Austin, Texas based CHUMBA USA just released the all new Terlingua, a steel-frame, drop-bar gravel bike with either 700c or 650b ‘road plus’ tires…

The CHUMBA Terlingua is the first drop handlebar bike made by the Austin-based company — known for their Stella and Ursa hardtails. According to Vince Colvin, Director of Operations, “Folks have been asking us for a drop bar CHUMBA and we’ve been pondering what that would look like for a long time. The Terlingua is the culmination of feedback from our diverse team of riders and customer base. They asked us for a true gravel machine that they could bikepack with, win a cyclocross race on, fit massive road plus tires, clear big chainrings, and carry the blended feel of comfort and responsiveness that our steel frames are known for.”

Chumba Terlingua, Gravel Bikepacking
  • Chumba Terlingua, Gravel Bike, 700c
  • Chumba Terlingua, Gravel Bike
Chumba Terlingua 650b Road Plus

The Terlingua is named after Terlingua Ghost Town, a quirky hamlet in south Texas that serves as the ‘gateway’ to Big Bend National Park, as well as the home to the Chihuahuan Desert Dirt Fest. There, according to Vince, “…we enjoy days of trail riding with great people and have a yearly bikepacking Q&A.” The name roughly translates to three tongues, perhaps representative of the three languages spoken there, or the confluence of three rivers. But to CHUMBA, Terlingua means versatility and the ability to transcend geographic boundaries. As Vince puts it, “…this is a versatile bike that can handle any road terrain, bikepacking, light singletrack or cx… and is as fun on the road as it is off.”

CHUMBA Terlingua Frame Highlights

Here are a few frame highlights according to CHUMBA USA…

Paragon Machine Works Stainless Steel Hooded Dropouts

Allows for the shortest possible 425mm CX-style chainstay length and everything from 425mm to 445mm for gravel and bikepacking. Also, it can run thru axle, quick release, singlespeed, and Rohloff dropout inserts.

Size specific bottom bracket dropouts

Chosen per size to allow optimal balance point for the rider and bike, paired to size specific crank arm lengths. The drop is designed to give great clearance on the loose gravel and allow aggressive cornering on the trail and for cyclocross.

Seat tube angles, Effective Top Tube, and reach

Designed to optimize the front center of the bike to lessen or eliminate dreaded toe overlap common with other frames in the category while not forgetting how best to dial rider position on the bike.

Thoughtful cable routing

For a clean aesthetic and function, smooth cable actuation on shifters and brakes, all mounted with custom CNC’d mounts that can be planned to hold 1, 2 or 3 cables. Cable free top tube and seatstays for easy shouldering.

Bottle Mounts

Low bottle cage mounts (inner triangle) for use with half frame bags, a third cage mount in under the downtube.

Tire Clearance

Up to 700c x 50mm tires. CHUMBA recommends going with 650b when moving to road plus sizes above 45c for best performance.

Additional Clearance

Q-Factor clearance for the fancy stuff, SRAM Red, Shimano Dura-ace, Easton Carbon Cranks etc. Chainring clearance for up to 52/36T and 46T 1x rings.

  • ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel
  • ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel
  • ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel
  • ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel
  • ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel
  • Chumba Terlingua, Gravel Bike
  • Chumba Terlingua, Gravel Bike

CHUMBA Terlingua Frame Specs

  • Headtube: Oversized Headtube fits tapered or 1 1/8” forks
  • Fork AC Height: 395mm axle to crown with 47mm offset
  • Bottom Bracket Shell: 68mm BSA EnglishThreaded BB
  • Max Tire Clearance: 700x50c (2.0”)
  • Optimal Tire sizes: 700x32c to 42c / 650bx40c to 50c
  • Max Chainring: 1x 46T / 2x 52/36T
  • Rear Axle: 142×12 Thru Axle or 135xQR
  • Q-factor: Clears Dura-Ace & Red/Force Cranks

According to CHUMBA, Terlingua’s headtube angle 0.5º slacker than a typical CX bike’s geometry. This adds up to a more stable platform and keeps the frame from being ‘twitchy’ at high speeds. However, when adjusted to the low end of the 425mm-445mm sliding chainstay, the same short wheelbase of a CX bike can be achieved. Or, when lengthened, the Terlingua can gain the stability needed for long distance gravel endeavors. Vince adds, “The result is a gravel bike that steers predictably through super loose chunky gravel and has the capability to do much more than most gravel rigs on the market. On the CX side it has a really forgiving termination point during aggressive leaning, but can still rip a corner with the fastest CX bikes. It is more at home at higher speed CX racing.”

ChUMBA Terlingua Gravel Bike, Steel

CHUMBA’s team tested a variety of tubing options for the Terlingua through a number of working prototypes. The final design uses a custom blend of oversized double butted tubes, some of which are heat treated. CHUMBA touts their ‘Select tubing’ as creating stiffness at the bottom bracket, a predictable front end, and compliance on bumpy terrain.

As with the Stella and Ursa, the Terlingua is manufactured in house at their Austin, TX facility. Vince describes, “Building the Terlingua in house, in small batches, means we can take the time to artfully craft every single bike. We have our own fixtures for tube bending, chainring dimpling, welding and mitering. Because of this we can deliver a wider diversity of geometry numbers designed to get the most performance out of each size of Terlingua. Every frame passes multiple quality control checks made by the same people you’ll talk to when you call to order.”

The CHUMBA Terlingua is available for pre-order in a full range of ‘true to fit’ sizes ranging from 50-60cm. For a limited time you can choose any standard CHUMBA color option as well as a few new color ways, including the ones shown above: Team Light Blue, Hero Dirt Matte, and Goldenrod. Custom braze on locations are also available. Current lead time is around three weeks. Find prices below and visit CHUMBAUSA.com for more information.

Frame only $1450
Frame with Enve CX 100×12 Thru Axle Carbon Fork $1999
Custom Builds ranging from $3195

FILED IN (CATEGORIES & TAGS)

Dispatch

New Bikes

650b-gravel-bikes  gravel-bikepacking  

Please keep the conversation civil, constructive, and inclusive, or your comment will be removed.