Some pics to sum up the past few days

Red tuffs!!!


Red brake finally came in.


Wasp vs Spider!


Washed cars.


Jesus...


Pressies!


Ollie the blind guide dog.


Tag team sisters.


Pong on! Mum's so cute.


Yeti frankenstein build.


Yeti decals in case I decide to powdercoat the frame.


Pig.


Suga and I.


Nice.


Linda's B'day dinner.


Me, my cousin Nicholas and his girlfriend Romina.


Richie and my sister Jamie.


Dessert.


Evil Elf with ghost orbs.


Mum and Jasmine.


Bankstown Velodrome.


Bankstown Velodrome.


Bankstown Velodrome.


Pho Ann Bankstown, best Pho in Sydney.


My bike rack plate!


Me.


Nick.


Ash.


Grant.


Lost.

Dropping to flat = bad (duh?!)

OK so I could have done a lot more damage to my ankle last Monday at Manly Dam when I went off the big drop. I've since gone for a few rides around the block and my ankle still feels a little tender but at least I can still ride!

I was initially a little upset that the bike is set up just how I like it but it bottomed out hard going off this drop. If I put more air in the rear shock it might not bottom out so hard off these drops but then it would surely ruin the setup for the rest of the trail.

I asked for input on MTBR and got some great input, especially the bit about putting my feet forward on the pedals:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=478366

One other thing I've been thinking about is finding my limit. I suppose I've been slowly but surely pushing myself to go harder on the bike throughout the year, it's a natural progression right? Well after last Monday I think I've just about found my limit and I'm glad I've done so as it's hopefully going to put an end to the frustration I feel at times when I "whimp" out of doing something.

We all have to draw the line somewhere. Going over that line could hinder progression. Just a pre-xmas thought!

MC Cyclery hits the Dam

MCC hits the Dam.


7.30AM at MCC. The boys had to be back by 11am to open the shop.


8.30AM we're at the Dam (Dam Sydney traffic!).


Barry's 5 year old mint, as new Specialized Epic.


Group shot.


Joe's awesome at hucking off stuff.


Barry's in his 50's and he goes hard!


Justin doing the Dam on a hardtail, full rigid single speed dirt jump bike.


Grant hucking the big drop...


... and tasting the ground. The man got up and did it again right though. RSPCT!


I got so shitty that my testicles weren't big enough on the day to do the drop that I went back the morning after and did it. Talk about peer pressure.


I bottomed out hard and mashed my right ankle too.

That about ends the insane riding weekend for me. Friday night pissed late night riding session, Saturday Centennial Park for Suga's maiden TCR voyage, Sunday MCC Manly Dam ride and I drove straight over to Loftus to ride with Grant (great guy I met through the BMU forums) Eddie, Thanh and friends and Monday Manly Dam with Felix and Steve, another great guy we've met through the BMU forums.

Kuwahara

She's almost finished! Just waiting on a rear brake + red tuffs.


She's come a long way huh?!

Suga's Giant TCR Alliance W

We ordered this Giant TCR Alliance W bike through MC Cyclery many months ago and we were'nt expecting it to come in until week 2 of 2009. We got it before the initial 10% price rise that Giant made world wide but we were about to get caught up in the new 15% price rise as of January 1st (all bikes not yet in the country by Jan 01, despite a deposit, will incur the new price hike). So awesome then that Giant shipped it earlier than expected!


1st thing Suga did was "fix" the drawing on the box.


In she gets!


Oh hello!


Packed super tight.


Another litthe box of surprises. The little adjustment screws on these new brakes make setting up the brakes so damn easy.


8.6kg's (without pedals).


Suga was so happy.


Suga carrying bike off...


... um where are you going hun?


Bike on the bed in the bedroom!!! I thought I was sick but this takes the cake!


She's a beauty.


Carbon goodness.

More pics on her bike thread on Bikes Move Us.com

MCC Christmas Party

Friday night I was invited over to MC Cyclery for an Xmas BBQ. What a great group of guys. Beers were had, a bit of food then some unicycle mayhem and motorkhana style action around the workstands. SUga dropped in too and we both rode home (Ash lent me his awesome SE).


The boys!


Meat yo.


Meat and Tatts.


Grant's mum's special sauce.


Bog in don't wait.


Mel and Ash.


Sam and Jackie.


Barry and Ilona.


Jordi and Vanette.


Nic and May.


Nick.


Ash + beers + unicycle = cowboy.


Suga in mens toilet


Christina upskirt on the way home. Pissed riding is sexy.

Memories

We're still pulling photo albums off the shelf when we have dinner at Mums. It's hard not to!


GForce toy (yes I still have it!) and check out Dad's salt water tank in the background. He had quite a few different set-ups over the years.


I loved E.T.


And BMX.


Speaking of BMX (My sister and I).

Xmas

Christina and I have done all our shopping and wrapping. I've never been this organised before (must be love!).


Out with the plunger! Mum treated Suga and I to coffee making goodness for Xmas.


Crazy house in Eastwood.


Even crazier house in Eastwood.

Summer is here?

Summer's still not 100% here yet, the weather's been damn strange actually. Having said that I went for my 2nd swim down at the pool (it's MY pool!) and the water was so nice, lots of baby fish inthe rock pools too. Bring on summer!!!


Suga and I.


My rock pool.

What I've been eating

Pool cafe's (my local) trout dish is my fave.


Pool cafe breakfast pizza.


Coogee Bite's Kenny's Benny (also a haunt of mine).


Pippies in XO - Suga's family eats here weekly (Hoho's in Carlingford).


Mr. Teppan teppanyaki style fast food now at Eastgardens.

Auto Salon Final Battle

JDMST RPRSNT!


Girls on bike.


Still my dream car.


Pretty serious.


NA is best.


Boing.


hohoho.


JDMyard RPRSNT.


Drift it.


Drag it.

2007 Kuwahara Laserlite Team

I accidentally won this bike off eBay (LOL someone save me please?). Of-course I'd been hunting for NOS/vintage Kuwahara gear for the Kuwa I found at the markets but all of it had been going for sky high prices (a simple pad set went for over $160 last week!).

This as new (I'd even call it brand new) 2007 Laserlite Team BMX came up in the searches and I did a little research on it and found that this was the bike that marked the Kuwahara comeback (they hadn't made a bike in 20 years!). The RRP for it was $1285AUD and apart from some reviews saying that the bars and fork were heavy, every other review was fantastic (especially this Australian review). I did some math on the Funn parts. The crankset is actually a Funn MTB downhill crankset with hollowtech BB worth $400AUD, the pedals are Funn soljam MTB pedals worth $90AUD so I placed a bid for $500 thinking the bike would go for a lot more than that, well it didn't and I won it at $457.


2007 Kuwahara Laserlite Team


Chunky much? (Note: internal MTB canecreek headset).


So new that a protective sticker was still covering the headbadge...


... of-course I took it off.


Funn stem.


Avid speed dial SL (super light) brake lever.


S/M grips.


Massive American influence all over the bike, note American spelling "Aluminum".


Funn seatpost.


Funn saddle.


Check the lightning bolt detail on the rear dropout.


Sunn Rhyno Lite's.


Maxxis.


Maxxis Exception series tyres are lighter than their standard tyres.


Holy Rollers.


Naf skull caps put on by the previous owner.


Funn Hooka DH crankset.


Hardcore Funn soljam pedals. So massive, so much grip.


Ridiculously light considering it has pedals which weigh half a kilo and a downhill crankset which must be super heavy.

Kuwahara NOS red bits

I've been haunting eBay for NOS (New Old Stock) bargains for the old Kuwahara project and I've been having much success! I'm trying my best to keep it period and JAPANESE!


What a sight!


Japanese Dia-Comp MX120 lever.


SR pedals.


Turbo saddle - Made in Japan.


Under saddle detail.

Don't you hate it when you miss parcels? Especially at this time of year.

I just got back from the post office, the que at Maroubra Junction's post office is so bad it goes outside the shop and into the mall at times. I swear it's a lesson in patience (which I had none of, but since hanging out in the que at the post office all year I'm getting better at!).

I was greeted by this box:


Redline BMX WTF! I got excited for a second. "Did I accidentally buy one of those too?" I thought to myself. Bahahaha. Check out how Strictly BMX tagged my name on the box. Awesome.


My Tuffs + freewheel. At $199 the wheels are going to be the most expensive part of the build (hard to swallow considering the bike was only $45! Strictly BMX chucked in some free stickers + a DVD too.


I got this dodgey cheap stem off eBay. Not sure if I feel good about it, we'll see.


Oury grips. I've always wanted to try some Oury's. I often read that these are the most comfortable grips in the world. Many people out there (both mountain bikers and fixie riders) swear by them.


More red bits (the gold cable end caps are for my Reign).


KMC chain.


Brake cable outters.

Bike night!

Bike nights are almost a monthly thing these days and they're getting out of control with sometimes way too many chefs in the kitchen! There's always a drama (or 3) and it's always a lot of fun. Since I'm the host I always get trashed too (I even have my own beer bitch, thanks Clifton!).

Some pics from last night where we built up Crazy Dave's billion dollar Yukon, Felix's 06 Reign and we even started a ghetto servo bike (the Servo is just too far to walk and too close to drive to) single speed project for Zi.


Felix BYO home cooked Soto Ayam (typical Indo eating with his hands).


Finally Clifton brought over his trucks so I could finish off my new skatey.


Crazy Dave's new shipment of porn parts. Wellgo Ti's are nuts.


On goes the XTR gear, so easy to fit, so easy to tune too.


Felix's 06 Reign frame.


Stralia!


I'm about to hammer OK Andy?! The boys were using both stands so Andy was my human bike stand to build up Zi's dodgey single speed.


Both bikes built up. Dave's Yukon feels great actually, the shifting is smoother than my Reign's (maybe I need to address my cabling and get that XTR chain) brakes are insanely awesome.

Pong ON!

Photos from last weekends pong action. My old mates Sean and Liz came over and we had an awesome catch up. Can't believe it's been a year since I've seen them, ridiculous!


Grrr - have... to... beat... Seany.


Sean's so animated when he pongs.


Sean doing Michael impression.


Lloyd and Liz.


Oh what a feeling.

Giant Anthem X2 review (yyeeew!)

Sorry if I sound excited, but I've just come back from the quickest session I've ever had at Loftus on a brand new Giant Anthem X2 (1hr flat. I usually take a lot longer).

Grant (my lovely man) at MC Cyclery cut my car buddy Eddie a deal (caring is sharing) and Eddie asked me a favour, to go pick up the bike for him, of-course I obliged. In return Eddie let me take the bike out to Loftus tonight (yyeew!).

MCC's head mechanic Ash set the fork and shock for my weight, lowered the stem and ripped off the reflectors (I love his style). He also trued the wheels a little, tuned up the gears and adjusted the brakes. As soon as he was done I got the bike in the car and headed straight to Loftus to meet up with Cifton and Zi.

I took a few pics, tried to avoid mud too (lol). It's not my bike and I didn't want to put a scratch on it but I got straight into it.

Initially I didn't think the bike was magic at all, it weighs in at 13.04kg's, not that light but it felt light and I thought it was because of the super fast rolling Kenda small block 8's. Position wise it's totally stretched out XC in comparisson to my Reign with my arms almost straight out in front of me.

As we hit the single trail the bike felt a lot more alive. It changes direction really well, a lot better than the Reign and I can get the power down a lot easier. I raised the saddle up and the bike felt even faster and more alive. I started to hunt for the smoothest line at all times, but even on the rougher stuff you can still sit and pedal.

On the downhill stuff the tyres suffer, hitting bigger rocks throws you off your line, but when the tyres give it doesn't feel scary, it's strange and it eggs you on to go faster.

On the steep loose climb I stayed in the middle ring (I always granny it on the Reign) and I powered up the ****ing thing like never before. I ran out of momentum on the last pinch and got out of the saddle and mashed it. The front fork bobs a fair bit but the rear grips and feels great. What's more amazing is that I got up that hill in half the time and felt charged and ready to go where I'd be suffering after the climb on the Reign.

All in all I have to say I'm impressed. The wide bars feel AM, the stance is XC, the acceleration and rear feels like a hardtail. You never feel like your pedals are going to smash into the rocks (like you do on a Reign). You do end up hunting smoother lines and tend to roll over humps you'd usually do stupid bunny hops over. It's no puppy dog that wants to muck around like the Reign is, it's just a lot more focussed, and faster on a trail like Loftus.

I like it!

Now for some pics:


Brand new Anthem X2 in medium.


MC Cyclery's head mechanic Ash doing his thing.


Loftus oval toilet block ready to rock.


Train tracks, last shot before she gets dirty.


Post ride, too dark to wash her now, will do so (lovingly) tomorrow. Reign's feeling a little jealous? Nah, not really :)

PS: THANKS EDDIE FOR THE OPPORTUNITY! :) I owe you a few beers.

Polish! Polish! Polish!

Once you start, you can't stop!!!


The ghetto setup.


Before


After


New dropout adjusters, (note the campy dropouts = teh sex).

Egyptian Mau

My sister's after another cat, and we went out to Blacktown to visit an Egyptian Mau Breeder. Upon walking into her house we were greeted visually with a billion cat show award ribbons and our noses were pierced with the sharp smell of cat urine. We were ushered over to a dark room where all the kittens were, next door to the dining table and kitchen, and the smell in that room was so full on Christina almost threw up. The room wasn't ventilated, it was carpeted and there was a soft couch in there too, all soaked in urine. I had to wonder how the fuck people live like that. Jamie assures me that ALL cat breeders are the same but knowing that they're all the same doesn't make me think these unsanitary conditions are OK. Having said that, cute cats though!


Pretty boy.


1 year old.


The kittens (which were a bit jumpy).

Kuwahara vs Autosol

I'm "meant" to be polishing the old Paino road bike's parts and putting the Paino together but I spent a few hours cleaning up the Kuwahara (instead of going out clubbing on Friday night lol). She's come up a treat!


The morning after.


Mixed up - Mongoose cranks, GT chainring, Sugino chainring bolts.


Banged up Tange headset.


Skyway forks could do with a blast and powdercoat.

I've also found some vintage Kuwahara gear on eBay and I've been shocked at how much everything goes for. The frame pads (shown on the bike below) went for over $160 on eBay last week. That's nuts. I'm not doing a restore on this bike so I'm not going to bother with buying bling old school NOS parts.


Inspirational.


Vintage BMX heaven.

Bachelor Life

Ahh the bachelor life! Christina cleaned out my pantry and fridge (good girl). How the hell to I survive? I don't know.

Return to Menai

I haven't ridden menai in ages. And it felt good to put on the Met + pads again. I met up with Zi and Andy and 2 minutes into the trail it started pissing down. Water glistenning off the rocks and cooling us down too, it was actually beautiful!

Zi loves to fuck around on technical shit and there's a lot of that at Menai. He gave everything a go and had a classic stack on a 3ft huck where he pogoed off his bike and landed in a tree. Shame I missed it on video, would have been an instant youtube hit.


Bring on the rain.


Andy and Zi walking the dogs.


Zi made it down this 1st go.


Zi sizing up the big steps.


Zi lends Andy a banana. On the trail, sharing is caring.


Huge 4 car pile-up on the M5.

Loftus at Dusk

Zi's bruises coming up in an instant!

Zi, David, Jing, Clifton and I rode Loftus last night. The new high rise bars on my Reign are fantastic. More control, more comfortable and climbs just as good as before. I'm happy. Zi took a fall on the downhill into Temptation Creek. Had to happen sooner or later as it's just so rocky (think fist sized rocks all the way down) and deadlier the faster you go. The climb out of Temptation Creek killed me. I still can't do it in one go but I did manage to get up a part of it I had not gotten up before so I know I can do it (next time!). David's got a fair way to go before he can keep up with us but he gave it a good go. We all dropped in to Sizzler on the way home too. Might start being abit of a ritual post ride!

PS: Jing's got 2 vids. The 1st is following Clifton, the 2md following Zi and I. Nothing special as he was just testing out his new camera.

29yrs old and never ridden a bicycle before

A month ago my brother-in-law Richie and I finally convinced my sister to buy a bicycle. She's 29yrs old and has never ridden a bicycle in her life.

When she was a little kid she had a bit of an accident where one of our cousins smashed into her. She was on one of those kiddies play toys with wheels and he was on a BMX. Perhaps that out an end to riding for her? We can't be sure but in any case she now has a bike:


Great deal on this little bike from Grant at MC Cyclery.

I left Richie to train her, not thinking about it much at all, when I asked her how she was going a few weeks later she said they were looking for training wheels, but no shops sold training wheels for adult sized bicycles. I thought to myself, surely she doesn't need training wheels! It's easy to ride a bike! Anyone can do it right?! Well, wrong.

Turns out she had no idea how to ride a bicycle at all, and all of us that learnt from an early age should consider ourselves lucky as she was really struggling to gain confidence and balance at the age of 29.

I took her to the kiddies track at Centennial Park last week (despite her being embarassed about it!). Jamie was scared of the conctrete so we found a grass field. I got her sitting on the saddle and then just literally walking/shuffling the bike around. After a few minutes of this we found a slight slope and I got her to do the same but try to lift her feet up and roll. It was then that I realised how hard it was for her.

We made our way over to the kiddies track and tried our best to ignore the little 3yr olds who were already riding without trainers! Watching Jamie push then not comfortably lift her feet up was strange. Definitely something we take for granted. Rolling at slow speeds isn't easy so I tried to get her to push off harder and roll faster. What's interesting is that handlebar control is so important when learning how to balance on a bike. She doesn't know what to do with the bars, so when she lifts her feet up and the bike goes left she does nothing with the bars and has to put her left foot down.

She felt good after that day though. I didn't push her too much, we started at the very bottom. She's since told me that she's started pedalling a little and has had a couple of stacks in the backyard. I'm pretty sure she'll get it any day now.

MC Cyclery Blog is now live!

I've just launched the MC Cyclery blog It'll be updated daily so be sure to check it out and bookmark it!

Bikes Move Us

Being banned off Farkin has given me the time and motivation to finally get my own cycling forum off the ground. I've just launched Bikes Move Us so PLEASE register and get posting guys and gals!

PS: Only if you're nice!

Weekend wrap-up

I feel fat for not riding this weekend. Great weekend though! Here's the wrap-up.


On Saturday Suga got dropped off at Top One to get her tinting done.


We dropped into ISMR to pay off some debts (doh!). R34's are slipping away from me. My once dream car has lost it's sparkle.


We dropped in to Hell On Wheels in Newtown. How amazing is this bike? It'll be featured in their next advertisement in 20/20 magazine, all photoshopped up.


I've been thinking about motor bikes lately too.


I saw this deck on their site and had to have it. I'd met Tom a couple of times but I got to meet Rob this time around. He said he couldn't believe it hadn't sold, and that he wanted it for wall art but his girl said no (why?! Christina loooves this deck!).


Up on the wall it goes. HAHA.

On Sunday I'd woken up on dreaming about bikes (sad I know) and even before I had my morning coffee I was in the car off to Kingsford markets. Not sure why, just was. I crossed the road and was greeted by this sight:


Holy fucking shit I thought! I asked the old Russian guy "How much do you want for this?" and he says "Nice bike, it's perfect for you, $45". "45?" "Yes $45". I didn't have the heart to bargain him down some more. I just took it!


Then I saw this beauty. Clamont racer with Tange 900 tubing and a beautiful brown suede Turbo saddle. $100, so tempted but I let her go.


This old GT was awesome too, check the frame, it's hot.


I even wanted this, used to have one as a kid. They last forever unlike new belt driven onces which die in the ass.


It's a bit of a ritual getting an egg and bacon roll from these guys at the markets. Best bacon and egg roll in Sydney no bull.


Scorage!


JDM goodness.


Tange tubing.