u/VikApproved

I'll just start with I have room in my life for two Stooges. A SS MTB [love the Speedbomb] and a geared ATB/touring rig. So whatever happens I am only keeping two Stooges!

I had a Dirt Tracker I ran SS and did some touring on as well as general ATB life stuff. There was too much cross over with OG Krampus and even if the DT was better in some ways the Krampus is my oldest and dearest bicycle. So it won that battle. I had thought about putting gears on the DT, but around that time it was clear one of my buddies needed a nudge into Stoogelandia so I sold him the DT frame and eventually got the Scrambler.

The Scrambler is great. Two internet buddies Jason and Mara went from DTs to Scramblers and are loving them. So I think it's just a matter of body proportions and personal preferences. I had the nagging feeling I would have been happier on the geared DT. I probably wouldn't have done anything about...it except Mara put her DT up for sale. Having a local used Stooge option isn't super common so I went for it.

Almost all the parts swapped over from the Scrambler. I'm going to give it a few more rides to decide for sure, but I suspect I'll keep the DT and sell the Scrambler. The DT is a touch bigger in the cockpit, lower and longer. It just fits me a little better and fit is everything. I got around the cut steerer with an Ergotec High Bass stem which I first saw here on the ME sub.

I've got some big day rides planned to cap off the summer and really solidify my thinking. I'll also hopefully get out on another bike camping trip in September.

And as far as my Stooge addiction goes I'm not tempted by any of the rest of the line up [Rambler/MK9] that I haven't tried. That's not to say Andy won't come up with something new that catches my eye, but for now I think I am done!

I don't think I had seen this posted here. Might have missed it though. In any case if folks see these stems for sale in Canada or the UK in 31.8mm clamp post something here. I'd like to get one. So far it seems like it only press release time not sell the actual part time.

https://www.hopetech.com/products/controls/stems/20mm-gravity-stem/

I've got a variety of smaller pumps I carry on my bikes for EDR [Every Day Rides]. I use my home floor pump to deal with pressure adjustments before the ride. With tire issues/flats so rare these days having a small on bike pump is fine. Perhaps one tedious pump session every 4-5 years? Walk of shame out or roll out on an insert?

That said for my 29+ touring bikes I would like a better solution. A slightly bigger pump...without getting ridiculous. That way I can drop tire pressure for soft conditions and not hate my life as I pump it back up. Repeating a few times a day possibly. Flat tires on a heavily load bike seem more likely and walking out less possible.

I found this Lenzyne high volume model. 300mm long and ~205g.

Any other better/similar options? I figured the MEAThead Crew might know given the penchant here for chubby rubber.

I'm not interested in anything with a battery or CO2.

I made it over to Vangroovy for the StridShakerDog Meet Up and Ride. Ride was 150-200 strong and a ton of fun. I got to meet some folks I have only ever chatted with online and some new weird bike buds. Some Victoria BC friends showed up so I had my own squad which was fun.

A bunch of snaps and video up temporarily here --> https://www.instagram.com/stories/stridsland_journal/

I swapped in a 20T cog on the Speedbomb as I had to vector in for the ride from the Horseshoe Bay Ferry and then get back afterwards. 30 x 20T with 29 x 3" rubber was perfect. I was able to keep moving efficiently on the road and still climb all the gravel/dirt sections I needed to. I'll put the 24T cog back on today and give that bike the new BB and chain in deserves.

I had a blast and I will be back next year. Hopefully with some post-ride accommodation so I can drink more beer and not have to hammer back along Marine Drive for my boat back to Van Isle right away.

If you have any ATB-esque interest and live within striking distance of Vancouver it's a worthwhile event.

I'm going to be riding my ATB over to the Big City on 18 July 2026. If any other MEATheads want to create a mini-MEATup before/during this event let's chat about it.

Video from last year's event so you can see the vibes --> https://youtu.be/uUWe0M_bVj4

I ran into a bike journalist friend testing out this big rig on the weekend. Snapped a photo for the bike nerds. Probably an XL size frame. He said he was loving it and didn't want to send it back when the review was over.

Sounds promising.

I didn't throw a leg over it. I just gazed at it's proportions with amazement.

Just a head's up RSD is offering a pre-order on their long-ish 510mm aluminum fork. There's no plans to stock it so if you want one you have to pre-order. I'm running a 505mm steel Bird fork on my Daambuilt ATB/gravel bike so I appreciate this sort of product that does a decent job of replacing a ~130-140mm travel hardtail fork.

Now I was carrying a windbreaker "just in" case back before I ever heard of the MEATy term ESJ - Emotional Support Jacket. But, I have to credit AM for popularizing the term such that I can't recall a time it wasn't an ESJ. Sort of like I read LOTR as a kid and I for sure had mental images of Aragorn and Galadriel, but it you ask me today all I can see in my mind is Viggo and Cate.

Maybe we could even say the ESJ isn't a piece of gear...it's the act of thinking ahead for what could help the others with you in the forest have more fun and feel the MEATy warmth of your generosity?

I was heading to the forest yesterday to play disc golf. The forecast was 70% sun and 30% rain. One of those it's probably gonna be amazing days, but has a high enough POP % to keep the weather person safe if it turns.

As we were walking to the first hole the rain starts lightly. There is already the start of some resistance building in the group and talk about skipping the frisbee tossing and going to a pub. I throw out some reassurance that the rain is light and it will pass...probably. Plus we are heading deeper into the trees.

Of course the rain gets harder. People get wetter. Morale starts to take a beating.

The lady next to me looks pretty miserable so I offer her a jacket out of my pack. She seems amazed by my offer, but declines saying I should give that to my GF.

So I offer my GF a jacket. She's surprised I have an extra one and takes it. She's kind of stoked as she puts on the ESJ. I carry this jacket in my pack 24/7/365 as you never know what's going to happen in the forest. While Frolf isn't known to be a robust adventure sport I'm playing rain or shine or snow or wind, etc... My GF even digs the light yellow colour way she thinks I chose because of my on point fashion sense. Reality is MEC sold me that unpopular colour at 50% off, which seemed ideal for a ESJ that spends 99% of its life folded up in a pack pocket.

I go back to the first lady who is even wetter by now and I offer her a jacket. She's confused. So I reach into my pack and pull out a second windbreaker I had put in there this morning when I saw the 30% POP and my spidey sense started tingling. She's stoked to be pulling it on. Aside from being warm it happens to be her favourite colour.

By this point I'm materially moving the needle on Team Morale in a positive direction. So I offer the next bedraggled lady an ESV. Not as amazing as a jacket, but a vest is great for keeping the core warm and given the lack of other options in the forest it's pretty sweet. I got lucky on that one as I had stuffed it in one day a couple weeks ago when it was windy and I threw it on for the bike ride to the disc golf course and then forgot it was in the pack.

At this point people are looking at me like I am Doctor Who giving them a tour of my Tardis. How can so many ESJs come out of one small bag? That's when I started pulling out gloves! I'll save you the story about my multiple pair of ESGs that were still in the pack from winter Frolf.

It was fun feeling like Gear Santa Claus. I think I kept people feeling positive enough to finish out the round. And maybe...just maybe I passed on the MEATy mind-worm that packing some extra gear just in case can be a beautiful thing?

Note - Normally my ES Gear loadout is just a jacket and a pair of gloves. I got a bit lucky yesterday having more than normal stuff to share.

I tried a drop bar gravel bike for a bit over a year. There were some aspects to that ride experience that were good, but there were a number of aspects that were bad. Overall I found myself riding that bike to make use of it...not because I was stoked to get it out and enjoy the ride. Life's too short for bikes you don't love so I sold it.

I'm just not a drop bar gravel person. That's okay.

I do need a bike to ride with my "gravel buddies". Yes we can all be friends even if you wrap yourself in Rapha sausage casings and shave you legs before you put on your pure white socks and shoes! Looking around at what I had on hand it felt like swapping in a rigid fork on my Daambuilt would work. I initially had 29 x 2.4" Aspens on the bike and they rolled fast, but they are so dang skinny I wasn't enjoying them so some 2.6" Rekons got put on.

I know relative to the latest and greatest carbonium gravel race bikes this machine seems...chonky and slow, but for my real world and real people riding situations it will keep up just fine. Most importantly I'll have a blast in all the places the drop bar gravel bike was unpleasant...namely steep chunky ups and downs. Previously they were survival missions and now they are grin inducing.

The Daambuilt aka Mega Krampus has been through a number of incarnations since I got it back in 2019, but this is the first time it has been a Double Hardtail. Bike Lego keeps things interesting.