Wednesday’s breakfast ride went well and the rain kept at bay, so dusty trails prevailed once again. Six made the 5am start this week. The forecast rain did arrive later in the day, but by the time the evening ride in Calderdale came around, the weather was back to a finer state.
Some pretty good riding around there (increasingly one of my favourite places to head out to), but it’s meant riding stuff that’s made me realise that whilst the rigid singlespeed has been fine for most stuff so far, it does have it’s limits.
It’s been good going back to a rigid set up, it was a change that I used to make for each winter race series, only putting suspension forks on for summer. I guess I just crumbled at the prospect of being beaten down the descents I’d earned on the ups. So the Singlespeed now looks quite a bit different to the original photos and spec listed. It’s a work in progress. Update soon.
The Saab Salomon Mountain Mayhem (SSMM) is this weekend. After two years of it, it seems weird not to be there this year. I guess new things are pretty much across the board this year. Good luck to all those riding. Hope you avoid mechanicals and that your lights don’t pack up midway through.
Jed and I have put an entry in to ride as a pair at Sleepless in the Saddle (SITS) in August. This should be an interesting experience that’s for sure. I’m just hoping that we get in. There’s also the possibility following a phone call from an old friend that I’ll be revisiting my old trail stomping grounds. Fingers crossed on that one.
Next years Shimano stuff looms closer, not too impressed by the looks of Dura Ace, but the new XT still looks pretty fine. That and more here. Robbie Bourdon’s had a nasty prang. And then there’s Tara Llanes, mmm, mmm, mmm. Finally I’ve been meaning to link Trailbreak for a while so here’s that too.
Riding Sunday. Somewhere.
R O T H A R . C O M 