So long DiSSent

Well, it was a short romance, this grand adventure called a DiSSent. I plan on moving the frame onto another owner as soon as one pops up. So what happened? Did it suck?

Not at all. In fact, it is an excellent product, especially for the money, but it is not for me. Remember that this was a bit of an experiment to try some things I had wondered about for a while. To follow the whole thread, just clicky on the tag DiSSent, left column of the blog page. I was very interested to see how the aluminum thing was going to treat me, how the longer TT length would feel, and if there was to be a compromise in ride quality over pedaling perfomance, would it be worth it?

This is what I found:

• Oversize aluminum is what it is. There is little magic going on to make it supernaturally behave other than its nature suggests. The Dissent is a mixed bag of emotions when you point it into the bumpies. The back end is surprisingly smooth, in fact I would not be surprised if it is smoother than the KM is or at least pretty darn close. The front end of the bike is very stout and therin lies the rub...I have not figured out how to ride only on the back wheel for every bump. Until I do, the DiSSent shows its oversize, gusseted nature quite plainly here. It may not be 'harsh', but it is certainly 'abrupt'.
  
• It is a fine handling bike. Not only does it crush the KM in overall handling prowess (except in one area), it is a better handling bike than my Lenz FS. Here I am sure the resolute frame is working for me. It turns, holds the line, and just is unfazed by whatever I can hang on through.
  
• The longer TT length is a mixed bag. I went from a 24.25" TT on the Karate Monkey to a 25.25" TT on the DiSSent, pulled back the cockpit 1/2" with a shorter stem, leaving me one half inch more to stretch out into. It feels great when I stand to pedal, really great. But I needed to move the saddle forward a bit, maybe another 1/2" to get the feel right when seated, so what was the point? To run a shorter stem? That is about all I really changed, that and having a longer wheelbase. What I did lose was a bit of playfulness. The 19" DiSSent I rode was not this way, so I feel that, at least for this bike and set up, the extra length needs to come from something other than frame length. However, it still turns like a guided missle, despite the size of it and I bet for a slightly taller person than I it would be killer.
• Pedaling perfomance Vs. Ride quality. So, I had a theory: Does the high demand for pedaling performance on an SS, and by that I mean the ability of a frame to take the high pedaling loads and transfer that into forward motion, does that allow for compromise on ride quality, what we call 'suppleness' or smoothness' or what have you? At this price level, steel is often less than fabulous in that if it rides very smoothly, it will likely be flexy at the BB. If it is stiffer, like the KM, it likely will not be all that nice of a ride. And, cheap steel is heavy. Result? I think the DiSSent is absolutely worth the tradeoff with one proviso...can you take the beating that will result? The DiSSent is simply fabulous when it comes to surging forward under hard pedaling, steep climbs, fast charges, etc. It rocks. But, it 'rocks' me in other ways that, at my age and level of frailty, is just too much to enjoy over a long trail day. But, if you are not too concerned with that and are more bulletproof than I (not too hard), then the DiSSent, for the money, is 'Da Bomb. It would be a fabulous race bike for XC duty.
  

That begs the question, "What is next?". Not sure. But whatever it is it will be living in the shadow of the DiSSent, a flat black shadow of a mean and fast bike that does what it does very well indeed.

More than a sport

A few days ago I was watching a documentary called Riding Giants. It is a fascinating look into the world of big wave surfers as seen by the director, Stacy Peralta (an old skater from the era of my youth). I never surfed as there is too much water involved in surfing and I never saw any way to get around that, but it was a powerful film to watch.

One thing that stood out, a strong impression among many, was the clear and profound influence that surfing had across the lives of the men who spoke on camera in the film. They did not just surf, they were surfers. At some point in their lives, they picked up a surfboard, waxed it up and paddled out to try this wave riding thing. I bet they fell off a lot, struggled to learn the basics, swallowed some sea water and got scared more than a few times. But something about the water, the oceans power, the challenge of reading the wave, moving across it, with it, not fighting it...something grabbed them down deep and never let them go and they never let go of it either. Surfing became more than a sport, a thing to do, it was a way to be.

I can only think of a few sports that transcend that way. Surfing. Skiing. Cycling. Running perhaps. Golf? Nah. Tennis? Hardly. Those are bound up little contrived physical activities. They have tight, neat, little contrived rules that are controlled by tight, neat, little controlling people. Stay within the lines. Keep score.

Surfing, skiing, mtn biking...they let us touch the earth in a unique way. The powder is deep, the day is bright, you draw the lines, you make the rules on the slope. The surf is up, breaking pretty big for early in the morning. The water allows you to come along for the ride. You are not in control of it...it knows it and you know it. Wheels roll across the earth and leave their own lines; skinny lines on paved roads, dusty lines on gravel roads, faint lines on sandstone mesas where there are no roads.

As I was riding alongside KT the other night, I was thinking about all this, sifting through it. We were chatting, pedaling, just like we have done in some way or another for so many years that it seems like we never began to do it, it just always was, like we were born to it from the womb. The dirt road we were on offered us some boundaries, but we were free to draw our own lines within the lines.

Looking backwards and forwards at my life I see a line left by a knobby tire. It is clear and distinct at times and faint in others, but never disappears completely. It begins so far back that I cannot see it's origin and it rolls over the horizon to a place I have yet to go.

And, God willing, I am eager to get there.

KT, out drawing some lines of his own, Utah desert.

Getting to know the DiSSent

I have three rides on the new SS scoot so far, two with some changes to the handlebars (Groovy Luv Bars...more on that coming up) and another seat post and I am getting a pretty good feel for the little aluminum warrior.

• It is a much better, and by better, I mean stiffer, responsive, resolute, snappy, etc, pedaling bike then the Karate Monkey (KM). The KM was not a dog, but when you hit those very steep grades or times when you were really reefing on the bars and barely turning the cranks over, the Km would just kinda go "uuuunhhggg" and slow down like a tired dog looking for shade. It would keep moving, but it did not feel all excited about it. The Dissent looks at the hill and dares you to turn the cranks over and hammer, cuz it knows you will give up before it does. It is very stout and racy feeling. That is good.
• It is a fair amount more abusive then the KM as far as overall ride quality. It is not crazy beat-you-down stiff, in fact the rear end feels very smooth but that big, oversize and gusseted front triangle, the one that makes the BB seem so rock steady...it will let you know in no uncertain terms that it is no luxury liner, sit back and float over the trail, ride.
  
• It is a very good handling bike. It is more stable then the KM when things get fast and rutted...the KM would push the 'tighten sphincter' button real fast, but the DiSSent just runs through with very little fuss. So, it is more stable and it is a bigger bike then the KM, longer wheelbase, etc. So why does it turn so much better too? Very nicely done. If I danced through the woods more and bounded over ruts and rocks less, I would go for the 19" frame, but the XL supertanker version is still easy to move down the trail. It is harder to get the front end up then the KM was, despite the same CS length.

Time will tell about if I can live with the fair beat down it gives out. It may be relatively smooth riding for an oversize aluminum frame, but it is not magical and it cannot defy the nature of the beast. Also, keep in mind that I am an older guy with crummy wrists and a worn out back. YMMV. Steel may be real, faithful, and true like the Lone Ranger or Clark Kent, but oversize aluminum is the guy with lots of ink and a few scars from battle. Think cage fighting.

One thing I would hate to lose is the fabulous response that the frame gives to hard pedaling efforts. I will keep riding it and tweaking things for a while and see what happens. If it is not for me, I will move it to another buyer and take what I learned to the next bike choice. What will that be? Dunno. I still have to finish up some work with a custom builder I know and if I could blend some of the qualities of this frame into a steel one and gain some cush in the overall ride, that could be the holy grail.

Of course, the grail is just a myth. Maybe the perfect bike is too.

Frazier Mtn Loop With KT and His Merry Men

Any time you join KT on a ride, be ready for anything.

The heat has been pretty intense for May, so any weekend rides needed to be at a decent elevation to avoid major suck-age. I had a solo loop planned that was going to be pretty long and include pavement, fireroad and lots of singletrack. But, another offer came up from KT to join a group ride in the even higher mountains of the Los Padres Forest.

KT is a pretty fit guy and the riders he runs with are all pretty fast, so when I go along I just figure I will be last up the hill and maybe even down the hill. Oh well. Someone has to do it, so it may as well be me.

A few of us met on Saturday AM on a day that was supposed to hit 75*. Notice the lack of baggy shorts or big packs here? Patrick even brought his carbon S-Works Stumpy hardtail, Roval wheels and all. OK, then.


Part way up the 6 mile climb to the top of Frazier Mtn at about 09:00, it was already over 75* in the valley below. It would get hotter, especially once we hit the canyon bottom. I was somewhat familiar with the route and I knew the area, but it had been years since I was on any of the OHV trails that criss-cross the mountain. The 6 mile climb was not too hard and I was pacing myself knowing I was not in top shape. I had a fair idea I should save a bit of oomph for later. Good plan.

Say hi to Lance. No, not THAT Lance, this Lance. Still, a Giant of a guy, I understand.




I was riding the Lev and had two bottles of Accelerade, one 70 oz Camelbak, a bunch of snacks, a burrito, and a Soft Flask of gel. I was using the fuel cell that was part of the ensemble from Carousel Design Works to carry the stuff I wanted quick access to rather than remove the Camelbak all the time. That really worked well. My only complaint was that I found I brushed my knees on it when standing and climbing unless I bowed them out a bit. No biggie.




Soon enough we descended a bit on fireroad and hit the singletrack. This is motorcycle country and the trails are really better suited to a throttle then pedals. I took off on a fast pace only to come around a corner and run right into three BIG whoop-de-dos spaced about 3/4's of a bike length apart. These things looked big enough to swallow up my 29" wheels. Not good.....I got on the brakes hard until I ran into the first one then I HAD to let off the brakes or die. I hit the first one OK, but each one boosted me a bit higher and higher until on the last one I was pretty well airborne and nearly cased it into the final upslope. Made it out alive...man, that was a rabbit out of the hat. Thank you God. Maybe I better slow down a bit until I get a feel for this trail. It ended up being fun, being pretty swoopy, a bit loose, but playful and then you would drop down a v'd out, filled with silt and loose rocks chute that got your attention, then more whoops and swoops. I have to say that most of the time, I really do not think much about the legendary flexiness of the classic Reba fork I have on the Lev. But, I don't often ride techy stuff like this. It gave me an appreciation for those calling for stiffer forks, wheels, and frames on 29ers. I could feel the front end squirting and squirming left when I was pointing it right. Everything felt like I had a flat front tire.

I really need to upgrade that Reba and I will never buy another fork that does not have a serious QR interface like the 20mm or 15mm options out there, at least on a trail bike 29er. Very eye opening. One day I will replace the Lev with a better rig suited for rougher trail, 120mm fork, etc, but I sure hate to give up the lighter weight of this bike. Oh well, tradeoffs.


I would have taken more pics, but KT cracks the whip pretty good and his rest stops are barely anything at all. No tea and finger sandwiches served. Get 'em up, move 'em out, Rawhide! It was absolutely the hardest day I have had since my crash and maybe even since Vision Quest. We hit the creek bottom and found that the trail which we had expected to continue at riverbed level out to the road instead turned upwards and climbed back in the direction we had come from. Bummer. It was really hot now and the warm water in the pack and what was left in the bottles was not at all satisfying. Pedaling was beyond me. The group was gone out of sight. I was pushing a lot while ahead of me I imagined KT's band of merry men chatting and pedaling up the sandy, loose trail while singing ballads of old and hoisting water bottles in toast to their merry-ness. Pffhaa! Merry making is over rated. Real men are not afraid to walk their bikes.

We popped out in the open after finding ourselves at a fireroad which led to a familiar OHV area. From here, the pack split. I took another guy that had had as much fun as he cared to and we headed out to the pavement for a few miles of pedaling back to the trucks. The rest of the miscreants continued on the dirt with an estimated 1500' climb to close the loop from where we started. I really wanted to go with them, but I was feeling the onset of cramps and that would be better handled on the road then up that mountain somewhere.

It was a good choice as I rolled into the parking lot right at 4 hrs, got off the bike, and cramped up completely if I tried to bend my legs, take shoes off, etc. Good timing. I had a bottle of Fluid recovery drink on ice in the cooler and it tasted wonderful as did the bag of cheesy/ranch Ruffles. Ambrosia.

It was 86* at the parking lot and 96* a bit lower in the valley. Is this May or July?

6000' climbing
26 miles
4 hours, 3:51 riding time