The bike I'm borrowing is much lighter than my own, with tyres twice the width, and drop handlebars splayed out to the sides for extra control. The gearing goes much lower than I am used to, meaning even the steepest slopes should be eventually surmountable.
One of the most indispensable items for spring tent camping is a rain fly. Your tent probably comes with one, but when that thing gets absolutely drenched, the water will soak through and drip from the ceiling. So, install this tarp above your tent and at an angle, so the rain rolls right off it.
The Unity is on a mixed-wheel setup, which is somewhat out of the norm for a bike in this category, but what category is this bike? While mixed-wheel setups are often associated with enduro and DH, Kona chose it here for pure utility, and when you look at the point they're making, it all makes sense.
I had trained for a full year to complete a self-supported bicycle tour from San Diego to Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was meant to be the next-to-last chapter in my coast-to-coast cycling journey - one more long stretch of road before the final piece fell into place. Thirty-four miles into the ride, it was over. A microfiber towel caught in my derailleur. A fluke. One of those things you never plan for and still struggle to explain afterward.
While most modern competitions recruit riders with similar skillsets and design courses to suit them, Natural Selection flips the script. By drawing riders from a wide range of backgrounds, NST creates a format that values creativity and individuality as much as technical execution. It is one of the few competitions where the structure of the contest comes secondary to the riders themselves.