Friday, August 28, 2020

Friday News And Views


SAFETY NOTICE - CUTTHROAT V2 FORK: 

Salsa Cycles, on Wednesday, sent out a notice that owners of the Cutthroat Carbon Deluxe v2 and Cutthroat Carbon v2 forks need to check their fork for a possible safety issue. The affected forks were delivered to dealers in September 2019 to the present and can be identified by their serial numbers which require the fork to be removed from the bike to be seen. 

Riders who are unsure of how to remove the fork safely should have a qualified mechanic look at any suspected fork immediately. You can check in to THIS LINK for more information regarding this advisory. 

Please share this post with anyone you know that has a late model Cutthroat or that has a Cutthroat fork that fits the description here. 

The Ti Muk 2 has been set up and ready for the Fat Bike Century attempt for weeks now.

Fall Planning:
 
With the end of August here, I have been in planning mode for Fall riding and reviewing for RidingGravel.com. I have things I want to do, and things I have to do. Lately, the 'things I have to do' have been taking priority and will continue to do so for quite a while. This is problematic since I failed to get in the entire 100 mile ride I attempted at the beginning of August and I still have the Fat Bike Century on my plate to attempt yet as well. 

But I have things that are continually dragging me away from personal challenges, and while I may sneak in a hundy while doing testing, it won't be on the fat bike. That one may have to wait and I am thinking that is a more likely than not situation. There are wheels that need to be ridden, 'super-secret' stuff to be used, and I have a Light and Motion light needing some night riding scheduled into the mix. All this also hinges on times I have open to ride, and that coupled with weather. 

That, as Jeff Kerkove used to say about Trans Iowa, is 'the wildcard', right? I could really get into a pinch if the weather conspires to be awful on days I have open for test riding. So far this year I have hit the jackpot. I have maybe only had a few days where I had to forgo testing due to weather. In fact, I have had more outside influences keep me from riding this year than I have had issues with weather. So, I hope my weather luck holds. It's 'crunch time' for my reviewing, because sooner than not Winter will be here, and while you may think that's nuts to think this, I know I have at least three months of scheduled reviewing/test rides ahead of me. Yes- There is that much stuff going on. 
 
Mike Varley teased this LaCabra proto plus wheeled bike as a future BMC model.

Plus Bike Dreams:
 
Posting my Ti Muk 2 and selling my Sawyer, which was set up with B+ wheels, has me thinking a lot about plus sized wheels again. It is the one thing 'I think' I am missing in the stable of choices I have here. Having ridden a few of these types of bikes, the concept intrigues me greatly. I know what the wheels are capable of, and I know just exactly what I'd do with a bike with plus sized wheels, if all was right with the design as I see things. 
 
First of all, I'd want to be able to run 29 X 3" tires, although I'd likely do 29 X 2.8"ers in reality. 650B plus sized tires? Eh......why? 29"ers roll over stuff better and with a 3.0" wide 29"er tire, you can traverse some pretty difficult terrain. I've done it, so I know. I've seen it done too. I am convinced of this wheel size's prowess. 

So, that's why I have issues with the proposed BMC LaCabra. As cool as that bike would be, I would rather see it in a 700c format. So, what else is there? Well, you have the Surly ECR. Maybe.... It's over-built and has those stupid Surly drop outs which are a turn-off for me. So..... Jones Bike? Yeah.... a distinct possibility, but the cheap ones are not my cuppa. I'd do a LWB Titanium one in a heartbeat with a truss Fork, but $$$$'s are not what I have available to get into that. Really....the dream bike? A LWB Ti Spaceframe and Truss Fork. Hey, a man has to have a dream rig, right? 
 
Don't tell me about the Fargo. Not interested in the newer ones. I've seen these with 29 X 3" tires and I am not impressed. I don't want "modern trail geometry" either, so that puts a lot of other choices to rest too. No, right now only the Jones Ti LWB has me intrigued. But until I win the lottery...... The Ti Muk 2 will have to do me for now. Yes- I could build 29 X 2.8 wheels for this. However, this screws with the bottom bracket height on a Mukluk and I've tried 29+ wheels on a Mukluk before, so I know this. 

Anyway, just a random thought I have from time to time!
 
That's it for this week. Have a great weekend and put in some bicycling miles! 

8 comments:

Jon Steinhauser said...

Just spit-ballin here, but what about a ‘20 Kona unit x ?

Guitar Ted said...

@Jon Steinhauser - Yes, I have been checking that out, not just because Andy's Bike shop, where I work, is now a Kona dealer.

They list the tires at 2.6" but I have read where others say it can slot in 2.8"ers with the sliders all the way back. A little slack-ish.... Hmm.... Close. It's an interesting bike to be sure. I'd like to see one first.

The thing is, I can get a bike that is close, but not quite, or I could just get the right bike up front. I've been through this game before and I know which is the right way to go for me.

MG said...

Well said… Close only works in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Guitar Ted said...

@ MG - I think that's one of my favorite sayings. Love ya Brother!

Stefan said...

Cinelli Hobootleg Geo might be one too. This is a category I’ve been obsessing about recently too. There’s also the Landyacht Ti Monster bike, but that’s starting to get into a higher price category.

Guitar Ted said...

@Stefan - Those are both very intriguing choices. Thanks for pointing those out.

Pedro said...

Hi Mr. Ted,
Have you think about a steel Spaceframe with truss fork?
I have one and it is a marvellous bike. Only two concerns:
First, it is dificult to transport water for bikepacking or long rides, because Jones Frame bag it’s too small to carry a 3 L blader.
Second, it isn’t the ti modelšŸ¤£
Be happy, stay safe.

Guitar Ted said...

@Pedro- That’s a great, and slightly less expensive alternative to the TI Spaceframe. I made the TI Spaceframe reference as a “dream bike” choice. The steel version is also “up there” on the list for sure.