Friday News And Views

Tweet from BRAIN regarding 26"FS bike sales for Jan/'19

That Guy From Niner Said This Would Happen Someday:

Maybe 11-12 years ago now, Chris Sugai of Niner Bikes made a bold prediction. He said that in ten years, (from then), 26 inch mountain bikes would be dead. I suppose this prediction's success or failure hinges on what "dead" means. In terms I understand, I would say he was correct. 26 inch wheeled mountain bikes, basically, are dead. Especially so in that the context of which Sugai was speaking back then, 26" mtb is not seen at all today. Which is to say, yes....there are 26" mountain bikes being made yet. But as far as any real world impact goes, (ie: racing, enthusiasts, aftermarket parts), the wheel size is dead, and has been for several years now.

So, this Tweet from BRAIN ("Bicycle Retailer and Industry News") really was kind of humorous. It is our reality now. However; there is one thing, in my mind, which really was the death knell for 26"ers, and while 29"ers had something to do with it, that wheel size wasn't the reason. It was really the industry's move, in 2011-2012, to produce 27.5" mountain bikes to the exclusion of 26" bikes. Basically, 27.5" replaced 26" bikes. So, one could argue that 26" mountain bikes are not dead, they "evolved". Besides, we weren't far from actually having mountain bikes having 27.5" wheels in the 80's. Imagine if that had taken hold then.

But in the end, it doesn't matter. It is what it is, and congratulations to Chris on getting it right.

Arrgh! It be ten years now that the Gravel Worlds be goin' on lads!

 Ten Year Anniversary Gravel Worlds Jersey:

Ten years. It's a marker. A yardstick by which we measure time. It is a milestone of sorts when you are talking about events. Years ending in zero are often celebrated, and Gravel Worlds is celebrating its first one by offering a special, one time only design in the form of a jersey which you can get. CLICK HERE TO ORDER.

So, first of all, I have nothing to gain by your interest in that jersey, if you have any at all. Nope. I just am helping to spread the word because I like riding gravel, and I really like the people behind the Pirate Cycling League and Gravel Worlds. They are good folks, and the people surrounding the event- sponsors, oasis hosts, and "trail angels", are all top notch. I feel they have done a great job of making Gravel Worlds a great event since before it was Gravel Worlds. So, that is why I am "pimping their gear" here.

Oh, and yes.....I did order one. I will proudly wear it at Gravel Worlds, and elsewhere, in 2019 and beyond. Check it out and get one if yer so inclined.

Wolf Tooth's Dropper remote for drop bars.

A Dropper Remote For Drop Bars:

When I tried out the Otso Waheela S last Summer, it was equipped with a dropper post. Now, at first, I was thinking it was a waste, because......a dropper post for gravel? Well, let me tell you, a dropper post for gravel is rad. It helps stabilize the bike on sketchy, deep gravel descents, and it helps you get aero, and downhills are way faster dropped than not. The difference is huge.


My only beef with the system on the Waheela S was that the remote was next to the stem. A very inconvenient place, to be honest, for a dropper remote on a drop bar bike. Apparently, Wolf Tooth took my comments, (and likely had been thinking about this all along anyway), and made this dropper remote especially for drop bars. I think it is really a cool idea. Others.....not so much. Why?

Well, some said, "Why don't you just make the left brake lever a dropper remote?" Obvious, isn't it? I mean, it is obvious why Wolf Tooth didn't do this. First of all, this assumes you have a 1X set up. I know a lot of you 1X folks will find this amazing, but not everyone wants, or is infatuated with not having a front derailleur. Secondly, and most obviously, Wolf Tooth doesn't make SRAM or Shimano 1X left side levers. So......yeah. Obvious, like I said.

Others said that they didn't like it because they would hit their knees on it. Now let's think about that for a minute. If this were true, it means that you are already less than one half of an inch from hitting your knee most of the time when you are out of the saddle climbing. It isn't out of the question that you probably would have a pretty high percentage chance of bonking your knee once in a while as it is, if that were the case. If that is the case, you've gotta wonder if maybe there is another issue at hand that needs addressing. I don't know, maybe it's just me........

And furthermore, you can turn that lever out of the way, so really, I think this is just a non-issue. Some did say 70 bucks was too much to pay. Okay......go buy the other offerings like this then. What's that? There are none. Yeah......... Listen, I think it is a great, easy to get to, clean way to make a dropper work without it being in the way or having it preclude a front derailleur set up. Nice work, Wolf Tooth!


That's it for this week. Look for a C.O.G. 100 course recon report Monday.

Friday News And Views

Tweet from BRAIN regarding 26"FS bike sales for Jan/'19

That Guy From Niner Said This Would Happen Someday:

Maybe 11-12 years ago now, Chris Sugai of Niner Bikes made a bold prediction. He said that in ten years, (from then), 26 inch mountain bikes would be dead. I suppose this prediction's success or failure hinges on what "dead" means. In terms I understand, I would say he was correct. 26 inch wheeled mountain bikes, basically, are dead. Especially so in that the context of which Sugai was speaking back then, 26" mtb is not seen at all today. Which is to say, yes....there are 26" mountain bikes being made yet. But as far as any real world impact goes, (ie: racing, enthusiasts, aftermarket parts), the wheel size is dead, and has been for several years now.

So, this Tweet from BRAIN ("Bicycle Retailer and Industry News") really was kind of humorous. It is our reality now. However; there is one thing, in my mind, which really was the death knell for 26"ers, and while 29"ers had something to do with it, that wheel size wasn't the reason. It was really the industry's move, in 2011-2012, to produce 27.5" mountain bikes to the exclusion of 26" bikes. Basically, 27.5" replaced 26" bikes. So, one could argue that 26" mountain bikes are not dead, they "evolved". Besides, we weren't far from actually having mountain bikes having 27.5" wheels in the 80's. Imagine if that had taken hold then.

But in the end, it doesn't matter. It is what it is, and congratulations to Chris on getting it right.

Arrgh! It be ten years now that the Gravel Worlds be goin' on lads!

 Ten Year Anniversary Gravel Worlds Jersey:

Ten years. It's a marker. A yardstick by which we measure time. It is a milestone of sorts when you are talking about events. Years ending in zero are often celebrated, and Gravel Worlds is celebrating its first one by offering a special, one time only design in the form of a jersey which you can get. CLICK HERE TO ORDER.

So, first of all, I have nothing to gain by your interest in that jersey, if you have any at all. Nope. I just am helping to spread the word because I like riding gravel, and I really like the people behind the Pirate Cycling League and Gravel Worlds. They are good folks, and the people surrounding the event- sponsors, oasis hosts, and "trail angels", are all top notch. I feel they have done a great job of making Gravel Worlds a great event since before it was Gravel Worlds. So, that is why I am "pimping their gear" here.

Oh, and yes.....I did order one. I will proudly wear it at Gravel Worlds, and elsewhere, in 2019 and beyond. Check it out and get one if yer so inclined.

Wolf Tooth's Dropper remote for drop bars.

A Dropper Remote For Drop Bars:

When I tried out the Otso Waheela S last Summer, it was equipped with a dropper post. Now, at first, I was thinking it was a waste, because......a dropper post for gravel? Well, let me tell you, a dropper post for gravel is rad. It helps stabilize the bike on sketchy, deep gravel descents, and it helps you get aero, and downhills are way faster dropped than not. The difference is huge.


My only beef with the system on the Waheela S was that the remote was next to the stem. A very inconvenient place, to be honest, for a dropper remote on a drop bar bike. Apparently, Wolf Tooth took my comments, (and likely had been thinking about this all along anyway), and made this dropper remote especially for drop bars. I think it is really a cool idea. Others.....not so much. Why?

Well, some said, "Why don't you just make the left brake lever a dropper remote?" Obvious, isn't it? I mean, it is obvious why Wolf Tooth didn't do this. First of all, this assumes you have a 1X set up. I know a lot of you 1X folks will find this amazing, but not everyone wants, or is infatuated with not having a front derailleur. Secondly, and most obviously, Wolf Tooth doesn't make SRAM or Shimano 1X left side levers. So......yeah. Obvious, like I said.

Others said that they didn't like it because they would hit their knees on it. Now let's think about that for a minute. If this were true, it means that you are already less than one half of an inch from hitting your knee most of the time when you are out of the saddle climbing. It isn't out of the question that you probably would have a pretty high percentage chance of bonking your knee once in a while as it is, if that were the case. If that is the case, you've gotta wonder if maybe there is another issue at hand that needs addressing. I don't know, maybe it's just me........

And furthermore, you can turn that lever out of the way, so really, I think this is just a non-issue. Some did say 70 bucks was too much to pay. Okay......go buy the other offerings like this then. What's that? There are none. Yeah......... Listen, I think it is a great, easy to get to, clean way to make a dropper work without it being in the way or having it preclude a front derailleur set up. Nice work, Wolf Tooth!


That's it for this week. Look for a C.O.G. 100 course recon report Monday.

They Killed It In 2016

Model Year 2016 "Yari" fork in 27.5 flavor

Yesterday a press release from SRAM/Rock Shox was published that detailed the firms plans for the 2016 long travel single crown forks. This is the product category that drives the bulk of the high performance mountain bike suspension market. Everything from the "weekend warrior" trail riders to the enduro racing scene and the more extreme, outback riding styles are represented here. Without a doubt, this is the category of fork that marketing managers and brands push as the "core mountain biking" category.

These forks will find there way to full suspension trail bikes, enduro racing rigs, and longer travel hard tail bikes. They will end up on ads, videos, and be prominently displayed in most shops carrying mtb product, much like high end road racing bikes are. XC and entry level forks are where most riders will end up buying in at, but these beastly forks are what we all would really want to have to justify. They scream "mountain bike!"

And........so what? Well, here's the deal. Rock Shox, who will pump thousands of these forks out to factories for Original Equipment spec, are not making these available in 26 inch wheel compatible models. In other words, the 26 inch mountain bike wheel is dead as far as performance mountain biking is concerned. 2016 will pretty much be that time marker we will all look back to and say, "Well.....that was the day the ol' 26"er went down."

Up until now, most fork and wheel manufacturers quietly carried top end 26"er product along with the burgeoning 27.5" and now well entrenched 29"er product. However; that day is over now with this announcement yesterday. SRAM holds sway in terms of front suspension spec over many companies and brands and the other fork manufacturers will, if they have not already, make high performance 26 inch product extinct in their line ups. It's all over now but the crying.

B+ has forced the front axle spacing to "BOOST" mode.

Boost Mode: The next thing I noted was that all newer options are being offered in the new 110mm front axle spacing dubbed "Boost" by the industry. Quick release front axles are quickly becoming relegated to XC or even entry level forks. So, if I were building new mountain bike wheels, I would insist on Boost spacing and 15mm through axle compatibility, or just a dedicated 15mm through axle. In a few years, 100mm spaced  front suspension forks and quick release compatible drop outs will be gone. You may as well get on this train now, 'cause it is leaving the station, and it ain't coming back. Oh, and through axle, 148mm, "Boost" spaced rear ends will also be more common, if not the defacto new standard.

This new axle spacing has been driven by the desire to stiffen bigger hoops by pushing out the hub flanges to a slightly wider stance, and to accommodate these new, plus sized wheels and drive train clearance issues that come with that. It is also why SRAM is really heavily investing in 1X drivetrains, which they believe will become the standard in the future. So, if SRAM gets their way, you can kiss those front derailleurs goodbye as well.

My take is that I was pretty sure once 27.5" was adopted by the industry a few years ago to pump up flagging long travel mtb sales, the 26"er didn't have long on this planet as a performance mountain biking platform. Sure, there were hold outs and places where 26 inch product was still offered. That isn't going to last though after this announcement. The Boost thing is long overdue. We've been playing within the same overlock dimensions since the late 80's when 8 speed stuff was unheard of. This isn't a new idea, not by any stretch, but it is a long overdue change. I've been saying quick release wheel attachment was something that has needed to go away for years now, and this looks like it will finally happen as well. Moving to the Boost standards will hasten that change. Finally, the only thing I see here that I don't believe will happen is SRAM's wish to kill the front derailleur and multiple speed crank off. With electronic shifting now starting to work its way into mountain biking, the front shift will no longer be an issue. It will shift, and heck, Shimano even figured out a program that will shift the front changer for you when you need it. It is clear that Shimano believes that front derailleurs are here to stay.  I also feel that trying to give riders a wide range of gearing with close ratio jumps between gears is going to be impossible with 1X systems.

It certainly is an interesting time for mountain bikes.

They Killed It In 2016

Model Year 2016 "Yari" fork in 27.5 flavor

Yesterday a press release from SRAM/Rock Shox was published that detailed the firms plans for the 2016 long travel single crown forks. This is the product category that drives the bulk of the high performance mountain bike suspension market. Everything from the "weekend warrior" trail riders to the enduro racing scene and the more extreme, outback riding styles are represented here. Without a doubt, this is the category of fork that marketing managers and brands push as the "core mountain biking" category.

These forks will find there way to full suspension trail bikes, enduro racing rigs, and longer travel hard tail bikes. They will end up on ads, videos, and be prominently displayed in most shops carrying mtb product, much like high end road racing bikes are. XC and entry level forks are where most riders will end up buying in at, but these beastly forks are what we all would really want to have to justify. They scream "mountain bike!"

And........so what? Well, here's the deal. Rock Shox, who will pump thousands of these forks out to factories for Original Equipment spec, are not making these available in 26 inch wheel compatible models. In other words, the 26 inch mountain bike wheel is dead as far as performance mountain biking is concerned. 2016 will pretty much be that time marker we will all look back to and say, "Well.....that was the day the ol' 26"er went down."

Up until now, most fork and wheel manufacturers quietly carried top end 26"er product along with the burgeoning 27.5" and now well entrenched 29"er product. However; that day is over now with this announcement yesterday. SRAM holds sway in terms of front suspension spec over many companies and brands and the other fork manufacturers will, if they have not already, make high performance 26 inch product extinct in their line ups. It's all over now but the crying.

B+ has forced the front axle spacing to "BOOST" mode.

Boost Mode: The next thing I noted was that all newer options are being offered in the new 110mm front axle spacing dubbed "Boost" by the industry. Quick release front axles are quickly becoming relegated to XC or even entry level forks. So, if I were building new mountain bike wheels, I would insist on Boost spacing and 15mm through axle compatibility, or just a dedicated 15mm through axle. In a few years, 100mm spaced  front suspension forks and quick release compatible drop outs will be gone. You may as well get on this train now, 'cause it is leaving the station, and it ain't coming back. Oh, and through axle, 148mm, "Boost" spaced rear ends will also be more common, if not the defacto new standard.

This new axle spacing has been driven by the desire to stiffen bigger hoops by pushing out the hub flanges to a slightly wider stance, and to accommodate these new, plus sized wheels and drive train clearance issues that come with that. It is also why SRAM is really heavily investing in 1X drivetrains, which they believe will become the standard in the future. So, if SRAM gets their way, you can kiss those front derailleurs goodbye as well.

My take is that I was pretty sure once 27.5" was adopted by the industry a few years ago to pump up flagging long travel mtb sales, the 26"er didn't have long on this planet as a performance mountain biking platform. Sure, there were hold outs and places where 26 inch product was still offered. That isn't going to last though after this announcement. The Boost thing is long overdue. We've been playing within the same overlock dimensions since the late 80's when 8 speed stuff was unheard of. This isn't a new idea, not by any stretch, but it is a long overdue change. I've been saying quick release wheel attachment was something that has needed to go away for years now, and this looks like it will finally happen as well. Moving to the Boost standards will hasten that change. Finally, the only thing I see here that I don't believe will happen is SRAM's wish to kill the front derailleur and multiple speed crank off. With electronic shifting now starting to work its way into mountain biking, the front shift will no longer be an issue. It will shift, and heck, Shimano even figured out a program that will shift the front changer for you when you need it. It is clear that Shimano believes that front derailleurs are here to stay.  I also feel that trying to give riders a wide range of gearing with close ratio jumps between gears is going to be impossible with 1X systems.

It certainly is an interesting time for mountain bikes.

Shop Rat Ride- A Reminder Of The Past

Sharp eyed readers will recognize this bike as the one I got a while back as a hand-me-down since it has always been associated with the shop I work at. If you don't remember or want to check out the back story, see this post.

Well, I hadn't gotten this out to ride since way back in December when I first threw it together. I decided on Tuesday evening to drag it out, de-fenderize it, and take it on a short errand for beer. That whetted my appetite for more and I commuted on it Wednesday to work. Several things struck me as significant about the ride of this bike as I rode it. In no particular order, I'll share those, but first, here is my overview of the 1X1 Surly I have before I list off my impressions.....

The 1X1 as I have it is a sort of "time capsule" bike in that the geometry was informed by the trends of the 90's in terms of 26 inch wheeled bikes. Remember- 29"ers had barely been around in '99 when this frameset was minted and otherwise, it was an all 26"er-all the time world. Everything about this single speed bike reeks of pre-29"er days. Even my build is "vintage" with 90's era wheels, tires, crank set, and 80's era brakes. The newest parts are the bars/stem, grips, seat post, and saddle. So, it is interesting to hop aboard a bike thought to be fine tuned for off road riding circa the late 90's.

• Handling: Oh my gosh! This thing is twitchy! It feels super squirrelly in my view. The bike even exhibits a tendency to flop the front wheel even when pushing it from the saddle when you are off it. Directional changes are initiated when you barely twitch an arm or leg. Bumps upset its forward motion. Wheelies were never so easy. Was this what they were talking about when they said they wanted their 29"ers to handle like 26"ers? I am super stoked they never figured that out then! Well, except for the wheelie part. They have that figured out now for 29"ers and that is very good.
• Momentum: Yep.....you gotta keep on the gas more when you ride a 26"er. That is very apparent. Conversely, it is really easy to go from a stop to spinning out your gear compared to my 29"er single speed rigs. 
• Seated Position: I set this up like we would have back then. Some call it the "ass up and elbows out" positioning. Whatever...... We were mimicking the "NORBA" XC racing positioning we all saw in the monthly rags at the time because that's all we had to go on back then. I'll tell ya what- I totally understand why shorter top tubes, steeper head angles, and short wheel bases caused me so many endos back in the day. Well........that and the twitchiness. (See above)
• Wheels And Tires: Leaving aside the diameter issues for the time being, the narrow rim/2.1" tire combos we used back then were, in a word, dumb. I tried running 40psi in the rear tire, (toobz- of course! ), and I thought something had come unhinged on this bike in the rear end. It was the softer tire wallowing on the narrow, unsupportive rim. I bumped up the pressure to 50psi, and the sensation went away. But........50psi!! Yeah.....those were the daze! I can easily run low 20's psi on wider rims with bigger tires, and on a B+ set up? Never higher than 20psi, and that's only for gravel roads. My tires now never felt so stable and secure since I've compared them to these old wheels on the 1X1.

Is the 1X1 an antiquity never to be considered a serious off road vehicle then? Heavens no! I would probably change the wheels, first off, to wider rims and tubeless tires. Then I'd get some proper linear pull brakes, because the bike is cantilever only and the old 80's brakes are pretty weak. Maybe a more upright stem? Yeah. If this bike wasn't attached to the legacy it has, I would size up to a 20"er and get a modernized 1X1 with disc brakes, but this old skool ride is definitely not going anywhere anytime soon.

Shop Rat Ride- A Reminder Of The Past

Sharp eyed readers will recognize this bike as the one I got a while back as a hand-me-down since it has always been associated with the shop I work at. If you don't remember or want to check out the back story, see this post.

Well, I hadn't gotten this out to ride since way back in December when I first threw it together. I decided on Tuesday evening to drag it out, de-fenderize it, and take it on a short errand for beer. That whetted my appetite for more and I commuted on it Wednesday to work. Several things struck me as significant about the ride of this bike as I rode it. In no particular order, I'll share those, but first, here is my overview of the 1X1 Surly I have before I list off my impressions.....

The 1X1 as I have it is a sort of "time capsule" bike in that the geometry was informed by the trends of the 90's in terms of 26 inch wheeled bikes. Remember- 29"ers had barely been around in '99 when this frameset was minted and otherwise, it was an all 26"er-all the time world. Everything about this single speed bike reeks of pre-29"er days. Even my build is "vintage" with 90's era wheels, tires, crank set, and 80's era brakes. The newest parts are the bars/stem, grips, seat post, and saddle. So, it is interesting to hop aboard a bike thought to be fine tuned for off road riding circa the late 90's.

• Handling: Oh my gosh! This thing is twitchy! It feels super squirrelly in my view. The bike even exhibits a tendency to flop the front wheel even when pushing it from the saddle when you are off it. Directional changes are initiated when you barely twitch an arm or leg. Bumps upset its forward motion. Wheelies were never so easy. Was this what they were talking about when they said they wanted their 29"ers to handle like 26"ers? I am super stoked they never figured that out then! Well, except for the wheelie part. They have that figured out now for 29"ers and that is very good.
• Momentum: Yep.....you gotta keep on the gas more when you ride a 26"er. That is very apparent. Conversely, it is really easy to go from a stop to spinning out your gear compared to my 29"er single speed rigs. 
• Seated Position: I set this up like we would have back then. Some call it the "ass up and elbows out" positioning. Whatever...... We were mimicking the "NORBA" XC racing positioning we all saw in the monthly rags at the time because that's all we had to go on back then. I'll tell ya what- I totally understand why shorter top tubes, steeper head angles, and short wheel bases caused me so many endos back in the day. Well........that and the twitchiness. (See above)
• Wheels And Tires: Leaving aside the diameter issues for the time being, the narrow rim/2.1" tire combos we used back then were, in a word, dumb. I tried running 40psi in the rear tire, (toobz- of course! ), and I thought something had come unhinged on this bike in the rear end. It was the softer tire wallowing on the narrow, unsupportive rim. I bumped up the pressure to 50psi, and the sensation went away. But........50psi!! Yeah.....those were the daze! I can easily run low 20's psi on wider rims with bigger tires, and on a B+ set up? Never higher than 20psi, and that's only for gravel roads. My tires now never felt so stable and secure since I've compared them to these old wheels on the 1X1.

Is the 1X1 an antiquity never to be considered a serious off road vehicle then? Heavens no! I would probably change the wheels, first off, to wider rims and tubeless tires. Then I'd get some proper linear pull brakes, because the bike is cantilever only and the old 80's brakes are pretty weak. Maybe a more upright stem? Yeah. If this bike wasn't attached to the legacy it has, I would size up to a 20"er and get a modernized 1X1 with disc brakes, but this old skool ride is definitely not going anywhere anytime soon.

And Now For An Even Smaller Wheel...

Actually, they don't look too bad on there, but......

Last week I wrote about the B+ riding experience and that I've been messing with some wheels and now I've been riding these new hoops with 27.5er rubber on 'em. I had to scratch my head and think hard about what bike to put these things on, because I do not have a proper 27.5er rig, or do I....? 

The Sawyer is a cool bike but the thing has a bottom bracket drop of almost nothing. I always felt that as an odd thing when riding this bike. The front end is looooowwwww as well, I suppose it's just like Gary likes it to be. Well, the idea was that whatever amount these smaller hoops dropped the bottom bracket it wasn't going to affect the pedaling in a negative way. No dragging feet in the weeds. At least I hoped so.

It turned out that I was just fine. The 27.5er rubber was not dumping me too low, and I was good to go. It makes me wonder if this bike was supposed to have 26"ers on it from the get go. That would've made sense, in a clunker kind of way. Anywho.......

Riding the 27.5ers are not anything new to me. I rode them several times at Interbike years ago. I never really thought they were anything that different from 26"ers. Your mileage may vary there. The industry made a choice for riders to phase out 26"ers in favor of the "new" wheel size that would be all sparkles and glitter. So here we are with 27.5ers being the "new" 26"ers. That's what I have to to work with, so that's what I have here to test out.

The proper head badge.

And test I did. I found out that these wheels are twitchier than I remember. Nervous feeling. The main thing though is how fast you can spin these up and then how fast they lose that momentum. It was fun to play with for awhile.

Maybe the aspect of these being on a singlespeed was what made this a hamster wheel fest. Spin, spin, spin, coast a bit, spin, spin, spin...... This bike doesn't do this with 29"er wheels, that's for sure. The "coast" part lasts a whole lot longer. That and the roll over abilities are no where near that of 29"ers, and miles away from 29+. I spoke with my friend Grannygear yesterday and we both agreed that 27.5ers will remind you again of why you loved 29"ers in the first place.

But don't let me make you think I didn't have any fun. I did. These wheels just are not for me. In a world where there are 29 inch wheels, I don't have to stay with the smaller sized fare. Now, you may be completely opposite of myself, and that's great. Go knock yerself out with the 27.5ers. There are lots of great choices there.

This brings me to this point: That the difference between 26 inch wheels and 27.5 inch wheels is negligible, but the difference between both of those wheels and 29"ers is very noticeable. So, we aren't losing all that much if 26"ers go away, except that the old bikes have become maybe a sort of dinosaur. That kind of sucks in a way. However; it seems that is how it goes with mountain bikes especially.

Anyway, that's my take on the smaller wheel choice.

And Now For An Even Smaller Wheel...

Actually, they don't look too bad on there, but......

Last week I wrote about the B+ riding experience and that I've been messing with some wheels and now I've been riding these new hoops with 27.5er rubber on 'em. I had to scratch my head and think hard about what bike to put these things on, because I do not have a proper 27.5er rig, or do I....? 

The Sawyer is a cool bike but the thing has a bottom bracket drop of almost nothing. I always felt that as an odd thing when riding this bike. The front end is looooowwwww as well, I suppose it's just like Gary likes it to be. Well, the idea was that whatever amount these smaller hoops dropped the bottom bracket it wasn't going to affect the pedaling in a negative way. No dragging feet in the weeds. At least I hoped so.

It turned out that I was just fine. The 27.5er rubber was not dumping me too low, and I was good to go. It makes me wonder if this bike was supposed to have 26"ers on it from the get go. That would've made sense, in a clunker kind of way. Anywho.......

Riding the 27.5ers are not anything new to me. I rode them several times at Interbike years ago. I never really thought they were anything that different from 26"ers. Your mileage may vary there. The industry made a choice for riders to phase out 26"ers in favor of the "new" wheel size that would be all sparkles and glitter. So here we are with 27.5ers being the "new" 26"ers. That's what I have to to work with, so that's what I have here to test out.

The proper head badge.

And test I did. I found out that these wheels are twitchier than I remember. Nervous feeling. The main thing though is how fast you can spin these up and then how fast they lose that momentum. It was fun to play with for awhile.

Maybe the aspect of these being on a singlespeed was what made this a hamster wheel fest. Spin, spin, spin, coast a bit, spin, spin, spin...... This bike doesn't do this with 29"er wheels, that's for sure. The "coast" part lasts a whole lot longer. That and the roll over abilities are no where near that of 29"ers, and miles away from 29+. I spoke with my friend Grannygear yesterday and we both agreed that 27.5ers will remind you again of why you loved 29"ers in the first place.

But don't let me make you think I didn't have any fun. I did. These wheels just are not for me. In a world where there are 29 inch wheels, I don't have to stay with the smaller sized fare. Now, you may be completely opposite of myself, and that's great. Go knock yerself out with the 27.5ers. There are lots of great choices there.

This brings me to this point: That the difference between 26 inch wheels and 27.5 inch wheels is negligible, but the difference between both of those wheels and 29"ers is very noticeable. So, we aren't losing all that much if 26"ers go away, except that the old bikes have become maybe a sort of dinosaur. That kind of sucks in a way. However; it seems that is how it goes with mountain bikes especially.

Anyway, that's my take on the smaller wheel choice.

Interesting Days

A few things that are happening lately are things I find rather interesting. Some are rather personal to me, some not so. We'll see what you all think.....

Your 26 inch wheeled hardtail is officially "Old Skool"! In a recent post on Velo News website, Matt Pacocha declares that the 26"er as a race bike is dead by full suspension and 29"ers technological gains and advantages. Well, really........mag writers have been saying this since the mid 90's. Full suspension was supposedly going to dethrone the almighty hardtail back when Henrik Djernis won three cross country titles in a row on full suspension rigs. Anyway, this time the ranks of "26"er killers" are joined by 29"ers in this Velo News piece. Interesting to say the least. Heck, just a couple of years ago they were saying that there was no way 29"ers would ever be seriously raced by top level pros.

Can't believe everything you read these days!

Pssst! Hey Buddy! Wanna buy a bike cheap?? So the scuttlebutt I am hearing now is that certain companies are sitting on huge quantities of stock in Asia and are not having it shipped over to America since bicycle sales have flattened, or declined, since February. It sounds to my ears like the halcyon days of cheap bicycle close outs of the 90's are very near at hand again. Maybe........ Whatever, it doesn't sound pretty. (Unless you like a good deal, that is.)

Bye Bye Dirty Blue Box, Hello Pick'em Up Truck! And finally, due to several failing systems in the Dirty Blue Box, I terminated the flow of money into its maintenance. In its stead, I have procured a truck. A regular cabbed, 2X4, maroon colored, 8 foot boxed pick'em up truck. That will be a good rig for future T.I. recon and bicycle hauling to test stuff and well.....just to go ride places! Maybe I'll post a pic, but really, it isn't anything too remarkable. Just a 2003 Toyota Tundra. It'll do the job I need it to.

Interesting Days

A few things that are happening lately are things I find rather interesting. Some are rather personal to me, some not so. We'll see what you all think.....

Your 26 inch wheeled hardtail is officially "Old Skool"! In a recent post on Velo News website, Matt Pacocha declares that the 26"er as a race bike is dead by full suspension and 29"ers technological gains and advantages. Well, really........mag writers have been saying this since the mid 90's. Full suspension was supposedly going to dethrone the almighty hardtail back when Henrik Djernis won three cross country titles in a row on full suspension rigs. Anyway, this time the ranks of "26"er killers" are joined by 29"ers in this Velo News piece. Interesting to say the least. Heck, just a couple of years ago they were saying that there was no way 29"ers would ever be seriously raced by top level pros.

Can't believe everything you read these days!

Pssst! Hey Buddy! Wanna buy a bike cheap?? So the scuttlebutt I am hearing now is that certain companies are sitting on huge quantities of stock in Asia and are not having it shipped over to America since bicycle sales have flattened, or declined, since February. It sounds to my ears like the halcyon days of cheap bicycle close outs of the 90's are very near at hand again. Maybe........ Whatever, it doesn't sound pretty. (Unless you like a good deal, that is.)

Bye Bye Dirty Blue Box, Hello Pick'em Up Truck! And finally, due to several failing systems in the Dirty Blue Box, I terminated the flow of money into its maintenance. In its stead, I have procured a truck. A regular cabbed, 2X4, maroon colored, 8 foot boxed pick'em up truck. That will be a good rig for future T.I. recon and bicycle hauling to test stuff and well.....just to go ride places! Maybe I'll post a pic, but really, it isn't anything too remarkable. Just a 2003 Toyota Tundra. It'll do the job I need it to.