Hi Dom,

I hope you and the Mason team are all keeping well and that even with lockdown you have been keeping busy with new orders.

I just wanted to write and thank you again for our wonderful bokehs. We have had them 9 months or so now and what a wonderful 9 months!

I’ve been in love with cycling for a few years now but my bokeh has taken this to a whole new level. Clive has been cycling for many years and owned many bikes and I know he feels the same.

I never want to ride anything else, I do of course, (occasionally...rarely!!) but then I cycle past some interesting looking track or other and am thinking ...I wish I was on my bokeh!! Well to be honest even without seeing a track...I just always want to be out on my bokeh, (ask Clive!!) I feel a part of it, it’s so comfortable to ride for mile after mile, it’s so much fun, it puts a big smile on my face, it’s given me so much confidence off road too.

When we are ‘flying‘ down a more technical steeper bit (which I would not have previously felt happy doing) Clive always says ‘trust in Dom’ and we ‘let the bikes go’, because the bokeh just finds its way down over pretty much anything and I always feel safe and in control. (Of course we are not reckless but I remember from our first bokeh trial coming down off the South Downs and how I came down the track much faster than I would have ever previously felt comfortable to do so!) I am much braver than I was, the bokeh inspires me with   confidence.

Clive and I have been having amazing fun going off exploring miles and miles off road (and on road) and also enjoying bike packing which we are loving - the bokeh is so stable even with all the bags on, it handles so brilliantly even when fully loaded. I keep plotting new routes using OS maps as I just get so excited about finding new places, new tracks, recently I have been brave enough to go off solo whilst Clive is working, (he follows me on a tracker so he knows I’m ok) and I would never be brave enough to do that on any another bike! Well to be perfectly honest I wouldn’t want to do it on any other bike! I just want to ride my bokeh, me and my bokeh!

I really love the 650 wheels (the WTB Venture tyres are fab too), the 650s were such a great choice and so versatile. I have to say I loved them from the moment I tried them. Though not saying we won’t buy the 700s aswell at some point too ....!

We cycled all through last winter in the wet, the floods, the mud, ice, the dirty roads... whilst our cycle club buddies went onto Zwift as the roads were so bad.  We didn’t just get through the winter, we absolutely bl@@dy loved it, out on our bokehs. Not only that but we even went off road in the wet soggy winter too, down tracks and canal paths, we have found the bokehs to cope amazingly with muddy territory more suitable for MTBS. Without a puncture too!! What a bike!!

I had a guy on Insta liking my pics and asking me (us) about our Bokehs and the 650s, tyres, sram etc just looking for advice really as he was already looking to order a bokeh ....and then seeing his pics when it arrived and he loves riding it so much! It’s difficult for people to know just how fabulous a bokeh is until you own one.

You might remember when I ordered mine I couldn’t sleep until 3am with excitement looking at the pictures, I still get excited, I so love the Element grey, the copper and mustard detailing. It’s just soooo beautiful.

I didn’t go out to exercise at the beginning of lockdown as I was so anxious about Covid - I’m asthmatic and it scared me - but Clive encouraged me to get out cycling (we used to go at 6am to avoid anyone!)  and since then we have been out on the bokehs constantly and it’s like my daily injection of happiness. Puts a big smile on my (our) face!

So I just wanted to say a massive thank you to you for designing such a beautiful bike which is fabulous to ride because our bokehs give us so much pleasure, I can truly say I (we) have never had so much fun.

You and the team do such an amazing job and I imagine it’s been pretty tough during lockdown but I do hope things are keeping really busy for you.

Apologies for my very long email but it’s very heartfelt as my bokeh gives me so much happiness (and Clive his) and I just wanted to say a big thank you from us both. I’m copying Clive in incase he wants to add anything (??!!) but I just wanted to write and let you know how much we are enjoying your wonderful bokeh.

With very best wishes,
Tiggy (and Clive)

Axel: "Best bikes I ever ridden. Quality of bikes and service absolutely the over the top."
JCY: "I wish there is a 10* for me to choose from! You cannot get any bikes better than Mason! I did the 520km north to south light towers challenge in Taiwan a month ago. Was on the bike for 24 hours non-stop, it was so comfortable and I experienced zero pain after the ride. Also any riders whom is afraid of going downhill.... this bike is THE solution for you! Thank you for bringing this bike to the world!"

Hi Dom,

I had a great weekend with the Bokeh and put over a 115 miles on it. It's everything I hoped for - comfortable, fast and rides beautifully both off-road and on Tarmac. So much so that I did my first Metric century on Saturday!

I am so unbelievably happy with how it rides it's nuts.
Dom's going to kill the N+1 market if he's not careful, he'll create a W+1 market where W=wheels.

That's a mid compact 52-36 at the front and an 40-11 at the back, it's got an insane gear range as you'd imagine. With the clutch at the back on the XTR rear mech it will handle cross chaining also, not that you would but nothing breaks at 52/40. It's smooth as.

I now have what I'd hoped to achieve when I bought it the Bokeh which is a summer 'road' bike that'll go anywhere and a winter 1X, just need the 650B wheels and i'm there.

And it looks the sh*t.

...loving it. So nice to be able to go places that I just wasn’t able to go before. Came to work via the canal footpath this morning, which was ace.

I final got around finishing my Bokeh build the previous weekend :) 

It was quite the learning experience with no previous knowledge in hydraulic setups or tubeless wheels/tyres. But it all worked out. I put in 270 km in the past 1,5 week giving it a good rattle across some cobbles and on the single track and dirt roads close to home. I also had a 134 km road tour in the weekend. I am still trying to fine tune my position.

The bike looks absolutely stunning, I do love that orange paint job! The hunt wheels roll super smoothly, especially with the WTB 34mm Exposure tyres, but I don't think for a second that they are slow! I will do a test soon if I can feel the difference with my carbon Cube and high rims, but to be honest I doubt I will. (I do wonder if I will keep it in the long run.)

I am quite pleased with my own build, the shifting is sharp and swift and the brakes are super powerful. The Bokeh has been great so far and once I dial in the last adjustments i am confident it will be fantastic! 

Thank you again for your time and help along the way. Proud to be a Masonite now :)

The Bokeh is really impressing me. I rode about 100k over 2 days on Saturday and Sunday.  
I rode a mix of road and forest trails covered in snow and ice. 
It's responsive, comfortable and so quiet. 

Bokeh and I are doing great. A funny thing has happened, on every ride we end up exploring tracks, getting lost and having great fun. 
In 2 weeks Bokeh will take part in the Tour of Flanders and we might pop over to take part in the Tour of Wessex.  

For riding on mainly country roads with a bit of track/bridal path type activity, I've settled on some Schwalbe s-one tyres, running tubeless, and I am certainly discovering the qualities of the bike and am enjoying riding it - I did 100km yesterday on very varied terrain, road, gravelly / muddy tracks, the south downs way.

The 30mm S-ones were not quite big enough for some of the terrain, but I remained upright all day, just about! (probably due to the fact that the ground was still fairly firm in most places due to the cold) It was certainly fun though. And this is the first time I've had disc brakes, thru-axles and tubeless tyres - all of which are brilliant and making me re-consider what to do with my other bikes!

I'll be having some more adventures and probably will invest in some 650 wheels and bigger tyres for fully off road trips, as I personally think that's where the bike's strengths lie...

...I'm starting to see how it can introduce me to new 2 wheeled fun in a variety of ways, which I guess is one of the main points of the bike!

Thank you for the link. I only had my phone on the trip so I didn't take too many pictures but here are a few. It was quite a long trip trough europe so I was very glad to have a 34-40 bottom gear with 13kg of luggage on the back. I have to say once again that I am loving this bike, it truly is a very fast continent crushing ride no matter the road surface. I even did a bit of enduro single track and managed not to fall off which I was quite happy about. 

Thanks for a perfect one! Can't be happier! There are bikes and there is MASON! Greetings from Lithuania!

You have an unfair advantage... Thanks Mason Cycles team for a perfect bike! #Technoramarace #Lithuania #Masonbokeh

Just a to say that I'm so pleased with my Bokeh. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun on a bike. From chasing down roadies to gliding over bridleway tracks and even a few easy mtb routes. The bike is awesome. 

Thanks a lot

Andy | Bokeh Force 650b

Hi Dom, Cal, Alex,

BOKEH  is truly amazing!

BOKEH  is beautiful, stable, safe brake,
More importantly, this bike is free!

I have not been able to go to places where the scenery is still good....

I thank all the MASON cycles.

I hope all is well at the other end of the South Downs. 

What a bike. The only way I can describe the Bokeh is this: 

Mason have designed MY bike. For the riding I do, in the area I do it, in the style I ride, it is quite simply perfect. It feels like you guys have followed me around, noted down everything about my riding style then said, “let us build YOU a bike”. 

Simple as that. It is bloody brilliant. 

As you know I have been lucky enough to own one of the most expensive off the shelf bikes (S-Works Tarmac Disc and certainly the level of customer service doesn’t even come close to you guys - it is decidedly lacking even when you have shelled out a small fortune on a bike) with some of the highest end components and I honestly think it can’t compete with the Bokeh for how/ where/ when/ long/ short I ride. The Dura-Ace Di2 and Hope wheels compliment the bike perfectly and I am really looking forward to trying other wheelset (Hunt tubeless) combinations out in the future.

The bike is rad. You guys are rad. Mason is a rad company and I am genuinely very very happy to have supported you. Thanks for building my bike. 

Regards
Ben Tiratsoo

Bokeh Force/650b

Pic of bike attached is overlooking Blacksod Bay...

Greatly appreciated and a big big thank you to you, Cal and Dom.
Great bunch of people you are and here we have our fantastic bikes to gallivant around the tropical jungles.

We are planning some shorter rides to start with and see where that lead us………..

Hi Alex, Call and Dom,

first of all: I'd like to thank you very much for helping me out with my Bokeh-fork so quickly. I received the fork last Wednesday, built it in Thursday and rode my bike again on Friday. Now it is perfectly silent as it should be! So, the problem is solved.

I'm enjoying every ride on it so far (though... I haven't had much time to ride it, unfortunately). It is really a bike which asks "Why shouldn't you go over that gravelroad" "Why shouldn't you turn left/right/whatever... just because you can". That is something which makes a bike special (apart from it being beautifully crafted, of course ;-)). It is a truly magnificent bike which I'm very happy with!

And than, I got some nice new bottles which I thought were out of stock! I was a bit disappointed when they weren't there, but this was a very nice surprise! I'm very happy with them as well, and it shows how much attention you pay to your customers. Besides from making magnificent bikes, your customer service is also magnificent. I believe that is something which makes Mason truly unique. Thanks a lot!

Oh, and I added some pictures to show it off, off course. One I had send you a while ago, the other one is from last Sunday in a typical Dutch countryside ;-)

Best regards and thanks again,

Gert Jan van de Lagemaat

I received my Bokeh frameset yesterday and I have to say it’s a thing of absolute beauty, I can’t wait to put it together and take it out. The finishing and detailing is amazing.

Great couple of first rides on my new bike.  Weather cooperated with the delivery so I took the morning off to ride.  Everything I hoped for and more! The bike performed flawlessly throughout.

Gents

Here you go. New Bokeh propped up against wall sheltering from hurricance force wind / horizontal hail on moor top. Through the gloom across valley is Grinton Moor of TdF fame....

Definately a #bokeh kind of a day!

Oh yeah, and she rides great too! I've just got to stop trying to push brake lever when I change gear.....

Take it easy guys, Happy Christmas. You've certainly made mine....

It rides real nice, bit slower than my road bike on tarmac (no surprises there) and a million times better than my cross bike when the going gets tough.
 
Managed to ride down a steep track on the Bokeh I’ve never managed previously on my cross.
 
Plus, the paint jobs lovely!

Hi Dom

Very quick first ride feedback.

Last night was the first time I have taken a brand new bike out (for the first ride) at night. I usually like to hoon about in the daytime first!

Anyway, my first reaction was honestly that is felt as if I was pulling on an old pair of slippers (and that's a good thing). I could have been riding the bike for years if you know what I mean. There were no quirks to get used to, no surprises, no fuss and....given the old slippers analogy, no issues with comfort either. Sadly, my Garmin had packed up and so I have no real idea of how fast it was. It felt so easy though. My riding buddy was puffing and panting to keep up (more so than usual) so something was going right!

After the first ten miles we hit a proto quagmire and I feared the worst. It was however quite relaxed and I got through the mud with minimal trouble...until the tyres were unable to maintain grip that is. The next challenging section was some uber fast singletrack but I opted not to push too hard. The mud alternated between greasy hardpack and firm, semi dry which was brilliant. I didn't want to put the hammer down only to pile into a tree if I lost grip on a surprise slippery bit. The only mini issue I had was on a slow and very tight section, and the bike seemed to take it very wide unless I muscled it round. I have the feeling however, I was asking it to do something for which it was not designed! Otherwise, it loved being thrown about.

Climbing was fine, given the limitation imposed upon the bike by the rider! The only significant effort was a nasty, offroad hill but it coped admirably.

Sorry Dom - i never sent any pictures of the Bokeh, this is her tonight in Shenzhen with Hong Kong in the background, she is being used on everything from rutted paths to China roads, not sure which are lumpiest, fantastic.

I have started riding several times a week mainly on the Bokeh, 74km round trip, smooth and so comfortable.

Thank you for a lovely bike, Malcolm

I really really like it – on the right trails it’s an absolute blast (too rocky and rooty is a bone shaker but that’s fairly obvious) – genuinely want to keep going and going.
 
My best mate lives in France and he came over a few weeks back and we rode a 3ish hour loop Dorking, Ranmore, Leith over to Peaslake and back over Ranmore – we shared the Bokeh and both had one of those fist pumping best rides ever type afair. 
 
He wants one and I’ve been stopped in the hills by others asking about it – it doesn’t get any better than that…..

Hi Dom, Cal. Just a quick note to say got the Bokeh together today and out for its first ride - road, disused quarry, rooty and rutted tracks and it took it all in its stride. Really impressed with it. I've been looking for a genuine 'do it all' bike for probably the last 7 years or so and this is might be as close to my perfect bike as it gets. Cheers. Mike

Finished the TCR a couple of days ago after a pleasingly smooth race. Once again the Bokeh gave a 10/10 performance showing this bike really is capable of mastering a bewildering array of terrains/challenges... #deathofN+1

Hi Dom, Cal

Just a quick note to say that the Bokeh is exceeding expectations. After having fun with the mountain bikers on Swinley Forest's Blue and Red trails I've recently popped a set of Clement Xplor MSO on the 700c wheels to have a run around on and after a painless tubeless installation on the Hunt wheels, a quick tweak to the caliper alignment, the Bokeh does not disappoint. The 700c wheels totally transform the bike, turning it from a proper brute on the trails to a sophisticated and capable multi-surface, mile-eating machine.

A set of SKS Blumels unfortunately arrive in the next few days and a rack shortly afterwards to take our Yepp kiddie seat for even more adventures now with kids in tow. I'm looking forward to seeing how the Bokeh takes to that!

Sorry I don't have any photos as I daren't take my phone with me on the trials (I have a long and expensive history with phones on or around bikes). Rest assured you'll be the first to get copies when I do get some action (or even just muddy) Bokeh time.

All the best,
Neil

Just a quick one to say thanks. The bike is stunning. It's reinvigorated my love of two wheels.
I find myself thinking about cycling 24/7 like I used to. Which was what I'd hoped.
As for the reactions of my friends and family, well each and every one of them has seen the bike and swore with a mix of appreciation and jealousy. But mostly because it's the best looking bike they've ever seen.

I absolutely love the bike ! Went out Sunday with the guys and kept my own no problem at all on 28 tyres - it's gorgeous to ride and floats on air on the 35s ! 

Dear Dom, Cal and everyone else at MasonHQ, 

As you have seen on social media: I final got around finishing my Bokeh build the previous weekend :) 

It was quite the learning experience with no previous knowledge in hydraulic setups or tubeless wheels/tyres. But it all worked out. I put in 270 km in the past 1,5 week giving it a good rattle across some cobbles and on the single track and dirt roads close to home. I also had a 134 km road tour in the weekend. I am still trying to fine tune my position (perhaps one more spacer below the stem etc..) 

The bike looks absolutely stunning, I do love that orange paint job! The hunt wheels roll super smooth , especially with the WTB 34mm Exposure tyres, but i dont think for a second that they are slow! I will do a test soon if I can feel the difference with my carbon Cube and high rims, but to be honest I doubt I will. (I do wonder if I will keep it in the long run..)

I am quite pleased with my own build, the shifting is sharp and swift and the brakes are super powerful. The Bokeh has been great so far and once i dial in the last adjustments i am confident it will be fantastic! 

Thank you again for your time and help along the way. Proud to be a Masonite now :)
 
By the way, if you have any picture of my visit to MasonHQ I would love to have it! :) 

Best Regards,

Sander Kommeren

I finally got my built Bokeh that I got as a frameset in April (cunning delay to stave off my post cycling holiday blues) and after the first ride I have to say it's an awesome bit of kit

Hi Dom,
Built up and first ride! At last a bike with cable routing as a proper design consideration.
Cheers,
Simon

Just rode the Bokeh 325km straight through (the night) on my longest ride yet. 650 X 45mm tyres, Gilles Berthoud leather saddle and a carbon leaf spring Ergon seat post makes this the smoothest, comfiest bike I've ever ridden, and I've ridden quite a few!

The bike has arrived and its beautiful. Thank you. 

Thought I'd give you an update on my Bokeh experience...

For riding on mainly country roads with a bit of track/bridal path type activity, I've settled on some Schwalbe s-one tyres, running tubeless, and I am certainly discovering the qualities of the bike and am enjoying riding it - I did 100km yesterday on very varied terrain, road, gravelly / muddy tracks, the south downs way, etc, etc and actually was probably very close to your barn (I think?) and attach a pic of the bike up on a field north of Lancing College. The 30mm S-ones were not quite big enough for some of the terrain, but I remained upright all day, just about! (probably due to the fact that the ground was still fairly firm in most places due to the cold) It was certainly fun though. And this is the first time I've had disc brakes, thru-axles and tubeless tyres - all of which are brilliant and making me re-consider what to do with my other bikes!

anyway, I'll be having some more adventures and probably will invest in some 650 wheels and bigger tyres for fully off road trips (as much as they can be), as I personally think that's where the bike's strengths lie rather than on more road orientated long endurance rides.

anyway, it's definitely growing on me and I'm starting to see how it can introduce me to new 2 wheeled fun in a variety of ways, which I guess is one of the main points of the bike!

The Bokeh with 650b x 47’s was the right tool for the rough North Carolina forest service roads I rode this past week.  Light climbing up and smooth rolling down. 
Thanks again.  Feel free to use the photo if you want.  This was taken off of Yellow Gap Road, Pisgah National Forest, North Carolin
Feel free to use the photo for your social media.  It was taken east of Danville, Ohio, on a route for a local gravel race scheduled in June: Funk Bottoms Gravel.

Adventures:  I will be doing the DK200 and possibly Gravel Worlds again this year.  Last time was 2014 for both.  Beyond that, mostly more local races / rides.  Maybe some bike packing in 2018.  TBD.

Tom

To conclude I must say the bike is absolutely brilliant!! I sold my cyclocross bike to buy this one, but I think in a few months I'm going to sell my roadbike as well because at the moment i have the feeling the Bokeh made it completely useless :). 
I fitted it with Shimano hydraulic brakes (rs-785 en br-805) and those are absolutely amazing, even with 140mm rotors the modulation and stopping power is fantastic. Also, the Bokeh frame is really really efficient! I think I've never ridden a bike that is as efficient as this one. It climbs so well, and going downhill it gives so much confidence. 

The total weight now is approx. 9.2kg with 33mm Challenge Strada Bianca tires incl. bottle cages, pedals, Garmin mount etc.

Hi Dom,

Thanks again for making this wonderful, so comfortable and desirable bike. 

It‘s a real beauty and once you ride it you’re so well you want to cross the country. You have really succeeded to create the perfect balance between design and ride feeling. This is made for travel !

Hello Dom, pictures of my just finished Bokeh ... I can detail the parts if needed ... It is incredibly responsive and comfortable ... It is very fun to ride offroad and efficient on road (and I roll knobby 42mm WTB Resolute for winter, not slicks).

Very happy of my purchase.

Thanx to all your Team !!

Cannot thank you enough for these beautiful bikes!! Got out today for a test run in the New Forest and my new Bokeh is so much fun to ride! John is unfortunately banged up at the moment having just broken his foot in a MTB race but he cannot wait to give his a spin as soon as possible! We look forward to the coming years of riding and racing this beautiful pair.

The bikes made it safely to Doha courtesy of Qatar Airways, and no problems with the customs form. In fact we‚ have just received a message from Julie that she has refunded the VAT back to my card, which is much appreciated.

The bikes are amazing, and we look forward to using them on our adventures this year. We will be tweeting and blogging, and will #masoncycles as appropriate.

Thanks again for making the purchase so painless, and particularly for providing us with all the information and benefit of your experience to enable us to buy in confidence without having the opportunity to test-ride.

All done, thanks so much lads - took it out this morning, wow! What an experience.

Just so different to my CX - I didn't expect it to ride quite so differently but it did, the lad who sold me it had spent so much on extras such as dropper post, Hope lightweight hubs. It's unreal - the 650s on this frame are awesome.

I'm lucky enough to own a Pinarello Dogma 65.1 road bike for racing and I thought that was cycling perfection, I think this Bokeh is its equal if not better because of its versatility.

Cheers and all the best

With best regards
Scott Crabtree

Hi Dom,

Great to meet you today, really enjoyed the chat & obviously, the amazing new Bokeh!

Am literally chuffed to bits with the bike, bit overwhelmed to be honest as quite humbling buying such a lovely bike - just need to use it & enjoy getting out riding.

Thanks again for today, for loading the bike into the car & for being such a nice person to meet.

Kind Regards

Wes

Hi Dominic,

I had some mail conversation with you about my purchase some weeks ago. I got my frame and yesterday I went out on the first ride around the town of Malmoe. Amazing! I'm very satisfied with the frame and the build based around Shimano Ultegra group set with DT swiss rims on SON Deluxe front hub and DT350 rear hub.  Managed to get the cables from the rear light internally almost all the way by making use of the attachment on the back of the seat tube (for rear fenders?)   On my wish list is the possibility to route the cables for the front light internally from the dynamo hub.

It was rather foggy and the view not quite what I was hoping for - behind the fog, 300 meters away the bridgehead of Öresundsbron is located, and Copenhagen is on the other side of the strait.

Again, thank you for building beautiful frames.

Best wishes for continued and future success,

I thought you may be interested in the attached photos of my Bokeh3. It successfully replaces 3 bikes (monster gravel, fast gravel and touring) and now also passes as a social and shopping bike with rando rack and bag.

The rear 3/4 photo proves that you can fit muddies with 45mm tyres. The G Ones on Hunt Carbon Race 25s came out around 46mm I think. Makes a great noise on grit!

Properly versatile bike. All you need is 3 sets of wheels!

All the same snap and pep as my original V1, but the ability to take the 650b x 55 adds a lot of confidence and comfort. A PR by a fair margin on a gravel descent the other night.
It seems to be more than just the tyres though, so as you mentioned, the new fork must be playing a role in this too.
 
As a cyclist of over 30 years, I find it wonderful how “road” bikes have morphed into these fantastic go anywhere, do anything machines like the Bokeh.
Keep doing what you’re doing!
 
Cheers,
 
Phil

I rode the Bokeh today and managed second place on a KOM leaderboard on a short local bridleway. The guy with the top time was riding an MTB when he set the fastest speed.

Later in the same ride, with a howling tailwind, I took 20th place on a road segment averaging 33mph.

It fries my brain that the same bike can be so fast and so much fun over such a variety of terrain. I just love it.

I dismissed the idea of making the build a winter project. Instead I finished the bike two weeks after I got the frameset and could make use of the end of summer.

So what did I put on the bike: SRAM Apex XPLR 1x12 groupset incl brakes. I have two wheelsets: DT swiss 700c 45mm Pirelli Adventure and DT swiss 650b 52mm Vittoria Mezcal (on the pics it's the Maxxis Ikon in 2.2 but that's a little bit too wide, looks sick though...).

In general I'm super happy with the bike. It rides like a dream. It is amazing how different the new tech and modern geometry ride. I still use my pandemic-Frankenstein-mashup-bike for my daily commutes.