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

I am in love man. I am so happy with the purchase. I still noticed the huge advantages of my full squish at Monte Sano but out here on this sandy soil that hard tail was the shit. Plus the carbon is just so light I feel like I’m able to put that bike wherever I want on the trail.

 

You are still in the honeymoon stage.

 

Haha I sure am. That’s only my second ride on it.

 

did you notice any difference as far as stiffness/pedaling goes? Maybe it's not as noticeable on the dirt but when I got my carbon gravel bike the stiffness in the bottom bracket was insane. It felt 100x more efficient (in my head haha)

 

Yes I did, but I think a lot of things came into play with that for me.

full squish is oval, powerspline, cheap hubs, etc.

New hard tail is dub bb, dt swiss hubs, round chain ring and obviously carbon hard tail. So just overall better components and just a more efficient bike.

 

Hmmm, this is well-articulated and my extreme reaction may be representative of today's society if you think about it. There is always a middle ground

Anyways, you aren't wrong about the small biz getting squeezed out. With that being said, if a consumer feels limited with their narrow scope of offerings they should go find them elsewhere. It's on the business to market themselves creatively as much as the consumer to find well-deserved small businesses. There is no question it takes more work to buy with purpose but the cycling industry does a pretty good job I think

I love the challenge of riding a hardtail down super hard stuff, it's such an interactive ride!

 

true! it could all come into play. My setups were pretty similar from aluminum to carbon so I don't think it played as much into it.

 

I was really really excited on the technical downhills back home just how “planted” the hard tail felt. As lame as it sounds I felt really connected to the trail. The full squish soaks it up and rolls so well but also makes me a worse rider haha.

 

Maybe one day when I get more time to ride I will get another hardtail. I just found myself always grabbing my FS for the fun and comfort of it, so I sold off most of my stable while they were still somewhat new. For me, the efficiency trade-off isn't worth the extra beating I get. I kept a steel hardtail that I have setup as an urban assault/town bike that can handle hardpack trails just fine, but that's not what I like to ride.

When I started mountain biking was back in the klunker days, and I rode a converted street cruiser with a coaster brake. I added some rim brakes, but they were pretty much useless. I found that the coaster brake was also useless when going down rocky, loose downhills. Pretty much just hold on and pray. I started in the back of the pack, but I was first to the bottom. Jeans, tennis shoes, no helmet, no warning labels, no fear.

 

Damn.

 

Sounds just like the documentary on Netflix... Sending the meat suit!

 

See I love the rowdiness of the hardtail. I guess I need to savor it while in my youth!

 

It isn't anything super fun/exciting, but the Hiawatha Trail on the Idaho/Montana border was an epic ride. Nothing serious at all as far the riding but the scenery was amazing! top of a mountain and set on an old train track. 10 tunnels, one of which is 1.66 miles long and 7 trestles. A great ride for the views for sure if your ever in that part of the country.

 

Ha, exactly, I do as well. It's definitely a different style of riding, and very nostalgic for me. I just didn't ride mine enough, figured someone else should enjoy it.

 

I just drove past it twice in the last couple weeks. I’ve heard it’s pretty cool, but have never taken the time to check it out. We’re always traveling with a dog so it makes it tough to do side quests on the road.

 

On the subject of hardtails, the thought of replacing my gravel bike with another hardtail is tempting.

Also curious how all the pinkbike shit is going to pan out, I use it for 90% of my mtb news.

 

what are your thought behind replacing the gravel bike?

 

<---- Ummm... young at heart... age is just a number?

All I haz is hardtails ATM...

 

I dont ride it that often, and im not crazy about riding in the drops - ive even thought about switching over to a jones bar and running flat bar controls. A hardtail would be a little more versatile and would still suit my very occasional road ride.

 

ah yeah that makes sense. Hardtails are definitely versatile. I used to ride my single speed hardtail to class, to the store, road rides, and on the easier trails.