We had big plans for this saddle---It was to announce the return of the Yeti team to WTB saddles. This Devo is particularly special, it's decorated with the world championship stripes to celebrate Jared Graves' four-cross victory in Canberra, Australia. We were so excited to get this saddle to Graves that we paid the extra shipping fee to have it overnighted to Southern California, just so that he could race with his hard-earned rainbow stripes at the Fontana City National. Unfortunately the saddle went missing somewhere between Mill Valley and Rancho Cucamonga, California.
Some might call it the curse of the world champion's stripes, others say that things get lost all the time. I have my own suspicions. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that this was a planned and deliberate interception of the high-profile Devo saddle. I'm no detective, but the first suspect to come to mind is Brian Lopes. Mapquest tells us that Lopes lives only 52.91 miles away from Rancho Cucamonga. Lopes is also a WTB-sponsored athlete, with frequent communication to WTB headquarters (his pal Mark Weir may have leaked inside information about the delivery). Also consider that Lopes has won the world championships four times, yet his custom saddle---the Silverado SL55---features no such stripes. This could be a case of jealousy or an elaborate prank. For now we'll have to settle for this snapshot and hope the saddle turns up somewhere in Rancho Cucamonga.