“Great Scott”
Yes I am now officially a bicycle aficionado, and a SCOTT fan. My new Spark 29 Expert (given to me just “because” by my brilliant, darling, wonderful husband) is a full suspension HMF carbon fibre bike with a Shimano XT/SLX drivetrain and Avid Elixir brakes that is my perfect new partner.
Scott has seriously and successfully unveiled the merits of the 29er to me …..today! I felt so emotional about this lightweight, stiff frame bike—featuring tons of adjustability and so many cool features. No more blood, sweat and granny gears….this 29er got me handling previously unrideable ground. (Well to me – that is)
The smaller wheels, not to mention shorter wheelbase, of my previous and very geriatric 26” was so much harder to ride on the bumpy ground. Think about it. All other things being equal, a bigger wheel’s shallow angle of curve rolls over uneven terrain more easily.
Why I didn’t change sooner? I just love the rolling advantage. I don’t care if I am not going to get huge speed gain, I am all about boosting my comfort and confidence during my mountain biking outings, be it for long distance or rough riding… A boost in confidence and comfort like that usually equates to more speed simply because of the feel-good factor anyhow!
When I first heard of 29ers, I rolled my eyes. Looking at the whole thing in a new light, after chasing round Noordhoek Peak, which is one of the tougher routes from Tokai Forest,
with my tough riding partner – I see simply elegant beauty. Bigger wheels = smaller bumps =more momentum and more confidence! Yay!
Oh and I almost forgot to mention that my new bike set up guru Mark not only adjusted this beautiful new bike to suit my body exactly with his spirit level, rulers and plumb line , but used his years of experience to, as he put it, use a mental algorithm to tweak my position for me to gain unity with my bike. He also changed the saddle to correctly support them bones, them bones, them sit bones: The most important aspect of saddle fit is the sit bone (ischial tuberosities – the two pressure points you feel when sit on something flat and hard) width.
Mountain bike, sit bones, unity with your bike, bike fit, scott spark 29 expert, shimano, 29er, women on bikes, cycling, mountain biking western cape, noordhoek peaks, cape town mountain bike, tokai forest mountain biking, great scott,
