A New Ride: The Salsa Blackborow

Every so often something comes along that gets my attention.  I really like bikes and I would like to own them all.  However, I move a lot and my housing options don't accommodate every bike I want.  Therefore, I don't get something unless what I have isn't getting the job done.  For instance, I see no point in owning a traditional road bike as long as the Salsa Las Cruces is fully functional.  It does most of what I need on paved or dirt roads.

The same with mountain bikes, my real passion.  At one point I had three fully assembled and a frame hanging on the wall.  A lot of redundancy, so I decided to sell all but the Salsa Mukluk which became my do it all mountain bike.  I have been looking at getting a Lynskey Fatsky for a while but truth be told, the only real difference is the frame material, no major functional difference.

Then Salsa announced the Blackborow, this is something that is dramatically different from the Mukluk.  Suddenly I didn't care about a fancy titanium frame so I ordered one of these from the really nice people at Red River Cyclery.  I went back an forth as to whether or not to get the DS or geared version.  Ultimately, time, cost (of upgrades to include new Alternator dropout plates), and availability helped me decide on geared.  Though truth be told I love the Forest Service Green, it reminds me of Missoula, Montana.

I was near the end of a really painful couple of weeks when the guys at RRC posted this on Facebook.  It made my day (Image Courtesy of Red River Cyclery)

I am not a good bike reviewer guy but here are some pictures.  So far I like the bike though only time will tell.  Here are some pictures in the wilds of Louisiana.

The elevation is ~400 feet above sea level.  Anytime there is a big dip in elevation, there is standing water.  There is no telling what is buried in the mud or how far it will sink.  Some of these are surprisingly deep, the Blackborow with the 26x4.8 tires hand these spots like a champ.

 I love the Spanish Moss.

Though the Surly Lou is not my favorite tire, the width is impressive and traction is great.  I am looking forward to getting a 4.8 Knard tire when I get a second mortgage on my house!

Crud Catcher?

So far I have very few complaints.  Two obvious things that are only mildly annoying are the front brake cable routing which I am guessing will be addressed on next years model, my temporary fix is a zip tie to pull it way from the front tire.  It looks tacky but is functional.  The second is the tire clearance........or lack there of.  I purposely bought this bike because of the shortened chain stays and quicker handling.  But a side effect of this is the front derailleur is a crud catcher.  I also added helicopter tape (not cheap but unnoticeable and worth every cent) to the back of the seat stay to keep the thick mud from shredding the paint.  I also added some to the small brace between the tire and BB which is also a major crud catcher.

Live Life: The Joy of Pain and Agony of Winning

I feel bad for people who don't do anything. I am active, always have been.  I love adventure.  I crave adventure.  I am not content watching television, playing video games all night (sleeping most of the day), fantasy football, or those card games (magic stuff and Pokemon).  These things do not satisfy me and I don't believe it truly satisfies those people who become consumed by them.  Bodies and minds crave stimulating activity and exertion.  Humans were not designed to be idle and humans have not adapted well to a sedentary lifestyle. 

I wonder what kind of stories they will tell when they get old; "one time I found myself backed into a corner and I had to use my level 10 wizard to destroy your ogre and your spell of something pointless?" And by ogre I clearly am not speaking of the Surly Ogre on which I have embarked on challenging adventures. What will their obituary will say; "John spent his life sitting in his basement mostly in the dark mastering a video game and interacting with others like him instead of developing a relationship and exploring the wonders of the natural world." That rocks.

But not for me.  I often look at people in their fancy cars with heated seats while I am on my Mukluk at -15 degrees and 30 mph wind gusts.  As they look at me, I wonder if they wish they were riding a bike.  Then I realize that is a stupid question......of course they do.  Secretly I wish I had a heated seat.   

I come from a long line of people who do stuff. They got out of the comfort zone and competed; took action vs sit and let the world go by. 

They felt the joy of pain and agony that always accompanies winning!  Yes, I said that right.

We walked away from that one!

Now I am not saying that watching a sporting event or playing cards isn't a good pass time every now and then but those are not activities or hobbies in my opinion.  Those are sufficient to pass time but not to LIVE LIFE.  While my life is not always the adventure I want it to be; I constantly seek it out.  I have to balance everything in my life.  My kids, wife, and job consume most of my life but I have no regrets when it comes to living life to its fullest.  Fortunately they all provide enough adventure to satisfy enough to enjoy life.  The good thing is that I am still young and in good shape (no broken parts) and there is plenty of opportunity.

Winning!  The Chick on her way back before anyone else could get to the wall.

  My daughter is beginning to understand this a little.  Things are not often fun until you get good at them.  That is the joy of pain and agony of winning.  I want my kids to have activities that can be enjoyed for life (as long as the body is willing and capable of course).  I don't want them to sit around and play fantasy sports while reminiscing about how good they were once upon a time. 

I want them to enjoy the activity of life as I do.  That is why I love fly fishing, backpacking, and bicycling.  Each of these require activity (I don't fish from a chair).  I can tell stories of nearly drowning in pursuing fish in fast moving rivers and creeks.  I can tell of sleepless nights in the mountains of Montana and New Mexico, wondering if the lighting could get any closer while on mountain tops.  The list can and will continue to grow. 

Food For Thought, the world is changing!

   

I am a Winner.....Sort of, thanks Salsa Cycles

I tried to win a bike one time in an online contest with a major bike company.  The entry requirement was a blog about bicycling and how it fits into your life.  Hence this blog.  I didn't win.  You will probably understand why when you stumble through this.  Besides, it was a stupid bike anyway.

Not long ago, I saw a link to the Reveal Your Path Postcard Contest on Salsa's Facebook page:

It reminded me of my previous failure so I quickly dismissed it.  Besides, I lack creativity and artistic ability.  But then I looked at the entry requirements and the Post Card could be anything and this is a great bike that I really want!  Then it hit me like a ton of heavy stuff (really it could have been light stuff adding up to a ton). 

While living in Islamabad, a friend made connections with a Jingle Truck guy.  Follow this link to a great article on Jingle Trucks.  It really is a great article on the culture of Jingle Trucks and you should read if you didn't.  The idea was that we could buy bits and pieces of their art for souvenirs.  It quickly became a trend and we found out they did custom work.  As a fan of Salsa Cycles I knew what I wanted so a friend of mine looked up the Pepper Globe on the Internet and we used his photo printer to make a terrible small print of the Pepper Globe.  A friend of mine translated in Urdu that I wanted the top green and the pepper red.  We used hand gestures to approximate size and agreed on the price of Pakistan Rupee 3,814 ($40).  I figured I would get a really bad rendition, but that is part of the fun too.  To my surprise it turned out far beyond my expectation.  The detail was amazing!!!  The best part was the Rs 3,814 got me two.  

So I used this amazing piece of work and wrote a "post card" applying it to the back with spray adhesive.  I packed it carefully and a few days later I saw this on Facebook!

  "Holy tin snips!  Wait till you see the latest "post card" entry that arrived today...but just remember, simple entries are great too!"

Then I went to their site and saw the following. 

They captured the detail well. 

In the end I did not win the Grand Prize, however, I won a nice Pro Moto stem with Ti hardware and a handlebar.  This was not a stupid bike and I would have loved to win it, but I will take a consolation prize of this magnitude.  

I replaced the stem on my Mukluk with this shiney and light upgrade and but the bars on my Giant Anthem X29er so I would have something with a more comfortable sweep.

This is the greatest thing I have ever won (besides the Alberston's grocery store coloring contest in which I earned $5 which was a lot for a 5 year old) and I love Salsa Cycles. 

Thumbs Up!!!