Salsa Flyway Review: Race Geometry Meets Bikepacking Clearance
Salsa's new Flyway gravel bike promises race speed and bikepacking comfort. Here's what the geometry, tire clearance, and builds actually mean for you.
Salsa just dropped the Flyway, a new gravel bike that sits somewhere between their race-ready Warbird and adventure-heavy Cutthroat. The pitch: one bike for Tuesday night group rides and weekend overnighters. The geometry backs that up—slacker head tube, longer reach, lower BB than traditional road bikes, but short-ish chainstays (430mm on a medium) to keep it snappy.
Here's what matters if you're actually shopping: the Standard carbon frame weighs 1,200g (ML size), the Deluxe drops to 1,050g. That's competitive but not groundbreaking—similar to a Specialized Crux or 3T Exploro. The frame clears 50mm rear / 57mm front tires, works with 40mm travel forks, and uses a UDH derailleur hanger. Translation: you can run chunkier rubber than most "all-road" bikes, swap to a suspension fork if you want, and replace the hanger at any bike shop when you inevitably bend it.
The builds range from $3,499 (GRX 610) to $11,999 (SRAM RED). The $5,499 Rival Sus model ships with a suspension fork, which is interesting—Salsa's betting some buyers want compliance without the weight penalty of a steel frame or the hassle of sourcing their own fork. I haven't ridden one yet, but the spec that matters is whether 40mm of squish actually improves comfort on washboard gravel or just adds maintenance. That depends on your local terrain and how much you care about an extra 400g up front.
Here's the catch: three water bottle mounts sound great until you realize only MD and larger frames get them. If you're on an XS or SM, you're capped at two, which limits self-supported range unless you strap bags everywhere. Also, headset cable routing is cleaner than older external setups, but it's still a pain if you swap bars or travel with the bike disassembled.
Salsa also updated the Cutthroat (now available with front suspension), Fargo, and Journeyer with new colors and builds. The Cutthroat Rival GX at $7,299 is the one to watch if you want a drop-bar bikepacking rig that doesn't ride like a loaded touring bike. The Journeyer starts at $1,299, which is aggressive pricing for a frame that clears 50mm tires and has rack mounts—good option if you're building a commuter or credit-card tourer and don't need carbon.
