Bar Swap: Salsa Cycles Cowbell

Stock FSA bars on the Tamland Two

The noble handle bar experiment is over. I gave them an honest shot with a few rides, but I could tell, it wasn't meant to be. So a Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 was ordered up and now resides on the Tamland Two. No fault of the FSA bars, they are good, but they do not meet my rigid standards for what a drop bar should be. That is- "a handle bar with a downward turned "hook" that lends itself to being used in several positions for the hands to control and steer a bicycle. They also should not impinge upon the operation of shifting, (if said bicycle is geared), nor in the operation of braking, from any hand position on the hook/hood section. They also shall be wide to accommodate my jumbo jet sized torso." That's my technical definition for ya.

Fail.

The FSA bars failed in two ways for me. One- they were definitely not wide enough for me. At 44cm, they felt like a juniors bar to me when riding. Worse- the lack of width was a serious hindrance to leverage. In much the same way a wider bar on a mountain bike gives better stability and control, so does a wider road bar. And of course, I looked silly and pinched in riding these narrow bars. Again- it's just me, I am sure!

However; secondly and more importantly, the brake lever was not reachable from the drop without letting loose of the drop section a bit. Not cool. Shifting from the drops was nigh unto impossible as well. Why are drop bars like this? That's easy- because you aren't supposed to use the drops anymore, silly! The drop section on road bars is a silly, unnecessary appendage only displayed so others can be sure of your "roadie-ness". I mean, otherwise you might be mistaken for a hipster with pursuit bars, right?

So anyway, something really had to be done since this wonky design was impeding the operation of the bicycle. The Cowbell 2 is a proven design, as I use it on the Black Mountain Cycles rig and have used various shifters with great results. So a 46cm bar showed up yesterday, which improved the width factor, and I got right to installing them.

Cowbell. I need more Cowbell!

The Cowbell is also slightly flared and very slightly "swept" outward in the drop section. The drop section is also longer by a bit, which I appreciate greatly. More places to put my hands is always a good thing on drop bars!

There is a Cowbell 1, and the difference is only in the material used to make the bars. The "1" is a 6000 series aluminum and slightly heavier. It costs about $30.00 bucks less than a "2" which is made from 7000 series aluminum and weighs a bit less. Both are 31.8mm clamp diameter bars only and only come in black ano. MSRP is about $75.00 for the "2". I payed for mine and am glad I have them!

Reached! FTW

The Cowbell has an entirely different shape to it and less reach and drop by a long shot versus the FSA bar it replaced. But most importantly, I can easily shift and brake from the drop position now. This will not only make quick shifting a breeze, but it will definitely be safer!

There is a hidden benefit in all of this as well, which I did not realize until I got out to ride yesterday. That is now I have another contact point which is familiar and the same as the BMC bike. Making a comparison to the BMC will now be easier, since handling and "feel" in the bars will not be colored by the inferior design of the FSA bar. (My words on the FSA bar, some may love those things.)

It was great riding the Tamland yesterday with the new bars. Much more comfortable, and obviously, easier to ride since I didn't have to contort my arms to operate basic functions. Braking was made so much better! Speaking of which, a lot of folks have been wondering about the TRP Spyre brakes on this Tamland.

The Spyre brakes have two moving pistons instead of one, like most mech brakes have, (including Avid BB-7's), so in that respect they are unique. This brake has a much better feel at the lever, especially with STI Shimano levers, which I've used with other mech disc brakes before and they were not easy to set up and didn't feel that great. Typically the Avid BB7's tend to feel too "mushy" and lack power with the STI levers, which tend to use up a lot of their travel to develop the kind of stopping power you may need. Not so with the Spyres, and this is the main difference. You get a great modulation feel, but you also do not have to pull the lever too far to get that. Power is great. Plenty of that on tap. The bonus here is that the Spyre brakes have been incredibly quiet as well.....so far. We'll see how long that goes on for.

Okay, so I have my Cowbell handle bars on the Tamland now and I think I'll be set for awhile. Bring on the training miles and the Gent's Race!

Bar Swap: Salsa Cycles Cowbell

Stock FSA bars on the Tamland Two

The noble handle bar experiment is over. I gave them an honest shot with a few rides, but I could tell, it wasn't meant to be. So a Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 was ordered up and now resides on the Tamland Two. No fault of the FSA bars, they are good, but they do not meet my rigid standards for what a drop bar should be. That is- "a handle bar with a downward turned "hook" that lends itself to being used in several positions for the hands to control and steer a bicycle. They also should not impinge upon the operation of shifting, (if said bicycle is geared), nor in the operation of braking, from any hand position on the hook/hood section. They also shall be wide to accommodate my jumbo jet sized torso." That's my technical definition for ya.

Fail.

The FSA bars failed in two ways for me. One- they were definitely not wide enough for me. At 44cm, they felt like a juniors bar to me when riding. Worse- the lack of width was a serious hindrance to leverage. In much the same way a wider bar on a mountain bike gives better stability and control, so does a wider road bar. And of course, I looked silly and pinched in riding these narrow bars. Again- it's just me, I am sure!

However; secondly and more importantly, the brake lever was not reachable from the drop without letting loose of the drop section a bit. Not cool. Shifting from the drops was nigh unto impossible as well. Why are drop bars like this? That's easy- because you aren't supposed to use the drops anymore, silly! The drop section on road bars is a silly, unnecessary appendage only displayed so others can be sure of your "roadie-ness". I mean, otherwise you might be mistaken for a hipster with pursuit bars, right?

So anyway, something really had to be done since this wonky design was impeding the operation of the bicycle. The Cowbell 2 is a proven design, as I use it on the Black Mountain Cycles rig and have used various shifters with great results. So a 46cm bar showed up yesterday, which improved the width factor, and I got right to installing them.

Cowbell. I need more Cowbell!

The Cowbell is also slightly flared and very slightly "swept" outward in the drop section. The drop section is also longer by a bit, which I appreciate greatly. More places to put my hands is always a good thing on drop bars!

There is a Cowbell 1, and the difference is only in the material used to make the bars. The "1" is a 6000 series aluminum and slightly heavier. It costs about $30.00 bucks less than a "2" which is made from 7000 series aluminum and weighs a bit less. Both are 31.8mm clamp diameter bars only and only come in black ano. MSRP is about $75.00 for the "2". I payed for mine and am glad I have them!

Reached! FTW

The Cowbell has an entirely different shape to it and less reach and drop by a long shot versus the FSA bar it replaced. But most importantly, I can easily shift and brake from the drop position now. This will not only make quick shifting a breeze, but it will definitely be safer!

There is a hidden benefit in all of this as well, which I did not realize until I got out to ride yesterday. That is now I have another contact point which is familiar and the same as the BMC bike. Making a comparison to the BMC will now be easier, since handling and "feel" in the bars will not be colored by the inferior design of the FSA bar. (My words on the FSA bar, some may love those things.)

It was great riding the Tamland yesterday with the new bars. Much more comfortable, and obviously, easier to ride since I didn't have to contort my arms to operate basic functions. Braking was made so much better! Speaking of which, a lot of folks have been wondering about the TRP Spyre brakes on this Tamland.

The Spyre brakes have two moving pistons instead of one, like most mech brakes have, (including Avid BB-7's), so in that respect they are unique. This brake has a much better feel at the lever, especially with STI Shimano levers, which I've used with other mech disc brakes before and they were not easy to set up and didn't feel that great. Typically the Avid BB7's tend to feel too "mushy" and lack power with the STI levers, which tend to use up a lot of their travel to develop the kind of stopping power you may need. Not so with the Spyres, and this is the main difference. You get a great modulation feel, but you also do not have to pull the lever too far to get that. Power is great. Plenty of that on tap. The bonus here is that the Spyre brakes have been incredibly quiet as well.....so far. We'll see how long that goes on for.

Okay, so I have my Cowbell handle bars on the Tamland now and I think I'll be set for awhile. Bring on the training miles and the Gent's Race!

Tamlanding

The maiden voyage was to work on Friday

It was all shiny and new, but now, this Monday morning, the Tamland is all dirty from a weekend of flogging. Obviously, with the background I have with this bike's history, I was eager to find out if what I'd been hearing about it was really true. That folks were really excited about the way it rode. I'd heard from the brand manager at Raleigh that the company prez was so smitten with the bike, that after he got a pre-production sample last year he quit riding anything else and rode the Tamland exclusively for weeks. I heard that dealers that had tried it out were pretty stoked about it. That's cool, but you know, you always want to find out for yourself, especially when many of the things about the bike were influenced by your own ideas.

So, when Friday was turning out to be a glorious day, I cut outta work an hour early and headed out for the gravel roads. Not far from work I got a sinking feeling that my tire pressures were off. Too low! Especially the back, it felt so soft, so smooth, like a low tire. The thing was, it rolled fine and pedaled without extra resistance, which you would expect with a low pressure tire. But the road was gone. There was no feeling from the back end of the bike, like any bumps and vibrations were being zapped before they got to my backside. Uncanny it was, so I stopped finally and checked the rear tire.

Barns For Jason

The tire was fine! Wow! So the Tamland is smooth then? Yes. Very.

I went on out of town to the North and cut across Eastward on Bennington Road. It was super nice out. Above 50 degrees and little wind. I felt a lot better and so I was hammering the bike over every roller. I slowed to get an image of a barn for Jason, and then I rolled a bit further down to take some detailed images on the road of the bike. The roads were primo. Only a few wet spots now and no dust. All the rock, for the most part, has been scraped aside by snowplows over the Winter leaving super smooth and fast dirt in its wake. That won't last long!

Back in town

I got back into town after 20 plus miles and felt great, if not a bit tired, but that was a great ride after being so cold for so long. It wouldn't last long though. Saturday was forecast to be colder by about 20-25 degrees and a lot windier. I still purposed to get a ride in despite the forecast of doom.

As foretold, the day on Saturday was brutal. Back into layers and heavy gloves for a slog in upper 20 degree temperatures. At least the Sun was out! Had it been cloudy the day would have felt a lot worse. I had intentions of riding part of the T.I.V10 course, but I didn't go that far down, and ended up driving to Traer and unloading there for what I hoped would be a fun, 20+ miler in some big hills.

A brutal wind cut my ride short

I left Southward, with the wind, and that part was a blast. Essentially a repeat of Friday, until I turned West. Gah! I lost a lot of speed, and the wind was battling me hard. The weather said it was an 18mph wind with 24mph gusts, but it was more like a 25mph wind with 30mph gusts! I mean, if it almost stops you in your tracks when the gusts come, that is a powerful wind.

Or I am really weak now! Could be.......

Whatever it was, it sucked, and I was really going to start hurting from working so hard to keep the bike going. I thought about how I had done an unplanned for ride the day before, and decided that I didn't want to sink my ship so soon after getting it above water. Being sick so long has made me a bit wary, perhaps. At any rate, I decided to cut the ride way short, turned North, and about had a fit. I mean, the wind, now in my face, was so strong I couldn't get above 10mph. It was nuts.

Barns For Jason: A round one!

What can you do? I just decided to roll with it. Heck, I was in no hurry, and so I tried to take what the ride would give me. I stopped and photographed whatever I wanted, and took my time spinning as much as I could. It was slow going, but it was going!

Eventually I got back to the truck and made it home. A good call on cutting that ride short too. I was feeling it in my legs the rest of Saturday and Sunday. Sore! So it was a recovery day on Sunday and I decided to clean up the Tamland and see if it needed any tweaking.

So, do I like it? So far it would be a big "yes". The bike has elements of a couple bikes I love rolled into one here: Steel, compliance, low bottom bracket, and stability. I don't like absolutely everything about the Tamland. There are a few components I think I will eventually swap out, starting with the handlebar. It isn't terrible, but by its very nature, it inhibits use in the drops and I don't like that. The drop section is okay, with its progressively curved tubes, but the reach to the lever from the drop in order to brake is unnecessarily too far. I know how to fix that, and the solution is named "Cowbell". There will be one coming for this bike quite soon!

The saddle I expected to hate, but hold on......it isn't too bad! The wheels are another thing. They are "okay", but I foresee something nicer taking their place eventually. Something a lot lighter. So, minor nits, nothing at all due to overall fit or design here. Just normal wishes and ergonomic complaints. Oh.....and one more compliant. When is it going to get warmer! Friday was such a tease!

Tamlanding

The maiden voyage was to work on Friday

It was all shiny and new, but now, this Monday morning, the Tamland is all dirty from a weekend of flogging. Obviously, with the background I have with this bike's history, I was eager to find out if what I'd been hearing about it was really true. That folks were really excited about the way it rode. I'd heard from the brand manager at Raleigh that the company prez was so smitten with the bike, that after he got a pre-production sample last year he quit riding anything else and rode the Tamland exclusively for weeks. I heard that dealers that had tried it out were pretty stoked about it. That's cool, but you know, you always want to find out for yourself, especially when many of the things about the bike were influenced by your own ideas.

So, when Friday was turning out to be a glorious day, I cut outta work an hour early and headed out for the gravel roads. Not far from work I got a sinking feeling that my tire pressures were off. Too low! Especially the back, it felt so soft, so smooth, like a low tire. The thing was, it rolled fine and pedaled without extra resistance, which you would expect with a low pressure tire. But the road was gone. There was no feeling from the back end of the bike, like any bumps and vibrations were being zapped before they got to my backside. Uncanny it was, so I stopped finally and checked the rear tire.

Barns For Jason

The tire was fine! Wow! So the Tamland is smooth then? Yes. Very.

I went on out of town to the North and cut across Eastward on Bennington Road. It was super nice out. Above 50 degrees and little wind. I felt a lot better and so I was hammering the bike over every roller. I slowed to get an image of a barn for Jason, and then I rolled a bit further down to take some detailed images on the road of the bike. The roads were primo. Only a few wet spots now and no dust. All the rock, for the most part, has been scraped aside by snowplows over the Winter leaving super smooth and fast dirt in its wake. That won't last long!

Back in town

I got back into town after 20 plus miles and felt great, if not a bit tired, but that was a great ride after being so cold for so long. It wouldn't last long though. Saturday was forecast to be colder by about 20-25 degrees and a lot windier. I still purposed to get a ride in despite the forecast of doom.

As foretold, the day on Saturday was brutal. Back into layers and heavy gloves for a slog in upper 20 degree temperatures. At least the Sun was out! Had it been cloudy the day would have felt a lot worse. I had intentions of riding part of the T.I.V10 course, but I didn't go that far down, and ended up driving to Traer and unloading there for what I hoped would be a fun, 20+ miler in some big hills.

A brutal wind cut my ride short

I left Southward, with the wind, and that part was a blast. Essentially a repeat of Friday, until I turned West. Gah! I lost a lot of speed, and the wind was battling me hard. The weather said it was an 18mph wind with 24mph gusts, but it was more like a 25mph wind with 30mph gusts! I mean, if it almost stops you in your tracks when the gusts come, that is a powerful wind.

Or I am really weak now! Could be.......

Whatever it was, it sucked, and I was really going to start hurting from working so hard to keep the bike going. I thought about how I had done an unplanned for ride the day before, and decided that I didn't want to sink my ship so soon after getting it above water. Being sick so long has made me a bit wary, perhaps. At any rate, I decided to cut the ride way short, turned North, and about had a fit. I mean, the wind, now in my face, was so strong I couldn't get above 10mph. It was nuts.

Barns For Jason: A round one!

What can you do? I just decided to roll with it. Heck, I was in no hurry, and so I tried to take what the ride would give me. I stopped and photographed whatever I wanted, and took my time spinning as much as I could. It was slow going, but it was going!

Eventually I got back to the truck and made it home. A good call on cutting that ride short too. I was feeling it in my legs the rest of Saturday and Sunday. Sore! So it was a recovery day on Sunday and I decided to clean up the Tamland and see if it needed any tweaking.

So, do I like it? So far it would be a big "yes". The bike has elements of a couple bikes I love rolled into one here: Steel, compliance, low bottom bracket, and stability. I don't like absolutely everything about the Tamland. There are a few components I think I will eventually swap out, starting with the handlebar. It isn't terrible, but by its very nature, it inhibits use in the drops and I don't like that. The drop section is okay, with its progressively curved tubes, but the reach to the lever from the drop in order to brake is unnecessarily too far. I know how to fix that, and the solution is named "Cowbell". There will be one coming for this bike quite soon!

The saddle I expected to hate, but hold on......it isn't too bad! The wheels are another thing. They are "okay", but I foresee something nicer taking their place eventually. Something a lot lighter. So, minor nits, nothing at all due to overall fit or design here. Just normal wishes and ergonomic complaints. Oh.....and one more compliant. When is it going to get warmer! Friday was such a tease!

Drop Bars: Catching Up With The Testing

I've been doing some drop bar research over the course of the year in between all the other stuff I do around here. I thought it was high time I get a round up together of where I am at so far with regards to checking out all the various choices I have been able to get around to. (What a problem to have, by the way! Four years ago, there was the Midge and Gary I bar, and that was it!)

So, here is a bit of a snap shot as to where I am at so far with an eye towards maybe getting some of this wrapped up soon so I can move on to some other bars....

Origin 8 Gary II Bar

The Gary Bar, Take Two: 

I've been using the Gary Bar, version II since early in the year. This one is about done as far as testing is concerned.

Essentially, this is a rendition of a deep drop road bar with minimal flare. It is so radically different from the original Gary Bar as to be something that really deserves its own name.

It is comfortable enough, sure, and I've put down some long miles with it. This bar reminds me of the older touring bars with deep drops we used to use 15-20 years ago. I don't particularly care for it off road though. The drops are just too deep, and the sweep and flare is too minimal for my liking.

The Ragley Luxy Bar

And Now For Something Completely Different: 

The Ragley Luxy Bar is so far to the other extreme from the Gary II that I can't imagine how a drop bar meant for off road could be anymore different. Shallow, really flared, and really swept, this bar is either a "like it or hate it" proposition.

I've tried it with gears, (STI shifters, to be exact), but my favorite way to use these is with a single speed set up. The Luxy is so wide and swept that it just lends itself to single speeding. I think it offers more leverage out of the saddle. However; the width can be an issue in tighter trees and in fast single track where clipping those swept ends is a definite possibility.

The Cowbell 2

Ding! Dong! Is This One A Winner?

The Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 came along this summer and I have put hundreds of gravel road miles on it so far.

I wouldn't really like it for off roading though, because much like the Gary II Bar above, the Cowbell just doesn't flare or sweep quite enough for my tastes. If it did, it would probably be my "go to" off road bar, since it is tantalizingly close to what I would want in a single trackin' off road drop bar.

However; for gravel travel, or rough roads, or heck......just plain road ridin', the Cowbell is the best handle bar I can imagine for use with today's "brifters". (Soon we'll all be just pushin' buttons and none of this will matter. In fact, I bet someone will figure out pretty soon that Shimano's levers are unnecessary for Di2 to work, and will run whatever old, lighter aero levers they are used to.) Anyway, these are to die for if you need a slightly swept, variable radius drop bar. I just wish Salsa would come out with silver ones!

Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bar

Old Reliable:

I continue to use a Salsa Cycles Woodchipper as well. It does seem to cut a good middle ground between bars like the Luxy and Gary I Bars and the bars like the Gary II Bars and the Cowbell.

It works great with STI levers and it works great with a single speed set up. It seems to be pretty decent off road too.

The only issue is like with the Luxy Bar- The sweep may cause you to clip a tree now and again, so this may not work best for tighter, woodsy trails.

I really like the Woodchipper though, and it has a great balance of comfort and ergonomics. I don't like the bend coming off the drops to the extensions though- or I should say, the radius of that bend, which I feel isn't tight enough, but it isn't terrible.

Other Bars: I've ridden Midge Bars a ton, and have two sitting around here still. I also still occasionally use the Gary I bars, and have two sets of those yet. (No wait! Three!)

I would still like to get a WTB drop bar, and that Nitto bar I mentioned a while back, but those will have to wait until fall.

Once I get rides on all of these, look for a detailed ride report on one page. Stay tuned!

Drop Bars: Catching Up With The Testing

I've been doing some drop bar research over the course of the year in between all the other stuff I do around here. I thought it was high time I get a round up together of where I am at so far with regards to checking out all the various choices I have been able to get around to. (What a problem to have, by the way! Four years ago, there was the Midge and Gary I bar, and that was it!)

So, here is a bit of a snap shot as to where I am at so far with an eye towards maybe getting some of this wrapped up soon so I can move on to some other bars....

Origin 8 Gary II Bar

The Gary Bar, Take Two: 

I've been using the Gary Bar, version II since early in the year. This one is about done as far as testing is concerned.

Essentially, this is a rendition of a deep drop road bar with minimal flare. It is so radically different from the original Gary Bar as to be something that really deserves its own name.

It is comfortable enough, sure, and I've put down some long miles with it. This bar reminds me of the older touring bars with deep drops we used to use 15-20 years ago. I don't particularly care for it off road though. The drops are just too deep, and the sweep and flare is too minimal for my liking.

The Ragley Luxy Bar

And Now For Something Completely Different: 

The Ragley Luxy Bar is so far to the other extreme from the Gary II that I can't imagine how a drop bar meant for off road could be anymore different. Shallow, really flared, and really swept, this bar is either a "like it or hate it" proposition.

I've tried it with gears, (STI shifters, to be exact), but my favorite way to use these is with a single speed set up. The Luxy is so wide and swept that it just lends itself to single speeding. I think it offers more leverage out of the saddle. However; the width can be an issue in tighter trees and in fast single track where clipping those swept ends is a definite possibility.

The Cowbell 2

Ding! Dong! Is This One A Winner?

The Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 came along this summer and I have put hundreds of gravel road miles on it so far.

I wouldn't really like it for off roading though, because much like the Gary II Bar above, the Cowbell just doesn't flare or sweep quite enough for my tastes. If it did, it would probably be my "go to" off road bar, since it is tantalizingly close to what I would want in a single trackin' off road drop bar.

However; for gravel travel, or rough roads, or heck......just plain road ridin', the Cowbell is the best handle bar I can imagine for use with today's "brifters". (Soon we'll all be just pushin' buttons and none of this will matter. In fact, I bet someone will figure out pretty soon that Shimano's levers are unnecessary for Di2 to work, and will run whatever old, lighter aero levers they are used to.) Anyway, these are to die for if you need a slightly swept, variable radius drop bar. I just wish Salsa would come out with silver ones!

Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bar

Old Reliable:

I continue to use a Salsa Cycles Woodchipper as well. It does seem to cut a good middle ground between bars like the Luxy and Gary I Bars and the bars like the Gary II Bars and the Cowbell.

It works great with STI levers and it works great with a single speed set up. It seems to be pretty decent off road too.

The only issue is like with the Luxy Bar- The sweep may cause you to clip a tree now and again, so this may not work best for tighter, woodsy trails.

I really like the Woodchipper though, and it has a great balance of comfort and ergonomics. I don't like the bend coming off the drops to the extensions though- or I should say, the radius of that bend, which I feel isn't tight enough, but it isn't terrible.

Other Bars: I've ridden Midge Bars a ton, and have two sitting around here still. I also still occasionally use the Gary I bars, and have two sets of those yet. (No wait! Three!)

I would still like to get a WTB drop bar, and that Nitto bar I mentioned a while back, but those will have to wait until fall.

Once I get rides on all of these, look for a detailed ride report on one page. Stay tuned!

Gravel Sunday

I made it out with a couple co-workers of mine and showed them a bit of a gravel loop I like to do north of town. It isn't anything too difficult, and there was a time constraint that I had to consider. Otherwise, I was going to lay on a bit tougher loop!

Ben And His Awesome Matched Kit/Bike

I'll introduce you to these fellas. On the orange 4300 Trek, we have Ben. He is the son of another of my co-workers, and is working the summer between college semesters. Ben rides for the University of Wisconsin Platteville cycling team. Their kit, which Ben is modeling for us here, won the best college cycling kit contest for last year.

There is a six shooter printed on the back that looks like it is coming out of one of the jersey pockets. Pretty cool.

Ben comes from a heavy road background. You can tell because he has his rise stem inverted and is in an aggressive position, which he stayed in the entire ride. Animal!

Oh yeah, check out his Ergon HE-2 gloves. He saw my pair and ended up getting some for himself, which he said he likes. I am a bad influence! Anyway, Ben needs to get himself a cyclo-cross bike. (I put this up for the benefit of Ben's mother, so she will know what to get him as an early Christmas gift)

I kid! I kid!

Jonathan: Lurking.....

Next we have Jonathan. He of the fixie side of cycling. Lately he has been smitten by the bicycle acquisition bug, and ended up getting a Cross Check, a Steamroller, a Karate Monkey, and a Fuji from about the early 80's.

So anyway, he pulled out the Cross Check for the ride with his new Salsa Cycles Cowbell bars on it. He is still playing with the positioning on them, but claims he likes them pretty well.

He first saw the handle bars when my Cowbell 2 came into the shop while I was on vacation. He said he knew he had to have a pair straight away. Once again.....me-bad influencer! Oh, I suppose eventually he'd have found them on his own, so I wouldn't put too much weight on that.

Jonathan was running these oddball Kenda, (I think), fatties. Looked interesting. They might make great gravel tires for the more brutal roads, like those found on the DK 200.

We went out north, then east. Ya know....it is weird. Every time I do this northern exit from town on gravel, the north wind is blowing. It did again yesterday too. Well, it makes for a very nice tail wind push back home, I will say that much!

Another Barn For Jason B

It was a glorious day on the gravel, and between getting out of, and back into town again, I spent about 2 and a half hours out on the bike. These younginz don't stop much, so it was a workout.

It was almost as if the air was being run through an A/C unit yesterday in comparison to the GTDRI last weekend. It felt great to be out on the bike, and my legs were going good. I think I've gotten over that ride from last week. Finally! It was a brute though, so no wonder.

We saw some sights and then headed back towards Waterloo to get Ben back in time for something or another he had to get to in the afternoon. It was a great way to cap off a busy, busy weekend for me, and I spent the rest of the day relaxing with my family at home.

Hopefully ya'all had a great weekend as well. School starts here today, and college starts soon, and well.....Fall is just around the corner! My favorite time of year for mountain biking!

Gravel Sunday

I made it out with a couple co-workers of mine and showed them a bit of a gravel loop I like to do north of town. It isn't anything too difficult, and there was a time constraint that I had to consider. Otherwise, I was going to lay on a bit tougher loop!

Ben And His Awesome Matched Kit/Bike

I'll introduce you to these fellas. On the orange 4300 Trek, we have Ben. He is the son of another of my co-workers, and is working the summer between college semesters. Ben rides for the University of Wisconsin Platteville cycling team. Their kit, which Ben is modeling for us here, won the best college cycling kit contest for last year.

There is a six shooter printed on the back that looks like it is coming out of one of the jersey pockets. Pretty cool.

Ben comes from a heavy road background. You can tell because he has his rise stem inverted and is in an aggressive position, which he stayed in the entire ride. Animal!

Oh yeah, check out his Ergon HE-2 gloves. He saw my pair and ended up getting some for himself, which he said he likes. I am a bad influence! Anyway, Ben needs to get himself a cyclo-cross bike. (I put this up for the benefit of Ben's mother, so she will know what to get him as an early Christmas gift)

I kid! I kid!

Jonathan: Lurking.....

Next we have Jonathan. He of the fixie side of cycling. Lately he has been smitten by the bicycle acquisition bug, and ended up getting a Cross Check, a Steamroller, a Karate Monkey, and a Fuji from about the early 80's.

So anyway, he pulled out the Cross Check for the ride with his new Salsa Cycles Cowbell bars on it. He is still playing with the positioning on them, but claims he likes them pretty well.

He first saw the handle bars when my Cowbell 2 came into the shop while I was on vacation. He said he knew he had to have a pair straight away. Once again.....me-bad influencer! Oh, I suppose eventually he'd have found them on his own, so I wouldn't put too much weight on that.

Jonathan was running these oddball Kenda, (I think), fatties. Looked interesting. They might make great gravel tires for the more brutal roads, like those found on the DK 200.

We went out north, then east. Ya know....it is weird. Every time I do this northern exit from town on gravel, the north wind is blowing. It did again yesterday too. Well, it makes for a very nice tail wind push back home, I will say that much!

Another Barn For Jason B

It was a glorious day on the gravel, and between getting out of, and back into town again, I spent about 2 and a half hours out on the bike. These younginz don't stop much, so it was a workout.

It was almost as if the air was being run through an A/C unit yesterday in comparison to the GTDRI last weekend. It felt great to be out on the bike, and my legs were going good. I think I've gotten over that ride from last week. Finally! It was a brute though, so no wonder.

We saw some sights and then headed back towards Waterloo to get Ben back in time for something or another he had to get to in the afternoon. It was a great way to cap off a busy, busy weekend for me, and I spent the rest of the day relaxing with my family at home.

Hopefully ya'all had a great weekend as well. School starts here today, and college starts soon, and well.....Fall is just around the corner! My favorite time of year for mountain biking!

Salsa Cycles Cowbell II Handle Bar: First Impressions

Salsa Cowbell 2 On The BMC "Orange Crush"

The new Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 has been getting some rave comments from folks I trust and respect lately. Now I know why.

I've got my 46cm Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 bars mounted and ridden and here are my impressions of the bar so far.

Mounting And Taping: Unlike some other off-road drop bars, the Cowbell drops are pretty typical road-like fare to deal with, in as far as how you will want to have them set up. I like "traditional" placement of the levers and drop extensions- Meaning, level drop section, parallel to the ground, and lever tips hanging just below the drop section. Call me "old skool", but I think it looks far better and not only that, it rides better in all hand positions. I'll get to that later, but just know that these bars will be familiar to set up and tape for anyone that has done road bike bars before. No funky "point-the-drop-extensions-at-the-rear-axle", no weird sweep, and no weird lever angles.

Salsa put some sweet graduated lines on each hook on the outer side of the curve to help with lever placement. Ever obsessed about which lever was higher? Yeah......me too! With these simple graphics on the bar, the guess work is gone. Thanks Salsa for that thoughtful touch! Saved a bunch of fretting and time for me, I know that much.

Looks pretty normal from here

Ride Feel: Okay, I've a confession to make: I don't like traditional road bars at all. They feel all wrong to me, and not comfortable at all in the drops. (No wonder people never use their drops on road bikes. It feels all constricted down there, at least to me.)

The minimal sweep and flare of the Cowbell bars is so subtle, you almost can not see it when the bars are mounted and taped up. (Salsa claims 12 degrees of flare) That said, it was "just enough" to make me not hate on these bars.

My first ride was not all hearts and roses. I felt the Cowbell was too roadie-ish for my tastes. (This may be all you need to read to be a fan of these!) However; I knew I was coming off some pretty radical drops in the Ragely Luxy Bar, and anything with less sweep than those was going to be a huge departure for me. So, I gave it some time.

The Cowbell does have an excellent transition from the ramp section to the hoods. Very comfy place to grip there. The variable radius bend of the drops was great too. This is something I would like to see more of in the swept, flared off road drop bars. Variable radius bars just fit into the hand better, with a great perch for the butt of the palms to sit into. Super comfy and secure grip there. The drops reach to the levers is perfect. I could easily brake and shift from the drops at will.

The tops have a wide enough section that makes it feel good to climb there and cruise there without making you feel that your grip is too narrow. Going from up top to the drops is easy since the drop is shallow. Overall, every traditional hand position is very useable with this handle bar.

Traditional set up: There is a reason this works...

On rough stuff, like grass, and pot holed, cracked pavement, the bar felt reasonably smooth. Salsa says the Cowbell 2 is double butted. If I push hard into the drops, the bars flex a bit. Nothing radical. I can't discern it while climbing and honking on the levers. That said, it feels smoother than the Luxy Bar that came off the "Orange Crush", so I'm going to say it is the double butted stock and design of these that gives them a bit of a sweet ride feel.

Conclusions: What about that "roadie-ish feel"? Well, I did have some of that sensation disappear. On the last ride before I wrote this, I found myself shooting up a steep embankment in the drops. Rocking the bike slightly from side to side, out of the saddle. Then it dawned on me. "Hey- these are not all that bad for being so "straight" in the drops!"  The minimal sweep and flare seems to be "just enough" to make them work for off road, and yet they don't look "nontraditional" in the sense that they have a very normal drop bar look and feel for most riding.

I won't be rocking these on my mountain bike, but I do like these for gravel, and if I were a cyclo cross kind of guy, I would seriously look at these. They afford much more control in the drops than a traditional road bar can when descending, and you can power up climbs and short chutes while in the drops and not break your wrists. The variable radius bend is great for your grip as well.

These bars can accept bar end shifters too. "Brifters" should set up really well for folks on the Cowbell bars, and if you need to mount gadgets, there is plenty of room on the tops for that non-sense.

I think Salsa has designed another great product in the Cowbell 2 bars, and I'll be sticking with these for the "Orange Crush" for a long time. I just wish they came in silver! (There! A criticism!) I'm not much on these for real rough off roading, but they weren't really aimed at that activity either. Road bikers, tourists, and anyone not satisfied with wonky drop bar designs prevalent today should look hard at these.

Happy Trails all! Have a great weekend!

UPDATED: I've gotten some questions about what the difference is between the Cowbell 2 and Cowbell 3 bars is. I e-mailed Salsa Cycles for an explanation Here is what they shared with me.....



Here is the skinny on our naming. This is new for the future and these are the first products coming under our new format.



1 = BEST (equate to product like Pro Moto Carbon bars and Pro Moto Ti stem)
2 = BETTER (equate to product such as aluminum Pro Moto bars)
3 = GOOD (equate to product formerly known as Moto Ace)

Each of these levels will be differentiated by features, materials and finish quality. All of our core components will come this way eventually. We will have 3 level of components in bars, stems and seat posts. 



So, there ya have it folks! Thanks for the comments and for checking out Guitar Ted Productions!

Salsa Cycles Cowbell II Handle Bar: First Impressions

Salsa Cowbell 2 On The BMC "Orange Crush"

The new Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 has been getting some rave comments from folks I trust and respect lately. Now I know why.

I've got my 46cm Salsa Cycles Cowbell 2 bars mounted and ridden and here are my impressions of the bar so far.

Mounting And Taping: Unlike some other off-road drop bars, the Cowbell drops are pretty typical road-like fare to deal with, in as far as how you will want to have them set up. I like "traditional" placement of the levers and drop extensions- Meaning, level drop section, parallel to the ground, and lever tips hanging just below the drop section. Call me "old skool", but I think it looks far better and not only that, it rides better in all hand positions. I'll get to that later, but just know that these bars will be familiar to set up and tape for anyone that has done road bike bars before. No funky "point-the-drop-extensions-at-the-rear-axle", no weird sweep, and no weird lever angles.

Salsa put some sweet graduated lines on each hook on the outer side of the curve to help with lever placement. Ever obsessed about which lever was higher? Yeah......me too! With these simple graphics on the bar, the guess work is gone. Thanks Salsa for that thoughtful touch! Saved a bunch of fretting and time for me, I know that much.

Looks pretty normal from here

Ride Feel: Okay, I've a confession to make: I don't like traditional road bars at all. They feel all wrong to me, and not comfortable at all in the drops. (No wonder people never use their drops on road bikes. It feels all constricted down there, at least to me.)

The minimal sweep and flare of the Cowbell bars is so subtle, you almost can not see it when the bars are mounted and taped up. (Salsa claims 12 degrees of flare) That said, it was "just enough" to make me not hate on these bars.

My first ride was not all hearts and roses. I felt the Cowbell was too roadie-ish for my tastes. (This may be all you need to read to be a fan of these!) However; I knew I was coming off some pretty radical drops in the Ragely Luxy Bar, and anything with less sweep than those was going to be a huge departure for me. So, I gave it some time.

The Cowbell does have an excellent transition from the ramp section to the hoods. Very comfy place to grip there. The variable radius bend of the drops was great too. This is something I would like to see more of in the swept, flared off road drop bars. Variable radius bars just fit into the hand better, with a great perch for the butt of the palms to sit into. Super comfy and secure grip there. The drops reach to the levers is perfect. I could easily brake and shift from the drops at will.

The tops have a wide enough section that makes it feel good to climb there and cruise there without making you feel that your grip is too narrow. Going from up top to the drops is easy since the drop is shallow. Overall, every traditional hand position is very useable with this handle bar.

Traditional set up: There is a reason this works...

On rough stuff, like grass, and pot holed, cracked pavement, the bar felt reasonably smooth. Salsa says the Cowbell 2 is double butted. If I push hard into the drops, the bars flex a bit. Nothing radical. I can't discern it while climbing and honking on the levers. That said, it feels smoother than the Luxy Bar that came off the "Orange Crush", so I'm going to say it is the double butted stock and design of these that gives them a bit of a sweet ride feel.

Conclusions: What about that "roadie-ish feel"? Well, I did have some of that sensation disappear. On the last ride before I wrote this, I found myself shooting up a steep embankment in the drops. Rocking the bike slightly from side to side, out of the saddle. Then it dawned on me. "Hey- these are not all that bad for being so "straight" in the drops!"  The minimal sweep and flare seems to be "just enough" to make them work for off road, and yet they don't look "nontraditional" in the sense that they have a very normal drop bar look and feel for most riding.

I won't be rocking these on my mountain bike, but I do like these for gravel, and if I were a cyclo cross kind of guy, I would seriously look at these. They afford much more control in the drops than a traditional road bar can when descending, and you can power up climbs and short chutes while in the drops and not break your wrists. The variable radius bend is great for your grip as well.

These bars can accept bar end shifters too. "Brifters" should set up really well for folks on the Cowbell bars, and if you need to mount gadgets, there is plenty of room on the tops for that non-sense.

I think Salsa has designed another great product in the Cowbell 2 bars, and I'll be sticking with these for the "Orange Crush" for a long time. I just wish they came in silver! (There! A criticism!) I'm not much on these for real rough off roading, but they weren't really aimed at that activity either. Road bikers, tourists, and anyone not satisfied with wonky drop bar designs prevalent today should look hard at these.

Happy Trails all! Have a great weekend!

UPDATED: I've gotten some questions about what the difference is between the Cowbell 2 and Cowbell 3 bars is. I e-mailed Salsa Cycles for an explanation Here is what they shared with me.....



Here is the skinny on our naming. This is new for the future and these are the first products coming under our new format.



1 = BEST (equate to product like Pro Moto Carbon bars and Pro Moto Ti stem)
2 = BETTER (equate to product such as aluminum Pro Moto bars)
3 = GOOD (equate to product formerly known as Moto Ace)

Each of these levels will be differentiated by features, materials and finish quality. All of our core components will come this way eventually. We will have 3 level of components in bars, stems and seat posts. 



So, there ya have it folks! Thanks for the comments and for checking out Guitar Ted Productions!

Wednesday News And Views

Image courtesy of Salsa's website

Yesterday, I did an in depth look at the new Salsa Cycles Cowbell drop bar, but that isn't the only new bar in the range now. They also have the "Bend 2" bar for mountain bikes out as well.

This was the un-named bar they showed us at Frostbike earlier in the year. It will be available in 17 and 23 degree bends with a forward wiggle that should allow users to keep their original stem, instead of necessitating getting a longer one, which was a criticism of the older 17 degree bend flat bar. This joins bars like On One's Mary Bar and Fleegle Bar, Ragley's Carnegie's Bar, Bontrager's Crivitz Bar, and others in the "W" shaped/wing shaped mountain bar selection. I hope to be ordering one of these for myself soon. 31.8mm clamp diameter only on these, by the way.

Niner Bikes' JET 9 RDO frame

Carbon fiber......yeah.... More carbon fiber. Niner Bikes does it now with their organic, swoopy looking JET 9 "Race Day Optimized" frame. I admit that Niner seems to explore ways to exploit the way forms can be made differently in carbon than say, aluminum or other metals. It is somewhat polarizing though, since when you start deviating from the norm of straight tubing, you are going to make a shape that will turn some on, and some off.

Niner gets the first blow in as far as the "arty FS" bike goes, but I am waiting for Ibis to play their hand. Because when their FS 29"er design comes out, I am betting it will be much like their 26"er, which I think looks better than the Niner here does. My personal opinion there.

Yeah, yeah.....it's all about how they work when you ride them. I get that, but when you are throwing down the coin it takes to buy one of these carbon fiber bikes, looks play a big role, and Ibis wins that game, in my opinion. Maybe their bike will not look great in big wheeled guise, but I am betting against that myself. We'll know soon enough, as Ibis plans a reveal at Eurobike in September.

That said, I am sure the Niner JET 9 RDO is a killer trail bike and it isn't ugly by any stretch. Plus- you can buy it now. Can't say that about the unseen, untested Ibis. So, there ya go!

Wet, wet, and moar wet: Rain has soaked things on a fairly regular basis around these parts of late. So different than where I was the last two weeks, which was super dry. Can we make a trade? Anyway, it looks like I'll have to hit the Cedar Bend area for kicks today and see how my recovering knee likes climbing! If that doesn't work, I've got a yard that needs mowed, and several bikes to work on in the Lab. We'll see how it goes.

Wednesday News And Views

Image courtesy of Salsa's website

Yesterday, I did an in depth look at the new Salsa Cycles Cowbell drop bar, but that isn't the only new bar in the range now. They also have the "Bend 2" bar for mountain bikes out as well.

This was the un-named bar they showed us at Frostbike earlier in the year. It will be available in 17 and 23 degree bends with a forward wiggle that should allow users to keep their original stem, instead of necessitating getting a longer one, which was a criticism of the older 17 degree bend flat bar. This joins bars like On One's Mary Bar and Fleegle Bar, Ragley's Carnegie's Bar, Bontrager's Crivitz Bar, and others in the "W" shaped/wing shaped mountain bar selection. I hope to be ordering one of these for myself soon. 31.8mm clamp diameter only on these, by the way.

Niner Bikes' JET 9 RDO frame

Carbon fiber......yeah.... More carbon fiber. Niner Bikes does it now with their organic, swoopy looking JET 9 "Race Day Optimized" frame. I admit that Niner seems to explore ways to exploit the way forms can be made differently in carbon than say, aluminum or other metals. It is somewhat polarizing though, since when you start deviating from the norm of straight tubing, you are going to make a shape that will turn some on, and some off.

Niner gets the first blow in as far as the "arty FS" bike goes, but I am waiting for Ibis to play their hand. Because when their FS 29"er design comes out, I am betting it will be much like their 26"er, which I think looks better than the Niner here does. My personal opinion there.

Yeah, yeah.....it's all about how they work when you ride them. I get that, but when you are throwing down the coin it takes to buy one of these carbon fiber bikes, looks play a big role, and Ibis wins that game, in my opinion. Maybe their bike will not look great in big wheeled guise, but I am betting against that myself. We'll know soon enough, as Ibis plans a reveal at Eurobike in September.

That said, I am sure the Niner JET 9 RDO is a killer trail bike and it isn't ugly by any stretch. Plus- you can buy it now. Can't say that about the unseen, untested Ibis. So, there ya go!

Wet, wet, and moar wet: Rain has soaked things on a fairly regular basis around these parts of late. So different than where I was the last two weeks, which was super dry. Can we make a trade? Anyway, it looks like I'll have to hit the Cedar Bend area for kicks today and see how my recovering knee likes climbing! If that doesn't work, I've got a yard that needs mowed, and several bikes to work on in the Lab. We'll see how it goes.

Salsa Cycles Cowbell II Handle Bar: Moar Cowbell!

In terms of drop bars that I write about, the recent post I did concerning the Salsa Cycles Cowbell II handle bar has garnered tons of traffic here. (Not due to anything I have done, but owing to lack of info out there on this bar.) Seeing as how there is a lot of interest in the Cowbell and Cowbell II, I am posting up this brief comparison with the Bell Lap bar, also a Salsa Cycles offering.

New graphics on the Cowbell II are tastefully subtle

Why the Bell lap? Because the Cowbell is so much like the Bell Lap, and it is purposed for similar usage. That seems to be mainly cyclo-cross, but I also see this bar as being a gravel grinder's friend, and for folks wanting a more comfortable road bar they can actually use the drops with and not be uncomfortable.

Let's take a closer look...

Cowbell II (Bottom), and Bell Lap (Top)

The basic shape from the front is very similar. The Bell Lap is a 25.4mm clamp model and the Cowbell bars will all be 31.8mm clamp diameter bars. The difference between the Cowbell I and II is in the alloy used and weight. (Cowbell II is 292 gms) Both bars have flare, and as far as I can tell, that flare is identical between the two bars. The Bell Lap features cable grooves, while the Cowbell has flattened areas instead of grooves. Obviously, the Bell lap has that funky ergonomic bend in the drop area. The Cowbell has a variable radius bend.

Cowbell II (Bottom) and Bell Lap (Top)

In the view from up top, you can see some of the bigger differences between the two bars. The Cowbell II, (bottom), has less reach. (Approx 70mm as I measure it) The transition into the ramp section is more abrupt on the Cowbell, making the tops incrementally wider than the Bell Lap's. You can see that the minimal sweep on both bars appears to be identical. The drop extensions reach back further on the Cowbell due to the minimal reach, which makes them appear much longer than the Bell Lap's. However; they are actually only a centimeter longer. Both bars here are 46cm width. (Measured at the point where the top of the brake hoods would likely mount for most folks. The ends are actually about 52cm center to center due to the sweep and flare. This is the same for both bars.)

Cowbell II (L) Bell Lap (R)

Here we can see the other major distinctions between these two bars. The older Bell Lap design features an overall deeper drop, and more slope to the ramp section. The Cowbell II has shallow drop, (measured at 140mm from the table top to the bar tops), and a flatter ramp section. (Note: The reach looks longer on the Cowbell II than it really is at this angle. Also, I had to tape down the bars to get this shot!)

The Cowbell's flare and graduated brake mount guides

The flare on both these bars is minimal. It is more than a Nitto Noodle and perhaps slightly less than a  Nitto Randonnuer bar. The biggest difference here is that the Cowbell has a minimal amount of outward sweep to the extensions, which the Nitto bars do not have. Obviously, the variable radius bend drops and shallow drop dimension is a major departure from the Nitto bars as well.

There is your brief tour and comparison with the Bell Lap bars of the Cowbell II. I think it will find a home with cyclo-crossers, long haul cyclists, gravel aficionados, and folks wanting comfy road bike bars. The Cowbell should set up well for tourists and racers alike.

Comments: The Cowbell Bar is really close to what I would have done with an off road "dirt drop". (I know- I said it was what I would have done, but it isn't quite on the mark, now that I have seen it.) That said, it isn't really a bar suited for rigorous off roading/mountain biking due to the minimalistic sweep in the drops. Could you mountain bike with a Cowbell II? Well, of course, you could. But there are better drop bar choices for that out there with better sweep to the extensions which would give you better control in the rough stuff.

I see this bar as a great alternative to road drop bars for gravel riding. It will have just enough flare and sweep to offer good control over the bike in loose, chunky stuff, and the shallow drop dimension will make being in the drops for miles of head winds more bearable. The minimal reach will help also with climbing from the drops. All of this translates over beautifully to cross racing, of course, and that is where this bar will become very popular. That said, a lot of recreational road riders should take a long, hard look at this bar. It will make the drops far more useable, and the short reach will make braking far easier for folks with smaller hands. The slight flare and sweep will surprise many road riders with a increased feeling of stability and comfort too.

I'll be mounting these to a bicycle soon and getting some ride impressions up shortly.

UPDATE: Salsa Cycles site has been updated with info on the Cowbell bars and more. Check it out!