Dan Hughes rode this Steelman Cycles Cyclocross to victory at the inaugural 2006 edition of Unbound, then named the Dirty Kanza.
Both the antithesis of and a pre-cursor to gravel bikes as we know them today, the bike wears a mixture of Shimano and Campagnolo drivetrain components, alongside one of the only 42mm gravel bike tyres available at the time.
Although this bike was only raced in the 2006 edition, Hughes went on to become a four-time winner of Unbound and is an 11-time finisher of the 200-mile gravel race.
The bike was very nearly ‘lost’ after Hughes retired it from racing. “I sold it at one point to a kid that worked with me at the shop I used to own. He rode it a few times and then hung it up and bought something newer," he recalled.
“Years later I went back to him [and bought it back]. I’m glad I did and will never let it go again.”
Let’s take a closer look at this historic steed.
A Frankenstein frameset
The Steelman Cycles Cyclocross is a steel cyclocross frame hand-built by Brent Steelman from Redwood City, California.
It’s a mash-up of the two models Steelman made at the time – the Eurocross and the Psychocross.
The Eurocross was a traditional cyclocross bike, with the Psychocross designed to accept a mountain bike groupset with a sloping top tube.
At its centre, Hughes’ bike is a Eurocross but with the forks and stays from the Psychocross.
Hughes specced this setup in order to run chunkier rubber, given cyclocross bikes typically sport tyres no wider than 33mm.
The frame is built using Deda ZeroUno tubing, with the Psychocross rear end just about allowing room for 42mm gravel tyres.
One of the only 42mm tyres available
Hughes wasn’t exactly spoilt for choice with picking a suitable tyre for the Steelman – the Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Road tyre was one of the only available 42mm-wide options at the time.
Other 42mm options included the IRC Mythos CX and the Ritchey Zed, the latter used by BikeRadar's former senior technical editor Josh Patterson at the inaugural race.
The Rock 'n Road is an all-terrain gravel tyre designed for varying weather conditions, whether that be on road, sand, gravel or chipseal.
Still produced to this day, the tyres just about squeeze into the Steelman frame, despite its 425mm chainstay length (Bruce Gordon recommends a minimum 435mm chainstay).
Clash of the (groupset) titans
Hughes' bike used a Campagnolo Record 10-speed groupset, with cantilever brakes and a 12-26t cassette.
The crankset and front derailleur came from rival brand Shimano – a move that would doubtless make the hearts of either brand sink.
Hughes did this to run a more forgiving chainring, but had to get creative to stop it from hitting the driveside chainstay.
The Dura-Ace 7410 cranks (an 8-speed item) are paired with a 50t outer chainring (from a different but unknown groupset generation) and a 38t inner.
Hughes couldn’t run a smaller inner chainring because of the crank’s 130mm bolt circle diameter (BCD).
The crankset is matched with a Shimano 600-series 8-speed front derailleur and spins on a custom Phil Wood bottom bracket, designed to clear the 42mm tyres.
Hughes says because the crank was slightly outboard, he had all manner of issues with the poor chainline resulting in sub-optimal shifting.
However, that didn’t prevent him powering to victory in 12 hours and 58 minutes.
Reliable finishing kit
Thankfully, things were a little more straightforward when it came to the wheels and finishing kit.
Hughes specced Mavic Ksyrium SSC SL wheels, the ‘SSC’ standing for Special Service Course, which was its flagship line at the time.
Elsewhere, a Deda Newton stem is mated with a Deda 215 aluminium handlebar.
We’re not sure what seatpost Hughes is running, but what appears to be a Fizik Aliante saddle is installed atop it.
