trapdoor2
Zen MBB Master
It is blinkin' hot out. Heat index today is 102F...thank god I started my ride @ 0630. 
So comfortable to be cruzin along on the Conversion. I can tell I've been back riding again as this morning I'm stepping up and cranking along very nicely. I'm still doing mental comparisons to my other bikes...the Conversion is just so comfortable and easy-handling. For instance: I'm much less distracted by simply staying upright than on the Baron. I'm still using taller gears in almost every instance, capable of doing almost everything in just the middle and large chainring...if there weren't some stupidly steep bits near my house, I could be quite happy with a double.
I'll probably be saying this over and over forever but having full suspension is the best thing about it...and for those of you out there wondering about the MBB, I've probably got less than 500mi on between the two Conversions and I have stopped even noticing the MBB part while riding...and I'm getting braver and braver about the 'hands free" bit too. :shock:
One thing I tried this morning that I have been wondering about: climbing the steep bits. I was feeling so good at the end of my ride this morning that I went ahead and attacked the short-steep bit just a block down from my house. This is about 100yds of 9% (measured by walking over there and laying my digital level in the street...I wonder what the neighbors thought?) with small undulations taking it a bit steeper. Thursday, I had ridden some 'less steep' stuff on an 'after work' ride and found it to be no big deal (much easier than on the Baron). Today, I found that when the road gets past some degree of vertical...it is all tough!
I made it...but just barely; probably overclocked my ticker a bit. I had one very short bit where the front wheel broke loose but that could have been some dust/dirt in the road...it wasn't an impediment, really.
So, the beast climbs! I imagine that if the road were very much steeper, traction at the front would be a problem. I suppose there are some techniques to moving one's CG forward to compensate but that will have to wait for when I have room to do so (um, the 'aero-belly' gets in the way at the moment). :lol:
So comfortable to be cruzin along on the Conversion. I can tell I've been back riding again as this morning I'm stepping up and cranking along very nicely. I'm still doing mental comparisons to my other bikes...the Conversion is just so comfortable and easy-handling. For instance: I'm much less distracted by simply staying upright than on the Baron. I'm still using taller gears in almost every instance, capable of doing almost everything in just the middle and large chainring...if there weren't some stupidly steep bits near my house, I could be quite happy with a double.
I'll probably be saying this over and over forever but having full suspension is the best thing about it...and for those of you out there wondering about the MBB, I've probably got less than 500mi on between the two Conversions and I have stopped even noticing the MBB part while riding...and I'm getting braver and braver about the 'hands free" bit too. :shock:
One thing I tried this morning that I have been wondering about: climbing the steep bits. I was feeling so good at the end of my ride this morning that I went ahead and attacked the short-steep bit just a block down from my house. This is about 100yds of 9% (measured by walking over there and laying my digital level in the street...I wonder what the neighbors thought?) with small undulations taking it a bit steeper. Thursday, I had ridden some 'less steep' stuff on an 'after work' ride and found it to be no big deal (much easier than on the Baron). Today, I found that when the road gets past some degree of vertical...it is all tough!
I made it...but just barely; probably overclocked my ticker a bit. I had one very short bit where the front wheel broke loose but that could have been some dust/dirt in the road...it wasn't an impediment, really.
So, the beast climbs! I imagine that if the road were very much steeper, traction at the front would be a problem. I suppose there are some techniques to moving one's CG forward to compensate but that will have to wait for when I have room to do so (um, the 'aero-belly' gets in the way at the moment). :lol:
