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withered_preacher
Nope, we did not.
The rack is attached directly to the mudguard in the entirely normal and typical way, and there is no additional support from the rack to the frame.
It's just that the mudguard (Gilles Berthoud fenders) are rolled steel and exceptionally strong in certain directions... we leveraged that, the mudguard is fully capable of holding the position of the rack... but not the weight of the rack or load.
The rack therefore carries all of the weight, straight down to the hubs, and the mudguard is purely providing the position. For the mudguard to have strength it needs 3 very fixed points... and it has them at 270' (bottom bracket), 315' (stay bridge) and 360/0' (rack)... this makes the mudguard really strong in that direction, with extra strength coming from the 90' fixing to the mudguard holder. The rack is providing the additional strength against any lateral movement.
We tested it... and it's really strong. So there is zero additional strengthening going on at all.
Further, those are small tyres on day on, but those are also 29er mountain bike rims, and the whole thing was designed for enough clearance to run the smoother 29er tyres... those pics were from 2014 and there were not many gravel tyres around, but that's essentially what it was built for.
Both racks are entirely bespoke and custom of course, and the rear rack angles matched the curvature of the rear stays, the front rack was about symmetry whilst accommodating the front light.
I still love the bike, it's actually in for a service right now and about to get some new brakes as the front one has failed after a decade of use.
Things I've changed since having it:
I've used it a lot... the stainless steel strips on the rack are very heavily marked with wear and tear, there's a few dings on the top tube, a few scratches on the down tube... but otherwise it's still in a very fine condition as it's well maintained and I have no spend limit on whatever servicing and parts it ever needs.
That rack design btw... is because I was obsessed with keeping the bike very clean, whilst allowing it to be incredibly functional. I see no reason for a tiny bar between the stay bridge and rack when a steel mudguard has far more strength in it.
Also... the bike tech was very surprised yesterday that the front disc rotor is 185mm... which hints at how insane almost every detail was on this bike.