2010 MTB: Sisters Stampede Race Report and Bike Review!

2010 Cross Country MTB: Sisters Stampede Race Report and...

Bike Review: Specialized Stumpjumper Marathon 29er Hardtail!

May 30, 2010

by Elaine Bothe

New new new! Shiny and new. (OK, not so shiny any more.) New race, never before. Who knows what the course will hold. Flat? Hilly? Probably not too muddy, being Central Oregon. My guess: dusty, swoopy with some tricky rock gardens. Rolling hills, nothing too sustained up or down. A fast 27-ish miles through the sage, scrub oaks, Ponderosa pine and rocks.

I was right on all counts.

And, a new bike! Finally my bike matches my kit. A Specialized Stumpjumper 29er hardtail loaded with the new Sram XX mmmm mmm mm mm mmmm! New shoes, new saddle. Specialized DFW, both. (Nice. Comfy!) New tires I’ve never run. New pedals. (Time Atacks, the non-carbon fiber ones. Cheaper, and the weigh almost the same. I like.) New cleat position on my new shoes. Ward at River City Bicycles helped dial in my SJ and shoes with a super pro fitting and the shop guys set the fork up for me AND showed me how to adjust it. Thanks! It worked great!

I’m still getting used to the bike. The position is very comfortable but a lot different than what I’m used to on a bike too small for me. This race being just my fourth ride on the SJ (two of which were super easy fit testing rides) I discovered, apparently, the beefy bottom bracket is about .75 inch lower than what I’m used to and I clonked my new pedals a LOT and my foot once (ow, that was my little toe!) on rocks and stumps I thought I had cleared. I knew the handlebars are a tad wider, but that still didn’t stop me from bar-banging a tree. No crashes though.

Aside from that, the bike is light (sub 21 lbs! depending on accessories), fast and responsive, a bike I’ll grow into as I get more time on it. The geometry rewards an active riding style, responding to weight shifts and countersteering in sweeping corners and dirt-bike style point-and-shoot riding for switchbacks. The big wheels rolled through those rock gardens all by themselves, I just chose a general line, looked down trail and the bike ended up there with style and grace! I cleared stuff I’d have walked on my old bike. The bike pops up little rises and blasted out of the corners without planning ahead, just a couple of hard pedal strokes and the power goes directly to the ground. Big grins, what fun!

The only downside to the bike are the stock Fast Trak tires. They are fast over hard pack and gravel in straight lines and impressively grippy over rocks but the front tire offered only vagueness and very little confidence around dusty or slippery corners. Even after dialing in the fork. I ran as low a pressure as I dared… with a tube, and myself a very light rider, 20 psi at the front still didn’t provide better grip. I felt like the front end was in a perpetual state of almost washing out, and, I even saved two or three front-end crashes during the race.

I think I’ll mount up my personal favorite Specialized The Captains at least on the front for a more positive and familiar feel and take the weight hit.

Oh yes, the race. I got a lousy start, still getting used to my new cleat position further back on the ball of my foot. But my mistake kept me out of some shenanigans, as three or four riders almost took each other out! A fun and busy course, hardly had time to take a mental break or even grab for food. A two-hour short track race is what it felt like, more mental than a lot of cross country courses. Narrow, not many places to pass or be passed. I lost a lot of time waiting for some of the faster men to get around me, not so much fun.

I rode very well for me, though, taking into consideration all the new toys. I stayed with the pack for almost half the race, instead of being booted off the back ten or fifteen minutes in. And, it was non-technical and mostly flat for the first part! I was thrilled! The riders stayed the same size instead of shrinking into the distance. I was even working my way through them. But after fading big time, getting passed back then finding a good rhythm and dealing with traffic, I still finished only 9th out of 10.

Well, at least not last! But I’m thinking ahead to short track, my specialty, (and hopefully a Cat 1 Masters category next year!) where half this xc race would be more than a whole short track race. My new SJ will be a very potent weapon indeed.