Originally published in the April 2016 Edition of Road Magazine
Last July, when I finally had to send the Sage Skyline back to its Portland home, I nearly cried. Th e American-made, titanium bike had quickly become my choice ride, even to the point where I would blow off the other bicycles that I really should have been testing. I just couldn’t get enough of the Skyline, and over four months I had ridden it everyplace it should, and probably shouldn’t have gone. It felt like there was a hole in my bicycle riding heart when it was packed up and the box disappeared onto the Fed Ex truck.
So I mentioned all those places I should and should not have ridden the bike. During the extended test period, I rode it up, down, across and all around a plethora of routes in California, from the redwood flanked climbs of the northern climes, to the chattery dirt of the south’s ridgelines. It traveled up mountain bike trails and ripped down winding mountain roads. It cruised for thousands of base miles and also put in its time hammering on the weekly group rides. Regardless of the terrain, the bike repeatedly proved its versatility, and versatility is the key quality for ROAD’s All-Around Bike of the Year.
Though Sage does not produce the titanium frames in house, the company instead employs the expertise of Lynskey Performance in Tennessee, a company with 32 years of frame building experience. Th e frame has a simple look with polished titanium tubing and smooth welds while incorporating small details that make the frame slightly more sophisticated. A carbon cable guide under the down tube allows for internal electronic or external mechanical routing. Th e barrels are easily accessible for on-themove adjustment of the front and rear shifting, and the machined head badge is a refi ned touch for this US-bred frame.