Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Happy New Year!

I'm not sure that I'll actually be awake to see the new year start, since I stopped caring about that sort of thing a looong time ago, and I'm if anything a lot less of a fan of the Julian calendar than most other folks, but I know my legions of loyal readers would be inconsolable if I didn't post a new year resolutions type of post.


So here you go. Just don't ask me to do this again for 365 days.

Stuff I'd like to do in 2009, in rough order of importance:

1. Break the Winter Park hillclimb record. I have always done well at hillclimbs, where my spastic bike handling skills can do minimal harm, and this is basically a ridiculous goal for me. Consider: in 2008, I rode 33:24, good for second place (and 5th fastest of all time) but the record (held by the esteemed olympian Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski) is just a *tad* quicker at 31:14. So I'll need to go a whopping 7% faster to match that pace.

That's, um, not going to be easy. Most of my plans at this point involve not drinking too much beer and riding hard a lot before the race (which is something I haven't really bothered with in years past - apparently they call it "training"). I may also get a bike with gears this time around, but I've been informed that the record would mean a lot more if I did it with hairy legs on my beat-up singlespeed. We shall see. There will be blog updates about this particular quest as it progresses.


2. Find a good wet painter. I've become less and less happy with the powdercoat guys - they are always behind, lose things, shoot things the wrong color or get bubbles all over the clear coat, etc, etc. Overall, they do a good job, but I'd like to explore other options for frame finishing. Got a good bike painter (in the Boulder/Denver area) that you like? Drop me a line and tell me about them.

3. Keep the shop (and the house) cleaner. I've always been a slob, and so is Sarah, and the two of us together are a holy terror of filth. I really think I get more work done when the shop is clean and well-organized, though, so I'm going to try to get on that. Any time now.

4. Finally fully rehab my bad left knee. I blew up the MCL in this knee in a motocross "accident" (read: episode of stupidity and incompetence) when I was in graduate school. I spent about 6 months riding my bike around with one leg to get to and from classes and such, and my right leg has been larger and stronger than my left ever since (I mean, it's visible. Pretty funny stuff). So every year I try to get the left leg back to the right leg's level, but every year the thought of riding one-legged very much is intolerable. Maybe this is the year?

Monday, December 29, 2008

New weightweenie bits

Nick the crazed Welshman hassled Ventana for, like, months to get this project rolling for his Waltworks 29er - he probably promised Sherwood some, er, unmentionable favors, too.

In any case, here it is. The super-duper machined-down lightweight Ventana rear triangle and rockers. Total weight (including hardware) is just a little over 1000 grams (1018, according to king freak Nick) - that's easily 250 grams lighter than the standard rear end. This should make a <6 pound full suspension Waltworks 29er frame a real possibility.

It's not for fatsos, though - the rocker has only a double set of bearings (rather than the standard quad bearings) and the diameters of all the tubes on the rear end have been significantly reduced. This is going to mean less stiffness, so if you're 180+ pounds, you're probably better off with the standard setup. This version does retain the main pivot quad bearings, though, so it should still be plenty stiff for regular sized riders on XC terrain.

$100 upcharge if you want this on your WW full squisher, folks. Well worth the money if weight is a concern, IMO. As of now, it's only available for 29ers. No idea if they'll do a 650b or 26" version. Thanks to the fine folks at Ventana for once again stepping up and making this happen!

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Another great article and last year's t-shirts

Ok, I won't post another annoying economics link for a while. Promise. But this one is really worth a read.



Second, if you don't like green, I have a few of the old grey Waltworks t-shirts still sitting around. Currently the stock consists of:
-2 men's size medium (fits me great at 5'11" and 155#)
-2 women's size XL (cut seems to be the same as men's, sizing equivalent to men's size small)
-2 women's size L (again, same cut as the guys shirts, just smaller - equivalent to an XS in men's). These fit my 5'7", 125# sister pretty well.

I'm asking $15 including shipping, or $10 if you live around here and come by in person. Or free with any frame or fork order!

More hype from the bike industry

Ok, so once again, I have nothing against Vassago. I think their bikes are just fine for what they are, which is inexpensive mass-produced steel. Essentially a Surly for folks who don't want a Surly.

But I was skimming their site while looking for geometry info on a customer's current frame and read this hilarious article about their "R-tech" 4130 tubing.

Let's go through it step by step:
"4130 can be drawn into any number of crappy or kick-ass tubes for bike frames. 4130 doesn't necessarily denote the quality of the tubing, it is simply the mix of chromium, molybdenum and other elements that makes up the actual steel before it is drawn into tubes. This ratio of elements happens to offer the best strength to cost-effective welding available. "

-Um, ok. Purgamentum init, exit purgamentum. The idea that the raw material you start with somehow *doesn't matter* is hilarious! Heck, let's make it out of pig iron! You can do lots of things to the mix of materials that go into steel to make it end up with different properties - the steel you'd make a nice knife with would make a lousy bike, and vice versa. 4130 is the cheapest decent steel you can use to make bikes. That's the bottom line. 853 or OX platinum, or whatever are more expensive because they're harder to work with - but they produce a lighter, thinner tube with the same (or better) strength.

-Second, what the heck is "cost effective welding"? It's not any harder to weld lighter/thinner/stronger material than plain jane 4130, really, at least not for someone with a modicum of experience, which I assume the Taiwanese welders who make these frames have.

"That's where the magic of R-tech comes in. Our tubes are drawn into hollow, butted tubes that perfectly temper weight savings with durability. A 1/2 lb lighter frame doesn't help much when it fails on you in the middle of nowhere."

-Hollow tubes? Well, that's certainly better than, say, solid steel rods.

-Yes, it's true that making something so light that it falls apart is bad. But using 4130 instead of, say, heat treated tubing or a higher end air-hardening tubing like 853 or OX platinum isn't a way of making the bike stronger. You're making it cheaper, and heavier, but that 7/4/7 OX tube is just as strong as the 4130.

"It's how the ancient Japanese used to forge Samurai swords and that HAS to be cool!"

-Erm...not really. High carbon knife/sword/blade steel is quenched to make it super duper hard on the outside, with a nice springy not-so-hard layer on the inside. It has no functional similarities to bike tubing whatsoever, and the manufacturing process is completely different. Plus, I think ninjas are way cooler, so they should have said their tubing was like ninja swords. Yeah!



"Most every performance oriented frame is double butted, but Vassago "butts" are optimized for our longer 29er dimensions to provide a perfect balance of weight, strength, ridabilty and value."

-Translation: We use cheap tubes to keep the price down.

"We call it R-tech."

-I call it the cheapest acceptable bike tubing you can use.

"We pass the savings on to riders who renounce big corporate "cookie cutter" 29ers, and simply lust for the "soul" of the ride."

-Ok, first off, the Vassago geometry uses the same chainstay length for every size of frame. Sounds pretty cookie-cutter to me. Second, they use the old "steeper seat tube angle" trick to make the toptube on the small frame look shorter - it's actually identical to the medium, except for the standover. Sounds pretty cookie-cutter to me. Soul? Sure. The soul of a solid but inexpensive and fairly generic bike frame made in Asia.

Back!

The holiday was lovely - deep philosophical discussions of 80's cinema with my stepbrothers, some nice reading (Ventus by Karl Schroeder), and the old junker actually made it to NM and back (and only ate 1 quart of oil and half a gallon of coolant). I'm thinking that's her last road trip, though.

Go read this great article in the Times this morning with a good if unsubtle title. Check it out. Then buy some American stuff if you need to buy something.

I'll be doing some work this week and next, then heading to AZ for 10 days starting on Jan. 6th. I should be doing a few blog posts in the meantime, but the holidays will continue to hold some of my attention, so don't expect loads of writing (or working) to happen.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Happy Festivus!


I'll be in Nuevo Mexico with the parental unit for a few days, so don't expect any fun posts or any significant work. I got everything wrapped up today and dropped off at the powdercoater, and I'm ready for some R&R.

As a final holiday note (from Tom Jennings, whose "tough" bike is pictured):

Maida Heatter's Zucchini Loaf Recipe:

3 cups sifted flour
Scant teaspoon salt (I go with a normal tsp)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp double acting baking powder
3 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg (If you're using freshly grated, this is a good amount, if not, I'd go with a heaping half tsp)
Scant 1 pound zucchini (to make 2 packed cups, shredded)
2 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup salad oil
1 tsp vanilla extract (I'm not shy here either)
4 ounces (generous 1 cup) walnuts, broken into medium pieces (optional)

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Butter and flour a 10x3x5 inch loaf pan or any other bread loaf pan with a 10 cup capacity (measured to the top of the pan) Two smaller pans will do fine
-Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and set aside.
-Wash zucchini well, give it a good scrub down, cut off both ends. Grate them zukes. Use a box grater, attachment on a food processor or, if you're in a pinch, julienne them. Do not puree. Do not drain. -Press firmly into a 2 cup measuring cup (or you can do it twice in a one cup measuring cup...). Set aside.
-In a large bowl, beat the eggs just to mix. Mix in sugar, oil and vanilla. Add the sifted dry ingredients and beat/stir to mix (As far as I can gather, like most other quick breads, you shouldn't over mix this. Go till just combined). Batter will be thick. Add the zucchini along with any juice that has collected and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. The zucchini will thin the batter. Add the nuts if you so desire.
-Turn into prepared pan/pans, smooth the top/tops and bake. In one large pan it will take one hour and forty five-fifty minutes. In two smaller pans, it will take less time. Either way, bake until a cake tester (does anyone actually own a cake tester? Whatever happened to a toothpick? Or your roommate's chopsticks?) gently inserted into the middle comes out clean and dry. This loaf will rise high and crack on the top.
-Cool in pan for roughly 15 minutes. Turn out onto cooling rack and right the cake so it can finish cooling, right side up.

Monday, December 22, 2008

Goodbye, cruel world


I spent a lot of time sweating in this helmet, getting passed by faster enduro riders. Also crashing. A lot. It's almost 10 years old and arguably hasn't been safe to ride in for the last 8 or so of those years, plus I haven't owned a dirtbike since about 2002 or so when I sold my last KTM. But damn it makes me sad to throw it away.

I still have my Sidi moto boots in the closet. I'm never giving them up. Too many fond memories. Probably. I do have way too much junk. Maybe I'll post a pic of my old Sidi dominators sometime. Those are some seriously trashed shoes, and I still can't manage to get rid of them.

BTW, everyone who ordered T-shirts: the shirts got here on Saturday night, so I just shipped them out. I'm assuming they will *not* make it in time for Xmas. So if you intended to give one as a gift, my apologies. I got them out as fast as I could.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Scrappie: My new tube bender

Yes, he has the same name as the sheep disease. And he's not much prettier to look at, but darn does he make nice bends in tubing (well, seatstays, anyway. I wouldn't want to try to bend anything a whole lot more substantial on him).

Materials were:
- 12" piece of 1" square tubing (scrap bin)
- Various bits of 3/4"x1/8" mild steel
- 2 3" pieces of 1" angle iron
- Seatstay scraps (for cradle pivots)
- Old piece of 3/4" plywood
- 3 wood screws



The lefthand (far) cradle is fixed to the spine of the fixture, but you can move the righthand cradle in or out depending on how far apart you want to support the ends of the tube. I'm honestly not sure if this matters much for the actual bending, but it was easy to make it adjustable, so I did.

The mandrel/form was made with a borrowed jigsaw. It's an 8" radius, and I beveled the edges of the 2 pieces of plywood, then filed out the middle to mimic the shape of a 16mm seatstay. I imagine I'll make a bunch more of these with different grooving and radius, just because they're easy to make and I have plenty of scrap plywood.

The hook (that looks like a little chair) attached to the spine is to hold the fixture in place in the mill vise. Otherwise it's too front-heavy to stay upright, which is annoying. I could probably come up with a more elegant design to solve this problem, but this project wasn't about elegance - it was about getting some tubes bent, and at that, it is a definite success.

Guess who built a new tube bender...


Thanks to several people (mostly on the MTBR Framebuilders forum) for ideas - I built a sweet, really accurate, adjustable bender that I can use with my mill vise, and here's the first set of s-bend seatstays (something I previously didn't do because of the shortcomings of my old bender).

It cost me an afternoon of futzing around, but all the materials came from the scrap bin, so I'm calling this a big win. I'm sure I'll be screwing up plenty of stays with it until I get the hang of things, but this first set came out quite nice.

I realize that this is the unprecedented 5th or 6th consecutive bike post. I promise a recipe or something else irrelevant this weekend, mmmmkay?

Edit: I almost forgot: HUGE thanks to Rusty for loaning me his jigsaw. This project would not have worked without it. I think the evidence will show that I'm the crappiest woodworker on the planet, but having a good saw helped a lot.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Who says I don't do drugs? I mean, uh, lugs?


Steve Garro-inspired seat lugs seem quite popular already - I think they're cool because they make the seat tube area really indestructible (and require practically zero reaming by me), and folks seem to like the look, too. Side benefit - I can select the exact butt lengths on both ends of the seat tube, so there's material exactly where I want it.

Here's the first one back from powdercoat (well, excluding my old-man CX bike, anyway). Yes, the color is extremely metro, but that's what this particular bike is for anyway - cruising to work in Albuquerque NM. I was worried that my lug brazing skills weren't up to the challenge and that there'd be a little air pocket or some burned flux messing things up, but she came out super nice!

For the weightweenies out there: yes, the lug adds about 30 grams. I think it's worth it, but if you want a standard non-lugged seat tube, I will of course do it that way.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

They're here...


Just in time for the holidays. Impress your loved (or unloved) ones with your attitude and hipness! Sick of hearing your riding buddy babble on about 29ers? Sick of hearing *yourself* brag? Well, show those smug jerks that they're 11% less cool than they thought.

Medium, Large, Xlarge are available. These are Hanes beefy T's, not Twinsix, so I'm guessing they run a tiny bit larger. $22, shipping included, and I will ship them out in time for the holidaze if you order by Wednesday.

Click here to order online

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

"Race" bikes

Interesting discussion (well, parts of it anyway, once you sort through the usual MTBR gibberish) on the FB forum on MTBR over the last week or so. Click here if you want to read through it all instead of just hearing what I have to say.

What stands out for me is that one poster posits that a "race" bike can, and should, be built lighter (and can be less durable) than a "trail" bike. I think this is a bit of a false dichotomy in mountain biking - we're not racing Indycars here, after all. Comparing a hardtail XC bike to a 6" travel "trail" bike isn't the point, because the long travel bike is intended for a totally different type of terrain. Assuming you're riding the same kind of trails both while racing and while just riding (which is what 95% of us do) I would argue that race bikes need to be burlier, not lighter, than their standard non-racing brothers.

Here's what I know - I've raced as a pro here in Colorado (a really crappy one, but then again I don't do any training) for almost a decade. In that time I've had an awful lot of bikes, some of them advertised as "race specific geometry" high-speed podium finishers, others as just regular old mountain bikes, and everything in between. For a good portion of that time, I've built my own bikes and raced them. Here's what I've learned:

-Race bikes take WAY, way more abuse than bikes that aren't raced. Don't believe me? Go scroll through some Craigslist ads for used dirtbikes sometime and see how many times you see the phrase "never raced" (as an aside, you'll also see "woman owned", which is a neat phrase meaning "Despite her objections, I purchased a low-end dirtbike for my wife/girlfriend and she refuses to ride it.") When _I_ race, I tend to take stupid lines, go faster than I should, take blind corners at high speeds, and generally behave as if my cerebrospinal fluid has been replaced with a cocktail of mephamphetamines and Red Bull. Of course, this doesn't mean that I actually do well in the aforementioned races, but I certainly put my bike through the wringer. Hence I submit that "race" bikes have far harder lives than those which are never raced. I submit a photo of the start of a Boulder short track race (grand prize: PBR) as proof of my theory:


-Race _geometry_ is actually the opposite of what most people think. You do not want a bike with a low trail number for racing, at least in the Rockies, because by the time you get to the downhill (and the bike handling) you are way too tired to be fighting to keep the bike going in a straight line at speed. Predictability and stability are key for race bikes, even if that means sacrificing some low-speed nimbleness. You're always faster if you don't crash and aren't afraid to let her rip on the straight stuff. This goes double for enduro racing, where you're going to be completely wasted both mentally and physically by the end of the race. Of course, every course and local area is different, but my point is that super-twitchy geometry does not always a race bike make.

-Frame weight is virtually unnoticeable. Sure, an extra pound of weight won't make you faster, but it also isn't going to change where you finish unless you're within a few seconds of the next guy or gal. A pound of frame, for an average guy, is 1/2 of 1% of the total weight of bike/rider/gear. Do you want to ride a heavy bike? No, not really. But a frame that handles predictably and fits well is WAY more important than a few hundred grams of weight. The frame is the last place to try to save weight, IMO. Most other components merely need to be durable - as long as your seatpost doesn't break, it doesn't matter, so get the lightest one you can. But if you have a frame that fits or handles poorly, you're not going to be fast no matter how light it is.

-Unless you're getting your frames for free, or you're independently wealthy, a durable frame is a better choice than an ultralight one. I think I broke 2 different Homegrown frames when I rode for Schwinn - and I never could have afforded replacements if they weren't free. There's a reason the really fancy bikes you see at a race are mostly ridden by Sport 45-49 guys who are tax attorneys by day. Look at the pro field and you'll see some fancy bikes ridden by the top guys (who are increasingly rare these days) and then a whole bunch of *random crap* ridden by the rest, most of whom are really, really fast. These guys are well aware that they could buy a "nicer" bike, but they also know that it won't make them any faster, so they save their money for entering races and/or not working as much so that they'll have more time to train. If you aren't rich, and you're buying a new bike every year you're being penny wise and pound foolish, as far as race results go. Less bike and more training will make a huge difference, so save your $5k (assuming you like your current bike), take some unpaid vacation days to train, and hire a coach while you're at it.

Bottom line, I guess, is that for me, a bike that is a good bike for riding trails with your friends is *also* a good bike for racing. There is no such thing as a "race" bike in my book. Most of us "race" our buddies up and down certain trail sections on pretty much every ride, and try to go as fast as we safely can all the time - hence the bike is really doing the same duty it would in a race. Ultralite disposable frames (how many Trek 9.9s are still around, only about 5 years after being the most popular race bike on the planet?) are a poor investment if speed is what you're after - invest your money and time in your fitness and skills, not fancier equipment.

Monday, December 15, 2008

It's hard to work...

...when it's still below zero at 11:30 in the morning. Looks like this will be a pretty unproductive day, folks, given that I think I almost got frostbite (with all my heaters running) this morning just trying to weld in a toptube.

It hit minus-12 last night. Inside of my sliding glass door in the house is covered with ice. I'm grateful no pipes froze!

Tomorrow's predicted high of 25 sounds positively tropical.

Friday, December 12, 2008

What on earth is happening to MTBR?

So I know online ads don't always make much sense. Those folks who frequent MTBR get bombarded with dating service ads, bike shop/part ads, bike event ads, and outdoor industry ads (ie, REI, EMS, etc). Most of the ads are at least vaguely relevant to bikes and outdoorsy folk. Or geeky bike guys who are lonely and desperate for a date, which as I recall from my college bike-geek days, is about 95% of them.

But lately, things are getting a lot weirder. This site has been popping up on the right side of the MTBR screen for weeks now. Check it out. Seriously. It's hilarious.

Mmmm. Ponzi schemes. What's next, online ads for Dr. Galveston's Magical-Fantastical general-purpose healing draughts? Are we regressing to the 19th century here? Should I expect to see a popup ad for a perpetual motion machine scheme next?

Then again, as I previously mentioned, 65% of Americans don't know what 25% of 8 is, so maybe this fellow is onto something with his Ponzification. Might be a good gig to look into if I get tired of building bikes.

Why I love Joe Bringheli


-Because he sells awesome .9mm S-bend chainstays that are SUPER ovalized, for great tire clearance. Sweet!

-Because he answers the phone by saying "Ah-bringheli-ah" in the thickest Italian accent you've ever heard.

-Because his website is the digital equivalent of a 1965 Volkswagen Beetle - nothing fancy, just the bare necessities.

-Because I've never met him in person, and so I can imagine that he looks like the Italian chef guy on the Simpsons.

-Because he ships you whatever you want, without asking for payment up front, and just says "send a check". Who runs a business like that these days?!?

-Because the crown race cutter I have from him is still going strong, with zero sharpening, after more than 200 forks.

Joe, you are the man.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Wow.

First off, I promise a bike-related post tomorrow.

I just couldn't pass this up, though. Americans are stupid, at least according to The Center for Economic and Entrepreneurial Literacy. If you click on the link, you can read the whole sad press release. Some of it isn't very surprising, but I was shocked by this:

"65% of respondents could not identify what would remain if you subtracted 25% from 8. One in three respondents could not identify what 1% of 50,000 was."

Seriously? I mean, this is a survey of ADULTS. Presumably adults who own telephones and are listed in the phone book (hence eliminating pretty much all of the folks who could possibly have an excuse for not knowing how to do math that simple). 65 percent don't know what 25% of 8 is?

We are all screwed.

On the plus side, though, I'm offering a special deal for new Waltworks customers - pay only *one penny* as a deposit, then two cents the next day, 4 cents the day after, and so on, for 60 days. Just think! A custom frame for only pennies - and on a 2-month deferred payment schedule you can afford!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

My 300th post...

...is bound to disappoint you if you don't like:
-Anasazi beans
-Crock pots
-Recipes that have nothing to do with bicycles


My brother, who is as far from a foodie as you can possibly get, once expounded on the benefits of slow cookers for making beans. Foolishly, I did not listen to him. But then Sarah acquired a crock pot from a coworker who is moving out of town (and in all honesty, had probably never used it). I mocked said crock pot as a waste of precious kitchen storage space, and predicted that it would do nothing but gather dust.

I have never been so happy to be wrong in my life. Except perhaps for that fateful day in 2001 on Green Mountain, when I saw my first 29er and said that it looked "pretty good if you just want to ride the fire road, I guess."

See, a bicycle tidbit. Now you can stop reading. Unless, that is, you want to blow your taste buds away and make some bean burritos tonight!

Ok, maybe not. But seriously, it's wintertime, and this will make your house smell ridiculously good while it cooks. You could probably even do it on the stove if you turn the heating elements *way* down low.

Presenting: The World's Greatest Bean Recipe.

Keep in mind, this is specifically for Anasazi beans. It probably won't work for other kinds. Anasazi beans are my bean of choice of late because they seem to make me, erm, less gassy than ordinary pintos or black beans. Sarah especially appreciates this.

2 cups Dry anasazi beans
4 cups Water
1 tbsp. Minced garlic
1 Small onion, diced
1 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Baking soda

Put everything in crock pot. Cook for 4 hours (or a little less if you like your beans with more texture).

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

T-shirt purchasing link

As per the previous post, I've set up the Paypal page.

Click here to go to the online store and buy a shirt

If you're not a Paypal person, you can also send me a check (remember, it's $22, shipping included, until Dec. 19th)

Waltworks LLC
5435 White Pl.
Boulder, CO 80303


Monday, December 08, 2008

I hope you like green...

Brent over at Twinsix has just sent me over the finalized design for the Waltworks 2009 T-shirts. Check it out!


Shirts will cost $22 (shipping included) if you preorder them in the next week or so. Thereafter, they'll be $25.

He says the shirts will tentatively be in my hands by the 19th, so if you preorder one now (I'll post a link to a PP page in a few minutes, for now you can paypal me $22 at waltworks at gmail.com to preorder) I will do my best to get it to you before Xmas. No guarantees, however.

For those who want something with more, erm, attitude, I'll also have a sartorial offering (in black) for you in the next few weeks.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Saturday rant

I used to have a lot of respect for Dirt Rag. Well, a little, anyway. They used to review gear and actually mention that it sucked, or at least point out that a lot of the manufacturer's claims were just standard industry hype, rather than just printing them verbatim like Bicycling or the always-awful Mountain Bike Action.

So I occasionally peruse their website (I get enough junk mail, and spend enough time reading about bikes, without subscribing... ok, I'm just a cheap bastard) and this morning I found their interview with the newly-resurrected Eastern Wood Research designer/owner Jay de Jesus. Jay makes some bold statements about the geometry and design of his frame:
"The 70.75 degree head angle is designed around the new fork offset of 46mm, we are able to achieve a frame that can be nimble and precise at trail-riding pace plus stable and comfortably flick-able at speed. This is a combination of head angle, seat angle, BB height, front center and cockpit height."


Ah, stable and flickable! My favorite 2 meaningless, hackneyed adjectives. Is there a bike out there that *doesn't* claim to be stable and flickable these days? Can't we move on to something new? I submit: "We are able to achieve a frame that is firm, yet yielding . Slim, yet extravagantly voluptuous. It attacks the descents like a rogue wave of ritalin addled ninjas, and floats up the climbs on the wings of an angelic choir."

Furthermore:

I designed it for balance. Our bikes wheelie, manual, climb, accelerate and descend very well—those are not traits that riders generally associate 29ers with. I firmly believe that we have the best handling frame out there, which is why we label it as the “World’s Most Versatile Hardtail.”

Wait, 29ers don't "wheelie, manuel, climb, accelerate, and descend" well? Well, jeez! Silly me! I somehow didn't realize all these years how absolutely crappy 29ers all are, for, say, going uphill. Or downhill. It's a good thing EWR is here to fix all those darn problems, or we'd all be stuck riding in slow circles in parking lots, making futile attempts to manual and sobbing quietly.

Let's see what the geometry actually is - maybe if I study this carefully, *my* 29ers won't be so terrible anymore! (as reported in an earlier DR article):
* Head Tube Angle: 70.75°
* Seat Tube Angle: 73.5°
* Top Tube Length: 23.7″ (medium), 24.6″ (large)
* BB Height: 12.25″
* Chainstay Length: 17.43″

"Most versatile", eh? Looks to me like it's a pretty bone standard 29er geometry in the era of 46mm offset forks - 71ish degree HTA is pretty normal, as is 73.5 STA, and ~12" BB, ~17.5" CS. So unless a quarter of a degree of HTA is creating the world's best handling frame, I think it should go something like this:

"Well, we built a durable frame with a cool look and nice standard unthreatening geometry. It's got a lot of retro charm, but modern handling, and it's made in the good old US of A. Well worth the price, we think."

"We've also recently sworn off hyperbole, which we feel adds about $500 to the value of the bike."

That's honestly what this frame is. A good solid bike made by people who know what they're doing (well, at least I hope they do, given how they've run their mouths about the darn things). Whether or not it's worth $1500 for a non-custom steel frame is up to their customers to decide, obviously, but claiming that it's the greatest thing since sliced bread is just silly. Shame on Dirt Rag for printing this kind of uncritical tripe.

Friday, December 05, 2008

Tagged!

So apparently Eszter has tagged this blog, and now I have to write six random things about myself that most people don't know. Seeing that anything beats doing being in the shop when it's 8 degrees, here we go:

-I once had a huge beard and a semi-afro. Here I am looking at all the mail from colleges during my junior year of high school. No, I did not get a lot of dates.

I was, however, obviously ahead of my time, since I looked like a retro grouch even before I owned a decent biycle! Too bad about the mustache part, though...


-I am a high school dropout (I went for a little over 2 years, then quit). I actually had to take the GRE (when I was in graduate school!) to get a job at Los Alamos National Lab.

-My legal name is Justin - my nickname comes from 5th grade, when (due to a growth spurt that showed up early) I was dominating the schoolyard football league, mostly by dint of having 40 pounds on everyone else. My ego swelled to titanic proportions, causing my friends to start referring to me as "Walter Payton the Second". The name, while now shortened, has stuck.

It's worth noting that said growth spurt came to a sputtering halt shortly thereafter, and my 9th grade, I was the scrawniest beanpole you've ever seen (5'11" and 120 pounds, baby!) Joining the swim team added almost 40 pounds of muscle in under 2 years, though.

-I'm allergic to wool socks. Or, to be more accurate, every time I try to wear wool socks, my feet swell up and turn red and itch like crazy. Weirdly enough, I can wear wool pants or sweaters just fine.

-My great uncle is Robert A. Heinlein, the famous science fiction writer.

Ok, so I know this waste of time needs to spread further. I tag:
Redcoat
and
Steve G

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

The best ginger cookies ever

Sorry, I'm not going to follow up (or further defend myself from trumped-up charges of oldness or lameness) yesterday's post. That one has gotten the most comments of any post, ever, which I guess goes to show you that not much has changed since junior high: getting made fun of is my greatest skill.

Moreover, as punishment, I'm posting another recipe. A holiday themed one, of sorts. Take that, heartless bike geeks!

I call these "snaps" but they are very moist and soft, actually. Not snap-like at all. But really, really gingery and good. They are very popular at Avery as a post-ride snack, paired with a tall pint of Rascal or IPA. They are about as unhealthy and addictive as any food item could possibly be without being crack cocaine (erm, is crack considered food?), though.

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 1/3 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp dry ground ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
3 oz. fresh ginger, grated (you can use more if you want)

Combine all the dry ingredients, then all the wet ingredients. If the dough is too dry, add some more butter or oil.

Roll golf-ball sized balls of dough in sugar, place 4-5" apart on a baking sheet.

Bake for 10-12 min at 350F.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

The old man bike


Don't call it a hybrid!

That's right, I've officially given up on drop bars. My neck and my back thank me, and I get to upset all the roadies blowing by them up Sunshine (2000 foot climb up to almost 8k feet today - on December 2nd! Outrageous!)

In any case, I am now practicing what I preach (I've ranted about how great flat bar road bikes are before), I guess, in that I look goofy but I'm comfortable.

Monday, December 01, 2008

Black friday update

Some folks have pointed out that it might be considered unfair of me to have offered the "free fork" discount last friday, since there are folks on the waitlist who put their money down long ago and have been patiently waiting.

I think there's some merit to that point of view, and in order to make it up to everyone, I've decided to extend that offer, with a slight catch.

Until January 1, 2009, anyone who orders a frame (including folks already on the list) will get a free custom rigid fork, provided you also order a complete parts kit. By complete kit, I mean *everything* - pedals, saddle, tires, you name it. In other words, the fork is free if you order a complete bike from me. The actual parts choices, are, of course, up to you, but this offer doesn't apply to the "dirtbag" build kits.

If you're not the rigid fork type (sissies), you can instead take $100 off a suspension fork of your choice from my extensive selection.

Hopefully this is a bit more fair to everyone. Once again, my apologies if you were upset about the special offer.