And now for something return more to the roots of this site:



Edit: Originally linked one was removed, updated with working copy.

Something that wasn't mentioned was the other new toy the below photos were taken on - a brand new shiny Canon EOS 450D. Using the same lenses we cart around for use with the 40D, this one's a slightly higher resolution, but slower framerate, lighter but not as durable body, and cheaper but not as featured overall.

It'll be nice to play around with - it'll be coming along to the You Yangs with me tomorrow to maybe take some snaps after the race; at the same time Stephem may head out to Beaconsfield solo to take snaps of the Dirt Riders Winter Series race.

Tomorrow, a somewhat new toy will be getting its first outing. It's not truly a new toy - the frame, fork, shock, wheelset and brakes have remained the same, but everything else is new. I present to you the latest experiment, an Anthem 1 decked out in SRAM X9 gear.





Tomorrow is the third round of the GMBC Winter Series, which will in fact be the first time this bike ever gets ridden in this radically changed geometry and drivetrain configuration, so it'll be interesting. 3.5 inches of travel should perfectly suit the You Yangs downhills though, with the suspension set up in a very plush configuration at the moment - Maxxis ADvantage front and rear should be the right choice over the Stockyards ball-bearing surfaces provided I can keep it on the tacky stuff through the soil edges of Kurrajong.

A new BikeNow kit will also be making a show, which seems to feel way better - a much nicer chamois for enduro racing, and newly designed jersey pockets and matching black vest.

Of course with it being winter the last few weeks have been rather slack, and the diet very and preparation, including stretching extremely lacking, so I'm not predicting any stellar results. VES#6 is the target to be back in form for, with the Kona SurfCoast 6 Hour my first A priority of the season.

Stay tuned - hopefully results to come on tomorrow arvo.

I have some stuff to get rid of - no prices, you need to make an offer.

Email me (tim at racetime) if you want anything.

Parts in fine condition:
Shimano Deore FD. (FD-M570)
34.9 clamp, top swing. I think.

Shimano Deore shifters (SL-M570)
Taken off Talon before it was made into a singlespeed. Used for about 12 months.

Shimano Deore XT shifters (SL-M770)
Taken off Anthem, used for about 4 months

Shimano Deore XT Deraileur (RD-M761-SGS)
Replacement taken off Talon before it was made into a Singlespeed. Used for about 2 months.

XPedo Mountain Force Cr/SL Pedals
Shimano cleat compatible pedal, 300g/pair, selling because my knees require more float.

XPedo Mountain Force Ti/Ti Pedals
Titanium version of the above pedal, 205g/pair.

RaceFace Evolve XC Riser low rise bars. 680mm wide, 25.4.
Taken off Anthem, never used.

RaceFace Evolve XC setback Seatpost, 30.9, 350mm.
Taken off Anthem, ridden only a few times.

Thomson Masterpiece setback (7 degree) seatpost, 30.9, 350mm. Comes with pouch. Selling because I needed a straight one.

Shimano Deore XT Shadow Deraileur (RD-M772-SGS)
Taken off Anthem, used for about 4 months.

Echowell 10 function Bike Computer
Won at an event, I have no use for this as I use Polar sensors on all my bikes.

Shimano pedals (PD-M520)
Basic Shimano clipless pedal, what can I say?

Sun/Deore/Formula wheelset. DT Swiss spokes, Deore rear hub, Formula front hub, Sun Rhyno Lite rims.

Parts with something slightly wrong with them, but still working:
2006 Avid Juicy 7 brake set, Front and Rear.
Bushings on both levers could do with replacing, as they have some play in their current state, but they still otherwise work perfectly fine.
G2 rotors can be included if desired. Retail boxes and manuals.
Currently has Avid Black pads, can also throw in some Avid Gold pads

Shimano pedals (PD-M540).
One side of right pedal has a tension adjustment bolt head stripped, resulting in a very tight clip. If you could somehow wind this out, you'd have a perfectly good working pedal, but otherwise both would be fine for spare parts - they're only a few months old.

Parts which need something done to be able to use, or still good the strip for spares
Shimano Deore XT (FD-M770) FD
34.9 clamp, dual pull. Missing cable clamp bolt and plate.

Hayes HFX-9 brakeset, Front and Rear.
Left lever needs a new lever reach adjuster bolt (head is stripped) and bleeding. Could be a delay if you need these as they're in the hands of a mate who was going to use them but decided not to, but they're available.

The continual string of damage continued this week, with Thursday being a great day for the gods of misery. Leaving work on a singlespeed, the chain tensioner decided it wasn't going to tension anything, so started skipping and threatening to break teeth.

That got fixed up and I made my way to BikeNow for spares, but then shortly after leaving, on the way to Westgate, I took off from some traffic lights... and discovered an inch-long nail through my rear tyre.

Sigh. So I repaired that and was just on my way as Mark rode by, but by the time I got there only really had time to do half a lap. The pace was pretty good all things considered, even though I was spinning out quite a bit, but it seemed I had plenty of people willing to sit on my tail and draft, and not pull any effort ... which pissed me off more than a little.

It didn't take a whole lap to figure out though that my rear tyre, in which I'd just replaced the tube, was deflating slowly. Great. And I hadn't put a pump in my jersey pocket (as I'd already used my spare tube).

So with riders sitting behind me for whole laps, on the third I decided to slow it right down through the back technical section, since nothing was being done to help catch Dave up ahead. Then, suddenly, just as I was heading into the new technical section - a second puncture, this time in the front.
Greeeaaaaat.

So yeah. Three flats in one night nd another DNF in the bag, go me!

Unlike Grover and Jono, I bailed on heading out to Kew Boulevard thismorning for the time trial, as my stomach was still giving me slight issues as it has been since Tuesday. That means that in the last 7 days I've done a total of 90 minutes of riding. Instead I decided to strip down the Anthem drive train, replacing the chain, cassette, shifters and rear mech. What was a Shimano drivetrain with an XT 11-34 cassette, Shadow mech and XT pods now has a SRAM 980 11-32 cassette, X9 shifters, and an X9 rear mech.





It seems however I might have reason to turn this weblog into "photos of broken bike bits" lately - unfortunately the job still has a bit to go, due to an annoying aluminum bolt. While attempting to re-tighten the cable fixing plate bolt for about the sixth time, the head of the bolt snapped clean off - leaving me with the front mech not yet configured - and in need of drilling out the bolt and getting a $5 spare bolt (must be made of gold) from Shimano.

That means that now both the hardtail and duallie are out of action - though I have a new XTR rear mech on its way for the hardtail, as well as new brakes. Could mean crits this week gets done on a singlespeed.

Number of mechanicals/broken parts in the last 2 weeks: 3.
(Stuck chain, broken mech, broken chain).

Yes, tonight at the completion of lap 1, a chain decided to cut itself completely in twain, leaving me riding a bike with a link too few and two powerlinks.

Blergh. More on that later.

Yesterday's day out at Casey Fields hasn't been forgotten, and a report is certainly on it's way as it was far more entertaining. With the Dirt Riders round today out at Beaconsfield, my race can be summarized much easier: Short.

The first lap was backed up a bit, and the climbs of the second lap was much the same, getting held up behind riders who were already starting to look like they were hurting. I was pacing myself more for five laps, so after the halfway mark of the lap I passed five riders all at once.

Unfortunately after that my race would last about another two minutes. Coming out of some single track I heard a large sound that can only be described as 'bad', followed by my tyres bringing me to a screeching halt and riders behind reacting with an "oh shit" as they unsuccessfully attempted to stop before falling in to the resulting pile-up.



Quite simply there's nothing they could have done, and it happened before I could react, with a stick completely taking out my XTR rear mech, locking the rear wheel, tearing the hanger in half, and actually becoming decently latched around a few spokes.

So yeah. The rest of the race or me was a social chit-chat from the sidelines.