Friday News And Views

The Horsethief Carbon XT for 2023 Image courtesy of Salsa Cycles

 Salsa Cycles Shows Updates To Horsethief FS Bikes:

Salsa Cycles released the new colors and spec on the range of Horsethief full suspension bikes that they offer. 

Salsa has resisted the current theme many MTB companies use for their designs which make for a bent toward "gravity" oriented styles of riding. 

I like that Salsa hasn't gone all-in on that. Yes- these are not honed for Mid-West single track specifically, but they won't suck if you ride them here either. That's a nice nod to those many off-road bicyclists that do not live in mountainous areas. 

There is a lot more news if you are curious, and I'm sure many sites are covering this, or you could go to Salsa Cycles site and learn more. 

A snippet from the Trek Travel site

Used Bikes For Sale Direct?

It is no secret that Direct To Consumer sales are being done, or 'sort-of' being done, by most bigger bicycle companies nowadays. New bikes typically are sold nearly built, or in many cases direct to the local bike shop, where customers can then collect them, but avoid working through the local shop for payment. 

But recently I came across Trek Travel's site selling used bicycles at big discounts. I would assume that these were the same bikes used for Trek Travel's tours over the past year, and now they are liquidating them via D2C over the internet. 

Comments: I am 100% speculating here, but HPC/eBikes in the upper echelon of price range are not an easy sell for a local bike shop. Think about how a dealer might feel if they had an 8K HPC road bike like that Domane+ sitting on the floor and a customer came in and told them that they bought one "just like that", (disregarding that it was used, of course!), from Trek Travel for 40% off of the asking price. 

I'm sure that gives dealers a warm fuzzy feeling. But I could be wrong...... 

Tumbleweed Stargazer Ti. Image courtesy of Tumbleweed Bikes

Tumbleweed Bikes Announces Ti Stargazer:

Last year I posted about the then new Tumbleweed Stargazer and said it was a "modernized Fargo Gen I" bike. That bike is a steel bike, and the next logical step for the Stargazer was to have it made in titanium.

Well, Tumbleweed has taken that 'next step', and the new Stargazer Ti is on pre-order. 

Tumbleweed copy on that linked page makes it sound as if this is a one-time deal, so if that Stargazer in steel was tempting you, but you needed it to be titanium, don't miss your chance, I guess.... Although things can always change, and I imagine that if enough orders went unfulfilled you'd have to think Tumbleweed would find a way to accommodate those potential sales. 

One thing I missed, I think, about the Stargazer was that it has a crazy "stack height" figure, which means that the handle bar would end up a lot higher in space than on many of my other bikes. Not sure I'd be about that. Otherwise, this seems like a solid choice for an adventure/bike packing rig. 

The Gravel Earth Series appears to be a European affair.

Gravel Earth Series Announced:

A new, a mostly European based, seven event series, dubbed "Gravel Earth Series", has been announced for 2023. 

With a promise that the organization behind the Gravel Earth Series is "..ready to change the rules", the series seems to draw at least some of its inspiration from Lincoln, Nebraska's Gravel Worlds. The event organizers claim a vision to: ".... make a dream come true, uniting some of the most impressive events in the world. The Gravel Earth Series was born with the aim of driving Gravel to the highest standards."

The first six events will set up the finale, (location is to be determined) and will be based off a points system set up by the organizers. Dates and more event information are on the site. Also, interested parties can sign up for their newsletter to keep abreast of the developments. 

Comments: Their site has a very annoying "dot" that follows your cursor around like an unwanted horsefly. Man! I generally don't comment on site formatting, but that's a new one on me that drove me crazy.Anyway.....

Their rules, which are......ah.....vague? Yeah.... The rules are more vision casting than actual rules. The points system seemed a bit complex to me, but okay. That's probably just me. Three categories, no mention of age groups, claims for lots of socializing (parties), and the like. Sounds like the venues are super cool. I look forward to hearing more about this. 

Grip Grab Overshoes: Image courtesy of Grip Grab

Grip Grab Gravel Overshoes:

The European based company, Grip Grab, has a new "Explorer" overshoe for gravel riding which is pretty interesting. It is waterproof, highly stretchable (probably a good thing) and has reinforcements in important places to enhance durability.

The Explorer overshoe is not distributed in the US yet, but you could order this direct from Grip Grab for about $95.00 plus shipping.

Comments:  First off, I have a few bad experiences with overshoe type covers and therefore I may be a bit more inclined to have a negative view of anything like these Explorer overshoes. That said, can you imagine pulling these on and off without a zipper of any kind? Or not having any other opening at all besides the leg opening?

I think the idea is sound, but the execution of the idea puts me off. The last thing I'd want to do after a muddy, wet, cold ride is to wrestle with a long overshoe, trying to peel it off over my shoes. No thank you! 

Especially when things like this or this exist which have no possibility of letting the elements in, and come off your feet far easier. (I know- There are other examples as well) Comparing those examples to this Grip Grab product, there is no cleat hole to accumulate and cause ingress of cold, wet mud, snow, or ice to allow those elements to suck the heat out from the bottom of your feet. There is no possibility that the cleat screw mounting hole of you cycling shoes allowing water to find its way to your foot. Basically, there are none of those overshoe's shortcomings. 

Hey, maybe it works as an idea for you, so don't let me yuck on your yum, (as N.Y. Roll is fond of saying). But I just have a hard time seeing how this would be any fun to use for my type of riding.
 

Thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions! Have a fantastic weekend.

Friday News And Views

The Horsethief Carbon XT for 2023 Image courtesy of Salsa Cycles

 Salsa Cycles Shows Updates To Horsethief FS Bikes:

Salsa Cycles released the new colors and spec on the range of Horsethief full suspension bikes that they offer. 

Salsa has resisted the current theme many MTB companies use for their designs which make for a bent toward "gravity" oriented styles of riding. 

I like that Salsa hasn't gone all-in on that. Yes- these are not honed for Mid-West single track specifically, but they won't suck if you ride them here either. That's a nice nod to those many off-road bicyclists that do not live in mountainous areas. 

There is a lot more news if you are curious, and I'm sure many sites are covering this, or you could go to Salsa Cycles site and learn more. 

A snippet from the Trek Travel site

Used Bikes For Sale Direct?

It is no secret that Direct To Consumer sales are being done, or 'sort-of' being done, by most bigger bicycle companies nowadays. New bikes typically are sold nearly built, or in many cases direct to the local bike shop, where customers can then collect them, but avoid working through the local shop for payment. 

But recently I came across Trek Travel's site selling used bicycles at big discounts. I would assume that these were the same bikes used for Trek Travel's tours over the past year, and now they are liquidating them via D2C over the internet. 

Comments: I am 100% speculating here, but HPC/eBikes in the upper echelon of price range are not an easy sell for a local bike shop. Think about how a dealer might feel if they had an 8K HPC road bike like that Domane+ sitting on the floor and a customer came in and told them that they bought one "just like that", (disregarding that it was used, of course!), from Trek Travel for 40% off of the asking price. 

I'm sure that gives dealers a warm fuzzy feeling. But I could be wrong...... 

Tumbleweed Stargazer Ti. Image courtesy of Tumbleweed Bikes

Tumbleweed Bikes Announces Ti Stargazer:

Last year I posted about the then new Tumbleweed Stargazer and said it was a "modernized Fargo Gen I" bike. That bike is a steel bike, and the next logical step for the Stargazer was to have it made in titanium.

Well, Tumbleweed has taken that 'next step', and the new Stargazer Ti is on pre-order. 

Tumbleweed copy on that linked page makes it sound as if this is a one-time deal, so if that Stargazer in steel was tempting you, but you needed it to be titanium, don't miss your chance, I guess.... Although things can always change, and I imagine that if enough orders went unfulfilled you'd have to think Tumbleweed would find a way to accommodate those potential sales. 

One thing I missed, I think, about the Stargazer was that it has a crazy "stack height" figure, which means that the handle bar would end up a lot higher in space than on many of my other bikes. Not sure I'd be about that. Otherwise, this seems like a solid choice for an adventure/bike packing rig. 

The Gravel Earth Series appears to be a European affair.

Gravel Earth Series Announced:

A new, a mostly European based, seven event series, dubbed "Gravel Earth Series", has been announced for 2023. 

With a promise that the organization behind the Gravel Earth Series is "..ready to change the rules", the series seems to draw at least some of its inspiration from Lincoln, Nebraska's Gravel Worlds. The event organizers claim a vision to: ".... make a dream come true, uniting some of the most impressive events in the world. The Gravel Earth Series was born with the aim of driving Gravel to the highest standards."

The first six events will set up the finale, (location is to be determined) and will be based off a points system set up by the organizers. Dates and more event information are on the site. Also, interested parties can sign up for their newsletter to keep abreast of the developments. 

Comments: Their site has a very annoying "dot" that follows your cursor around like an unwanted horsefly. Man! I generally don't comment on site formatting, but that's a new one on me that drove me crazy.Anyway.....

Their rules, which are......ah.....vague? Yeah.... The rules are more vision casting than actual rules. The points system seemed a bit complex to me, but okay. That's probably just me. Three categories, no mention of age groups, claims for lots of socializing (parties), and the like. Sounds like the venues are super cool. I look forward to hearing more about this. 

Grip Grab Overshoes: Image courtesy of Grip Grab

Grip Grab Gravel Overshoes:

The European based company, Grip Grab, has a new "Explorer" overshoe for gravel riding which is pretty interesting. It is waterproof, highly stretchable (probably a good thing) and has reinforcements in important places to enhance durability.

The Explorer overshoe is not distributed in the US yet, but you could order this direct from Grip Grab for about $95.00 plus shipping.

Comments:  First off, I have a few bad experiences with overshoe type covers and therefore I may be a bit more inclined to have a negative view of anything like these Explorer overshoes. That said, can you imagine pulling these on and off without a zipper of any kind? Or not having any other opening at all besides the leg opening?

I think the idea is sound, but the execution of the idea puts me off. The last thing I'd want to do after a muddy, wet, cold ride is to wrestle with a long overshoe, trying to peel it off over my shoes. No thank you! 

Especially when things like this or this exist which have no possibility of letting the elements in, and come off your feet far easier. (I know- There are other examples as well) Comparing those examples to this Grip Grab product, there is no cleat hole to accumulate and cause ingress of cold, wet mud, snow, or ice to allow those elements to suck the heat out from the bottom of your feet. There is no possibility that the cleat screw mounting hole of you cycling shoes allowing water to find its way to your foot. Basically, there are none of those overshoe's shortcomings. 

Hey, maybe it works as an idea for you, so don't let me yuck on your yum, (as N.Y. Roll is fond of saying). But I just have a hard time seeing how this would be any fun to use for my type of riding.
 

Thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions! Have a fantastic weekend.

News Season: Salsa Cycles 2016 Highlights

Salsa Cycles Pony Rustler GX-1. Moar B+!

The Saddledrive dealer only event is happening right now in Utah and Salsa Cycles preempted all us blogging fools out here by spilling the beans simultaneously on their website. So, if you'd rather look for yourself, go to the 2016 Preview here.

If you are in for a dose of my unfiltered opinions, read on.

Okay, a disclaimer- I have had about two weeks to ruminate on this news, since it was shared with me early on the promise I would keep my trap shut. Well, now I don't have to do that anymore, but I put that out there to let you know that I've considered these opinions a bit over the past two weeks.

Plus Bikes: I figured Salsa would respond to the B+ thing, and the "Pony Rustler", (more on that bike and its name in a bit), fit that bill. No big surprise to me there. However; it was slightly surprising to me to see a "Fargo" in 29+, only it isn't a Fargo, it is a Deadwood.

The Deadwood 29+ drop bar bike

29+ is cool and all, but as I have written here, you are limiting the sizing that works well to bigger folk. Yes.......there is a small size for the Deadwood. But look closely and you can easily compare a Small Fargo and see where Salsa's engineers had to design around those huge wheels. Oh.....and there is an XS Fargo, but not in a Deadwood. So there is a perfect example of how 29+ isn't really good for folks sized under a typical Medium 29"er, unless the geometry compromises don't bother you.

B+/27.5+ makes more sense here in terms of the Deadwood, and I am a bit surprised to see Salsa go with 29+, although as a marketing/sales product, I bet they sell every one they make. The buzz is huge around this bike. Speaking of "how many they will make", I got the feeling there won't be a lot of these made. I wasn't told outright that this would be the case, but I wasn't dissuaded in thinking so either. Take that for what it is worth.

Now, back to the Pony Rustler and B+ wheels. See, this is the way I figured the Fargo/Deadwood thing would work. The Pony Rustler is nearly analogous to the Horsethief. Check out Salsa's description on both bikes and you will see references to both bikes being able to accept 29"er with up to 2.4" tires or B+ wheel sets with up to 3" wide rubber. You see- a Deadwood could have been the B+ analog to the Fargo, but it isn't and there ya go. To my mind, that would have allowed an XS size with limited geometry gymnastics, not to mention a good size Small with no geo craziness.

Horsethief XO-1 Carbon

Now as for that name- "Pony Rustler". Most unfortunate. I was a bit shocked when I heard it, to be honest, but as with the Horsethief, I am sure it will become "just another model name" in the future. But really........Pony Rustler? It sounds kinda illicit and dirty. But yeah.....I like the B+ suspension bike idea, and putting everything on Boost axle width standards makes sense going forward. Sure.....it will be painful at first, but we'll all get along and have stiffer wheels in the future. It's a good thing, in my opinion.

What will be interesting going forward is to see how many Horsethief bikes versus Pony Rustler bikes get sold. I'm betting the B+ wheels will end up taking over this category of bicycles once folks get on board with the fun-factor they provide. They just have tons of grip, comfort, and they will expand the possibilities for those going way off the beaten path on these full suspension rigs. It just makes a ton of sense.

So, that's Salsa's push into "plus bike" territory. One thing makes a ton of sense and the other is going to be one of those bikes that I think will be a flash in the pan. Maybe that Deadwood will end up on B+ wheels in the future. I think that makes far more sense than what they have put out there now, but that's just me maybe.......

The new Marrakesh touring bike

Touring With The Marrakesh:

It's no secret that across the aisle at Surly Bikes one of their most successful models has been the Long Haul Trucker, and its disc brake equipped sibling, the Disc Trucker. Salsa had the Vaya, but to my mind, the Vaya has been a weird bike from the get-go, and still is. It doesn't really do any one thing really well, and to my way of thinking, that is its downfall. It isn't a full-on, unashamed touring tool, and it isn't the steel framed gravel slayer it could be either, although it will do both of those tasks reasonably well.

Enter the Marrakesh, a steel framed, down and dirty touring rig with a lot of cool features. I'm an old, over-the-road touring fan and I keep an eye out for good touring rigs at reasonable prices. I've seen a lot of great touring bikes with super-spendy price tags, I've seen some cheaper models that just weren't right in one way or another. The Long Haul Trucker and Disc Truckers are cool, but- and this may be just me- I don't want a Surly logo on my touring bike. It just doesn't sit well with me, for whatever reasons. In my opinion, a touring bike should be very understated, but classy, and of course, most importantly- functional. All within a reasonable budget. This Marrakesh looks like it should fit the bill.

I'm oddly excited about this bike. I am not at Saddledrive, obviously, and I haven't laid hands on this bike, but if Salsa gets this right in terms of function, handling, and if it isn't the weight of a tank, (like Raleigh's Sojourn touring bikes), then I would be very tempted to dust off the ol' panniers and go find some where to tour to. Oh yeah......did I mention that Salsa claims you can put up to 2.0 29"er tires on this bike? Did I mention the Alternator drop outs? Oh, and if drop bars aren't your thing, they have a dedicated geometry for flat bars too. All at $1599.00. Crazy. Hopefully, they did get this right! 

Cutthroat X-9: Possibly the ultimate do-it-all gravel bike?

 Honorable Mentions And Miscellaneous Comments: 

The Cutthroat, introduced earlier, has to be one of the big highlights of Salsa's line up for 2016. Despite its carbon fiber frame and fork, I feel this could be the ultimate gravel rig for "go-fast" folks that Salsa has yet produced. Big tires? Go with the stock set up. Skinnier tires or lighter wheels and skinnier tire? Yep! With loads of mud clearance too. The Class 5 VRS system should also be stellar on rougher roads. I feel like the Cutthroat could be the single bike solution for many gravel racer enthusiasts.

Now of course, there is the Warbird, and that bike does a road drive train and likely could be the lightest bike for gravel road riding. If bigger tires aren't on the radar, (bigger than 42's), then this bike might work well, although I feel Salsa should add some bottle bosses to the fork here to aid in making the Warbird that DK200-ish length bike choice.

Then there is the rest of the line up, which isn't too surprising. Paint and suspension forks are the only big deal on the fat bike side. Fargos remain basically unchanged with paint a spec updates. So too with Vayas, El Mariachis, and Spearfish.

What may be a shock to some is the dropping of the titanium line with the exception of the Ti Vaya. I am not sure what is happening there, but I will only speculate that instead of sticking limited resources over steel, titanium, carbon, and aluminum bikes, Salsa is focusing on new wheel platforms, carbon fiber, the VRS technology, and expanding into the touring bike thing. I know some things about Salsa Cycles and one of those things is that they cannot "do it all". They aren't a big company with unlimited resources. Another thing to consider is how well the titanium bikes are selling. I don't know myself, but if they are not moving well, and carbon fiber is, then, ya know, what would you put your money in to as a company? Customers vote with their dollars and if the votes are saying titanium is not marketable, then it isn't. But again- that's purely speculation on my part there.

News Season: Salsa Cycles 2016 Highlights

Salsa Cycles Pony Rustler GX-1. Moar B+!

The Saddledrive dealer only event is happening right now in Utah and Salsa Cycles preempted all us blogging fools out here by spilling the beans simultaneously on their website. So, if you'd rather look for yourself, go to the 2016 Preview here.

If you are in for a dose of my unfiltered opinions, read on.

Okay, a disclaimer- I have had about two weeks to ruminate on this news, since it was shared with me early on the promise I would keep my trap shut. Well, now I don't have to do that anymore, but I put that out there to let you know that I've considered these opinions a bit over the past two weeks.

Plus Bikes: I figured Salsa would respond to the B+ thing, and the "Pony Rustler", (more on that bike and its name in a bit), fit that bill. No big surprise to me there. However; it was slightly surprising to me to see a "Fargo" in 29+, only it isn't a Fargo, it is a Deadwood.

The Deadwood 29+ drop bar bike

29+ is cool and all, but as I have written here, you are limiting the sizing that works well to bigger folk. Yes.......there is a small size for the Deadwood. But look closely and you can easily compare a Small Fargo and see where Salsa's engineers had to design around those huge wheels. Oh.....and there is an XS Fargo, but not in a Deadwood. So there is a perfect example of how 29+ isn't really good for folks sized under a typical Medium 29"er, unless the geometry compromises don't bother you.

B+/27.5+ makes more sense here in terms of the Deadwood, and I am a bit surprised to see Salsa go with 29+, although as a marketing/sales product, I bet they sell every one they make. The buzz is huge around this bike. Speaking of "how many they will make", I got the feeling there won't be a lot of these made. I wasn't told outright that this would be the case, but I wasn't dissuaded in thinking so either. Take that for what it is worth.

Now, back to the Pony Rustler and B+ wheels. See, this is the way I figured the Fargo/Deadwood thing would work. The Pony Rustler is nearly analogous to the Horsethief. Check out Salsa's description on both bikes and you will see references to both bikes being able to accept 29"er with up to 2.4" tires or B+ wheel sets with up to 3" wide rubber. You see- a Deadwood could have been the B+ analog to the Fargo, but it isn't and there ya go. To my mind, that would have allowed an XS size with limited geometry gymnastics, not to mention a good size Small with no geo craziness.

Horsethief XO-1 Carbon

Now as for that name- "Pony Rustler". Most unfortunate. I was a bit shocked when I heard it, to be honest, but as with the Horsethief, I am sure it will become "just another model name" in the future. But really........Pony Rustler? It sounds kinda illicit and dirty. But yeah.....I like the B+ suspension bike idea, and putting everything on Boost axle width standards makes sense going forward. Sure.....it will be painful at first, but we'll all get along and have stiffer wheels in the future. It's a good thing, in my opinion.

What will be interesting going forward is to see how many Horsethief bikes versus Pony Rustler bikes get sold. I'm betting the B+ wheels will end up taking over this category of bicycles once folks get on board with the fun-factor they provide. They just have tons of grip, comfort, and they will expand the possibilities for those going way off the beaten path on these full suspension rigs. It just makes a ton of sense.

So, that's Salsa's push into "plus bike" territory. One thing makes a ton of sense and the other is going to be one of those bikes that I think will be a flash in the pan. Maybe that Deadwood will end up on B+ wheels in the future. I think that makes far more sense than what they have put out there now, but that's just me maybe.......

The new Marrakesh touring bike

Touring With The Marrakesh:

It's no secret that across the aisle at Surly Bikes one of their most successful models has been the Long Haul Trucker, and its disc brake equipped sibling, the Disc Trucker. Salsa had the Vaya, but to my mind, the Vaya has been a weird bike from the get-go, and still is. It doesn't really do any one thing really well, and to my way of thinking, that is its downfall. It isn't a full-on, unashamed touring tool, and it isn't the steel framed gravel slayer it could be either, although it will do both of those tasks reasonably well.

Enter the Marrakesh, a steel framed, down and dirty touring rig with a lot of cool features. I'm an old, over-the-road touring fan and I keep an eye out for good touring rigs at reasonable prices. I've seen a lot of great touring bikes with super-spendy price tags, I've seen some cheaper models that just weren't right in one way or another. The Long Haul Trucker and Disc Truckers are cool, but- and this may be just me- I don't want a Surly logo on my touring bike. It just doesn't sit well with me, for whatever reasons. In my opinion, a touring bike should be very understated, but classy, and of course, most importantly- functional. All within a reasonable budget. This Marrakesh looks like it should fit the bill.

I'm oddly excited about this bike. I am not at Saddledrive, obviously, and I haven't laid hands on this bike, but if Salsa gets this right in terms of function, handling, and if it isn't the weight of a tank, (like Raleigh's Sojourn touring bikes), then I would be very tempted to dust off the ol' panniers and go find some where to tour to. Oh yeah......did I mention that Salsa claims you can put up to 2.0 29"er tires on this bike? Did I mention the Alternator drop outs? Oh, and if drop bars aren't your thing, they have a dedicated geometry for flat bars too. All at $1599.00. Crazy. Hopefully, they did get this right! 

Cutthroat X-9: Possibly the ultimate do-it-all gravel bike?

 Honorable Mentions And Miscellaneous Comments: 

The Cutthroat, introduced earlier, has to be one of the big highlights of Salsa's line up for 2016. Despite its carbon fiber frame and fork, I feel this could be the ultimate gravel rig for "go-fast" folks that Salsa has yet produced. Big tires? Go with the stock set up. Skinnier tires or lighter wheels and skinnier tire? Yep! With loads of mud clearance too. The Class 5 VRS system should also be stellar on rougher roads. I feel like the Cutthroat could be the single bike solution for many gravel racer enthusiasts.

Now of course, there is the Warbird, and that bike does a road drive train and likely could be the lightest bike for gravel road riding. If bigger tires aren't on the radar, (bigger than 42's), then this bike might work well, although I feel Salsa should add some bottle bosses to the fork here to aid in making the Warbird that DK200-ish length bike choice.

Then there is the rest of the line up, which isn't too surprising. Paint and suspension forks are the only big deal on the fat bike side. Fargos remain basically unchanged with paint a spec updates. So too with Vayas, El Mariachis, and Spearfish.

What may be a shock to some is the dropping of the titanium line with the exception of the Ti Vaya. I am not sure what is happening there, but I will only speculate that instead of sticking limited resources over steel, titanium, carbon, and aluminum bikes, Salsa is focusing on new wheel platforms, carbon fiber, the VRS technology, and expanding into the touring bike thing. I know some things about Salsa Cycles and one of those things is that they cannot "do it all". They aren't a big company with unlimited resources. Another thing to consider is how well the titanium bikes are selling. I don't know myself, but if they are not moving well, and carbon fiber is, then, ya know, what would you put your money in to as a company? Customers vote with their dollars and if the votes are saying titanium is not marketable, then it isn't. But again- that's purely speculation on my part there.

Friday News And Views

What short chain stays are for...

Short Chain Stays: 

Maybe this doesn't matter.....no, really.....it does matter. Why? Because lots of folks say it does. So, what is going on here?

Chain stay length, the measurement from the rear axle to the center line of the bottom bracket, is a subject of sometimes heated debate by bike nerds all across the digital reality. What does it do? Well, let's take a "gross" example to help us understand a little bit about this....

Imagine if the bike you are riding is a cargo bike. The long tail type, like a Big Dummy from Surly. Okay, your rear wheel is waaay back behind you.  Try popping a wheelie. Hard, huh? Yeah, that's the long effective chain stay length at work there.

Now imagine that you switch back to your current steed. Ahh!  That front wheel is a cinch to get up and over stuff, or to pop a wheelie, should the fit take hold of you. Of course, this is an obvious illustration, but now imagine the passion, the heated arguments that erupt over mere millimeters of chain stay length differences. It's just bizarre.

Salsa Cycles Horsethief

Example: The Salsa Cycles Horsethief. Barely over 18 inches in length for the chain stay. You'd have thunk someone had insulted someone's mother when they find this out.

Had the bike been introduced with 17.8" chain stays, which is what the Trek/Fisher Rumblefish comes with, no one would have batted an eyelash. The difference? 7.3mm Less than 1/3rd of an inch.

Now, I'm not saying that doesn't make any difference, but how much of a difference is that really? I would submit that there are other things going on here that might make a bigger difference in handling than 7.3mm. 

How about wheel base? How about how your weight is distributed across that wheel base? Is the bottom bracket lower, or higher? How long is your stem? If it is a full suspension bike, you add in the metric of monkey motion to the equation, which really complicates things.

So, to merely focus on such a miniscule difference in chain stay length seems rather silly to me. Heck, you move your butt on the saddle more than 7.3mm on a mountain bike. No, it isn't just about chain stay length.  Sure, it plays a part, but it's just one soldier in the troop, and it takes all of 'em to fight the war. Look at the entire package when comparing the bikes. It might show up a few things beyond that "magic bullet" number a lot of folks like to focus on.

Cushy!

Soft Tails seem like the elusive unicorn of the 29"er world. Next to single speeding, the idea of a soft tail, (at least for me), is so wrapped up in how 29"er wheels work, I can't believe that only one company produces a stock model, and only a handful of  custom builders even make them.

Of course, I had a Salsa Cycles Dos Niner. The idea of the soft tail is awesome. I know it works, but there was the rest of the frame,  which was, (let's see if I can put this nicely), was flexy as all get out.

Given a stiff chassis, a soft tail would be a great, simple, nearly fool-proof rear "enhancement". (I hesitate to call it "suspension") Traction? Better. Comfort? Increased. All from about an inch to two inches of "give" in the rear of the bike.

Of course, I could always save my pennies for a Moots. They seem to be the only company really committed to the idea of a simple, little bit of something that makes nice with the rough stuff. Consider this my paean to the soft tail. I wish somebody would make a reasonably priced, better mousetrap here. 

Maybe that'll happen. I imagine a single speed soft tail with bottle mounts a-plenty, a 100mm front suspension device, and room for 2.4's. Grinding away in some mountain climb, or plying some burly single track on a soft tail. Sounds good to me!

Have a great weekend, ya'all! Take some pictures, Ride yer bike!

Friday News And Views

What short chain stays are for...

Short Chain Stays: 

Maybe this doesn't matter.....no, really.....it does matter. Why? Because lots of folks say it does. So, what is going on here?

Chain stay length, the measurement from the rear axle to the center line of the bottom bracket, is a subject of sometimes heated debate by bike nerds all across the digital reality. What does it do? Well, let's take a "gross" example to help us understand a little bit about this....

Imagine if the bike you are riding is a cargo bike. The long tail type, like a Big Dummy from Surly. Okay, your rear wheel is waaay back behind you.  Try popping a wheelie. Hard, huh? Yeah, that's the long effective chain stay length at work there.

Now imagine that you switch back to your current steed. Ahh!  That front wheel is a cinch to get up and over stuff, or to pop a wheelie, should the fit take hold of you. Of course, this is an obvious illustration, but now imagine the passion, the heated arguments that erupt over mere millimeters of chain stay length differences. It's just bizarre.

Salsa Cycles Horsethief

Example: The Salsa Cycles Horsethief. Barely over 18 inches in length for the chain stay. You'd have thunk someone had insulted someone's mother when they find this out.

Had the bike been introduced with 17.8" chain stays, which is what the Trek/Fisher Rumblefish comes with, no one would have batted an eyelash. The difference? 7.3mm Less than 1/3rd of an inch.

Now, I'm not saying that doesn't make any difference, but how much of a difference is that really? I would submit that there are other things going on here that might make a bigger difference in handling than 7.3mm. 

How about wheel base? How about how your weight is distributed across that wheel base? Is the bottom bracket lower, or higher? How long is your stem? If it is a full suspension bike, you add in the metric of monkey motion to the equation, which really complicates things.

So, to merely focus on such a miniscule difference in chain stay length seems rather silly to me. Heck, you move your butt on the saddle more than 7.3mm on a mountain bike. No, it isn't just about chain stay length.  Sure, it plays a part, but it's just one soldier in the troop, and it takes all of 'em to fight the war. Look at the entire package when comparing the bikes. It might show up a few things beyond that "magic bullet" number a lot of folks like to focus on.

Cushy!

Soft Tails seem like the elusive unicorn of the 29"er world. Next to single speeding, the idea of a soft tail, (at least for me), is so wrapped up in how 29"er wheels work, I can't believe that only one company produces a stock model, and only a handful of  custom builders even make them.

Of course, I had a Salsa Cycles Dos Niner. The idea of the soft tail is awesome. I know it works, but there was the rest of the frame,  which was, (let's see if I can put this nicely), was flexy as all get out.

Given a stiff chassis, a soft tail would be a great, simple, nearly fool-proof rear "enhancement". (I hesitate to call it "suspension") Traction? Better. Comfort? Increased. All from about an inch to two inches of "give" in the rear of the bike.

Of course, I could always save my pennies for a Moots. They seem to be the only company really committed to the idea of a simple, little bit of something that makes nice with the rough stuff. Consider this my paean to the soft tail. I wish somebody would make a reasonably priced, better mousetrap here. 

Maybe that'll happen. I imagine a single speed soft tail with bottle mounts a-plenty, a 100mm front suspension device, and room for 2.4's. Grinding away in some mountain climb, or plying some burly single track on a soft tail. Sounds good to me!

Have a great weekend, ya'all! Take some pictures, Ride yer bike!