Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop | Weblog | Denver, CO | 303-691-5595

We Need to Point Something Out

2009-02-25T11:26:00.000-08:00

We have a new website that is alive.

What do I mean by alive? Well, we are no longer posting our blogs here. We are posting them to our website, which is powered by WordPress. The RSS feed for all blog activity is here. However, you should definitely check out our new website.

We added a calendar and loads of pictures. Every ride we go on will be announced on Twitter (sorry if you hate Twitter, but it works so well for this purpose). All the newest posts will be on the front page of the new site. It is an exciting step for us. Plus, you can comment on pretty much everything that you would want to, including products.

Our latest ride (from yesterday) is on the new website. We even included a Google Earth file for you to see all the subtleties of the ride Phillip and I (scott t.) took.

All this, we hope, adds up to more fun for all cyclists. Thank you for reading and keep the suggestions coming!

I Feel Like an Adult Again

2009-02-12T20:45:00.001-08:00

Phillip and I (Scott T.) just rode from the shop to Big Phil's house. Big Phil lives out at Monaco and Alemeda. It is definitely not a long haul. It was nice and pitch black, except for when a car would be lurking behind us. I mentioned that I loved when I felt like a kid on my bike, so we began a little list to define when riding feels like you are a kid (again) or when it is too serious. We came up with some ground rules for when it feels like you are a kid, and as a general rule, it seems like an adult ride when the opposite is true:

To feel like a kid:
1. You don't have to be in a car in order to ride. Examples - Races, far away mountain rides, driving to Washington Park for laps.
2. You don't know exactly where you are going. This does not have to include getting lost.
3. You aren't in a hurry.
4. You aren't in serious ride clothes (though sometimes that just happens).
5. When you don't discuss anything about the bikes you are on.

This is not to say we don't love adult style rides, but sometimes it is nice to just pedal along like school is out.
Any rules you need to add should be thrown into the comments.

Palmer Park Spring Ride

2009-02-05T07:07:00.000-08:00

Palmer Park Spring Ride by Scott T.

Brian and I went to Palmer Park yesterday. We met one of our friends, Scott N., who promised us a tough, but not TOO tough tour of Palmer Park.

Brian: Maverick Durance - 9 speeds
Scott: Titus Racer-X Carbon - 27speeds
Scott N.: The 'Don' McLean - Rigid 29 SS

We ended up each wrecking several times. After clearing something that I didn't think I would make, I found small rocks to stop me in my tracks. Brian and Scott both had little pedal issues that caused little problems. We had NO FACE PLANTS, which is always a plus.

At the completion, we went to The Curry Leaf in CO Springs. Highly highly highly recommended. Great after ride meal. They need to have cots for nap time after.

47 Photos right here!

The Perfect helmet?

2009-02-03T10:45:00.000-08:00

Yeah. It has a movie camera.
And yeah, that is a light.
And if you aren't able to speak, the sticker is a good start to find help for you.
We think we may have nailed it.

Stopped Sweating

2009-01-23T13:08:00.000-08:00

Pueblo was hot on Wednesday. by scott t.

HOT. Like sunburn hot.

Brian, Chris, Lorraine and I went to Pueblo for a mountain bike excursion. Did we mention that the weather was warm?

We had been been warned that the trails would be dry and possibly super fun. None of us had been there before.

The bike line up was as follows:
Brian - Maverick Durance
Chris - Maverick ML7
Lorraine - Jamis Dakar XAM
Scott - Titus Racer-X

The ride started out on a high note with a fast rolling, lots of curves downhill. Not really downhill, but not flat or uphill. It was great. We were following a map that was to say the least, not accurate. Maybe we shouldn't even say following. As we got to the bottom of the map, we knew it wasn't quite right. There were signs posted that weren't included with the map. So, we went left instead of right (always go right). This was a super duper long cut. We *had* decided a distance that we could cover in a reasonable amount of time. But, with the wrong turn we went a lot further than planned.

Long story short, we had a good time. That is until we all ran out of water. Chris especially was hurting. The rest of us just stopped sweating. This was noticed as we once again had a good idea of where we were and where we wanted to go. These trails were interesting because when they were technical, they were super duper fun and technical. When they weren't, they were dusty dirt and shale. It was definitely a practice at knowing what speed you like before you go through a turn.

We made is safely back to the car and went immediately to recover with some pizza and water. (Chris slept most of the way home)

This is where we were, but we didn't listen to this music.

Down Under

2009-01-09T13:29:00.000-08:00

We stumbled upon this article of interest today:

Bike sales 38 per cent higher than car sales in 2008

Apparently in Australia, it goes a little something like this:

Economy bad.
Car sales bad.
Bike sales good.
Bike sales > Car sales

In America, we rarely see an article about a drive to work that is without incident, but a car crash is a whole different story!

The economy is a car crash with flames and kabooms.

Keep your eyes forward and don't rubberneck and we will all come out on the other side.

Younger Still

2008-12-18T07:36:00.000-08:00

Younger Still by Scott T.

This morning, I went through my old photos that I took at random times and it occurred to me that many of our current customers have no idea what Salvagetti looked like when we were much younger.

When we started out, we didn't have new bikes for sale, which often times made people walk in the store and walk right back out. They had heard we were nice people, but weren't sure about the name and what we stood for.

Every single piece of inventory was out where you (and I) could find it. If you didn't see it, we didn't have it. But, surprisingly, we usually did. Pure luck?

Salvagetti started out as Fix My Bike, but moved on to Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop in a unanimous vote of Scott's Wife, Brother and Brain.

It is strange, because I have many photos of this location, but almost none of the *even smaller* one we had before. We were only there for about 3 months before we found a better location (313 W. 11th). And only a little over a year later we moved on to 1234 Speer Blvd.. What a roller coaster ride!

Shimano Alfine Hub

2008-12-11T11:39:00.001-08:00

Nerds! Nerds! Nerds! Please check this out.

The Shimano Alfine Hub is officially great. Here goes:

1. Internally geared 8 speeds.
2. Disc brake compatible.
3. Not expensive compared to *other* hubs

So, it isn't quite a mountain bike accessory yet. But, it will be. And I know I haven't sold you on it yet. So here goes:

The Salvagetti Team went to the Shimano Show Off Clinic (my name, not theirs) and heard all about Dura Ace 7900 and the new XTR. Both very impressive in their own right. But, after we were set free to look at what we wanted, we made a bee line for the Alfine section. We had ridden the Giant Seek and wanted to know if our love was a pure love or just some silly fling. Our love runs deep.

You see? The Alfine hub comes apart very easily with only minimal tools. Then, as if by magic, the gearing system comes out in one lump of beautiful gears. It isn't a pile of parts balancing inside that will shatter into your hands when you glance inside. We enquired how difficult it is to rebuild and the gentleman explained that the maintenance process (done about once every 2 years) will not be a rebuild, but a full cleaning of the gears and a relube! SOLD!

We got the Giant Seek 1 for our towny rental fleet and we will get to test these hubs to the nth degree. We feel confident in their ability to withstand everything we can throw at them. We'll let you know.

The law of love

2008-12-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

By Scott T.

I have had a bike stolen. Not today. Don't feel too bad for me. I'm over it.

But, not really. I recently had a chance to relive my Yellow Schwinn being stolen from the front of the store.
It was stolen because someone didn't bring it in after we closed. Still, stolen is stolen, even if you don't lock it. I looked around everywhere for that stupid bike that wasn't even worth 30 bucks. It was heartbreak.

Then I found it... It was parked at chipotle and locked up. So, I left the new "owner" a note stating that if they wanted, they could keep their lock and if they didn't, I would just cut it off for them. And also that my bike is my bike, not their bike. MY BIKE!

After some time, the police came got the bike and gave it back to me.

And I thought I was happy. But, the truth is that I haven't ridden the bike since I got it back. It is sitting in the basement of the store. And I can tell the bike is sad. I used to ride wheelies for blocks with it. I used to make coffee runs with it. It was my dear friend. And now that someone else took it home and rode it (sorry for the imagery in your head), I don't feel the same about it anymore. I feel that it isn't my bike anymore.

Where I am right now, I don't know that I can give it away either. I feel like the Karma needs to be washed or some sort of seance needs to be performed to remove the devil from inside the bike. I haven't really even sat with the bike since I picked it up from the police station. What to do. What to do.

Recovered bicycles can never be loved the same way. I think someone may have to intervene.

It'll Change Your Life

2008-11-17T07:59:00.000-08:00

One of our favorite faces around the store, Brendan, has turned into a cyclist. He loves it. He loves riding bicycles. It makes him feel whole again. But, I am paraphrasing here. He says it best all by himself.

http://www.dirtbagdiaries.com/index.php?post_id=403304

This is a spoken word piece. It is 8 minutes of real bike love. You'll enjoy it. Unless, you are a bad person.

As a side note, Salvagetti was edited out of the story. We sold Nick the Black Steel Road Bike that made him so obsessive. We cannot take credit for anything else.

An utterly blatant plug for a product

2008-11-03T09:22:00.000-08:00

The first time the owner used it, his wife accused him of skipping work.
But, she was happy with him.

It is Phil Wood Hand Cleaner.

This is the best hand cleaner for getting off grease and oil from your hands and arms. You only need a dime sized glob of the cleaner and a tiny bit of water. Work it around the greasy spots until it starts to collect into little balls. Start rinsing it off. Be happy with your clean, pristine, bourgeois appearance. Now dry your hands and go back to your life.

I also know that this stuff is not a "gross" product. How? I know this because the herbalist at Moondance Botanicals went gaga over it. She was going to offer me some stuff that had almonds and oils, but she stopped when she saw this stuff. (The dirty boy soap they sell is fantastic, by the way). She was exceedingly impressed.

If you want some of this stuff, it is about $8/lb. I think it is mostly oatmeal, but I'm not eating it.

Not for the faint of heart

2008-10-31T15:52:00.000-07:00

This video has been around for a while.

***PLEASE DO NOT WATCH IT IF YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE WATCHING SOMEONE GET HURT.***

But, I have to say, this is karma. Instant karma.
Don't mess with the cyclists.

Public Transit

2008-10-20T17:23:00.000-07:00

It is coming upon the time of year when we prove how (wo)manly we are. Snow and rain and cold and dampness.

With this, Google has announced a new search feature that should let a few of us avoid the car for a few more months, if not for the whole winter. It is called Google Transit: http://www.google.com/transit.

Basically, you can put in your starting and ending location and it will tell you how to take the bus or walk. The key here is that it will be even faster if you ride your bike instead of walking, then load your bike up on the front or underneath the bus.

We tried a search for Denver to Nederland (which is an amazing place to ride bicycles). (When you get up there, check out the caboose by the bus station. Cool Bike Shop/ Coffee Shop. )

Try it out. Take the bus. Take your bike.

Corn Maze

2008-10-11T12:12:00.000-07:00

This has nothing to do with bikes. It has to do with fun though, so there!

Several of us went to Anderson Farm's "Terror in the Corn" last night. Between feeding the goats, hot apple cider and riding in the barrel train we lost track of time. It was $10 to get in and a quarter to feed the goats. It was $1.50 for the cider and $3.50 for the pie. It was terribly fun.

So, I am giving them a plug because everyone needs to go do this. Bring friends who you wouldn't mind meeting in a dark field of old corn. Because when you go out into the tremendously monotonous, yet creepy maze, you will prefer to know that someone will find you when you are lost. And chances are you will not be scared of them.

Here is the link: http://www.terrorinthecorn.com

It is open until November 1st. Don't be bummed that you missed it. Just find a group of friends and go. You will have a blast.

Stepping Stones

2008-09-16T20:34:00.000-07:00

There was a recent article in Velonews about whether people jumping on the bicycle bandwagon with a ss road bike is a bad thing or not... This got me thinking.

One of our favorite customers, who we will call Tobi, because that is her name, got into cycling this last year or so. Her trainer felt that cycling would be a great way to cross train and that she would just like it. We sold her a bike that she liked aesthetically and would function for her needs. She was absolutely not comfortable with a bike that was going to have a lot of things to adjust and play with. She just wanted a bike to figure things out with. We obliged. And she reacted with such incredible vigor and excitement that we got worried about her. She rode that bike a lot. So much so that she became very comfortable with paths and sidewalks and roads. She became comfortable with other cyclists and us. In essence, she graduated to the next level. As a reward, she bought a different bike; it is a bike that appealed to her new aesthetic wants and her new level of needs. It was really fun to watch.

My question is this: How is that different than the accused fixie rider that is still figuring out that they aren't as big as a car? We have seen a great deal of riders come in and discover their life's passion is cycling. Personally, I don't care how this happens. But, people are in a stink about it. The pattern is there. The aesthetic wants and the simplicity needs. Function (sometimes but not always) before form?

A cyclist is born when they see a bicycle as a part of who they want to *be*. Then, they can *become* a cyclist. Try before do.

Pancake Breakfast Ride

2008-09-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

At this time last year, we attended an event for the Sunday Morning Breakfast Ride that was truly worthy of noting:

Pablo's 2nd Annual Pancake Breakfast.

Well, that time is here again.

We just received the email announcement that it is happening again on the 14th of this month. It is all-you-care-to-eat pancakes with all the sides you would expect. The food last year was prepared with love and care (and tasted amazing). It happens to be for a great cause. And, on top of that, it is REALLY FUN!

We will meet at the back of the shop at 8am and leave by around 8:15am. The ride will be pretty direct. You will eat until you are about to burst, but you will be energized from the music, the company and the caffeine. From there, we will ride back to the shop, unless you already made other plans. You will probably need a light lunch and should plan to go to bed early that night. You will then have an AMAZING MONDAY. We promise.

A Small Word of Warning to Cyclists

2008-08-17T09:38:00.001-07:00

Prices are going up for 2009. We recently received our new Jamis and Giant catalogs. We have seen prices go up over the last few years, but never like this. It is partially from the cost of transport and partially from the increased cost of materials. Regardless, if you are thinking of buying a bike in the next few months, consider buying a 20008 sooner than a 2009 later. Some examples:

Jamis Aurora 2008 - $865 vs 2009 $1000
Giant OCR 1 2008 - $1100 vs Giant Defy 2009 $1300 (Same Bike)

Certain companies are keeping the prices the same (to fool consumers) while the quality is going down per dollar. Do your research and you will find that getting an older bike is more bike for the money.

The list of items going up in price goes on and on... the price of anything tires and tubes is going to be most noticeable. We haven't increased our prices yet because we got a warning of the future price increases. However, it is coming. If you know you need tubes, stock up now, even if it is for friends who aren't in the know.

Spread the truth, help out your friends. And the rest will become the norm, like $4 gas.

EJ

2008-08-07T06:09:00.000-07:00

(by scott t)

My friend EJ was hit by a car last night on a group ride in Colorado Springs, CO. He died.

A 64 year old woman was driving away from a grocery store at high speeds after allegedly stealing some stuff. She turned directly into EJ and one of his co-workers. She hit them head on and killed them instantly. They were on a group ride with several other people who all witnessed the entire event.

EJ was one of the most-fun-to-ride-with cyclists I have ever known and he will be missed severely.

Ride in Evergreen

2008-07-26T11:15:00.000-07:00

(by scott t.)

Several of us took off this morning to Evergreen. We don't actually know the name of the trail, but it is connected to one of Evergreen's RTD Park-n-rides. So, that is what we did. We parked. We rode.

The trails were perfect. The temperature was fantastic. And all of us needed some time in the woods.

As I was climbing, I knew in the back of my head that the pain I was feeling going up would be redeemed in a downhill of the same lines. It still didn't make it any less painful when my teeth hurt from breathing so hard. We took very infrequent breaks to that the climb would be over sooner. Then the flat/down/flat part of the trail began. Evergreen is a fun place to ride bikes. We started seeing people as we approached the 3 sisters trailhead. We turned around and explored for a bit, then started the back portion of our out and back.

It was beautiful and fun and we are gonna do it all again soon.

Here are the pictures:

Alright, let's ride!

2008-07-22T16:33:00.001-07:00

This is the only place we are announcing this first demo ride, cause we need the right people for our trial. (We are gonna try it out and get your feedback.)

On Saturday July 26th (2008), we will meet at the back parking lot of Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop at 8am. Scott will be taking the new van and up to 9 bikes and 8 people on a trail ride. This also means if you have a car with bike racks, maybe you should bring it along... There is a time constriction, so the trail will be a close one (probably Golden), but it promises to be fun.

We will bring along with us a combination of the following bikes:
Giant Trance
Giant Trance X
Giant Anthem
Brooklyn Machine Works Park Bike
Black Sheep Ti 29er SS
Maverick Durance (oh, mommma! Scott gets this one first)
Jamis Dakar XAM
Jamis Dakar XCR

You don't *have* to have (or bring)a mountain bike to join us. Please bring water, a helmet, a snack, some money for a post-ride snack and a can-do smile.

We'll get you back to the shop by noon, cause Scott has to go back to work then!

See you there.

Here is the van:

Conspiring Minds want to know...

2008-07-18T12:53:00.000-07:00

This isn't really bicycle related, but it is quality of life related.

Denver used to have a trolley system that ran on electricity. Apparently, General Motors may-or-may-not-have purchased the rails and trolleys and removed them promptly.

This is how the map looked.

It is WAY more coverage than our current lightrail system.

We should bring this back. We just need a plan...

and several billion dollars (that the city has).

Any ideas?

"The Church of Sunday Morning Breakfast Rides"

2008-07-08T09:29:00.000-07:00

Look here first ---> The Breakfast Ride

We were written up in Momentum Magazine. For those of you who haven't heard of Momentum, it is probably right up your alley. Brendan Leonard, one of our favorite original Breakfast Riders, wrote the article and submitted it. And now you will have to join us on a Sunday. The Travel Channel showed some interest in covering our Sunday Morning Breakfast Ride, as well. So this could be your chance to be famous.

Each week we meet at the back of the shop at 8am on Sunday. The group then decides where we are going to ride (at slow speeds) to. The people who haven't liked the Breakfast Ride have been people who had CRAZY expectations.

Come and join us. It is a great start to the day and a nice way to meet some good people.

BMX Track and the MTN Bike Van!!

2008-07-05T22:50:00.000-07:00

Chris, Richard and Scott went to a BMX track at C470 and Colorado Blvd. tonight.
So fun.

Packed dirt with big huge sweeping turns makes everything right.

All of us progressively got faster and smoother. Some of us wrecked pretty hard. We aren't mentioning names, but it wasn't Richard or Scott.

So, the van is almost ready for prime time. It is licensed, registered, insured and pretty. It just needs some bike racks. This time next week that task shall be completed and we will take our inaugural Saturday morning mountain ride. No fooling around this time. The van seats 8 and holds 9 bikes. We'll email the Salvagetti email list when and where and how, but it is coming up soon.

Chris - Generic Cycles Bronx
Richard - Azonic DJ
Scott - Brooklyn Machine Works Park

Bicycle Swappy Swap

2008-06-25T17:31:00.000-07:00

We know there is a HUGE CORPORATE BICYCLE SWAP later on this year. They make you PAY TO SELL, to PAY TO BUY and on top of that you know LESS THAN 1% OF THE PEOPLE THERE. And, we don't love it. We don't even like it. In fact, we DISLIKE it strongly.

Our answer is to have our own community bicycle swap. A Denver Bicycle Swap.

And you better be here for this one!

When? July 4th from 10 until 2.
Where? Behind Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop 1234 Speer Blvd. Denver, CO 80204
Who? You, your friends, your neighbors
How? It is free, but you may pay us if you want by buying stuff at our store. But, that isn't why we are doing this. (see next part)
Why? Because we like you and you need this.

Bring your bicycle stuff to sell or some cash to buy bicycle stuff and come on out.

The shop will be open (with limited staff) and we will also be bringing our own goods as well.

Any questions? Come on by and ask. This is supposed to be fun, so let's make it that way!

The truffle shuffle

2008-06-18T15:16:00.000-07:00

"The Goonies" was the movie of choice for our bike in movie last weekend. We played an insanely quick game of "modified get the bacon" or "get the envelope out of the circle without being touched". It was fun. We would like to thank the large gaggle of fine folks who joined us for the evening.

The next movie night will be announced soon. And this time, we are going to get the time right so that people don't have to sit around waiting for the sun to go down.

Jazz in the park rides start this Sunday. Hope to see you soon.

Learning something new

2008-06-08T15:38:00.000-07:00

Some of our crew has started a new venture. We have been dirt jumping. And some of those jumps have been videotaped. And those movies are on YouTube.com. Here are two of them:

Scott riding his Brooklyn Park Bike on some sissy jumps that are kind of intimidating. Kind of...

And Tom taking a piece of jump home with him.

We'll post more as we have more. Come ride with us soon.

Money is Money

2008-05-20T15:15:00.000-07:00

Let's talk.

Bikes are inexpensive to maintain. And we at Salvagetti want you to be happy, so we have a short list of how to save a pretty decent amount of money while having a better running bike.

In order of the magnitude of how much money you will save:

1. Replace your chain before it is too stretched out. After a chain stretches, it acts as a hammer on your gears and derailleur. Once a chain is TOO worn out, you have to replace the whole drivetrain because the new chain will not interact nicely with your old stuff. Chains can safely stretch to about 0.75% growth before they should be changed out. Drivetrains *can* last several chains...
Money savings - $100 to a huge amount depending on how fancy of a bike you have.

2. Wipe off your chain after rides. This removes the nasty stuff that causes the chain to wear out. After you wipe your chain, look to see if it looks like in needs lube. It should look sweaty if it is lubed properly. After you lube your chain, let the chain soak in the lube before wiping it down.
Money saving potential - see above.

3. Pump up your tires - This saves your energy. This make the tire act like the experts have designed it. Tubes aren't all that expensive to replace, but wheels (which a properly inflated tire protects quite well) can get very pricy. Road tires also are going to give you more miles if they are properly inflated when in use. Pump up your road tires before each ride. Mountain tires should be checked about every 2 to 4 days.
Money saving potential - $5 to the cost of wheels.

4. Don't skimp on tires - This is one of those touchy subjects for some. Tires, like the Continental Ultra Sport ($16 MSRP) are great tires, BUT NOT FOR DENVER. Getting a slightly more thorn resistant tire will end up saving you more than the difference in price. A great Continental Tire for the money is the Ultra Gatorskin ($40 MSRP). In addition to you not visiting the bike shop for flats, you will also get more miles for the dollar and have a better riding bike the whole time. The Gatorskin is a *less expensive* option.
Money saving potential - $5 to who know how many flats you could get with one tire.

Please feel free to post other ideas for maintenance that pay you back.

Buffalo Creek vs. Dodge Ram Van

2008-05-09T08:07:00.001-07:00

We rode in the shop's new Getting-To-The-Trails-And-That-Is-All Van to Buffalo Creek, near Pine. Pine is a community and not a city (from what I understand). The new to us van handled the trip quite well. Since it is still not quite ready for the public, we simply stuffed the 3 bikes into the back of the van and headed out.

Nick, Dave and I (Scott T.) arrived at the Ranger Station where the temp was a good bit cooler than in Denver. It hadn't rained up there for a couple days, and it appeared that we were going to have nothing but sunshine. We suited up and began our trip.

Within about a half an hour, arm warmers were too much and water was being consumed. I was in some knickers that were probably a bit too warm as well. But, soon we were in the midst of same amazing singletrack and temperature was our last concern. The trail was fantastic. Lots of fun swoopy climb/decent/climb sections. Lots of grinding climbs. By grinding, I simply mean that having a granny gear was useful. The climb to the "top" was not horrible, not techy, but all around fun.

Side note: The shop just got a GPS computer. I am new to it. And I loved messing with it during the ride, which is completely unnecessary. But, I didn't know that. So, there is a 2 mile section on this map that it appears we teleported. We might have... but I remember it as being one of the more fun, fast and oh-so-downhill sections of the trail. The teleported section appears as a perfectly straight line on the map. Very impressive. Oops. I know it wouldn't pushed the average speed up a bunch.

Down sides of Buffalo Creek would be that you pretty much have to drive there (hence, the van) and the trail gets sandy and loose in lots of places.

Was it worth it? Hell yes.
Will I go again? Hell Yes.
Did I eat a tremendous amount of food after the ride? Hell Yes.
Should you go next time we ride together? I think so.

Nick: Kona 29" SS - Green with a grinning faced rider
Dave: Vassago 29" Fixed - Orange with a crazed faced rider
Scott: Jamis Dakar XAM - Gray with a always hungry faced rider

By the way, look at this if you want to be bewildered for a few days: Buffalo times Eight

Trail Maintenance is fun!

2008-05-01T12:28:00.000-07:00

This is a good thing that one of our customers sent us. Pass it along to people you know who ride mountain bikes.

Riding High

2008-04-30T08:42:00.001-07:00

I went to Palmer park in Colorado Springs for a mountain bike ride at dusk last night. IT WAS FUN. So, much fun that I had to put it in CAPS. I went with one of the leaders of Ride Against The Machine, our team of fun-loving-but-not-snotty racers.

We went up and down and up and down and up and down. Then we stopped because the trail ended...

So, we turned around and had a blast going down. Palmer park is one of the most fun biking spots in all of Colorado. It is friendly enough for newbies, but can be challenging enough for the seasoned veteran. The only thing that sucks is all the High School kids smoking pot (everywhere). As a tip to the police, ride your bikes through Palmer Park at dusk if you need to bust some kids for marijuana. As a tip to cyclists, be aware that these kids have no trail etiquette. And it is okay because it is fun to scare stoners.

It is hard to leave Palmer Park without a smile on your face. We left sad that we had to leave, but the sun was gone already.

Bike Review: Jamis Dakar XAM (which we have a demo of for you to ride): Fun. Fast. Comfy. Great Climbing. Heavy (steady). Easy on the eyes. Great parts spec for the money. Faster than you would expect.

At 4 years of age

2008-04-24T08:24:00.000-07:00

We are 4 years old on Saturday. And for our birthday, we are giving away some stuff. What stuff? Well that has to be a surprise. If you are on the mailing list, you know some of the surprises, but you don't know everything. (By the way, feel free to share the "password" with friends who aren't on the mailing list yet.)

Come by the shop and celebrate with us from 10am till 7pm!

This is a thank you to everyone who has sent a friend in; To everyone who has come and shared their Sunday morning with us; To everyone who came out to the July 4th Bicycle Swappy Swap; To people who we love and who love us back.

When this business opened, people told us that if we lasted 1 year, we would be in the upper 75% and we would have made it. When we turned 1, "they" said it would take 3 years to be a sound business that would be around for a while. At the 3rd birthday, "they" moved it right up to 10 years. What are they gonna say at 10 years?!? 25? 40? Haha...

We are honored that Denver has responded to Salvagetti in this way. We plan to continue to make Denver a better place to live.

Join us.

This is how it should be done!

2008-04-24T08:22:00.000-07:00

This is nutty. Just keep watching. It is worth it.

French Bottom Brackets and the like

2008-04-07T18:49:00.000-07:00

Please note that Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop is here for the greater good, not to pick fights with people who have strong opinions about weak products.

We see lots of cool old Peugeots and Motobecanes at the shop here. Some of them are rare specimens and some are run-of-the-mill-but-loved-all-the-same. The trouble with French bikes is that the French felt (and who knows if they were right?) that they knew more than the rest of the planet about bicycles. In addition to the geometry being for a select few types of people (oh wait, am I saying they may have been wrong?), the stem and bottom bracket are completely proprietary. This means that the French would have needed to keep making the correct parts and tools in order to keep their good name alive.

And.
They.
Haven't.

And those who love the old French bikes are in for a few interesting discoveries which I will list quickly:

1. The geometry is entirely too long for most folks to ride comfortably.
2. The stems and headsets work together and must be swapped for similar spec'd (and not available new) parts. This limits severely the ability to fit bicycles to their owners.
3. And lastly (for now), the bottom bracket is its own thing all together. Phil Wood does make one but...

You cannot *easily* get the tools to repair any of the French threads. If you find old tools, you are lucky, but not necessarily set up, to get things done.

We recently ran into this problem with several bikes and we are searching out alternative solutions that don't involve a RIG*.
So, the lesson here is that if you MUST get a French bike then you MUST ride it and you MUST get it checked to see if it is something that will work out for you.

*Rigs are using something that isn't made for something else for a different purpose that is gonna probably FAIL!

Sort it out

2008-03-21T16:14:00.001-07:00

We sold one of our better customers a nice wheelset yesterday...
We headed South out of the shop on his new-feeling-cause-it-should-be Trek...
And less than a minute later he came into the shop frantic:
He had been hit by a car at 12th Ave. It didn't come to a stop at Speer. He was okay, though getting stiffer by the moment. His bike, however, faired not so great. The new front wheel is way gone. The fork is bent.

Two sides of this coin:
Technically, he cannot ride his bike on the sidewalk.

Technically, he is on the bike path because of the construction blocking access to the bike path.

I don't know how Denver will see this one!

By the way, no tickets were given. The officer told them to "sort it out".

Watch out for cyclists

2008-03-18T11:06:00.001-07:00

Sent from Matt M.:

Dang Gangsta (AKA Brooklyn Machine Works Gangsta Track)

2008-03-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

First one complete... and then he let us ride it.

I know a great bike when I feel one. And a track bike that lets me confidently try to do a stand still whiplash is fun. Not just fun, but hilariously fun. Since I have ridden the Brooklyn Gangsta Track bike, I have craved its presence at least a dozen times. It has only been a few days since we were last together. Soon enough, she'll come back to me and I will successfully completely my trick of tricks.

We are building up at least one of them complete in the next week. How do you find out how fun a bike is without riding it? Well... you really can't. But, you will have to leave us some *serious* collateral to put it between your legs.

Frame : Brooklyn Gangsta Track (LRG)
Fork: Same as frame
Cranks: Truvativ Omniums
Wheels: Mavic Ellipse
Everything else: Nice but not too nice.

This Latest Breakfast Ride

2008-03-04T17:42:00.001-08:00

So Saturday was out of control beautiful. People came out of their homes and GOT OUT THEIR BIKES!

Even Richard, one of our customers (who works at another shop in town (WINK WINK)) rode his bike 100 miles on Saturday. He got a sunburn, too.

But then we all went to bed in the 45 degree evening with visions of Spring and Summer fun. Poof! Snow again.

I put on my snow gear at 7:15am and started on my way. The big grumpies started to come out half way to the shop because my ready-for-spring fingers were chilly (poor baby) and my face wanted a balaclava again. Turning the corner to the shop alley, I could not believe my eyes...

3 cyclists ready for a ride to get some breakfast. We all went inside and warmed up. More people showed and came in. Then some more... We finally got to 10 before we decided to leave for Snooze. Like the rock stars we should be treated like, we were rewarded for our heroics with quick seating and amazing eating. We finished up and headed back for Metropolis for some more vibration inducing beverages and ran with the day.

Thank you to the tough folks who braved the cold and snow and depression to make a great ride.

A Petition to the President of these United States of America

2008-01-19T09:53:00.001-08:00

The following undersigned would enjoy one (1) day per week of some sunshiny weather. Including, but not limited to one (1) day per month of above 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Please make this change by 2/1/2008.

(Ready for summer) Pretty please,

Sal Vagetti Bicycle Workshop

A guy walks into a bike shop

2008-01-12T17:12:00.000-08:00

Sorry, it isn't a joke.
We are sponsoring a "team" this year:

*A mountain team.*

2 members of said "team" came in to the shop today. We began chatting about being in the mountains and experiencing the dirt and trees. All of us became rather desperate sounding as the talk went on. We want to ride. Soon.

But, we need the snow to stop. Do we need to write congress? Do we need to run our SUVs all day and night for accelerated Global Warming? Do we need to have a non-rain dance? Tell us; We'll do it. (I'm kidding, by the way, about the SUV thing... sort of).

When the time is right, we will be out there tearing it up and smiling the whole ride. This means we are going to try our damnedest to get a weekly/monthly group mountain ride together. I hope you will join us in the mountains when the time comes. Bring a snack, a friend and a good attitude and we will show you a great time. We'll let you know more as we know more.

Have fun!

Salvagetti Attire For All

2008-01-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

Just in case you hadn't seen it. We have jerseys and socks. They are as nice as they get.

Resolve(d)

2008-01-05T15:30:00.001-08:00

Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop is resolving to be more of a community hub for 2008. This means more activities and some actual sponsorships for riders (and maybe racers). It means we want to have fun with Denver and be an active part of positive growth. More exactly, this means that YOU need to make suggestions of what YOU want to do with us. There is no reason why we cannot make Denver what we always want(ed). Don't be afraid... Dave suggested a Chili Cookoff (Vegan and Meaty) with a sweet prize for the winner. We want to start a weekly mountain ride. You want us to start a bicycle polo club? You want us to start serving coffee out of the shop? You want us to give more stuff away for free? Tell us... we are all ears. Speak up...

Resolve

2007-12-29T09:57:00.001-08:00

Please tell us your cycling new year's resolutions. If you do, then we'll tell you ours.

A fond farewell

2007-12-18T06:36:00.000-08:00

Our head mechanic, Danny, is moving on.

We are feeling 2 things:

1. We are very sad that we won't get to hear Danny's wise cracks and strange comments. We are sad that we are losing our friend.
2. We are happy for him because it is time for him to move on. It is time for Danny to get out of Dodge (Denver) and see the world on his own.

We all wish him the best luck ever and hope he will bless us with a visit when he is back in town!

To celebrate and mourn at the same time, let's all drop off a bottle or 6 pack of Dr. Pepper to him on Thursday... his last day.

It's 9 out

2007-12-12T07:52:00.001-08:00

The temperature outside is 9 degrees. I drove my roommates car into the store bright and early this morning and saw what we *don't sell* here at the store.

First of all, I got COLD. Why? Because cars have windshields that get frosty and you have to remove the frost before you can safely go anywhere. I wasn't moving around, so I got cold.
Secondly, I got stuck in traffic. Light after light, I moved so slowly. I literally could have jogged into work faster.
And lastly, I burned a bunch of gas.

So bikes... you step outside and go, not giving the cold a good chance to catch you standing around. Dressing appropriately, making sure you are ready to roll and not letting wind be your enemy. Secondly, not riding on main streets while cycling is faster than waiting in traffic on "fast streets". And bikes, unless you are doing something weird, don't burn up the petrol.

Bikes!

Bike Biker Bikest

2007-11-27T16:03:00.001-08:00

We started getting our 2008 Jamis, Giant and Brooklyn bicycles in! You probably need to come by in person to see them. We are building as fast as we can. So far, the Jamis Parker hasn't let us down at all and the Giant Road bikes are amazing (only 1 TCX left already!). The Brooklyn Park is here and it hurts to not touch it. And lastly, the Jamis Dragon 29 is stunning. That's it. That's all. See you soon.

How to Get the Message Across

2007-11-19T16:40:00.001-08:00

There is a communication gap in Denver and maybe all of America. That message gap is cars vs. bikes and the laws that pertain. Cyclists want equal share of the ability to transport on the streets. Cars want to not give up their convenience and "powers". Here is the catch. We need to develop a relationship between the car and bike, rather than develop a disconnect. A disconnect happens when you aren't clear with the other party and things continue to separate. So, I am trying a new thing (which is sort of working so far). I don't run red lights. I stop fully at stop signs. AND!!! I make fun of those who do run lights and stop signs. The message I want to get across is that bikes are human powered cars. If someone needs to pass me either on bike or in car, then I just let them. Not a big deal, just like on the highway.I rarely get a chance to drive. But, when I do I try to use the road rather than own it.

My proposal is this: As the cycling community, let's send the message that we are part of the transportation of Denver and not the counter-transportation. Let's spread the word about the laws that pertain to cycling and to driving. Let's let the cars do what they need to do, so that they will, in turn, let us do what we need to do.

{Also} I know that cars mess with cyclists constantly. It sucks. I also know that cars feel messed with when a cyclist passes them repeatedly at stop lights. Whether anyone likes it or not, it is so.

Holy Kamolly

2007-11-16T17:00:00.001-08:00

So, we are closing up the shop, emptying the garbage and the like. Danny comes running in and says "Some woman just got hit in the alley, I think I saw sparks!"

She was going down the sidewalk on her bike and POW! she went down. "Ow." is what Danny heard.

We all sprung into action to see what was going on. She was bleeding from her forehead pretty well and seemed okay, considering she didn't have on a helmet. She said that she would rather just get a ride to the hospital... and she kept on bleeding. Her bump got about the thickness of a finger. And so, 9-1-1.

The whole parade got here really quick. Less than 2 minutes, I'd say.

They packaged her up and moved her out. We took in the bike and left a card.

A man looked at Greg and said, "I've heard of ambulance chasers, but you guys are hard core". We smiled and left.

The lesson here: Please stay off of the sidewalk. Please wear a helmet. Seriously. Please.

All right BMW!

2007-11-16T07:19:00.001-08:00

We are carrying Brooklyn Machine Works bicycles, parts and "stuff":

These bikes feel like someone has read your mind when you were on some wonderful drug. Our fear is the revolt you will feel when you climb back on your old bike. Right now we have a Pooky and a Park on their way to our temple of bikes. Soon enough, we have Gangstas coming. If you are serious about buying any of these, you may want to plop the money down before we get them, if they aren't already sold to employees before you even get a chance. We'll get more sometime though.

For a good time, look at uTube for Brooklyn Machine Works. You may just laugh out loud.

http://www.brooklynmachineworks.com

A song gets stuck in your head

2007-11-08T11:17:00.000-08:00

This letter came to us a few days ago and it is amazing. Please read and enjoy (with the author's permission).

Hello friends,

I finally arrived in Santa Cruz this last Sunday and have been staying with my friends Pat and Eileen. It took me about 24 days to travel the 900 odd miles from Seaside, OR to Santa Cruz. I would have gotten here sooner but San Francisco was too interesting of a place to just ride through. I don't know what it is about that city but it had a hold on me for a few days. Some fellow bicycle travelers and I spent a few days in the Marin Headlands Hostel north of the city and then a few days in a hostel at city center. We stayed in a pretty bad part of town but the hostel itself was nice. We were warned of 7 foot trans hookers in the area but unfortunately I didn't spot any. Halloween was spent at a nearby bar with some bicycle travelers and some of the staff from the Marin Headlands Hostel. If you are ever traveling in the area, the Marin hostel is a cool place to stay. The people staying at the hostel are so warm and friendly it almost seems strange.....but you get used to it after a day or so. The staff there is not only very helpful and informative, but they're cool as hell...they even invited some of us over to their home while we were staying at the hostel. From San Fran, I spent a couple of days in Berkeley with my cousin, her husband and her 2 adorable sons. My cousins husband is the strength and conditioning coach with the Cal football team. He hooked me up with 3 tickets to the Cal game in the 13th row and passes to the "5th quarter" after the game with a free buffett and open bar. Pat and Eileen came up for the game and we took as much advantage of the free food and drink as we could before we headed out. On Sunday morning, I took the BART from Berkeley back to San Fran and then booked it the 80 miles to Santa Cruz.....and here I am.

I've finally had a few days to unwind and reflect. This trip has been pretty different from what I expected. I've spent alot time meeting people and getting to know them. My expectation was to be sitting in my tent reading up on Marxism, Capitalism and Anarchy and learning Spanish. It turns out that socializing, riding, eating and sleeping can be pretty time consuming. Enough so that I haven't spent much time with books at all. As expected though, I've seen some awesome sites. Cape Lookout in Oregon was one of the best campsites I've ever seen. I camped surrounded by enormous trees and could walk right down to a breathtaking beach surrounded by rocky sea stacks. While the rain in Oregon mostly sucked, the storms are amazing to experience. Waves grow from just a few feet to over 10 feet and the winds are enough to stop you dead in your tracks. The Redwoods in northern Cali are a must see for anyone going along the coast. The trees there really make you feel small in alot of ways. Despite some of the cool things I've seen, the trip hasn't been without frustration. I've had to replace or repair* numerous things and I've come face to face with my physical limitations on numerous occassions. I've also failed mierably at my attempt to 'not look homeless" on this trip. Sometimes, there are days and days that go by without showers or changes of clothing. My most distinct homeless guy moment came early in the second week as I rolled out of Port Orford, OR in the pouring rain with trash bags taped to my feet and recently purchaed rain pants that had already ripped all the way down the crotch. I was quite impressed with myself that day.

Drivers and people in general can also be sources of frustration....just like real life I guess. People have been very friendly but others have gone out of their way to be rude. I think I'll always remember the couple that drove past me outside of Devil's Beach State Park. The male driver laid on his horn as he drove past and his female partner stuck her head out of the window to scream at me to ride on the sidewalk. There's nothing like a good team effort.....I really hope it works out for the two of them. :) Then there was the guy in Northern Cali standing outside of a market with his $5k carbon fixed gear road bike. My buddy Collin was trying to make conversation with him and he responded by telling us that we should know something about bikes before we go asking stupid questions. He then walked about 10 feet away with his bike and just stood there while we laughed in shock and disbelief. People like that have very much been the exception....so much so that I remember them distinctly.

Over the last couple of weeks, I've decided to keep going south. I'm just enjoying the freedom too damn much. On Sunday, I'm going to head out of here and ride as far as my motivation, financial situation and physical capabilities allow. That might end up being a few days or few weeks, but I'm not ready to stop riding just yet. My hope is to make it to the Cali/Mexico border and to then figure out what I want to do....perhaps Baja will come next but I'm not ready to make make that commitment just yet. I miss all of you back in Denver and I've enjoyed reading your emails. Keep letting me know what's going on with all of you and I'll try and check emails whenever I can.

Peace.
M.S.

* "Casualties of Tour" have included broken toe clip, disintigrating front bags, broken rear rack, retired rear derailer, exploding chain ring and split rain pants. Repairs have included about everything you can think including flat tires, front and rear derailer issues, a drive train that just won't cooperate, wheel truing, constant brake adjustments and re-adjustments and general maintenance.

Sputnik - Salvagetti Edition

2007-10-23T11:38:00.000-07:00

You will get sick to your stomach if you see our Salvagetti Edition Jamis Sputnik. It is hot like I cannot explain. It looks like a hormone inducing space bike.

We are charging money for looking at it.

Not really.

Unless you want to look at it in your own home*.

$925... only one of them.

*We do not include any drool rag for your friend's slobber.

Ride around on my bicycle like a pony

2007-10-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite customers just bought a bike from us. We are proud of him because he has got some things figured out that we would like to share:

1. Bikes are less expensive to operate than cars. He doesn't drive his car except because he "has to" to keep the engine from seizing.
2. If you don't drive, and you save that money up, buying almost EVERYTHING you want is easy. Hence, the new bike.
3. You don't need to be concerned about what other people are riding as long as you have the biggest $hit eating grin on your face. Even less thought should go into what others might think, or heaven forbid, FEEL about your bike.

He owned only a really nice fixie that can take everything but trails and dirt. He remedied that situation with a 29" mountain bike in Single Speed Form. Now, he is unstoppable and is praying for snow each day. He figured out that he really just likes bikes and that bicycles are the best thing ever (ever).

*Our plan now is to take him to the mountains to see what real smiling is about. Hopefully, he is up for it.

2008 Jamis Sputnik (or what?)

2007-10-03T08:50:00.001-07:00

We finally got a bunch of these bikes in. After the packaging finally hit the ground in our feverish unpacking, we were stunned. Not because it is beautiful, though it is. And not because it is burly, though it is. This years Sputnik is completely insanely light! It is less than 17 lbs. easy. And if you wanted to, you could lighted it up a bunch for absolutely no money. Just cut the bars down to little flat guys and rewrap for the ninja style bars. Jamis also put a different fork on the bike this year which dropped the weight and increased the feel (if you will) of the front end.

Take it to the track, take it down the bike path, take it on the bus and take it up some stairs. This bike is for pretty much everyone who likes nice bikes.

Movie Night2

2007-09-21T10:09:00.000-07:00

We are going and doing it, again!

Bike In Movie Night promises to be spectacular. We have the kinks worked out, so this one will be both fun and SMOOTH... instead of fun and somewhat rough and kinky. Not, kinky exactly. Maybe, oh never mind. You understand. Ride a bicycle, motorcycle, tricycle, scooter, unicycle, monocycle, cozmocycle, helldamncycle, etc to the back of th shop at closing time and bring food to grill and consume. Bring your friends.

2 promises we make about Saturday the 22nd of July at 7pm: 1)We will play a stuffed bunny movie that will disturb you for days and 2) we will show you a great mountain bike movie while cooking food (and before the main feature). At time of this publication, I still don't even know what movies are being offered, as the winner of the last B.I.M.N. is allowed to keep it a secret until everyone knows. He has a game ready as well, so be ready yourself. This should be interesting.

Bring your friends, bring your smile. It is going to be fun.

MOVIE NIGHT

2007-08-26T11:51:00.000-07:00

MOVIE NIGHT at Salvagetti!

7pm - Salvagetti closes.
7:05pm - People start trickling in.
7:10pm - Grill fired up
7:18pm - Food trickles in
7:22pm - Food goes on grill
7:26pm - Movie screen up and looking good
7:28pm - Projector working, but not really
7:38pm - Projector working, new computer here to make movies happen.
7:38pm - Nope. That didn't work either.
7:38pm - Nope. That also will not work.
7:41pm - YES! Movies will play
5 minutes earlier - food is going into stomachs. Beverages, too.
7:43pm - 1st movie is on... a cyclocross documentary. Fun!
8:00pm - The contest begins...

Teams are formed based on what movie you wish to see. 3 movies to choose from, hence 3 teams.

4 events, 1 winner:
10 pushups
Speed walk to the
12oz yummy water beverage
Speed walk to the
8 line poem that rhymes (persuading us to want to watch your movie)
Speed walk to
Your team and instruct them to sit down

Triplets of Belleville won.
8:25pm - Movie is on.

Thank you to everyone who came out. We hope to have the magic happen repeatedly. Perhaps, monthly.

Moonlight Classic Moonlight Classique

2007-08-21T11:50:00.000-07:00

I am finally recovered this morning from the Moonlight Classic. It was absolutely the most fun I've had in a while. We had Brother's BBQ and O Water sponsor us... or more over, sponsor those who would stop to say hello to us. Thanks to them, everyone (who eats meat) was full, hydrated and happy for that last gruelling mile.

We had fun whistling and cheering and smiling and laughing. And we think that we weren't alone. I never heard the official total of people coming through on bikes, but it had to be a record from what I could tell. And almost everyone was happy about it.

Anyone who wants to come out next year to help out/ feed the riders/ yell should contact us so we can be ready. I would like to bring in bleachers and perhaps a live band. OoooOOOooo...maybe a marching band. We'll do it ticker tape style.

Lastly, don't forget that we are doing a bike in movie this Saturday. "What movie?" I'm not telling. "Is it Breaking Away?" Not even on the radar.

Bye.

Cracked Elbow Blues

2007-08-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

I've got the cracked elbow blues,
I have not been diagnosed,
I've got the sore arm blues,
No, I know something ain't right.

From the crash of about a month ago, I still have soreness and tenderness in the elbow. You can also, if you push in the right places (please don't touch me), find some bone chips to move around. And I can't pay a doctor to tell me what I already know. Next time I fall perhaps I shouldn't put all my weight into only one tiny sharp end of a bone.

Moving on... My plans for a personal bike this next season have me all confused. I am tempted to look at getting a new Jamis Composite Road bike for myself and pull a George Costanza by doing the opposite of what Scott would do. I've never owned a bike with full composite everything. Maybe it is time I move to the dark (composite grey) side.

But, then I see the Maverick ML8 everyday and it makes my stomach hurt to not ride it!

And then Giant goes and puts out a new bike called the Trance X0 that is going to be the *Perfect* front range bike. They didn't pull any bait and switch on this bike. It is pure evil. For those of you who have ridden a Trance, you know that the 4.2" of travel feels way bigger, probably closer to 5.5". So, I'm thinking that the X0 is going to feel like a downhill bike that can climb all day. Only riding will tell.

And then there is the other thing in the back of my mind that no one wants me to do... the ultimate bike from Black Sheep: Ti frame built up with 14 speed internal speed wheels. Sex. Dripping. Oozing. Sex.

I gotta go. Something just came up.

Buzzing pack of Carbon

2007-08-05T13:52:00.000-07:00

A sound like no other... Carbon fibre bikes whizzing by at the highest speed the rider is capable of pushing it. The sound, and the sight, even if you don't like bikes (God help you) is mesmerizing. About an hour into the Bannock Street Crit I was convincing myself that I needed a Composite bike and that I needed to train to race. For those of you who know me, that should conjure up a grin. I'm not a racer. But that buzz made me salivate. It made me excited. It made me look again at race bikes. If any of you get a chance to visit a Criterium race, please do it. It is way more fun than any other road cycling event that I have experienced.

Sorry/Not Sorry

2007-07-23T17:40:00.000-07:00

Holy Smoke, it is hot out.

I had a good wreck the other day on Lookout Mtn. The good kind of wreck is where you push yourself to try something you shouldn't and you make it. Then you try something else you shouldn't and you clear that. Then you get lazy because you think you are on top of your game and you EAT IT. I was in a zone of confidence when I decided to go between 2 trees on the trail. I'm not sure what happened, but I bashed my elbow, my knee and crushed my helmet on the base of one of the trees. I ended up laughing and saying "Oh Fudge*" on the way down. It really hurt a tremendous amount.

That little confidence button on my brain got lightly smacked back to reset. I timidly finished out the ride, wrecking several more times because of that little lamb coming forth.

When I was little, I wasn't taught that pushing the boundaries was the way to grow and learn new stuff. My comfort zone made me lazy. I'm paying the price now. When I get nervous, I think it is a good sign that I need to try it. If I get sick, I should probably look for a way to bump my knee again so that my head gets back on straight.

*Only I didn't say Fudge

The shoe was on the other foot. And it tasted bad.

2007-05-30T09:12:00.001-07:00

So, I was in a car yesterday. We were leaving the shop in the alley going to 13th Ave. As we pulled up to the sidewalk, I leaned over to my friends steering wheel and honked the horn lightly. As I did this, the driver instinctively stopped as if I knew something he didn't know. We missed a cyclist by about 12 inches. He was on the sidewalk, riding very fast. We honked as a warning to ANYONE, but he thought we honked at him because we are not nice. We are nice. Well, some of us. Anyways, he gave us the middle finger all the way down the sidewalk. It kind of hurt, and kind of made me laugh. As I watched, he almost got hit by the UPS truck at the next street, which had just left our building. The word of the day is dismount. I have been looking for a single word to yell at cyclists on sidewalks and this is it. Dismount please. Dismount.

I should also say that there are situations where sidewalk riding is appropriate. The trick is that it becomes the responsibility of the lawbreaker (the cyclist riding on the sidewalk) to not get hurt. As you approach streets and alleys, it is your responsibility to not die.

I'm glad we didn't kill the lawbreaker, but I also hope he reads this.

Kevin on the Ridge

2007-05-15T06:54:00.000-07:00

We sold a Giant Trance to Kevin and then took him on his first real mountain ride in quite a while. Of course, we had to go to one of the most technical (rocky and steep) trails in Colorado: The one and only Dakota Ridge to Mathews Winters. Dakota Ridge will chew you up with its mighty incisor rocks and spit you out into the muddy field between it and Red Rocks. It is a hard trail, indeed.

The trail starts off with a large amount of vertical gain in less than 500 yards. At the top you begin to think the worst is behind you. You begin to feel adequate and warm. But, the trail has a different plan for you!

We encouraged Kevin to walk sections that he felt he couldn't clear, cause wrecking at slow speeds when you are trying to get used to a bike is for suckers. We are all for pushing the limits a bit, but walking back to the car with a broken you-name-it really sucks more than walking a little section so you can keep on riding.

We all were having slightly off days, so Greg and Andres both flipped over the handle bars once a piece. Scott couldn't clean anything without dabbing a little foot here and there. And Kevin was still getting used to a bike that actually has travel (his old bike was a Trek Fuel). We watched him get faster and smoother through the hour long loop. His smile also got more intense as you could see his confidence increase.

We finished up through the front of Mathews Winters and found ourselves flying through the air. Kevin did an amazing job getting better acquainted with his Trance. And the Trance did an amazing job letting him in to the wonderful world of letting go of the brakes and FLYING!

The weather was perfect. The trail was truly perfect. And we all had coffee and donuts afterward to make it a calorie neutral morning.

Greg - Jamis Exile 29
Andres - Mountain Cycle Hardtail
Kevin - Giant Trance
Scott - Maverick ML8
Myra - Paws

Just the financial side

2007-05-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

We all know cycling is more fun than driving. But you need to know the wallet side, too.

How much does it cost to own a car and drive it? On average... 52.2 cents/mile!

That comes to more than $7k per year for the average *new* vehicle.

"The expenses for a small sedan averaged $6,219 a year, compared to $9,373 for a large sedan. Driving 15,000 miles a year in a minivan costs $8,639 compared to $9,997 for the same distance in an SUV." - detnews.com

Ummm... let's look at a bike and ALL (and I do mean all) the accessories and extras you could possible want/buy. I'm going to be generous. Clearly, you could spend more, but we are only commuting here.

Solid commuter bike - Jamis Coda Comp - $800
Lights/Bags/Racks - $300
Lock - $60
Helmet - $150
Cycling computer - $30
BUS Pass - (Most expensive one I could find from RTD) - $1620
Apparel for all conditions - $500
Extra food from burning all the calories - $1200

Total $4660

But that is for the first year. The next year, you don't have to buy another bike, or accessories or clothing.

That is an easy way to save over $2000 per year (being completely not thrifty with your money).
If you live close to where you work, then the RTD Pass is unnecessary. Perhaps you already have a bike. That means you could save nearly $6000 a year by not owning an automobile. Craziness. Now multiply that by lets say a safe 30 year career... That is somewhere between $60,000 and $180,000 during your working years. That is a lot of extra work for decadence.

Fit Science - The it factor

2007-05-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

The it factor. No one can truly explain it, but some bikes feel WAY better than others. I don't think it is just the fit of a bike, though that makes all the difference in the world on a road bike. But, certain bike brands continuously shock me with how great their bikes feel/work/function. Oh, by the way, we are talking about road bikes, definitely not mountain.

Through the years, the sleeper brands that come up are repeatedly the same: Miyata, Centurion, Some Fujis, Lugged Treks, Panasonic (hehe). After we repair these bikes, we test ride them and it is always the same response. Holy $*!^ these are SO nice, why did they ever stop making them? And moreover why do these feel so so so good to ride? I have tried to note some of the things that I have seen that makes them feel good. It still doesn't all add up to me, but it is a start of a list of things to look for when scooping up a garage sale or craigslist bike.

1. Typically, these are built from nothing but double butted steel (thicker where the lugs are and thinner in the middle with no loss of strength). This cannot be the it factor alone because plenty of "custom" frame builders use double butted steel and their bikes feel like so-so frames from anytime in history.

2. The geometry (of the road bikes) is typically similar in that the seat tube from the middle of the bottom bracket to the middle of the top tube is within 2cm of the length of the top tube center to center. What does this do for most people? It forces them to sit relatively upright; allows the weight of the hands to be nearly even with the weight on the rear-end. That is comfort! (note: this seems to be happening on Japanese lugged steel from mid-80s on, which the Italian manufacturers copied quickly)

Everything else doesn't matter from what I can tell. The parts hanging on the frame haven't ever made a bike for me. The frame is the glue pulling it all together. I have ridden some bikes that I am sure were not sold for very much brand new that felt better than almost any of the custom bikes I have ridden.

That said, the reason Salvagetti carries the brands we carry is just that: Black Sheep, Jamis and Giant all feel "it". They follow different rules then the old lugged manufacturers, but still get to the same place. We are very lucky to carry exactly what we love. But, the factors that led us to choose them were simple: The bikes have the it factor and people can afford them.

White Ranch Testing Grounds

2007-05-01T10:48:00.000-07:00

Chris from Generic Cycles and I went to White Ranch because we both kind of hate it. The downhill is super fun on Belcher (at least at the top), but climbing it is long and boring. It is the definition of a Front Range ride. 80% up, followed by 20% down and that is the end of the ride. BUT, this time I didn't hate it. I, in fact, enjoyed it.

I'm gonna stop for a second and explain something to everyone: Bigger bikes (as long as it still fits) have always been my preferred climbing bikes and smaller bikes have always been my preferred downhill bikes. This means the seat height as well as the top tube length. I have the most fun on my Brooklyn Park bike because it is short all around and I am a better climber than descender. I climb fastest on my Black Sheep 29er because it is 'Scott' sized for climbing.

Side note is done and I continue with my story.

Chris and I were both excited because the parking lot was about as empty as it could be at the bottom.

I set up the bike that I have been hearing so much about to be as tall as possible so I could climb like I want to. This bike is the Maverick ML8. More about the gear itself when I am feeling techy. I adjusted the seat such that I could get a great amount of extension and not tear myself up given that I have a negative bump. So off we go. Climbing. Climbing. Climbing. Turning. Climbing. Turning. Climbing. Turning. Climbing. Not turning. Not turning. Please note the lack of walking. I cleared everything. My preseason lungs weren't screaming at me because this bike is so efficient at climbing. It tracked through everything.

And then we got close enough to the top that the snow was becoming too frequent. So, we turned around. I pushed the knob by my right thumb and BOOM! I had dropped the SIZE of the bike to full dh mode. **We are talking about the Maverick Speedball Seatpost. It is like an office chair for your bike. Pneumatic and stylish, while still light. ** The top tube shortened dramatically. The overall height dropped dramatically and all of the sudden I was on my Brooklyn. But, not quite. The Maverick sticks through horrible line choices. It stick off of drop offs. It sticks to high wet berms.

I should say here that we were exceptionally responsible and didn't do any extra tearing up of the wet trail.

I intentionally picked some pretty horrid lines with to see if the Maverick would buck me. Not only did it not want me to go anywhere but forward, but it acted like a rubber ducky, too. It would pop me back upright even when my body was trying to force it groundward.

At the end of the rocky sections is a little creek area with a staircase and thin wooden path. I was so high from my ride that I could hardly keep my eyes on the trail. It was there that I figured out what the Maverick isn't so great at: Going really slow when the rider is not paying attention. My wheels went off to the side of the logs and I STILL DIDN'T FALL.

I loved riding this bike. It brought back all sorts of bicycle fantasies that I shouldn't talk about in public. This just means I have to get one of my own. The Maverick is the first bike I have ridden in some time that showed my quietly and confidently just how amazing it is. It lives up to the hype like a live Bob Log the 3rd show.

Scott - Maverick ML8 - DUC fork - Nice parts 6" travel front and rear
Chris - Generic Steel 29er - White Bros Fork - Bike sticker on downtube

Poetry in Motion

2007-04-26T06:37:00.000-07:00

During this last rain storm, I saw so many cyclists riding and smiling and being tough as hell all at once. It made me feel great inside. I was walking because Myra almost pulls me off the bike when it is dry out...

It occurred to me how bikes and cars should be separated in the mind into uses: (Please add to this list as I should be corrected for acting like an authority. I do borrow cars for groceries.)
Bikes are for moving a person and things that a person can easily carry to destinations within a 20 minute ride (give or take how much time a person has)
Cars are for carrying heavy or bulky items that a bike cannot handle. The exception is that you (yes, YOU) could borrow Scott's Xtracycle pretty much anytime to move much larger items. It can take up to about 200 lbs.
Buses are for extending the distance a cyclist can get to. They extend the reach of the bike to where there truly are few excuses for driving. Anyone who is not sure how to ride the bus with a bike should ask one of us at Salvagetti.

Following these ideas/rules/ways would make the world a less brown-cloud place to be. But, as it stands, people use a car to: go to work, visit a friend, go to Boulder (take the RTD B line!!), pick up a few things at the grocery store. Bus/Bike will do all of these things and save you money.

I am hoping that someone will join me when I ride a bike to a wedding.
Or perhaps offer me a ride to the Vitamin Cottage whenever you are going by car.
Or join me on the RTD 3 to go ride at Green Mountain/ Mathews Winters.
Or walk to your friends house 3 blocks away.

April Showers us with LOVE

2007-04-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

We are in the process of bringing in one of the most exciting brands in bicycling history. We will let you know more as we learn, but we wanted to let you know first. A demo bike was dropped off yesterday and a deal was struck, so soon enough everyone will know and jump up and down with us!

Start saving money now. Start doing sit ups and push ups. In about a month you will be able to climb up anything and keep up with your downhilling buddies.

Damn straight.

As for us, we are drinking lots of coffee and studying up for the coming months. Please come out for our breakfast rides. Why? So you can meet some hot and friendly cyclists.

Section 16 Trails

2007-04-11T16:08:00.000-07:00

Dave N (slowerthansnot) and I took a ride in the Springs with Chris S. (Generic Cycles) and Scottie B.

Dave and I took the FREX down in the morning and met at a coffee shop waiting for the others. Once assembled we rode across town to the mountains.

The climb today hurt more than anything I have experienced in a while, but it was completely worth the hour and a half or so of pain. Once we turned up onto the trailhead (the real one) we got to see some amazing views and do some insanely technical downhills. We all were feeling good and no one was under/over dressed. I was the first to take a dive off the bike. My front tire slipped WAY out from under me. I landed quickly and stopped even quicker. I got up and kept going.

Dave was next... He "french kissed" a rock. I didn't see it, and he isn't terribly verbose about falling. He was okay and we continued.

We rode Rick Boyer's special trail for the rest of the way down. We then played at the freeride park until we needed Chipotle.

Fun, fun, fun, fun ride. Thank you!

Dave - Blacksheep Steel Fixed Gear
Scott - Blacksheep Ti SS
Chris - Generic SS
Scott B. - Carl The Snarl SS Steel

Unprecedented

2007-04-10T17:08:00.000-07:00

Evergreen on Tuesday April 10, 2007. It began snowing as we pulled up to the Park N' Ride / Church in Evergreen. "Dammit! We are riding anyways."

Mike S. has been someone I always have loved to ride with. Today he was sporting his 6" travel Kona that he has upgraded all over the place. It is now set up for anything that can be found on a trail.

I am concentrating on getting smoother and faster, so I am sticking to the same bike for a while: Black Sheep Ti 29 SS. It is fast and fun.

Today, I was ready for the cold. I had some thermal gloves and a compression top from the one and only Louis Garneau. Icebreaker on the outside for the warmth. The only change I made was midride... I pulled up my sleeves. Otherwise, I was the perfect temperature. My diaper (or chamois) was the LG Big air short, which is easily the most comfortable padding I have encountered in my years in the business.

I called Dave (aka Slowerthensnot) to see what conditions were to be like in Evergreen. He said that is would be likely muddy and sloppy. As I said, it was snowing lightly as we drove up. As we stepped out of the car, it opened up to be amazing and beautiful. We rode out in the green and got lost as quickly as I have ever heard of.

After back tracking for a while, we made a big change and turned back on track. This led to downhill after downhill where I couldn't catch up, nor wipe the smile off my face. The trail was as sticky as I have ever seen it. So, there was no slipping, no sliding, no missing lines. It was pure fun. We agreed that this was the most ideal we had seen the trails in a long time.

We finally descended into Evergreen and checked in at the great Creekside Winery. They were closed, but gave us some good directions back to the car.

We had a blast! Come with us next time, instead of just reading about it. Bring water and a snack and you will have a blast.

Mmmm... death...

2007-04-10T07:50:00.000-07:00

What do you get when you cross 4 male cyclists, 3000 vertical ft. of climbing and 4 SS 29ers? Tired.

Eric B. (of Ground Up Designs), Scottie B, EJ and Myself did a super secret trail in Colorado Springs. I couldn't take you there if I tried.

We started out from EJs place above a coffee shop downtown. We met up with Eric on the way to the trailhead. It was cold. So cold that I had to stop at a Starbucks... to wash my fingers. It burned severely. I guess I wasn't ready for the cold as I should've been. We made it to the trailhead and everyone warned me that we were in for a bit of a climb. Damn. Damn. %$*@#!! 8 miles on a SS going up 3000 ft. Steep, bumpy, cold. Also, for grins, there was a bit of a crackle in the air with a threat of lightening. Mmmm... death.

We rode underneath a shooting range near the top of the mountain and Eric told me we were almost there. No close calls with the shot flying overhead. MMM...DEATH!!

Eric and I stopped to wait for Scott and EJ (who were fasting at the time, so they were feeling unfresh to say the least (mmm. death.) Once we stretched a bit, we went through a secret opening in the side of the road and voila, scary tech trail.

The trail was as east coast as I have seen on the west coast. Wet, rooty, loggy, and green. I was truly a treat to be had. All of us had to walk several sections because we felt that dying on each other would really impose on our friendship. Mmm... death. Several of the sections were so scary that they had nasty nicknames. Something about gashing your head open and bleeding out half you body weight into a river doesn't seem appealing. We rode in a creek for a bit that actually moved to take over the trail. We went over logs that were 3 feet around with makeshift rock ramps. You couldn't tell what was on the other side till you were on top. So FUN.

The trail ended up coming out to a gravel access road that we flew down into Manitou Springs. We (eric and I) drank some yerba mate and relaxed.

Thanks fellas for a great ride in the Springs!

Eric - Ground Up 29 SS (prototype aluminum)
Scottie B - Vicious Cycles 29 SS steel
EJ - Redline Flight 29 SS steel
Scott T. - Black Sheep 29 SS ti

Lately I've Been Thinking 'Bout Just Hittin' the Road

2007-03-27T06:56:00.000-07:00

I get those lyrics in my head all the time. It is from a song called "Last Night/Tomorrow" by Urge Overkill. I wish they would've only put out Tomorrow. Anyways...

We had a fantastic Sunday Morning ride this week. Let me tell you why:
1. A bunch of great people showed up
2. We went to a fantastic restaurant (Gaia Bistro 1551 S. Pearl St.) where the coffee is "epic" and the food is outstanding
3. All of us were interviewed by a young woman from the newspaper, The Metropolitan. And we might just have changed her mind about owning a car (or atleast how she will use it) The article comes out this week, so who knows
4. Myra came along in her Giant Pea Pod, barking the ENTIRE time. She also jumped out when her carabiner bent and broke

If you didn't join us, you should this week. Again, we go slow, so don't count this as exercise. And you can wear lycra, but you may be the only one. We'll still love you though. Only wonderful people have shown up thus far, and that is something we plan on continuing.

Myra's first ride along

2007-03-21T07:48:00.000-07:00

Our newest mechanic and I (Scott) went on an actual real mountain bike ride yesterday. We took our bikes up to Green Mountain for a quick and dirty loop. Our lungs were relieved to be out of the brown cloud, but quickly found the burn as we started up the winding forever climb. I always forget how long that climb is because I keep thinking it has about 6 turns before you get to the "top". No no... it has more like 14. We took Myra the shop dog on this ride, thinking she would appreciate a good long jog. We made it up to the top and began our fun descent. It seemed like Myra could keep going forever. Being that she is just a puppy, she started to get pretty pooped about 65% of the way through the ride. I let Brian take off like a bat out of hell and stayed back with Myra. She trooped it all the way back to the car without so much as a whimper. She did have to stop to play with a border collie, but otherwise she was focused. I thought bringing a dog on bike trips would be a lot more work, but she was purely pleasure for us. Once she gets older, I'm certain she will be leading the way instead of following behind. I look forward to more people joining us on our morning rides in the mountains. It is way more fun to ride in bigger groups.

Brian: GF Full Suspension
Scott: Giant Trance
Myra: 4 Paws

Greasy Seatposts and Stuck Seatposts

2007-03-01T06:46:00.000-08:00

We spent several hours over the course of several days on a young woman's aluminum seatpost that was chemically bonded to her steel frame because of a lack of lubricant between the two.

We first used the torque of our palms to get the post to spin. Because it was a cheap seatpost that was two pieces of aluminum temperature bonded, it broke off at the top. We then gave it a healthy dose of helper fluid to break the bond. The fact is that the bond was from the bottom of the post to the top. After about a 24 hour soak, we went back at it. This time we drilled a nice clean hole in the post in order to insert a piece of tooling steel in there to get some nice torque. 2 of us with cheater bars provided in the neighborhood of 800 lb/feet of torque (I'm guessing here) and the post literally shattered. Our next idea was to open up a channel to get the fluid further into the frame by using a saw blade to slide a channel into the post. After about 45 minutes of this tedious procession, we had made a small slit part of the way down. The post still did not budge. We let it rest for a while with loads of caustic fluid hopefully finding its way to the chemical bonds. Our next idea was to put a quill stem inside the post, tighten it down and hammer it out. We quite literally broke the stem in half attempting to hammer out the post. (Some laughter may be necessary here) Finally, we decided to try reaming out the post from the inside out. We were going to attempt to shave the post to nothing. After a few hours of removing small amounts of post we made a call to our custom frame builder, James from Blacksheep. He explained that we would be doing this for many many hours and it may not work quite as easily as we were imagining. We decided to let the customer decide whether she could afford our labor or if we needed to call the project done.

I have to say that the young woman was both sad and understanding. She immediately saw the bright side of the situation, that being that her next bike will be fully adjustable and will have a nice slippery seatpost.

By the way, she bought this bike at VeloSwap. Yet another word of warning about buying from an unknown source. Check to make sure the seatpost was greased.

Pedal Fetish?

2007-02-28T07:04:00.000-08:00

I love pedals. I cannot help it. I love looking at them. I love thinking about them. I love talking about them. I just love pedals.

I have a few pairs that I am most proud of...

1. I am most proud of my Brooklyn Machine Works Shinburgers. These are CNC'd out of solid aluminum to make your feel stick like clipless. Once, while I was jumping off of some stairs, I actually became unglued to the right pedal. As I came down full force, I felt a dull pain on my left shin. The kind of dull pain that smell like a hospital is in your future. The kind of pain that makes you forget everything around you. I rolled up my pants to see the damage. I leaned in for a good look and found a perfect pyramid indentation about 3 cm deep right where the pedal had gone in... to my shinguard... I still got a nasty bruise and bragging rights.

2. My second favorite pedals are my old school Atomic Lab Trail Pimps. They are super thin and beautiful. I love looking at them and I love getting hurt riding them. My best injury with these pedals came when I was waiting on my sidewalk for my friend Evan to show up so we could get really really hurt. When he showed up, I was laying down holding my shin sort of laughing. I had been trying to be a trials rider on my bmx bike and had slipped. The pedal shaved a wide thick chuck of skin off of my shin and it was hanging from my pedal. I should've taken a picture because it could be its own website.

3. My last, but still favorite pedals aren't original or different, but I still love them. It is the Crank Brothers Mallets. I just love the simplicity and the absolute usefulness of them. I don't have any great pedal related accidents with them and I plan on keeping it that way. I can pull up as hard as I want and not worry about rolling off the pedals. That is fun. Feels like I am running up the hill instead of doing lunges.

Well, it could be real. But...

2007-02-06T06:49:00.000-08:00

Hyperbike

I get it, I just don't really get it. My brother sent me this link and I looked all over the web and it appears as if this is a real thing. However, I feel a little offended by its assumptions and accusations.

Here goes with my re-"but..."-L's:
But, my seat doesn't actually hurt me, because my bike is set up so there isn't any pressure on my crotch, and certainly no junk ripping harness when I fall.
But, I can get going as fast as you do on your video on my mountain bike with big tires.
But, I can't lift it up into my apartment
But, where do I get parts? Tires? Service?
But, I like that bikes can go pretty much anywhere

Okay, I'd still love to ride one and see what it feels like. I'm a sucker for 2 wheels and gears.

More Links:
Official Hyperbike Site
Hyperbike Video or something

Chomping at the Bit

2007-01-27T05:29:00.000-08:00

We at Salvagetti are dying to ride. We feel pain in our bones that aches through to our hearts. We know summer is coming, but riding through the winter makes all the cold blues go away. Makes them (oh lord don't say it...) melt.

We at Salvagetti want warmth, and this winter has changed our definition of warmth. We want 40 degree weather or I'd even take some 38 degree days, but this 37 days (so far) of cold and snow and ice has lost its luster. Yes, it was nice a few days this week, but there is still ice on 11th and 12th that makes riding it border line stupid. We've had to ride it, but it doesn't make it okay.

We at Salvagetti want you to think warm with us. Ready???
- Cold beer sounds delicious
- Smell of sun tan oil is not good, but reminds you of warm days
- Plant that garden with lots of squash
- RIDE! RIDE! RIDE!

We thank you! See you soon.

Shop Dog, Shop Dog, Shop Dog

2007-01-10T07:41:00.000-08:00

We are getting a shop dog!

Her name is Myra. She is a vizsla. Today she is 48 days old. That means we still have a few days before we can get her and then a few more days before we have her in the shop. Then, she will be there almost every single day we are open. Please come by and say hello to her when you get a chance.

When she is full grown, she will be about 45 lbs and tough as nails, except she will also be sweet. She will be able to ride a bike by the time she is 1 year old and we will be entering her in cross country races (most likely the Winter Park Series) by the time she is 1 and a half. She has to earn her keep if she wants to get free bike stuff for life.

Helmets make death optional

2007-01-10T07:29:00.000-08:00

I heard another great I-had-a-helmet-on-and-it-saved-my-life story:

One of the messengers in Downtown Denver had to work in the gross frozen yet still wet web of streets this past storm (Dec 2006). He had the few days off of riding because the offices were shut down and there was no reason to have bike messengers running around. So back to work, ice is on the sidewalks, on lamp posts, on roads, on cars, on EVERYTHING. This guy is just feeling proud to be able to stay upright on his bike with all the ice and idiots on the road. He gets a call to a place on Broadway that has all sorts of weird architecture going on. He locks up his bike and is walking toward the front door when he gets smacked on the top of his head in an apparent death blow style chomp by an entire windows worth of sheet ice. His lump of foam in plasic saved his life while he was walking. I guess he should be glad he is comfortable in it.

Bringing it all back home

2007-01-05T09:04:00.000-08:00

We have had a guilty conscience for not having a great selection of steel bicycles for sale here. So, we started researching companies and steel bikes in general. Steel is such a great material for bikes, you have to wonder why companies went elsewhere. People follow what the latest trend is.

But, our customers are different. They expect us to provide an experience with cycling. And that is why we have decided to bring in Jamis bicycles (http://www.jamisbikes.com). Jamis is one of the last big cycling companies to still be individually owned. When you start researching companies that seem to be independant (Gary Fisher is an obvious example), you will find that they are owned by Trek. (Trek also owns Bontrager, Rolf, Lemond, and Klein (all last names...)). The small company gets to refine its product to specific people. We think they made their bikes for Denver.

Soon enough, we will detail all the bikes we are bringing in on our website. Almost all of them are steel. All of them are cool.

Built by Scott for Scott

2006-12-14T17:53:00.000-08:00

Scott, the owner, built his first ever bike frame! It is made of butted steel and lugs, silver and brass. The frame has a 60cm top tube and seat tube and horizontal drops.It was designed by Chris from Generic Cycles, with Scott yelling all the while in the background to move this here and change that there, until... they came to an agreement about the geometry with a given fork (a carbon wrapped Cheapy).

Next thing you know the tubes are getting cut and filed, the lugs cleaned up and thinned and shaped. The jig that was used is a Blacksheep cycles exclusive that is easy to set up and maintain. After a few tweeks to the tubes, lugs, fork ends and jig brazing began.

Scott's minimal experience with a torch was seen immediately, hence the spots of extra silver here and there all over the lugs. The secret is to be good at welding apparently, which comes with practice.

After a few hours of fluxing and brazing, laughing and staring, there was a completed bicycle frame of a tiny bit over 4 lbs. What a breath-taking sight, a frame made by an amateur.

Anyways, once Scott gets off his high horse and builds up the bike, maybe he'll let you ride it. But, only after you sign a waiver...

The Taste of Dirt

2006-11-25T07:04:00.000-08:00

I remember the first time by brother really actually hurt me. We were playing catch with a tennis ball and he got very confident that I could catch anything he threw at me, so he launched one. I got hit in the nose. So hard, that it just fell cold and blood started gushing out of both nostrils. His immediate response was to *sort of* compliment me by telling me how cool it was to get a double bloody nose. I have to say, I felt pretty proud of it; even though it hurt like crazy. And I went to tell my mom on him.

The taste of dirt was on my nephew's lips on Thanksgiving. We went to the Lake Arbor dirt jumps. He doesn't know what to be scared of yet and he sure did rip through several jumps for about an hour. Then comfort set in... and.... POW! His bars turned to the side on a landing and his face stopped him from skidding. I watched his head bounce on the ground (with his helmet) and the pause before the scream. I tried to pull the complimentary comment out: "That was a great wreck! Wow, I'm impressed!". Aidan looks at me with dirt on his mouth, a little bit of tears and lots of rage in his eyes and says exactly what I first thought when I had a double-bloody-nose. "I DON'T CARE!".

He got back on the bike within 10 minutes and was doing the same jump within the half hour.

"Gotta get back on the horse"

Aidan: Giant STP 125
Carl: Bridgestone MB4
Andres: Mountain Cycle Hardtail
Scott: Brooklyn Park Bike

Three Sisters walk into a bar

2006-11-20T14:18:00.000-08:00

We rode Three Sisters today. Everyone wrecked atleast once. Everyone will be sore tomorrow. And everyone ate too much food afterwards. It was a blast. I can now endorse the follow items whole heartedly: 1) The Giant Trance (Holy Crap) 2. Adidas El Moro Shoes #3 Rock Shox Reba 100mm (Zero Problems) 4. Chickening out of hairy sections (5) The Louis Garneau Gemini Jacket (Just right on everything).

Please enjoy the photos and come along on the next ride.

The Race I Want

2006-11-16T20:15:00.000-08:00

I want there to be a new kind of race. It will be a race to not make cycling companies more money, but to have the cycling companies make better bikes. I want a race that will be fun for everyone involved. It will have a little mystery and a little flair. Here goes:

Racers gather at a destination with a properly tuned bike and tires selected. This is where the race gets different. They don't know what kind of race it will be. It could be road followed by a downhill course. It could be a short track cyclocross style course followed by an uphill scramble. There should be 4 or 5 different variations, but only 2 used. Perhaps, even the list of events could change. Maybe for the final race of the series, you just have one event. Or maybe all of them! Fun.

The reason this could draw some attention is because the cycling giants that be would have to produce a bicycle that could work on the road, in the mud, on downhill rock gardens, in the air, etc. The industry needs the specialization to keep it going financially. This would be the jack of all trades bike. It would change the whole market if it were successful.

My prediction about the winning bike would be this: 29" wheels, front suspension, maybe a soft tail. Tires would be somewhat tacky, mostly slick. Super light tough wheels, probably Mavics, and the rest doesn't make enough difference to comment on.

I hope this race happens someday. Maybe I will have to put it on.

Denver Film Cycle

2006-11-10T07:22:00.000-08:00

I should've posted this a long time ago. Sorry DFC...

There is a film festival today and tomorrow in Denver specifically for bicycles. Pretty cool idea from some great people. If you are interested in finding out more, go to http://www.eleventooth.com/dfc.html. Lots of good stuff happening. I will be speaking on the physical happenings of a wheel at 6:30 on Saturday in the Science Building.

I believe this is going to be an overwhelming success and there will be more people than seat by a 3 to 1 margin. All of this goes to benefit the Derailer cycle co-op. Derailer is a bunch of kids doing the right thing and getting pushed around by the man (mostly because the man is cross-eyed and gun happy)

See you there.

29ers 29ers 29ers

2006-11-09T07:17:00.000-08:00

This may be an obvious post, but I want people to know about this.
29ers are 700c mountain bikes. The tires would be like 700x60s. Big tires. Big rims.
The 29er technology is finally catching up to the frame builders who reached their stride really quickly. If you haven't ridden a 29er in the mountains, you need to.
Advantages:
They roll over things more easily.
The foot print that the larger tire makes is much larger (25% and up)
Climbing is easier because of the last 2 listed
Because of the size of the tires and wheels, suspension is much less necessary for the rough stuff.

Disadvantages:
Still not much of a selection on tires and forks
In tight singletrack techy sections, you may find you need to go slower to clear quick turns.

All in all, if you are over 5'7" you may be a candidate to go faster with less effort. We are getting in Kona Unit 29ers for demo and I would love to show off the ti black sheep that gets parked at the shop. We believe that if you go on a familiar trail that is not ski lift style, you will go faster. The builder for Black Sheep went about 15% faster on his favorite loop in Fort Collins, on his first ever 29er ride. That was enough for me to be impressed.

Favorite 29 tires: Maxxis Ignitor
Favorite 29 frames: Black Sheep
Favorite 29 rims: Salsa Delgados (I hear rumors of Mavic soon...)
Favorite 29 fork: Black Sheep (lots of healthy flex)

Have fun. Go ride.

Snowy Ride in Buffalo Creek

2006-10-31T09:08:00.000-08:00

3 of us went to Buffalo Creek because we *heard* it was dry... it wasn't.
As we drove up, we realized that the insider info was wrong. Lots of snow.

(This was the first ride on the new demo fleet of Giant Anthems)

We parked at the ranger station and started our climb. On the for road up, there was a bunch of puddles that were coated with ice. The fire road soon turned to ice and snow. Not the easiest climb I've experienced. The bike was fish tailing all over the place. We finally found the entrance to the trail. It was a hike of about 200 yards in snow at least a foot deep to get to a ridable place. For about 6 miles, that was what we faced. Sections of snow that we hiked and sections of sort-of-trail that we rode. Both Chris and Scott flipped over the bars twice during the ride. Both times landing in snow with a large eruption of laughter. No broken bones or bikes, just bruises. The descent was decent. We all got really wet and muddy which was fantastic. At the bottom of the ride where we had crossed over from puddles to ice, we stopped and defrosted our frozen feet in the sun. After a good 15 minutes we were refreshed and warm, so we moved on. The last section of the trail was a little tiny loop before the car. It was easily the fastest most fun part of the day. Lots of scary icy and snowy turns with pine straw for added uncertainty. Fun fun fun stuff.

Dave - Surly Cross check
Chris - BlackSheep FS Ti
Scott - Giant Anthem (1st ride with)

Researching a bike

2006-10-29T06:31:00.000-08:00

Mountain bikes are starting to sell again. Mostly because people are buying more than one bike for different riding. They are starting to follow a trend toward simplicity on one side and over complexity on the other side. Examples are single speed 29ers and Santa Cruz's Virtual Pivot Point (VPP). These two machines can be compared only a little and contrasted everywhere. The main thing that they have in common is that given the right person on the right size, these bikes are FUN. People are getting so caught up in the technology and weight and over-toughness that they are losing sight of the thing that matters: riding the bike. My advice to those who are considering a fully rigid bike because it appeals to you is to ride one. See what you think. The same goes for people who want suspension. Go ride one. What will happen is what I call the "at home factor". If the bike feels at home, you will enjoy riding it. If it doesn't feel right, you will not enjoy it. You cannot expect to have the feeling of "at home on a bike" if you have not ridden many bikes. My advice to the new rider is pick out 3 bikes that appeal to your sense of what a bike should be and go try it. Buy the one that feels the *most* at home so that you will have a great bike to start with. When you are ready to buy a new bike in a few seasons, you will have defined your needs and wants because you will have a vocabulary of what you like and don't like. And all that time in between you will be having a blast without doing all that insane research. Research what trails you want to explore instead. Look up the trail photos on Google Image Search.

Evergreen Ride - Wine vs. Whine

2006-10-26T22:17:00.000-07:00

We set out to ride in Evergreen at a reasonable hour and it was damn cold in Denver. I wore some nice wool socks and heavy cycling shoes to keep the toes warm. The rest was layered up and I brought 2 pair of gloves so I would comfortable no matter what the weather. As soon as we arrived in Evergreen, it was obvious that we had all over dressed for the occasion. I was able to get down to shorts (with diaper) and a lightweight wool jersey, but the feet would have to stay warm.
So, we set out to ride and within one mile Dave lost his chain. We tried several things, but it was actually broken, so rigging it was out. He has lived in Evergreen, so we left him to walk back into town with an agreement that we would meet him at Creekside Winery. We continued on our way. Not more than 15 minutes later, Andres broke his chain clean in half. We got him up and running, but decided that something wasn't right with the world... something was just weird. So we carefully rode for another 8 or so miles up and down around Three Sisters and found our way downtown.
We were met by the staff of Creekside Winery and they showed us where Dave was. Somehow, the owner knew that we were having a rough day, so he talked us into having lunch. They seated us out on the deck right beside the creek. We ordered a bottle of wine and some amazing sandwiches. The butternut squash soup was exactly what was needed for all of us to come out of our funk. If you are in the Evergreen area, make sure you go by Creekside Winery for lunch and some wine. Thank you to the staff and cooks for such a day saving meal.
Andres - Mountain Cycle - broken chain
Chris LGB - Black Sheep Full Suspension - Actually feeling sluggish
Dave - Fixed Surly Cross Check - broken chain
Scott - Black Sheep SS 29er - Hot Feet

Snow Bike

2006-10-16T08:12:00.000-07:00

I think I am going to set up my Kona 2-4 as the ultimate city snow bike. The bars are already wide and high like I want, but I am going to put on a 24x3.0 tire on the front and something with paddles that is light on the back. This way, I will be able to skid at my leisure, while still maintaining a line of my choice with the ridiculous footprint of the huge front. The bike only has a rear brake, so ice is not negotiable. I just plan on falling when there is ice on the road. My commute has seen 1 patch of ice in a couple of years.

I did, on this Kona 2-4, fall nicely in a patch of ice that was an intersection close to Denver Univ. I was sliding comfortable and silently and knew I would be out of control for atleast another 30 feet when I saw a car coming up from the side. They slammed on the brakes and started to slide quietly toward me steering into the skid as they are supposed to. We smoothly got closer and closer and finally I found a spot to dig into and we missed each other. I didn't have any adrenaline for about 3 minutes, but then it dumped. This won't happen this year, because I'm going for the huge tire.

Toes-Tea

2006-10-10T07:57:00.000-07:00

5 of us set out to ride on the 9th of OCT. We knew it was going to be cold. Hah.

We decided on Golden Gate Canyon State Park and left at 7:30am from Metropolis Coffee. The temp in Denver was around 42 when we left. It was misting on the way up to the trail, but nothing major. It seemed to be around 35 to 40 degrees outside. We had prepared well. All of us had on lots of layers. I personally went for 2 layers of wool on top with a wind/rain layer on the outside. I wore long cycling pants with short on over them, and shin guards for fun. We headed out only to find that it was too much clothing. I shedded a few items here and there after the first long climb, mostly to protect against sweating a great deal (don't want it to freeze). We continued to climb up lots of beautiful singletrack until it finally turned back down. I think this is when it started to snow/sleet lightly. It was absolutely beautiful. We all kept commenting about how quiet and perfect it was. As we approached the top of Windy Peak, it began snowing big flakes. BIG ONES. On October 9th! It was nice since we were all warm enough. Then we started getting cold.

We all cycled through losing feeling in different parts of our bodies, mostly extremeties. This all changed as we got into the creek crossing section of the trail. Lots of water on airy cold feet meant that I started seeing ice on my shoes. Not too good. From the last creek crossing was a really long climb on jeep trails with stumps for feet. We all agreed that it was good timing, cause we did warm up for the most part. We finished up on the road because we had some mechanical problems.

We all thawed out on the way back to Denver.
All in all it was a great ride. Hard to explain why, but it was amazing.

Dave - Surly Fixed Mountain - Surly Steel Bars
LGB - Black Sheep F/S - Push Fox parts
Greg - Indie Fab F/S - Sqwarshy
Danny - Giant Trance - Whored out as usual
Scott - Black Sheep SS - Boing

Car Run Ins

2006-10-07T17:43:00.000-07:00

Everyone has them. My latest was really great:

On my commute home, I roll through Capital Hill up 12th Ave. I always take a lane, because there isn't another safe choice.

On this early evening, I was stopped at a light waiting for it to turn and the car behind me honked its horn. I thought they knew me or someone else around, so I just looked quickly and continued my commute. They rolled up behind me again and honked again. Being that I haven't slowed this car down at all (by taking my advance greens when i get them) I decided to see who this person was and if they knew me. I got up the the passenger window and leaned down to look in. It was some college kid with his mom driving. I was alarmed to say the least. What good mom in their right mind puts a cyclist at risk (hahaha)? Here is the exchange:
Me: "What's going on?" (still polite)
Boy: "You need to scoot over!" (NOT POLITE) (Mom is afraid and will not look at me)
Me: "Haha. No. I can't" (about to not be polite)
Boy: "You need to be over to the right so cars can pass you" (STILL NOT POLITE)
Me: "No no no. See? The problem is that there are inconsiderate people like yourself who will not look before they open their doors and I will be hit. Have you ever ridden a bike in Denver?" (OK, now not polite)
Boy: "Yes, I live on Capital Hill" (SNOTTY)
The light turned green and mom peeled out of there. I followed them and actually parked before they did. But, since being diplomatic is a practiced art, I left them alone.

I am still taking a lane. I am pretty proud that I didn't do what my imagination forged from stupid person adrenaline.

Someone needs to start a website to report MEAN driving to others. Submit pictures, a story and see what happens. http://www.yousuckbadasadriverandnowicandosomethingaboutit.com

Aidan's Bike

2006-10-06T07:35:00.000-07:00

Salvagetti picked up Giant for 2006/7 a few weeks ago.
I finally got the chance to give my nephew his bike. It is a 2007 STP 125. This is a great kids bike. The parts are perfect for a kid who is really going to beat up a bike. A real suspension fork that actually works under a 50 lb rider. The brakes are just right. The frame is way overbuilt and still very attractive. Then you start to take a closer look at the parts...

The stem is an oversized 31.8mm attached to a super tough alloy bar.
The saddle is the 8mm dirt jump kind, just because Giant can.
They spec'd Kenda K-Rad tires.
And lastly, they put on a full on legitimate chain guide on the chainring.

With this kind of detail in a kid's bike, I can hardly wait to see what they are going to come out with in their adult mountain and road bikes. As bikes arrive, we will update the website as we know what, where, how, when, but we all (already) know why.

Nederland can snap your bars

2006-10-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

Woke up at 4:30am. Had coffee.
Rode to bus only to miss it by 1 minute. Dave was waiting there for me.
Chris showed up. I was still not awake. Not even close.
...
Got to Nederland and had coffee at Happy Trails (the big caboose near the bus stop). If you are in Ned and don't go to the caboose, you are missing out. Their bike shop is great too. Randy is a top notch guy.

Went to the "high school trails". I don't know my way around up there, but I can tell you, we went right a lot of times. The trails were in perfect shape. My only whiny pants complaint is that it was a little bit chilly; God bless arm warmers. We rode up and down through aspen-leaf -carpet-tight singletrack. It felt like a movie; it felt insane and great. Even the dirt roads were fun. All of the climbs were doable, some much tougher than others, but all could be cleared. I'm not saying I cleared all of them, but I will.

THE STORY GETS GRIM.

Our general direction was the southeast side of Ned heading toward Boulder. We started down a county road that was washed out from recent rains. Long sections were washboards. I almost lost my hands several times, because I was trying to let the tires and fork do what they needed to do to clear. We took a hard right and were all together talking. It got steep again and we got aero to coast as fast as possible. Chris and I usually have bursts that are a little faster than Dave, so we got ahead. We stopped at the next major turn and waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. We turned back to see what was up. We rode back about 3/4 mile to find Dave walking his bike. He was holding himself funny from a distance and was definitely limping. As we got closer, we could see his pants were BLOODY. Closer, we could see his left shoulder was covered with some nice dirt. Closer, we could see his handlebar was broken in half. Chills. Absolute sick feelings. Dave was riding through those same washboards that I almost lost control on. He was going very fast and his bars SNAPPED. "Pow!" was what Dave heard, then he was sent tumbling. He cracked his helmet and cut his forehead... but he remembers everything.

I ran to a house right next to where we were. A young woman named Pamela (thank you again, you are great) ended up driving us all back down to Nederland to go the the medical clinic there. The clinic snuck Dave in very quickly and bandaged him up. Dave is one of the toughest people I can think of and I saw him wince a few times in pain. They ended up having to remove a chunk of skin so that his knee would heal properly, but no stitches.

So, we went back out riding. Just kidding.

We headed home on the N bus, to catch the B bus.

What a day. Hope you feel better Dave!

Chris: Black Sheep full suspension Ti - Push industries upgrades
Dave: Surly Cross Check - nerded out to no end
Scott: Black Sheep SS 29er - silly light, cheap parts

Las Vegas and How

2006-09-28T15:37:00.000-07:00

Vegas is exhausting.
Interbike is insane.

I have seen every production bike and part made for the US consumers to look at. It took miles of walking and lots of talking, but I feel pretty complete. The two companies that are making perfect stuff for Denver, in my opinion are:
Serfas - lots of new stuff coming for commuters and cyclists in general. They are bringing out lights for seeing, new pumps that can take lots of abuse and easy to use gloves that will save the famous ulna nerve.
Giant - so many nice bikes that fit the front range. I'll detail them on the website as it gets updated.

We are working on getting more Serfas in as soon as possible.

Awful and funny story, made as short as possible:
Smooth Marble and Split Pea Soup by Scott T.

I got off the bus at my stop to go back to the Golden Nugget (FANNNNCCY!!) and watched a woman, who was about 80, slip and fall. She fell like a person having a chair pulled out from under them. I mean this lady fell hard. HARD! She landed right on her arm. I and a few others ran over to help her up. She was absolutely fine. But, she had slipped on someone's vomit. I still haven't laughed yet. Oh, there I go.

Helmets

2006-09-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

Why I wear a helmet. By Scott T.

I owned a Surly Steamroller (59cm), in baked bean brown a few years ago. Everytime out was an adventure of some kind. I set out one evening at around dusk on my bike to go get groceries. By the way, I was living in Cary, NC at the time. (You can laugh if you want. It was a good place to catch my breath.) Anyways, I was riding in the middle of my lane on a 4 lane road. I wasn't going particularly fast or slow, just cruising. I'm very good about watching for people turning and ignoring, so street accidents are a rarity for me. A tow truck swerved abruptly. Crossed in front of me. I swerved abruptly toward it. Both of us turned left sharply. I missed the side of the tow truck by about 6 inches. It would have killed me. I almost puked immediately. I made it to the grocery store and stayed there for about 2 hours wandering around feeling the adrenaline. I bought a helmet the next day. I love helmets. I swear by helmets.

Wheel Builds

2006-09-22T06:55:00.000-07:00

I get to build the most expensive *front* wheel I have ever built today. It is a disk brake compatible generator front hub from Schmidt (a German company that you can check out at Peter White Cycles) laced up to a Mavic X717 Disc Rim, black double butted DT spokes. Ironically, this is the matching wheel to the most expensive rear wheel I have built: Rohloff to X717. Total value of wheel set is approaching $2k. These wheels are completely off-road touring specific, and so far the customer loves them.

The lights that are to be used with the Schmidt hub are obscenely bright. One of my favorite stories about these lights is a customer/friend of mine who set up this system on a Heron for long rides. He set off for a night ride and went to Washington Park for a nice long spin. Everywhere we rode around, people acted like they were caught by the cops. They thought he was on a silect motorcycle. This guy is a retired officer, so he laughs everytime it gets brought up. Great stuff.

I'm a duck

2006-09-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

It is raining this morning which means I'll be dressing a little smarter than normal. When it has been weird outside, like today, I've been wearing the lightest merino pieces I have and then wearing a hoody over them. I don't like looking techie when I am going on my commute. The weather in Denver is so up and down that I've been trying all sorts of combos to see what helps me regulate my temp the best. So far, it is merino with some sort of relatively breathable material over it.

I'm thinking about moving my Xtracycle over to this beautiful red Bridgestone MB-3 frameset I was given. It is a bit more my size(19"), plus I have a front rack like no other for the rigid fork. It is damn tough looking; it will hold 75lbs. easy. That means I can carry about 275 with my bike-truck. The only reason I don't want to is because I don't want to make it impossible for "shorter" people to ride it. I'm 6' and it is still totally functional. Maybe I need a fleet of these bad boys for people to borrow. I'll work on that.

Xtracycle and Good news

2006-09-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

I used the xtracycle yesterday morning to move several hundred pounds of bricks to the shop. I was carrying about 100 lbs per trip. Under that kind of load, the bike does funny things. It feels like someone sitting on the back is swaying to a slow song that they really really like. Anyways, it was kind of depressing to see how small of an area 100 lbs of bricks will cover. Danny later came in with this truck and we moved the remaining 500ish pounds.

I love the Xtracycle. In a no pedaling race, I can get so aero that I can beat most anyone. I just sit on the wooden platform and go superman.

By the way, the Xtracycle is available for borrow if someone needs it for grocery shopping, moving, weddings, etc.

We heard more good news from Giant times 2. I can only tell one of them: we are listed on the giant website. When you search Denver, CO, Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop comes up first. Yeah! We don't have the bikes yet, but this is a good sign that they are on their way.

Cool off plus Interbike

2006-09-19T06:45:00.000-07:00

It got damn cold. Glove cold.

We still have not received the Giants yet, though we did get the 2007 catalog. I see atleast 2 bikes that I *must* own. By the way my stomach dropped when I saw them, I am getting an OCR C1 (or C0). The debate is still out on which MTN bike I want, but the Reign X0 looks like my push-up-hills-cause-i'm-too-lazy-to-climb-but-not-too-lazy-to-decend bike. It might climb though. I'm not terribly skilled, having fun while riding is my strong point. Not too fast uphill, and I'm clum-zay going downhill. I will make up for my weakness through my purchase.

Interbike is a week away. I'm excited about seeing the new 29er stuff, specifically the tires and rims... the frames are all going to end up the same eventually. I will do my best to update the website (http://www.salvagetti.com) and here with new and interesting stuff. I get to play at the dirt demo on Tuesday and will be at the show for the rest of the time. I hope to nail down some great lines for 2007, but I'll have to wait to tell you exactly who it is.

Go Bike Go!

2006-08-29T07:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Scott and Chris went to Elk Meadow for some easy-fast-fun riding. The trail was perfect on the way in, with exception to the gentlemen who were *killing us* by going slowly up the climbs. The singletrack through the trees reminded me of times when I have been in a car with someone who was going too fast for conditions. Except that Chris was whooping it up loudly and Scott was smiling ear to ear, far from hanging on for dear life. Scott endo'd when he saw a "huge red fox", but otherwise, no good crashes to speak of. The whole time, rain was trying its best to fall, but to no avail. Until we got to a clearing at the top of Too Long trail. The clouds unzipped and pow! Rain, followed by hail, followed by lightening. We obviously turned around since lightening is a no second chances hazard. On the way back down, we let it all hang out. We were definitely pushing on the too fast for conditions line. We made it back unscathed and soaked. It was one of the most fun rides I have been on in recent memory.

Scott's bike: Brooklyn Machine Works Park bike, fox fork, singlespeed 26"/24"
Chris's bike: Black Sheep Full Suspension Ti, Fox suspension (w/Push inside), 27 speeds

And lastly...
We are placing our very first order with Giant Bicycles today. It will be a momentus occasion for Salvagetti to receive these bikes. I have my eye on several of the 2007 mountain bikes.

Thanks for reading,

Scott T.