Over the Hill

Hi all,

Yes, after 5 months of not getting out on the bike due to a back injuriny and operation, today I ventured out for the first time on the new "Zesty".

Doesn't She look lovely. It's the small frame(42cm) in black and brushed silver.

I decided to totally ignore the Doctors and Physio's advice about staying on the roads and so I headed out into the local tracks on the outskirts of Swinley Forest. At first I stayed mainly to the fire roads and main trails just to see how the the legs and back would hold out on the first outing.

Both the back and the bike were going well so I ventured further and decided to try out some small bomb holes and downhill which went well. I really noticed the difference with the small frame which allowed me to drop back behind the saddle with ease and still have control of the bike, unlike the old FSR XC in the medium, it was a stretch to get back behind the seat and then I ran out of arm length which really did not help the handling. The only issue was when i got to the bottom and could not find a route out so ended up having to climb up the last drop with the bike over my shoulder - good job it's light.

I carried on futher into the forest a found a small single track which then lead up into some dense forest, on closer inspection the track had been well layed out with old trees marking the edges of the run and a number of jumps all the way down. I followed to route to the top to see where it started and then decide to give it a small go, Luckily there is enough space to the side of the jumps to go round - funny how they always look so big when your approaching them and then so small when you go round them. Will save the jumps for a few weeks and when I have got the forks set right, still some fine tuning required.

All in all a good first time outing and no issue with the back at all - that might change by the morning. Will ride this route a few more times and get a little road cycling in aswell just to get the legs back before I venture out with the big boys at Leith and neighbouring hills.

See you all soon.

Simon (AKA Bike Tart)