Rush

It seems as if every life activity has a defined window right now. One activity butts right up against the next. The future can only be "penciled in" because the schedule is full and fluid. Every ride is rushed because there is somewhere to go, something to do, something to get done. I haven't been riding that much lately because it simply ceased to be fun; it isn't the mental and spiritual release it used to be. It is becoming something else to "get done."

And so it was today. I had a window to get a ride in before our Little League game. I went out to get it done.

We had a thunderstorm a couple days ago that dropped a little bit of rain in the mountains and foothills. It did little for our water situation (or our local pond, which is at about half its normal size), but the soil was actually slightly damp.

It has been a while since my tires have dug in to a tacky trail.

It was fun to hit the downhill corners with a little traction.

Fog this time of year is rare. The Sierras are out there somewhere.

It was a short little ride, but I managed to climb almost 1500 feet, so it was a decent workout.

On the baseball front, we stayed undefeated for the season. The boy went 2-2 at the plate with two hard singles. He also pitched two scoreless innings and made some great plays in the field.

Later.

Friday

Yesterday Jenn and I had a very rare day off together. Time to ride.

We started late due to a contractor being at our house, so we only had time for 20 miles.

The riding was nice, but as our drought continues on, the scenery isn't so great.

The river is low and barely moving.

The plan was to have sushi afterward, but Mikuni was so crowded the parking lot was overflowing. We settled for a nice lunch elsewhere and hurried off to pick up the boy from school. A nice way to end the workweek.

Later.

Ride Report: Surly Krampus

I have been having a tough time with my motivation lately. I never feel like driving anywhere to ride, and after 12 years of living in the same place, I am sick of the same boring rides around my house. I needed something new to get me excited. Fortunately it was sitting right in my garage.

I started building my Surly Krampus months ago. During the build process I sold my 17-year-old Toyota truck to my stepson without really thinking things through. From a cycling perspective I replaced the bike transport duties the truck provided with a Yakima hitch rack for the Acura. It works really well, but unfortunately I found that neither the Pugsley nor the Krampus fit. In the case of the Pugs, the tires were simply too fat. The Krampus didn't fit because the tires were too tall; the hook that retains the front tire would not go high enough. I was disgusted with myself, missing my old truck, and suffering from buyer's remorse. Without a way to transport the damn thing, and the fact that it's not really a bike you want to take on the road, the Krampus sat.

A few days ago it occurred to me that I might be able to take off the stop that prevents the hook from going higher. It looked like everything was held together by a simple C-clip. I popped off the clip, pushed out the pin, removed the end cap, and I was in business. The three-inch tires fit in both wheel trays (barely) and I could now lock down the front wheel. Time to ride.

On the trail the first thing I noticed was how perfectly the bike fit. I usually struggle a bit with every new bike to find the sweet spot, but not this time. I went with the medium frame, which has a 24-inch top tube. Paired with a 90mm stem, I felt right at home immediately. The seating position with a layback Thomson post was also perfect.

The steering was in a word unremarkable. I leaned the bike into the first few corners and the bike tracked right through the middle of each turn without much rider input. I expected at least a little of the weird counter-steering you experience with a fat bike. The three-inch tires track more like regular mountain bike tires, only with seemingly unlimited traction. The 69.5 degree head angle seems perfect for this bike.

Acceleration was a little slower than a 29er, which I would expect. The tires and rims are quite a bit heavier. However, after a few pedal strokes the bike rolls really, really well. To me this is also to be expected since the tire diameter is about 30.5 inches. Remember the difference going from 26 inches to 29? This jump is not as dramatic as far as rolling resistance goes, but close.

The bike's front end comes up readily. Given the diameter of the tires I didn't think the chainstays could possibly be short enough to allow this. Once the front wheel is up, you can easily keep it there. This thing is a wheelie machine. The ease at which you can balance was amazing. I haven't had a bike that wheelies like this one since my Redline BMX bike when I was a kid. I found myself riding long ones whenever the uphill grade was right.

I attacked some short, smooth uphills hard early in the ride and really didn't feel like the bike was all that slow. However, this changed when I hit the first longer climb. When the big wheels' momentum runs out, things can get . . . slow. The bike is a bit of a pig. Granted, I didn't go for light weight with the wheels—14 gauge spokes, brass nipples, heavier rims, inner tubes. I am not going to beat many people to the top of a long climb with this bike.

On technical climbs the bike really shined. The traction, tire diameter and the ease at which you can balance made picking my way up rocky climbs a lot of fun. I skipped over gaps between rocks that would swallow even a 29er tire.

Downhilling was a lot of fun for the most part. Cornering and braking traction were excellent, so I was able to enter turns at a higher speed and maintain it through the turn. It took me a few tries before I could really trust the tires, but once I did my cornering improved.

While the tires provide a bit of suspension, it is undamped suspension. If the frequency of the bumps matches up with the rebound of the front tire (think braking bumps), you can find yourself holding onto a runaway pogo stick. This happened to me twice on the ride and it really sucked. I have never experienced this behavior with a normal sized tire on any rigid bike. Ever. It happens to a much lesser extent on a fat bike, but it's a softer, mellower bounce. This was awful. There must be something special about the plus size tire. Even trying a few different tire pressures didn't help. I hated it enough that I immediately started thinking about getting a suspension fork.

After one ride I think I like the bike, but I'm not sure. I need to ride it a couple more times in case I was just having a bad day.

Speaking of a bad day, this guy almost had one:

I missed his head by a half inch. It scared me more than him, though. He never moved. I finally had to chase him off so nobody else smashed him.

I have to wonder at what point we stop calling our local reservoir Folsom Lake and revert back to the American River:

Later.

Labor Day Weekend

We spent the three-day weekend in Monterey. If it seems like you're seeing a pattern, perhaps so. We love going there. How can you go wrong with the ocean, sun, great food, the aquarium and miles of bike trail with great scenery?

We started off with a trip to Peter B's on Friday evening. The big beers and pineapple juice went down smoothly after the long drive in traffic.

On Saturday we rode north on the bike trail and put in 20 miles. The Boy is getting stronger and set the pace for much of the ride.

After that we hit the aquarium for a very quick visit. This is the beauty of being members. If we only want to go for 20 minutes, we can.

Sunday came and the team was a split between the people who wanted to walk and shop, and the guy who wanted to ride. I rode solo while they walked, going south along 17-Mile Drive and exploring some new roads around Carmel. I ended up riding 26 miles with lots of climbing.

This shot reminded me of Mexico:

How could I not stop to take a picture of this beauty?

Later that day we visited the aquarium for much longer.

On Monday we woke up early and rode through Pacific Grove, circled back through Monterey, and rode along the bike trail. We put in our 20 miles and headed back to the hotel to pack up.

In between the rides we had some great meals, visited the aquarium twice, walked, watched the wildlife, and enjoyed being away from home.

Later.

And Another One

Today I unloaded the blue Waltworks on Craigslist. I liked the bike, but the lack of rear tire clearance was a deal breaker. I substituted a bunch of crap parts and put it out there for a good price.

The buyer only wanted the frame, fork and cranks, which was fine with me. I didn't want to give up the wheels and new tires anyway.

Man, the garage is getting thin.

Later.

#2 Pencil

Today I did the same ride as last Friday. After taking a bit of a beating last week, I went with the Canfield over the Niner.

I started early, and the trails were nice and empty. The weather was cool and overcast due to the overnight delta breeze bringing the marine layer far inland.

I haven't taken the Canfield out for a while, and at first I had to relearn how to steer. The slack head angle and long travel fork combination is a lot different than what I normally ride. The front tire washed out on me a couple times early in the ride. Once I got used to the bike, that seemed to go away.

As little as a year ago, I thought a 120mm fork was overkill for this area. But injuries and age are taking their toll. I can't ride a rigid bike every day. At the very least I need to use this bike more often to protect my hands. I also remembered how much fun this bike is.

On one of the rocky drops on my second lap, I took a bad line, but stayed upright. The fork bailed me out of a bad decision.

Riding a rigid fork is like writing in pen; you better be committed because mistakes can be permanent. A suspension fork is like a pencil; it can erase mistakes.

After being a long-time pen user, I might need to start using more pencils.

Later.

Tough

Yesterday I took my Niner out to Granite Bay to try out the new wheel and tire combination on the trails. The frame is an older Niner EMD, which sat around unbuilt for years. I bought it to be my race bike, but I never got around to doing any racing. I finally built it up a couple months ago using a Salsa Firestarter steel fork and many of the parts from the Salsa Fargo I sold. Until yesterday it had only been used for mixed-terrain rides around my house.

I have always preferred the way a bike handles with a rigid fork. For most of the riding I do, suspension just isn't necessary. I also like climbing out of the saddle, and the bobbing of a suspension fork drives me nuts. And to be honest, riding without suspension (and going as fast as others) has always made me feel tough. Until yesterday.

After only 30 miles of riding, my back and hands were toast. In my defense, the trails are pretty beat up right now. What used to be an easy loop where you could take beginners is now quite technical in places. I think as suspension travel increases, speed also increases, and speed tears up trails.

I don't know if it's age catching up with me, or simply the combination of an aluminum frame and rigid fork, but I am very sore today. My back is usually pretty solid, so I am a little surprised.

As far as the tires go, I have never had better traction. The wider rims really change the profile of the tire, increase the volume, and allow you to run lower pressures. The sand over hardpack is usually quite slippery at times. On this ride I usually have a couple close calls with the front tire washing out, but I didn't break traction even once. I am sold on wide rims.

The only pictures I took were of the "lake." The drought continues, and I can't believe how low the water is. The shoreline should be up near the trees on the left:

The dam isn't doing much work these days:

This morning, as I flexed my sore fingers, I eyed the Rockshox Reba sitting in the corner of the garage and accepted the fact that it needs to go on my bike. I ain't so tough anymore.

Later.