More Salsa Fargo Pictures!

I've said it before, but someday I'll tire of talking about how much I love this bike. I'm sure some of you are sick of it, but for me I feel like this bike inspires me and feeds my thirst for exploration and photography by bringing me places and connecting trails and roads.

Yesterday on my commute home (my 39th birthday I might add!) I ran across a section of trail with really good natural light. I stopped and experimented with my new camera. Enjoy.





Finished the day with 4:45 minutes of riding - Almost 40 miles of dirt, 25 miles of pavement, and about 50 new pictures. Fun stuff.

Salsa Fargo Update

A while back, I posted a few pics of my newest Fargo configuration featuring a new SRAM Rival 10 speed kit. Essentially, I wanted to see how to make a lighter, faster and STI/Ergo/DoubleTap shifters. Why? Well....That's just what I like to do. More importantly though, I have some ideas about next year and I will want/need a bike just like this for what I have in mind.



The crux of this build was the front derailleur set up. The road Rival front derailleur didn't have enough throw for a Mtn Chainline. Because I wanted to ride the bike, I ended up with a 22-36 SLX crank...Notice the nice bashguard. Nice drop bar 29er with roadie stuff and a freeride crank!

Well, I have finally solved the problem and the results are in the B to B+ range. I'll put out the required disclaimer here stating that super quick or road shifting snobs will probably not like my solution.



My end set up is as follows.

- Surly Mr. Whirly cranks
- 36-48 Shimano 110mm bolt circle 9 speed rings - $$
- SRAM X.7 mtn front derailleur

This set up is sweet. In all honesty, the shifting is a bit slow going up into the 48 tooth ring. Thankfully, Shimano rings have pick up teeth and they lift that narrow 10 speed chain right into the right place. Besides, when are you shifting into the outer ring under full power? OK, someone will need that and that's why I put out my disclaimer. It's a B to B+ performance. It works for me and if you are not too picky, it will likely work for you too.

Beyond that, this is my first experience with Surly Mr. Whirly cranks. They are working really well, but I was shocked at how many pieces are in the kit. I had some difficulty getting the chainring bolts to snug down. Not sure what is up here but I'm guessing it is just tolerance stacking and that the 2 rings and the spider all add up to the low end of the tolerance scale. I also set up the external BB with only 1 spacer between the BB shell and the cup, this means two are on the left side. This gives a narrower chain line and works really well.

I've got about 400 miles on this set up and I'm pretty pleased. Now that I've got this one running perfectly I'm converting Fargo prototype #1 into an off road warrior. Stay tuned.

Salsa Fargo + Going Far = Fargoing

I got back in the bike groove yesterday. I left at 5:00AM in the rain and headed to Minneapolis for breakfast with the FMBC (Friday Morning Breakfast Crew). I had zero cash and the cafe only takes cash so I made quick detour. I don't think this is what they had in mind when they installed drive up ATM's.



Sorry it's blurry, it was dark & cold and I was wet so I snapped a couple and got back on the road. My legs felt a little tired after 2 weeks off the bike. Thankfully, I was alone and just pedaled my own pace to the cafe.



After breakfast, we headed for work. Unfortunately with the rain, this meant we'd be riding pavement. I was on my Fargo with Maxxis Crossmarks, quite a disadvantage compared to the skinny tires the rest of the crew was on. The 30 psi in my big 29er tires along with a faster than normal pace just made my legs feel worse. Still, felt good getting over 30 miles in before 8:00AM!

Thankfully, the rain didn't last long and the wind picked up. This meant I could ride some dirt on the way home. On top of that, I had a tailwind for my commute home. Man I love tail winds on Friday's. I dropped in and hit the dirt. I even threw in a little adventuring (off trail excursion).



After almost 13 miles of single track and dirt road, I traversed the river through this urban art corridor and then finished my journey on pavement.



In the end, finished my Friday journey with just shy of 60 miles. Rain. Sun. Wind. Pavement. Food. Friends. Gravel. Singletrack. Art. Nature. Photos. Exploration. It had it all. Now that's what I call Fargoing.

Hope to hit dirt today as we are expecting snow on Sunday!

Photo Friday

As yesterday's post indicated, JMKM and I got a great ride in on Tuesday. It was filled with road, bike paths, dirt and two track. Here's a little shot of my Fargo I took while JMKM was changing a flat.






Enjoy your weekend. Ride your bike.

Outdoor Demo - Day 1

Good evening folks. Finally back to the hotel tonite and wanted to share a few notes from the day. Sorry this is so short and bullet point like. I'm tired. Very, very tired and I need a good night's rest.

I had lot's of fun today. I got see a lot of old friends and meet some new friends. A few were even Gnat blog readers. All in all a great day. Here is yet another use for a Salsa Fargo - 6 pack holder. While this Fargo was only set up with 2 bottle cages, a fully set up Fargo could easily carry 6 of your favorites cans home.



Gnat blog readers are probably tired of reading and seeing the Salsa Fargo here on my blog, but I'm so smitten with this bike. I promise I'll be moving on from it sometime....Say in about a year or so. Seriously, I am planning some non Fargo material. In fact, it kept me awake this morning when I should have been sleeping.

Other observations from Outdoor Demo Day 1.

- Lot's of 29ers - even a few good ones
- Lot's of carbon fiber
- Lot's of renewed interest in steel
- Lot's of cool paint jobs. I was impressed this year as many brands are doing a better job with graphics.
- Not much blood yet, but tomorrow is the busy demo day and I'm sure someone will lay it down on the rock and come back bloody.

Anyway, I'm pooped. Going to sleep now.

Rainy Day Musings - Finished my Salsa Fargo

Despite the last couple days of rain keeping me off both the roads and the trails, it still took me 2 and a half days to get my new Salsa Fargo built. It's built, rides great, works great. Even so, some of the parts are only temporary. First, take a look and then I'll discuss why the bike is built the way it is and why it took me so long.



This one is a bit different than my expedition tourer Fargo. I wanted a lighter, faster, dirt/gravel worthy bike. Essentially, a heavy duty La Cruz. I also upsized to a large on this one as it is just a bit more road bike like. I also just wanted to try getting road STI, Double Tap, or Ergo 10 speed drive trains to work....That is why it took me 2 1/2 days.





The crux of this bike and the reason it took me over 2 days is the crank/bb/front derailleur set up. You see, the Fargo is not designed for road style cranks and chain line. To date, there are no 10 speed mtn cranks. Yes, I know that 9 speed, or even 8 or 7 speed, may be more appropriate for this bike. I just wanted to try it and I really like the new SRAM stuff with the 1:1 actuation ratio. I wanted the 1:1 actuation ratio because I think it will work better and shifting will last longer in the elements of mud, muck and wet gravel.

In the end, I got it to work with a 22-36t ring set up and an 11-28 10spd cassette. It's the only thing I could get to work with adequate chain line and to work with the throw of the SRAM Rival front derailleur. This will work great for all around, but I still need to find a way to get bigger road/gravel road gearing on this bike. I wanted to do a 36-46 or a 36-48. I can get larger rings on here, but then the Rival front derailleur runs out of throw. If I use a different front derailleur, then the double tap shifter doesn't work. If you have some ideas, let me know.

So here are the rest of the components.

RD = Sram Rival
FD = Sram Rival
Crank = Shimano SLX 22-36=BG (This will be replaced, possibly with a Surly Mr Whirly with a 110 spider.
BB = Shimano SLX
CS = Sram Rival 11-28 10 Spd
CH = Sram 10 Spd Chain
Brakes = Avid Road Mechanical
Shifters/Brake Levers = SRAM Rival Double Tap (unfortunately carbon)
HD = Cane Creek S3
Post = Salsa Shaft
Bar = Salsa Pro Bell Lap, 26.0 x 46
Stem = Salsa CroMoto
Tape = Salsa Leather, black
Saddle = WTB Rocket V with Ti rails
Tires = Maxxis CrossMark 29"
Tubes = Salsa 29"
Rim Tape = Rox Super DutE 19mm
Rims = Prototype Salsa Semi
Hubs = DT Swiss 240, 32 hole
Spokes = Competition Black
Nipples = Silver alloy with 4 red alloy over each of the Salsa pepper decals
Skewers = Salsa Stainless Flip Off's
Housing = Jagwire Ripcord compressionless for brakes, stock SRAM for derailleurs

So...The crank/chainring set up will change and I haven't mounted all my bottle cages and pump, but this bike is lighter and feels like a heavy duty La Cruz. Should just rip on my off road/road combo commute to work. Just what I wanted.

A couple new shots

I'm building a few new Fargo bikes tonight. I will be riding one of them to the breakfast ride tomorrow....At least I think I can get one done tonight. Thought I'd share a couple of pics.





Better get back to the workshop!

Edit 9:30PM

Well, back in from the work shop. I won't be riding this bike tomorrow. I was trying something new and thought I could make something incompatible compatible. Component 1, me Zero. Oh well, looks like I'll be riding my La Cruz in the morning.

Getting Lost with the Fargo

First, thanks to all for the kind words and encouragement from Sunday's post. Sincerely, thank you. It means a lot to me. I'm looking forward to seeing those of you going to Interbike. Seriously, I can't wait.

Some of my excitement for Interbike is because of the Salsa Fargo Adventure Touring Bike. For readers that have been reading my blog for a bit, or since the beginning like a few of you, you all know how much I love bicycle touring and the adventure that comes with it.



The Fargo really makes me look into the horizon and think about pedaling to where ever I see or to where ever my mind wonders. It's been a labor of love. It's been an inspiration. I've said it already, but someday you will understand what this means.

So...For those blog readers that know me and read the Gnat blog, here's a sneak peak at a few images I've taken over the summer while riding my Fargo prototype. I'll be posting a long story with some technical features on the Salsa blog later this week. Consider this a preview just for friends.

Thanks again and enjoy!



One note: The greenish play button isn't loading in it's correct spot. On my computer, a small corner of the play button is showing up in the upper left corner.

Photo Friday

I've been waiting for this Photo Friday for a long time. Over the course of the summer, I've taken a couple hundred pictures of my favorite bike. A bike I could not reveal. Well, it's finally public knowledge. I'm working on a story about the bike along with a slide show but those are not ready yet. Today, you get two of my favorite images.





Have a great Friday folks. Ride your bike.