[cactuscorn]

i finally just said screw it and took the new bike out anyway. odus was 100% behind me on this as he got to come along for the ride. we got on our gear and headed out the door leavin the truck behind for this one. nuthin like just ridin to the good spot instead of drivin to it.

first thing i noticed is it felt a whole lot like my h/t on the flats. this suprised me greatly but thats what i felt none the less. now before ya roll yer eyes and say "that guys a idiot", yeah i checked the sag, the preload, the rebound, the lockout switch and the ava can. all was proper. it rolled quite smoothly and never felt boggy as i expected it to on a 5" bike. even with the cheeseball signature series tensioner on it, it seemed to glide much like a road bike on hard surfaces. i gotta say though it felt like it wandered all over the place when pointed straight. maybe it was the taller front end and the slack geo as compared to my flux and all the other short travel bikes i own. im sure ill get used to it or make a change that will cure this feeling so i wont get bummed just yet.

on the downs it behaved quite nutrally but thats no suprise really. it was quite plush on the smal drops i took it off of and remained very tolerant of the impacts it saw even with a air damper on the back as opposed to the coil fork up front. even on the wet stuff it wanted to grab on and hold on tight, again much like a road bike might if circumstances were all alike.

on the climbs it really didnt feel like a 32lb sled as i was so afraid it would. now i see what pack owners are talkin about when makin comparisons to the flux. dt was right all along, this thing can go uphill without kickin this old mans ass. i did take the time to try the ecc knob and liked how it behaved when i got to the really steep bit but not before tryin it without to see if the front would float about and i was pleased it stayed put just as if i was on asphault. one thing that took me by suprise was the way the ecc didnt feel like it shot the fork up like a rocket when i turned it off. a fast pop, yes, but not a jaw breaking extension as expected.

in the turns it was kinda hard to say what i thought. with odus there and all the traffic out on such a beautiful day, the first nice day and the first day above freezing in many weeks, i found it tough to let it lose in the 50 deg sunshine for fear of runnin into him or some other user. speed will have to wait for the next test ride. what i did feel was a very stable bike even for a higher b/bkt than im used to. again alot like i was on the street.

brakeing was very good with the old hayes hfx mags, the position felt a bit tight but the new h/bar should fix that once it gets here. as i mentioned before, i was rather blown away by how smooth the heim/mrp roller worked. you can barely tell its there and i noticed absolutly no chain slap. no wonder cheesehead likes this combo so much!

the last thing i noticed, and maybe the biggest dissapointment was the lack of chop sticks. i had to use a plastic fork instead but i quickly adapted and got through the mid point of the ride without incident.

all in all it was a great but short ride down the street to the golden dragon chinese express at the bottom of the hill from my house. maybe later ill go to the kum n go for a sixer and leave odus home so i can REALLY see what this baby can do! i cant imagine how much more fun itll be without a 60lb lab leashed to my hand tryin to take me every which way but forward. ill just bet this will cure the twitchy handeling issue.

 

[airwreck]

I was having the same problem with the front end wandering and checked everything. I was about to install a hopey damper, but then I noticed there was a dog on a leash attached to the handlebars! Ordered up a new set of bars without the dog and now everything is fine. I've also been using the plastic fork more lately and am really impressed with how well things like peas and rice stay on there, as long as your technique is good. Took me a few sessions to get the angle right. I would suggest starting with a spoon first if you are having trouble making the transition to the fork.

Good write up, glad you got a chance to turn them pedals.

 

[Jerk_Chicken]

While I know you've posted pics up of the ride before, I must stress that pictures are still required in this one. Of the bike, or your teets. Don't make me post the pic of the smiley asking to see your teeties.

Make sure we get screenshots of you running it through the Zonoskar Linkage program.

 

[FM]

I've also been using the plastic fork more lately and am really impressed

I thought you got rid of the pike?

 

[cactuscorn]

beer flows atop a frozen water hole

I would suggest starting with a spoon first if you are having trouble making the transition to the fork.

plastic utensles are for beginners! i have a ton of seat time with the chop sticks. when i was 10 or so learned from my dad, a big mileage rider himself and my insperation to return to bikes after my time with race car wheely sports, and ive never given them up whenever the chance presents itself to employ them. hence my total dissapopintment.

later that same night squish and i headed down town for some urban assault and the 2nd stint on the new ride. we hit 4th st in the center of downtown S.C. where i repositioned a misguided f der height on the sidewalk. my pal bill, the prince of darkness, saw us as i finished up and invited us to the bar to join the locals for the weekly thurs night ride pre event stretch. a few beers later and we decided to bail on our plans to ride with them.

so off we go, full leg armor on a ill fitting bike for this sort of thing, no chamois and not nearly enough layers for the quickly dropping temps. remember i had planned of a short urban jaunt under the protection of a zillion yards of reenforced concrete, not a long and hellish climb to the top of the city and its water supply. we downed the 40's we picked up along the way while teaching my roadie pals about big bikes and recounting marks sorid tales of younger days and mega group rides that are so popular out in these parts. youve heard of ragbrai havent ya? well theres tons of rides like that all year round no matter the temps. i even got the roadies to give the SPaaNB a spin and do a few small drops. i dont think i sold 2 new turners but their smiles were worth the time spent finding my seat height again. squish and i found a absolutely killer grass hill up there that we will revisit! gotta be a 30' drop off the top onto a huge tranny about 40 feet out. now that looked fun as hell!

not soon enough for my core temp, we head back the 10 miles into town, all downhill. weeeeee! by now my wet, muddy feet are not doin so well in my tiny little sidi shoes and bike socks and my 32 is spun out tryin to keep up with 3 guys on 44's. im gettin pretty friggin cold but i keep my mouth shut and just keep havin fun. once we hit the concrete jungle, squish and i play a bit on some stairs and join the "circle of brotherhood", a tight sunken sitting area the locals ride around while trying not to crash eachother out. i made it to the end and squishy came close.

then its back to the bar it all started from. my toes are cold. real cold. frighteningly and painfully cold. im in big trouble here and i know it. shoes come off and i start rubbin some blood back into my toes as i lamely drink my 1st beer. its not gettin any better and as a matter of fact its gettin worse. im about to call in the troops for some warm clothes and a ride home when squish and simone suggest i walk around on my heels. it works! im warmin up fast, real fast, and the night of debotchery is saved. the laughter rolls, beer flows and the pizza goes.

about 1am we call it good and head home. i gotta open the shop in the am after all. it wasnt the ride we had planned but thats not a bad thing. it was just a different thing and fun as hell all things considered. i got home from work and ive been fightin a new cold so ive slept most of the night away and now im awake. guess i have plenty of time to get some doughnuts for the crew meeting im holdin at 7:45am before the hell of krismiss eve retail begins. sunday afternoon is a big group ride but i think the trails are gonna be a mud fest so its hard to say what will happen there. maybe more urban. no matter. its all pals and all fun.

happy holidays everyone! (even you jm, i hope ya have a good one.) well all but nasty bollocks. personally, i hope ya get alot of ugly ties. the rest i wish much bling. peace!

ps: new dogless h/bars are on the way from sqeeek and im hopein yer right airwreck. they should be here in a few hours. i woulda taken some pics of this ride for ya chicken boy but my hands were too shaky from beer and cold to snap one off yet i did bring the digi along, mostly for balast it now seems.. next time, i promise.