loop_out

Prior to y'all's videos, I had given one half hearted attempt a few months ago and shelved it, wary of the risks. After the watching the videos, I tried both lines in earnest. I made up each line on the first try, which was cool. The problem is, I usually try new features twice to make sure I really have it. The second attempts on each line had me looking up at the sky on my back with the bike on top of me, and that was not cool. Anyway, I really like those types of videos even though I blame them a little bit for my most recently injury.

It's interesting that different riders approach features differently with the same goals and feel in mind. Words "neutral" and "weightlessness" are also in my head for this particular feature, but I seem to be doing it differently. On the way down, I approach it like any other down slope feature meaning I am centered from a balance perspective, but my body/weight is further back relative to the bike. I basically maintain this position (perhaps shifting my weight even slightly further back) at the bottom and on the way up, which means I don't carry much weight on the fork at that point. I do stand-up at the top/end of the sequence, though like everyone else.

Thanks - I contemplated reaching out to I9, but I was thinking it might be a while before I get the wheel back (and I'm super lazy when it comes to packing things up and shipping).

That's an interesting point and agree that there are number of factors at play. I think I was running lighter tires on the HT, so I am sure that contributed as well. In any case, for the way I ride, change from HT to FS seems to be a big factor for pinch flats that occur on drops. I have pinch flatted many times on a previous HT running alloy rims, but only recall only one pinch flat running alloy rims on prior FS bikes.

That would be great. I think I read somewhere on here that you are a great wheel builder. I will PM you.

The original wheel is Ibis S35 w/Ibis hubs. I am currently running Industry 9 1/1 with Enduro S hoops. The carbon hoops on my HT was Bontrager Line Pro. Going to FS has pretty much eliminated pinch flat issues I had with the HT, but I've been frustrated by how unreliable my rear wheel has been. Perhaps they were both poorly built from the get go as Mattlikesbikes has suggested.

I am looking for some technical advice on a setup for wheels. A few months ago, I switched over from a hardtail with a carbon wheelset to a FS with an alloy wheelset. I rode the hardtail for nearly 2 years without having to true or tweak the spokes for tension. Since the switch to the alloy wheelset on the FS, I have had numerous issues with my rear wheel. I usually check my spoke tension after rides, and I would often find a few very loose spokes, sometimes such that I can actually turn the spokes with my hand. Ultimately, I had to have the rear wheel rebuilt with a new rim. Thinking I would fare better with a hand built set, I bought set of I9 alloy wheelset to serve as my primary wheelset. I've had the exact same experience with this wheelset. I do a lot of drops, but I ride the FS bike no differently than how I rode the HT. I did have numerous pinch flats on my HT with the carbon wheels, but I never had any wheel issues per se. On the FS bike with the alloy wheels, I have never had a pinch flat, but numerous wheel issues as I indicated. This makes me think that I am running sufficient pressure (I am less than 160lbs and run about 24-26 PSIs in the back). Do y'all think that switching the rear wheel to carbon will solve my issues? At my weight, I feel like more air in the rear tire will compromise traction too much, but might that really be the answer? I am definitely not the smoothest rider out there, but it does not seem right to have gone through two rear wheels/rims in just a few months at my weight. Thanks!

For me, the difference between 3.0 and 2.5 does not feel like much. I went from 3.0 DHF/DHR on a hard tail to 2.5 Assegais on a full suspension. If anything, the 2.5 Assegais feel slower to me on the really smooth stuff. Obviously, there are other factors at play like the wheelset, the suspension, etc., but for me, running tires that wide was just another factor influencing speed, and not an overwhelming one like I thought it could be.

So, how long does it typically take for these trails to dry out after snow?

I've been lucky to avoid serous injuries, but I still have something just beneath the skin on my right arm that appears to be a piece of the broken cedar branch I crashed into on my very first ride there There is just something about that place. I'd feel a bit more excitement whenever pulling into the parking area at CP.

I'm probably missing something here. DD is my favorite segment of my favorite trail system around here, but is there really any controversy with the idea that those other trails are notably more difficult? DD has some really cool and rewarding features, but they can generally be overcome by executing one or two maneuvers at a time. To me, the difference with the other trails is that the features are such that you have to string together many maneuvers in a very short time period to get through them. As an example, EBD is a relatively straight forward obstacle once you figure out the required momentum and timing. However, if there were an obstacle or two just in front of EBD to affect either of those elements, the challenge would be very different. I guess all of this stuff is neither here nor there anyway, and the important thing is that we have so many interesting trails to choose from. Still, it's a fun topic, and for whatever reason, I think many of us just like the idea that we might be riding the toughest trail out there.

Driven by my own nostalgia after reading this thread (and also by all that rain), I went out to CP over the weekend for the first time in what seems like forever. I first rode CP in the 90s as a college student and went out there regularly until about 7 or 8 years ago, when increasing family obligations and convenience/goodness of Brushy Creek trails started to keep me from venturing out of Cedar Park for my rides. CP was great fun, but the climbs seemed more challenging than ever. Sadly, I don't see myself cleaning the Cheesecake Challenge again anytime soon. Thumper and BCGB back trails are next up on my personal reunion tour, and I suspect I will feel even worse about myself as a rider after that. To respond to the original poster's question, for typical Central Texas style trail riding, I would put Thumper, CP, and BCGB back trails in the most difficult category and most everything else, including Double Down, at a notch or two below them.

I've had many other encounters where people are oblivious with their earphones/headphones. The difference here is that she saw us and decided that she will just run with her dog and stay in front of us. Either she grossly overestimated her (and her chihuahua's) foot speed or she took one look at me and decided that this is one slow MF. That's a whole another level of disrespect considering she didn't even bother lowering her volume.

I often do out and back on DD, and see 2 or 3 other riders at the most, which is really nice. We did ride Picnic Sunday morning and had a really odd encounter. We came up on an woman slowly walking a dog. As we came up, she happened to look back and saw us coming, so she started running. At this point, I thought she was running towards a wider part of the trail to move over. Instead, she just kept running ahead of me, barely keeping pace with her tiny dog (nothing against tiny dogs - some of them are super cute, but they are not fast and neither was she). Bewildered, I followed her for a while. After realizing that she was not going to move over, I asked her several times nicely if I could pass. She did not respond - apparently she had her earphones in with music blasting. I finally got her attention after yelling, and she moved over. What the hell, though - who does that?

May be it was not clear, but I am not blaming Ibis. In fact, I would look to Ibis first for my next bike based on how much I like this one. The issue was clearly with the bike shop. I was mostly just venting, and perhaps sharing the experience as a reminder to check over even new bikes before riding.

The dropper post on my Ripmo AF had the same issue as I was rolling out from the parking lot for my first ride a few weeks ago. The clamp that attaches to the bottom of the post was nowhere to be found. The bike is awesome, but here are the list of build issues I had to address in the first few days (in addition to the dropper post cable not having the clamp): loose headset, loose thru-axle bolt for the rear wheel, loose mounting for the rear derailleur, snapped dropper cable (maybe due to overtightened bolt at the lever), and incorrectly adjusted set screw for the derailleur.

I had asked a few weeks ago about the appropriate speed for hitting the big drop on Snail. After running out of excuses, I finally conducted my own trial and error exercise. Seems obvious in hindsight, but it turns out you CAN go too slow on that drop. Like everybody else, I hit it too fast the first time. The second time, I slowed down way too much in an effort to find the "right" speed,. As I started dropping, I remember thinking I may not clear the gap. Luckily, I did clear it, but ended up with a super, super scary nose heavy landing. Third time, I went back to not worrying about going too fast, and it was just fine. I guess the lesson for me was, as always, don't overthinking it and just go. For me, the landing doesn't seem that much harsher than the bigger drops on picnic.

I agree - I wish people wouldn't use that line. Even without that line, that areas gets crowded bikers, hikers, and dogs. When I ride though that intersection, I find myself looking towards that line to see if anyone is dropping in rather than looking ahead.

Nothing I couldn't tell as long as you promise (in writing) not to call CPS on me. Actually, not much of a story. Lots of folks have stories about their dogs getting skunked, and mine just happens to involve a kid. He used to be a curious kid - not so much anymore.

You dog owners are a devoted bunch. My kid got mildly skunked, and I considered making him not my kid anymore.

Could someone give me a pointer on how fast to take the biggest drop at Snail? I'm obviously not looking for any specific speed, but perhaps relative speed you would use for this drop compared to the speed required to clear the lip on the other two bigger drops at Snail would be helpful. I really don't want to do this drop, but I think I must in order to shut my son up. Last couple of times we hit Snail, he's been bugging me about this drop. I just don't have a good sense for how fast I should take it to clear the muck without turning it into a 10 or 11 foot drop to a nearly flat area.

Just to close the loop on this, we ended up picking up a nice 27.5 bike in a small size for my son. Watching him progress on his new bike the past 6 weeks or so has been awesome. He regularly asks to go ride and wants to session stuff until he can clear them. I wish I had moved him to bigger wheels earlier.

Does anyone else irrationally fear wooden structure drops/features? I made it out to Snail Trail for the first time in a year or two and spent a lot more time looking at rather than riding all the new stuff. I think it will be a long while before I try the biggest drop out there, but managed to hit the other two, only after convincing myself that they are no worse than taking some of the drops on picnic at a good pace. Just something about riding off a wooden structure makes me super nervous. I couldn't even bring myself to hit the B line on the biggest drop, which is really just steep, but relatively straight forward, roll down a ramp. I don't normally seek out stuff like this, but man that's some fun and addicting stuff out there. In another thread, I was musing about getting a FS bike to replace my HT to gain a bit more comfort and rear traction for technical climbs, but I now have whole another perspective on the need for rear suspension.

Not too far behind you heading towards 50. Lately, my back is about the only thing that's not giving me consistent trouble, but seemingly everything else hurts. I would certainly like to keep back problems at bay. As a fellow Stache owner, I would be very curious to hear about your view on Izzo because that is a bike I would consider as a potential replacement. In the end though, I think I am looking for something that does not exist. Something that fits my definition of fun as provided by Stache, in a more comfortable/forgiving setup.

Will do. I was instantly hooked after a test ride as well.