ghost snow

At last! The swelling in my knee subsided enough to where I could make a complete pedal stroke without wincing and buckling. This was good as this was to be the last day in Sedona for me this trip. It was pretty chilly when we woke, so Bruce and I set off to get some breakfast, and run a couple of errands in hopes that it would warm up.



We met up with a crew that Bruce knew from Harrisonburg, VA who were vacationing in Oak Creek. It was going to be a 2-3 hr ride, which based on my past experiences out here, was going to be about the max I thought I should subject my gimp knee to. We got ourselves ready and headed on out towards Cathedral.

When we set out, it was grey and spitting snow. Yes, snow, we were dressed for cold temps, but by the time we made out first climb up to singletrack, the sun had popped out from behind the clouds, and we started to roast. It was time to de-layer. My knee was feeling good, and I was able to make some of the ledgy ups and switchbacks pain free. I didn’t really know where we were headed, but after a while it was clear we were headed for adventure. After a while, the trail got a little too steep and chunky for the gear I was riding, and I ended up walking.

it goes up from here

We “topped out”  right at the base of where the buttes went vertical, after a pretty rugged hike-a-bike. The scenery was gorgeous, but the riding was a little bit on the edge of my comfort zone. We were pretty high up, and the trail was narrow and there was a good sized drop to my right. I had to keep in mind that my trail skills are pretty rusty, and I would not have been stoked with a tumble. Caution was the name of the game.



After some skirting around Cathedral we came out on some slickrock and dropped off the back into Verde Valley. It was rough going, and I was doing a lot of walking. Don’t get me wrong, it was a ton of fun, but I really had to pay attention to my knee. I didn’t come all the way out here to not ride SSAZ again. And the group was pretty much riding at a level far and above what I was capable of, so I decided to bail on the ride 2 hrs in. I knew where I was and slowly spun back to base.

The weather was pretty crazy, sunny and hot one moment, windy and snowy the next. It was absolutely awesome though.

A note on the Rocker:

Rocking out on the rocks

Upon setting out, I felt that the new gearing was a bit on the spinny side. Upon getting on trail, it was a lot happier. The wheelbase is a bit tighter so the bike had a quicker feel to it. It was almost a bit too quick for me, but then again, my skills are lacking right now. I hope by the end of the trip this will be worked out. The Syncros tires haven’t fully earned my trust yet, but they are growing on me.

…when you aren’t riding. The knee was not feeling super awesome, so instead of burning whatever matches my knee might have left, I opted to take a rest day. Hard to do when you are in such a beautiful place synonymous with epic riding. Oh well. I couldn’t bring myself to go shopping for crystals, or get a photograph of my aura. Instead I elevated, iced and ibuprofenized it, and watched some crap TV.

I met up with recent VT>AZ transplant Patrick Kell, once the illustrious Executive Director of VMBA, now a territory boss for IMBA. Talk about movin’ on up. He’s going to be out this way making mountain biking better in the southwest, as if it wasn’t awesome enough already. He will be missed by our little corner of the world. We met up for a beer at the local Irish pub and reminisced about how crap the weather is in VT right now.

I did however, have the best carne asada I’ve ever had. On a recommendation from one of my clients, we hit up Elote Cafe. Holy schnikies. It was so good, I wanted to get another one and roll around in it. I will be riding bikes soon though. Soon.

The one drawback of traveling to the west is that it literally takes all day. I spent Monday in 3 different planes, but thankfully this was one day with no travel issues. My passage through security went smoothly, he planes were “mostly” on time, and there was minimal turbulence. In fact the only real bummer is that I spent my 3+ hr layover on Denver at the wrong bar, I found that there was a New Belgium eatery/bar right next to my gate, instead I had lunch at the super crowded mid-concourse bar I always seem to find myself at when in Denver.

Upon arriving on in Tucson, it was time to head immediately to 4th St and take advantage of some food and libation. Early next morning, I hooked up with Big Bruce Dickman to head up to Phoenix and beyond in the Progold van. Bruce has been on a great big tour of the country, making shops aware of the great products that Progold makes. It’s actually a pretty cool gig he has going, and I am pretty lucky he happened to be in the southewest at the same time as me.

We did a few dealer visits in Phoeninx and Scottsdale, before heading up to Prescott. I was pretty stoked to be able to include this stop on the itenerary. Since my visit last year during the Whisky 50, I had been intrigued about the local trails here, especially an area called the Dells. After hitting up a shop for the beta, we headed over to the railhead. I spent what seemed like about an hour  putting my bike together and getting ready for the ride, but hey, at least this time I brought my bike stuff… We finally got going around 4:30, with the sun headed towards the horizon.

The Dells

The Dells are very beautiful. Big granite boulders that reminded me of Joshua Tree, and the trail winds between big outcrops of rock. It was very cool to be winding through these boulder canyons, except that the riding is pretty darn tough.  I’d have to say that had my knee been a lot healthier and stronger, I could have ridden a lot more of the trail, which was very hurky jerky and quite technical. It’s very ledgy and abrupt, and required some pretty big power moves to clear certain sections. Let’s just say I wasn’t there yet.

rocks

hanging boulder

Bruce rocking out

Still, it was good to be outside and riding (waking). I managed to get some good pictures before we decided to do the smart thing and head back before the sun disappeared completely. It was a little bit of a bummer to have been smacked down a few rungs by the trail, I know I could have done much better. I have a lot more riding to do out here in AZ, so it was wiser to just walk away.

lunar tree

Guess I’m just going to have to go back some time. Lot’s more riding to do in Sedona…

As you read this, I will most likely be cramped up to some unpleasant individual during one of three plane rides I get to take. It’s all good though, I’m headed west. It makes the few hours of inconvenience and discomfort much more bearable when you know that you will soon be soaking up the sun and singletrack.

And thanks to the miracle of modern technology, you’ll be able to follow along with my adventures on the facebooks and the twitters, I will post frequent updates and regular blog posts. And in case you missed it, we broadcast a discount coupon over those channels last night. That code is ICANWAIT , and gives you a 10% discount off catalog price for web orders. I’ll be hooked up to the internet and phone while I’m gone, so if you don’t see something that you are interested in, don’t hesitate to drop me an email, or leave a voice mail. I will get back to you.

Thanks, and I’ll see you on the other side…

I managed to get one more trundle in before the weather turned foul, and my trip to AZ, and this time, I was prepared. Ponte and I were going to re-attempt the ride I failed on so miserably last Sunday. We even left early enough to get prime conditions. It had been pretty warm since the last time I was out, so the snow had settled a bit, and the cold overnight temps had made for some good crusty conditions.

golden morning

We made our way up the Catamount Trail. It was full on golden hour, which was quite pleasant. The conditions were really good, there were lots of different tracks out there, snowshoes, skis, moose, and some weird bird that had huge feet. We made the climb up to Billings Rd with only a couple of breaks to catch our breath. The cold air can really take it out of you.

throwin' down the Gauntlet

I claim the first descent down the Gauntlet on a bike this year! This rock feature is quite nasty and has taken quite a bit of skin and blood from me over the years. It’s rocky, finny, ugly, and there is only one way down it. The price for failure is pain. Not today though!

Further down the trail we got to a well groomed snowmobile track and made our climb up to Peak A View. A moose had been up there post holing through the track, but our big tires floated right over the craters. As the sun was creeping up, the track was getting softer. Peak A View had been skied, there was a good pack on the trail, but because it is a little steeper and tighter there were a couple of sections that had to be walked.

almost to the top

the view I was looking for

Once we got to the top, we were rewarded with one of the nicest views you can ride to. I really like it up there. Coming down was really fun. I have to say that there is something exhilarating about descending with one of these bikes. They are somewhat cantankerous in nature. They don’t really like to change direction once they get going, and with uncertain snow firmness, there is an element of danger that is kinda fun.

Ponte droppin' in

We headed to Lauren’s Loop, an old school favorite of mine in the summer. There was only one set of ski tracks going down, so the pack was quite narrow. It didn’t stop us from riding the trail as fast as possible. It was the soft snow just to the left that stopped us, well, me anyway. I lost the front wheel and it dove away from me, my momentum took me over the bars at a high rate of speed. Ejection. I did a full flip in the air before landing down trail from my bike. Snow can provide a really soft landing, and I was very grateful for that.

eject!

After remounting, and several failed attempts to get going again, we decided to abort this trail, in favor of getting out of the woods before the sun made the snow too soft to stay on top of. We doubled back and took the snowmobile track back the way we came. It was mostly downhill, and extremely fun. We were out for about 2 hours, in perfect conditions, and it really made me glad that I didn’t buy a ski pass anywhere this winter. It’s been extremely bad for snowboarding (pouring rain right now), but very good for biking.

it's called the Bridges Trail for a reason

While I am very excited to ride in 70° weather, it is only a short reprieve from winter. At least I have something to look forward to upon my return. So many more trails to explore…

I have recently received a whole bunch of new rubber from our friends over at Schwalbe. They seem to be the only European tire company that can deliver a tire these days. The bad news, is that they can be quite pricey. The good news is, they make one heck of a tire. For my money, if I were buying my own tires (as a consumer) I would not bat an eye at the price on them. They are really really good tires.

Having undergone a rubber compound update early 2011, the once “so so” tires gained superstar status, at least as far as our local Waterbury crew is concerned. I’m sure the sentiment is echoed throughout the entire cycling community as well. The tread patterns have always been pretty dialed, but since riders are more commonly accepting the tubeless concept, ghetto or otherwise, the rubber compound can either make or break the tire. Schwalbe is a company that gives me the impression that they are paying attention to the needs of the market.

I’ll give you a snapshot of what I’m talking about  (29er tires only):

• Their first real MTN 29er tire in 2008(esque) is the Albert, a narrow but blocky tire, kinda heavy but durable. Hardish rubber.
• Racing Ralph, 2 sizes, big and bigger. Light, but also flimsy sidewalls left them prone to tearing.
• Snakeskin casing introduced to combat delicate sidewalls on the smaller Ralphs. Rubber is still kind of hard.
• Furious Fred makes an appearance. Pissing war for lightest 29er tire in full effect. Sadly, the tire is both fragile and completely impractical for most applications.
• Rocket Ron and Nobby Nic appear. Grr baby, very grr.
• Schwalbe runs out of tires late 2010, revamps rubber compound to triple durometer, AND classifies tires as “tubleless ready” which basically means approved for use with sealant.
• New tires show up, Ralphs in Snakeskin, the 2.4s, but the best selling 2.25s are nowhere to be found.
• Rons follow next.
• Nics available in 2.25 and 2.35. Can be run at redonkulously low pressures (16psi).
• Ice Spiker Pro comes out late 2011, 850g studded, tubeless ready, and high volume tires. Yes please.
• Finally my best selling tire to date, the 2.25 Racing Ralph shows up with a modified tread pattern and new Pace Star rubber, and tubeless ready of course.

Ralphie, you'll shoot your eye out!

Obviously reacting to a market recoiling against $85 mountainbike tires, they release the Rapid Rob, the old Ralph tread pattern in an affordable package (wire bead, old rubber compound, 750g).

And 2012, Hans Dampf. Where have you been all my life? 2.35, Snakeskin casing, 850g and Trails Star rubber.

mmmm new tires...

In the dead of winter, I can only imagine what the Dampf rides like, but having spent some quality time over the years on their offerings, I can safely say this might be my go to tire on my fun bikes. The new Nic was a sure favorite of mine. I’ve run every single one of these tires tubeless with Stan’s with no problems, except that some of the lighter Rons and Ralphs require a bit more sealant than their bigger brothers.

German for awesome

You know, I wouldn’t be surprised if they drop a tubeless ready 1200g fat bike tire on us at Interbike this year… just saying…

 

Or Episode V. I promised I would continue my METAL saga one day. Here is a day when I choose to do so. Now… where was I? Oh yes, my diatribe about why Maiden is better than Priest. I established my early and undying devotion to Eddie and the boys in my last post, so now it’s time to see where that path leads.

Not to take anything away from Priest, they were a talented band, and were every bit as METAL as Maiden. But I do have to say, that they have been around so long that they had a disco stage (Diamonds and Rust). How long have they been around? Well, I do believe they started out as hippies.

I first became aware of Priest around 1986, when Turbo Lover was their big song. It was pretty commercial by the standards of what I was listening to at the time. I’d been listening to Maiden, Motorhead, Dio, Metallica, and the synthesisers kinda made them sound a bit like, well, Bon Jovi. There, I said it.

I always found Rob Halford’s voice to be kind of painfully shrill too. It didn’t really match what the band was doing. I actually think King Diamond did a better job with this type of sound, and let’s face it, Painkiller is basically a rip off of Mercyful Fate’s work. The live show leaves a lot to be desired, lots of standing around, not a lot of interaction with the audience. Sure there might be some pyrotechnics there, but they only seem to be there to keep your interest. Go ahead, watch some youtube videos, I’m right. No giant Eddy stumbling about the stage anywhere. Occasional synchronized guitar rocking at best.

I firmly believe everybody has a right to make money, but to sell minivans? Sorry.

I’m sure the same arguments could be made about Maiden, but they can’t be substantiated. Maiden didn’t fall apart until after guitarist Adrian Smith left the band, followed by singer Bruce Dickinson. Priest have been falling apart since the 70s. But Maiden always sounded like Maiden. They evolved, but they never changed their approach to getting the rock to the audience. They’ve put on some of the best live shows I’ve ever seen. Best of All, Adrian and Bruce came back, and now they have 3 guitar players and a 60 foot Eddy that shoots fire out of his eyes and they fly to gigs on their own custom airliner. Talk about making it. No minivans in sight.

What ever you do, do not get me started on Those Bitches Formerly Known As Metallica.

 

In less than one week, I will be in Arizona. I can’t tell you how excited I am for this little break in the action. Winter here is rough, and even though it hasn’t been the worst winter I’ve ever experienced, I can safely say that a few days in the sun can go a long way to recharge the batteries. I’m flying a little bit by the seat of my pants this time, opting for a true cosmic wave experience. I think it’s good to have just a tiny bit of uncertainty in life, it keeps things interesting. I know that I’ll be among friends in a very beautiful place, and that’s all I really need.

I also did not pick the Gozarian for this little trip either, instead favoring the Spot Brand Rocker. As they were kind enough to send me the bike, I felt it’s the least I could do to ride it. I installed the new 30t rear sprocket and a quick tour-du-store told me I would enjoy the new gearing. I’m very much looking forward to getting more miles on the belt drive, and it will be even more fun to ride it on some unfamiliar (esque) terrain.

Since my last trip out west, I’ve pawned off all of my excess tires, which means that I get to try something new. I chose a set of the tubeless ready Syncros FLavor K tires, a low tread, fast roller that looks like it would be pretty good out in the desert. The sidewalls didn’t seem too flimsy, and I’ve had a few of these tires hanging around the shop ever since they were first released last summer. I mounted them, and they sealed right up using my super awesome Topeak floor pump, holding 30 psi overnight.



With a little luck, myself, the bike and all my gear will arrive in Tucson safe and sound. I’m itching to go ride without having to wear 3 layers of clothes.

I had my first trundle fail this weekend. I thought I was being smart and came prepared to deal with any would be trail issues by bringing my pump and a mini-tool on my ride on Sunday.

a nice day for a trundle

I had a free morning, and although it was cold (-15°), it was bluebird skies and it was supposed to warm up into the 20s. I wanted to try and climb up to Peak-a-View in Sterling Valley, because it was a nice day for pictures. Well, because I had slacked and waited too long before setting out, the sun had had some time to work on softening up the snowpack. The track was well defined and quite packed down, but I was punching through with increasing frequency which was only making me frustrated. I ended up letting some air out of the back tire, and it seemed to help.

I continued my trundle into the woods, where the shade had done a nice job of keeping the snowpack nice and firm. I began my ascent, and was encountering more and more sunny spots where the snow was getting soft. My front wheel didn’t seem to want to stay on track, so I figured I’d stop and let some air out of it.

Well, that was my mistake. As I unscrewed the dust cap, the valve core came with it and all the air whooshed out of the tube. Much cursing ensued. I had to get to my Camelbak, which was under my jacket (in my attempt to keep it from freezing) and wrestle with my pump. After about 10 minutes, my arms tired from filling the tire with air, I went on my merry way. It takes a really long time to fill one of these big tires even to something like 6-8psi.

About 5 more minutes down the trail, the tire was flat again. I was mad. Again I had to get my pump from my Camelback and deal with the valve core that simply was not interested in doing its job. After about 20 minutes, and 3 attempts at getting the tire to hold air, I had to pull the plug on my ride. The valve core kept coming out with the pump.

flat

Completely irate, I had to walk the bike out of the woods. At least i was only about a mile from the car. I think I was most upset about he fact that it was such a nice day. it was well into the 20s by the time I got back to the car, and it was quite glorious out. Oh well, I’ll hopefully have a nice run of weather in AZ next week…

I chalked this ride up to a new learning experience, the moral of the story being “don’t mess with your bike on trail”. If I hadn’t screwed around with my tires I probably would have had a much better ride. Also, I figured out that early mornings or late afternoons/evenings are probably better times to roll on the bike, it definitely helps to have a much firmer surface to trundle over. With temps in the mid 30s all week, I won’t be getting any more saddle time on the Trundleraptor until my return from the southwest. This means more trainer hours, and I even have a glimmer of hope that I can ride one of my bikes outside once the roads clear up.

 

So after my first ride on the Trundleraptor, I began formulating some opinions. It is certainly a very fun bike, it adds some versatility to my harem of other really fun bikes, and it brings it’s own set of strengths and weaknesses.

The biggest downfall of this bike is of course, the weight. It is a tank, but that is to be expected. The wheels are where most of the weight is locked up, it’s just the nature of this beast. The Rolling Darryls are among the lighter rims out there, the cut outs really save a significant amount of weight over the Large Marge. I opted to use SuperComp spokes to try and get a little more weight savings, but I still would up with a wheelset of 1350/1420. That’s just over 6lbs of wheels, not including tires. And guess what, those tires ain’t light either.

There are also not a lot of options for the specific components to these bikes at the moment, but that is changing. Only a few short years ago, there was only one choice for tires, the Endomorph. Now Surly has an array, and they even have a folding version of the Nate coming out. There are also more choices in frames and forks out there, so there is growth in this category. It will be interesting to see what there is for fat bike offerings in 2 years. It sorta reminds me of 29ers 6 years ago.

On the plus side, this bike is a total blast to ride. I really look forward to learning more about winter riding. If last year you told me I would anxiously be getting ready to go ride in sub zero temps, I would have accused you of being on crack.

My last thought, one that occurred to me while riding yesterday, is that no one uses Indiana Jones quotes. I think this is a shame. Sure Star Wars quotes are awesome, but Raiders of the Lost Ark is a veritable goldmine of quotables. I’m going to do what I can to rectify this.