Climbed into the basin from the Katahn entrance, down the whoops takin a R turn at the gate, the L at the first intersection, took the steep downhill to Mint wash, then climbed out up 332, up Iron Springs, up 37, down 40, and back up 349 and out to car.
Observations:
Climbing with the squish fork felt awkward for about 10 minutes. Descending felt different too, for about 10 seconds, then it just totally rocked. The difference in speed, and fun is simply incredible. The safety margin probably went up several hundred percent despite the increased speeds. For how I like to ride (fast on the downs) Squish is probably a given. At the higher speeds, the rear Ignitor will likely not last long.
That looks nice doesn't it?
The stiff TA fork combined with the Rig's stiff headtube interface/welding was a thing of beauty. So far, the Rig experiment is all I could ask for: Slack, shorter CS, stiff in the front end. All it lacks is rear tire clearance.
I found the Ignitor in the rear lacking in traction on the steepest ups. I don't know if it was the squishy fork, drier dirt, or what, but I was spinning out all over the place.
No cleaning 37 on this ride, I dabbed at least 4 times. My Kung Fu was simply not there today. I did the 37 climb later in the ride and fatigue certainly may be a factor. The descent down 40 was simply dreamy. The extra control of suspension had me thinking a lot about Milk Money.
Final note: I am really sore today, mainly in the upper body, arms, hands, and neck. The only difference was the fork. You would think it would be less strain? Still, the speeds are a lot higher, and I gave in to temptation to jump/hop a lot of stuff I would have passed on rigid, so there are probably more fast twitch moves on a ride like this that I have not done for a while. I really can't explain it, but I feel more wrecked than I have for a long time.
Love SS. Love the Box as well, but I always feel like I'm cheating on it.
No cleaning 37 on this ride, I dabbed at least 4 times. My Kung Fu was simply not there today. I did the 37 climb later in the ride and fatigue certainly may be a factor. The descent down 40 was simply dreamy. The extra control of suspension had me thinking a lot about Milk Money.
Final note: I am really sore today, mainly in the upper body, arms, hands, and neck. The only difference was the fork. You would think it would be less strain? Still, the speeds are a lot higher, and I gave in to temptation to jump/hop a lot of stuff I would have passed on rigid, so there are probably more fast twitch moves on a ride like this that I have not done for a while. I really can't explain it, but I feel more wrecked than I have for a long time.
Love SS. Love the Box as well, but I always feel like I'm cheating on it.
2 comments:
Have you tried reverse mounting the Ignitor?
Ed
I reverse mount nearly all my rear tires since I could care less about rolling resistance, and and maximum traction all the time.
In fairness, it is an old tire and probably 50% worn. Fact is, I was going to kill it soon going as fast as that suspension fork allowed through rock gardens.
Liking the Rampage I managed to get in there:)
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