Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher

Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher

Burke Swindlehurst is a lifelong Utahan and professional racer who, after competing all over the world, still prefers riding around his local Tushar Mountains. So much so that he organized a 69 mile race, the ‘Crusher in the Tushar‘, from the town of Beaver to the Eagle Point ski resort. Portland’s Tonic Fabrication created this soft tail steed for Todd Littlehales to contest the event.

‘The Crusher in the Tushar’ is nearly half-and-half fire-road / dirt and pavement, so the question is: what type of bike is the most suitable… MTB or cyclocross? Tonic Fab combined the best of both worlds with this build and introduced a suspended rear end at the same time — an element which isn’t new at all, but refreshing to see again on an American race vehicle destined for the harsh Utah terrain.

The spring is a cylinder formed from 4130 cromoly, providing enough ‘give’ at the rear end to ensure a small relief from the washboard erosion that can be expected on the route. The front end is just as smooth: a custom-machined 44/56 tapered head tube houses a Chris King InSet 2 headset and an ENVE Cross Disc fork. Portland’s Studio 112 added the final touch with their paint and branding.

Brenton Salo is another Portland local, a photographer who is well-known around the cycling community. Brenton has been documenting the work of Tonic Fab for some time, as well as many other aspects of the culture. Check out his tumblr for more of his work.

Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher
Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher
Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher
Tonic Fabrication Tushar Crusher