Rides like a dream

I cannot believe I already have my new bike. After the drama of building the Puglsey this fall, I thought I'd never build a bike again. But guess what? It gets easier every time you do it.



My advice on bike building. 1.) Find a big sale on Jenson USA so that you can buy all the parts in one place and have them in a week. 2.) Find a friend and a boyfriend who like to build bikes 3.) Hand them tools 4.) Open beer 5.) Sit back 6.) Ride your new 29er the next day



In reality, I think it is a good idea for anyone who travels in remote areas on their bike to at least once put an entire bike together by themselves, especially women who are intimidated by the whole process. Once you do it one time and start fixing and tuning your bike yourself, it all starts to make sense. I honestly never thought I would know this much about bike building and maintenance and as painful as it was to get started, it has been a great experience.

After making a few more adjustments Saturday morning, we threw our bikes on Tim's car and headed out to the valley, where talk of dry trails lured crowds of mountain bikers.



We attempted to ride the course from last year's 24 hour race, but even though both Brian and I rode it 7 times in a row last year, we still got a little lost.



I knew pretty much instantly that this bike was going to be great for me, because it climbed the first section of singletrack so easily. I mean, I know I have been riding a lot this winter, but it has never been so easy riding a mountain bike. That's the bike, not me.



I used to call Brian a "cheater" for riding a 29er. Yep, it feels like cheating. But cheating never felt so good.



Thanks Tim and Brian for all of your help!