New Bike (not so new)

I have a new bike … well not actually new, it’s a 2010 Scott Genius. Yes, it is a 26” bike with no through axles front or rear, 3x9 transmission and no dropper post (this last thing has already been taken care of)
It’s amazing how bikes have evolved in 5 years. The Genius is a great bike; carbon fiber light full suspension frame with 150mm travel front and rear, twinlock to lock both the fork and the rear shock, rigid enough and fast both uphill and downhill.
But when I compare it to my newest bikes, 29” or 27.5”, is not only the wheel size that make the difference, it’s mainly the geometry. Bikes are now longer, stems are shorter, BBs are lower, handlebars are larger, angles are leaner nowadays … and you can feel it riding the same trails.
I have noticed how much more rigid new wheels are with through axles. The Scott has a Fox Talas fork with 32mm stanchions, QR and 150/125/110mm travel and you can feel it struggling on rocky singletracks.
The bike came with a 660mm handlebar and 100mm stem, at the time (only five years ago!) that was almost Enduro standard. Today even XC racers have wider bars. I switched immediately to a 60mm stem and 720mm bars, I thought more than that would be too much for 26” wheels.
Old (5 years!) as it may be, it’s also great fun. And it is also really funny thinking that if I had to exchange it for a new Genius I would have the choice of three wheel sizes (27.5”, 29”, 27.5+) and two travel options (Genius or Genius LT)

What we carry on our rides

Our rides around Barcelona never take us very far away from home. We are never going to get lost in the middle of nowhere, there is always somebody not very far away. We don’t carry with us the same things we would if we were going to the mountains.

For rides under 2 hours we don’t usually carry a backpack just a saddlebag with:

-          Spare tube and tyre levers

-          Multi tool with a chain breaker

-          10€ and a card with address and phone number

We also have a big bottle (750ml), a mini pump and a mobile phone. There are plenty of water sources around, even bars! So you don´t often need to carry on more water.

For longer rides, 3 or 4 hours we take a camelback with:

-          Spare tube, tyre levers and patches

-          Multi tool with chain breaker

-          Zip ties

-          Small bottle of chain lube (20ml)

-          Some food, a couple of bars or some candy

It’s important not to forget the money, there’s always a bar on the trail to have a coffee … or a beer!