So I finally got my Bedford 29" Cross-country the other day and today I
took it out for its first real test drive.
I figured today would be a great day to really try it and push its
limits, performance wise.
- It was cold
- We just had sprinkling of fresh snow and its night so its relatively
undisturbed,
- As I said it was night and snow is coming down still so visibility is
low,
- There was black ice anywhere the road was clear enough to actually
see the road
- And finally in the list of conditions thought less than amusing to
ride in, there was about a one to two inch thick layer of snow that if
you weren’t going fast enough most of the time you would slip in.
I was HYPED.
It was only minus twelve Celsius (I think is about 20 Fahrenheit) so I
just wore a hoodie with the hood up and long pants. Being my second
time on the thing since I got it I was a little hesitant at first about
speed and going around corners but I quickly loosened up. I love this
machine, I flew along the streets corners were easier than on a bike
and I would say even easier than on either of my 20” unis. None of the
aforementioned obstacles posed any problem until the end.
I was exercising and going really fast so the cold wasn’t a problem
except for maybe my hands but that’s my own fault.
Snow was never a problem except near then end where it made it a little
harder to mount and get going but part of that was getting used to the
127mm cranks. I actually found in some areas that the snow helped with
maneuverability, at one point I was going at almost full speed and I
had to do about a 60 degree turn around two people and I just leaned
into the turn and did a small drift which made the turn feel like
effortless.
The Kenda Klaw took care of all of the black ice, slush and thick snow
nature could give me, plus I was going so fast that it rarely ever
mattered.
Although it was only a 20-minute ride it was tons of fun and I look
forward to longer ones, hopefully in more favourable weather.
Unfortunatly I have no bike computer and have no clue how long the
streets are i went on😕
Also for anyone that is interested my unis is the Bedford 29" XC
KH seat (came with a fusion but i traded it with my trials uni)
bedford frame
suzue hub
cotterless 127 mm cranks
primo resin pedals
KH freeride rim
Kenda Klaw tire
It also came with the usual Bedford freebies and a sweet DVD called
Spaced Out.
Thanks for letting me toot my own horn and I hope you enjoyed the read.
--
ntappin
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