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.

The Past Few Days

Bikes, friends, kids, fishing, family, some science and a wheel build.

We had a public use cabin reserved for a couple nights out on a lovely lake.  Allman, Poundcake and Fi rode out hang out the first night.

Trucking in a few odds and ends.

Little reeled this one in all on his own.

Friends and fires.

Bikes, boats and science.

I've had some disc specific Velocity rims laying around since last spring's bike swap. I had visions of building up a coaster brake wheel for the 1x1 or doing a fancier build with some of the new Surly Ultra Hubs, but financial realities weren't going to allow any of that to happen anytime soon.

New hubs came in the mail from my brother's LBS.

I had some birthday slowly burning a hole in my pocket the past 5 months.  I managed to swing a price match deal on some Shimano hubs that would allow me to build some wheels sooner rather than later. 

Now to do some spoke calculating.

What's Another Word for Pirate Treasure?

I think it's booty . . .


. . . That's what it is.


The annual bike swap was today. Had a good time met up with LO'L and Allman and saw GSC briefly. My quick interaction with GSC resulted in my searching the interwebs for 48 hole rims to pair with a Phil hub he graced me with.

To paraphrase Allman, the swap was basically the same group of people that sell parts to each other via craigslist all getting together in one place and selling parts to each other.

Tires.
EVERYBODY had tires to sell.
I actually bought a pair. 2 for $1. Going on Mrs.' cruiser.

Little wrider had a fine time running amok and testing any pumps people had for sale.

Assessing the days booty back at the car.

All in all a fun day, and 7 bikes in the household benefited from the swap for less than $100.

Bike Swap Buys

The local bike club had a bike swap today. Considering I was went there with All man I feel pretty good about how little money I spent. I did impulsively purchase a new (to me) bike, but it could have been much worse.



I scored a few good deals and a couple of freebies. Dura Ace brake levers and the Selle San Marco saddle were free. and I only dropped $40 between the OnOne Mary bar and the Crank Bros Mallets. Not sure what I'm going to do with the Mary bar, but it was too cheap to pass up.

The big purchase was a new road bike. I've casually searched for an old Bridgestone in the past and haven't found anything worth what I could afford. I caught the seller of this bike just as he was arriving at the swap and could pass on what he was asking for the bike.


I am a little curious about the story behind the fork he had on there, but the frame was a good fit, 105 parts spec and everything seemed sound.

My crosscheck keeps getting heavier and heavier as it gets more utilitarian. Racks and fenders and all that goodness adds up. It will be nice to have something that I can keep simple and ready to roll out some miles on without all the extra accessories on board.