All o' Twitter

I kept seeing the Twitter site linked on different sites so I decided to check it out. Not 100% sure about what the theory is behind it but it might be kinda neat. The key appears to be only adding folks that might have something interesting to say. There was one that just kept track of who used Twitter most often in the past couple of hours.......nothing too useful there! I will admit to liking the 140 character limit on each entry. I usually spend a little time on each blog entry to make sure it is somewhat organized but with Twitter you don't have space to think. Anyway, if you are interested, we are FirstFlightBike.

After 13 years, it is time!

We've been in our current location since July of 1995 and really haven't changed the store layout much since we moved in. At the time, I had been working in shops for over 10 years and had read a bunch of retail books, so the initial layout was pretty damn functional. But with the advent of all of these "concept" stores, it is time to take it up another level. Our goal has to make the store more "outdoorsy" by adding some more natural materials inside. So far, we have added some displays using bark nuggets, stone and greenery. The biggest project so far has been to move the counter to the center of the store and put a porch in its place. The 8' x 16' porch has a pergola over the top plus a full cedar shake wall (which really smells nice). Wes posted a couple of pictures on the First Flight Blog @ http://firstflightbikes.blogspot.com/

Here is a photo of the front of the shop, circa late 1950's.

Birth of a trail

Sam and I took about 4 hours on Sunday and walked the proposed trail line for Phase IV of the Itusi Trail at Lake Norman State Park. Our group/shop has been involved in building this trail for 8 years now and, as implied above, this next section will be the fourth "phase" of the trail. It is always exciting to watch the trail progress through the different stages: lay out, corridor clearing, grubbing, grooming and finally riding (saving the best for last). I tried to take some photos of the area before the trail and will hopefully be able to go out and take pictures of the same area after the trail is constructed.

Interesting ravine that we may be able to use for trail:


Looks like the bird lost this battle:


Nice view of the lake from the trail:


If this was an art exhibit, this would be "leaf on Water":


Old homestead foundation stones:


The Holly bushes are one of the few things that are still green:


Park boundary at the waters edge:


About the only "wild life" we saw all day:

What are they thinking??

We've been building a decent number of 2009 bikes. Each bike takes around an hour to build which gives you some head-scratchin' time. Couple of examples:

Cable mounts on suspension forks: Several years ago, most bikes used "v" brakes so suspension forks came with the appropriate mounts. Disc brake mounts were eventually added to the forks in addition to the rim brake mounts. During this ere, most of the cable routing duties for the disc brakes was handled by zip ties. As rim brake mounts disappeared, the cable routing didn't necessarily become any more elegant. You have a $500+ fork with zip ties wrapped around the fork legs. Rock Shox puts a couple of bumps on the arch to position the zip tie but that is it. Several of the less expensive forks offer a nice pass through for the housing which works great! I can understand that this type of mount would be a PITA for hydro brakes but can't they even give us a little trough mount for the zip tie like is often used on the frames? At least our friends at Fox have a slick cable mount(even if the bolt is a little undersized for the task).

Disc brake mounts: I sometimes wonder if the people in charge of bike design ever actually assemble any of their bikes. A few of the recent models have the rear brake tucked up in between the stays which is very clean looking. The problem arises when you try to adjust the brake. We had to cut down an Allen wrench to get it to fit the mounting bolts since they were so close to the seat stay. Not a huge deal at the shop but if you ever have to adjust it on the trail, it ain't gonna happen with a regular multi-tool.

Disc brake rotors: While I'm picking on the brake guys, how 'bout a little more clearance between the pads and the rotor. Most of these brake rotors have a mm, or less, clearance per side. Once you finally get the caliper set, it seems like that last torquing of the mounting bolts moves the caliper to one side just enough to make it rub. And thanks to the trucking folks that apparently can't comprehend the English language or at least the words that form "This end UP", it seems like every front rotor we get is warped. The manufacturer puts a big Frisbee-sized piece of plastic in the end of the axle to keep this from happening........doesn't work. Every rotor comes with this nice wave shape built in now. We have the Park tool that is supposed to help bend the rotor back into shape but it only succeeds in moving it to another spot on the rotor. And as a bonus, this all happens with all tne of your fingers nestled right up a piece of stainless steel shaped like a meat cutting blade!

I'm sure I could come up with another dozen of similar things but I'll let my blood pressure return to normal before posting more.

Still working on the Mountain Goat Escape Route (imported) frames. The details are coming together nicely. I think we are going to order a couple of color-matched rigid forks to go with the frames. Speaking of colors, I think I've decided on orange and black as the color options. The orange would have top/down/seat tube panels in the team green color. The black will also have panels except in a cream color. The down tube panel would contain "Mountain Goat", the top tube panel "Escape Route" and the seat tube panel would have the Goat head logo. I can't wait to see 'em.

Parts is parts...

The other project that we have going on at the shop is cataloging the parts that we have. So far, we have been able to take pictures of most of the parts in the shop area display cases. There are still hundreds of pictures to take but we had to start somewhere. Check out http://mombat.org/Parts_Museum.htm and let us know whatcha think.

How cool is this??

From the IMBA web site (and if you aren't a member, why not?)

A proposed National Park Service (NPS) regulation change will benefit Americans by improving mountain biking experiences in national parks. The new policy would empower park superintendents to manage trails for bicycles, without sacrificing environmental review or public comment opportunities.

"Bicycling is a good fit for many national parks. It's a quiet, low-impact, family-friendly activity that provides a great way to get adults and kids excited about exploring America's most scenic places," says IMBA Executive Director Mike Van Abel. "We're very pleased that the NPS intends to update its regulations to better serve visitors."

IMBA looks forward to an upcoming NPS announcement on the pending regulation change, and the ensuing public commentary period. Stay tuned to IMBA's website for additional news, and to register your comments with the NPS.
Bicycling Helps National Parks

Expanded opportunities for mountain biking can help energize national parks by attracting new visitors - particularly young ones. According to the Outdoor Industry Association, bicycling is the top gateway activity that gets kids outside and engaged in a variety of outdoor sports.

"Visitation numbers are a concern to the park service at all levels and something we are working with our many tourism partners such as IMBA to address. Having worked with mountain bikers on public lands at gateway communities, I know what a great economic impact they can have on a small town," said NPS National Tourism Director Dean Reeder. "In my experience, we can sustain a balance between resource conservation and appropriate, healthy recreational opportunities such as mountain biking.

Mountain bicycling on appropriate trails in national parks will also enhance visitors' appreciation for the natural world, as parks are better experienced on foot and by bicycle than from inside cars and RVs. Independent scientific studies, including those conducted by the National Park Service, have shown the environmental impacts of mountain biking are similar to those of hiking and less than those of many other user groups.
IMBA's Partnership With National Park Service

Since signing a formal partnership agreement in 2005, IMBA and the NPS have been working together to create and enhance appropriate opportunities for mountain bicycling in national parks. Currently, more than 40 NPS properties host mountain bicycling, on both dirt roads and narrow trails. Each year IMBA leads volunteer work parties to help improve eroded trails and unite trails communities around national parks. Annually, mountain bicyclists contribute almost one million hours of volunteer trailwork on public lands.

"Mountain bicycling is an appropriate activity in many units of the National Park System," says Christopher J. Stubbs, a NPS community planner in Virginia. "I have seen firsthand what bike trails can do for a park. IMBA's folks know how to build sustainable, environmentally sound trails that bring all user groups together. I see a huge potential for bringing a new generation of mountain bicyclists into the park system."
IMBA Has Requested Rule Change for Years

The current policy governing bicycling on NPS trails dates from 1986, and does not account for more than 20 years of research and experience managing bicycling on trails on public lands. The outdated rule is directed at motorized users such as personal watercraft, motorboats, snowmobiles, ORVs and commercial trucking, mining and aircraft. Regulation changes will streamline an overly cumbersome process, while maintaining all review and comment required under the National Environmental Policy Act.

"IMBA first began asking the agency to clarify and streamline this rule in 1992, when IMBA Executive Director Tim Blumenthal met with [then] NPS Director James Ridenour on the subject," says Van Abel. "We hope to see the process for recognizing mountain bike trails will now become more clear and efficient."

Scan, have we got scans!!

I've been working on the www.mombat.org site quite a bit lately. My goal is to chronicle the histories of the pioneering mountain bike brands. Lately, I have been going through our mountain of older mountain bike magazines and scanning in articles. Each article is then placed onto the history page for that brand on the appropriate MOMBAT page. I have been scanning press releases, advertisements and reviews concentrating on the 1980's stuff right now. There have been some great articles and it was cool to see some of the older hand-drawn stuff. It definitely fit the era. I have found some brands, like Donovan, that I had never heard of before. Apparently, they inserted short pieces of drilled-out aluminum inside of the road gauge tubing to try and achieve a lighter/stronger frame. Kinda cool.

Anyway, if you have a couple of minutes, which could become hours, head over to the MOMBAT site, hit the history link and check it out.