We made the paper - though admittedly it is only the Durango Telegraph.
Few thoughts on stuff I ran/rocked at the 12 hour race last weekend:
-E.13 cranks. These kept coming loose. They're a cool idea (BB30 spindle in a standard English shell) but man, I don't understand why they won't stay tight.
-Maxxis Ikon EXO tires. These are the bee's knees for racing. Great traction, fast rolling, and as far as I can tell, impossible to flat. I hit a lot of chunky square stuff at speed and felt the rim bottoming - but no problems for the tires.
-Short chainstays (415mm) and slack headtube (69 degrees) - wow, I love this bike. It was perfect for carving the tight turns, and it was also perfect for getting up and down all the little 1-2' ledges that littered the back side of the course. I literally thought it was the perfect hardtail for this race (though to be fair, I think an FS bike would have been faster overall).
-1x9. More gears than I needed on this course. Whenever SRAM decides to make a 10 speed gripshifter, I'll be on 1x10 - front derailleurs will be dead for high-level racing sometime soon, I think. And good riddance.
-100mm of travel/through axle for XC. 80mm is dead. So are quick releases. I will never go back.
15 comments:
First off...congratulations on the team win at Mesa Verde! That's quite a feat for someone that's cooped up in a garage all day.
Just out of curiosity, what % sag do you run on your personal bike?
What trail did you end up with?
DEFINITELY agree about the Maxxis Ikons. Got a set after I killed a Geax Saguaro. I was skeptical because of the weight & what felt like a flimsy sidewall, but damn if these things can't take a beating. My line selection is sketchy at best & these just keep going.
Joel -
Around 95mm trail. With the super short wheelbase (42.3") the bike is not sluggish at all in tight turns, though.
Kevin -
Yes, so far (knock on wood) the Ikons are magic!
One flat on the IKON (pinched at the rim).
Still not kicking it out of bed.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lfnzrUSSu5Q/TabHIQ33lvI/AAAAAAAAFfI/0VmC7E14f2g/s400/deathofikon.jpg
When I got my short-chainstay bike with slack ha (Canfield Y-S) I was worried about tight singletrack and climbing; but no need! Even with 120mm forks it carves and climbs like a demon.
..and I reckon a rigid specific slack ha short chainstay ss could be fun!
That 69 degrees static or sagged?
Jonathan -
69 degrees with sag. It's probably more like 68 with no rider onboard - but that's pretty irrelevant, since there's no rider on board!
I've had the exact same problem with the Hive/E13 cranks. No matter what I've tried, the bolt loosens after 20-30 minutes of riding trail. It's too bad, too, because the cranks are super nice and the BB30 spindle feels solid. I ended up replacing these cranks on my Waltworks with some Mr. Whirly cranks, which are heavy, but have been completely reliable on my Big Dummy, so should be up to the task.
@Walt: Thought it'd be sagged (as you're a sensible one), but always good to ask since you just never know! ;)
So geo-wise it (sounds) like a marginally shorter chainstayed Yelli-Screamy... so a Yelli-Screamy on steroids. Pity your framebuild wait list s soooo loooong. ;)
Jonathan -
Sort of, though the YS can run a front derailleur (mine can't, unless you slide the wheel back in the dropouts) and probably clears a large tire - mine will only take a 2.2/2.3 with the wheel all the way forward.
But yes, it's got 10mm shorter stays and a slacker HTA, so in some ways it's a more ridiculously over the top YS.
10 speed twist shifter. Not sure on the quality.
http://www.bikerumor.com/2011/04/21/10-speed-twist-shifter-for-sram-and-shimano-dynasys/
Pete J
Thanks for letting us know about the Ikon.
Have you tried Ikon front/Aspen rear? I've read a lot of racers like that combo.
Anon -
I kill Aspens. Quickly and mercilessly. So I can't say much about them, I gave up on them pretty quickly.
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