Monday, March 10, 2008

It's Done -- The New El Mariachi...

Fresh from the maiden voyage around the block...

17 comments:

Jason said...

Friggin' sweet!

MG said...

Thanks Jason!! It sure is! That fork is crazy good...

Jason said...

Interesting. You're one of the only folks I've seen with that fork. WIll be neat to get some feedback and compare to the Reba and Fox reports.

Matt McFee said...

Arrriba!

MG said...

It's crazy how sensitive the damping adjuster is. One click makes a big difference in the feel of the fork... but it's nice to have actual clicks to be able to know where you're at without looking down.

Wide open, it feels very smooth and stiction free. Two clicks in on the compression damper, it's pretty heavily damped. Four clicks in, you're basically locked out.

It'll take much more riding before I'm able to compare it apples-to-apples with a Reba, and I'll obviously have to obtain a Fox to be able to compare it head-to-head with that fork (which I hope to be able to do).

millhouse said...

Score!

debaser said...

I bet that would ride alright in Fruia.

Just sayin...

redstone said...

Hydraulic brakes Matt? :)

What are those, it's hard to tell in the pic?

Looks like a sweet ride, though. The color scheme will fit in nicely in your neck of the woods.

Guitar Ted said...

Wow! Very nice!

I really was impressed by the Minute forks I have demoed. Very plush and controlled travel quality.

What one do you have on there? 100mm travel?

Looks like a fun bike and I suspect we'll see it in the air with you aboard it soon. :>)

MG said...

Ding ding... Turkey's done!

Yep, it'll be sweet in Fruita. I'm in for sure. I've got a hall pass, 'cuz Laura's helping put on a wedding shower that weekend for her friend Angie. (yes, she's getting married)

You in for that trip Guitar Ted? If you can get to Lincoln, you can get to Fruita! Speaking of trip, how was your Texas adventure? I better go out to your blog and find out, 'eh? Oh the wonders of the Interweb...

Dave, the brakes are some old Hayes that I've had for a couple of years. Nothing new. You've seen 'em before. I ran them on my Dos last season. The front needs to be bled, it seems, because I can't get it to stop dragging. Hmmm...

It's funny, because the bike this bike reminds me the most of is the Bontrager RaceLite I raced in 1998... the bike I won the national on. That was a good bike. Not sure if it's the color, or the steel, or the Salsa stem, or the white panels, or the manitou fork, or what, but riding it, or even just sitting there looking at it, brings me back to my old Bontrager. Good memories...

Dave and Bryan, you both knew that bike well.

Millhouse, hope to see you on the MWC ride tonight. I'm a little under the weather with a cold today, so it's a little touch-and-go as to whether I'll be able to make it, but I'm gonna' try. I'd hate to miss the first shop ride of the year!!

Cheers,
MG

MG said...

Guitar Ted: Yeah, 100mm travel. Good eyes, and hopefully I'll be airin' it out for you sooner rather than later. ;-) Thanks for the kind words.

redstone said...

Yo dude. Brake drag is probably because of a stuck piston. Take the pads out and pump the brake a little so the pistons come out a bit. Be careful not to push them all the way out because that sucks. Anyway, when the pistons have quite a bit exposed, saturate them with White Lightning or Clean Streak. Push them back in, repump, redo the process. 9 times out of 10 that stops a stuck piston. Hope it helps...

MG said...

Nice! Thanks Davey!!! You're the best. I'll let you know how that works.

Josh said...

Looks good! I'll be interested to get your feedback on the Manitou, I'll be racing on one later this season.

Speaking of Fruita, I'm heading out there next Monday.

Will you be making an appearance at Spoke Pony (weather permitting)?

GNAT said...

MG, greetings from Taiwan.

Great to see it is done. Sad to see a torn apart Chili Con Crosso in the back ground. :(

I'm betting you will like the new ride. Can't wait to hear your feedback between the green one and the red one.

sda said...

i was gonna comment on that sad abandoned bike in the background as well ... but damn the new one looks sweeett!!!

MG said...

Thanks for all the posts!!

Josh, the Manitou is feelin' good. I'm still playing with air pressure, trying to get it to ramp up enough at the end of the travel to be progressive enough to not bottom when I compress it to jump, but not have to run too much compression damping to be spikey. I know there's a balance there, but I haven't totally found it yet. That said, I like the overall feel better than my Reba already. It's definitely very accurate, laterally.

BTW, Josh, have fun out in Fruita! I've been planning on hittin' the Spoke Pony, but I'm a bit touch-and-go at the moment. Gotta' see if my chest cold clears up enough to let me feel good about abusing my body for six hours... But you know I'm a sucker for punishment, so I'll probably see ya' down there. ;-)

gNAT, thanks for your note from half-way around the world! The ride report, complete with the comparison to 'ol Greenie' will be coming very soon. I gotta' say that I'm lovin' it so far though. It feels fast, and it handles tight. Good, very good. Beautiful too... Wait'll you see the pictures I shot of it last night before my ride. They're amazing. Thanks again for the support, my friend. And don't worry, the CCC will be a complete bike again soon. I've just got to get a right-side shift/brake lever for a drop bar -- it's going back to being a drop bar ride so my good buddy Brian can race it in the Dirty Kanza 200 (since I'll be on my Lucky La Cruz). That's the plan at least...

Thanks SDA! Lookin' forward to rippin' it up with you in Fruita soon.

Cheers,
MG