Bike for Sale
I have a 2012 BMC Team Elite 29er for sale. I used it last fall in Colorado for about two weeks. It is size medium. The only modifications from stock are Riser Bars and 160mm rotors instead of the stock 180′s. Full X-0 and Elixir Brakes. Fox Fork with 15mm through axle. This bike is in excellent condition with maybe twenty-five hours on it. Retail is $3600. I am asking $2300 or best offer.
Thanks,
Jack
jack.hinkens@gmail.com
Shower Remodeling/ BMC Race Machine (What makes me SMILE?)
Since last Sunday I have been in Tucson staying with the newlyweds, TJ and Chloe Woodruff. I have put in my first five long days in a row this season and today is time for a break (smile).
The better I get to know anyone, more often then not, I find similarities between us. This is especially true for TJ. TJ is a do-it-yourselfer like myself (smile).
TJ began gutting out the spare bathroom before I arrived. He warned me that I might be put to work with installing tile. I like projects (Double smile). If I have learned one thing about projects it is that you can plan on multiplying the timeline of the project by two then adding three days. That is roughly how long it will take. After a few half days of work on the bathroom, the studs are finally covered in vapor barrier and it is almost time to install cement backer board in the shower. The plan is to get the tiling done before I leave.
Now, here is a story of TJ that especially makes me smile. Before moving onto the next step early on in the bathroom project, some extra plumbing and soldering was in order to accommodate the new shower fixtures. TJ made a trip to the plumbing store. While there, he met a fellow shopper who happened to be a professional plumber. For a $50 charge he offered his service of removing the old plumbing and installing the new copper tubes, and preparing the fixtures for the new shower. TJ declined and instead opted to purchase the $150 of necessary equipment needed to do the job himself. That is how you know when you have a true D-I-Y-er’. The plumbing did not leak when we tested it and the solders were A+. TJ is a cycling coach but now has a back-up plan as a plumber if needed. I hope TJ gives you the motivation to put your mind to doing a project you are uncomfortable with and just going for it!
TJ makes me smile, especially when the easy way was $100 cheaper and would have taken no time out of his day. The pride associated with each shower he takes will be worth every penny.
On a final note, new bikes are a sure way to crack a smile in me. I am being lent a BMC Race Machine for this season complete with Sram and Zipp Componentry. It is definitely a sweet ride and I will post a review on it in the near future.
Have a good day and TRY to have the little things make you smile (no matter how hard it can be).
Chloe is a very creative cook and she is my mom away from home (except that she is only four years older).
I am the meanest bike path warrior there is in Tucson.
TJ getting his plumber' on.
Have you ever seen one of these? Thanks Ben Johnson!
Now, with vapor barrier installed.
My Oma and Opa took me out to eat at my favorite Thai place a couple months ago. This sign I saw at my most recent visit may have been a result of me dressing the elephant in my clothes.
Race Machine (has yet to see a race).
TJ's man cave/ garage (not pictured are the ten or so sets of wheels).
Northern Lights Timber Framing
After a couple years of musing around the idea of taking a class on log building, I finally did it… And, it did not disappoint! An intrigue in alternative building methods, mainly scribed log and timber framing, has been a constant theme for me. The class was held in a 5,000 square foot building located in Northeast Minneapolis. Actually, the entire building comprised around 65,000 square feet. In fact, it was so large; we took razor scooters to the bathroom located about 250 yards away from the timber framing shop. I could go into detail about all of the interesting people in the class, but I will save those stories for when I am a grandpa. However, I had lots in common with one fellow student named Brian, mainly because our common interest in cycling. Brian has raced the Leadville Trail 100 and done several of the 100+ miles gravel road races in Minnesota. He is going to build a timber frame insulated with straw bales in the Prescott area of Wisconsin. If you are not familiar with the area, there are trout streams, rolling hills, great road riding, and awesome views of the St. Croix River. I hope he invites me to help with the project! (Brian are you reading this?)
To me, building with logs or timber is about bringing back tradition, the detail of the work, and most of all the natural beauty. Click on the links below and see for yourself what timber framing is all about…
And some pictures of my class!
Laying out and test fitting a timber.
King Truss and Jack.
14x16 finished frame built to be an outdoor kitchen.
Two 8x12 timbers formed this massive Ridge at a house we visited in Lakeville.
Lego Mania.
Lego humor!
Phat with Pat
Penn Cycle hosted a Fat Bike race at their Eagan store. It was a good time for all; my dad raced and finished a respectable third out of three in the recreational class. New to the fat bike scene, and his first time on a fat bike, my dad decided that 20 pounds of air in his tires would be about right. Turns out that he was the fastest on the one hundred or so feet of pavement. Due to the rock solid nature of his tires and no suspension, my dad took home the iron balls competition as well.
BMC TE29er Review
Last season, I rode the BMC TE01, a carbon 26” bike. My transition to a big -wheeled big rig was easier than expected. The TE29er is aluminum but it is honestly hard to tell with the expanded footprint of the 29er.
With around twenty-five hours on the TE29 between Colorado and Minnesota, I have a good feel for the bike. Without getting carried away on Colorado trails, I will just say that it handles the fastest rocky sections with no frills and at the same time is a bike made for climbing. Nevertheless, I am still partial to the twenty-six inch wheels because of the nature of Midwestern trails and having had mixed feelings while riding 29ers in the past. BMC has addressed most of the awkward characteristics associated with many 29er’s, making it a breeze to ride through tight trails such as Elm Creek, Lone Lake Park, and Theodore Wirth. These trails derive their technical aspect due to the speed they are ridden, not the innate nature of the trail.
The Avid Elixir 7’s are great brakes and it really shows their strength when paired with the stock 180mm rotor. However, as a cross country racer, I prefer the 160mm rotors which helps with brake modulation under a hard braking load while also having a light touch in slow, technical sections. I noticed quickly, that the cockpit is long. The seat tube is angled rearward from the rear wheel’s closet point to the seat tube. I am using a 90mm, 17-degree rise stem even though I usually use a 110mm stem with negative rise. For me, the benefit of having a slightly shorter stem allies with making the front end feel lighter while being able to get over the rear wheel easily. The TE29 fits that bill while having a short wheelbase yet no foot overlap with the front wheel.
After a couple rides on the stock Cross-Marks, I switched to Hutchinson Tora’s in a 2.15. The Cross Mark is an all conditions race tire, and the Tora is right there with it, being slightly better in the wet stuff.
When you ride the TE29er, expect a responsive drivetrain stemming from the Sram X-0 group, Easton EA70 wheelset, a triple butted frame and a 15mm through axle Fox Talas fork that has no noticeable flex under hard climbing or cornering. In stock form, the TE29 comes as a bike that is ready for the toughest trails out there. Take a minute to bolt on some smaller rotors, trim the 720mm bars, easily convert the UST rims and tubeless tires, and you have a very competitive race bike, weighing in at twenty-three pounds.
2012 BMC TE29 at the shop.
Brendan and me after the race. I do not endorse Freewheel, but they are a really good group of guys.
Fat Bike Race Murphy Hanrehan 1-22-12
Freewheel and Three Rivers put on a great race. Check out the video below to see what the Fat Bike craze is about. I will try my best to have audio in future videos.
I miss you, Captain Jack
If you live in Minnesota, a trainer ride is inevitable, if you want to be prepared for Spring Racing.
When confronted with the all too often moment of deciding to cut a one-hour indoor ride in half, I try to remember why I ride bikes. Thinking of Captain Jack’s trail in CO Springs provides a fair amount of motivation.
My BMC Team Elite 29er hard tail was the perfect package for the free flowing, hands-off the brakes Colorado descending. I am also working on a complete review of my newest mountain bike, the TE29.
Below is a video of Upper and Lower Captain Jacks; my hands down favorite trail. Conditions were ideal; a light dusting of snow over dry, unfrozen ground provided a fast rolling, twenty grit worth of confidence trail.
Enjoy this single-track video while escaping the Minnesota wind chill.
Thank you for reading… and watching!
One last note, a shout-out to my BMC teammate Kerry Werner who is our 2012 Collegiate D1 USA National Cyclocross Champion! Congratulations K-Dubz!
