"We Never Really Die." Lucy

Spoiler alert: She evaporates into the ether.
Just like my CZero rear hub.
Just like Billings' only C'Dale dealer.

So, the Cannondale FSI Carbon 2 lasted about two months, and exactly 311 miles. 

On a forest road, Bridger Creek Road, in Sweetgrass County Montana, a road that I once took Emma up, our 2011 Toyota Prius (so not exactly Enduro terrain), I snapped the rear axle, right where the XD driver joins the hub. I snapped that SOB right in half. It was a geometric break, as if  cut by a saw. 

No problem, I thought, it's an obvious no-brainer warranty issue, and probably a one-off freak situation. I wanted to give C'Dale credit there; it was an insane bike otherwise: 22lbs of sleek, amazingly forgiving and compliant carbon fiber badassness. The Lefty PBR was the best fork I'd ever ridden. C'Dale's SAVE energy damping technology is really effective, and the bike was always comfy, even on long very bumpy rides. SRAM is still second fiddle to Shimano, in my humble opinion, but the 11 spd SRAM drivetrain was really reliable, quiet, and great. I still miss being able use my index finger to trigger downshift, but otherwise it was as effective as my 1x Shimano / OneUp drivetrain on Shrek. 

Magura brakes were one of the big surprises. I absolutely loved them. The Maguras provided great modulation, while still having a lot of power when needed. And they were silent. The levers suck though. 

The only other problems involved Lefty drawbacks. I did hit my left knee on the fork when sprinting or climbing out of the saddle. And it was taking a bite out of the frame where it hits the top tube. There's supposed to be a rubber bumper on the fork, but it's useless. I covered the ding with a few layers of Gorilla tape, and then a reflective sticker for safety, but it's an unseemly solution for a $5k bike. These were small prices to pay for the best fork ever though. Loved the Lefty's performance. 

But the hub turned into a whole thing. 

Firstly, it's happening so often, that C'Dale is running low on parts, and having trouble filling all the warranty claims on 2016 CZero rear hubs. 

Secondly, C'Dale was being difficult with my LBS before this problem. They chose this incident to double down, and it turned into a battle. I knew nothing of this; only that I couldn't get a straight answer as to where the wheel was, even in a geographic sense. 

Unfortunately, C'Dale left the Spoke Shop in a bind, so they stepped up, ate the bike, and I don't know the details of their agreement, but there is no longer a C'Dale dealership right now in Billings. Crazy. 

So, I don't know what will happen to Lucy. Poor girl. Hopefully either C'Dale or the Spoke Shop will find her a nice home. 

Now, I'm waiting for my new bike. I went way out in left field for this one:

Specialized Diverge Comp

It's a Specialized road bike. It's meant for "Adventure", but very capable on the road as well. I'm stoked, it'll be my first road bike. I've already signed up for five more races this year, all for this bike. Can't wait! 

Getting Old

So I'm sitting here drinking coffee, and SportsCenter is doing the best plays of the first half of the year. WTF!? Where did this year go?
I was already panicking because my bike ride is coming up so soon; haven't camped and biked enough this year; learned enough Chinese; gotten enough done around the house, at work.

MT doesn't help. It's a bit of a brain breaker when the year is almost l/2 over and we can't plant in the garden yet. Too soon. Summer doesn't start down here in Absarokee really until June 1st or so usually. Some of my favorite camping and riding spots don't open until July 15th. I've even seen the road to Fantan closed until August 1st before.

Time keeps on slippin' slippin' slippin'

Squirrel Attack!!!!!!!!!!!!

I haven't posted in a bit. New job. Time kind of snuck up on me. Suddenly, here we are, almost halfway through the year.

It's not nearly as sudden as the squirrel attack yesterday.
Kip and I were heading home. End of an 8 mile, fast-paced ride. He was beat, just hanging on. We were on Brook Ave, the back way home in Absarokee. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a flash and saw Kip jump a bit.
It happened so quickly, it took a minute to process what I had seen. After I mentally replayed it in my mind though, there could be no doubt about it:
An effing crazy ass, huge squirrel lept off a power pole, darted out in the road, nipped at Kip's foot, and darted right back up the pole.
It was an in and out, lightning strike. It accomplished next to nothing; Kip hardly noticed. Nevertheless, I felt a profound sense of respect and admiration for that squirrel. The boldest and bravest of his kind. I've had some battles with them before. Some infamous run-ins, but on the day, I have to admit, that was one freaking cool squirrel.