29in·CH+

After two visits to the Chasseral I was looking for something a little different today. So I followed the Dinosaur Traces from last year, but then continued straight to Sonceboz where I started the climb of the Pierre Pertuis pass. The wide trail up to the top of the pass was easy, all on hardpack and not very steep. But things changed from there. The marked mountain bike route #44 follows a steep forest trail. On a geared bike you would drop into a small gear and start patiently spinning until the trail spits you out onto a small paved road 200 meters higher. On my singlespeed it was an exercise in turning the cranks in slow motion trying the best not to stall. Back on the road the legs went back to pushing the cranks faster. I was worried about the next section of trail, though. A rough uphill trail with loose gravel waited around the next turn. Well, it turned out to be a lot easier than I thought. Soon I reached the Métairie de Werdt from where the trail stayed pretty much at the same elevation for the journey across the Montoz. It’s quite nice up there; awesome views in every direction and lots of mountain restaurants if one feels a little hungry. As far as mountain biking it’s a rather boring adventure. It’s all gravel. No singletrack far and wide. The Montoz’s really a better destination for a cyclocross bike. I continued eastwards until I got to the Obere Bürenberg, where I started looking for the entrance to the so-called “Schmugglerwägli” - the Smuggler’s Trail. I had no trouble finding it and dropped into this narrow, technical trail. It’s nice, has a bunch of steep, rooty and rocky sections and a few places where you’re better off walking. Is it worth heading out there? For a “seen it - done it” sort of trip - yes. To do on a regular basis - not really. Next I climbed from the Wäsmeli along the Stützliweg to the Montagne de Romont. This trail’s fun. It climbs on forest ground spiked with lots of the typical Jura limestone. On a singlespeed there are two sections you need to power through if you don’t want to get tossed off the bike. A grassy trail brought me to the Montagne de Romont where I had to look hard for the trail down to Vauffelin. No trail in sight, I rode through tall grass until I spotted a yellow trail marker. The trail to Vauffelin is steep, narrow and too darn straight. Leaves cover loose rocks and broken branches, so forget about going fast. In short: a trail that kills elevation fast without being overly exciting. I crossed the small village of Vauffelin to climb the north side of the Bözingenberg. The first half of the climb is a typical forest service road. But it leads to a fun uphill singletrack that’s always a joy to take. Once at the top, I headed to the so-so downhill that ends just above the Tierpark. I walked through this one, then crossed the bridge across the Taubenlochschlucht to head back home. A fun day out on the bike, but not a loop I need to repeat on my Niner. The Montoz is cyclocross material.

Distance:	49.7 km (30.9 miles)
Elevation:	2’122 m (6’962 feet)
Time:	03:49:39
Speed (avg/max):	13.0/55.0 kph (8.0/34.2 mph)

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Looking for a longer loop to the Chasseral with a nice amount of climbing? Look no further! Today’s loop across the Twannberg adds a couple more miles to yesterday’s loop while requiring about the same 6600 feet of climbing. I left a little late this morning because the Biocentic BB needed attention. On yesterday’s loop in creaked badly. No surprise there. The Niner BB’s famous for that. I took it apart, cleaned it and then reassembled it before heading out. It creaked at the beginning, then went silent for the first climb only to start creaking again for the remainder of the ride. I think if you own a Niner with an EBB you just have to try to live with it. It’s not great, but there’s no proven fix. I tuned it out and had a good ride. On my way back, I passed two groups of bikers. When I passed the second, someone greeted me saying: “The TwentyNiner forum is out on the trails”. Nice that folks know the forum and recognize you out on the trail. I need to apologize though, I didn’t stay with the group for long as I was on a mission to get home.

Distance:	65.6 km (40.8 miles)
Elevation:	2’017 m (6’617 feet)
Time:	04:57:37
Speed (avg/max):	13.2/53.2 kph (8.2/33.0 mph)

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After yesterday’s cycling break on Fivefingers, it was time to roll out the bike again and hit a loop in the local hills. I followed the same trails as on Wednesday only this time under a sunny sky. The Bise was blowing and kept temperatures in check; perfect riding conditions that a lot of other two-wheeled folks enjoyed as well. Three days ago I missed a really great spot - an overlook at 1352 meters with a fantastic view of the Combe Grède. With the dense fog that day I wouldn’t have seen anything. Today on the other hand was spectacular. The vista point makes an ideal place for a short break before hitting the last climbs to reach the Chasseral and that’s just what I did. Once at the antenna, I followed the crest and took the mandatory Spaghetti Trail to head home. Interesting observation: On my way up to the Chasseral, I did neither pass nor cross a single cyclist. On the way from the antenna eastwards along the crest I passed more than thirty bikers. Where did they come from and how did they get there?

Distance:	58.4 km (36.3 miles)
Elevation:	2’036 m (6’680 feet)
Time:	04:38:13
Speed (avg/max):	12.6/54.3 kph (7.8/33.7 mph)
GPS Track:	GPSies.com

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The Zaboo folks have been busy and just announced that they’ll be having a small number of their new full-suspension 29er in stock shortly.

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Spring only begins with the equinox on March 20th, but with the warming temperatures and the quickly melting snow the optimist in me got a little bit ahead of schedule. In addition my bikes badly asked to be thoroughly serviced. The Niner A9C has seen its fair share of snow this winter. It has been out at some of the coldest temperatures, where the freewheel of its rear Chris King hub occasionally failed to catch. After a ride, the bike often got a quick hose-down with a followup chain lube. Nothing more. Needless to say, the bike’s internals, though well protected, needed to be cleaned and covered with a fresh layer of the finest bicycle grease.

Last night, front and rear wheel were disassembled, cleaned and lubed. The Edge Composites rims got some Turtlewax and the rotors got a simple rub with a rag. Tonight, the disc brake calipers were cleaned from brake dust, the fork was removed to gain access to the headset bearings, which were wiped clean and generously greased for rust and creak protection. Once everything was back together, it was the frame’s turn be turtlewaxed.

Still to be done is a full drivetrain swap. The 19T Boone titanium cog has reached the end of its life. The Actiontec 34T chainring still has some life left, but will be sacrificed in the process. A new cog also demands a new chain. Since Boone’s no longer around, I’m planning to get some Homebrewed Components cogs - a worthy successor.

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First and foremost be warned, what follows is some 26er content. You know, those small-wheeled bikes we used to ride in the dark ages of mountain biking. Those bikes we look at today wondering how in the world we possibly rode them across trails. Yes, I still own not one but two of those museum-worthy off-road velocipedes. The mean green riding machine is a bike that I’ve now owned for thirteen years. Circumstances wanted that in all of those thirteen years, the bike only saw dusty trails during the first two. The bike went to Sea Otter, to Downieville, took me on many rides in Annadel and traveled to Switzerland twice. After two seasons, the clear coat on top of the green paint started to have lots of tiny, barely visible cracks. Chris Kelly offered to repaint it and as he was just starting to do all frame painting in house, the frame remained at his shop for a good amount of time. In order to continue riding, I put my Merlin back into service and then never built the Kelly back up again. My Santa Rosa apartment just didn’t have the space for yet another bike. Three were already sitting in my living room and that was plenty enough. In 2006 a Niner took the place of both and only after getting settled in Switzerland, the Kelly was pulled out of the box to become my wife’s mountain bike. She rode about 300 km on it and never really liked the fit. At the end of January, I vanished in the musty basement, armed myself with spanners and hex keys to take it apart, toss the parts on Ebay and have them forever disappear across the globe. Such was the plan. After hours of carefully cleaning one component after another, I changed my mind. The frame and all components are impeccable. Joined they make up a unique hardtail with an unmistakable Northern Californian heritage. The bikes’ steel tubes are filled with deep memories of unforgettable rides on dusty NorCal trails. So the same weekend, the bike was rebuilt with many of the original parts to stay here some more time.

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According to Swiss Ride Magazine, the Canton of Berne wants to ban mountain bikes. Their reasoning: mountain bikes cause permanent damage to the ground, especially when riding in wet conditions. What a bunch of bullocks! Whoever wrote this legislative draft, must have never set foot in a forest. If they really wanted untouched forests, they should start with a ban of all forestry machinery.

A 20 ton harvester slices through the forest leaving tire tracks two feet deep, yet it’s the slim 70 kilo mountain biker who is the cantonal authority’s bête noire. According to the proposal, mountain bikers caught riding single tracks would face a fine of 20’000 Swiss Francs. I hope this will never be signed into law else I’ll consider paying future taxes in a canton that appreciates residents with a healthy lifestyle.

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Well, hello 2012. I left the land of the holey cheese for Christmas and New Years and spent it in good old Northern California, which for my taste buds, makes much finer cheese than alpine Helvetia. The bikes had to stay at home and 29in.ch went forgotten while I overdosed on GT’s Kombucha, Maine Root Ginger Brew, Chai BaBa Chai and an occasional Zin. Yes, I was a regular at Whole Foods and wish they’d invade Switzerland so that the country would finally get a grocery store where choice isn’t a foreign word. One can always hope.

I’m glad to report that Apple USA fixed my MacBook without charging an arm and a leg and did so within a few days. Customer service and efficiency, Americans definitely got those down. Need another example? Went to Macy’s and bought a pile of clothes, 50-60% off. Telling the sales girl that we have no Macy’s card because we’re visiting from abroad, she pulls a bunch of extra rebate codes out of a drawer and scans one after the other until one goes through and takes another 15% off. The money saved on those clothes and the laptop repair paid for my plane ticket alone.

MacBook operating again, I whipped up a short video with the footage taken back in December. Still need to find the right settings to convert and upload an iMovie project to Youtube within a reasonable time frame. Any good tips on that?

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A titanium masterpiece by Firefly.

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I’ve been singlespeeding either in Shimano sandals or trail shoes but have not owned a racy MTB show in over a decade. Cyclo-crossing, my feet demanded something more akin to a road shoe so I consulted the web to get an idea of what the market has to offer these days. I stumbled across Mavic, who has some very good looking shoes that most importantly don’t break the bank. I opted for Mavic’s mid-level Tempo, a cross-country race shoe with a grippy rubber sole, two adjustable Velcro straps and one ratcheting strap. It can be quite a lottery to buy a shoe brand one has never worn over the internet, but the two commutes to work in these were verification enough that I ordered the correct size. This is a heck of a comfortable shoe. If it performs and holds up well, I might replace my aging Specialized road shoes with a pair of Mavic next spring. Bought for CHF 150 at Bikester.

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