trek gary fisher x-cal 29er and my dads access Stealth Carbon 29er



and my interior bike rack i made

AHA! Found em here. Not sure you'll find them cheaper. If your bike has a through-axle like mine, you'll also need to get the adapter for that. A simple google search will find one cheaper than the $45 Thule one I have.

Also, I found the 1x6 in the Home Depot scrap bins for like $0.50

just picked up a Giant Talon 27.5 over the weekend. we installed a longer neck (130) because of how tall I am to help bring me down into a more comfortable riding position.

have a Thule hitch mounted rack on the way right now.

my 26" decided to take a bite out of the rear bumper this weekend as well

the photo of the bite on the bumper is before it took a 2nd one!

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my Kona Kula, custom built... it feels good to be back on a bike, i used to race back in the day when i was younger like 15-19yo in high school, but i got a real job and life took over, i occasionally rode my bike and a few years back had a bad crash, snapped the caliper of my fork, split the top tube and well that was that for my old kona mono mono FS XC bike... kona swapped me frames for the kula (i wanted the hard tail) so it was just a matter of new components. my raceface cranks i kept, along with my pedals and rear XT derailleur, my front wheels was suprisingly ok but my rear wheel was shot, so i upgraded that to a mavic tubless to match the front i already had, new RS reba 90-120mm fork, new shamano hydraulic discs...

its so nice to be back on two wheels, although for the first few days my ass was so sore, felt like i was in prison with a horse or something...

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Two weekends ago I finished my dual bike mount mod ......

Here's my old hardtail...I loved that thing. I still have it...and it has a lot of dust on it now. The dog is my recently passed trail buddy. That guy lived for trails.



This is my more current rig. I quit racing downhill a number of year ago after a bad crash...sold my DH-piggies, and built an all-mountain rig.



Haven't ridden much in the last few years...would love to get back out there...

been doing some reading, and those Kona's are nice looking rigs.

So here's my new bike, and the new Thule 2 back rack attached to my 4Runner ready to head out. Went out and did a little trail riding after work yesterday. It was a nice little ride for a first time on a trail with it. I think I'm gonna have fun on that new 27.5!

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submarinepirate...report back on that 650b. I am heading that direction. The trails and terrain I ride/race are more suited to a 26er (which is my current race platform) vs. a 29er. Never got on the 29er bandwagon. I am considering converting to a 650b. Ride report please!

Here is my current rig. Custom steel 26er. Build by Jonathan Greene in Oviedo, FL. Bike is so smooth and handles amazingly well. Went from an aluminum hardtail (Ventana) to this steel hardtail. Love it. The steel really smooths out all the chatter. After 4 or 5 hours in the saddle, I am not as fatigued. I race primarily endurance races and the aluminum just became to harsh. I also recently had my fork push'd by Push Industries. We set it up to the terrain and style of riding/racing I do. It is dialed for my weight and preferences. Man, what a huge difference. I highly recommend Push Industries. Should have done it a long time ago. Front of the bike is so much more planted and smooth. Best few hundred dollars I spent in a while.

Old pic of the Runner racked out from a few years ago. Had the Ventana at that time.

Cheers!

Guy

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Only a few miles on it so far, but I'm liking it a lot.

For me it was a similar issue, I have a 26 and wanted to get a new bike. Everyone was touting the idea of going 29, and I just didn't wanna do it. I wanted to keep the smaller turn radius of the 26. The 650 offers the rolling capabilities and speed of the 29er, but maintains the smaller turn radius and capabilities of the 26.

Did some road time with it, and got up to about 24mph at one point, which is good for me and a MTB. On the trails I rode yesterday it handled well. I'm anxious to get some more time in the saddle and a few more miles on her.

I raced XC before the evil ones converted me to DH...I destroyed my old Trek 8900 team edition by taking down a DH course. I switched to steelies after I got (and sold) my replacement frame from Trek. It was a short trip from there, converting to DH...but I never forget how nice the steel HT's were. FWIW; when i was in college, my boss dared me to enter a road race...told me he'd give me day off paid...if I'd enter a road race on my steel xc bike with 2.1 knobbies. I did it. Over 300 racers. Came in 7th.

*to be fair...at that time, I was clocking 100 miles per week off road...on black diamond XC trails.

Bought a Giant Talon 0 29er back in April. Haven't done much to it other than swapped to the Maxxis tires with a tubeless conversion. Only gotten to ride it a handful of times but I love it. Had a Trek 4300 before and it was a total piece of crap.

Does owning a mountain bike make me a mountain biker? Probably not becuase owning golf clubs doesn't make me a 'golfer'.

Santa Cruz Blur LT, second gen. 26". vpp design works great. Excellent all around design. It works well as a cross country rig, more technical stuff, even downhill. If I had the money to buy any bike I'd get a Santa Cruz Carbon Tallboy 29".

I ride, but haven't in about 12 months. Planning on getting back into this Fall. Have '03 GT Avalanche 2.0 and a 99 Limited. I know I am rolling old school, but I am really pleased with both. I will replace the bike before I replace 4Runner.

So cool to see all these fat tire bikes on/in 4Runners. I ride 2 or 3 times a week, and I almost always see a 4Runner in the trailhead parking lot.

If any of you guys find yourself coming through/to Alabama and are looking for a place to ride, I have a website with links to trail information: Trails - Mountain Bike Alabama
We have some great riding here, including the IMBA Epic rated Oak Mountain trail system in Birmingham and the new Coldwater Mountain IMBA project in Anniston: