To Finish First, First You Must . . .

Get a bike. A 103.5 mile mountain bike race will test not only the athlete, but his equipment. Where should I begin?

My current MTB is a trail bike with 29×3″ tires, a Trek Stache Plus Bike. I bought it in 2017 to get off the roads while training. That worked pretty well, until I was hit by a car on it last June. I have ridden thousands of miles on a road bike with mostly good experiences with other road users. Being mowed down reaffirmed my choice to focus on mountain biking.

Back to bikes. The Stache is like a tank. Big wheels and tires coupled with really short chainstays means that this bike rolls over anything and is fairly nimble. The downsides are that it is heavy at almost 29 pounds and not very stiff. I do not weigh a lot, but when I stand and climb, I can feel (and hear) the frame flex. Overall, it is a great bike and it has taken me to some very cool places.

I need a race bike. Race bikes have some key characteristics, namely they must be light, stiff, aerodynamic and reliable.

Carbon is good, but I worry about how it holds up in extreme conditions. I mean, I don’t have an factory team budget for replacements if (when) a frame cracks. Custom carbon frames with threaded bottom brackets are rare as hens’ teeth. However, carbon does have some excellent damping properties.

Aluminum is cheaper than carbon by a lot. It is heavier on average than carbon and welds are subject to breaking under extreme conditions though. I like aluminum bikes. Franken-Bike is aluminum and it turned out to be the fastest and lightest bike I have ever owned. I just can’t race Leadville with drop bars and 25c tires!

Steel rides well but it is very heavy compared the other two. Over 100 miles the weight will magnify. Of course this will be offset somewhat by the solid ride. Threaded bottom bracket? Check. Custom geometry? Check. Low cost? Eh.

If only there were some material with excellent strength to weight, options for threaded BB, custom geometry, excellent ride characteristics, and reliability. Enter Moots Bicycles.