Just for Drew...

Here's a sneak peek...

Not fully finished, but functional.  Two frames built on it.  Details tomorrow...

rody

The responsibility of preserving our sport....

Every once in a while I'll take some time to cruise through a few forums online and see what's shakin in the community.  I've got my usual haunts, mostly frame building or cycling related, that I drop in on.  I recently ran across a thread on the Ohio Mountain Bike Association board that bothered me a bit.  The thread was announcing the first Groovy Series race at Vulture's Knob and two individuals were questioning the cost to race and the perceived benefits.  Their assertion basically boiled down to the fact that they felt the cost, 35 bucks, was too high and that the promoters were walking away with pockets full of cash.  Typical of the internet, too little info is a garden for rumors and skewed opinions to flourish.

I felt compelled to add to the conversation, not to set the record straight, but to offer a little background to help those reading to form a more complete personal perspective.  Here's what I had to say...

Hey guys, I thought I'd chime in with a little background information to help answer some of your questions and provide you with the tools to make your best informed opinions.


I've been involved in the development of Vulture's Knob for 16 years now and have had the opportunity to watch the sport of mountain biking and the Ohio race scene ebb and flow. Much of that time, many of you have had the opportunity to ride and race at the Knob and experience what I feel is a special place. Why is it special, well let me share a bit of history with you.



Vulture's knob has existed as one of the few privately owned, legal mountain bike trails in the country that allows full access for mountain biking, trail running, outdoor use/camping without any structured fees or permits...simply show up, have fun, and leave with a smile. This has been possible due to the sacrifice, both fiscally and of sweat equity, of a very small group of enthusiasts who's desire is to share the outdoor experience with others. Before our tax dollars and advocacy opened up many of the government owned parks we are blessed to construct trails and ride in, the knob introduced the freedom of mountain biking many of us. This comes with a price, however.



For the first twelve years, we have benefited from the kindness of two independent owners, who despite financial difficulties, kept the vision alive. Four years ago, a make or break decision had to be made; the property had to pay for it's self or close. It was at this time that Kevin, Mike, Dusty, and Jason of 331 stepped up and assumed the responsibility of not only resurrecting the Knob, but caring for it and keeping it alive.



Unlike many of the race venues visited by the OMBC and NEO series that are publicly owned and cared for by volunteers, the Knob series MUST be self sustaining. Simply put, your race entries pay to keep the property open for mountain biking the other 360 days a year races are not being held. Out of your entry money, we pay the monthly mortgage, property taxes, property insurance, maintenance costs for the property, utilities, diesel and maintenance for the tractor, trail building costs, race insurance, and associated race costs (porta potty, branded prizes, race software updates, paper, etc...). The race is run by volunteers who are there for nothing more than the love of the sport and the trails we ride on. To put it into perspective, let me give you an analogy...Much like your home, we have many of the same monthly costs. Imagine the costs involved in keeping your home up and running and then throw into the mix that anyone who wants can come on in, hang out, and do what they like. That's what we've got going on at Vulture's Knob.



Your race entries buy advocacy and good will as well. Little known is the fact that when the venue changes, a portion of the proceeds are donated back to the host entity or the club that cares for it by 331...not a common practice with some of the other race promoters out there right now.



We've been extremely fortunate to have an alliance of sponsors who also see the value in supporting our efforts, with monetary donations going 100% back into the property and in kind donations of equipment/food directly back to the racers.



One of the nice characteristics of the 331 races is that the guys are willing to listen to your comments and make changes. Computerized timing gets you prelim results every 5 minutes and final results that night, tabulated series results are updated post race that night for the whole season and are available online, a strong web presence announces races, trail days, and good news, Chipotle burritos and all the Monster/Beer you can consume, and funky tunes pushed out by DJ Madnote alongside the bonfire...all requests from racers like you that have come to fruition. Would you like to see a greater split in sport classes for starting, simply drop Kevin an email and be heard, it's that easy.



It's important to note that without the participation of the riders and the sponsors, the Knob would certainly be forced to close it's gates.



35 dollars to race... personally, I feel that's a lot of bang for your buck. Believe me, there is no "pure profit" left at the end of the season. It is all returned to you, the racer, in the form of trails to enjoy for both you and your children's lifetime as long as we as a united community of mountain bikers hold the reigns.  Just a bit to chew on.

cheers,

rody


The end result for me was the affirmation that we each have a role to fill in supporting the continued longevity of our sport.  Whether you race, help out with trail maintenance, introduce a new friend to the sport, drop a few bucks in the can when you ride, or just come out and cheer on your spouse, you are fortifying the continued existense of what you love...is that too much to ask?

I personally feel blessed to have such a enthusiastic mountian bike community immersed in our effort, thanks to all.

The first race was a blast, with 113 registered racers, perfect weather, and lots of folks who were smiling and enjoying life. 

Jason Shaffer was on scene and took some great shots of the sunset and award ceremony, I feel that his work really captured the emotion and value of the effort as reflected in the racers faces, check it out...

http://jasonshafferphoto.com/groovyrace1/

rody

Friday night blitz...

How did time move so quickly?  The first race of the year was Saturday and the realization that I had to make a frame for Cary W. as his winning bike from the 09 season drawing had come more quickly than anticipated.  The fact that I lost 2 weeks in the shop heavily weighed upon the delay, but as the calendar had run out, the time is now.  Added to the pressure was the fact that Cary had sold off his race bike in anticipation of his new toy...if he was going to race Saturday night I had to come through.

I had measured Cary months prior and knew the direction that I wanted to go.  Cary, or Wangpig as he is affectionately known, has been riding off road for like, forever, so knows what he wants in a bike focused on fit and performance.  It was my goal to introduce him the 650b wheel format, get him back on steel, and make the bike fit and handle like a patriot missile.  To get the feel I wanted, I designed the bike for a 80mm 29er fork with...

Head tube - 72 degrees
Seat tube - 73 degrees
Chainstay - 16.75
Offset - 45mm

I choose light double butted tubing, 8-5-8 and 7-4-7, and made the main triangle more compact to keep the lateral stiffness I wanted for fast/efficient acceleration.  Using my spec'd stays, I set the chainstay length a bit longer than fashionable these days.  Understanding that coming off a 26er after 20+ years, some psycho-motor skills like sliding off the rear of the saddle during fast descents are unconsciously learned traits that need to be compensated for in design...after all, I wanted the bike to feel intuitive immediately.  Getting the rear wheel back a bit more kept the bike a bit more balanced and fit Cary's riding style.  Moving the wheel back a skoosh also allowed me to set the front end geo fairly neutral over the contact patch, allowing for fast slow speed steering and fast confident descending.

I started the build at 1400 hours Friday, worked through the night, and finished assembly with Cary at 1400 Saturday, a long 24 hours.  Knowing that I would not have time to get the bike where I wanted it, I built two frames.  One to get under Cary immediately and a second to paint up like I wanted and present at the next race.

I did not take time to take photos, so you'll just have to trust me that she's an ugly race bike in a rat rod primer grey.  I did cut out some custom decals to pretty her up a bit though :)

Cary raced it just hours later.  I think we both did ok under pressure as he finished first in the over 35 Expert field...nice work Wangpig!

If I can get a pic later I'll try to post it up.

cheers,

rody

EDIT... Cary wrote up a blog post and has some pics, looky here... http://www.familyofpain.blogspot.com/

Jason's 40's barn find cruiser...

Okay folks, just a quick photo post to show you Jason's cruiser 29er single speed.  Jay requested a retro cruiser that typified the colors of the 40's and looked like it just was pulled out of a barn with a nice discolored patina on it.  So here we go...

We start off with a cruiser frame that utilizes my standard stays, but keeps the curved theme going with some Black Cat Dropouts made by Todd that he hooked me up with for this project...

A couple layers of sanded primer to set a good base...

Then I laid down a nice olive green from the Ford color charts from the era...this was an accent color on a few of the cars...

Then some time masking to prepare for the next round of color, a light vanilla cream base coat...

Just like Christmas morning, only a LOT slower, let's unwrap the frame and see what we've got...

With the base colors and shapes down, we've got a good base to work from.  Normally, I'd lay down an intercoat clear before doing any airbrush work, so if there are mistakes than need to be corrected, I can do so without getting into the base coat.  As I'm going for the old patina look, I did my detail work directly on the base as I was using some abrasive techniques that needed to blend with the underlying colors.

Five shades of dirt and rust, some WW2 rising suns, a pretty lady and a whole lot of time behind the brush and the frame is starting to come together...

Given the choice of Blonde, Brunette, or Redhead, you can see what Jay choose to go with...

I'll work the clear in the later layers to dull it out some to match the image we're going for, but for now, she's a looker...

Jason is going to build it up as a dedicated single speed with a Titanium Luv, Groovy Ti Unicrown fork, White Industry wheels and cranks, and a nice Brooks saddle.  Should be sweet to behold.

cheers,

rody

Back in the shop...

Well, it's been a slower recovery than I would have liked but I've been released, officially, to get back into the shop as long as I "act like a normal human"...words from my doctor who loves me so much :)

I've got a lot of catching up to do, but thought I'd let y'all know that I appreciate your patience, supportive emails, and encouragement.

Getting back at it, I prepped a couple of frames for paint; Todd's Yo, Jason's Groovy Retro, and Jared's Yo.  Typical of what I find with old restos, here's what lay under Jared's Aqua Fade...

Give me a call Jared and we'll talk options for saving the old girl.

Lots to do today...bars to ship, paint to finish, and loads of email to catch back up on.

cheers,

rody

Bike assembally and one from the rafters...

Steve stopped in to build up his bike on Saturday with a mix of old and new parts and we had loads of fun :)

The finish really looks striking in the sun...should not be another rolling up to the line like this one.

and in an effort to avoid work and get set up for some summer road training, Kalten pulled my old road frame out of the ceiling rafters.  We took off all the vintage parts; Campy Delta brakes, Campy Record shifters, Mavic derailleurs and wheels.  We then built it up with a mix match of old road kit I had lying around in boxes, mostly Dura Ace and Ultegra 8 speed.

This frame was actually the first road frame I built for myself back in 94.  It is comprised of a mix of dumpster tubing, 853 tubes that were reclaimed from the Trek dumpster by Donny K. on a trip through the facility...they were all cut to the wrong lengths so were discarded.  It's funny to look at the frame now, it makes me cringe when I see all the early mistakes or areas for improvement :)

Nice to know it will be getting some road time again by someone who is limber enough to actually ride in such a low position.

nice to see Kalten's hair growing back in after shaving it all off for swim finals.

Recovery is going slower than I want.  Pushed it too hard fiddling around the house and the incision started bleeding again, so had to resign myself to the fact that I need to be a bit more patient.  I see the Doc today, so hopefully I'll be cleared for some light welding again.

cheers,

rody