New Mountain Bikes (and old ones too!)
Back in 2001 I bought a black Specialized Stumpjumper. It felt like a lot of money back then, hell it was a lot of money back then, but I have had it ever since. Things have changed on it over the years; disc brakes, lighter wheels, wider bars, shorter stem, better drivetrain and generally the bike has evolved to suit how I like to ride. When I snapped the Manitou Axel forks I replaced them with steel Surly DJ forks and the Stumpy became a rigid. I used it for blasting around the local Glasgow singletrack, a bit of racing and commuting and it was perfect. The rigid forks were short, keeping the front end low and made for a fast and nervous ride!
When I moved out to the Basque Country I didn’t take the Stumpy with me but got it shipped out afterwards. I used it a few times but with it’s steep head angle and rigid forks it wasn’t very suited to the trails round here. I used it on the roads a bit and for exploring fireroads but it generally sat in the garage. Unloved.
Then… I got a loan of a set of 100mm Bombers from about 2003 or something and popped them on the Stumpy. I wasn’t sure how much of a difference it would make but took it out on some trails last week. We did some moderately technical trails, Jaizkibel, Etch-a-Sketch, Cassius Clay and a few others and the Stumpy felt great! It is so nice to be riding a hardtail again, it’s a combination of feeling everything through the back wheel and the rapidity with which is picks up speed. I’m totally enjoying it! It is going to be a fantastic tool for trail finding over winter because it’s so light I could walk for miles with it on my shoulder if I need to and it’s that much faster than the Hustler so my trail finding range is going to increase significantly.
All good!
Just so the Hustler and STD don’t feel left out I have given them a good service, changed fork seals and generally tarted them up. The Hustler has lost it’s XTR cranks and gained a set of Saints and is generally feeling great. It needs a new back wheel but other than that it’s all good. We have also bought a couple of our hire bikes from last year, Commencal hardtails, because the shop was selling them off and I really rate them. They have a good, confidence inspiring geometry and the brakes, forks and gears all work sweetly. They are a bit heavy but durable and feel solid on the trails. I am comfortable taking them out on most trails in a way I wouldn’t be with a lot of other “lower budget” bikes.
I’ll put up a full review of this year’s bikes, components and tyres at the end of the season but that’s all for now.
<object width=”580″ height=”326″><param name=”allowfullscreen” value=”true” /><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always” /><param name=”movie” value=”http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=14543395&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=1&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0″ /><embed src=”http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=14543395&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=1&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” allowscriptaccess=”always” width=”580″ height=”326″></embed></object><p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/14543395″>The Dudes of Hazzard episode 4</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/user3310425″>Joe Barnes</a> on <a href=”http://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>
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| As I said in my last post we have been a bit quieter in August than we expected. We had enquiries for last minute holidays but that is very hard in August because people from all over Spain and France come here for their holidays so it is difficult to find space in our accomodation. It´s a pity because August is a great month for cycling here, with great temperatures, so if anybody wants to come next August then book early! (It´s worth noting that we´re fully booked for the first week in August 2010 already). So with a couple of weeks to fill we have been doing some exploring and tracking down some new trails for next year. Read the post » |
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| It´s been ages since I´ve written anything. Sorry about that but we have been incredibly busy; in a good way! We have been guiding flat out in July which has been fantastic and not as tiring as I was worried about; all those miles over winter have obviously paid off. I have had a few mornings with tired legs but after a few minutes of spinning they have woken up and I´ve been feeling stronger and stronger through the month. The other thing that worried me was that I would loose my enthusiasm for the bike, that was something that would be a big issue for me. No such thing though. There hasn´t been one single day when I haven´t been excited to get out riding; when it hasn´t been a pleasure. So, if you´re interested then read on for a brief summary of this month and some photos from our adventures. Read the post » |
| It’s been a while since my last update… we’ve been busy riding and guiding over the past 3 weeks so I’ve not had a chance. Last month I got the chance to visit Andorra, courtesy of Commencal, to check out their new bikes and have a play on some of them at the Vallnord bike park. Then the last couple of weeks I have been back in the Basque Country guiding. Read the post » |
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It’s been a while. In fact I can’t remember the last time I fell without knowing I was pushing it, and being padded up and out with friends. Today I was exploring a local area and had followed a faint piece of singletrack along a river. Read the post »
| This week I was lucky enough to have the Navurros, a group of hardy Spanish bikers from around Pamplona, show me some seminal mountain biking on one of their secret trails. They reckon this is one of the best trails in their part of Spain and I knew that I would never have found it without a local guide, so I was really excited to give it a try. I had done the second part of the route before, using a car for uplift, so I had some inkling what to expect, however this time we were starting at around 300m and biking the whole loop, peaking at around 1450m, so it was a bit of a different proposition! Epic “mountain-bike-eering” in it’s truest form was the order of the day! Read the post » |
I’ve been out trail finding a lot recently. On Friday I found a lot of new singletrack but as often happens, I ended up riding down some fantastic climbs and sweating up some fantastic descents. I was generally feeling a bit grumpy about it all and it started me thinking about trail finding in general, and how different it was to going out for a ride.
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We have just recieved the designs for the new freeride or downhill tops. Long sleeved and with a baggy fit these are the tops I’ll be wearing over my armour on our uplift days! Ready for shredding, ripping or whatever else the kids are doing these days…
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Phew! What a few days mountain biking. I’ve been tearing it up on the coast but other than that it’s been all about the big mountain ridges for me. I don’t know what it is that’s so cool about biking along (or preferably down) a great ridge line but for me it’s one of the great pleasures to be had on a bike, especially when they’re blessed with the views of the sea on one side and the mountains on the other. |
I love this time of year, there’s that expectant feeling in the air that we get with spring; a combination of the knowledge of sunny days to come and the combined sexual tension of the animal kingdom.
Every sunny day seems to be the first footfall of summer, only for the next storm to shatter our hopes! Generally the weather has been gorgeous but the air is still sharp and if you stray from the warmth of of the sun and into the shadows of the forest, the air temperature is still low. Throughout the mountains, the plants are starting to spread and flowers are starting to poke through last autumn’s leafy carpet. In another couple of weeks the forest floors will be teeming with green leaves and scented plants, and it will take an effort to recall the tingle of cold air on the inside of my lungs. Read the post »