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All things mechanical: bikes, components, power meters and the gear that makes it all possible

Testing, testing, and more testing

posted Tuesday, August 21, 2007 3:19 AM by Dave :: 10 Comments
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In winter 05/06 I was on a quest to answer the question:  which bike is more efficient, a Trek Fuel or a Salsa Dos Niner?  It just so happens that one uses 26" wheels while the other uses 29" wheels...  These have proved to be rather Read More

Lights for a night or a month?

posted Wednesday, January 17, 2007 4:39 AM by Dave :: 6 Comments
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I have this dream of a super bright light that will go all night without a battery change.  Too much to ask for?   A side benefit of this quest is a light that will burn for, uh, weeks.  Yea, no BS here - doing GDR this summer?  Read More

Unintentionally stirring the pot

posted Saturday, March 11, 2006 8:29 AM by Dave :: 9 Comments
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It's a rainy morning here in southern Arizona, the first in 140+ days so no complaints... So.  My quest to determine which bike is faster for me, the Dos 29er or the Trek Fuel, kicked up a bit of a ruckus in places.  The Cyclingnews piece Read More

Every thorn has it's rose

posted Tuesday, February 21, 2006 6:25 PM by Dave :: 26 Comments
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Drum roll please...as you look at this plot, keep the following in mind: This compares a Trek Fuel 26" wheeled bike and a Salsa Dos Niner 29" wheeled bike Bikes were similarly equiped - near identical weight Identical tread pattern, Specialized Read More

26 vs 29 singletrack shootout: tie

posted Friday, February 10, 2006 6:23 PM by Dave :: 5 Comments
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Well now, (AHEM!), looks like I jumped the gun yesterday in revealing results.  That's what I get for seat of the pants analysis. The testing of 29er vs 26ers continues on.  Quick recap:  the first round of tests looked at how climbing Read More

Braaaap!

posted Sunday, February 05, 2006 5:35 AM by Dave :: 5 Comments
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Just outside of Phoenix is McDowell mountain park, part of the Maricopa county park system.  Lots of trails here, and best of all, they have an actual mountain bike specific competitive trail system.  Can you say manna from heaven?  That Read More

Supercaliber Anticipation!

posted Saturday, January 21, 2006 5:43 AM by Dave :: 0 Comments
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Ryan Atkinson shared the current status of the Gary Fisher Supercaliber 29" race day bike on the MTBR forum, including an artists rendering of the frame.  It looks to be a great design - but will take some $$ to bring up to race readiness.  Read More

First results of 26 vs 29 inch wheels

posted Monday, January 02, 2006 1:04 PM by Dave :: 13 Comments
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Note (added 2/3/06):  comments to this post have been disabled due to malicious spammers.  You know who you are.  Contact me through the "contact me" link if have something you'd like to add.  If there is enough interest, I'd consider Read More

26" or 29"???

posted Saturday, December 31, 2005 5:32 AM by Dave :: 13 Comments
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Oh, that's a tough one.  But in the end sponsorship arrangements made the decision for me...the team is sponsored by Trek & Gary Fisher.  Trek doesn't yet make 29ers, and GF 29ers, although super fun really are better for trail riding, not Read More

Fast Track 29er tire first impressions

posted Monday, December 19, 2005 4:41 AM by Dave :: 3 Comments
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If you don't ride & race a 29er this post will make abolutely no sense to you.  You've been warned. Tire selection for 29er race tires is limited at best.  Switching over to tubeless 6 years ago was a big performance improvement.  Read More

Life as a chronic geek

posted Thursday, November 24, 2005 7:44 AM by Dave :: 3 Comments
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Chronic.  The term conjures up visions of terminal smokers hacking their way through the day.  I once worked with a gent that went by "chronic", and indeed he was (still is so I hear) keepin' it real.  But as Miles points out, it's my new Read More