Spooning, forking, and the Burn 24 Hr.

The Burn 24 Hour Challenge has been the subject of many a Google search that has led the misinformed and curious to wagon wheels racing central here. For those of you who are looking for hints on tires, food, and how to make this not hurt quite so bad I will give a rundown.

For those looking for more here is last year's report.

The Course:
-has 7.5 miles with 1000 ft. of climbing per lap and it seems like every bit that much.
-drains well, it rained all night last year and the mud was merely motivation draining, my soul remained largely intact.
-is relentless, I remember one 200 foot stretch of fireroad I could zone out on and eat. Enjoy the 200 feet. It is all you get.
-has numerous places to crash. I did. Go ahead and get it out of the way while it is light out. Seriously...just find a spot with nothing sharp and fall.

Your Bike:
-if trendy enough to be a SS 29er should be sporting a 32/20 or 19, but you will still walk some.
-needs a friend. Bring an extra. If the extra fits you bonus points are earned.
-will be in good company if it is carbon fiber. The amount of people riding carbon these days amazes me. Does nobody drop their bike on rocks any more?
-Wondering what 100mm travel FS bike would be best? Sorry, no idea.
-Is the new 2x10 worth getting? Yes, but don't spend the extra on SRAM XX.

You:
-should be on a team if you are doubting your abilities. Your mind is the most important part. Don't go in ready to fail or you will.
-can do it. Or not. Bring someone motivating with you, it really makes a difference.
-better like to eat and be very tired for a long time. Both are likely.

That is all on Burn24 until I come out with a pamphlet to distribute. Oh, and I am not doing Burn this year (I'm going on vacations to Emporia) so all you singlespeeders with lofty dreams go on out there and climb on the podium. I left before the awards last year and missed out on this experience but I think it would have been cooler than collecting my money and sleeping in the Element.

I bought two new forks this week and they could not be any less alike.

My usual method when buying a new fork is to find the cheapest one I can find on Ebay, rebuild it, sell it after a year, and then do it all over again the next year. This works pretty well and I cannot usually justify spending big money on a fork because I don't really notice much difference between them. Every bouncy fork I have ridden feels a bit flexy but goes fast downhill and I can ride many miles without my hands hurting so I keep buying them.

Enter the 2011 Reba.

I got a killer deal on this so I jumped on it. Then I realized RockShox jumped on me by not including the $110 remote lockout. Balls. Fortunately after an hour of staring at the fork my brain turned on.

Junk bin thumbshifter, works a charm

I am more excited about the other fork that showed up.

2 bottle mounts, post mount for disc brakes

This comes stock on Salsa's badass adventure bike, the Fargo. It is a bit short axle to crown wise for a mountain bike but what the hell else am I going to, wear a Camelbak at Dirty Kanza?

No. Too hot for that noise.

The picture does not show it that well but there is an extra threaded hole above the water bottle mount. This will be used to mount a toe strap that will hold the bottle extra tight on gravel roads with smart car sized potholes.

I hate smart cars, that seems like a fitting closing note here.