The Orange Crush returns!!!

Sorry Bronco fans, its not the defense from years WAY gone... My '96 Stumpjumper has made a return for the foul weather commutes! She has full fenders front and rear, a 1x8 drive train (yes, one derailleur, sorry) and some armadillo 1.9 semi slicks (adds a few pounds to say the least), and a Surly rigid front fork...oh, and only a rear brake right now, she's still a work in progress.

Now she and I have been through a lot, thousands of training miles, many XC races and even the Leadville 100. I had many chances to sell her the past few years, but for some reason I just couldn't do it. Thank goodness!

So her return, not quite as much fan fare as Lance's, was yesterday at 6a.m. I rolled out the door in a steady rain with winds that were steady around 15-20mph....could this be what Chris is talking about in Seattle? Viva California!!

Now I expected no one to be on the trail, yet I did see 4 people, the last actually smiled at me, the others looked just miserable! The one thing 24 hr races can do for you is lift your tolerance for pain and misery, and frankly a little rain and cold with some blowing wind wasn't gonna keep me from getting the miles I needed! Now the 40 mile spin I was seeking turned into a 34 mile grind into the wind, so the effort was a bit higher than I planned, but oh well!

By mile 30, my Gore windstopper gloves were like sponges, and I was soaked through - with rain like I was in it was foolish to think some part of me might stay dry....the key though, my hands were warm! My feet, well I couldn't feel them for the last 20+ miles so they weren't an issue.

I think Scott would have rather enjoyed it too! He's like that... I will add a pic of the orange crush tonight, and hopefully I will get a weight on my way out of town this afternoon. I am guessing, with light its around 32 pounds now. Hard to add that much weight cause she was racing at 21 pounds back in the day!

Needless to say it is a different ride than my CX bike, but at least this way I can spin for extended periods regardless of the weather... yes I am supporting the concept of a derailleur here.... Keep it quiet, but my road bike is off the trainer and getting set to hit the road later this week...yes, asphalt not a trainer....but keep that amongst friends...