We love raw titanium. Leaving a bike frame raw is the ultimate way to showcase the material's beauty and strength, as well as the skill and craftsmanship of our framebuilders. In these modern times, though, many riders are looking for titanium bikes with a bit more color.
The finishing team at our factory in Chattanooga creates our etched and anodized logos, but they’re regularly experimenting with designs, and they've introduced a new full-color finish that is now available as a stock option on all Litespeed gravel models. We’re calling it Ano Blast, a stunning and unique finish that combines anodized color with a sandblasted texture. Let's meet the people who brought this beautiful finish to life and learn how it went from concept to reality.
How Did Litespeed Create Ano Blast?
Andy shows off a freshly Ano Blasted Toscano frame.
Anodization (a.k.a. “Ano”) has been one of the hottest modern trends in titanium bikes. Anodization itself is nothing new. In the 1920s, it was used to protect seaplane parts from corrosion. Old brands like Teledyne were even offering anodized titanium frames in the mid-70s, way before Litespeed was founded! These days, anodization has become a defining feature of many high-end and bespoke titanium frames. It isn’t the only titanium finish option, either. Traditional paint and Cerakote, a thin and protective ceramic coating, are also popular ways for builders to add color.
A close-up of one of Andy's (many) test frames. He comes up with some crazy designs. Contact us if you're interested in a fully custom finish!
When our in-house finishing team decided to introduce stock full-color finishes for our bikes, they knew they wanted to create a finish that felt uniquely ours. It all started with one of our finish experts: Andy.
Andy is the artisan behind all of our titanium anodizing work. He’s in the factory bringing beautiful custom finishes to life on a daily basis, and we give him free rein to experiment with different finish schemes and techniques. Whenever we talk about our bikes being handcrafted by skilled masters, guys like Andy are exactly who we mean.
This Litespeed Pinhoti III is an example of a frame that has been fully etched (besides the logos) with a media blaster. This etched finish is the foundation of Ano Blast.
Ano Blast evolved out of one of Andy’s many experiments. He etched a large area of a titanium frame using the same media blasting process we use to etch our logos. This produced a rough textured finish that is more matte than raw or polished titanium. Then he anodized over the etched surface. The result is a stunning satin finish that we found accentuates certain colors. At first glance, many mistake it for paint or Cerakote. The Ano Blast finish is weightless (anodized surfaces don’t have any pigment; the color is determined by how light reflects off the surface), extremely durable, and incredibly unique.
Introducing Ano Blast to Gravel
Audrey tests her Ano Blast Toscano at Southeast Gravel.
One of Andy’s Ano Blast samples caught the eye of a member of our marketing team, Audrey, and she asked Andy to apply the finish to her new Litespeed Toscano FI gravel bike. We posted her bike on Instagram, and the response was incredible! Almost immediately, our customer service team started getting calls and messages asking if bikes with this finish were for sale. Before we felt confident offering Ano Blast as a stock option, we wanted to put it through its paces.
Ano Blast covered in Colombian mud.
Audrey’s bike became our primary test bed, and over six months, she put her Ano Blast Toscano through some serious punishment. So far, she’s ridden 2,000 miles through the winter and spring, flown the bike to Colombia for a multi-day gravel adventure in the Andes, and used it to compete in a few gnarly gravel races. After surviving months of abuse and several deep cleanings, we knew the Ano Blast finish was ready for prime time.
The working name we used internally when developing this finish was “True Grit.” We liked “grit” because it highlighted the rough, etched surface of the frame. But it was also a clever way to describe how the finish can tell a personal story of hard work and perseverance.
The thing that really struck me throughout testing was just how good the Ano Blast finish looks when dirty. The etched texture captures dirt, dust, and sweat in a very particular way. The colors get earthier, and the finish gains depth with new hues, swirls, and accents. It develops a sort of temporary patina.
I almost prefer the look of my Ano Blast bike when there’s some grit and grime stuck to it. Sweat mixes with my region’s red-brown dust to create a tie-dye effect, reminding me of recent brutal training miles and heart-pounding adventures. Then, when I feel it’s time to start anew, a quick spray with a hose brings my finish back to factory fresh condition.
My 2025 Toscano is one of the first to feature the final production-ready Ano Blast finish. It's also one of the first production Litespeeds to have a gravel suspension fork.
So why call these new finishes Ano Blast and not True Grit? Alas, “True Grit” is a model name copyrighted by one of our competitors. Who knows if we would have run afoul of this copyright despite “True Grit” referring to a titanium finish rather than a bike model, but we decided to go the safe and literal route, and named this finish option Ano Blast—anodized and media blasted. Less romantic, sure, but it's to the point and ripe for wordplay (get ready to see “Blast Off” in some future ad copy).
The Four New Ano Blast Colors
With Ano Blast, we’ve introduced four bold new finishes. We may offer more colors in the future, but this is the launching pad (blast off…). One thing I truly appreciate after seeing all of these finishes is just how precise Andy is with the application. All of our Litespeed logos are left raw/polished, and the lines are incredibly sharp.
Here’s a closer look at the four new colors below:
Audrey Blue
This is the original Ano Blast color. Can you guess who it’s named after? Ano Blast never would have happened without Audrey asking Andy to customize her Toscano. Maybe we should have named it “Andy Blue,” but that just doesn’t have the same ring! Sorry, Andy…
Cobalt Blue
This color is essentially the Ano Blast version of the Balearic Blue offered on our featherweight Coll dels Reis road bike. Deeper, darker, and bluer than Audrey Blue, this is the color that has come to represent many of our flagship offerings.
Espresso
This color is produced using bronze anodization, which turns brownish when applied to an etched surface. When dirty, it takes on an almost rusted-out rat rod look, which I think looks incredibly rugged and cool.
Seafoam Green
This color is the most complex Ano Blast finish because it’s the first to offer a speckled multi-color effect. It’s got a bit of chameleon, a bit of fruity pebbles, and if you’re looking to stand out from the crowd, it’s the top pick.