while I imagine the sun disappearing behind them.
Now thanks to Megamo bicycles, CeramicSpeed, and the love and skill that Scolors poured into the paint job, this vision has become a reality. “Fading” bike is real and I am ready to take it on some amazing adventures!
SPECS
Megamo MTB Track frame set:
- Construction FSC Technology SuperLight
- Carbon frame with internal wiring
FOX 34 Stepcast Kashima fork 120mm
FOX FS Kashima shock absorber
Megamo integrated carbon handlebar
SRAM XX1 AXS 12-speed transmission
Shimano XT M8100 hydraulic disc brakes
CeramicSpeed Coated OSPW X for SRAM Eagle AXS
CeramicSpeed Coated BB92
Enve M525 MTB wheels
Seatpost Fox Transfer Factory Kashima with internal cable routing