Mountain Biking

Mountain Biking

I began seriously riding in 1992 while living on Cape Cod. I remember it was just before I transferred to UMass-Amherst. I bought a vintage Mongoose MTB. It was a TANK. The tubing was straight gauge 4130 chromoly steel. It also had drilled out rims (holes were drilled between each spoke eyelet to save weight). The components were an old Suntour mountain group with the now-legendary power thumbshifters. That bike saw some pretty hairy rides and terrain. It is truly missed.

But, time passed and I graduated to a Kona Hahanna mail-ordered from Bike Pro (now defunct) in SoCal. This bike lasted about two years (that is, I cracked the frame after two years of hard riding!). I received a replacement frame from Kona under warranty. Unfortunately, I was forced to sell it due to financial obligations. My next rig was another Kona, a Lava Dome (pictured right). It was the first totally dialed-in mountain bike I owned. I put considerable time, money and energy into that bike. It served me well during many tough rides on the Trail of Tears, a local spot on the Cape I frequent often.

It was also eventually sold to fund the purchase of my following ride, the Bontrager (pictured below). My last machine was a '98 Team Marin triple-butted Tange steel hardtail completed with money earned from parting out the Bonty over the web.

The Bontrager

Currently I have a '93 Bridgestone MB-1 (pictured below) with the following components: Cook Bros. F cranks, World Class Ti BB, Machine Tech V-brakes/levers, an XT/XTR drivetrain, custom Mavic/Real wheels, Thomson post, AMP Research F3XC fork, Kore stem, et cetera. Still a holdout for thumbshifters, though - Deore topmounts all the way!! This bike climbs like a goat, and the Ritchey Logic frameset is quite amazing.

Update 8/21/99: well, looks like my 8-year tenure with hardtails is almost over. I just decided to sell the MB-1 and purchase a full-suspension frameset. This can mean only one thing: I'm finally mutating beyond the retrogrouch stage of my MTB development. I am, however, staying with steel tubing - a '95 or '96 Specialized steel FSR, most likely. The evolution continues...

Update 3/29/00: FYI, I sold the Bridgestone and now own a 1995 Specialized S-Works FSR. This steed is steel (Tange Prestige chromoly), with an aluminum rear end. The suspension is comprised of a Fox air shock on the rear and a '96 Judy XC LT (long travel) fork. With about 3 inches of travel at both ends, it's ideal for cross country applications. Am now in the process of dressing it up some with a new wheelset (Real/Bontrager), Time ATAC pedals, etc.

Update 9/13/00: my MTB era is over for now. Two weeks ago, I sold my FSR (pictured left) to someone in Portland, ME. It's time to retire from riding for a while. Having mountain biked straight through for almost nine years, I desperately needed a break before burning out. I'll always love the sport and may buy another bike sometime in the future. My current passion is longboard surfing. Check out the longboarding page for more details on this latest addiction

Last Updated 1.4.03