Big Week Of Bikes Coming Up

Origin 8 Paladin 29

This week marks a big week for bikes showing up for testing on Twenty Nine Inches and another surprise I think many of you out there might not guess at. I'll hold off on that one till tomorrow.

First up, I should see the Origin 8 Paladin sometime this week for testing. It'll be a complete build, not just the frame and fork, as shown here.

I rode this bike out at Interbike, and it seemed to have razor sharp steering. Good for here, not so hot for the trails of Bootleg Canyon, and especially not so, since the bike had a rigid fork. It was the first bike I rode out there, and that didn't help, actually.

The margin for error out there is slim, but more than that, the penalty for pushing it too far is pretty huge. Rocks that take skin right off, and would sooner break bones than not, well, that was too much of a risk for me. I had to consider what I was there for, and biffing on the first rig out of the box didn't sound so appealing.

Now, of course, by the time I rode the new Salsa Fargo, which was my last demo bike on Tuesday of that week, I was desensitized, and even though that bike was also a rigid fork bike, I ripped the trails on it.

So, I am glad the Paladin is coming here, because I fear I didn't give it a fair shake in Nevada. We'll see.....

The next rig, that is actually showing up this morning sometime, is the Milwaukee Bicycle Company 29"er. It'll be a single speed, and I hear it is some hot Candy Apple Red color too. Can't wait to ride this new version of the bike that I tested a couple years back or more. That bike was steel, OX Platinum, as a matter of fact. This one will be Reynolds 853 main tubes and Reynolds 520 in the stays, so a completely Reynolds tubed frame. That'll be fun to see about out on the trails.

I really, really liked the last Milwaukee frame I rode, and I hope this one is as good. We'll see.....(again!)

Yes- there is one more bike that is actually already at the shop today. I am not revealing what it is......yet! Trust me....you'll never guess what it is! (Employees of Europa Cycle and Ski, or folks that saw the bike late Sunday are not eligible to guess!)

Stay tuned.......