It was the second demo day of the year, and this one was the big one – the Bike Radar Demo Day.  As I mentioned in a previous post, I’d booked a Lapierre Zesty 514L, a Santa Cruz Juliana, and a Yeti 575 – with a mind to demo a Trek Fuel 9 as well.

First up was the Lapierre.  Now, what I’m about to write is very difficult for me.  You see, me and French engineering?  We don’t go well together.  I’ve never had a particularly high regard for it ever since my mate Dez bought a Peugeot, and had nothing but trouble with it.  This view was reinforced when another friend bought a Renault…which was also plagued with problems.    And, just to add a delicious layer of bitter icing to the cake of disgruntlement, I’ve had to fork out god knows how much money on my Nissan Micra.

“But that’s Japanese!”, I hear you cry!  Alas, dear reader, that’s also what I assumed.  That’s why I bought it – because Japanese cars are traditionally very reliable.  Which is why I was puzzled when I started having so many engine problems with my car over the past year – my car, incidentally, wasn’t even three years old when it started playing up.  And recently, after having to replace the EGR valve, I learnt the source of my woes.

Nissan Micras are Japanese designed…but the UK Micras with the current body shape (launched in 2003) have French engines.  Renault engines, to be exact.  So yeah, me and French engineering? Generally, I’d be screaming “NON!” right about now.

So, I was viewing the Zesty with some suspicion.  Sure, I’d read glowing reviews, but that wasn’t really enough to overcome my innate prejudice or casual racism.  Baguettes ahoy!  Plus it had a fairly uninspired paint job…

To ride, however, the Zesty 514 was the best bike I’ve ever ridden.  It just felt…right.  Solid, stable, but light and nimble.  It inspired confidence on descents, and climbed nicely too.  Everything was pretty much perfect – geometry suited me to a T, the brakes were set up with just the right amount of bite, and the gears were perfectly smooth.  MMmmmm….Zesty!

Unfortunately, the women’s version of the Zesty only seems to be available in the 514, not the slightly lower specced 314…which means it tips in at a mighty £2399.

Ouch.

I don’t suppose anyone could offer any information on the organ black market, I have a spare kidney sitting around.  One careful lady owner…

Next up was the Trek Fuel 8 WSD, which is infamously brown.  Well, to be fair, it’s actually more like bronze and gold in the flesh, but that’s still dangerously close to brown in my book.  The Trek, sadly, disappointed slightly, but I feel that was more down to the set-up rather than being down to the bike itself.

The gears were a bit crunchy, and the brakes kept rubbing, leading to a quiet ghostly wail as I rode, which transformed into what can only be described as the honking of an angry goose when I actually applied the brakes.  The brakes also felt a little spongey, with the lever needing to be pulled back to its full extent to get any bite.  On the plus side, noisy brakes are awesome for startling nearby walkers….

There was also the pedals – I didn’t take my own flats to the demo day, so I was using the manufacturers own.  Unfortunately Trek were using dual platform flat/spd pedals on their demo fleet.  Today I discovered that, in my eyes, dual platform/spd pedals are the worst idea ever. Try and do two things at once, and you end up doing neither very well.  Like trying to pedal up a technical ascent whilst trying to get the pedals the right way around, for example…

Geometry wasn’t too bad, but I think I would have benefitted going to the 15.5″ instead of the 14.5″ – despite having the same top tube length as its male counterparts, the bike I was on still felt a little short.

Again, like the Safire, I’m not going to completely write off the Trek until I’ve given it a fair chance.  Despite the problems, it was still an enjoyable ride, and all of those problems aren’t inherent to the bike itself.  Brakes can be bled and discs adjusted, gears can be cleaned and oiled.  It’s just a shame that the bike wasn’t at its best on the demo day – which is possibly the one day it really needs to be!  I think I’ll try and demo the next size up from Swinnertons at some point, and see if it impresses then.

After stuffing a bacon sandwich into my face,  the Santa Cruz Juliana was up to bat.  First…

I think we’ll all agree that that is a very, very green bike.  Traditionally I’ve not been a huge fan of the garish mono-coloured bikes, but recently I’ve been softening to them.  And there is something compelling about riding a bike that screams “LOOK AT ME!!”…also something terrifying if, like me, you’re not actually very good…

The Juliana was a nice ride, again, solid and stable.  I felt confident enough to take her down Section 13, which I haven’t ridden since…*checks previous blog entries*…August!  Unfortuantely, I don’t think it was quite what I was after – it was a really nice bike, and I’d be happy to take one out for a more extended spin, but it felt slightly off (but annoyingly not in any way I can quite explain), and it didn’t tackle climbs with the same…er, zest as the Zesty.

I never got to try the Yeti, but the guy at the tent told me that Yetis “come up large”, and that the small would be too big for me.  Apparently they’ve just started making extra small 575s, but they have none in the demo fleet sadly.  Still, have a picture of a Yeti anyway.

Ride: Cannock Chase

Trail: A little bit of Follow the Dog (including Section 13), some green routes

Highlights: The Lapierre Zesty.

Bad bits: Dual platform pedals on the Trek.  Yes, I know I should have taken my own 🙁

Post ride food snaffled: Bacon sandwich, oaty choc chip cookie, Gray’s Herbal Tablets

Good dogs seen: Border Terrier, labrador pups, little airedale terrier type dogs

Had my first demo day of the year yesterday…and my first ride since my knee operation in September!  Even though the track was knackered and the weather was iffy, it was great to be back out again!

It was the MBR Demo Day, with Specialized and Giant in attendance.  It wasn’t quite as big an affair as last year, and wasn’t quite as well organised.  We got there about 1.45pm, and headed straight to the Specialized tent.  I wanted to give the Safire another go – ideally, I would have like to have tried sitting on both the small and the medium, but unfortunately bikes were going out as soon as they came in, so I stuck to the small.

The Specialized chaps checked the details – apparently the small Safire had gone out an hour beforehand, so was due back immediately.  “Come back at 2.10pm, we should have it ready by then”.

Can you guess what happened, dear readers?  If you recall last year’s demo day post, you probably can.  The bike wasn’t back by 2.10pm.  Or 2.30pm.  No, the bike came back in at 2.50pm – more than an hour after it was due back.  A new record!

I can’t blame the Specialized guys.  Things might have run smoother if they’d had pre-booking like last year, and more bikes (I think there was only one of each size for each model), but I suppose they can only carry so much.  And really, shouldn’t people just, oooh, I don’t know…return the bikes when they’re supposed to? Demo days just seem a bit flawed in that respect, in that the demoing of a particular bike can be thrown out of whack for the rest of the day by one person being a selfish arsehole.  Of course, there could have been technical problems with the bike, or the person could have had an accident…but the previous rider looked fine. -_-

Anyway, onto the bike!  I have to say, Specialized staff continue to impress – despite the miserable weather and fraying tempers due to late returns, they were friendly, informative, and dedicated to making sure that every single person who went out got the best experience possible.  They adjusted the shock and the forks according to people’s weight, made sure everything was tightened up and the optimum height, and explained what kind of travel you should be looking for.

Unfortunately, the bike impressed slightly less.  Really nice rolling on the flat, lovely smooth gearing…but I just felt a bit perilous on descents.  It felt a bit too short,  a bit too upright – all in all, it felt like I was perched over the handlebars.  I don’t know if it’s the case that I needed to go a size up, or just need a bike with a bit more reach, but it just didn’t feel right.

That said, it was my first time on a bike in five months, I was riding with the saddle far higher than I would normally (ie a sensible height, as dictated by my consultant), and it was very, very muddy (Yay! Slidey!) .  It might just be that I need to give the Safire more of a chance and get used to biking again – especially on a different bike.

When I returned the bike (ON TIME), the Specialized chap asked me how I got on.  I was honest, and he had several suggestions.  He didn’t think that I should go a size up, as that’d be too big height-wise, but I could increase the reach by moving the saddle back – it was as far forward as it would go.  Might have to see if I can demo one from the concept store in Brum and give it a go when the weather’s better and I’ve got my confidence up again.

Ride: Cannock Chase

Trail: A little bit of Follow the Dog, some green routes

Highlights: Being back on the bike for the first time since September!

Bad bits: A wee bit too muddy in parts

Post ride food snaffled: Bacon sandwich, caramel slice

Good dogs seen: Border Terrier, mud-splattered Westies trotting daintily along, Alsation pup

Booked my demo bikes for the Bike Radar Demo Day next month!  Currently my schedule looks like this:

12.30: Lapierre Zesty 514L

13.15: Planning on an on-the-day booking of a Trek Fuel 8 WSD.  EVEN THOUGH IT’S BROWN!

14.45: Santa Cruz Juliana

15.15:  Yeti 575

Really looking forward to it, want to get into the woods sooner though, re-familiarise myself with the trail.  I’m also looking forward to what the different bikes have to offer, and whether I’ll be any more impressed than I was with the ones I tried last year.

In other news, Mr Toast’s head was turned by a heavily discounted GT Zaskar frame.  They were going fast on Wiggle, but he was waiting for some money to come in from  eBay.  Unfortunately, we’ve been in this situation before, and it normally involves the bike selling just before Mr Toast can get to it, and me having to listen to years of his mourning ‘the one that got away’.  So, I bit the bullet and bought it myself on my credit card, and am now the proud owner of an extra large carbon frame!

I was tempted to keep my purchase a secret, but after recieving a miserable MSN message from Mr Toast, saying that the last frame had gone (he’d had the page open and had been hitting refresh every few minutes), I put him out of his misery.  He was needless to say quite pleased that he now owns a) a carbon bike, andb) a Zaskar, the bike he longed for in his youth. Bless.

Incidentally, carbon frames are wrong.  They don’t weigh anything, and sound like plastic when you tap them.  Creepy!

Well, you’ve got to hand it to Trek, they keep their eyes open.  Only a couple of days after my previous (slightly ranty) post, they posted a response.  You’ve got to give ’em credit for addressing people’s concerns, and for taking the time to post on a tiny blog!

Initially, although I was impressed that they bothered to respond, I wasn’t overly impressed with the reasoning.  Neither were some of the posters on the Bike Radar forum,  with Supersonic in particular putting TrekChris through her paces.  Chris, however, rose to the challenge, and answered all the questions thrown at her.

Apparently, this is the first year that the high-end Fuels have had the same geometry, and the change was made because the higher-end riders preferred it that way – hence why the WSD models in the lower end of the range still have the different geometry.  To compensate for those who’d still prefer a shorter top tube, there are additional sizes in between the standard bloke’s sizes.

And that makes sense, really – there’s no point in making a product one way if the majority of the target audience wants it another.  So, kudos to Trek for taking the time to explain the research behind certain decisions.  You could argue that the marketing blurb about WSD on their sites is still a little misleading (especially on the US site, which makes a bit more of a song and dance about geometry).  But then again, given that they have over thirty-odd WSD models that do have differing geometry from the standard bikes, and three that don’t…well, it’s just being picky, really.

Now, if Trek could explain the market research that led them to believe that brown was  a good colour for a bike…

And you too, Specialized.   And you, Kona.

I know we ladies have risen up against overwhelmingly pink bikes in recent years…but brown?

Well, all credit to Trek, they responded to my email very promptly:

“It’s good to see you’re looking at our EX range, they really are a fantastic bike.

You are correct, the EX8 & EX8 WSD have the same geometry.  The WSD isn’t just about the geometry. it also considers things like the brakes, grips and saddles (all of which are more suitable for a women on the EX8). As for the geometry, I would always strongly recommend going into a store and getting properly sized for the bike you want.  

I hope you get the bike you’re looking for.”

So there you have it.  The Trek Fuel WSD is exactly the same as the regular one, but with smaller rotors, slimmer grips and a women’s saddle.  Which, as I’ve ranted on the Bike Radar forum, is a bit cheeky given that the marketing blurb says:

“WSD Bikes are engineered specifically for women. Each bike puts you in a more natural riding position by redistributing weight more evenly between hips and hands. That means more comfort, better control and optimal power.”

Well, maybe I just misunderstood them.  Maybe I though that ‘redistributing weight more evenly between hips and hands’ was a bit of a tall order for the grips, saddle and rotors.  Maybe I somehow confused this with claims of differing geometry, possibly because my head is full of kittens and unicorns.

Or maybe  it’s because of stuff like this:

WSD Fit: A Geometry Lesson

A look at how Trek designs WSD bikes to optimally fit women.

1. WSD STEERING PACKAGE
   A WSD steering package with Bontrager FIT components provides improved control and confidence-inspiring handling for safer rides.
2. SHORTER TOP TUBE
   A shorter top tube evenly redistributes weight between hips and hands to eliminate lower back pain and reduce neck and shoulder stress.
3. SEAT TUBE ANGLE
   A steeper seat tube balances weight over pedals to maximize efficiency and create exceptionally powerful pedal strokes.

It’s a shame, because their lower end WSD bikes do have differing geometry from their male counterparts.  Even the Fuel 5.5 has different geometry between the regular and WSD versions.  But their higher end full-sussers?  Forget about it.

I’m still going to try one out, as there’s nothing to say that I wouldn’t get on with the bloke’s geometry, assuming I can fit on the  smallest frame.  But it’s a shame that the illusion of choice put forward by the marketing department doesn’t quite match the reality.

I’ve been pondering getting a Trek Fuel, mainly because I love my little Trek hardtail so much.  I tried a couple of Giants and Specializeds WSD bikes last year, and wasn’t really blown away, so I’m eager to try a Trek full-susser.

Unfortunately Mr Toast keeps mithering that the Treks this year are a bit overpriced.  He keeps suggesting that I should test blokes bikes…and pointed out the Fuel 8 actually has EXACTLY the same  geometry on both the women’s and bloke’s version, just a different paint job.  I checked the Trek site…and whaddya know, he’s right.  Not that I doubted him for a second…

I wondered if they’d made a botch up, and accidentally listed the same details, in the same way Scott’s website listed their entry level sussers as being the same weight as their top of the range carbon jobbie.

I checked the 4500 regular and WSD geometry listings, and those are different.  So, I’m sending a quick mail to Trek, asking them if it’s a mistake, or if their full sussers are, in fact the same for both his and hers.

And I’ve just realised I’ve written an entire post about bike geometry.  Shoot me now.

Despite frequent visits to the Shropshire Hills whilst organising the wedding, we’ve never actually been biking there. So, as the deed is now done, Mr Toast and I decided it was high time we paid a visit with our bikes in tow.

Admittedly, on the Saturday we didn’t actually bike around the hills – we took a 30 mile journey to Coed Llandegla (or ‘Dirk Diggler’, as Mr Toast took to calling it). I’d asked about on the Bike Radar forums about the difficulty, and decided to give the red route a go. It was fantastic! There was a lot of climbing, but it wasn’t as steep as Glentress, and was more contoured. I actually found Llandegla easier than Follow the Dog – it wasn’t quite as tight and was a lot more flowing, and the berms were full of Bermy Delight™. The only parts that gave me trouble were the second north shore (did most of it, but it doesn’t half sap your momentum), and a short but very steep downhill just before the end. Annoyingly, I’ve ridden worse, but I just felt so knackered by that point my brain just said, ‘No’ as I looked down. It wasn’t so much the gradient but the rocks that freaked me out. Again, general lack of fitness and a slight cold hampered me (to the point where I threw up at the top of one hill), but it was still great fun (the route, not the throwing up).

On the Monday we sallied forth to the Long Mynd for a short ride. It was beautiful, but ridiculously windy, and I nearly got buffeted into the heather a couple of times. As with most bridleways, there was a copious amount of crap (in the literal sense, of the sheep and horse variety) to avoid. I thought I’d dodged most of it, but when I finished the ride, there was a flattened wodge of horse crap on my saddle. -_-

Ride: Coed Llandegla/Long Mynd

Trail: Llandegla – full red/Long Mynd – short pootle across (about 5 miles or so)

Highlights: Llandegla – bermy goodness

Bad bits: Horse shit -_-

Post ride food snaffled: Minstrels

Good dogs seen: Miniature schnauzer (very dignified, probably called Professor McFluffersons or something), a staffie that grunted like a piglet, various elderly looking but spritely wire haired mutts of indeterminate breed.