Ok, so my title idea came from MDEnvEngr's recent thread about his New England Woods Bike, an awesome bike built for riding in his neck of the woods. This bike was built for my style of riding in my area in So Cal or around AZ and UT.
Prior to my wife and I having our twins last September, I went into a sell-off. I sold my DH bike, my AM bike, and even my XC bike. For mountain bikes, this left me with only a singlespeed (still have BMX bikes, road bike, 4X bike, and tandem mtbs). Around the time our twins were born, she already wanted to go to Sedona over the holidays, and she suggested that bring my bike. We'd been there many times already so I knew what to look forward to. Her sister went along with us, which would give us some time to go for a couple rides. I have the greatest wife.
But although Sedona is singlespeed friendly, I really wanted a geared bike. So I immediately got started building a frame. Initially I wanted the geometry to be very similar to my singlespeed.
I was wrong...29ers can be fun...
However, during the building phase, I started changing plans: I wanted to use the new Fox 34. I was able to make some revisions mid build to get me about where I wanted. While the head angle may seem very slack, the actual trail figure with the 51 mm rake fork is almost identical to my SS with 44 mm rake fork.
All dimensions are with the fork set at 110 mm.
HA: 67.3 degrees - that is not a typo!
BB: 12-1/4"
CS: 16-5/8" - yes, even with a front derailleur (clocked the mount a couple degrees)
WB: 42"
TT or SA: I don't remember actual or effective at the moment
Total weight as shown is under 28 pounds. I went after strength and durability more than light weight...even though I did use Sapim CX-RAY spokes (36R/32F), and all the silver or gold titanium bolts I could use.
The bike is meant to be ridden with the fork at 110. I generally don't like long-travel hardtails because of the amount of bike rotation upon fork compression. Or at least I think that's why. The front end also gets a little tall with the fork at 140 mm. Sure, I could use lower bars, but then they may be too low with the fork at 110. Ce la vie.
The powdercoat is a translucent blue over a silver base. I seem to have difficulties actually capturing the color in pictures since it seems to wash out with light.
End result, this bike has been extremely fun. It worked perfectly in Sedona - even allowing sufficient mud clearance for the back 2.25 tire. At Sedona and other rides since, I've hit lots of rock gardens, jumps, and drops, along with popping up over ledges and various obstacles, and I'm very pleased with the results. The steering is right where I want it. And the bike climbs like a scalded monkey.
Linear Mode
