Passion Trail Bikes, Belmont, CA - specialists in quality bike service and custom-built mountain bikes: Category Bikes

SSWC

PeterD — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 21:05:00 +0000

The Single Speed World Championships are this weekend in Napa. I have been singlespeeding for some 10 years, and am even at the point that the only MTB I currently own is a singlespeed Santa Cruz Chamleon. So, today I sent my bike off to Napa…

...though I am not following it.

The back story is that a few months back, there was a post on MTBR from a Brit saying he was going to the SSWC, but was hoping to borrow a bike, as he didn’t want to ship his bike with him. There were a few responses from folks offering it up, but for some reason he chose mine. We passed a few messages back and forth and made sure everything would work.

So today, Simon C. of Sheffield, South Yorkshire showed up with his girlfriend and brother (in a Lincoln Continental or some boat like that – “petrol” prices are positively cheap here as compared to the UK). We stuck him on the trainer for a fitting, and then sent him off. I believe the winner of the race gets a custom tattoo, so hopefully we will see this on him when he brings the bike back.

If anyone is up there, give a holler for the guy in the blue Chameleon! And remind him that the left hand controls the front brake, which is opposite of what they do on the other side of the pond.

Crank Brothers Cobalt Wheelset

PeterD — Wed, 21 May 2008 22:30:00 +0000

Got our first set of Crank Brother Cobalt wheels in. Pretty cool looking.

I think we got 2 sets in the door, but one has been sold already. Come check out the remaining one while it is here.

One of the first thing that caught my eyes was the way the spokes are totally straight, and can be adjusted in the center. Crank Brothers says that “the nipples are long, and the spokes are short” – I’ve never seen nipples that are the same length as the spokes before. But it moves the weight away from the outside of the wheel (where it is bad), and makes the wheel easier to true.

24 spoke, tubeless only, disc only. 682 grams front, 852 grams rear.

Comes with a funky two stage quick release skewer, which increases clamping force.

Can’t wait to see what they are like on the trails.

Giant Training - Part 2

PeterD — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:48:00 +0000

A piece of good advice I once heard was that you should avoid debating about religion and politics, as people hold strong feelings on these that they rarely will change. I think that Mountain Bike Suspension design could be a third area to add to the list.

That being said, here is the second part of Berry’s report from the Giant Training he and John went to a few weeks back. This will be on various suspension designs…

The most interesting part of the talk was given by Andrew Justaitis (sp?), which contained a lot of basic and useful info on all the various kinds of rear suspension designs, how they work and their characteristics, both good & bad. He called it a Suspension Rating Report Card, giving ratings for Activity, Efficiency and Independence; how well the rear suspension works separately from the rear brake, whether they influence each other or not. Below is his Report Card, which I found very informative. He went to great lengths to be fair and neutral and didn’t bad mouth any other brand or design type.

The report card is based on the basic design. Technology can be used to mask or minimize deficiencies of their rear suspension design. The “Brain” shock that Specialized uses is one; it controls the pedal bob inherent in classic 4 bars. Other manufacturers use shock valving or add ons of some kind to improve on the suspension design.

1) Single Pivot Example: Heckler, Bullitt and many others (Super Light shown in picture). Easy to make, light, durable, but reliant on shock technology to be even remotely efficient or independent. Activity = B Efficiency = D bad bio-pacing Independence = F lots of brake jack, where braking locks up the rear suspension, making the bike feel like a hard tail under braking (not to be confused with feeling like a hard tail when climbing, which is good).

2) Modified 4 Bar Where the rear pivot is above the axle; Kona and Turner (shown in picture) are examples. Activity = A Efficiency = C Noticeable pedal feedback Independence = D lots of brake jack

3) 4 Bar/Horst Link Specialized owns the patent. Activity = A Efficiency = C- Again, pedal feedback Independence = A-

4) R1i Trek’s new design, patented, currently on their Fuel EX; the rear axle is the pivot. Activity = B- Efficiency = B+ Independence = C+

5) VPP Santa Cruz holds this patent; Intense pays royalties. Generically a dual link design, with an “S” shaped wheel path. The wheel starts going backwards, then goes forward, then ends up going rearward again. The linkages have a counter-clockwise rotational path. Activity = B Efficiency = B- Independence = A

6) DW Link Licensed to several companies; Ibis, Titus, Pivot and Iron Horse are some. Activity = B Efficiency = B- Independence = B

7) Maestro (shown in picture) Generically a dual link, but with clockwise rotational movement. Progressive and bottomless. Activity = A Efficiency = A Independence = A

Of course (given the source) you’d expect this report card to favor Giant, but he went into a lot of detail on the good and bad of each type.

Giant Training - Part 1

PeterD — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 12:16:00 +0000

John and Berry went to Santa Cruz a few weeks back to attend the Giant Maestro Suspension training event. Here is what Berry had to say about the event:

They had sales and tech info in the morning, the lunch & dirt demo in the PM at DeLaveaga Park, where they had Anthems (3 1/2” Race bike), Trance Xs (5” trail bike), and Reign Xs (6.7” freeride bike) available to ride. I rode a Trance X and a Reign X. Loved the Trance X, the rear suspension truly worked very well; if it had had a Vanilla RLC on it, would have tried to take it home. It weighed 26lbs.

The Reign X is too much bike for me and the riding I do, but when going DH, it inspires lots of confidence.

The presentation in the morning was much as you’d expect and included some descriptions of their manufacturing process and techniques.

One thing that was quite a surprise for me was to find out that the make their own aluminum! It allows them to be in total control of the whole process from concept to delivery. They use Press Forming to create most of the frame components, typically the bends and bell shaped tubing ends. The rest of the shaping is done by Fluid Forming, a hot process, for both the blank tube and the fluid itself. The blank is in a mold and high pressure fluid forces the blank to conform to the inside of the mold. The combination of these two processes allow them to make the frame as strong as needed in any part or location without having to add gussets or to weld on additional material, which would add weight, be labor intensive and costly, or both.

They are the largest bike manufacturer in the world and the second largest seller (300K+) of bikes in the US (Trek is # 1 in US).

Part 2 coming soon…

Now that is scary

PeterD — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 02:56:00 +0000

Being Halloween season, I thought I would post something scary today. Charles dropped this honking big Chris King headset on the counter in front of me. It comes wrapped with a black instruction sheet, so to me looked like a can of Guinness (and about the same size).

To show the size of this 1.5” headset, the photos show it next to a standard (1 1/8”) size that we are all familiar with.

What uses these monsters? Many Freeride, DH, and heavy duty All Mountain bikes are using this size. The Santa Cruz Bullit we have in the shop does use one this size (as do Nomads, though I think the frame we had was recently sold, and I am not sure when we can get another in).

The bikes have been using this size, but what has been missing has been forks. Many people have been using spacers with these large headsets so they would work with 1 1/8” steerer forks. Definitely not the optimal way to do it.

Fox is now making a Float Fork for use with 1.5” headsets, and we have one in stock. Like the fork for 29er bikes we talked about before, this is something that only a few shops have been able to get a hold of so far, and we got lucky.

Note – as I was writing this, the ground started moving, which added to the scare factor. 5.6 earthquake centered in Milpitas is what the web is saying.

Carrying another bike brand

PeterD — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:24:00 +0000

Ok, when you are a new shop (as we are), you almost have to beg to get bike manufacturers to let you carry their lines. Most manufacturers already have dealers in place, who they don’t want to annoy by adding another dealer.

Charles had an advantage, being well known in the industry (which he got for working at shops for over 20 years now). And Berry, John, Sterling, Patty, and (most recently) Brett have been building on this rep, and it is paying off…

The first sign of this was how well we have been reviewed on MTBR, Yelp, and in other places. Thanks to everyone who posted a review.

This was added to when Park Tools awarded us a Distinguished Service Award (and special thanks to “blue bling” Stuart for nominating us).

I am sure this all was considered by Santa Cruz when they agreed to come on board in the spring.

And now we have another exciting new addition (check out the “Bikes Carried” section on the right hand menu bar to see who it is).

Berry Sampled Dirt

Patty — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 04:19:00 +0000

Actually, Berry sampled Bikes at the Dirt Demo at Interbike. Here’s his cool report:

On Tuesday I rode the Dirt Demo at InterBike, actually out at Bootleg Canyon. Great weather, not too hot. Plenty of bikes, trails & other entertaining riders.

My main goal was to ride the three main 29rs I was interested in to compare them, & also ride whatever else Charles wanted me to, or was available.

I went for the Specialized Stumpy 29r first, as I felt that would make a good baseline; I was familiar with that suspension & ride quality.

The Stumpjumper FSR 29 was shod with the new The Captain 2.0 tires, which will more or less replace the Resolution in their tire mix. It rode well and hooked up in the dry, rocky conditions just fine. The bike was very good, my first time on a 29er, & I liked it almost immediately.

It had a Rock Shox Reba up front, which I liked alot, which suprised me. I’ve been a fan of coil and/or Fox for a long time, so liking an air sprung Rock Shox is something new. I wouldn’t hesitate to spec it on a 29er of my own.

The 29ers I rode were all very stable. They roll over bumps of all sizes noticably better than a 26”. I have a poor sense of balance & get “twitchy” at low speeds—the 29ers compensated & made for a smoother ride for me. 29ers are made for G-outs, WOW! You can roll them faster, with more confidence than with a standard wheel/tire.

Next up was the Turner Sultan, my primary objective & potential front runner for my own quiver. I schmoozed with Jarett, the sales manager at Turner, & he spent a little more time on the suspension set up than I got with the Specialized.

The Sultan also had a Rock Shox Reba up front, RP23 rear. Plus it had the Nevegal 2.2 tires front & rear, which REALLY hooked up. On that bike with those tires & felt I could ride anything, easily. The bike ROCKED! For me, it was better than the Specialized, though not by a large margin. I think the tires & suspension set up made most of the difference in the perceived ride quality. Both are clearly good bikes.

Next up was the Niner Bikes R.I.P. 9, well regarded in the MTBR 29er shoot out. It also rode well, this time with a Manitou Minute up front, which I also liked. The bike was shod with a knock off of the Nevegal, not sure of make/model. The R.I.P. 9 had all the great ride characteristics of the previuos two, with the added benefit of being more affordable.

I went into this biased towards the Turner & that didn’t change. Realistically they were all very good bikes & with same components & careful suspension set up, they would all ride very well; the differences were minor. The R.I.P. 9 is the best value, the Turner is the most expensive (and the best looking to me with the bronze powder coat), and Specialized nails it in between.

I also rode an Ibis Mojo, one of the finest rides I’ve ever had. Either the suspension just happened to be perfectly dialed for my preferences or the bike rides better than almost any other I’ve ever been on. Sooooooo smooth! I had to think about it to be aware of the suspension working; most of the time the bike floated under me like a magic carpet sucking up the trail & letting me just enjoy it all. Very impressive!

Ibis reports the frame and rear shock weighs a mere 4.93 pounds, and the bike can be built up at less than 22 pounds, with a crazy 5.5 inches of rear travel.

One overall take-home lesson for me was to be remined how much I hate trigger shifters! My bikes at home are all equipped with twist shifters.

All the bikes came with either XTR or X9 triggers; I found the X9s to work more positively & reliably. The XTR wouldn’t always give me the third cog on a shift; the lever would not engage the teeth every time at the end of the stroke. This happened on at least two bikes.

As Charles reminded me, the XTR had a lighter touch, but that didn’t make up for its disappointing response to my inputs. The X9 gave me what I was expecting each & every shift, and costs a fraction of the XTR.

I also rode an ASR by Yeti, a 24# short-travel cross country race bike. The one I was on had issues. It was too small for me & it was my 6th bike of the day. I was tired. All that & it was the only short travel bike I rode that day, or in the last year, so my experience was not so good.

I will try to write more later on things I saw or learned at the trade show.

Berry

Overheard conversation

PeterD — Tue, 01 May 2007 19:31:00 +0000

Conversation recently overheard of folks looking at our web site:

Person A: “Hey, is that a new logo over in the Bike Brands Carried section of the web site?”
Person B: “Huh, where’s that?”
Person A: “It’s in that column over on the right side of the page.”
Person B: “Wow, you’re right dude. That is new. Does that mean they are carrying them now?”
Person A: “I hope so, they make a good addition to what the shop carries”

March Build of the Month - Versus Trigger

PeterD — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 03:09:00 +0000

This month’s bike is one meant more for DMC than for Waterdog (though I have ridden one at WaterDog) – a Versus Trigger.

Here is what our customer said:
“The Versus Trigger doesn’t disappoint. It has an ultra burly frame designed for Downhill/Freeride and is stiff in the rear. The bump absorption is great and the linkage is excellent for hitting berms at warp speed. It pedals decently without much pedal feedback. “

I have heard terms like “slope style” and flickable” used for this bike. The rear can be set at either 190 mm (7.5 inches) or 216 mm (8.5 inches) just by moving one bolt, so it definitely gets you down the hill in a fun way – this customer has tried both and is currently running it at 8.5”

“The Bomber 888 fork evens out the ride and absorbs jump landings like I hoped, and the Mavic Deemax wheels provide a secure feeling when hitting a big drop. “

“This bike is sweet and Charles and staff did a great job helping me make informed decisions and built me one solid bike! “

Watch for this bike on the DH course at the Sea Otter this year…

Highlights from the Build List
Frame	Versus Trigger
Fork	Marzocchi Bomber 888 – 8” travel
Shock	Manitou SW 6-Way Coil
Wheelset	Mavic Deemax
Tires	Front: Kenda Nevegal 2.5” Rear: Specialized Pinn’er 2.3”
Rear Derailleur	currently Shimano LX (upgrading soon to SRAM X0)
Brakes	Hayes 9

February Build of the Month - S-Works Stumpjumper FSR Carbon

PeterD — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 19:22:00 +0000

This month we are featuring a Specialized S-Works Stumpjumper FSR. 5 inches of travel on alight bike makes this an excellent choice for most any trail around.

Here is what the customer had to say:
After taking a 1-1/2 year break from ridding, and not buying a new bike for 13 years, I was blown away by how the technology had improved.

It’s very much an evolving, learning process ridding this bike. It offers so much performance, comfort, and all around goodness, it takes a while to take it all in. I find that under most conditions, it’s best to stay seated, and let the bike absorb the bumps and handle turns. It reminds me of skiing, when I switched from the old straight cut skis, to shaped skis. The performance is so much better, but also smoother and easier, so you can focus on improving your skills and technique.

Another great improvement is tubeless tires. In the past, I would avoid ruts, with tubeless tires, they just seem to want to climb right out of the ruts like they aren’t even there…great stuff! A friend of mine that I’ve been ridding with for years, says I ride so much faster now with the new bike. I hadn’t noticed until he pointed it out.

Having such good luck on my previous bike with XTR components, I decided to use them on this bike. Charles suggested a few changes, which I gladly did (SRAM XO rear derailleur). Being an older rider (51), I didn’t want too much flash on my bike, so I went with last year’s Mavic Crossmax SL wheels, and Specialized Carbon Riser bars, which have less bright colors than this year’s versions. It also saved some money going with last year’s equipment.

The toughest decision was which fork to go with. The Fox TALAS RLS height adjustability sounded very appealing, but after a lot of research (and a savings of over $150), I decided to go with the plusher riding Vanilla RLC 140. It turns out to be a good choice…I love this fork! Plus, the fact that I sell Pure Vanilla, made it kind of fun to have a fork called “Vanilla.”

Working with Charles was such a pleasure. Not having a bought a bike in many years, his incredible knowledge was very helpful. He’s also very easy going and listens very carefully to what your needs are. I learned so much in putting this bike together.

Highlights from the Build List
Frame	S-Works FSR FACT 10M carbon main triangle frame, Az1 construction, M5 alloy rear triangle
Fork	Vanilla RLC 140
Shock	Specialized AFR Shock w/ Flow Control valve shock
Brakes	Shimano XTR Disc
Wheelset	Mavic Crossmax SL
Shifters	SRAM XO Gripshift
Front Derailleur	Shimano XTR
Rear Derailleur	SRAM XO
Pedals	Shimano XTR
Bar	Specialized Carbon Riser bars

Once again, we are running a little (well, actually a lot) late. Sorry about that. Charles and the crew have been so busy with work that I haven’t been able to get the data needed to write these up. Well, that and me going to Mexico for a long siesta…