Stopped Sweating

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.