At last some good news, I'm very lucky to have a new fat bike frame to use this year from the top guys at Smokestone Bikes this is their "henderson" frame designed by Graham Foot, the head honcho at Slam69 in Gloucestershire. the frame was designed not to be limited to just snow and sand riding but as a true all rounder. the Forest of Dean is very close to their base and so the geometry and mud clearance reflects the riding there which can entail anything from gently undulating fire roads, way marked public trails to very techy, rooty and occasionally wild boar destroyed natural trails through the woods.
the frame is also designed around a bluto suspension fork but until funds allow I'm using the carbon forks off my old fat bike. I was a bit concerned that they might make the head angle of the bike a bit too steep but on this maiden ride my fears disappeared as the bike felt just as agile on my local trails as my old bike. it also seems to climb a lot better too without the fairly slack geometry of the old bike which for me is a huge plus.
it usually takes a few rides to dial in the fit of a new bike but i felt right at home almost straight away, a quick adjustment of the seat post height the only change i made.
after saying earlier about the bike not being limited to snow and sand it was slightly ironic that it's first outing involved some snow which remained on top of beacon hill, not much admittedly but myself and the bike loved it!
I was suffering with a heavy cold so this ride was only short, i probably shouldn't have ridden at all but was desperate to get out and try the bike.
so far, i like!
ride 4
7 miles
total 72
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