danithemechanic profile

Cool article!

It's interesting to hear the diggers speak and understand they come from all over the world just to be part of the event. 

It gives you an idea of how important this event is for the female freeride community.

Couldn't this bike simply be converted to 29" wheels? I did it with a first generation Turbo Levo that, now i recognized, was min-maxed to the top and that i sold for more than it costed new.

The 2017 Levo was born as a "Fattie" but the fork already had a label stating the 29" option, i converted the whole thing and despite the wrong sizing (the reach of those M is today's S) the bike was feeling more "modern" handling.

Edit: i wanted to upload a pic of it but i don't know how...

Turns out i'm 37, and i have yet to break a bone. 

I've been riding bmx, skateboarding, snowboarding, road and off road bikes of all kinds for 25 years now.

Growing up the idea of getting hurt was that of losing time, time you take away from the things that give meaning to life; so i tried to develop  a sixth sense for consequences, and if my bikers sense are tingling i'm just not going to hit this or that feature, mainly a jump; but i'm always hitting that technical rock section, mostly by eye sight first time on an open helmet.

I came to the conclusion it's all a matter of it being worth, to me. I always explain my much less experienced friends, when i don't jump the easiest jump they do, if anything goes wrong i'll be pissed being hurt because of that. Then i dive with a grin into the next rock face, sometimes showing them how slow and safe you can do it.

This is what i love about mountain biking, you can progress at such a slow rate you can get really good without any stupid risk. But you need to be aware, in the present moment, or recognize you're not and take it easier.

They offer different lenght dropouts to accomodate different wheels sizes or play with the wheelbase. Sometimes the changes are not advisable but i know many owners that converted their bikes to the next wheel size thanks to it.

Defenitely not afraid! 

For her last setup i got the Baron/Kaiser pair and sice i didn't love the Kaiser too much i'd rather have a Baron/Dhf combo for maximum cornering grip. 

Big Betty it's another nice option to have as a rear as well.

I grew so accustomed to the gometry of the bike i could ride it blindfolded, but all the time, if i had to pick one single change i'd want, was more seat drop.

Now i could experiment with different suspension and wheels, angleset and all, or source some obscure 26" parts that i'd like to try, but the st is a parameter i can't change. 

I have to admit i always tought about modifying it but i never dared asking Mde.

Whenever you want to come, just give me a shout!

I don't know if Andrew is going to like this, but i'm 177cm tall and i chose the L Carve in purpose for its slightly bigger size than the bike i had before.

Fast forward to today: i've tried longer, slacker, lower but also older, shorter, higher.

I'm into shorter reach, taller stack, taller bb bikes with a low st and not too slack ht.

I can ride a 26" freeride bike with a shorter reach happily but not a size M 560 reach 29" for example.

What takes away from getting an older bike for me is just the seat tube lenght: unfortunately size M tend to have a slightly shorter than preferred reach but the right st instead size L have what i think is my preferred reach (let's say from 380 to 440 i can ride anything) but too much st and that's exactly what is stopping me from restoring the Carve once more.

I think the previous owner knew best: spray some Chante Claire degreaser and let it sit in the sun...

I can have it done in one evening!

You don't get a lot of choice if you want a good 26" tire nowadays, and a 2.5WT Dual will always be better than any compound in 2.3 at the front in my book, paired with the Ex471 it really changed the handling of the bike for better.

Then, the whole build comes togheter following the idea of having the most reliable machine with the least expense. Duals just last so much here in Finale, and they're perfectly fine in our dry and dusty conditions.