Work With Tekné Cycling
I’m Matt Surch, founder and editor of Tekné Cycling. I work with cycling and outdoor brands on long-term product testing, technical editorial projects, product feedback and product-knowledge initiatives.
The strongest collaborations begin with a product, platform or technical question worth investigating.
Cycling products function as parts of systems. Tires interact with rims, pressure, geometry, terrain and rider technique. Clothing has to manage metabolic heat, moisture, wind and changing effort. A component that works well in one configuration may create problems in another.
My role is to understand what a product does, why it behaves as it does, where its useful limits lie and how it fits into the larger riding system.
Experience and Approach
I have been writing about cycling technology since 2007, drawing on a graduate background in the philosophy of technology and communications, decades of multidisciplinary racing and riding, and year-round testing in Eastern Canada.
My work spans road, gravel, cyclocross, mountain biking, bikepacking and four-season riding. Published and long-term projects have included work with Castelli, Lake Cycling, Woven Precision Handbuilts, Rene Herse, SQlab, Columbus, Cane Creek, and T-Lab.
I have also contributed to Bicycle Quarterly and Castelli’s editorial platform, appeared as a guest on the Castelli Podcast and written print reviews for Pedal Magazine.
Explore current partners and projects →
Editorial Test Projects
I work with selected brands on a sample-for-coverage basis. A supplied product is tested in real use and becomes the subject of independent editorial work on Tekné Cycling and, where appropriate, supporting social coverage.
Editorial conclusions remain independent. Product support is disclosed, and the objective is not to repeat marketing claims. It is to investigate the product, explain design logic, and help readers understand where it performs well, what trade-offs it presents and whether it addresses their needs.
The scope is proportionate to the product and the work it can support. Some products suit a focused review. Others become long-term reference equipment used across several stories, comparisons, races and field tests.
Long-Term Test Platforms
Bikes, wheels and other foundational equipment can provide more value as reference platforms than as subjects of a single review.
A suitable platform may support a year or more of work involving tire and wheel combinations, drivetrain configurations, contact points, luggage systems, racing, technical riding, fastest known time attempts and unsupported travel.
Individual stories can stand on their own while contributing evidence to a larger technical question. This creates a body of work around the platform rather than a single launch-period impression.
My study of 650b wheels and high-volume tires, for example, draws on more than 200 hours of riding across four bicycles. It examines how tire volume affects handling, traction, speed, comfort, fatigue and terrain range rather than treating the wheels or tires in isolation.
Foundational equipment may be supplied as a sample, a long-term loan or through another arrangement appropriate to the project.
Technical Product Stories
Some products require more explanation than a conventional review can provide.
My work on Castelli and Polartec’s AirCore and Alpha Direct textiles begins with heat transfer, moisture movement and material construction, then connects those principles to documented field testing through fall and winter in Eastern Canada.
This approach is particularly useful for products whose value is difficult to communicate through specifications, launch copy or short-term impressions alone.
Depending on the subject, a technical product project may include:
A flagship explanatory article
Long-term field testing
Comparative or configuration testing
Follow-up stories as conditions and use cases change
Race, bikepacking or expedition field reports
Supporting photography and social coverage
Product education for riders, retailers or brand staff
Product Development and Technical Feedback
Long-term testing often identifies issues and opportunities that do not belong in a published review: configuration sensitivity, compatibility questions, unclear instructions, unexpected applications or possible product refinements.
Where useful, I provide direct technical feedback to the brand before publication. This can include observations about setup, fit, system interactions, durability, instructions and real-world use cases.
Technical fact-checking is welcome; editorial conclusions remain mine. Confidential development work can also be discussed when a product is not yet public.
Product Knowledge and Field Activation
Where there is a useful local connection, a collaboration can extend beyond published editorial work.
This may include staff product-knowledge sessions, demonstration events, community rides and field-based product education. These activities can help retailers and riders understand the product’s design, choose suitable configurations and get more from the equipment in real use.
Any activation is developed around the product, audience and practical value of the opportunity.
Current Editorial Programme
Current work is organized around several connected, long-term investigations:
Tire Maxing: Road, Gravel and XC
An investigation of how tire construction, tread, volume, rim dimensions, pressure and bicycle geometry interact across disciplines. and where the boundaries between fast gravel and light mountain-bike systems begin to dissolve.
The 14-Litre Race-Bikepacking System
The development of a compact bikepacking system for fast single-day efforts, minimalist overnights and longer unsupported riding, examining the relationship between storage volume, equipment choices, aerodynamics, hydration and rider capability.
Dynamic Clothing Systems
Four-season testing of clothing as an adaptive system, with particular attention to insulation, breathability, moisture movement, wind protection, changing effort and the interaction between layers.
The Two-Bike Question: Gravel and XCM
A long-term examination of how a competitive gravel bicycle and a modern cross-country mountain bike overlap, where they diverge and how tires, suspension, geometry, gearing and cockpit configuration determine their useful range.
Explore the current editorial projects →
How Collaborations Work
The exact structure depends on the product and the scope of the investigation, but the following principles apply:
Editorial conclusions remain independent.
Product support and relevant brand relationships are disclosed.
Samples, long-term loans and other equipment arrangements are agreed in advance.
Embargoes and confidential development timelines can be accommodated.
Brands may fact-check technical details before publication.
Editorial interpretation and conclusions are not subject to brand approval.
Terms for the reuse or licensing of selected text and images are agreed separately.
Deliverables reflect the product’s technical depth, testing requirements and useful life within the wider programme.
The objective is to produce work that remains useful beyond a product launch: credible technical evidence, clear product understanding and an editorial record that can continue to develop through sustained use.
Who I Work Best With
The best collaborations begin with a product or technical question worth investigating.
I am most interested in products with a clear design rationale, meaningful performance claims, important system interactions or applications that have not been fully explored.
I am also interested in equipment that can become part of a larger testing programme rather than appearing once and disappearing from the work.
If you represent a cycling or outdoor brand, distributor, communications agency or specialist retailer and have a product that would benefit from sustained use, technical analysis and independent editorial treatment, I’m interested in hearing about it.
Matt Surch
Founder and Editor, Tekné Cycling
Ottawa, Canada
teknecycling@gmail.com
@cyclosomatic