My Fast says, “It IS about the Bike”

Ok you Lance Armstrong lemmings please don’t pummel me but sometimes it IS about the bike. Think about this: a great engine will only get you so far. For example, if you have 450hp engine in a Ford Fiesta running on Wal-Mart retread tires it does not matter how much horsepower you have: you are never going to win a race against a Porsche Carrera.

Friday, I was very fortunate to purchase my new mountain bike for the race season. Take a look at my new, sweet ride. It is a Titus RacerX with Avid Juicy Carbon Disc brakes, SRAM X.0 trigger shifters, Mavic Crossmax SLs, Fox Float RP3 rear shock, and a cool Manitou R7 SPV squashed caterpillar green colored front shock. All weekend I played on some fast, fun trails. The new bike is wicked responsive compared to my trusty five year old well-ridden Giant NRS1, which creaks and rattles like the old Paragon Park wooden roller coaster in Nantasket Beach, but still holds air in the severely dented tubeless rims.

Saturday we went to Sagebrush to pre-ride the race course for next weekend’s race with teammates Chrissy and Denton. The course reminded me of many trails I have been on in Moab, Utah – sandy with some slick rock and minor technical sections. However, we did ride on a lot more pavement than I would have liked. Apparently one of the major climbs that used to be a fire road is now paved. But the descent afterwards is swooping fast. I got lost in banking turns and pedaling through the downhill technical sections. I came out with a big grin on my face. It was the first time I have ridden a new bike without something falling off or breaking on the inaugural ride.

Today, Sunday, we took off for Rocky Peak in Simi Valley with local pro, Dorothy Wong, who knows everyone and anyone in the Southern California bike scene and friend JL. So what if my legs were a little toasty from yesterday’s ride. I was a kid in a candy store. I was having a blast. We climbed, climbed and climbed. It was well-worth the effort for the fun descent on the homestretch. I was riding over technical sections with ease that others had to walk. Nothing like a new bike to inject me with a dose of downhill mojo - now I am ready for the mountain bike race season that starts in just seven days!