boomforeal profile

ooh yeah, that's the good stuff

at the risk of going full tire nerd and leaning into confirmation bias, your impressions make a lot of sense

i found the previous butcher grids to brake well in a straight line and wear slowly (glad those two characteristics remain) and corner really well in most conditions, but get sketchy when things get especially wet or dry. it sounds like the new rubber has solved the former issue; as for the latter...

there's an interesting primer on mtb tires on blister that talks about the impact of transition knobs. if the butcher was redesigned so that there's less of a gap between the inner and side knobs, that might explain why they don't dig in well when leaned over in hard conditions

thanks for indulging me pete ;-)

i appreciate the vivid ride narrative (i haven't ridden the shore for over 18 months so have to make do with living vicariously through these kinds of stories -- and you have a great voice for this pete) and the insights into specialized's new rubber (i ran a previous gen butcher for a bit last year and was surprised by how 'dead' it felt -- glad to know it wasn't all in my head) and tire manufacturing setup

but i can't help notice there's not much here on how the tire rides or its non-compound characteristics. are we assumed to be so familiar with the butcher [or the dhf ;-)] at this point that a review of the tire doesn't need to address how it handles in corners/various angles or under heavy braking, what the tread/lugs/ramping/siping is like and translate to trail manners, etc.?  not all of us tire nerds are compound jockeys -- some of us enjoy a good tread pattern analysis

perhaps i'm jumping the gun and this will be addressed in the promised update -- on that note, i really appreciate that nsmb is taking a long term approach to reviewing stuff where it is feasible and makes sense

nice review cooper

i appreciate your willingness to "give the people what they want" and compare the spur to the tallboy

wish someone had done that with the optic and the tallboy (not pointing a finger at aj; just wishing) as they seem pretty close in purpose (i.e. a bit burlier than the spur)

i'd be interested in your impressions of the vittoria airliners cam

out east without the big hits, compressions, and rocks i hadn't originally been paying attention to inserts. then all of the guys at the lbs got airliners and started raving about the comfort and grip. i finally ponied up for a pair at the end of the summer and it was pretty eye opening. a bit more rotational weight for sure, but the increased grip on wet roots and comfort of low pressure, along with the support in corners, was wild. bigger improvement than going tubeless for non-fat tires, imo (though obviously you have to do that, too)

if that's the kind of feel inserts offer broadly, i'm not sure why people relegate them to the rear wheels -- as you say above, the improved grip and cushion out front is a big part of the appeal

thanks pete

i would imagine most companies would rather have a full bike reviewed vs. a frame built up by the reviewer as it provides them with more control over the aspects the reviewer's experience and that's more likely how consumers are purchasing their stuff. i guess i'm not surprised that banshee was keen on a frame-only review as they seem more likely to sell framesets than most/larger companies -- and especially given the issues you noted

having had to switch my riding style after moving away from the shore and knowing your proclivity for singlespeeding i can appreciate why you're not feeling the super-steep STA

building up a frame-only to make the review happen, very much appreciated. i'd be curious how banshee felt about this approach?

my prototype banshee prime is still the mountain bike i have the fondest memories of. but the weight of that thing mixed with riding with people much fitter than me induced me to replace it with something both lighter and longer travel. i wish i hadn't sold it though

i love everything about this review -- and still have pt. 2 to look forward to! awesome work andrew, thank you

one bike... dual crown forks... differential wheel sizes... longer chainstays... at this rate, by 2025 you'll all just be riding jones plus bikes ;-)

i'm probably overstating my bad experience with giro. but for the (premium) price i expect them to last longer than they tend to. i've had shoes, jerseys, winter gloves, and shorts fall apart quite quickly, enough to make me leery of buying anything from them without a first-hand inspection. on the other hand i keep crawling back because the fit is so good: my 2nd pair of privateers just lasted a third season of everything-but-fatbiking use, and i'm on my 3rd pair of dnd gloves because black and i keep losing them before i can wear them out

i was looking at these last year. riding on the east coast, and more groad than trail these days, a goretex shell is never really called for. i ended up buying an ornot magic shell: same materials, about 2/3 the cost of the giro, made in NA, climate neutral certified; mostly because giro is worst-in-class for durability ime. neoshell seems like the ideal balance of water resistant, breathable, and windproof. quiet and comfy; snug roadie cut still makes me a bit self conscious, too, but whatever

this. it's the part of the whole biking-in-pants-especially-on-wet days i don't get at all, especially with the hot new tapered moto-pyjama style design: water will simply slide down your leg , soak your socks and fill your shoes. i don't really care if my legs get cold or wet or muddy. cold and wet feet though? forget about it; winter/waterproof pants that don't overlap the top of the shoe/boot are a non starter fir me, which makes being 6'2" with no companies selling longer-inseam riding pants (for less than $300) sad-making

Oh and mine's a wagon wheeler.

🔥

you're building an adhoc

i am sure if you want to get right into it, a bike with slightly longer chainstays and steeper head tube might be better at flatter and faster terrain then what is in the sea to sky. but i would not trade the reach of a BA for that if my surface.

thank you

seen single track from all over the sea to sky, that mysterious "interior" B.C., a huge swath of the northern USA, and a quick bump to NZ. yet to see a down side to the long low slack short thing.

i've been wondering about this. i've had the opportunity to ride my v1 surface back to back with bikes with more progressive geometry, mine and others, and the short reach and conservative geo are noticeable. i recently moved out east, where the trails are flatter and tighter - while i imagine the new crop of long/low/slack chromags are well suited for local and sea-to-sky riding, i've wondered whether they're less versatile than the last generation, and whether they'd suffer on less aggressive terrain

there were several guys racing flat barred cx at the Squamish provincials, but the purists were like…

https://www.flickr.com/photos/palleus/30912499940/in/album-72157677053382296/

that's how i imagine racing cx always feels

gtrguy nailed it

schwalbe rocket ron is a decent option: light-ish, cheap-ish, aggressive-ish

https://www.bike24.com/p2100867.html

http://nsmb.com/spawn-savage-2-0/

I haven't really looked into it that much, but how is the Surface different from the Primer (besides the Dekerf vs. Truelove welding?)

primer

surface

The builder matters too; Truelove vs. DeKerf.

only in terms of the beauty of the welds, afaict

http://bb.nsmb.com/showthread.php?t=160277

ah, that sucks. great bikes and very progessive designs. is anyone making production bikes in canada anymore?

i just sold my adhoc but i really grew to like that bike. i think i would have kept it for years if i'd stayed in vancouver

Bummer…we love our Xprezos…still hope I can find a couple of linkage rebuild kits.

i found a website that purports to sell them

http://cyclesxprezo.bigcartel.com/product/rebuild-kits

but you can't actually buy anything. anyone know a source?