Snow tells the story

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Reviews in Review

I took a good look at my reviews of 2011, and although I stick to my ratings for the wast majority of the reviews, there was a few adjustment I would like to make. Take a look at what, and why;

661 Kyle Strait vs Fox Launch Pad Pro
I decided to up the score for the Fox Launch Pad Pro, more specifically, the score for its Durability. Ive had these pads for a long time now, and they show very few signs of wear, my 661 pads where in a world of pain at this time.
Check out the revised review here


Michelin Wild Rock'R 2.25"

Its big, durable, rolls easy, and hooks up very good, install it onto the front or rear, this tire will work either way. The fact that its relatively cheap is only adding to the score. GREAT All Mountain tire, that deserves a mark up in its total score, landing it a 6/6. Great job Michelin.

Check out the revised review here


Kenda Excavator 2.35"
One man's rise, is another man's fall. This tire is inferior to the Michelin Wild Rock'R mentioned above. Score is now reflecting that.
Check out the revised review here

January riding

Had a few rides recently, weather has been fine, and the motivation has been high. Im really excited about the new lines that slowly materialize on my favorite trails. This post however show some of the "old" lines - still a bag of fun tho : )

Being used to a bit less techy sections, Henning had a good challenge this day, here he fights a steep, sandy and rooty descend.
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Its been a while since I last rode this stepdown, I actually forgot how fun it really is, and im still just riding it conservatively, there is great air-potential here.

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Turning mid air fun

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Poor camera placement of the day

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You are doing it wrong!! Video will be posted by popular demand : )
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Gear update

Thought Idd do a small gear update. Lets start of with the bike itself;

Finally, the bike is dialed the way I want it. Would love to push the limits of this bike, but its so capable that I probably still have a long way to go. Fast and playfull, and so mush fun to ride!

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I wasn't completely satisfied by the performance of the RockShox Monarch RT3. So I send it off to TF tuned (think PUSH). And got it back a few weeks ago, and its just WOW! Pretty much every issue has been solved, and the shock is working better than ever.

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The Mavic CrossMax SX 2012 does a great job on my trails. I have no issues at all, just enjoying its great performance, stiff and light.

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I mentioned a sidewall rupture back in October 2011. My 2 year old Maxxis HighRoller finally gave in. I did an emergency fix with the  Parktool TB-2. Cool thing is that its still working like a charm, you can just barely spot the patch in this pic(white stuff).

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Speaking of tires, I got quite a surprise when I spottet this sidewall rupture on my Schwalbe Nobby Nic EVO tires. I don't see my trails as being particular hard on sidewalls, so to see such damage in just a month of use is a disappointment!

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Most WANTED gear of 2012

2011 was an awesome year for me gear-wise. I got myself a new frame, and alot of new stuff to install onto the frame. Most notable, besides the frame itself, has to be the RockShox Boxxer fork, and the 2 rear shocks from RockShox as well; an air and coil.

There is alot of new stuff for mountain bikers to get excited about, and 2012 is no different. I took a look at  whats interesting for 2012, and why you should keep an eye on it.

Cane Creek Double Barrel Air

Why its hot:

Independent adjustment of high/low speed compression, and high/low speed rebound and naturally a spring rate adjust. This shock is the most adjustable shock on the market, and we like our adjustability. This could be the ONE shock you need for AM and beyond. Cane Creek has a great rep, so I have a feeling that they might just hit the sweet spot with this shock.. The Double Barrel should be available early 2012. 

KS LEV adjustable seatpost
Why its hot:

Im into the impressive reliability of the KS adjustable seatpost, im however not into the remote adjust system they had up until now. Im talking about the fact that the cable was situated at the top of the post, going up and down along the seatpost head, pretty much every adjustable seatpost manufacturer has this solution. Well KS is about to change that with its LEV post.

The cable is fixed in a stationary manner, at the bottom of the post. The new design will give a cleaner and more direct routing line to the seatpost, and will allow greater flexibility with different bicycle geometries and manufacturers, and hence, better cable management. No more cables rubbing the rear tire.

They are targeting a weight of around 460 grams, which is 100 grams lower then it’s predecessor, and it should be available in early 2012.

A Fox Float 36 KILLER Fork
Why its hot:

I really like my Fox Float 36, it has an amazing AM performance, but I would like to see a fork that can outdo it. Well to "kill" the Fox Float 36, 2 forks come to mind; first the RockShox - Lyrik RC2 DH. Take the praised RockShock Boxxer, shorten it to 170mm, make it single crown, and you got yourself a Lyrik RC2 DH. I want to test if all the hype about this fork is true, is it really better than a Fox 36 Float?

The second fork that might be up to the challenge is the BOS Deville. Pretty everyone who's been on this fork has nothing but positive things to say, and claims about it outperforming the Float 36 are often heard. BOS has a very solid background, and alot of allround praise backing them up, there might just be some truth to the claims.

Good leg armor

Why its hot:

While I havent found a good leg armor yet, I want it to be comfortable, and give me a proper protection. Thats not hard, is it? Well apparently it is..

Twenty6 Predator Pedals 2012
Why its hot:
Thin, large, lightweight, reliability, and the best pin system ive seen on the market.Want. They should be available in early 2012.

Recent riding

The weather has been a bit of a mixed bag. There has been sun, but showers of rain as well. Ive been riding it all. From xc to trail, to AM, and even some ligh FR sessioning. The bike is dialed, so im really enjoying myself. I shot some pics along the way, check it out.

Riding in sunny weather like this, at this time of the year is a true joy. Last year was a different story, and I keep reminding myself about that.

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More leaning, less, uhm, footing. Great little berm, that you can hit hard.

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Bringing a small grill to a ride is the besy idea since sliced bread : )

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Peter showed up on a all day xc trip with the most exotic "mountain" bike, youll never ride. Single speed with a 32x16 setup, 29'er wheels, platform pedals, and a curved handlebar. The cool part was that he did very well on this bike.

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The xc ride was somewhat refeshing, I was happy to see that I could outclimb (or at least keep up with) even the most tight spandex/lycra rider this day had to offer, they did however smoke my ass on the long xc-ish sections - but I can live with that. Mikael broke his shoulder, and Kim had a chance to spin his new xc ride seen below, its a Canyon Lux MR.

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I mentioned the new booster-drop a few posts back, and here it is in action. Scaling in at approx 1.6m (5.1 feet) if you simply roll into it. Its not big, but it does considerably boost your speed into a dual jump, that I hope to show you guys soon. Good stuff.

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