47 Days

Did anyone have that in the Death Pool?

My FaceFriends already know.  Here it is on the official:

The Stumpjumper FSR EVO/XX1 Experiment lasted 47 days.

First, let's look on the bright side.
Even though all that stuff was bought using our/my Faster Mustache team discount at our LBS sponsor, Bike Source, they still made a profit.  A profit that wouldn't have occurred if I wasn't spurred on by the possibility of building my "dream bike."  My monies will help pay a salary, the electric bill, help make up for inventory loss... what have you.

I paid a fair share of sales tax which will directly benefit some government agency, who will no doubt use it to pay a teacher, build a park, or fight to keep big business and religious matters out of our political system.

Somebody's gonna get a great deal on a frame (the XX1 group is out the door today) with no more than six rides on it, two of them 80% on the road.

I think I may have learned my lesson this time, so I will have to consider it money well spent.

Say what?  Learn a lesson?

That was my fantasy geared bicycle.  For some time, I've wanted to have a light bike with one shifter, a complete gear range (regardless of gear jump size and total number of gears), gobs of travel, a noiseless infallible transmission, and a spot-on fit.  That's what I got.  All the variables that I might hate were removed so I could finally see if it would be all that and an extra large bag of dog food.

It was...

just not for me.

I wanted to ride it like a single speed 100% of the time, and that just wasn't working.  I thought I could change my mindset, but I kinda like the way it is.  When people asked me if I was liking the XX1, all I could say was, "If I don't end up liking gears this time, I'm the one with the problem."

As far as I can tell, full blown gear ranges with a 1X system are the way of the future.  Just not mine.

I am the problem.

I also like hard tails... a lot.  Forks can be rigid, short travel or beaucoup... so long as they are working  properly and up to the task.  The 140mm Fox with 34mm legs?  Like a boss.

I'm sorta right back where I was in August.  I had wanted an all mountain'esque single speed, but didn't want to dump a bunch of money into a third SS MTB.  Now that I have a pile of more than sufficient parts to work with, it is a viable alternative.

Not everything is perfect.  I need a new Cane Creek 110 to swap to yet another headset standard.  My Industry Nine Torch wheels need a non-XD driver for a regular old cassette body.  Fortunately, this gave me a chance to pull off the freehub body and check out the innards.

It literally pulls off, like with your hands. NO TOOLS.  Easy to maintain?  I think so.  Notice the new springs, bearing location (and size) and pawl geometry while you're staring.

So anyways...

Certain fantasy scenarios that I have played out in my head have been scratched off the list as an option in 2013.

Zac and I will show up to PMBAR on single speeds, the way it should be.  I've only done one PMBAR on a geared bike (2004), and that was one of the last times I rode a gears before swapping to single speed only (the first time).

Shenandoah Mountain 100.  The thought of effortlessly rolling out the first few miles in the lead pack as opposed to spinning my brains out while everybody around me is riding at a conversational pace... gone.  The SM100 will be a rigid single speed affair this year, the way it should be.

Double Dare.  I was going to roll gears with my partner, Jana.  I thought that would work out better.  Oh well. She'll have to deal with it.

I'll have a lightweight rigid XC'esque aluminum, a 100mm all-arounder steel, and a 140 all-mountain'ish (material yet to be determined) at my disposal.  They will all have a sense of purpose and be the right tool for whatever the task at hand may be... unless I choose the wrong one.

The FSR EVO frame (size medium) is up for grabs.  It will be on MTBR in a matter of days, but if you want a good deal, hit me at teamdicky at hotmail dot com. 

An autographed frame will be a slight up-charge.