Waltworks Bicycles

Pictures and words for Cody

2012-02-08T17:09:00.000-08:00

I figured if Garro can throw frames in the snow to take pictures of them, so can I, darn it!

Seriously, Cody, don't freak out, it won't hurt anything.

This is a singlespeed, rigid, no-suspension-ever-no-matter-how-much-you-whine XC bike. It's an interesting case (and I'll be very interested to hear how Cody likes it) because of how it compares to his previous frame (not built by me) which he likes pretty well, but I sort of think is not the best design.

So, for reference, here's the old geometry. Keep in mind, Cody's not super tall, rides twisty/tight trails, and likes his setup pretty stiff out of the saddle.

As you can see, the bike has a pretty low trail number (73mm) and shortish front center (63cm). So far, basically so good. I did some tweaks to lengthen the front center and add some trail (71 HTA instead of 72), and we decided to lengthen the head tube as well for a tiny bit more upright position/less need for spacers. Both of those changes were intended to address Cody's feeling that on steep downhill stuff, the bike was a bit scary and he felt like he was potentially headed OTB. So front wheel moves forward, maybe bars go up a little, but not that much. We didn't want TOO long of a front center or high of a trail number, since the majority of the time, the riding won't be on super steep DH.

It's at the rear end that I felt the bike was really odd. 45cm chainstays (that number isn't shown on the drawing, but that's what they are) for a rider whose saddle height is 70cm, riding singlespeed on tight terrain? A wheelbase of 107.3cm? IMO, that's criminally long in this case, so I whacked a full 25mm off of the chainstay length.

The end result is a frame with a bit higher trail number and less tucked-under front wheel that should reduce anxiety a bit in steep terrain. A much shorter overall wheelbase should allow quite a bit better maneuverability on the tight stuff, as well as much easier front wheel lifting and general front-to-back weight shifts (or, if you're either very talented or very stupid or both and showing off in the parking lot/tossing the rear end around a switchback, back-to-front).

Here's the whole set of numbers:
-71 degree HTA, 73 STA
-12.4" BB height, 635mm front center, 82mm trail
-59cm toptube, 45cm seat tube
-Rigid only (didn't get a picture of the fork, doh) and SS only
-105.2cm wheelbase, 42.5cm chainstays (actual, that's 42cm effective)
-S-bends (this was the fallback, I had a hard time with doing segmented stays and bailed to what I know, I'll have to spend some time working on the segmented thing before I sell any to customers) and clearance for a 2.4" tire in the rear/2.5"+ in the front.

Hopefully the end result will handle pretty much all terrain better than the old geometry - we'll find out in a few weeks. Could we have gone even shorter on the rear? Yes, definitely. But Cody does like his existing bike pretty well, so I didn't want to go completely nuts - 25mm shorter is already a huge amount, and at the length we ended up at, life is easy (relatively) for component compatibility and chainring/tire/etc clearance.

Auspicious Announcements - and Upcoming Changes

2012-02-07T11:29:00.000-08:00

First off, if you're not on the waitlist or contemplating getting on, this isn't super relevant, and it's not going to be super entertaining, so click back over to Bikesnob now...

Ok.

Item 1: Sarah and I are expecting a baby boy (our first child; code name "The Bean") in mid-April. We will probably be pretty incompetent and sleep deprived for a while.

Item 2: Sarah has completed her biochemistry PhD and is applying for postdoctoral positions at several universities in the mountain west kinda area, but none in Boulder. If she's hired for one of them, which is likely, she'd start in Fall 2012 or thereabouts.

What does this mean? It means a couple of things. I expect to complete the next 8 or 9 frames on the waitlist with no trouble (barring an unexpected early appearance.) After that point, all bets are off for a while. I will certainly attempt to get some work done when we bring The Bean home and start learning how to take care of him, but I am not going to make any hard guarantees.

As of June, things should be back to normal, but by that point, we may also be in the midst of preparing to move to another state for Sarah's postdoc. That will mean *more* potential delays, of course, because I'll be working to build bikes and also preparing to try to get several thousand pounds of tools and parts, along with all our other possessions, moved to our new location (for those who are curious, it will most likely be Salt Lake City, but possibly Fort Collins - or, you never know, we might stay in Boulder).

The bottom line is this: I am not guaranteeing delivery times for new orders right now. My family is very important to me and if you're in a big rush to get a bike or need your frame by a specific date in 2012, you may want to look elsewhere. I may be able to stay on my 1 frame/week schedule, and I will certainly try, but if Sarah and The Bean need my full attention, they will get it and bike work will wait. I will, of course, keep everyone updated on my progress via the waitlist and the blog if for some reason I'm not able to work for any significant period of time.

Thanks Steve... I think?

2012-02-05T12:26:00.001-08:00

I have not yet gone blind, so that's good. Homebrew is always a welcome tip at WW world HQ - as long as you don't poison me.

Seriously, tasty cider. Goes well with an aged gouda. Thanks Steve!

Yes, the counter is filthy.

Eszter wins Arrowhead 135!

2012-02-04T11:58:00.000-08:00

And in record time, no less! Congrats E!

Pat's bendy stuff

2012-02-03T16:48:00.001-08:00

Pele is not impressed.

Dorkery of the day

2012-02-03T08:27:00.000-08:00

And here I thought Little Troy wanted to play basketball all the time. Once again, the Oxford English Dictionary has blown my mind, and set the record straight. He was obviously thinking of the Earl of Rochester.

OED Online Word of the Day

Your word for today is: baller, n.2

baller, n.2
Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈbɔːləː/, U.S. /ˈbɔlər/, /ˈbɑlər/
Etymology: < either ball n.2 or ball v.3 + -er suffix1.
A person who takes part in a ball; spec. (in pl., usually with capital initial) the name given to a group of rakes of the Restoration Court, led by John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, and renowned for their dissolute behaviour.
The group is known chiefly through Pepys's Diary: see quot. 1668.
1668 S. Pepys Diary 30 May (1976) IX. 218 Here I first understood‥the meaning of the company that lately were called ‘Ballers’; Harris telling how it was by a meeting of some young blades‥and my Lady Bennet and her ladies; and there dancing naked, and all the roguish things in the world.
1671 H. Savile Let. 26 Jan. in Rochester-Savile Lett. (1941) 31 [Your Lordship] is chosen Generall in this warr betwixt the Ballers & ye farmers, nor shall peace by my consent ever bee made till they grant us our wine and Ds custome free.
1673 Coll. Poems Several Persons (rev. ed.) 108 The Ballers life‥. With dangerous Damsels we dally, [etc.].

1946 Rev. Eng. Stud. 22 341 [Frank Newport and Harry Killigrew] were members of the obscene company of ‘Ballers’, to which Savile, Sedley, Rochester, and others of the Court Wits also belonged.

From Miguel

2012-01-29T15:53:00.000-08:00

Apparently a problem with his suspension fork forced Miguel to put an ancient rigid fork that I made 7 or 8 years ago on his dualie for his Chile trip - and he claims to have liked it!

Welcome to 2005

2012-01-29T10:51:00.001-08:00

...that is, if you're Dom Mason. Read through the article - it's hilarious that it's been published in 2012, with these types of 2005-esque quotes (also notice the awesome artsy photo with matching frame decals, t-shirt, and color-coordinated Swatch):

"The 29er is a packaging nightmare. You know exactly where you want to put all the centres and contact points for it to ride right but there are many physical barriers to doing that. Key areas to get right are chainstay length, BB height, stack height and trail. The large wheel size throws up all sorts of problems you just don’t get with a 26in wheel, like front mech, chainring and toe clearance."

"A steep head angle keeps the trail dimension as close to a small-wheeled Maxlight as possible and ensures lively handling."

"I found that by putting a 2.5° radius bend on the base of the seat tube I could increase mech clearance and tyre clearance, and shorten the stays to lighten up the front end."

"We know 29ers are capable of steamrollering trails and going rather fast over the bumpy downhill stuff, so adding a dollop of legendary Maxlight handling into the mix might just lead to a trail destroyer!"

And then, my personal favorite:

"New thinking on geometry and vastly improved suspension forks, wheelsets, tyres, headsets and also the acceptance of 2x10 drivetrains has turned the idea of the big-wheeled bike from an eyebrow raiser into a really exciting new branch on the riding tree. Now it’s worth sitting up and taking notice."

Translation: "Please, please let us on the bandwagon that we apparently missed half a decade ago. We desperately need to make money by selling something popular and we hear 29ers are popular. If everyone was riding 12-inch-wheeled Oscar Meyer weinermobiles, we'd try to make those too."

As a side note, what the heck do 2x10 drivetrains have to do with 29ers suddenly becoming an "exciting new branch on the riding tree"?

Sunday Rant: CU Tuition!

2012-01-29T09:10:00.001-08:00

Keep in mind, this isn't personal. I never paid a dime of tuition (scholarships and stipends FTW!) to CU and neither did Sarah.

Still, this DC article distressed me. For those who don't want to read the whole thing:
CU has consistently raised tuition by ~10% a year for at least a decade (this year, the proposal is a 15.7% increase!) At the same time, they have given massive raises to (and hired more) administrators. Ostensibly high administrator pay is necessary to "keep pace" with "peer institutions" (other state flagship universities).

Here's my take: nobody goes to college because the chancellor is awesome. Most college students couldn't name the chancellor, vice chancellor, or even president of CU (nor the board of regents, who make the actual decisions, of course). When you think of awesome CU employees, you think of people like Carl Wieman, or Tom Cech. People who do awesome research, who do great teaching. Not figureheads. Not paper-pushers or bean counters. Do you need paper pushers and bean counters? Of course! Do you need to pay them $389,000 a year? Heck no!

So my proposal - simply make it part of the CU bylaws that no administrator can make more money than the average full-time, active (ie, doing research and teaching) professor. We have freaking NOBEL LAUREATES who make considerably less than some administrators - that's pathetic. No more than 1 administrator per 10 active faculty members, too! When I want to brag to someone about CU, I talk about Carl Wieman, not Bruce Benson or Phil DiStefano. They're glorified paper-pushers at best, but really more like figurehead leeches who seem to continually multiply.

There - a nice simple salary cap. Might be worth applying it to the athletic department as well while we're at it - I love sports, but we don't need coaches who make millions of dollars a year while top-notch teachers and researchers quit to join the private sector because they get paid peanuts.

Here's the other thing - if you actually paid the people who make CU great, cut administrative spending to the bone, and cut tuition, CU would be on the front page of every newspaper in the country. Parents would fight tooth and nail to get their kids a spot here. "Peer" institutions would have no choice but to follow along - or have their best potential students cherrypicked by CU.

Pat's Curvy Seat Tube

2012-01-27T18:43:00.000-08:00

No, it's not really necessary. But thanks to me posting pictures of my silly new FS bike, everyone and their cousin wants a curved seat tube. And so I spent a couple of hours this morning cursing a Supertherm 1/7/1x31.8 "seat" tube. Yes, you can curve butted tubes - but only if the center section is thick enough, which this one is. And it needed to be pretty beefy, this frame is a bit of a monster.

Exhibit 1: The downtube is a 44.5mm Supertherm job, so big that it swallows the seat tube miter whole! After trimming the ears down, it just barely can be welded in without looking weird.

The toptube, too, is Supertherm, and the head tube is a big 44mm ID for a tapered steerer fork. All this big beefy tubing almost makes the Deda 30x16mm/1mm wall s-bend chainstays look wimpy (they're not - not at all). The plan is to use some beefcake seatstays too, with rack mounts for adventure touring/Great Divide/etc.

Should be a fun all-around adventure bike. Here's the relevant geometry for curious people:
-70 degree HTA with a 128mm head tube. Built for 100mm travel tapered steerer fork.
-75 actual/73 effective seat tube. 49.5cm/19.5" curved. Neato.
-Clearance for 2.5+" tires.
-44cm chainstays (at the forward-most adjustment of the sliders), 315mm (12.4") bb height.
-Supertherm tubes throughout, way beefy. For a 12x135 Maxle (Paragon sliders).
-S-bends, direct mount front derailleur (not on there yet!), rack mounts, 3 H20 cages, ready to rock for carrying a big load far from civilization.

New FS ride report

2012-01-25T15:59:00.000-08:00

Ride reports are inherently kinda dumb - lots of words like "flow" and "flickable" and "plush" that don't really mean much to anyone but the person writing the review.

However, I will say that I'm very happy with my new frame. It indeed rides very quickly both uphill and down, the suspension keeps the wheels stuck to the trail when I'm attempting to get around corners quickly, and I even managed to put a second or two into Steiny (he must have been taking it easy on me) on a *descent* today.

So, thus far, a smashing success. It's easy to get air, it's easy to throw around in corners, but it's pretty good at holding a line on the fast rough stuff too thanks to the slack head tube and big trail number. Exactly what I like for riding around here.

That being said, I've done a single 2 hour ride, which had maybe 5 minutes of downhill singletrack in it. But the curved seat tube did not disintegrate, the bike handles like a dream so far, and nothing even came loose, despite the fact that I assembled the thing in a hurry late at night. Great Success!

"Weekend" Project

2012-01-23T18:11:00.000-08:00

This is something I've been dabbling with on and off for months and months, but this weekend, I decided I'd finally finish it. Of course, the "weekend" ended up including a decent amount of Monday, but it's finally (almost) done - my geeked-out FS racer-boy frame.

Yes, I know that as recently as a few years ago I was getting outsprinted at the line on my super-core rigid singlespeed (damn you, Mitch!) Then I graduated to a suspension fork. Lame. Finally, I raced 24 hours of Moab on a full suspension bike that I inherited after DHL did it's best to destroy it... and loved it. The transition to oldness and lameness (let's not forget: slowness) had begun.

And that process culminates here, in my attempt to build/buy back some of the extra weight around my middle. As usual, it probably won't work, but what the heck.

Another reason for building this was that I had an old "superlight" Ventana rear end lying around that it had become clear nobody was ever going to buy from me. So I figured what the heck... I'll do a super light FS bike, and use my new tube bender to make a sweet bent seat tube.

So, here she is. First, geometry:
-69 HTA, effective 73 STA
-60cm/23.2" effective toptube
-48.2cm/19" seat tube, curved like buttah!
-335mm/13.2" unsprung BB height - yes, low
-100mm travel front/rear
-43.3cm/17" chainstays
-108.6cm/42.7" wheelbase (!!!)
-150mm head tube
-1x only right now, I might add a direct mount for a front derailleur at some point (or not, we'll see).

And the kicker... 2625g, or 5.8# with the shock and all the hardware. That's by far the lightest FS bike I've ever built - and it's not even small. Nothing crazy with the tubing, either - the seat tube is Supertherm, and the TT and DT are 8/5/8 OX platinum. Should be durable enough for everday riding, albeit not for a huge rider or big hucking craziness.

The geometry is weird, I know. I went super short, and super slack. And the standover, for most people, would be kinda sucky. But for leggy me, it's fine. I did a similar geometry on my 2011 hardtail and loved it - so why not do it with a dualie? Could I easily sell it to someone if I don't like it? Well, no. But that wasn't a major concern.

Before you flip out and email me wanting this frame, or one like it (perhaps with less kooky geometry) keep a couple of things in mind:
-As far as I know, Ventana won't do these superlight rear ends anymore. So add 200g or so for that - meaning that a medium-ish frame would be in the 6.2# range right off the bat.
-Most people would probably want a bigger head tube for a tapered steerer - which will also add some weight. I used a 1mm wall 36mm OD OX platinum tube here, partially because I was geeking out about weight, and partially because I already have a fork to fit and am not fat enough (yet) to feel that I need a tapered steerer.

Here's a quick shot of the bike built up (24.5# with my old junky parts) that I snapped quickly before heading inside to cook up a batch of green chile stew. Ride report soon, assuming the weather holds.

Live 50 feet from WW World HQ!

2012-01-21T10:37:00.001-08:00

My neighbor Charlie is renting his place (2 doors down from us):

We are renting our townhouse in East Boulder (Arapahoe and 55th area, across from the golf course). We have had great tenants and would love to find some responsible solid tenants again. Please pass this to anyone you know who may be interested.

East Boulder Townhouse for rent
· Two bedroom, 1050 square feet total
· 1.5 bathroom
· Two-car garage
· Air conditioning
· Washer/Dryer
· New furnace with whole-house humidifier and whole-house fan
· Small backyard with great patio
· Recent improvements include: new bamboo floor, new deck/patio, new island countertop, redone 1/2 bath
· Quiet neighborhood across 55th Street from the Flatirons Golf Course
· Pets allowed
· Rent: $1450
Boulder SmartRegs Rental Certified

Available March 1. If interested, contact Walt and he'll put you in touch with me.

A little tip...

2012-01-21T09:09:00.000-08:00

If your wife is pregnant, and riding the trainer isn't comfortable anymore, even with a stem extender - this is a great solution. It does make it a little bit weird to shift, though!

Waltworks in Architect magazine

2012-01-19T17:59:00.000-08:00

Fuentes is a huge poser (warning: do not follow the link if you're on a slow connection.)

Dirtbag 2012

2012-01-19T11:13:00.000-08:00

First, a warning. This is not a true "dirtbag" build. Some parts (notably fork, wheels) are actually quite nice and you could cut several hundred dollars off just by changing them out (or going rigid). But I figure if you're spending 4 figures on a frame, spending <$200 on a suspension fork doesn't make a ton of sense. You might disagree, and that's fine - you can come up with your own dirtbag build.

Dirtbag Build 2012

Frame: Waltworks Custom and Johnny Cash black PC ($900 more for full suspension)
Fork: Rockshox Reba RL
Headset: Cane Creek 40
Stem: Kalloy Ultralite
Handlebar: Truvativ aluminum flat
Brake levers: FR-5
Shifters: X-7
Front derailleur: XT direct mount
Rear derailleur: X-7
Chain: PC1031
Cassette: PG1050
Crankset: Shimano Deore w/BB
Seatpost: Kalloy
Brakes: Avid BB-7
Wheelset: ZTR hubs/any Stan's rim
Tubes: Tubeless goop
Tires: Nanoraptor steel bead
Grips/tape: WCS
Saddle: Speed V comp

Damage: $2500, or maybe as low as $2100 or so if you go cheap on the fork and wheels.

Smart Money 2012

2012-01-18T09:36:00.000-08:00

Ok, yesterday was the Dream Build. Most of us aren't about to spend $5-6k on a bike, so today's build is the "smart money" setup - the best stuff that doesn't cost a fortune. This isn't a cheap bike, by any means, but nobody is going to look at it and laugh at you for your 92 gram unpadded carbon fiber saddle, either.

Without further ado:

Frame: Waltworks Custom (we'll assume Johnny Cash black, because "smart" money don't care about color, yo. Add $900 for FS version)
Fork: Fox F100 15mm RLC
Headset: King (black)
Stem: Thomson X4
Handlebar: Easton EC70 or Haven Carbon
Shifters: X-9
Front derailleur: XT or X9 direct mount
Rear derailleur: X-9
Chain: PC1051
Cassette: XT
Crankset: XT
Pedals: None
Seatpost: Thomson Elite
Brakes: Magura MT-2
Skewers: Bolt-on rear, front 15mm
Wheelset: 240s hubs/any Stan's rims
Tubes: Quart of Stan's slime
Tires: Ignitor front/rear
Grips/tape: WCS
Saddle: Speed V pro

The Damage: $3500, or $4400 for the FS version.

Dream Build 2012

2012-01-17T08:14:00.001-08:00

I've spent almost a whole year looking at other people's fancy bikes and wishing they were mine, so it's about time for a dream-build update for 2012.

Keep in mind that this is all stuff that I would actually buy and use. No Tune, no AX-lightness, nothing hand-polished by blind Germans with organic q-tips. I like light stuff, I like strong stuff, and I like American-made, gosh darn it.

Without further ado:

Frame: WW custom hardtail (for FS frames, add $900)
Fork: Fox F29 taper steerer, 15mm axle (travel is up to you)
Headset: King taper
Stem: Thomson X4, or for the weight weenies, Ritchey WCS 4-axis
Bar: Easton EC70 or Haven Carbon
Shifters: X-9 trigger (or gripshift, hopefully, if the darn things are ever released!)
Front derailleur: XT or X-9 2x direct mount
Rear derailleur: XX medium cage
Chain: PC1091
Cassette: XX 11-32 or 11-36
Cranks: XTR 2x and XTR BB
Seatpost: Thomson Masterpiece
Brakes: Magura MT-6 w/Storm SL rotors
Skewers: Front included, rear 10mm DT through-bolt
Wheels: Enve XC or AM tubeless rims laced to DT 240 or King hubs
Tubes: None, 1 qt of Stan's goop, baby!
Tires: Maxxis Ikon, Ardent, Ignitor, or any combo you like
Grips: Ritchey WCS foam
Saddle: WTB Speed V ti

The good news? That's a ~21# bike (or less, if it's a 650b or 26er - this assumes 29" wheels) that will actually handle most anything you can throw at it. The bad? It'll set you back a cool $5600 (or $6500 for the full suspension version).

I'll do the SS, smart-money, and dirtbag 2012 builds over the next week or so, so stay tuned if you're looking for something configured a little more affordably.

Go Ned!

2012-01-15T20:17:00.000-08:00

I didn't even know he was doing the race, but my old college buddy and riding partner (both motorized and non, I'll let you guess who was better at which...) from back in the day, Ned Suesse, finished as the the #1 American at the Dakar Rally!

You can check out some blog entries of his about the race here, if you're into the moto/enduro thing. Nice job Ned!!!

More links:
Pictures at Boston.com
Video from Ned (not of the race, though)
REALLY long thread on Adventurerider

The end of the CDTA

2012-01-13T13:25:00.000-08:00

I just got an email (read it here) from the Continental Divide Trail Alliance that says they are ceasing operations, which is a shame, since the CDT is IMO potentially the coolest trail in the United States.

I do wonder how well the organization was run, though. Despite getting lots of pleas for donations and literature from the CDTA, I never really felt that I was connected to the trail in any way - partially because it's not clear to me where the trail even *goes* exactly in Colorado. I know the general gist of it, but when I hear "CDT" I don't think of any specific sections that I love or hate, or parts that I hope will be constructed soon. It seems to me that the CDTA did a pretty poor job making the trail relevant to the people who live near/on it, and without local support, it's hard to make something so long and involved into a concrete reality.

In contrast, when you mention the Colorado Trail, most mountain bikers eyes will light up (even many who don't live in the state). Everyone's got a favorite section (and least favorite) and the route is well marked and pretty well maintained as well. The trail joins destinations that people actually want to go to (Denver-Durango, with stops in the South Platte, Breck, Salida, etc) Maybe that's a function of A) the shorter distance) and B) the much higher population densities in CO as compared to WY, MT, and NM. Or maybe the CDT needed to be less about following the actual continental divide and more about linking locations that make good travel destinations, while sticking with the general north-south theme.

In any case, it's sad to see the organization die, but with the growing popularity of outdoor sports in general, and mountain biking in particular, I think the momentum still exists to improve and connect the sections of the trail that exist. Only time will tell.

Stay off the D*$% trails!

2012-01-11T08:44:00.000-08:00

This was really upsetting to me - the Valmont bike park has to be closed to the public because of damage to the trails caused by people riding/running/etc on them in the wet/snow/mud.

Here's the thing (and I see this all the time at lots of other parks and trails as well) - in Colorado, if the soil is wet, being on the trails is going to trash them. Going around the muddy bits (always popular as well) will also trash them. And usually, your drivetrain and brakes will get mangled pretty well in the process.

So it baffles me when I see cars with bikes turning into the Marshall Mesa parking lot on a sunny 55 degree day after a big snowstorm, when everyone with half a brain is out for a road ride. Why does anyone think that riding in slush and mud is a good idea?

Feh. At this point, I'm all for closing any trail that's muddy, and handing out $500 tickets (or maybe impounding bikes?) for violations. At the rate things are going, there won't be anything but rutted-out triple-track to ride around here after the winter mud morons get done with it.

Silly bike of the week!

2012-01-07T08:28:00.000-08:00

Check it out - meet your $5600 townie!

To be fair, this looks like a nice bike, and I'm sure it would be a blast to ride around town on. But the price just makes me laugh - and I especially like that the company has the audacity to charge $750 for an Alfine hub (which retails for something like half that).

No, it doesn't beat the infamous Firefly that BSNYC mocked... at least you can mount fenders. And I'm guessing it's half the price. But it still makes me laugh.

Changing of the guard

2012-01-07T05:25:00.000-08:00

It's official now, because the fridge says so. Sarah is the smart one around here.

Guillaume

2012-01-06T10:37:00.001-08:00

It's finally finished (I had to call in a favor to get some tire specs, then the holidays interrupted). Here's the rundown for the geeks:
-71/73 head and seat angles
-58cm toptube, 49cm seat tube
-45.5cm chainstays, 305mm BB height
-Set up for 1x use with 170mm rear hub spacing and Paragon low mount dropouts
-Clearance for a Big Fat Larry (110+mm) tire on a 90+mm rim
-About 4.6# (2100g)

This is the first time I've done a 170mm spacing frame (good thing Anvil makes a 172 dummy axle!) as well as by far the largest tire clearance I've ever built for. I can stick my *head* between the stays (should have gotten a picture of that...) I think it'll be a fun bike to bounce around in the snow!

In which I sell out

2012-01-05T07:58:00.000-08:00

For the record:
-Nobody pestered me into this.
-This is actually Walt, and not his evil clone.
-I am aware of my previous statements regarding curvy-swervy tubes and how I think they're silly.
-I await your taunts and cruel japes in the comments.

That said:

I got a tubing roller. Yes, the kind of device you use to make long, smooth curves in things like seat tubes (the main impetus for the purchase), toptubes (gah!) and even twin toptube/seatstays (double gah!)

I thought long and hard about whether I should just build the darn thing (it's basically two plates that sandwich some rollers, with a threaded rod to push down on the drive roller, so not that complex) but the siren song of Harbor Freight was too strong to resist. $150 later (plus about $300 worth of decent rollers to replace the junk HF ones from the good folks at Swag Offroad, I can bend stuff over long radii. In fact, I was excited enough that I curved some .035x1" tube just for fun... which was probably a bit silly, since that tubing has other uses and now I have to order more.

My main use for this will be for 36ers and super short stay 29ers where I need the seat tube out of the way of the tire. Yes, I have been kinking them, but some people hate the look, and I want the option not to have to weld the toptube in to the same spot as the kink in order to reinforce everything.

I actually counted them up, and I have 4 different seat tube-moving techiques:
-Offset the seat tube on the BB shell, or even move it to the downtube.
-Cut/weld the seat tube to kink it.
-Do a cutout on the seat tube.
-And now, curve the seat tube.

Anyhow, if you've got a project in mind that involves curves, I'm now equipped to do it.

I'm also equipped to suffer everyone's mockery for my blatant hypocrisy.

Reven

2012-01-04T10:56:00.000-08:00

Finally done, now that I have seatstays (I apparently need to learn the "order WAY in advance" lesson over and over again when it comes to frame tubing...)

Quick rundown for the curious and bored. Ok, really, you guys are all just bored:
-71.5 HTA, 72 STA
-42cm chainstays (adjusts up to 44cm with the sliders)
-Non suspension corrected, for a 425mm/43mm rake rigid fork
-60cm toptube, 42cm seat tube
-12" BB height
-S-bends, singlespeed specific

Pretty much an "updated for the modern world" version of Reven's old suspension-corrected v-brake singlespeed from 7 or so years ago. Interestingly, the frame is under 4 pounds, which has to be close to a record for me for frames with sliders. Of course, there's no paint on it yet (Reven is going to do something wild, I think).

And yes, the frame is sitting on a pretty beat up changing table that Sarah's brother gave us. Nothing is cooler than posing your frames on an old changing table. I rock.

Vacation photo

2012-01-03T19:45:00.000-08:00

By popular demand. A gold star to the first person to figure out where we went. Your only clue is this photo - perhaps the most awful and terrifying company logo I have ever seen, which I took while we were there.

Edit: Nobody got it, so here's another clue.

I'm baaaaack...

2012-01-02T10:15:00.001-08:00

Catching up on email and dealing with all the mail and packages that piled up in my absence - should be fully back at work tomorrow to finish Guillaume and Reven's frames up.

I'm happy to be back in Colorado. Sitting on a beach is fun, but it's not worth the travel headaches. Never again.

Thanks to Eric for the awesome pictures (not of my vacation, sadly).

Happy New Year, everyone!

See y'all in 2012!

2011-12-23T08:44:00.001-08:00

Sarah and I are off to sit on a warm beach. We'll be back in early January. No phone, probably very little email, so save up your questions until then! Happy New Year!

Thanks to Phil and Mike for the random photo dump. Those are some huge snickers bars!

Snow day!

2011-12-22T14:04:00.001-08:00

We must have gotten 15 inches here, and there were 20+ closer to the foothills, I hear. Kat and Jake took Pele out with them to go snowshoeing, while I spent a decent chunk of the day going to the powdercoater and coming back while trying not to crash the car in the snow.

Cute animals are supposed to be pretty popular, so I'm expecting a ton of views and comments on the blog...

The Secret Birthday Bike - Rusty's FS

2011-12-21T09:39:00.000-08:00

This bike never showed up on the waitlist, because it was partially a surprise for my good friend Rusty (his birthday was yesterday) from me and his lovely wife Natasha.

But it's worthy of a writeup, since I'm incredibly jealous of it and most of the parts have been hidden in the back of my garage for like a month so that Rusty wouldn't catch wind of what was going on.

So, first, the bike is way fancy, obviously. And it's way light - 23.5 pounds as shown, and it'll be pushing 23 once Rusty puts his fancy seatpost and saddle (shown are my old junker Bonty saddle from the mid-90s and a Thomson I had sitting around) on there. If you really went nuts on a few parts (cassette, rear derailleur, tires, ti bolts, etc) I bet you could get to 22. Wow.

Geometry:
100mm travel front and rear
71* head tube, 71* seat tube. Rusty has LOOONG femurs, so it's a very slack seat tube angle, and consequently a shorter front center (65.7cm) than you'd expect given the toptube length.
109.5cm/43.1" wheelbase
62cm/24.4" toptube, 50cm/19.7" seat tube, 77.5cm/30.5" standover
44cm/17.3" chainstays
13.5" (unsprung) BB height
130mm/5.2" head tube, for a tapered steerer
Direct mount for a front derailleur, if Rusty ever decides to run one.

And of course, there's the parts spec. Rusty geeked out about pretty much every part on the bike (except a few bits like the wheels that we surprised him with):
-Enve 29" XC rims laced to DT 240 hubs (15mm front, 10mm rear)
-Easton EC90 bar, Ritchey WCS stem and foam grips, Easton EC90 post (not shown), SLR saddle (not shown)
-Fox RLC 100mm taper fork and King HS.
-M970 cranks, Crank Bros with ti spindles, Paul chainguide
-X9 shifter and rear derailleur, PG1080 11-36 cassette, Homebrew 36t ring
-Magura MT-6 brakes (I am very impressed with these) and Storm SL rotors
-Ikon 2.2 tires front and rear.

What would something like this set you back? About $6200.

How does it ride? Well, so far we've only ridden it around the parking lot, so who knows, but I will say this - it is disconcertingly light, and disconcertingly stiff. Those are probably both good things. I'll get the full report from Rusty when he's back in TX on dry trails.

Happy Birthday, Rusty!

2011-12-20T10:07:00.000-08:00

Natasha and I conspired long and hard to make this happen. Pictures of the complete bike to come soon, once we get the hoops. Don't let Lucy chew on those rims!

29ers and Downhill

2011-12-19T09:09:00.000-08:00

As many of you ~~nerds~~ loyal blog readers know, I have spent a lot of time messing with long-travel 29ers. Alex Morgan and I (independently) built the first 29er "downhill" bikes in 2005 (Exiwolf 2.3 FTW!) and did several iterations of the high-single pivot design that rode pretty well. I also got involved somewhat in getting WTB to make the now-discontinued Kodiak and Dissent downhill tires. Since 2010, several bikes in the 130-140mm travel range have come out that could be used as very light duty DH bikes from production companies, as well.

But I think what momentum there is is going away. As I said, WTB has discontinued both of the existing dual-ply tires - and there's nothing else on the market right now that will handle an aggressive rider on rough terrain. Maxxis is reportedly doing a tire, but that's still vaporware right now.

Why aren't people rushing to ride big wheels on downhill bikes? There are a couple of reasons involving fit and the expense and difficulty of redesigning suspension setups to make the wheels clear, etc, etc. But that's not the main problem, in my mind.

Neither 29 or 650b is going to catch on for long travel rigs - because gravity riding is turning into chairlift-served BMX, at least in CO. Trails with groomed, man-made features are super popular, gnarly techy rock trails, much less so. And it's pretty obvious why - getting air on easy, safe jumps and whipping around berms is fun for beginners (and, um, the rest of us too, of course), whereas technical rocks/roots/ruts/offcamber really only appeals to a select group of highly-skilled weirdos (full disclosure: I am one of those weirdos, except for the skills part).

So the future of DH/FR is endless rows of tabletops, slopestyle courses, and wooden stunts/drops with groomed transitions. Roll-over and bigger wheels don't help much with that kind of riding, and the parts and infrastructure for 26" already exist - so I don't see any other wheelsize taking any significant share of that market.

I think WTB saw this and that's a big part of why they yanked the Dissent and Kodiak (which makes me a bit sad, I played a small role in getting those tires made 5 years ago). The future is groms getting big air on A-line or some approximation, not chunder and slimy roots at 12mph.

Ugly sweaters 2011

2011-12-17T21:48:00.000-08:00

No picture of Sarah this year, she stuck with the old tried-and-true snowballs gig. But she found me a 2 sizes too small women's turtleneck at the thrift store. Not sure what she's trying to tell me, here...

Tie is from McCalla's wedding!

And yes, I am aware that posting this kind of picture of myself is unlikely to lead to large numbers of custom bike sales. What can I say? Apparently I didn't get enough public humiliation in middle school, and I'm desperate for more.

Occupy Wall Street vs. Night Riding?

2011-12-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

Check it out: the city of Boulder is looking to make it illegal to be on open space land at night, in order to get rid of the occupy folks camped out on the lawn of the municipal building. That would also mean no hiking, running, climbing, or biking at night, of course. Stargazing from the meadow at Chautauqua? Illegal!

I have to say it - this is a new low in Boulder city government stupidity. The protesters have *already* violated the law which requires them to get a permit for any event with more than 25 people. Apparently, as is unfortunately typical in Boulder, instead of enforcing the law or, alternately, coming up with a better solution, the city is looking to pass *yet another* law that probably won't be enforced.

Think this is stupid? Email Jane Brautigan and tell her so:
brautigamj@bouldercolorado.gov

Note that you should not take anything I've written here to be an endorsement OR a criticism of Occupy Wall Street or Occupy Boulder.

Now THAT...

2011-12-16T21:01:00.001-08:00

...is what I call a studded tire!

Holy Head Tube!

2011-12-15T21:08:00.000-08:00

Randy is a very tall (6' 6") guy. He's one of only a couple of people this entire year who I've built a frame for that I am not big enough to comfortably ride (for reference, the biggest person I've ever built for is 7' and 400#!)

The rear end of the bike looks *tiny* behind that 8.5" long head tube! And Randy is still going to need spacers to get his bars to saddle height! But it's not small in any other dimension either:

-71 HTA, 73 STA, 27" effective toptube!
-21.7" seat tube!
-465mm chainstays (that's at the *front* of the slot - they'll go back as far as 485mm)
-13.3" BB height for 190mm cranks
-Built for an 80mm suspension corrected rigid fork (and possibly down the road, a tapered steerer fork) with an insanely long steerer (I'm leaving it uncut at 14" and letting Randy figure out how much to cut off...)
-True Temper Supertherm front triangle (beefy!) and Deda S-bend chainstays (also beefy) with some oversized hand-bent 19mm (I usually use 16mm) seatstays.
-Internal cable routing, Paragon sliders, downtube cable routing for gears in the event that Randy wants to run them.
-Probably will be close to 6 pounds by the time it's back from the powdercoater.

This might be the biggest frame I've built this year.

My customers are weird

2011-12-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

Lots of framebuilders have websites full of glossy, studio-shot, professionally photoshopped bikes. Then again, I am not a cool framebuilder.

So here you go. It's a bit blurry. It's, well, not so well composed. And it's staged in front of Andy's fire, getting ready to curl up for the night in it's nice comfy wicker basket. Nothing sells bikes like awkwardly posing them inside your home like beloved pets!

I'm going to need to fire the marketing guys. Assuming Andy does not show up tomorrow and murder me for mocking his photography skills. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black...

Wheel prices for 2012 (and, well, for now)

2011-12-13T06:48:00.000-08:00

I get asked about wheel prices a TON, so I thought I'd do a quick post with the prices of some popular options to (hopefully?) save everyone some time. Of course, these prices are subject to change (usually up, very rarely down) without any notice, so treat them as a guideline rather than the last word on the subject.

Wheels are available only to frame customers. Prices do NOT include shipping. 26, 650b (when available), or 29" rims have no effect on the price, and I don't build tons of road bikes, so I have not listed any road wheels here - email me for a quote if you're interested.

Without further ado:

ZTR hubs laced to any Stan's rim (ie Crest/Arch/Flow): $350*
Hope Pro 2 hubs laced to any Stan's rim: $520*
DT Swiss 240 hubs laced to any Stan's rim: $650*
Stans' Race Gold/Podium MMX (note: weight limit!): $520
Easton EA90XC: $700
Easton Haven (15mm TA only): $700
Easton Haven carbon (15mm TA only): $1550
Bontrager Race X lite: $620
Bontrager Rhythm Elite: $355
Bontrager Rhythm Pro: $600
Bontrager Rhythm Comp: $271
Shimano XT (MT75): $390

And yes, I can get ENVE (used to be EDGE) wheels too. They are sick, and expensive!

ENVE: DT Swiss 240 hubs (QR or 15mm) laced to Enve XC or AM carbon rims: $1600
ENVE: King hubs (QR or 15mm) laced to Enve XC or AM carbon rims: $1675

Singlespeed rear hubs will generally add $25-50. If you prefer to build your own wheels, I can sell you the component parts of *most* of these wheelsets for somewhat less money.

*Note that all Stan's wheels are laced/built by the Notubes guys unless you'd prefer them built by my wheel guru Steve Lawlor (highly recommended!) for an extra $100.

New stuff out the door

2011-12-12T16:29:00.000-08:00

Shipped out Kurt's FS bike and Andy came to pick up his near-opposite rigid hardtail today as well. Interestingly, Kurt was getting an FS to join the hardtail I built him a few years ago, while Andy was doing the inverse and adding a hardtail to join his FS.

As always, a quick geometry summary.

Kurt's 29" FS:
-71 HTA, 73 STA
-18" seat tube, 24" (61cm) toptube
-100mm travel front/rear, with a TALAS fork that can go to 120 travel (and slack back the HTA by a degree) when needed.
-45cm chainstays, 29" standover
-Direct mount derailleur, tapered steerer, all the new stuff.
-For all-around XC, with TALAS for the gnar (if needed)

Andy's 22# Rigid Wonder:
-71 HTA, 73.5 STA
-20" seat tube, 24.6" (62.6cm) toptube
-Zero travel! But suspension corrected for 100mm if Andy wants some bounce down the road.
-44cm chainstays, 32" standover
-Direct mount, no taper, nice XTR 2x build. Sick!
-For going uphill fast, and downhill somewhat less fast than on his dualie, probably.

WW Bikepacking!

2011-12-11T19:28:00.000-08:00

Apparently you can actually get lost and have an adventure - on a bike - in Florida. Who knew?

Thanks to Luis for the picture.

$10,000 bikes?

2011-12-10T09:38:00.001-08:00

As much as I hate to admit it, it's cold out, and I am killing time before going out to the shop to suffer (yes, on a Saturday! I'm like some kind of bike-building monk in my Waltworks hairsuit!) so, I have to shamefacedly admit that.... I read something on Bikeradar.com.

And yes, that's a picture I took of myself this morning. The skull is the skull of one of my enemies. Probably Feldman.

Specifically, I read a pretty vapid article about $10,000+ road bikes.

The author makes some good points - namely that A) rich people buy crazy stuff and don't care much about the price, and B) companies make money selling the bikes. Both perfectly legit reasons for them to exist.

I have a bit of disagreement with the third major point he attempts to make, though - that the technology "trickles down" to cheaper bikes. This is certainly what it might seem like to the average consumer - XTR or Dura-Ace or Record comes out in 10 speed (or 11, or whatever) and not until a year or two later do the more-reasonably priced Ultegra/XT/Chorus versions come out. Sweet! Now I can have 11 speed for cheap, thanks to some rich folks buying lots of expensive bikes with Record, right?

Not so fast. IMO this kind of innovation could easily be applied across the range of components - there's not much that is inherently more expensive about a 10 speed cassette versus a 9 speed one, so if Shimano wanted to roll out a new system across SLX/XT/XTR at the same time, they could easily do it. They've made an upfront investment in doing some new design work, and that cost is relatively fixed - to make the XTR derailleur into an XT one, just use a bit less fancy rollers, make some stuff from aluminum instead of crabon, and don't spend as much machine time taking off that last few grams of extra material. There's a little extra design time/cost there, but not much.

No, Shimano (or whoever) rolls out 10 speed in XTR first because they want lots of people to buy XTR, because they will make more money that way. Once the novelty has worn off a bit, and they've gotten everyone who will buy XTR purely for 10 speed to do so, they'll roll out the SLX and XT and get some more money from the less spendy crowd. It's purely a sales and marketing strategy (note that I am not saying there's anything wrong with that), not a case of super-expensive parts somehow driving everything forward. If nobody on earth bought XTR, Shimano would still make money hand over fist and still roll out new stuff for us average Joes to buy on a regular basis.

The really new and innovative stuff comes out of left field (Stan Koziatek, Wes Williams, I'm looking at you guys...) Road bikes are pretty much the same as they were 100 years ago, except for the materials used to make them. More gears? Sure, big deal. More aero? Yeah, but the position of the rider is still the most important thing, big deal. Lighter? Yes, there have been some impressive improvements there (remember, though, that Major Taylor used to race on a ~14 pound bike - in the 1890s!) These are incremental improvements, not radical innovations, and the people who say that their old Peugot from 1982 is just as good as your $5k crabon wonderbike are half right. So there's really not that much trickling down.

Lighter weight isn't innovation. More gears isn't innovation. Here's some stuff that would really be game-changing:
-Frame materials that can change their stiffness (or other characteristics) on the fly.
-Something with better traction and toughness than rubber. Don't laugh, I would be surprised if it doesn't eventually happen.
-Telescoping foot "wheel" systems that can handle suspension duties/change effective diameter at the same time as they provide traction. Yes, I got that idea from YT's board/Hiro's moto in Snow Crash.
-Low power onboard radar/infrared/navigation/something that assists the rider in picking lines (like following your fast buddy down the trail?) or warns of other users around blind corners.
-Or probably something else I'm not smart enough to think of.

Most of my (not original) dumb ideas will probably never happen (and I imagine some people will argue that what I'm describing isn't really even a "bike"), or we'll all be too busy playing World of Warcraft to actually ride bikes in 20 years, but my point is this - the really cool new stuff is not going to happen because a lawyer wants a bike that's 50g lighter than his dentist friend.

Jim, I think she's dead.

2011-12-09T14:30:00.000-08:00

These Lennox saws always treat me well - I think I got 2 years and probably 500 cuts out of this one. But when they start breaking teeth, things go south in a hurry - just one was missing when I started the cut that killed this poor thing.

Waiting to finish up Guillaume's Fatbike

2011-12-08T17:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, Nick, it's fat rear (and front) Thursday. Featuring Guillaume's fatbike front triangle, a couple of terrible pictures, and some rambling thoughts from someone who does not really ride fatbikes much but has built maybe a dozen of them.

Guillaume's is a new-wave fatbike - it'll have clearance for the 115mm Big Fat Larry (yikes, that's a lot of rubber!) accomplished partially by some careful chainstay manipulation and partially by offsetting the entire crank out to something like a 70mm chainline. To compensate, it's also using a 170mm rear hub (thank, Anvil, for making a dummy axle for such a beast!)

For those folks wondering about the geometry, it's nothing crazy, except that Guillaume has legs that go up to his elbows (he's 5'9" tall and runs his saddle at 79cm! Holy cow!)
-71 HTA, 73 STA.
-22.8" toptube, 19.2" seat tube (yes, superfreaky)
-45cm chainstays, 12" BB, built for a Fatback carbon fork
-Clearance for some godawful huge tires, set up as a 1x9 or SS
-Nice Paragon low mount dropouts to keep the disc caliper out of the way of the rack mounts.

There are a bunch of bikes on my *personal* wish list - geared hardtail race bike (yeah, like I'll be racing once the Bean is born...), FS race bike (ditto), 36er (waiting to get some decent rims/tires in the pipeline), new townie (that will still go when the mercury drops below freezing), and maybe even a cargo bike. Alas, none of them will fit in my limited shop/garage space, so all of those projects are on the indefinite back burner.

So why not a fatbike? I do love to ride in the snow, after all. Here's the problem: Boulder does not have the kind of snow you'd want to ride a fatbike on. We have periodic big dumps of slushy junk that partially melt, then turn into ice - almost never the consistent, packed or semi-packed (or at least consistent depth - it's always windy here too) snow that you'd need to enjoy riding a fatbike. So, alas, no fatbike for me, unless I move somewhere with consistent snow and packed trails of some kind.

But I enjoy building them anyway, and sending them off for people to enjoy, all while cursing the mud and ice on the trails here.

Fat Front...Tuesday!

2011-12-06T15:00:00.001-08:00

Ok, ok, boring, I know. But Greg sent me this nice picture of the fat fork I built for him and I figured I'd post it.

I promise there will not be a "Fat Front Wednesday". I'll try to think of something interesting to write about instead.

Fat Front Monday

2011-12-05T07:27:00.000-08:00

I'll be honest - I have never really understood the appeal of putting a 3+" tire on the front of an otherwise "normal" XC bike. But it seem to be the popular thing lately, so who am I to argue (also, since I've ridden fat front/rear, but never front only, I'm not in a position to judge). I can sort of imagine it's like having a short-travel suspension fork on the front of the bike in some situations - and cornering traction probably rules!

In any case, thanks to Joel for the "obligatory old crappy cabin" photo.

Now Available:

2011-12-04T09:45:00.000-08:00

Waltworks children's bikes. A perfect fit every time, guaranteed! Your little one will be riding in no time.

Thanks to Steve for the pic.

File under: Hell Yeah!

2011-12-02T20:57:00.001-08:00

...now Mark just needs to make pretty much all his other dropouts in post-mount too. And a 15QR fork dropout.

File under:

2011-12-02T20:57:00.000-08:00

The Bean is (going to be) a Boy

2011-12-01T14:05:00.000-08:00

Many blog readers already know this, but Sarah and I are expecting our first child in April. Today, we found out that "the Bean" will be a boy, which is pretty neat, and also makes it/him quite a bit less abstract (and hence, much more terrifying...)

In any case, you needn't fear that the blog will become nonstop baby idiocy. I promise. But I do want everyone to keep in mind that in the April-May timeframe, I may be working very intermittently as the Bean's emergence will probably take up quite a bit of my energy. I do not think this will affect anyone currently on the waitlist, but you never know. I'm going to do my best to get ahead a bit in anticipation, of course, but I ask for your patience in advance, especially when it comes to answering emails and phone calls in that time period.

As an aside, WW team stud Nick Stevens and his lovely wife Diana are expecting twins (one boy, one girl) just a few weeks before us. Can you say "epic rivalry at 2035 UCI Worlds?"

I will update this post with a few annoying ultrasound images later this afternoon. Those folks who are friends with Sarah on Facebook can see them there, too.

Very Brief Rant: Get a Bell!

2011-11-30T12:09:00.000-08:00

I ride a lot on trails where there are dog walkers, trail runners, families with kids, etc. As well as other mountain bikers. I have a bell on my bike, and when I want to let someone know, in a friendly way, that I'm approaching, I ring it. It saves my voice from screaming "on your left" constantly, it's audible over a long-ish distance, and it cost $4 to put on my bike.

You would think this accessory would be common among the sort of person that is perfectly willing to spend several thousand dollars on a bicycle. But you would be wrong. I'd estimate 95% of the people I see riding bikes on the trails around here would prefer one of the following to installing/using a bell:

-The Stealth Pass. Maintain total silence as you approach the unsuspecting pedestrian, relying soley on their innate 6th sense to warn them to move out of your way. Act really peeved when they don't move quickly enough.

-Ride off the trail. Who cares about singletrack? If you want to save 10 seconds getting back to your car, you can just ride around the silly hikers off the trail (yes, you can combine this with other techniques)!

-The triathalete scream. You all know it - "On your left!" Unfortunately, sometimes there *isn't* a good way for someone to get out of the way, yelling is pretty unfriendly, and it's hard to yell at someone from 50 feet away without losing your voice after a few repetitions.

-The inappropriate pass. You're 10 feet from the trailhead, finishing your ride. Is this really the time to rail around someone? YES! Alternately, a line of 10 riders is coming uphill - should you yield to them, ruining your shredtacular descent? Naw! If they don't get out of the way, just ride off the trail.

If you are riding on crowded trails, and you don't have a bell, you are basically an idiot, in my book. It's also possible, depending on what passing technique you use, that you're ruining the trail, endangering bike access, or even risking hurting someone (possibly yourself).

So get a bell. If you can't swing the $4, stop by Waltworks World HQ and I will give you one for free and help you install it. No joke. Then ring away and make friends out there, while proving to everyone that you are not a moron.

Old School

2011-11-27T04:48:00.001-08:00

Thanks to Reven for the picture - this is her 2005 vintage WW (so, somewhere in the first 30 or so frames I built, though I'm not sure exactly what number), being ridden this weekend at Steele Creek Park in TN.

I'm about to build her an "update" of the same basic setup - it's interesting to see how much the way I build things has changed over the years, along with the overall evolution of 29" bikes. By my current standards, this bike has really long (for a singlespeed) chainstays at 44cm, a very short/steep front end (71.5 HTA and 38mm rake), no seat tube sleeve, and tiny tubes (31.8mm downtube on a 29er?) that are probably underbuilt for the punishment that Reven deals out (I was such a weight weenie...) Tire clearance kinda sucks too, so that will improve as well.

Thanksgiving Recipe: Mattar Paneer!

2011-11-23T10:53:00.000-08:00

I have no idea how authentic this recipe is at this point, it's been heavily modified by yours truly and probably wasn't that authentic to begin with. And it's obviously not traditional Thanksgiving fare - but let's be honest, Thanksgiving food sucks.

Matar Paneer ala Walt

Cottage cheese : 2 cups (if you can find dry curds, those are nice, but normal large wet curds work fine)
Frozen Green Peas : One bag (2 cups-ish)
Vegetable Oil
Cumin seeds : 1 tsp
Cinnamon stick
Red chili powder : 1 tsp
Turmeric powder : 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder : 2 tsp
Heavy cream : 3/4 cup
Garam masala powder : 1 tsp
One large onion, diced
One can of diced tomato
2 cups diced hot green chile
Some fresh ginger, shredded
1 tsp salt

Heat up some oil and toss in onion, green chile, and ginger. Fry for about 5 minutes until the onion is transparent.

Add chili powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder fry them for 3-4 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, salt and garam masala powder sautee them for another 4-5 minutes.

Take the resulting mixture and process to a smooth paste in a blender or food processor.

Heat up the pan with remaining oil and add cumin seeds and cinnamon stick, fry for maybe a minute or two until things are sizzling.

Add the paste bring to a boil, then add peas and cottage cheese and cook for another 5 minutes (simmering).

Finally, add the cream and bring to a boil, then remove from heat and serve over quinoa or rice.

Best Laid Plans

2011-11-22T20:25:00.000-08:00

I really wanted to have a lot of stuff done before Sarah and I (and Pele - it will be an exciting holiday!) head up to Estes for Thanksgiving with the fam-in-law:
-Kurt's frame
-Prepping/packing/shipping Stu's frame/fork
-Finishing up some forks and other little stuff
-Wrangling Mohawk's mangled hanger back into shape
-Probably lots of other things I've now forgotten

But, at 9pm, looking down the barrel of being a stressed out jerk for Thanksgiving, or alternately finishing stuff this weekend or next week, I opted to come inside, write a quick blog post (with a *terrible* picture, even by my low standards), drink a beer, and call it a day.

Of course, I think I quoted Kurt 6 months and it hasn't been even 4 yet, but once I set myself a goal (even a little one) I often have a hard time letting go of it. I do deliberately try to quote really conservative wait times - because I don't want to be that "he quotes you 3 weeks and it takes 3 years" framebuilder. But it still rankles when things don't come together the way I want - even if they're ahead of schedule.

Anyway. Kurt's bike is a pretty sweet 4" travel FS setup:
-71 HTA, 73 STA
-18" seat tube, 29" standover
-24" effective toptube
-13.6" BB (unsprung)
-45cm/17.7" chainstays
-For a tapered Fox TALAS 120/95 (it'll be 71 HTA at 95mm, and more like 69.5 at 120 travel)
-Awesomely brazeon and cable-stop free, because I didn't get to that yet

I am aware that it's weird to use a perfectly good DHX Air as a dummy shock to hold the shock mounts where I want them for tacking.

In any case, happy Thanksgiving to everyone, and I'll rap at ya this weekend.

Monday Irrelevance: Sign a petition for beer and food

2011-11-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

I have been friends with the Avery guys for many years, and they are looking to open a restaurant/brewery in Gunbarrel (farther from my house; boo!)

Anyway:

Hi everybody,

Please help support the cause, and sign our online petition and letter to Boulder City Council. Go to...

http://www.change.org/petitions/city-council-of-boulder-co-allow-tap-rooms-to-make-and-serve-food-and-keep-iconic-boulder-businesses?share_id=LsPllZlpKY&

Please email the link to as many of your Colorado friends as possible. Signing the petition will increase our support numbers, and automatically send a letter to City Council.

Thanks!
Joe

Joe Osborne
Marketing Director
Avery Brewing Company

Waltworks CFITT 2011 - Race non-report

2011-11-18T09:02:00.000-08:00

From Luis:

DNF! Race went well though, and I felt surprisingly good after being sick the week before. Got tons of stories but they're best told around a campfire.

At around 12:30am Sunday after the most hellacious hiking trail poach EVER (think: 2 pedal strokes - huge log 2ft off the ground - lift heavy ass bike - repeat every 25 feet for 5 miles) I reached some nicely groomed trail. I was JRA when CRUNCH, looked down and the rear der. was completely wrapped around the cassette, slider bent, cracked and deformed.

I considered my options, rigged up the bike as a SS with a droopy chain and continued on until I reached the next point where we were supposed to pick up the Florida Trail. The GPX was screwed up in this area and I rode in circles around a hunter campground for about 20 minutes until I heard someone racking their pistol. At that point I decided it was best to ride out some forest roads to US19 and call for extraction.

As I laid inside my sleeping bag waiting for my wife, shivering, it suddenly hit me "YOU HAVE SLIDERS DUMBASS". WTF I could've tightened my chain and continued on the 20 or so miles of trail I had to go to the end, I'm a sser after all. MEH, my brain wasn't working right.

Ended up with 161 miles on the GPS, not a bad day at the office I reckon. next year the camping gear stays home (and I won't make that silly mistake again). BTW riding the trails and forest roads in the Ocala National Forest at night solo is real spooky. David Muse (of TNGA fame) had a nice run in with some good ole boys...

No real pics of scenery but I attached a few.

De-fense!

2011-11-17T08:19:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's over. You can all call her Dr. Sarah now.

The Ubiquitous Old Car in the Woods Photo

2011-11-11T21:22:00.001-08:00

Title and picture courtesy of Barry.

...the rest of the story

2011-11-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

If someone wants to translate any of this, feel free to email me.

I find it interesting to note that the only two action shots are of Marcus' bike (in the second, it's actually Chris riding, not Marcus).

Overexposed!

2011-11-09T18:19:00.000-08:00

I never, in my entire life, thought that I'd end up on the cover of a French mountain bike magazine, riding a 36er and looking goofy. Well, ok, the looking goofy part was probably pretty predictable.

So, kids, believe in your dreams.

I'll post the rest (it's all in French, and probably says horrible things about my personal hygiene, or something) tomorrow.

Edit: I am not the guy with the hipster facial hair in the big picture. Duh. If I'm going to grow something on my face... it'll be like this.

It's the....

2011-11-06T20:53:00.000-08:00

...final countdown...

Picture from Matt

2011-11-04T22:09:00.001-07:00

I assume Matt was arrested for loitering shortly after this picture was taken, but apparently he likes the bike. A nice smart build - X9, King, Stan's, Fox, Thomson. Pretty much what I would use.

Random pictures for Andy

2011-11-04T21:33:00.000-07:00

Random photos of Andy's (you guessed it) 29er. He's breaking the bank and going full XTR, so this thing should be pretty sick!

Extended...

2011-11-03T16:10:00.001-07:00

The torture continues - Sarah has an extension to Sunday evening to finish her dissertation.

Expect more posts next week when I no longer have to spend all my time trying to get my wife to eat/sleep/stay sane.

Quick picture for Steven

2011-10-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

All I have to say is that S&S couplers AND sliding dropouts makes for a heavy frame - but at least you can keep your wallet a little fatter when you fly with your bike.

As usual, geometry breakdown:
-Geared or SS
-71* HT, 73.5* ST, 12.2" BB
-Built for 80mm travel or (not pictured) a rigid fork
-Taper-ready
-425-445mm chainstays (adjustable with the sliders)
-Plenty of clearance for any XC-ish tire (ie, 2.4 or smaller will fit)

This is an all-around XC setup for Steven's upcoming trip to Guam, and then to wherever his travels take him after that.

Also, quick announcement: Garro and Dicky won the pop quiz. But it does not seem like either of them wants the fine, fine sleeveless jersey... should I do some modeling to change their minds?

1am Pop Quiz!

2011-10-26T23:58:00.000-07:00

Sarah is working late, and so am I. At this rate we'll both be vampires by spring...

Quiz: What did I have to do to my bike to get home from the climbing gym tonight?

Hint: I did it within 100 feet of the police station, and if I'd been seen, I probably would have gotten in a bit of trouble.

Hint2: I'm a pretty big dirtbag.

First correct answer wins a free pair of socks or a metro-tacular sleeveless Waltworks jersey (worn a few times but nice and clean. I swear.)

We lose

2011-10-26T10:44:00.000-07:00

Councilman Appelbaum pretty much summed it up:

Councilman Matt Appelbaum went a step further and said he doesn't want any human access to the property.

"It's not that mountain bikes are the problem," he said. "It's anything that's the problem."

I do not even know where to begin calling out the hypocrisy in Mr. Appelbaum's statements, but I'm almost too angry about the whole process to write coherently, so I'll say this: vote for the BMA/BOA endorsements for City Council.

I expect that a lot of people will throw up their hands at this point and just start poaching trails. I cannot say I blame them, though I don't condone it. CC has made an enemy out of every reasonable mountain biker in Boulder.

From the BMA - City Council Meeting + FREE BEER

2011-10-21T11:02:00.000-07:00

City Council Considers Bike Trails On Anemone Hill

This is our last and best opportunity for a close-to-town trail accessible by bike so you can ride to your ride. It would also provide an opportunity to connect a single track loop on Anemone Hill to the trails at Betasso Preserve. We have an opportunity to create an excellent trail experience for EVERYONE, hikers, trail runners, and dog walkers included.

BMA needs YOU and YOUR friends to show up to support BMA's ask Council to approve the OSBT loop trail and the connector:

City Council Chambers
Broadway and Canyon
Tuesday, October 25 at 6pm

If you cannot show up,email your thoughts to city council (click here).
BMA has some talking points below.
The main point you should convey =
ask Council to approve both the OSBT loop trail and the connector.

City Council We need to thank the City Council for making OSMP take a second look at Anenome Hill and ask that they create a professionally designed, sustainable and fun trail system in this area that will work for hikers, runners, cyclists and equestrians. We need to be positive, logical and thoughtful to these volunteer leaders of our community. It was Council that kept the hope of access in the West TSA alive by instructing OSMP to hire a professional trail designer to do their own evaluation of the area.
What you should know:

OSBT map The Open Space Board of Trustees has approved 4 to 1 a professionally designed loop trail that will

* Manage User Conflict: Separate no-bike trail segments are available for dog walkers, kids, and the elderly who may get spooked by bikes. Directional use is explicitly called for by OSBT. These are the right things to do.
* Protect the Resource: OSBT explicitly calls for on-trail use for everyone on Anenome Hill. Social Trails in the area will be reclaimed and restored. Neighboring property to the north and the south have no human access to provide refugia for the same critters that *could* be affected by a trail on Anemone Hill. We support these environmental values of our open space lands.
* Provide a Positive Recreation Experience: The OSBT recommended loop provides a 45 minute loop ride through a forest for bikes who have no place else to go w/o getting in a car or riding on paths and roads for long distances. It provides alternate routes for hikers, equestrians, and others. It has beautiful views of the city and the continental divide. This trail will be a valuable recreational asset for the citizens of Boulder.

Sounds perfect, right? Sadly, there's a catch.

Staff recommendation OSMP Staff recommended ONLY a connector trail to Four Mile Canyon only and doesn't want the OSBT approved loop at all. They want Council to approve a loop loaded up with switchbacks that would exclude bikes from the user mix. There's plenty of reasons to believe this is a BAD idea.

* The Four Mile Connector would coincide with the OSMP switchback loop trail for about 25% of it's length. Bikes, hikers and equestrians going both directions on this trail segment would be a user conflict nightmare.
* The link trail would serve stronger, faster, long-distance riders, but not the families of Boulder or the quick after work ride that keeps us all sane after a hard day in a cubicle.
* Perceived crowding and bike on bike user conflict will be significant on the connector.... you'll see everyone on your way out and once again on your way back. This will reduce the quality of the recreation experience significantly.

BMA believes we should combine the OSBT Loop with the Four Mile Connector...this is why:

* Cyclists are a responsible user group - in 2011 alone we've contributed over 2400 hours in volunteer bike patrolling and 2000 volunteer hours doing trail work. We've proven mountain bikers can help make this opportunity successful.
* We know how to manage our own user group - and providing the diversity of experiences people are looking for through both the OSBT loop and the Four Mile Connector provides the greatest value to our community for the least impact on other trail users and the environment.
* These trails link in to our existing multi-modal transportation network (e.g., the Boulder Creek Path), allowing us to ride to our ride, be it short or long.
* There are some 100 miles of hiker-only trail available in the West TSA - we're only asking for a handful of miles to accomplish these important objectives.
* Both trails are critical for our long term vision of a "peaks-to-plains" trail that allows you to go from Nederland to Boulder by bicycle. Right now city open space forms a brick wall that forces us onto roads when we want a long distance adventure.
* Having both trails serves the families, children, and casual riders of Boulder as well as the uber-atheletes of Boulder.
o The OSBT loop provides an excellent recreation experience for people who live in Boulder and don't want to get into their cars and drive to a trail head.
o Stronger riders will be less likely to do laps. If they've got the time and energy, they can take the connector to Betasso for a longer and more remote trail experience.
o This area is bordered to the north by Sunshine Canyon and to the south by Boulder Canyon... no temptation for cyclists to ride where they shouldn't.
o This trail sits next to the core of Boulder. Whether it be from your front door or from your office downtown, cyclists will warm up on the way to the trailhead (no driving to the trailhead!) and get that 45 to 90 minute experience that is missing from the trail offerings in Boulder now

The OSBT loop with the Four Mile Connector provides the greatest management flexibility and the best trail experience for all users. It reduces or eliminates user conflict by providing hiker-only trail segments, the possibility of directional travel for bikes, and a connection to leverage this access into Betasso Preserve, thus dispersing use. The entire trail system is 8.2 miles, approximately 6 miles would form a shared-use loop and connector trail, the rest would be hiker-only.

Staff's switchback loop (they call it the "ridge loop") is a poor user experience for everyone. Two way bike traffic on 25% of this trail will increase perceived crowding and user conflict on the trail. Switchbacks are always a management nightmare because of "cutting" caused predominantly by hikers and because of conflict caused by limited sightlines between different user groups. OSMP has repeatedly denied or threatened to reduce bike access because of user conflict concerns, so let's not engineer user conflict into the system!

SEE YOU THERE!

ALSO (this is Walt) if you want all the brews you want (be reasonable!) ON ME before the meeting, we'll meet up at 4:30 at the Mountain Sun downtown. If you're interested, drop me an email or post a comment. If I don't hear from anyone, I'll just hope to see you at the meeting!

Jon's Frame or... Trogdor the Burninator!

2011-10-20T20:00:00.001-07:00

First, if you're somehow not familiar with him, educate yourself on Trogdor.

How is this relevant? Well, really, it's not. But if I had built this bike for myself (and, trust me, I wish my legs were shorter, or Jon's were longer, so that I could just steal it from him) I would name it Trogdor. It's crazy, it's over the top, and it's arguably gone way beyond any semblance of good judgement.

Here were the goals for this bike:
-29" wheels
-Shortest possible chainstays
-Ability to run a bashguard and 1x9 or 1x10 drivetrain (no front derailleur)
-Slack/stable steering geometry
-Good standover

Well, I think we got there (apologies for the Craigslist-quality photo - it's dark. I'll try to get a better one in the morning.) Small painting in the background is by my good friend Chris (drop him a line and have him paint your favorite mountain!)
-27" standover. Excessive? Probably. But great for, like, throwing tricks, or, um, unplanned dismounts on off-camber terrain. Not that I'm suggesting anything like that would happen.
-400mm effective chainstay length. Yes, that's right. 15.75" It will be a wheelie/manual machine, so much so that it's arguable that it'll be hard to keep the front wheel down when going uphill.
-83mm BB shell for 56mm chainline and clearance for a big 2.4-ish tire.
-Offset dropouts (5mm to the driveside) and 135mm spacing for a straight chainline and no-dish rear wheel.
-69 degree head tube angle, set up for a tapered steerer, 100mm travel fork. Throw a 120mm fork on there and go to 68 HTA if needed.

Are there drawbacks? Sure. Honestly, I'm still not sure if the chainline will allow smooth shifting at the very high and very low range on the cassette (Shimano designs their mountain bike components for ~425mm chainstays). The frame isn't particularly light (it'll probably just barely break 5 pounds when the powdercoat is on), and some folks wouldn't like the wider q-factor on the cranks necessitated by the 83mm BB shell. Oh, and you need a freeride crank to fit, as well as a rear wheel that's been built or re-dished to fit the offset dropouts.

But for burninating the peasants in their thatched... er, I mean ripping it up on the singletrack, this might be just right. And only Jon will ever know, since the thing is too darn small for me to steal from him.

Picture of the housing guide was just because it looked nice, and I usually don't get them to look quite that perfect. The darn things are way thin/light/lacking in thermal mass, so they want to instantly turn into a little ball of molten metal if you throw just a little bit too much heat at them.

Mountain bike trails on Anemone Hill - time to get involved!

2011-10-19T09:46:00.001-07:00

Background info: Anemone Hill is just south of Mt. Sanitas. The ridge runs all the way to 4mile Canyon to the West, and would allow access to Betasso, Logan Mill, Sugarloaf, Gold Hill, Switzerland trail. Good stuff. The Boulder Open Space Board of Trustees recently voted to recommend a trail there, and now it's up to us to make sure the city council makes it happen.

Some background:

Daily Camera article about a less-awesome staff proposal (but still more awesome than nothing)

Boulder Mountainbike Alliance info.

So, what can you do?

1. Come down to the BMA Membership party tonight! Join up and get some schwag, renew your existing membership (or join for the first time), and drink beer with other mountain bikers. TONIGHT, 6pm, at Full Cycle on Pearl.

2. Come make your voice heard and your presence felt at the October 25th City Council meeting where this will be discussed. It's at 6pm, at the Municipal building, 1777 Broadway. If you're interested in meeting up beforehand for a drink at the Mountain Sun, you can join me for that (beer on me if you come to the meeting!) too around 5pm.

Sunday Rant: Sponsorships

2011-10-16T19:24:00.001-07:00

Wu and Todd and I went for a nice ride this morning and among the varied subjects that came up was sponsorship - we've both gotten some hilarious sponsorship proposals due to the fact that we own (incredibly small) bike companies.

So, here's my rant.

-Sponsorships are about selling bikes. You might be pretty fast, you might think you're pretty cool, but can you sell bikes? Do you go to a race, get on the podium, and go straight home, in order to rest so that you can train more? If so, you might be a good rider to sponsor - in about a decade, assuming you start winning World Cups or something where someone other than your bros will notice what bike you're riding. On the other hand, if you're a lady who is SLOW AS DIRT who is at the trail building day, has a cool and interesting blog or website, hangs out with all the other racers at the BBQ, can and will put down a cold one if it's handed to you at the top of Kebler, and stick around after your race is over to cheer for the juniors and talk to their parents - you might actually sell a bike. Speed is frosting on the cake, but honestly, fast people are a dime a dozen. Bike racers tend to be pretty one-dimensional - your job is to be the one that stands out even if you're not winning the race.

-Figure out if you actually want to represent a product before you ask for it. I've been sponsored by a ton of companies in the past (and, um, zero now) and I honestly can't even remember what products I used or whether I even ever tried to promote their stuff. I know (because I was one) the neo-pros are mostly just looking for free schwag - from *anyone* - your job if you're looking for a sponsorship is to convince me that you actually like my company. Form letters are NOT a good way to do this!

-Don't ask for the moon. I can't and won't pay all your entry fees or buy you plane tickets. If you deserved those things, you'd already have been offered them by a company orders of magnitude bigger than mine.

-Remember that every 19 year old with a mountain bike (including yours truly) has dreamed of being world champion. You probably won't be. Racing is a blast, but if you let it become your only focus in life, you'll be sorry when you're 35 and turning a wrench so you can pay your share of the rent.

-Be nice. I see "pros" yell at hikers, cut the trail, refuse to yield to other riders, poach illegal stuff in full view of the general public, and generally act like spoiled children. Remember, if your job is to sell bikes, that 45 year old out for his only bike ride of the week, who just had to jump into the bushes to dodge you, is now a lost sale. Stop and say hi on the trail. Yield. Tell the fat lady how cute her hideous pug is. Pick up Gu wrappers. Smile all the time. There are plenty of places far from the madding crowd where you can get your shred on. Marshall Mesa isn't one of them.

I often offer this deal to people seeking a sponsorship: Pay me full price, up front, for a custom frame. For every person who you refer that orders a bike, I'll give you $100 back. Not one person has ever taken me up on it - which I think speaks volumes about the mindset of many "sponsored" riders.

Bonus points for anyone who can 'splain how the image at the top is relevant here. Edit: James figured it out in like 45 seconds. It the Casa Sanchez logo.

A picture from Matt

2011-10-15T08:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday, everyone... as usual, I'll be working while Sarah slaves away on her thesis. Only 2 more weeks of this and I can go back to being married/a normal person. Well, at least as much of a normal person as I ever am, anyway.

Matt forwarded this picture of his bike overlooking San Diego (up in the Mission trails area somewhere?).

MTBR poll - 36er tires

2011-10-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

I'm involved in a project to get some "real" tires made for 36ers, and we're assessing interest, so if this is something that interests you (ie, if you are a big weirdo) please click on over and vote:

If you're not an MTBR member (ie, you are a big weirdo with a life) you can just post a comment and let me know how many tires you think you'd buy.

Maintain radio silence!

2011-10-13T20:49:00.001-07:00

Y'all may have noticed that the blog is pretty slow recently. There's a reason for that - as some of you know, my wife is a huge nerd (who will probably kill me if she ever finds out I posted a link to that bio from 10 years ago). In any case, she is finishing her PhD dissertation (she studies proteins related to telomeres using NMR, among other things).

Why should you care? Well, because while Sarah is in freak-out mode finishing her PhD, yours truly is in cooking/cleaning/nagging Sarah to actually sleep mode. This leaves limited time blogging after work, and hence you can expect less posting until mid-November (the defense!)

Waltworks on video!

2011-10-10T13:03:00.000-07:00

No, it's not a berry picker. Matt made a cool video of some riding in WA. Check it out.

Interviewed!

2011-10-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

I've been interviewed over at Cycloculture, for those who are bored on a Sunday evening.

Congratulations are in order...

2011-10-05T13:44:00.000-07:00

...to my good friend and Alchemist head-honcho/errand boy Wu for taking a solid 5th place at 24 hour nats!

...to my sometimes teammate Cameron and long-lost friend Nina for *winning* the mixed duo at the same race! 20 freaking laps!

...to Millertime, for going around the sun 30 times. Keep spinning, dude - it's good for your knees!

Headshok Part 2

2011-10-04T12:44:00.000-07:00

Some of you may remember that, way back when, I used to build frame/fork combos that used the Actiontec suspension systems (a single piston, with the internals inside the steerer/head tube). They weren't the greatest suspension (50-ish mm of not-so-buttery travel) but they did have a big advantage in the customization (any length/rake/style you want!) and weight (~3 pounds) departments.

I stopped building those forks because I had a lot of problems with the bearings (the AT system uses a sort of splined piston with bearings running in the grooves) wearing out their grooves - the forks would develop horrible *angular* play, which was *really* disconcerting. They had to be sent in constantly for rebuilds, and I eventually decided that the hassle was not worth it.

Fast forward a few years and I'm now playing with a slightly different option which I think will work out better - using Cannondale Headshok suspension units with custom lowers to build a custom suspension fork. I did one earlier this year and it went well, but required a lot of extra effort to tear down/cryofit/rebuild the suspension unit. I thought I'd see, with this project (experiment/prototype/dumb idea) if I could build a clamp-on set of lowers that would hold up to serious mountain bike use.

And, to be honest, I think I actually have. The suspension unit here is from an old Fatty Ultra (thanks to Cory for the donated old headshoks that I've been playing with!) which, unfortunately, does not seem to hold air. So for actual testing purposes, I'll need to deal with that. Regardless, I turned down some 1.5 x .120" 4130 on the lathe to make the steerer sleeve (and make a lip for the shock boot to fit over as well), welded a ring into the bottom as a stop, then split it and brazed on 2 beefy M6 pinch bolts. From there, it was just a matter of building a standard (albeit shorter than I'm used to) 29er fork.

I did manage to outsmart myself a couple of times and learned a couple of lessons about welding fork blades to split rings, as well as figuring out that boring out a Paragon hooded dropout does NOT work well for a through axle (after some futzing around, the fork now takes a 9mm QR axle instead, c'est la vie) but the end result is still pretty good - a 1400g suspension fork with 80mm of relatively functional (if I can get it to hold air...) travel.

And of course, you can build around any size wheel you want. 650b? No problem. 24"? Sure! 36er? Just wait!

The downsides, though, are numerous. The fork requires an oversized head tube (a 44mm ID one will work, which is nice) and the axle to crown length is quite ridiculous for 80mm of travel - 520mm or so. That's equivalent to a 120mm travel Fox, for example, and it means that these things are really only practical for very tall people who want something really light without much travel. Pretty limited group, there. And of course, acquiring the headshok unit to begin with can be tricky. So long story short, I'm not really expecting to sell a lot (or any?) of these, even if I decide this one is a worthy fork. But it was a fun project to build when I was sick on a weekend.

Unfortunately, now I need to build myself a frame to actually ride it...

Head's up - my phone is dead

2011-10-04T10:41:00.000-07:00

And, not the "forgot to charge it" kind of dead. I'm working on getting a new one, but in the meantime, don't be surprised if I don't answer. Email is the best way to get a hold of me until further notice.

Later today: a more interesting post about custom headshoks!

Fall Garage Sale (AKA, Walt's on antibiotics and can't really work)

2011-09-30T10:08:00.000-07:00

Puttering around the house and the shop, I've got the following items for sale (some hard goods, mostly clothes, no pictures, contact me if you have questions). I'll update the list as things sell (or don't).

Don't see what you want? Click on over to the Alchemist/Waltworks team store and buy buy buy!

Hard goods:

Avid Elixir 9 (X.9) brakes. Brand new, 160mm front/rear. $300 for the set (front and rear).

E.13/Hive SSV Singlespeed cranks/bb. Brand new in the box. 175mm, no chainrings. $175, shipping included.

XTR 11-34 9 speed cassette. Brand new. $180 shipped.

XTR 180 and 160mm centerlock rotors. Brand new. $35 each, or $60 for the set, shipping included.

XT M781 front derailleur. 34.9/31.8 clamp-on, dual pull. Brand new. $30.

Clothes:

Womens:
Waltworks shorts: 4 medium. $25 each

Mens:
Waltworks jerseys: 2 small, 1 medium. $35 each
Sleeveless Waltworks/Fuentesdesign jerseys: 1 medium blue/white. $20
Waltworks t-shirt (Alchemist edition) size small. $20

Unisex:
"Nobody cares that your ride a 29er" T-shirts: 1 S.

Sicker

2011-09-29T06:06:00.000-07:00

My fairly benign cold is rapidly turning into what feels like pneumonia, so if you thought not much work was getting done earlier in the week...

I am going to try to get a few hours in today, but if I feel as crappy as I do right now, even that is unlikely to happen. Apologies to everyone who is patiently waiting.

Simply Sublime Singlespeed Studio Shots for Stu

2011-09-26T19:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, not a studio. Actually a fence. And sublime is a great overstatement of my photography skills.

I'm about as under the weather as I can be (a trip to Costco *in the car* turned out to be all I could handle and then some...) so I did very minimal work today, but I did manage to finish up Stu's frame and fork. A bit of a break from the norm (ie, 29ers) for me - this is a *singlespeed road* frame. In fact, come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever done one before. Track bikes? Sure. Fixies? Yes. But SS road? Nope.

I've only even ridden on the road on a singlespeed once - a Carter Lake ride with Adam and the Avery boys. Man, it was a butt kicking. I had my mountain bike with something like a 48x16, and a little 1.5" slick on the back, but a 2.5 Weirwolf on the front. I sat up like a big skinny sail and threw out just about the biggest draft in history. Then we rolled back to the brewery for stage 2 (the Carter Lake ride is ~70 miles), and they drank me under the table (actually, it only took about a pint at that point).

So, long story short, I have fond memories of my one and only singlespeed road ride. I hope this bike helps Stu create some great memories of his own.

Sick... also, anyone for 24 hours of Moab?

2011-09-25T17:14:00.000-07:00

I'm coming down with a cold, so work may be slow this week. You've been warned.

Also, anyone need a rider for 24 hours of Moab? My usual buddies all have one excuse or another this year (pansies!) and I'd be psyched to ride with a team of any composition or speed - drop me a line.

The Waltworks Headshok!

2011-09-21T16:30:00.000-07:00

Don't try to order this, yet. It is still very much a prototype - but it does open up the possibility of lightweight 29er (or 36er!) suspension forks, without all the problems of the Actiontec (short travel, poor bearing/piston life, etc). Of course, the difficulty is getting your hands on the actual hydraulic unit/steerer to begin with - in this case Dave found a used one somewhere and had it stripped down in order to cryofit (ie, dunk in liquid N2, then press into the lowers).

Note that I did not make the frame (it's a Cannondale, natch) and I had nothing to do with those flames!

Thanks to Dave for the photos. I'm going to try to find myself an old headshok to play with for a 36er project sometime soon, so if you've got something, drop me a line - maybe we can make a deal.

Bicycles and decision fatigue

2011-09-20T07:31:00.000-07:00

First, homework: NYT article on decision fatigue (warning, it's long). Done? Good.

I read this article and immediately thought about how it applies to something I deal with every day - that is, the myriad decisions needed to get a custom bicycle. Setting aside the decision to buy a bike in the first place, there is an awful lot that goes into the frame design (how should the bike fit? How should it handle?) but the parts and compatibility of said parts as well. There are numerous wheel, fork, headset, bottom bracket, and even seatpost standards to choose from - I could go on and on. Not to mention the fact that as the builder, I also have to make decisions about what to recommend, what size/shape of tubes to use, etc.

That's a lot of decisions, and the research seems to suggest a couple of things:

-If you make all of the decisions about the bike at the same time, you'll make good/thoughtful decisions on the early choices, but run out of mental energy to do the same for decisions that are made later in the process.

-Making decisions late in the day or on an empty stomach is probably a dumb idea.

-It's easy to get talked into things the longer you spend on the process, and the more tired/hungry you are, especially if your job requires a lot of the same kind of decisionmaking (and most of y'all reading this are smart cookies, so I'm guessing your jobs require a lot).

Sounds silly, doesn't it? But science isn't always intuitive. Taking that information into account, there are some easy steps that should help you (and me) make good decisions when designing a bike. I'm actually going to try to do this, too, so don't be surprised if I tell you to call back in the morning!

-Do design work/decisionmaking early in the day and/or after rest or a meal. That will mean call me to discuss after a nice breakfast, or at the end of your lunch break - not in the evening or the middle of the afternoon.

-Don't get caught up in minor details at the beginning of the process. If we spend a bunch of time discussing colors, or which height-adjust seatpost is best, that's probably going to detract from the more important decisions, like what combination of seat tube angle/toptube length/stem length will put you in a good position to feel comfortable on the bike, or what trail number/chainstay length/BB height is going to ride the way you want. Here's a quick list I came up with of priorities (comment if you disagree with the order, or have something I forgot to include):
1: Fit - BB/saddle/bar positioning.
2: Handling - positioning of wheels (front center, trail, bb height, chainstay length)
3: Frame rigidity/flexibility/strength - selecting appropriate tubes
4: Dropouts/brazeon configurations and parts compatibility (ie, direct mount derailleur? tapered steerer? through axle?)
5: For complete bikes, parts choices and backup options
6: Colors, decals, misc other details

-Make a list of priorities to discuss a day or two before making any decisions and prioritize them by importance. Then check them off in order and try not to deviate too much from your list. Of course new questions will come up and some will end up out of order, but a list is probably a good idea.

-If a discussion/decisionmaking session is going on longer than about half an hour to 45 minutes, stop and start again the next morning, or after lunch, so that you're refreshed and ready to devote mental energy to the task again. If the process takes several sessions, that's ok.

So, am I crazy to think a custom bike customer can actually end up with a better bike this way? You tell me, I personally think it's worth a shot.

Direct mount 411

2011-09-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

This is for the folks out there who are patiently waiting (or not so patiently waiting) for Mark at Paragon to get some more direct mount front derailleur mounts made. In other words, the framebuilders will be more interested than the rest of y'all, probably.

You don't have to wait, folks. In fact, you can very easily make your own mount from some bits of scrap. No special tools (other than normal framebuilder stuff) needed.

First, why use a direct mount front derailleur? I've written about it a bit in the past - suffice to say, if you're building full suspension bikes, short-chainstay bikes, or just want a bit crisper front shifting, direct mounts rock. You can do all kinds of weird and unconventional things with your seat tube, and still run a front derailleur. Good stuff.

Now that I've talked you into it, here's how I make a mount. There are many other ways to do it, you can get as creative as you want (I might note that the front side of the mount is a perfect spot for an always-popular *bottle opener* if you roll that way).

First, get some 1/4" plate. I used some cheap bar stock from the hardware store (some kind of mild steel); you could also use 4130 or whatever else you think is worthwhile. Remember that you've got to thread the derailleur onto this plate with an M6 bolt - so doing a lot thinner than 1/4" is probably a bad idea if you want to keep from stripping things or having the derailleur fall off.

The specs for where to drill/tap your mounting hole are here. You'll want a minimum of 25mm or so worth of edge for the derailleur to mount up to, anything shorter will allow the derailleur to rotate around the bolt and cause problems.

Once you've drilled and tapped your piece of plate, weld or braze an old piece of seatstay/chainstay/whatever to the back side. Make sure the mounting bolt can thread through the hole freely! Now miter to fit your seat tube and put the derailleur in the correct location. This is easy with a mill and a small fixture (if you want a picture of the fixture, post a comment and I'll get one up - I forgot to take any) or alternately it can pretty easily be done by hand. You'll need to do a little bit of trig to figure out what angle to cut the miter at (and how much, if at all, to offset it if you're doing something odd with the seat tube) but if you've gotten this far, you can probably handle that.

To mount the mount to the frame, I use an old piece of aluminum plate, bolted to the bb, with a second bolt to hold the mount in place on the seat tube (no picture, sorry). The only tricky bit here is to make sure you attach the mount parallel to the BB shell face, so that the derailleur will sit straight when you bolt it on.

Apropos of nothing, a rant

2011-09-17T12:05:00.001-07:00

No, it's not a rant related to bikes. Sorry.

Background: Read this article in the NYtimes about a "Mother's War on Germs".

Several things about this article, and this woman's bizarre crusade, strike me as odd and/or wrong.

To whit:

1. Mrs. Carr-Jordan, supposedly a child-development expert (she's a developmental psychology "professor", though it's not clear from the article if she has a PhD) apparently regularly takes her children to fast food restaurants. I'm pretty sure that eating anything that any of the restaurants mentioned serves is quite a bit worse for your child than the bacteria in the play area, but maybe that's just me. What kind of mother regularly buys her kids that kind of crap? Heck, the Times itself just recently published their big takedown on sugar - do you know how much sugar is in just a BUN from one of those places?

2. As someone who isn't familiar with microbiology, it sounds like Carr-Jordan is unaware that there is a LOT of bacteria *everywhere* (in fact, they are by orders of magnitude the dominant form of life on earth by both number and mass). There's quite a bit of evidence that a *lack of exposure* to pathogens as a child can lead to asthma, allergies, and other autoimmune disorders. Yes, some of the stuff kids like to play in/crawl on/eat is pretty gross - but that doesn't mean it's harmful. Both Carr-Jordan and the writer of the article fail miserably to put any kind of context on the findings - someone with little knowledge of science might conclude that play areas that aren't constantly sterilized are unsafe - when in fact that's not true at all.

3. Gross things are not usually dangerous, they're just gross. If Carr-Jordan was presenting this as a simple issue of not wanting the play areas to be disgusting, that would be one thing, but calling it a safety issue (when in fact there is not a shred of evidence presented that it is) is irresponsible.

4. A responsible journalist would have spoken to the folks mentioned at the end of the article (a representative of the CDC and the Maricopa Environmental Services Department) and then dropped the story idea. When you have one nutbar who isn't trained in any relevant science, and a whole slew of scientists and experts who say there's not a problem, publishing an article like this is irresponsible - the Times should hold itself to a higher standard. Kids play areas, whether located inside Chik-Fil-A or anywhere else, have been gross for decades, and we have not seen any epidemics due to them that I'm aware of.

Quick pictures for David

2011-09-15T07:05:00.000-07:00

Just a couple of random ones of the BB area, really. What I had time to snap last night. Note the offset seat tube - good stuff for tire clearance, though in David's case, the stays aren't really goofy short (44cm) anyway.

As an aside, I occasionally get asked NOT to post pictures of someone's frame/fork/bike on the blog. I have no problem with that, but just make sure you inform me beforehand - if I don't hear from you, I'll assume your bike is fair game for pictures, analysis, bad jokes, and possibly mockery of some kind from your friends/the peanut gallery.

Picture for Phil, fork updates

2011-09-13T12:48:00.001-07:00

First, a quick picture for Phil. Yep, I was too lazy to pose the frame anywhere more exciting than the top of the recycle bin. C'est la vie.

As usual, I'll do a quick run-through of the geometry for those who are curious:
71/73 angles, built around a Fox 100mm travel fork
59.5cm toptube, 37cm seat tube, 42.5cm (effective) chainstays
30.5cm BB height with 2.1" tires and fork sag
Direct mount front derailleur, built for discs and full gears, etc, etc.

This is basically my standard XC geometry (angle-wise, that is) and yes, it's boring. But boring can be good - this is the geometry that works pretty well for most people on most terrain. Is it what I ride? Not really, but that's not the point. I think Phil will be psyched!

Now, on a less fun note - those folks who have forks on order, or are thinking of ordering a fork (or have a frame/fork combo in the queue)- be aware that I'm all out of my nice OXPLATMSRD-LT steerer tubes, and I've been waiting several months now for True Temper to fill my order for a couple more boxes. That means nothing in some cases - I use a different steerer for bigger and/or abusive riders. But it probably affects at least 80% of the people in line. I can't build any forks for you guys until I get those steerers (well, I can, but they'll have 100g of extra metal sitting there doing nothing useful). Should I have planned ahead better? Probably. But I did make the order *months* in advance, for a pretty popular and widely-used part, so to some extent this is also bad luck.

In any case, I apologize to everyone who is waiting on a fork. I'll do my best to harass TT into getting them to me as quickly as possible.

I have a problem...

2011-09-10T10:20:00.000-07:00

...with tubing deals that are too good to pass up. So I spent about half of the day unpacking $2k worth of tubes. Driver of the delivery truck was amused that I didn't have a loading dock.

Done with Willie!

2011-09-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

Long and low - Willie's got a 24.8" toptube but only 18.5" seat tube and a pretty short (~4") head tube. Why? Ape arms!

It's also got short-ish (425mm) chainstays and a moderately high BB for Willie's long cranks, but plenty of standover.

Non-suspension corrected rigid fork, sliders, singlespeed only - this is a hardcore bike. In fact, probably too hardcore for me, these days. I'm a suspension sissy more and more - though if I lived somewhere a bit less rocky, I might reconsider.

Willie also kept it old school by requesting/demanding *single bend* chain and seatstays. Whew! Takes me back to, say, 2008 or so!

Just kidding. Almost everyone wants s-bends these days, though. I almost didn't remember how to do the single bends!

I'm baaaack...

2011-09-06T20:15:00.000-07:00

Rested and refreshed, ready to do some work.

Random thoughts about the trip:
-Bend is like Boulder without as many people. Which is nice, because it means you can share the trails and not get in constant yelling matches about who has the right of way.
-The only trail worth riding down at Phil's is Ben's. All of the others get boring.
-Mrazek is better to climb than descend.
-It is not safe to ride full speed up Kent's on a weekday after 5pm. And I managed to cover almost 23 miles in 1.5 hours out there... crazy.
-Flagline and South Fork are freaking awesome.
-Having access to an air compressor is really nice when you want to set up your tubeless tires on your travel bike.
-Parilla Grill is in an ideal spot to serve hungry bike riders.
-Master's road nationals is a ridiculous parade of blinged-out road bikes.
-Jumping in the Deschutes after a long ride is freaking heaven.
-Smith Rock inspires me to get my harness back out and sport climb.

Picture courtesy of Brian at Chris King. Thanks man!

Why Waltworks is like the Celtics

2011-08-25T15:39:00.000-07:00

Check out this article by everyone's favorite/least favorite geek, Malcolm Gladwell, about owning an NBA team.

Now think about the "psychic value" of being a framebuilder... the money is a lot less, but in some ways, it's the same story for a lot of folks - loving bikes means they'll do it practically for free.

Just thought that was interesting. See y'all in 10 days or so!

First shot of Willie's fork

2011-08-24T18:28:00.000-07:00

...along with a bunch of other forks. Normally I'm not much of a fan of the assembly-line system of building stuff, but I am all out of the steerer tube I use the most of the time (the excellent OXPLATMSRD-LT that I pestered True Temper into making 5 years ago), so I spent the day mitering things up. Not shown are the disc mounts and crown races, but those are all prepped and ready to go too - which means I will have a long day of welding ahead of me when I get back from Bend.

I'll probably do a few posts from Bend, and Sarah is going to be spending some of her time working on finishing writing (due November first!) her doctoral biochemistry thesis, so I'll also have some time to answer emails and do design work (and even order parts for folks).

Now THAT is how you tour!

2011-08-21T12:19:00.001-07:00

Lee is ready to stay hydrated.

KVA - the followup (or the postmortem?)

2011-08-20T14:05:00.000-07:00

Edited: I decided it wasn't particularly fair of me to say bad things about KVA's tubes, when my experience with them (or any stainless) is very limited. Suffice to say that Chris's cross (Kris Kross?) bike never saw the light of day; I built him an OX Platinum bike instead after having numerous problems with the KVA stuff, and I am not offering bikes made with any form of stainless tubing at this time. There are some great builders out there who work with it and do awesome stuff - if you're excited about that, I encourage you to contact one of them.

My 15 minutes of fame...

2011-08-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

The meeting was, as these things go, a big success. Only about 20 people turned out, but it was something like 18 mountain bikers and 2 grumpy NIMBYs, so for once we had the advantage of numbers.

Long story short, the Open Space Board of Trustees voted to recommend a bike-accessible trail on Anemone hill. This is a really big deal - kudos to everyone who showed up and made their voices heard.

As an aside, I got quoted in the Daily Camera article. And they took out all the "um" and "uh" so that I sound smart!

Miguel's Race Report: Soggy Bottom 100

2011-08-16T14:37:00.000-07:00

Why do we have a tendency to script events of our lives? We imagine how an event will occur and then play it out in our minds. Often we forget the details of what would actually take place and just focus on the end result of our script.

Today was a good example of a script that I had written for myself. The goal: win the Soggy Bottom Bike Race. It sounds simple to put these words on paper but in reality the task is much, much, much more difficult. The Soggy Bottom is a 101 mile bike race in Alaska. In actuality it is 108 miles because a section of the race on road is not tallied as part of the actual course distance. In addition I had never ridden the course, had no support crew, which is a huge disadvantage, and the weather could always be unpredictable, which would also favor the local racers.

Going into the first checkpoint (at the top of the first climb up Resurrection Pass) I was in first place but this part of the race does not require much more description than this. Long ago when I was a distance runner a wise man told me that the half marathon was the boy and the full marathon was the man. Needless to say I hadn't even reached the boy stage of the race; essentially the entire race was ahead of me.

On the first of three major downhills I literally took a turn for the worse. This wrong turn resulted in riding an additional three miles and losing about ten places. I basically watched them pass me as I rode in the opposite direction. One of the riders that I passed going the wrong way actually told me that I was going the right way, and this helped continue my misdirection. I was stopped by another first time Soggy Bottom racer from the Yukon who told me that I was going the wrong way. I was defeated. A hundred mile race is difficult enough to race well, let alone win, and here I was riding extra needless mileage when I was supposed to be saving all of my energy to race the actual course. I half heartedly started going the right way, the Yukon rider racing past me and I hobbled with my broken pride to the next checkpoint.

The checkpoint at mile 42 was where the race actually began. The first thing that I asked when rolling into the checkpoint was where the water was. All of the other riders in the race had support so I assume that this was the first time that the race staff had gotten this question. Slowly rolling over to the back of the pickup that served as an aid station I unscrewed my water bottles slowly so that the mud would not spill in and I began to fill up with water while shoving food down my throat. While doing this I heard someone say "where's the water?”

I knew that there was one other person out on course that did not have support - my reason for racing the Soggy Bottom had just rolled into the aid station. Chris and I used to call each other frequently but since he moved to Anchorage a year or so ago the phone calls became less frequent and the possibility to ring his doorbell was no longer available. As with all good friendships that are far apart the things that once held us close; the roadtrips, the epic mountain biking, and the summiting of peaks were now distant memories. But when I heard "where's the water" I smiled knowing that we were now in this together.

We topped off our water bottles and we agreed to work together. Just knowing that we were together I knew that the remaining two climbs and the remaining three descents would be much easier with my compadre. Almost immediately we began catching riders on the ascent back to Resurrection Pass. I could feel that our collective spirits had been raised and we had the possibility of working ourselves back into a podium position.

As I paced Chris up to the top of Resurrection the steady rain began to come down. The only thing keeping me warm at this point was the effort of going uphill. Near the top of the pass Chris took over being the lead rider on trail and I followed him to the next aid station. On this descent the mud on the trail was becoming a factor; our gears began to shift erratically, the braking became more difficult and the traction was becoming more and more slippery. We reached the aid station at mile 72 and as we were shoving food in our mouths people stopped to help us since they realized these mud covered racers before them had no outside support. While we were at the check point the fifth place racer sped off. He had a slight lead on us when we checked out a couple of minutes later.

Again I set the pace up the climb with the intention of getting our podium spots, but unfortunately we did not catch anyone during the climb up to Resurrection for the third and last time. We were at approximately mile 80 in the race and my body was cold, muddy and tired, fighting nausea, basically all around miserable. Even faced with this we knew that the last descent was the only obstacle left in our race.

We put on all the clothes that we had left in our pockets on our bodies and Chris took the lead down the last descent. We knew that this was it, our last chance to fly to that finish line and get a podium spot.

Around the first corner there was a rider with a flat tire - it was the rider who steered me in the wrong direction - the only racer deserving to have a flat tire at the side of the trail out of the entire field that was racing. Moving up to 4th and 5th position gave us new wings down this last descent; well maybe it was this and the red bull/coke that we had just slammed were giving us the winged effect.

We began to take huge risks on the downhill and in reality our frozen fingers could not have effectively stopped us anyway. The trail at this point was flowing like a creek and the mud was quickly sealing up my glasses, jumping into my mouth and flowing freely in the air around me. Chris still had his foot on the gas; we were flying down this descent. Being from Colorado I never ride in the mud, and the two wheel slides into corners were outside of my comfort zone, but seeing Chris do it gave me the belief that I could also do it too. Through the high velocity of our descent Chris told me that he was getting tunnel vision, and I realized that my vision was also starting to tunnel, so naturally I told him to keep pressing the pace.

We caught the 3rd place rider on the final uphill with a great individual effort from the both of us. The final miles of open road were now before us and we could draft off of each other - we knew that no one else would catch us from behind.

We crossed the finish line together, tied for third place. I hurried to the bathroom and I began to think about it while waiting in line: "why do we script the events of our lives before they happen?"

I know that I will always script things before they happen, it's because it’s in my nature and this will likely never change. This race, however, was the rare occasion when reality was better than the script that I had imagined. Although this race was just a day in my life the beginning of the script was written long ago. It evoked the decade of memories that we had shared when we lived in the same city. During this time was when our friendship was forged, the desert single tracks of Utah, the aspen and pine forest trails of Colorado and the rain soaked roads when we crossed the eastern United States together. It was based on two friends riding together, feeding off of each other and racing together - the perfect script.

Another chance - maybe, for more trails in Boulder

2011-08-15T16:33:00.001-07:00

Time to get involved, folks.

-Click here to email the OSBT and City Council (it's a BMA page, you'll be asked to copy a list of email addresses into your mail client). The BMA has a nice list of talking points to use, but don't just copy and paste.

-Show up at Wednesday's OSBT meeting 8/17 at 6pm at the Utility Maintenance Center, 5050 Pearl Street. City council will meet on this topic on Tuesday, September 6th.

We got completely shut down on the west TSA, but IMO the OSBT is open to considering the Anemone Hill area for some trails (as of now, it's a bunch of rutted out social trails, homeless campsites, and garbage, so if we can't get a trail there, we can't get one anywhere...) So this is well worth your time, even if you're burned out/pissed off about the West TSA.

Sunday Quick Rant: Mismatched Rims Rule!

2011-08-14T09:05:00.000-07:00

Folks, front wheels don't see nearly the kind of heavy loads or abuse that rear wheels do. It's not silly or weird to use different rims on the front and rear of your bike - for example, I run a Crest on the front, and an Arch on the rear on my XC bikes, because that way I don't have to build a new rear wheel every year, and I save some weight on the front wheel. And in my experience, front wheels are basically unkillable unless you run into a tree, or land sideways off a jump, and at that point, ALL front wheels taco, no matter what rim you're on.

You can of course use rims from different manufacturers, beefier rims, whatever. I sell *custom* frames, and with that, you can get a *custom* wheelset - that means mismatched rims are not a problem at all. If your friends give you too much crap about it, just take the stickers off, and nobody will ever know.