Being located in beautiful Portland, Oregon, the staff here at WesternBikeworks have a special relationship with fenders. While Portland is one of the most beautiful cycling cities in America, it also rains hard about eight months out of the year. Not even the nastiest storms keep us off the road. Whether they are for a mountain bike, road bike, or your daily commuter, WesternBikeworks has a pair of fenders to keep your wheels rolling through anything.

Road Bike Fenders

Road bikes can be the most difficult bikes to fit with effective fenders. The minimal tire clearance at the frame and brakes makes full fenders a difficult fit. We've found the SKS Race Blade to be the best fender options for road bikes. They easily clip on to your seat stays and fork and provide the best protection for bikes without clearance for full fenders. Planet Bike Speedez Roadbike Fenders 35mm are another great option for road bike fenders. Attaching in a similar fashion as the SKS Race Blade, Speedez offer a comparable amount of protection with a slightly less sturdy construction and a lower price point.

High performance road bikes are especially sensitive to the dirt accumulated on wet rides. Fenders are an excellent way to minimize the accumulation of grit on your bike, improving the lifespan of your favorite steed.

Commuter Bike Fenders

Commuter bikes are often the easiest bikes to fit with full fenders. Generally, commuter bikes are designed with fenders in mind and have ample clearance to allow fenders which provide maximum protection. Planet Bike Hardcore Fender w/ Mudflap and Planet Bike Full Fenders 700x42 are easy to install fenders that provide great protection for the rider and bike. Touring and cyclocross bikes also accommodate full fenders and make excellent commuter bikes.

We've also had good luck equipping our fixed gear road frames with full fenders. The lack of a rear brake usually makes space for a full fender to slide through. It takes some tinkering, but fixed gear bikes can have great fender set-ups.

Clip-on Fenders

Clip-on fenders are the most convenient way to keep the rooster tail off your back. Conveniently clamping to your seat tube, the SKS X-tra Dry Rear Fender and SKS X-Blade 28" Rear Fender are excellent options for riding in light rains. While they offer minimal protection for your bike, clip-on fenders simply protect the rider from the most prominent source of rain related discomfort: water spray from the rear wheel. For bikes lacking enough visible seatpost to accommodate a clip-on fender, the Headland Backslide Seatpost Fender can clamp to a seatpost or seattube.