2016 Salsa Marrakesh Drop BarAlaska to Chile, anyone? Portland Oregon to Portland Maine? Marrakesh is Salsa's new heavy-duty world-touring bike. It’s designed with all the amenities and durability needed to cycle the globe. Salsa’s Pete Koski, engineer for Marrakesh, says, “A true touring bike should have a lower bottom bracket and longer chainstay/wheelbase than a similar sized road, gravel, commuting, or mountain bike. The lower BB also lowers your saddle (without affecting saddle-to-pedal distance), and therefore lowers your body relative to the axles. This all results in a centre of gravity that makes riding and steering a loaded bike easier and more predictable.” Constructed with the next-generation, Salsa-designed Cobra Kai CroMoly tubing, the externally and internally butted tubeset is engineered to provide an impressively strong frame. Koski adds, “Steel is tough and has a very long life span. In the unlikely event that anything will happen to damage a fine steel frame like Marrakesh, finding someone that can weld it back to a rideable state, even in distant lands, is much more likely than finding someone that can weld titanium or aluminium, or repair a composite frame.” Marrakesh comes stock with a dedicated Salsa Alternator 135 Low Deck Rack. The frame also features three water bottle mounts, and the fork includes Three-Pack mounts for Anything Cages or additional water bottles should you choose to use them. For a traditional front pannier set up though, it also includes low rider bosses Marrakesh is a world-touring bike, designed for fully loaded, rugged exploration. Intentionally designed whether riding drop or flat bar, Marrakesh’s unique geometries that employ Chromoly steel and Cobra Kai tubing make for a durable and predictable ride even when heavily loaded. Comes with Salsa Low-Deck Rear Alternator Rack, capable of safely carrying 60 lbs.