Friday, March 30, 2012

On the Spot in the Woods



Went for a Test Ride after work on Friday
and all I can say is:
Holy Cow!
This is one sweet ride!



It's the weight!
I rode the Qball geared but it always felt heavy (because it was) but it also seemed clunky.
The Spot, however, is totally nimble, climbs like a goat and is smooth as butter!
Psst:  I think it's the steel frame
That big Racing Ralph upfront, says it's a 2.4 but looks more like 2.5
and rides really nice.
Riding T-U-B-E-L-E-S-S is great, too, because you
can roll at much lower tire pressures
which really softens the ride.



Shifting is really nice and I love the wide bars.  The only thing I am not sure about at this point
is whether to keep the happy barends or to go with something smaller, like another pair of Ergons that are shorter.  I like the different hand positions but what I like the most is just being able to hold the
ends of the bars instead of being way out like the Ergon Leichtbau grips offer.
Don't get me wrong, they are great grips but I for the leverage they offer it's overkill on a geared bike.



The Upper Gussy trail was resplendent today.  The high winds earlier this week blew the trail clean.
I noticed that the Spot handled the trail much better than my other bikes.  This bike is here to stay!

 

6 comments:

29ner said...

Looks great. I am super happy you put a lot of thought into building this up correct. The large was a bit big for me, happy to know it fits you perfect. Enjoy

Mark said...

Like a glove! It's perfect! Thanks so much!

Colin Shearer (merlinshearer) said...

Spot is looking (and sounding) awesome - its really inspiring me to go down the "clown wheel" route

Mark said...

"Clown Wheel?" It's called innovation. Get's you through those technical spots alot easier.

Colin Shearer (merlinshearer) said...

I'm starting to see that "clown wheels" are the future! Although there seems to be a srious lack of 29er frames in the UK, lots of high end (high cost) fully built 29er bikes but limited frame

Mark said...

I see that. On One has a frame. I think the best way to appreciate riding with big boy pants on is to build it up yourself and learn the nuances of the bike.