Bamboo Gunnar off Assembly Line.

Gunnar Crosshairs. Made 'n' 'merica

Nitto Stem, Cane creek headset, Silver hanger

Sugino Compact Cranks, INTERNAL BEARINGS

Dura Ace 9 spd Downtubies

Deore XT reverse pull Short Cage Derailleur

I finally made the push to get this beast done. Frame and fork made in Waterford Wisconsin. I love the work those guys do. Their bikes are meant to be ridden. I had a bit of problems to spec this machine out. I wanted it to be durable with no crappy parts that would let me down. I wanted to stay away from external bearings since I have been replacing a lot of them on customers bikes. The sugino compacts were hard to come by. I am running a sealed cartridge shimano. Chainrings are 50x34. Rear Derailleur is XT reverse pull and with the downtube shifters it works great. Hubs are xt with Mavic touring rims covered in Schwalbe Marathon Racers in 700x35c. Brakes are TRP Eurox and they feel like my old mafacs. Headset is a better quality Cane Creek. Nitto threadless stem that is NOT black. Bars are Nitto Noodles with Dura ACe brake levers. This bike is built tough and will be my Trans Iowa bike. It weighs 23 something with no light parts on it.

Hope you likes,

Ari

No relief in Sight

Gravel coming back to life

So I kept on watching the temperature and finally I decided it was not going to get any better. I had 23 degrees with a wind out of the nw at about 10-15mph. I dressed warm with amfib tights, leg warmers, wool, more wool, patagonia, toe warmers, moosemitts and a whole lot more. I forced myself out there for 2 1/2 hours and I was not happy. The headwind slowed me down to about 10 mph and the only break I found was being on some mushy gravel. Wherever the sun shines the gravel has been cleared but anywhere where there is a tree or even a post and the sun does not hit it is ice. I am hoping this crap will end soon. I don't want to think about all this clothing any more. I rode the salsa cross bike and tried out a Specialized fancy saddle. Felt good. Still not done building my Gunnar crosshairs. Need brakes, levers, downtube shifters, bars, front and rear Der.

Time for tea,

Ari

Porteur Bike arrives!!!!

I stared at the boxes for a long time before I mustared the strength to give them the blade. The bike was packaged beyond belief and I took my time in unfolding, unwrapping and seeing it come out little by little. Jamie and my daugtheres watched and were amazed by the stark white paint and the vibrant red. A lot of Ira and a bit of Eddy are in the frame. I am so grateful to have such an incredible opportunity. This bike will get ridden a lot. It is not a show bike. It is a bike to commute, transport, ride gravel, go on epic rides and promote my hatred towards the ever powerful automobile. At some point in your life call a framebuilder, tell him what you want,tell him the colour, sell some crap that you don't use, send a deposit and enjoy the wait.

thanks,

Ari

Thanksgiving ride and thoughts

Got out today on a solo ride out in the country. I remembered in the old days how we had HUGE rides on days like today. Nowadays we are busier and must travel longer distances to be with family and friends. I took some back roads and enjoyed the silence, the lack of traffic and almost felt older. IT was crisp with a gentle dusting of snow that calmly fell on the recently tilled ground. The Salsa was again on duty and I am also starting to bust out the Lake Winter boots. I spent the later part of the day thinking of future rides, bike builds and also of how much I hate to drive. The TV at the in laws was an incessant bombardment of ads for the Cookoos that will melt their cards tomorrow at the registers. I plan on buying nothing and hopefully will put a atomic particle size dent in the economy that is so based on consuming. Hey, lets get out there and do something about it. Ride your bikes on Black Friday but beware of the evil Shopper.
out,
Ari

Thursday and the heat is Gone

Pleasant Hill rd. Going Home
Russell Grove Forest Preserve
Kishwaukee river running by Russell

Heading towards the woods

I am staring to wonder whether Monday's 104 miler was the last Century for '07. Today I was on a mission to find some woods and after consulting my trusty Gazeteer I found Russell woods a short 13 miles from my house. So I geared up with a couple layers wool and a windbreaker and went out to fight against a raging wind. The wind was real strong and really cold. I basically rode the whole ride with my right eye closed since the cold wind froze the nerve in my tooth which needs a dentist visit. Man, I was seeing stars at times but I was committed to find woods.

VooDoo Winter Machine

Ergon Grips are a must have
Voodoo Nzumbi Singlespeed MTB
A very comfy cockpit
Paul awesome rear hub with Mavic Rim

Will be riding a lot on the gravel this winter and am starting to put together my fleet. The voodoo will have duties at night where wider tires will be needed. Singlespeed. Paul rear hub, cane creek front wheel, Marinovative custom brakes. Race face cranks (180mm) 36x18 gearing, race face riser with control tech steam. Crap saddle with IRD seatpost. Michelin Semislick green silica tires. Cateye Enduro for honesty.