Rachel Strait’s Ergon Saddle | Garage Finds

Mountain bikes have become an important part of our lives at Swapmoto Live. In addition to being a great way to cross-train for motocross, they are a heck of a lot of fun! Several years ago, we met an MTB enduro racer named Rachel Strait, and recruited her to ride a GT test bike for photos in an issue of TransWorld Motocross. Rachel was fast, fun, and really pretty. That’s when we got the idea to shoot her for the cover of our 2016 Buyers Guide issue of TransWorld Motocross.

Through the years that have passed, Rachel has modeled for us a few more times bout more importantly; we’ve gotten to ride bikes and motorcycles with her and her husband Kyle Strait, who is one of the baddest dudes on two wheels that we know.

One day, instead of asking for a typical piece of racer memorabilia like a jersey, I asked Rachel for the seat of the GT race bike she was retiring. After several laughs, she agreed and sent it to our offices, where it was on our wall until the day TWMX was shut down. The best part of the story, however, is that shortly after the saddle arrived, we got a text from Kyle. “Um…I think I am the last one to ride that bike.” Hahaha!

Backyard Design Graphic Kit of the Week

Starting at $179.95

Backyard Design was founded in 2010 by two privateer Supercross racers: Jared Hicks from Alabama and Philipp Klakow from Germany. What started as a project to fund their Supercross racing efforts has now grown into a worldwide graphics manufacturer, with dual headquarters in the United States and Germany. Backyard Design is known for being one of the first custom graphics makers to have a completely interactive website, where customers can design their own kits with a few clicks on a computer mouse.

Another week, another sick kit by the guys at Backyard Design. We know many of you want your bikes to look like the factory machines that fill the pit area, but with your personal touch or sponsors. Why rep the companies that don’t support you? That’s where the Design Configurator at backyarddesignusa.com comes in, as the easy to use program allows you to take the base designs offered by the company and put your spin on the scheme. This setup looks sweet with its use of three shades of green and is ready for some small refinements that’ll make it a representation of you. Head to backyarddesignusa.com and get creative with the templates offered for nearly every OEM.