Sure, there are notable exceptions, like Salsa Cycles , but then again, they've done two models in 29 inch wheels with carbon fiber back ends, so even they have dabbled. Take a new entrant, like the Breezer pictured here, and it seems like that to be "legit", you have to dive into the magic black, plasticky goo that is carbon fiber framed bikes. Is it a good thing? Hmm........I dunno. Like anything else, carbon fiber can really be bad, or mediocre, or down right fantastic depending upon how it is made.
<===Not carbon, but has the look.
I know that I've heard about bad frames in carbon. Frames that are failing. I've ridden some fantastic feeling carbon framed big wheelers, and I've ridden some terrible ones. I guess it's the "material du jour". You can make all sorts of crazy shapes with it that you can't in metal.......or can you? Now I've seen some pretty sexy looking hydro-formed aluminum, and I've heard from one company that thinks this technique will overtake carbon someday for the way it can be shaped, varied in thickness, and produced in a cheaper manner than carbon fiber, which is super labor intensive to use. Who knows? Maybe someday carbon fiber will fall out of favor as a frame material. It doesn't seem possible right now though, does it?
Night Nonsense 100: A new gravel grinder has been posted over on Gravel Grinder News that will be taking place in October. Okay, so we've done gravel grinding, we've done a hundy before, what's the big deal? Well, this one will be done completely in the dark! Starting at 8pm, it will already be dark, and of course, it will stay dark long after you are done in October, unless you are crazy slow! So get on over to GGN and check it out. The links are all there.
Monsoon Season: Too bad they don't do cyclo-cross in the summer because the mud is fan-freakin-tastic right now. It's been raining so hard, so often, that I can not remember a time like this in my life here. Even when it isn't raining, the humidity levels are so high, you really are still swimming in moisture. Can anybody say "drought" right about now? I'm game. At least the Dyna Sys 10 speed group will get a fair mud bath test in the near future here. I have it all completed now with the correct front derailluer on it and all. So hopefully I'll be riding that real soon. Maybe with pontoons........ and paddles!
Okay, that's all for Friday. Go for a ride, go to RAGBRAI, just go ride a bike. I'll be chasing down some sweet corn before it floats away in some flash flood and celebrating my son's 7th birthday. See ya'all later!
2 comments:
I live in Illinois and I feel we are in a swamp.
ari
mmm! sweet corn & night time gravel, both good stuff in my book!
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