It's definitely winter in Wanaka

9am, Saturday - soon to be father; Callum rings and says we're going for a spin in the snow.

This entails a 4 minute spin down to Trish & Callums for a warm up coffee then a further kilometre to the dirt.

We've put together a small loop that doesn't even get us into the forest, which is only 20 mins by bike.......oh I miss the driving. (Tui ad)

We spent our time on a bunch of tracks that drop from the sidle track down to the Clutha River and some thoughtful individuals have built a new (easier) track to take you back up to the top to pick another way down.....

Potential for getting it wrong rises considerably with speed, or supposed familiarity of the trail...so far nothing but a few scuffed rear derailleurs due to errant tree roots.

The snow didn't stay for long - the sun came out later on.

Callum showing his usual style for the camera:

Quality time in the Garage......

The family is up north, so I've had a great couple of days in the garage here in Wanaka.

Drawing inspiration from Ebay where I found a great Raleigh Panasonic sloping TT bike, I spent the afternoon re-creating my own.
**Footnote** This frame used to belong to Mark Rendell who rode it in the team time trial in the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Australia. NZ came home with a bronze medal for the 100km event in a shade under 2 hours.
Sounds like a world of hurt for two hours.........
The 28 spoke wheels were my time trial specials from when I was 15:
Sansin sealed bearing hubs
Suntour new winner freewheel 13-19 straight
Bladed spokes
Mavic GP 4 rims
Currently wearing Wolber Strada 80 tires that dad bought home from the UK in the late 80's
All the Campag was on hand and looking for an excuse to get out off the shelf.
I think the frame might have originally sported a 26 inch front wheel, but it came with these forks, so that'll do for now.

2008 Single Speed MTB Nationals

The Single Speed Nationals 2008 saw me heading off to Rotovegas for Anzac weekend with the new and improved Surly Karate Monkey in tow.
After much dithering over how to get the bike there I dismantled it and took it with me on the plane in the trusty (and now used by me three times) bike bag.
Jimmy collected me from the airport in the 306 station wagon and we just threw that Surly bike across the back seat.
I called shotgun and got the front – which was leather and comfortable compared to Air NZ which was not comfortable - BTW - a pissy little bag of banana chips as the inflight meal doesn’t cut it for me these days.
B95FM on the dial was a welcome blast from the past; Wanaka is crippled by two dreadful radio stations – do you think I care the local Harcourts office is MREINZ ??? I think not.
Anyway we got snarled trying to get on the motorway by Gillies Ave, so hit Broadway instead. And stopped.
Eventually we crawled across a bridge that I had forgotten the name of (Grafton) and made it to Che` Kimmy and Jimmy in Freemans Bay.

The couch was good to me although the night was full of strange forgotten noises…….streetlights, sirens, people etc……. haven’t missed them at all.

Drove down with many other affluent people in tin tops to Vegas, hit Burger Fuel for lunch and then the trails for a quick spin after collecting Jim the Pom, Ricky the …well I’m not sure what he is and Bob the Sideshow.
Kept things low key and bid Bob and Frank the German farewell early on, to continue our slow journey, while they went up to the highest hill in the forest and took in the splendor of Billy T and Split Enz.
As Ricky, Jim and Jimmy were racing the next day we just took it easy otherwise Kim and I would have ripped their legs off.

Weillans Noodle House was great for dinner – cheap and plentiful, then off to the Pig & Whistle to see “Pure Sweet Hell” which was probably most folks first time they’d seen a cyclocross movie.

Breakfast for us was at Missy’s (formerly Sheryl’s) which while basic has make your own toast while they kill an animal then serve it up on plate. Delicious. If we'd gone to Zippy's we'd still be waiting.

Bought some stickers and books for the kids then off to Zippys for a coffee and catch up wirh Helen & Steve; who both got bowled on their road bikes by a boat trailer a while back, so it's good to see them really.

Had a quick look at the sign on/screwtineering - it's a single speed race not an election.

Myself, Mase and CTB had a couple of beers while Dean the organiser didn't tell us where the course went.
Not gloating here, but people - come on; beer is your friend.

The race- people looked keen, then broken, then relieved it was all over.

My optimistic call not to ride was spot on - I would have had no smiles at all.

I was also way over geared on the 29er - next time in Vegas it'll be 32 x 20 - not a 34 on the front.

Prizegiving was good, we bailed about 10pm - that's a late night for me these days.

Sunday was back to the Pig for a great breakfast, and a survey of the weather which was crap.
So it was off to Nick and Amandas for coffee instead.

An uneventful trip home was followed by Pizza Hut for dinner which these days is a novelty.

Monday I scooted thru town feeling like quite the suburban type down to http://www.bikecentral.co.nz/ for coffee and a muffin and to talk bike stuff with the boys.
Seems Auckland is caught up in "fixed gear fever."
Can I coin that phrase ?

Solved the problems of the world with the taxi driver on the way to the airport and then met the family who had been in Dunners for the weekend.
Great to be away, but great to be home with the family too.

My pics here - excuse crap quality
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/RedwoodRevolution/2008SingleSpeedNationals

And a nice video here: (not mine, just pointing you in the right direction)
http://www.vorb.org.nz/video-view-93175.html

And the ozzies did a great job with the camera:
http://singlespeed.smugmug.com/gallery/4788699_wfbPk#287205758_6KHRN

A lighter wallet = a heavier bike ! WTF ?

:Lets start with the problem.

I normally ride a SRAM 11-32, but felt the fast end of the cogs never really got used - and the 2, 3 and 4 tooth jumps weren't geling with me: 11-12-14-16-18-21-24-28-32

So I found a 13-34 cassette that goes:

13-15-17-19-21-24-27-30-34.

Unfortunately I've emptied my wallet and doubled the weight of the cassette in the process, but after a couple of rides I'm sure I will have convinced myself that it's a good thing.

In the garage I still have my original custom 7 speed cluster from the early 90's on my Klein Rascal : 13-15-17-19-21-23-26...........Got it brand new in the build kit and had it in bits on the workbench before the day was out.....who needed a 28 in 1992 anyway ?

Monkey gets one gear

With the up and coming single speed nationals happening in a few weeks in Rotovegas, the Karate Monkey has dropped a few things:

-28 gears - now running 34 x 20

-1.5 pounds - now weighs in at 24 pounds

It's first ride, sans gears was a disaster - the wheel pulled over about a zillion times. Luckily I was onto my way to work, so it was a worthy excuse to be late.

Thanks to the guys at Surly I am now the proud owner of:http://www.surlybikes.com/parts/tuggnut_pop.html -these are the business and after the installation and second ride there is no more burning rubber on the chainstay.

Just sweet riding.

I dropped the truck off at the mechanics after work and rode home via the Sticky Forest and Outlet (river) trail to home.

I still walked a hill early on - I never said I turned into a smacked up TDF rider just thru having 1 gear.....but riding up Ho Down, which for me on the dualie is a granny/middle chainring affair was just a breeze.

Going down Venus was bumpy in places for sure, but with nothing to do but pedal, carve the corners and occasionally brake it was a blast.

Dublin Back was a smoking descent as was the Sidle track where some kind fellow has trimmed back a few bushes and trees.

All in all, this bike is very cool, a lot of fun and a worthy addition to the stable.

And if some one ponies up with some cash, they can have Keighleys little Klein and then we'll have two Karate Monkeys in the garage.

There is now a monkey in the house

A Surly Karate Monkey in fact.

Had it 3 weeks, but just got it rolling in a satisfactory state this weekend.

Saturday was the proper shakedown - from home to the Sticky Forest and up and down many times, then home again. The absence of front suspension is definitely offset by the 25.5 pound weight, which is surprising - I thought it'd be closer to 30.

Today I towed Emily into town in the trailer to get some groceries - proving that it is indeed a bike of many guises.

Yes, early days in the relationship I know, but so far I'm enjoying have sex with my new bride.

**Footnote** After a quick browse of http://g-tedproductions.blogspot.com/ I realise this is a fairly shallow post.

So, here's the specs;

medium monkey frame, with rigid fork.

Hadley 32 hole hubs (freaking expensive, but V good.

Black spoke, cut by DB the spoke master

Salsa Degado race rims (25mm wide)

Black rubber inner tubes.

Kenda Kharma 29 x 2.2 tires (pretty narrow 2.2 if you ask me)

Cheap shitty 25.4 85mm long stem

Salsa Moto Ace 11 degree flat bars (very cool would get them again)

Ritchey Logic headset - seen better days

Cheap lock on grips - scratched the bars first time I took them off - bah !

Shimano 3 x 9 Deore/ Deore XT shifters (dual release - very nice, but confuses my thumb/index finger)

Avid Juicey 4 brakes - that is 3 levers and 5 calipers....no psringf in the front pads so they rattle.

Hope 6 inch rotors

Suntour XC Pro front derailleur with butchered Shimano plastic spacer to make it fit.

Clapped out Shimano 73 mm square taper bottom bracket
Shimano XTR old school 175mm cranks with 24/34/42 chainrings
Little SPD Shimano pedals
SRAM chain !
SRAM cluster 11-32 !
Shimano XTR shadow rear derailleur - medium cage
Easton seatpost (formerrly Clint Jacksons)
Seat - yes, narrow, slim and not overly comfortable and probably expensive.
Hand made Bike plate - actually a seat plate, made from a pilfered real estate sign.

Probably some other stuff, but you've fallen asleep by now.

First thoughts on the 29er phenomenom

Borrowed one of these off our South Island rep for a week:

So here's my take on it so far. Saturday morning towed Emily in the trailer around the lakefront - very capable in that line of work.

I had already geared it down to a 33 x 20 (John rides a 16), a shorter stem (inverted), narrower clapped out old ti rail saddle and wrapped the WTB grips in road handlebar tape for more comfort as well.

Saturday avo I took it out solo and as soon as I was offroad the chain fell off and continued to do around a very much shortened circuit. Yes, you can tension the chain if it becomes loose, no I did not have an 8mm spanner to assist. :-(

At home after much fettling in the garage and neglection of child minding duties.......I'd changed the rear sprocket about three times all to no avail. put a 1/8 track chain on but it rubbed the bash guard, changed the front chain ring - no good, so in the end put an old circa 1985 21 toother on the back, tensioned it up and went riding with the local mtb club on their first club day of the season.

The bike behaved and I even figured out the cheap front chainring was slightly oval, so took the chain off, rotated the cranks 180, remounted the chain and it all worked in a most harmonious fashion. The high spot in the chainring took up the slack in the chain at just the right time. Sweet.

My aversion to riding off road with rigid forks hasn't left me unable to lift a coffee cup, beer or cup of tea so far. Might be some truth to the 29er forum nerds who say you don't need suspension forks......