Spring(s)

Rain has been falling over the Old Pueblo for much of the morning. It's been a rainy year so far and the desert is drinking it up. I'm sure the wet weather managed to wash out the Specialized bike demo at the 50-Year Trail this morning, but I'm glad I was able to take advantage of the session they put on at Starr Pass yesterday.

I showed up wanting to ride a full-suspension FSR 29er, but someone had taken it out just before I arrived. I ended up riding an Enduro, and it was quite an experience. With six inches of travel, a thru-axle fork, slack geometry and, of course, gears (albeit a 2x9 with a chainguide), it couldn't have been more unlike my usual ride - a Santa Cruz Chameleon singlespeed. The big bike's suspension sag was almost as much as the entire fork travel on my SS, and I had to get used to the wallowing sensation as it rolled along. I also had to get used to the idea that line choice was no longer all that important - waterbars, babyheads, and steps just disappeared under the tires.

Early in the ride, I passed the guy who was demo-ing the 29er. He was running the bike back to the trailhead after having taco'd the front wheel, ensuring nobody else could ride it. What a nimrod. But it wasn't a problem for me. By that point, I was rolling over everything and had started thinking that my next bike should be something that didn't overlap with my SS or my hardtail gearie at all, a bike that I could ride places that would have me portaging my own rides.

But I'll have to wait and see. The Enduro was too much bike in some ways. For instance, it's a good thing that I spend so much time grunting my SS up hills because the big bike was an absolute beast on the ascents. I liked plowing over rocks and shelves on the way up (except when pedal strikes stopped me cold) and I really liked descending on it, but there's no way to hide the fact that all of that burliness results in some serious tonnage. I'm not sure I could spend a whole day on a bike like that, especially on the climby Flagstaff rides I've been yearning to do.

There are a couple more manufacturers' demos coming next month, including Santa Cruz. I want to ride a Heckler to get more of the big bike experience in less complicated (and expensive) package than the Enduro. I also want to ride a Blur LT, to see if an efficient 5x5 trail bike would suit me better. The Santa Cruz Tallboy would scratch my 29er itch and I'll try to demo one, but its carbon fiber frame puts it way out of my reach.

On the other hand, I've halfheartedly shopped for a new bike a couple of times over the past few years, and I always give up, unable to decide what I really want. New bicycles are too expensive to risk getting something that doesn't fit my needs and never gets ridden, such as what I did when I bought the motorcycle that I now want nothing more than to give up on and sell. Anyone want to buy a 1997 KLR 650?

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy riding the bicycles I already own during the soon-to-arrive spring, which promises to have an explosion of wildflowers after the winter rains.