All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

Feel free to message me if you want any more information as well. I've worked in a few shops across the country. Big city high end shops, now I work in a mid-range rural shop, and a few in betweeners.

 

Rode all week in Durango / Cortez area - what great trials and need to go back soon!
Just a few - Twin Buttes, Telegraph, Phil's World

 

Jelly. Our trails are mostly done, and more snow/rain and cold temps return this week.
Got out on a maiden voyage yesterday on the Arrival 170.

 

……and…..

 

She sends… new downhill pedal park does keep some trails open even after/during an okay rain.

 

Durty pic or it didn't happen.

 

Weekend weather was amazing. Got some great gravel riding in and worked on my trails at the house.

Cleared five more kilometers with the chainsaw and have 2kms of rideable trail cut.

 

Soon, hoping to get at least one more ride in this week before the weather returns.

Really hard to get a feel for the bike with a first ride. I took it on a familiar ride, with plenty of everything. Rough, berms, jumps, drops, slow-speed tech, steep, loose, and all under your own power of climbing singletrack (about 2k feet). Terror-sled for the locals.

A few things stood out immediately.

One, this bike pedals fan-damn-tastic. I've never had a bike that I didn't activate the climb switch for, at least in the smoother bits. I toyed with it, but found it so much better open, that I definitely prefer it that way. On the road I'd use the switch, but anywhere else the suspension stayed planted. No movement under seated climbing. Just a bit under standing pedaling. This also meant that on the flatter sections of trail I was able to get more speed when throwing in a pedal stroke. My last bike was a Wreckoning, with a Push, so it was no slouch when it comes to that mid-stroke platform. This is significantly better.

Two, it's damn stable on bigger hits. It takes on drops and hucks-to-flat extremely well. No bottom outs, no harsh sounds or clangs, and just so damn stable. I have two tests for bikes for this. One is a set of stairs that I huck to the bottom, about 5 feet vertical total. The second is a ladder drop on the trail I took it on, probably 7-8' from takeoff to transition landing. Shrugged both off like no big deal. Very confidence inspiring.

Three, it jumps really well. I went for all the hits right off the bat. No unexpected takeoffs, and stable in the air. Had good pop off lips too so if your speed wasn't perfect you could still clear what you were trying to.

The other things I noticed were more due to the upsizing. I went for a large and I'm 5'8", so it felt long in the tighter stuff, and less snappy in those tighter turns. Couldn't really get the bike to drift as easily. The suspension also felt a bit harsh on the fast chunk, but I think that's because the suspension needs a bit to break in those seals fully.

I know better than to have any real opinion on the bike until it has about 300-500 miles on it. Only around then can I really know it well enough to know it's strengths and weaknesses. For now, I'm impressed for a first ride.

 

I like that color a lot! They did the fade really well

 

Awesome man! As per usual, your opinion and feedback have more clout than some other faceless names on the interwebs, even if it is simply a brief knee jerk feeler.

Also knowing you’re on the 170 is something I’m keeping in mind (+ coil vs air). I will say I am highly pleased and encouraged to hear your comment on sizing. This will be the first bike in basically forever that I’m actually at the top end of the range for the given manufactures reqs for a frame size. Being a bigger bike (travel and wheels base wise) for me, I felt the medium would be ideal.

 

Just looked at the sizing and love that I'd be in the middle of a size recommendation for once. I hate always feeling like I have to size up or size down on most bikes. Now we just need a 135 Arrival....

 

130 coming…..fo sho…just when

 

Nice! Phil's World and Alien Run outside of Aztec were my go to's when I lived in Farmington. Beautiful riding in that part of the state for sure.

 

I'm the same way except I know to always size down. I have a longer torso and shorter legs and find that sizing down puts me in a good spot. I'm usually a medium on the bikes I've looked into, S3 on the new Specialized Stumpy I'm building.

 

I used to ride leisurely, but regularly, years ago (just over 10 years ago) with my son. He went to heaven in 2009 and I just never really had the motivation to get back into it. I tried, but just couldn't really get back into it. I sold the bike that I rode when he and I rode, I donated his bike to the local bike shop that we bought it from...and just stopped.

I certainly enjoyed riding...so I decided to get back into it. After my bike came in, I had my first ride in years at a local trail that I was not familiar with and found that I was way more out of shape than I joked about being...and in doing so, it kinda zapped my motivation and confidence.

I'm definitely not going to give up at it. Heck, if Anderson Silva can keep fighting a combat sport at 47, I can restart riding at 52...I think I just need to stick with trails I know at first rather than tackling stuff that I'm unfamiliar with. I think it will help boost my motivation and confidence.

I know there's really no question in this post, just sharing my thoughts.

 

Hell yeah, of course you can get back into it! We run into older guys on the trails all the time, many of which could kick my ass down the trail and back. With e-bikes getting more popular, I'm starting to see more much older guys on the trails using that e-assist to help them through some of the stuff they otherwise maybe wouldn't be able to handle.

 

I did the "Covered" ride wrap kit for my Evil. It's A LOT easier to install and protects most of the bike that is actually likely to take a hit.

The old 1up system actually doesn't have that slot, just a tension ball and piece of velcro to hold the thing on. I've never had a failure, but it's a bit scary.

That is a sick color-scheme!!!

Terror-sled as a starter ride is a good test piece. Glad the thing is riding well for you and everything you were hoping!

Unfortunately, yea, we're running out of time to hit trails where that bike is actually at home. I guess some trips down south could still put it through it's paces for a bit...

 

Absolutely love this color. I've been using this stuff for years on the crucial spots on all my bikes. Cheap and easy to cut/fit:

$25 XPEL Clear Universal Door Sill Guard (60" x 2.75") Paint Protection Film Kit (R3022)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003EP52BU?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

 

Hell I'm just impressed with your bike setup on your first ride. My first few times riding a new bike I'm adjusting shit the whole time - don't really get to enjoy the ride until my setup is manageable

 

Prepping for winter, signed up for a December fat bike beach race and bought some winter riding boots (hellcats are great but won’t be fun in the snow)