Finally

The weather up here has been pretty treacherous and very cold. Up until about 2 weeks ago, we still had high temperatures in the 40's. We still have lows at night in the 30's. Needless to say, I haven't been able to go mountain biking because of trail conditions. I finally went Wednesday, with temperatures now in the 60's. Man it was great to finally be back in the saddle. The trails were in decent shape, definitely ridable for the season.

To preface a bit, I did a little 'upgrading' during the offseason. I was on the fence about getting a new rig and decided against it for a number of reasons, namely that I have some exhibition expenses coming soon. Along with a big gift certificate from family for my birthday, I pulled some money together and found some killer deals on a few "big-ticket" items.

Upgrades:

Wheels- WTB Laserdisc Hubs/Mavic XC 717 Rims

Tires- Maxxis Ignitors

Saddle- Used WTB Rocket V (from Stitz)

Needless to say, all of the upgrades were freaking amazing. First off, the wheels felt smooth and responsive. I, at first, couldn't really notice much of a difference. But, once I got going; I could really feel a difference in weight and 'roll' (if that makes sense). They just felt super smooth. The tires were absolutely sick. Super sticky and grippy. I felt like a fly on a window or something, completely amazing. I also felt like I gained an inch in my fork suspension with a lower psi adjustment, recommended by Stitz. I also felt the difference riding with the saddle I picked up from Stitz. Really nice, but I couldn't help keep thinking how much nasty chamois butter residue is on there. (Even after sanitizing it) I also just picked up some new polarized sunglasses. I felt like I could see the ass hair on a spider.

The other big difference I noticed had to do with my off-season training/lifting. This is new for me this season. I've been lifting 2-3 times a week and 2-3 times a week single-speed road riding. I've been building up my leg strength and lung capacity, in particular. On my recent MTB ride, I felt strong and not out of shape at all. I need to work up my endurance. But, otherwise a big difference with my leg strength and lung capacity. Every season prior to this, I've always had that "first ride of the season" syndrome. Where I can't do much. My lungs and legs burn and hurt. This time, it was as if I never stopped riding. I rode longer and harder than I have at any beginning season. As much as it pains me to say, I haven't ridden the mountain bike in 3 months. The weather conditions up here are so bad, we've had snow on the ground from end of November until mid-March. No joking.

But, with my new upgrades I'm now keeping my old wheels and tires and making studded snow tires this summer to prepare for the winter season. We'll see if it makes a difference.

I'm stoked to get back into riding on a regular basis, but all in all- I'm happy with my progress, even though on some accounts, it isn't much- it is a lot for me. More to come later.