WBC profile

gnar. you and grant breshears'd be hella tight

Hormone sucks helllllla balls!

your school sucks!

I had the exact same thing happen with my straitlines, too.

It's definitely concerning as that's a great way to rip out the threads on your cranks. And yes, the pedals were properly installed, and they are installed to new style saints as well.

One other thing, it's really lame that the straitlines don't have an allen key in the back of the axle. When my pedals unthreaded, I didn't have a pedal wrench and almost had to go home and skip my ride.

for as much as these cost, they should be perfect.
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I've always had a 4wd for off-road use up until summer of 2008 when I sold my last 4runner and drove only my full-size Dodge ram van. We had a decent amount of snow that winter and I did tons of riding in places with pretty decrepit roads (big water bars, lots of big rocks/crawling, etc), and with meaty all-terrains, a gentle foot, and a methodical approach I was able to get the big, lumbering van through just about all of it no problem. You can get 2wd's pretty much anywhere with good tires and technique, but you have to put a lot more care into driving hazardous conditions.

That said, I decided I wanted a 4wd again just to make rowdy shuttle roads easier on the bike, and so I didn't have to be so careful when offroad. Not wanting to spend a lot of money, I crossed the Toyotas off my list and ended up with a Nissan. I really like my '99 Frontier for shuttling, road-tripping, camping, etc. It handles great on the logging roads, does pretty good in the snow, has good mid-range power for winding roads/fireroads, and it was a hell of a lot cheaper than a Tacoma.

If you go for an older Frontier, I'd avoid the 3.3l V6 if you're shopping for an older one. I searched for months for a KA24 (4cyl) and couldn't find one in 4x4 pretty much at all, so I sucked it up and bought the V6. Not only does it have a timing belt that I'll need to spend $900 to have changed in a few years, but the mileage is pathetic. I'm getting about 17mpg with stock size all-terrains, driving mostly highway with the cruise control on, though I have a hightop (albeit aero) canopy. My bud's Tacoma 3.4l gets 22mpg driving like an idiot. I also have just the regular extended cab and the room in the back is pretty limited.

Also, most importantly, absolutely no way should you buy one with the dogshit worthless 4ft bed. It's sketchy putting two dirtbikes (gotta rest em on 2x8's) in the back, you can't close skis or bikes in the back at all, and you can't sleep in it. If you need good interior space, you'll want to go for one of the 01? or newer when you could get a quad cab with a 6' bed.

All that said, for under 10g USD, if I were to do it again, I'd buy an older 4cyl hardbody Nissan, a 2wd Tacoma, or a Silverado. I have a few friends with Silverados and they can manage 20mpg pretty easy, plus you have a real backseat, and way more bedspace. The Fords seem a lot harder on gas than the Chevys, and the Chevys feel more capable off-road.

It's by no means epic, but once you get across the border, Galbraith in Bellingham has some really fun all mountain riding, and now features a machine built jump trail. There are also the chuckanuts right south of Bellingham, with Blanchard and Chuckanut both offering some great AM rides. Pretty rad for a spot to break up a long drive. There's a few great rides around Mt. Rainer (Ranger Creek, Suntop, etc), and I rode Mt St Helens prob 5-6 years ago and remember that being pretty great.

Never ridden AM in Oregon, but I've heard there is some great stuff. Bend and the Mackenzie River trail always get mentioned.

Question about the TR450 - does your rear wheel clear much mud [HTML_REMOVED] crud into the shock/linkage area? I've seen V10's with little fenders on the back to help keep the important bits clean. Was wondering if this is an issue at all? If it is you could probably fashion some sort of fender using an inner tube and zip ties.

I couldn't see how much mud, if any, could get past the upper swing link and onto the shock. When it comes to keeping mud out of where it's not supposed to be, I don't think Transition left any stone unturned. It's actually quite impressive.

Man, you spent all that time on the flashy decals and still just have a tube for your chainstay guard?? That is pretty NASCAR! Make sure you find a way to throw some 100mph tape on there, too!

Good looking bike, get some velcro pads for the stays!

Yeah, if you've ever hopped on a V10, you would definitely know those things can pedal! They pedal significantly better than a lot of trailbikes I've owned.

I would think the aluminum swingarm is in place partly because of scratch resistant (carbon is tough as hell, but swingarms scrape rocks constantly), and also simply for having fewer line items in inventory. Also remember that these are not the production bikes - they very well may bring the carbon swingarm to those!

And in terms of adjustability - I wouldn't consider it devolution. I think its much more of an issue of broadening their customer base to people with varying tastes and ideas about what's "right" in a bike. Some people are sold on the 10" bike, while some people want a firmer setup and won't consider the 10" bike. Same with the geometry adjustment. It's just like every other manufacturer offering adjustment - it opens up your frame to a MUCH larger market. I'm all for it.

That bike is fucking hot!

Dirt called the Pitch one of the best trailbikes they have ridden.

I used to own a Fluid LT (and am now on a Fluid), and it was a pretty killer bike. My 5" travel Fluid is stiffer out back than my brand new DH rig.

I think it comes down to where you're riding. I have a DH bike, so for me, the trail bike is meant to be ridden on trails. I found the 6" bike was just too much bike to feel comfortable pedalling all day when most of my friends are on 5" bikes. There's also less overlap between the DH and the 5" bike.

If it's going to be your only bike and you're riding somewhere steep or rocky, I'd definitely go for the 6" (LT). If you're riding smoother trails with more berms and features, the Pitch would probably be more fun.

Single pivot axle path, that from the sag point will be all forward and up. Just because someone has figured out a patentable way to remove braking forces from a design is only halt the equation IMO.

Man, that really isn't always true. For an older Turner, Blindside, Kona, etc that rule will follow, but even on that spooky, I seriously doubt your sag point will make the pivot in line with the axle. It certainly doesn't on a Morewood/Orange, and absolutely doesn't on a Superco/Zerode/Appalache and a whole bunch of others.

I find it's a little hard to really get over the front and dig the tire into corners with too short of a stem (sub 40mm). I know it works great for a lot of people, but it feels weird to me.

The wide bars do stretch you out more, but as trails get faster, I like the feeling of a longer cockpit, so it's all good for me. I am 5'10", on a 23" TT, with 31" bars and a 50mm stem. Life is good!

"In order to pay for the enormous amounts of food she is eating