Friday News And Views

We'll be saying goodbye to James, seen on the right here, today.

Change is a big part of being in a typical bicycle shop. Turnover rates are typically pretty high. I often wonder how many folks I've worked with over the years. Today another ending happens. We're losing our other mechanic, James.

James came to us via Skunk River Cycles and was single when he got here. Then he got married, and then he got an internship in Idaho. So, now he's packing up his stuff and heading out the door here one last time.

I don't write about many of our past employees, but I like James and wish him well. He's the best second mechanic I've worked with since Jeff Kerkove, and that was quite a while ago now. Gonna miss that tall fella after he leaves today.

But we'll be seeing him off right proper on Monday when we all get together for a going away gathering, much like we did not long ago for Brian. It should be a good time.

From when we had snow

 Blackborow Update:

Okay folks, here's the thing- I like the Blackborow enough that I decided to permanently retire The Snow Dog. That's right, the Blackborow is that good. I said it before, and I'll say it again- this is the best fat bike Salsa has made so far for things I use a fat bike for. It just blows the old Mukluk platform away, as far as I can tell.

I haven't ridden a newer Mukluk, since Salsa added the Alternators and changed the geometry some in 2013. So, that is an outlier for me. However; the Blackborow is nimble, has bigger meats, and a shorter wheel base than the Muk does now. I think the Muk has its place, but I am super pleased with this bike and I am dubbing it "The Snow Dog V2". It will be the "out of bounds" fat bike going forward.

29+ is interesting to me, but fixing those huge wheels into Mukluks and this bike will raise an already high bottom bracket appreciably. I found that the Ti Muk was unwieldy and I wasn't as enamored of the big wagon wheels as I had been when I tried the Borealis Echo. The Echo worked really well with 29+, but the MukTruk was not so great, in my mind. I feel that B+ is a better fit for the Mukluks and Blackborows, or a 29"er set up is okay as well. 29+ is just not quite right in there. A good 29+ set up would have a lower bottom bracket for sure.

Gooey Gravel Travel?

This weekend could be good for a gravel ride. It's possible that it could get dicey with the moisture that may be hitting us though. Saturday sounds "misty" while Sunday is looking like spotty rain showers. The thing is, Sunday will be over 50°F here, and Saturday will be slightly cooler than that.

Saturdays always work best for me, but I'll have to make a "game time call" on what I am doing this weekend due to something happening today that may influence what I do or do not get to do this weekend. Whatever happens, I think with the warmer temperatures, and possible moisture, fenders or mud guards would be a good call.

Nothing like getting a wet backside and suffering the resulting "heat sucking" results as you try to pedal harder to stay warm. If you find yourself out there, be careful!

Have a great weekend and stay active!