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5,275 Posts
I got my 5 Spot built up a few days ago and have about 5 hours on it so far. The shakedown ride was yesterday and it did not dissapoint. On a virgin ride, I generally like to go somewhere where the terrain is uber familiar (Hall Ranch, CO) so I can analyze the bike in all situations. I opted for a different break in ride yesterday, though, and took the Spot to a trail I hadn't been on in over a year. South St Vrain for those familiar with the Front Range. The South St Vrain trail is tough and rocky. It would be a good test for the new Spot.
The ride starts with 20 minutes of dirt road climbing, then another 45 minutes of technical singletrack climbing with a nice long 20 minute rocky ballbuster descent. Good stuff. The bike ripped. First thing I noticed was the high bb. I loved it. With 5.5 inches and a tall bb, I was able to easily pedal thru rocky climbing sections that had me carefully picking a line before. Same thing going down. It stuck. Everywhere. I only had 1 dab on the entire descent. I can't even remember the last time I did that.
Today, I headed back to the same area for more riding on different trails. All were of similar character, though - rocky, technical and undulating. Today was different, though. The skies opened up and poured on me big time. Pretty cold stuff at 10,000 feet, too. The lightning storm got bad enough that I ditched my bag and bike and huddled under a tree for about a 1/2 hour. By the time I braved it back on the trail, there was so much hail it looked as if it had just snowed. All the while, the Spot dissappeared underneath me. Good thing, too, considering the trail was nothing but standing water, babyheads, and boulders. Nobody wishes for conditions like that, especially on a strange bike, but I felt right at home.
I'll be spending a lot more time on the 5 Spot. It's good. Sorry there's no couch shot.
Here's a few pics from the last couple of days.
The ride starts with 20 minutes of dirt road climbing, then another 45 minutes of technical singletrack climbing with a nice long 20 minute rocky ballbuster descent. Good stuff. The bike ripped. First thing I noticed was the high bb. I loved it. With 5.5 inches and a tall bb, I was able to easily pedal thru rocky climbing sections that had me carefully picking a line before. Same thing going down. It stuck. Everywhere. I only had 1 dab on the entire descent. I can't even remember the last time I did that.
Today, I headed back to the same area for more riding on different trails. All were of similar character, though - rocky, technical and undulating. Today was different, though. The skies opened up and poured on me big time. Pretty cold stuff at 10,000 feet, too. The lightning storm got bad enough that I ditched my bag and bike and huddled under a tree for about a 1/2 hour. By the time I braved it back on the trail, there was so much hail it looked as if it had just snowed. All the while, the Spot dissappeared underneath me. Good thing, too, considering the trail was nothing but standing water, babyheads, and boulders. Nobody wishes for conditions like that, especially on a strange bike, but I felt right at home.
I'll be spending a lot more time on the 5 Spot. It's good. Sorry there's no couch shot.
Here's a few pics from the last couple of days.
