I'm getting ready to leave for a family vacation in Ft. Lauderdale, so there won't be any more riding for me this year unless I manage to do some convincing and we rent some beach cruisers to ride there...
What a year this one has been, and I'm only talking about cycling; no other serious stuff for now. After a very difficult cycling 2008, where the year went by and I wasn't able to accomplish any of my personal cycling and weight loss goals, 2009 was much better. I managed to get into a pretty steady biking commute to work, either riding one way in the morning (12.5 miles) and taking Caltrain back home in the evening (4 miles+train) when I wasn't traveling, which was pretty often in the second half of the year. I discovered Rivendell and closed the year with an A. Homer Hilsen and a Bombadil, having sold a Gunnar CrossHairs and a Cannondale F500 that just couldn't fit me no matter how hard I tried. Still on the judgement table, an almost brand new (100 miles or so) full carbon and 16.5 lbs Specialized Roubaix SL2 with a combo of Sram Red components that I can't quite fit in comfortably after riding the Rivendells. Waiting for the spring to see how much I can get for it. Managed to loose about 20 pounds (not continuously) over the 12 month span, but regained about 2 - 3 pounds during the holidays. I start the year full of excitement about continuing to commute regularly (and overcome my resistance to ride in the rain), continue to lose weight and becoming fitter now that I can ride pretty comfortably so I can start introducing some longer rides (Ray must think I'm bluffing, but I really want to ride with him from San Francisco to Palo Alto) and really hoping I'll be able to join any local Rivendell rides as well as get started with the newly (for me) discovered concept of the S24O. Now to the Bombadil report... I've ridden the Bombadil with 29er knobby tires on mountain biking trails twice, although I must say those trails are quite mild. Once in Arrastradero Preserve in Palo Alto, and the second time in China Camp. Both times the rides were a blast, and I was very surprised at how comfortable, compliant and secure I felt on the Bombadil. I rode with Moustache handlebars and must say that I really love them on the dirt. The trails were compact and the Bombadil tracked beautifully. Over rocks and other rough spots, I just stood on the pedals and flowed with the bike in a way I must say just felt perfect. I then switched wheels and rode with 40mm Marathon Extreme tires on the road and some dirt trails around Stanford (Lagunita). On the pavement, the bike rolled very smoothly and quietly; there was no hint of noise from the tires and they felt very smooth and with little rolling resistance. I never tried the previous Marathon XT tires, but I must say these are great. Off road, the bike handled perfectly and even while going through some short steep climbs where I had to stand on the pedals to clear them, the bike never hesitated nor the tires slipped. I'm seriously considering leaving those tires permanently on the bike, as it seems the Bombadil is going to be my bike for trail riding and not really technical mountain biking as I'll use my dual suspension trail bike for the more technical riding, at least for now. We'll have to see if I end up avoiding the dual suspension bike in favor of the Bombadil or not. I may also try the Marathon Supremes in the 700 x 2.0 version, but am not sure about that yet. Riding the Moustache bars on the road has produced some hand pain/discomfort so I've been playing with both the tilt and the height of the bars to address that. It seems I've finally got it to a point where the discomfort is minimized, but all I've done are 1 hour rides these past few days so I don't know how my hands would fare on longer rides on the road. With its ultimate use goal as it appears to be shaping up, when I get back from my family vacation, I'll put steel fenders on the Bombadil and report back. I didn't quite like how the Cascadia fenders looked, so I didn't install them and since they didn't have any safety releases as I had expected, then there doesn't seem to be any point in keeping them. I'll either return them or put them for sale if I can't return them. So far, my best cycling highlight of the year, as you can all surmise, was my discovery and introduction to the Rivendell philosophy of cycling, and to its bikes. Being close to Walnut Creek and having the privilege of visiting them, pestering them and asking lots of questions is like icing on a delicious cake. They have been great with me and always put up with my questions with a smile. The support I've found in this group complements the whole experience in an unbelievable way that I couldn't have hoped to find anywhere else. Happy New Year everyone!!! René PS.- Check out the 3 pictures one of my friends took on the ride to China Camp: http://tinyurl.com/yctakx2 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
