Lynskey Ridgeline

DO NOT BUY LYNSKEY. My frame was an absolute noodle with rear end tire rub, squeaking, popping, dropped chains and general no-funnery. I spent a year bickering with several representatives at Lynskey (including the arrogant David Lynskey) only to be told that I needed to tighten my seat post clamp, lubricate my slider every 3 rides (what?!), etc. Ultimately the frame broke both in the sliders (hairline crack) and failed massively at the headtube-downtube junction. The original fix was going to be a replaced downtube but after lots of argument they finally sent a replacement frame. I sold the replacement frame without assembling it on Craigslist. I received an email soon after posting the frame for sale telling me that they were shocked that I was selling it without riding it and if they had known I was just going to sell it they wouldn't have offered a replacement frame. These guys are the friendliest people you'll ever meet when you're buying a new frame but it turns bad fast when things aren't going well. For those of you around bikes awhile this sounds a lot like the BS surrounding Litespeed under Lynskey's watch prior to the brand being sold off. Do youself a favor and give your hard earned money to people that actually ride and know how to design and support bikes. As always, you may have a wonderful experience unlike me but why take the chance?
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So, its been a LONG time since my last post. I haven't been out hiking because of the heat of the summer. I have been doing a lot of mountain biking locally. I've read about the 29" wheel single speed movement for awhile now and finally decided to give it a try. My local bike shop, Harrell's Bicycle World , had a 2008 Raleigh XXIX that they were willing to give me a little break on so I bought it. First of all, I can't say enough good things about Raleigh's XXIX single speed. There's a great review of it here: Dirt Rag's Raleigh XXIX Review I've been riding this bike two to three times a week on our local trail system in the Harbison State Forest since I brought it home. I like the simplicity of the ride so much my high end Moot's RigorMootis sat idle all summer. Its not that I don't like the Moots - the larger wheels and single speed make the ride smoother, quieter, and in some cases even faster. Here's a photo of the XXIX.



After a few months of riding and some soul searching I decided to build up a nice single speed 29'er. What I finally settled on was ultimately the best of the Moots and the Raleigh XXIX. The frame is a Lynskey Ridgeline with single speed slider drop outs. Lynskey created LiteSpeed which was ultimately absorbed by American Bicycle Group. When big brother took over I assume he went off to do his own thing and eventually started Lynskey Performance.

I built the Ridgeline up as a rigid single speed - simple. Titanium is famous for being smooth and compliant like a steel frame while remaining stiff and lightweight. The tubes on the Ridgeline are heavily shaped allowing maximum stiffness with minimum material. As a result, the 19" frame (size L) only weighs 3.4lbs. Another advantage with titanium is its corrosion resistance. No paint is required and as a result there are no scratches or scuffs to fuss over. The rigid fork offers precise handling and less mechanical bits to maintain or break. Obviously, no suspension also means feeling all of the bumps and vibration associated with trail riding. To take the edge off there there are carbon fiber bits here and there (fork, bars, seatpost). Add in hydraulic disc brakes and some gorgeous single speed cranks and Ti chainring from Shawnee and you have a sexy ride for sure. Part of what helped me settle on the Lynskey was this series of reviews at 29 Inches: Twenty Nine Inches Ridgeline Review This is the intro review. You can follow the links at the end of each section for the next segment of Guitar Ted's review. I've only ridden the Lynskey around the neighborhood so far. If the weather cooperates today I'll have it on the trails as soon as humanly possible after work. I can already tell that the handling is significantly faster than the XXIX so I'll have to keep on my toes on the fast and technical sections. I've also noticed that the rear triangle is a lot stiffer so I should have more efficient power transfer. We'll see how much harsher the ride is as a result of the stiffened rear end.

Here she is... sexxxy!



The obligatory 'SIMPLIFY' theme (also lasered on the grips - thanks ODI)



Super sweet single speed cranks modified from XTR M960 cranks & Ti ring from Shawnee



Foster approves... FAST!

Eastatoe Gorge Backpacking

This past weekend's hike was intentionally selected as a simple, short hike. Dad & I wanted to take a break from the longer mile trips that we've been planning lately so we could relax and enjoy some leisure time in the woods. We settled on the last spur trail on the FHT that we hadn't seen yet. Eastatoe Creek Trail is a spur trail on the Foothills Trail System. The trail is only 2.5 miles of easy hiking from the parking lot to camp (1.7 miles of pure trail). Trail access is located at the parking area of the Laurel Fork Creek trail head. This spur is marked with yellow blazes. There were more blue blazes than yellow but don't worry - you'll have to try hard to get lost on this hike. Here is the trail description from SCTrails.net:

This moderate, 1.7-mile path takes you into the 373-acre Eastatoe Creek Heritage Preserve, which is a wonder nestled within a pristine mountain gorge. The Eastatoe (pronounced “EAST-a-toee”) Creek Trail is relatively easy for most of the way, but drops precipitously down into the gorge for its last .5 mile (Of course, that means you’ll have to hike back up to return!). The forest teems with large beech and hemlocks as well as wildflowers such as partridgeberry and jack-in-the-pulpit. Switchbacks make the going a bit easier, and stairs are provided where the trail descends/ascends more steeply. Following a rain, footing can be difficult (at one point, the trail borders a 100-foot cliff). The rewards, however, come in Eastatoe Creek Heritage Preserve, which is home to a beautiful stream filled with naturally reproducing rainbow trout. Across the creek is a cliff with a small, attractive waterfall. Due to the unusual humidity in this area, three rare tropical ferns grow here that are not found anywhere else in North America. Yellow blazes on the Eastatoe Creek Trail are sometimes confusing, but the end of the trail is well marked with a triple blaze. Return the way you came.

I was able to test several pieces of new gear including my Mountain Laurel Designs Grace Duo, Serenity and my MYOG GoLite Ion. I'll be posting more on those topics very soon. If you can't wait, the short version is: if you are considering any product from MLD go get it now and if you're planning on using an Ion, pack light! The hike in took about an hour. There are plenty of camp sites and unlike most areas with easy access they were all clean and well maintained (read: not a mudhole with broken glass and rusted beef stew cans). After getting set up we napped through a 45 minute afternoon shower which seemed to send most of the mosquitoes packing. Since we had a lot of energy left over at camp we were able to do some bushwhacking to find the gorge and waterfalls on Eastatoe Creek. I'd definitely recommend this trip.

Eastatoe Creek Trail

My MYOG GoLite Ion and my new favorite trekking poles, Gossamer Gear LT4s

MLD Grace Duo In Action

(notice the generous dry patch left behind after a 45 minute afternoon shower)

A Small Falls on Eastatoe Creek

Eastatoe Creek

Looking up a 75ft Boulder Wall

Eastatoe Gorge

Another Waterfall Down The Gorge

Documenting my sacrafice of dry feet for a hike up the gorge for a great photo

Stinging Nettles - pesky little buggers

Mountain Laurel Designs Grace Duo & Serenity Review

I recently purchased a Mountain Laurel Designs Grace Duo tarp in spectralite and a Serenity shelter. The pair weigh 16 ounces including all required tie outs. I'll use 4 titanium shepherd hook stakes for the Serenity, 4 to 6 MSR Needle stakes for the tarp sides depending on weather conditions and 2 MSR Groundhog stakes for either end of the tarp.

Here is a short video showing the setup and features of the gear. I intent to follow up with a field report after my first trip with this gear the weekend of July 12th. Stay tuned!

Backpacking Fork Mountain to Oconee State Park

Dad & I took a group hike in the Upstate this weekend with the group from the South Carolina State Parks program. First things first: Thanks to Scott Stegenga for leading the trip. As always, he did a nice job of balancing the trip for the fast & light crowd and the bring the kitchen sink hikers.

The original plan was to start on the Fork Mountain spur of the FHT and hike to Oconee State Park over three days and two nights. This is a 30 mile hike that was planned to split evenly over the three days. The trail is well marked on these sections and the elevation changes aren't severe.



Here's dad near the trail head early on day one.



The mountain laurels were in full bloom this weekend. The white and pink laurel were both in full bloom.



A view down the Fork Mountain spur of the FHT.



A large portion of this hike follows the Chatooga River. The past few years the river levels have really been down as a result of the drought in the area. It was refreshing to see the river up significantly compared to recent years. We had a difficult time getting through the low water portion of the trail this time.



This poor guy was carrying 50 or 60 pounds of gear down the trail. I didn't think he'd make it past the first day but he did manage to (slowly) cover the entire hike. To make matters worse, his tent leaked badly the first night leaving all of his heavy gear soaked and even more of a burden to carry the next day.



The pines in our first camp were tremendous. I don't think this one ends...



Some flowers from the edge of camp.



My self portrait on a 60ft log bridge.



My Gossamer Gear The One tent. A 1lb single wall shelter.



Beautiful canopy along the way. I wasn't able to take many photos the next day due to rain (doesn't mix well with digital cameras). We ended up hiking 20 miles out to end the trip in 2 days instead of the planned 3. We were both tired and had sore feet but we were able to avoid the storms (see the radar below). That radar image was taken while we were driving home. Camp was approximately where the 'X' is... lots of storms were on the way. We definitely made the right call.

Palmetto Trail & Foothills Trail

Dad and I finished a 30 mile hike over three days this past weekend. It was a little cool and I struggled through some athletically induced asthma but it was still a good trip. Photos are posted on our website at this link:

Hiking the Palmetto Trail & Foothills Trail.

Here are a few shots from the trip:

Deep Gap Backpacking Trip

Dad & I hiked the Deep Gap Trail at Mt. Mitchell this past weekend (7-19 & 20, 2008). Mt. Mitchell is the highest peak east of the Mississippi River at 6,684 ft. The Deep Gap Trail starts at Mt. Mitchell and tracks the ridge line of several 6,000ft peaks before reaching a grassy knoll named Commissary Ridge. The trail is steep and rugged and there was almost no water to filter but we were prepared and all ended well.



Dad & me on Mt. Craig.



A nice view of the Black Mountains (part of the Smokey Mountain Range).



Yours truly - the trail follows the ridgeline in the background.



Sections of the trail are STEEP.



Another great vista.



Wild irises at Commissary Ridge.




Sunrise at 6,000 ft.




Watch that last step...



Nice photo of a weathered tree and the Smokies in the background.



Me relaxing - almost done.



King of the hill!

Foothills Trail - Bad Creek Access to Oconee State Park

Dad & I were back on the FHT this weekend. I took Friday off so we could squeeze in 30 miles between Bad Creek Access & Oconee State Park. This finishes the FHT for me - dad reminds me AFTER he finished the FHT. I'm only 34 so the way I see it he's had a lot more time to get it done. We had good weather for most of the trip. To avoid some severe thunderstorms Sunday morning we woke up at 11PM Saturday and hiked the remaining 8.3 miles out in the pitch dark. That's an interesting way to experience the trail - just be careful!



Trillium - these were in bloom all along the entire hike.



Whitewater River - this is where we had lunch on the first day



Nice view of the sky near the Whitewater River.



Steps - lots and lots of steps - then a few more.



Upper Whitewater Falls



View of Lake Jocassee from the Grassy Knob escarpment near the Upper Whitewater Falls.



Blaze azaleas on the trail near Round Mountain.



Foothills trail - close to Sloan Bridge (SC107).



Kings Mountain Falls



Small wildflowers by the side of the Chatooga River.



Dad & me at the Whitewater Falls overlook on the first day.



This is a photo of me finishing the FHT. 5-10-2008