Friday, April 19, 2013

Pink

Spring is most definitely in the air (you can smell 6 months worth of dog waste melting out of the snowbanks) and we have been blessed with a good long stretch of beautiful cloudless days.  The trails have remained in fantastic condition, freezing firmly on the cold clear nights and staying firm almost all day long, and I have been fortunate enough to get some excellent riding in on a new (to me) bike.
That pink fatbike you see is now legally mine.  The previous owner was kind enough to allow me a good long window to test ride and think about the purchase.  Mrs. was in love with it the minute she saw it and has no qualms about being married to a man who rides around on an XL pink bike.  Getting her stamp of approval was not insignificant.

The bike fit me amazingly well as soon as I threw a leg over it.  It's not often I hop on another person's bike and don't feel the urge to fiddle with one thing or another.
The story is that the bike was originally built up by a local shop/fatbike company employee.  He put in the special request for a XL frame in pink and then decked it out in the parts you might expect from guy who gets a shop discount:  XTR rear derailleur, SLX front, Mr. Whirly crank, cut out Speedway 70mm rims,  Thomson stem, etc.
Apparently he moved out of state not too long after finishing the build and a casual friend of mine scooped it up for a steal.  However, it seems that for my friend the lure of 800cc snowmachines trumped pedal power and the bike saw almost no action for the past two winters.

Long story short, he was happy to let the bike go to someone who would ride it, the bike fit me and Mrs. approved.  I initially hesitated, but encouragement and sound advice from a couple of fellow bike junkies pushed me over the edge.

It may be pink, but it rides like the darkest black of a moonless night.

I'm secure enough to enjoy the obvious jokes that will ensue. My favorite so far was the woman on horseback asking if I had borrowed my wife's bike.
I've actually had a thing for pink frames ever since I first saw Pat Irwin's pink 1x1 eight or nine years ago.
I figure with one kid and another on the way my manhood is adequately accounted for and I shouldn't let a good deal pass me by.


Changes thus far:
The bike came with a horribly narrow carbon bar, so I swapped it for an On-One Mary bar before I rode it for the first time.  The Mary bar is nice, but I think I'll ultimately change it out for something with a little less back sweep.  I was thinking a Salsa Whammy bar would be nice, but it seems no one is selling them these days.  On-One Fleegle perhaps.  To be determined.

It also had Endomorph tires front and rear, which had amazingly awkward handling characteristics.  I've since swapped those for (27tpi) Larrys.  I picked one Larry up cheap at the local bike swap and acquired the other from a guy on craigslist who wanted to trade a Larry for an Endomorph, don't ask me why.  Handling was noticeably improved by the tire swap.





Down the road I'll likely get the MWOD rings for the Mr. Whirly crank.  I have absolutely no need for the big ring, and wouldn't mind moving the chain out from the rear tire a bit.



The little ski hill in town has closed for the season so I snuck over there one evening this week after a quick singletrack ride and goofed around on the groomed slopes.
Good times.

7 comments:

  1. Good to know my "advice" contributed to steering you toward the fat side. From afar, I knew this deal was as good as done after your first post mentioning the bike. It just took a little while for the universe to arrange all the pieces to fit. So welcome, and as the owner of at least a couple of pink bikes, I have to say the color is way underrated for bike use.

    As an aside, I'm in ABQ for the weekend and plan to see your other advisor. I'll say "hi".

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    1. Oh, I almost forgot the "another on the way" line that you sneaked in there. Way to go, daddy-o! You'll need the two seater mod for the Dummy's kid seat that I've worked out.

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  2. Andy,
    I've been waiting on the universe for 8years.

    I've been proselytizing for fatties ever since Pat Irwin let me ride a first generation Pugsley Surly Dave sent him one in 2005.
    Not coincidentally that was also the year I got married. I was also ski bumming pretty seriously in those days, so the retail price of a Pugs vs new skis was a pretty simple equation to work out.
    I've found that in married life I can get away with or get approval for many small purchases much more easily than any single large purchase, even if I have the necessary cash squirreled away (which I've had ready and waiting for quite some time).
    I've just been waiting for a bike that she would get excited about and give me the green light. When it comes to dealing with me and my bike habit she truly is an understanding saint and I am fully aware of how lucky I am.

    Oh, and thank you. Baby girl due around here in July.
    I can't wait to see the Dummy 2.0 plans

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    1. I am well versed in that of which you speak. After 19 years of marriage and a continual flow of bikes through the household, I've noted that different items can trigger different responses. On the plus side, like me, it sounds like you have a supportive partner who understands your two-wheeled affliction. For me, the bikes that my wife most highly endorses turn out to also be those that I generally enjoy the most. There's something to that "better half" designation.

      I plan to have the seat plans up in the next week or so. My oldest is a July girl too, so good luck. Hi from the Gypsy and Lael.

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  3. Give those two my greetings please.

    Did you buzz down there for the weekend to clean up at Nicholas' gear sale?

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    1. I took a Revelate Sweet Roll bag off his hands, so I thought I'd save a little in shipping costs by driving 7 hours each way to pick it up :-)

      Actually, it was mostly a happy coincidence to be there. My brother works at UNM, so we were there for a visit. It didn't take much convincing to get everyone on bikes to visit Nicholas and Lael at their farm.

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  4. The Salsa Bend Bar 2 might be a happy medium with 23 or 17 deg of sweep.

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