RSS FeedHeading up to Sugarbush, VT for some mountain biking July 4 weekend. Anyone wanna join? There’s lots of other outdoorsy stuff to do up there, too.
There’s an Xterra race there July 11/12, so we’re scouting it out pre-race.
What better way to spend July 4?? Come join us!
Big mountain bike fest on Sunday. Blue Mountain in Peekskill, NY.
I’ll be there. Who else dares?
Check it out. I’m legit now:
So, I took Ladies First for her first ride. Went to Blue Mountain with Adam and my friend Charlie. Beautiful day, awesome trails, sweet bike.
A couple differences between my old D&S and this new Vertex ladies frame: TT is a bit shorter on the new frame, as well as the chainstays. BB height is also slightly lower.
You guys will be happy to hear that I had a couple pretty sweet spills. I haven’t gone down in a while. I figured out that the combination of the shorter TT (one of the reasons I got the frame) and the shorter chainstays makes for a much shorter wheelbase. So, turning as I normally would on my D&S is actually oversteering on the new frame. Oops. But, this thing turns on a dime! Just gotta get used to it.
The lower BB height I didn’t discover until out on the trail, and was suddenly hitting rocks with my pedals that I shouldn’t have been hitting. Slightly annoying, but just something to get used to. I’ll probably be replacing pedals more often!
Another new thing with this build is the double crankset. I replaced the triple rings with 24-36 double rings and a bash guard. (I put the first marks on the guard at Blue!) If anyone’s been thinking about trying a double setup, I highly recommend it! I could really feel the difference. I used every gear combination over the course of the day, and didn’t feel the need for anything more. No wasted gears, and no missing gears. Perfect. And, those of you who’ve been to Blue know that it’s not exactly flat. Even without a tiny granny or a large big ring, I could easily handle the entire terrain of the mountain.
I also got the new SLX compact FD for mountain doubles. Works great! And, it fits very snugly against the bash guard. Using a triple, you usually have to mount it up high, and there’s interference when crossing the chain. Not so with the compact FD. Great stuff!
Besides the slight annoyance of the lower BB (which isn’t horrible since it lowers my center of gravity), I am one happy little rider!