ESRI Hell Ride Group Photo

Here is the group picture from this year's Hell Ride. I organized the event again this year and it was a success! We had an even bigger turnout than last year (perhaps the largest turnout ever for a Hell Ride in the 10+ years it's been going on! There are a few people missing from the photo, but I think this shot turned out really great (Thanks Steve!) I think we had 34 riders total, 31 who did the longer course. There are alot of great riders at ESRI and non-ESRI folks who came from as far as OC.

Also thanks to Bob, Joy, Colleen, Trevor, Suzanne, John and Lisa for a great pre-ride the weekend before!

The long course ended up around 38.5 miles including some pavement.

More Demo Bikes!

The last two weekends I have tried out some more excellent 2007 bikes!

Including the Trek Fuel EX 9.5.....
I enjoyed this bike on a nice long 40 mile MTB ride. It was nice to have the suspension for the long haul. This bike climbed great for a dual sus and was only just over 24 lbs! NOT BAD for a dual sus! it had 2007 XTR group and performed great. Also had Bontrager Race Lite wheels and a nice Bontrager tire set up. I would definately like to get my hands on a Top Fuel to see the weight difference and stiffness during climbgs. The nice thing about this bike is that it was set up perfectly for my weight and suspension preferences. So the suspension kicked in only when needed. Thanks to Greg and Josh from Trek for another great demo bike!


And the Orbea Alma 29'er (only full carbon 29'er on the market!)



Both bikes were fantastic, but my heart goes to the hardtail! Riding a 29'er for the first time was awesome. It handled very well on climbs, turns and semi-technical sections. I took the bike out on SART, but not any super technical sections. So not sure how it would handle on say, east coast rocks/roots. Also didn't take it on any super steep/technical climbs. I have heard that 29'ers aren't the best for those conditions if you can't keep the momentum going with the larger wheels. I will have to test it out to see! I LOVED the full carbon HT frame. It was plush compared to my aluminum frame. The bike fit me very welll and I loved the FSA and SRAM X.0 components. The Bontrager Race Lite wheels also felt great. The bike handled nice and stiff on the climbs and made little bumps feel like nothing. I also felt like it cornered very well, even on narrow turns (maybe I was just imagining things). I had a blast and would definately love to ride that bike again! Thanks to Ramon at my shop, Redlands Cyclery USA. I have to say, Orbea makes a sweet mountain bike! I am happy with my road bike and even happier with the experience on the Alma!