My Personal Journey: Rediscovering Cycling with a Scarab Apüna

First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Alexa (the real Alexa, not the Amazon one), and I’m the Marketing Coordinator at Scarab Cycles. My job is to tell the stories behind the bikes, but today I want to share my own experience with a Scarab Apüna.

I started cycling about 10 years ago, but I’ve been surrounded by bikes for as long as I can remember since my older brother raced BMX on Mariana Pajón’s team. Watching her race, I dreamed of doing the same, but my parents wouldn’t let me because I’m a girl (a limiting belief).

At 9 years old, my dad gave me my first mountain bike, and that’s when my adventures began. But since I was a girl, I wasn’t allowed to explore much.

Later, when I was 21, I bought my first road bike, a second-hand gray and blue Specialized. With that bike, I discovered what it was like to ride a road bike and explore the mountains of Antioquia/Colombia. That’s when I fell in love with road cycling—the journeys, the Colombian landscapes, and the friends I made along the way. After a year with that bike, I saved up for my second one, a Trek Émonda. With it, I embarked on even bigger adventures, like participating in my first races, including the Giro de Rigo. I also climbed Alto de Letras and met my now-husband (yes, you can meet your husband while cycling).

This year, I started working at Scarab Cycles, following my passion for bikes. I began hearing and reading incredible stories from people who bought a Scarab: stories of unimaginable comfort, of rediscovering the joy of riding, of designing a bike that reflected their personality, of ride quality, performance, and many more attributes. Yes, I was the one telling those stories, but they felt distant to me because I never imagined something like that could exist. On my Trek Émonda, I always felt uncomfortable.

After 6 months working at Scarab, I decided to make a dream come true, my first Scarab bike, an Apüna Integrated. On my first ride with it, I thought, “Wow! This is real. Everything people say is true…” I had never felt so comfortable on a bike, never felt like the bike and I were one or as we say at Scarab: "The Telepathic Ride." The way it climbs the Antioquian mountains, the way it descends… everything is incredible. I don’t feel any discomfort anymore.

 

I’ve had my bike for a month now and done several rides. The toughest one was climbing Alto del Sifón, definitely the hardest climb I’ve ever done, but also the most rewarding. First, because I didn’t feel any discomfort from the bike (though my legs were sore from the effort) but in the final 8 km, when I was nearing the summit, it started raining, and at 4,000 meters above sea level, the rain felt like it was freezing—close to 0°C. I couldn’t feel my hands, but the bike always took care of me and responded perfectly to what I asked of it.

In conclusion, I can now confidently say that everything our customers share is true. It’s real—you can feel comfortable on a bike and fall in love with the art of cycling again, with friends, through beautiful landscapes, without suffering and truly enjoying every moment. And now, I’m ready to keep conquering the mountains of Antioquia with even more energy and passion!

Bike Specs

• Frameset model: Scarab Apüna Integrated
• Groupset: Sram Force AXS 46/33T and 10/36T cassette
• Wheelset: ENVE Foundation 45 
• Cockpit ENVE integrated
• Tires ENVE 700Cx31
• Extras Kogel Ceramic pulley wheels, Kolossos Kage and Ceramic BB.

By Alexa Posada | Marketing Coordinator at Scarab