Friday, March 28, 2014

The 2014 Trek 3700 Disc Trail Bike/Commuter

Confidence, Control, and Road-to-Rail Versatility Wherever You Ride




 
As one of the world's best selling mountain bikes it's no surprise that the Trek 3700 Disc comes packed with impressive performance at an affordable price. With its light, premium aluminum frame combined with a smooth fork and reliable 24 speed Shimano gears the 3700 Disc is ready to hit the trails on the weekends or carry you to work as a hard as nails commuter.





KEY UPGRADES OVER 3500 DISC

• 100mm fork
• Bontrager AT-650 double-walled rims
• 24-speed drivetrain
• Bontrager Evoke saddle




 












Alpha Silver Aluminum

Trek's proprietary lightweight aluminium is continuously cold extruded to a single wall thickness. Frames built with Alpha Silver feature some degree of mechanical forming and are finished using Trek's smooth-weld finishing process.

Mechanical Disc Brakes

Reliable stopping power in all conditions, including wet and muddy.


Rack and Mudguard Mounts

Built-in mounts make it easy to add racks and mudguards for added versatility


Suspension Fork

Shock-absorbing fork allows the front wheel to travel up and down over bumps while the handlebars stay steady, for a comfortable, controlled ride.


Trail Ready

Not all bikes with knobbly tires are ready to handle the real world of off-road cycling. Trek’s Trail Ready certification indicates the frame has passed Trek’s strict testing for durability and impact standards, and is ready to handle the rigors of real off-road riding.

Specs

Frame: Alpha Silver Aluminum w/semi-integrated head tube, rack & fender mounts, disc compatible dropouts, replaceable derailleur hanger
Front Suspension: RST Blaze T w/coil spring, preload, 100mm travel
Sizes: 13, 16, 18, 19.5, 21, 22.5”


Front Hub: Formula DC20 alloy
Rear Hub: Formula DC22 alloy
Rims: Bontrager AT-650 32-hole double walled
Spokes: Steel
Tires: Bontrager LT3, 26x2/0”

Shifters: Shimano Altus EF51, 8 speed
Front Derailleur: Shimano Altus
Rear Derailleur: Shimano Altus M280
Crank: Shimano M131, 42/34/24 w/ chainguard
Cassette: Shimano HG31 11-32, 8 speed
Pedals: Wellgo nylon platform

Saddle: Bontrager Evoke 1
Seatpost: Bontrager SSR, 31.6mm, 12mm offset
Handlebar: Bontrager Riser, 25.4mm, 30mm rise
Stem: Bontrager Forged, 25.4mm, 25 degree
Headset: 1-⅛” threadless
Brakeset: Tektro Novela mechanical disc brakes w/ Shimano Altus levers

Grips: Bontrager SSR


Come to Bumstead's Bicycles for all your cycling needs.
We are located at 1038 W. 4th St in Ontario, CA.
You can reach us by phone at (909) 984-9067

Monday, March 24, 2014

2014 Trek Ladies Bike: Lexa SLX — High Performance Without High Expense

The Beautifully Smooth 2014 Trek Lexa SLX Frame is One of The Most Comfortable Women's Alloy Road Bikes on The Market.




Trek has a large line-up of women specific road bikes, and the top end technologies are filtering down through the budgets, right through to the Lexa SLX.





Across the frame, the tubing varies in shape and composition, you can really see this around the seat tube which makes for a compliant ride with added comfort. Both the Lexa SLX and the Domane bikes feature the IsoSpeed decoupler, probably their main selling point and a comfort bonus for the endurance rider too. Essentially, the decoupler keeps the seat tube and top-tube independent from one another, which dramatically reduces road buzz, vibration and shock, and makes for a very comfortable ride without affecting pedal efficiency.




And it’s not just the frame that offers a comfortable ride, the carbon-legged fork is designed to absorb more of the road shock and increases front to rear compliance. The fork is laterally stiff so you get good steering control, and the sweeping leg shape with the extra curve at the dropout minimizes vibrations traveling up the fork to the frame and rider.


The wheelbase is 3cm longer than the more race-oriented Madone WSD range. The extended wheelbase is achieved with a more relaxed head angle, longer chainstays and a fork with a longer sweep; the effective top tube length is 53cm.


The chainset is made up of high quality Shimano 105 shifters and derailleurs, with a Shimano Tiagra compact crankset and 10-speed cassette.


Another useful detail is the SpeedTrap compatible computer sensor integrated into the fork leg. Recording speed and distance is simple and no need for bulky sensors or wires either.


The Lexa range has four bikes, starting with the entry level Lexa, then the Lexa S and SL. Only the top end Lexa SLX has the IsoSpeed decoupler and Endurance Fit geometry found on the higher priced Domane bikes.


It’s easy to be a fan of the Lexa SLX. The comfort and endurance bias is obvious from the first ride, and yet there’s enough of a responsive and racy feel to make the SLX feel at home on a competitive ride too. If you haven’t tried the IsoSpeed system— put it on your to-do list this weekend.


Specs (Triple Crank)

Frame: 200 Series Alpha Aluminum, IsoSpeed
Fork: Trek IsoSpeed carbon, SpeedTrap compatible
Sizes: 47, 50, 52, 54, 56cm

Wheels: Alloy hubs w/Bontrager Approved alloy rims
Tires: Bontrager R1 Hard-Case Lite, 700x25c

Shifters: Shimano 105 STI, 10 speed
Front Derailleur: Shimano 105
Rear Derailleur: Shimano 105
Crank: Shimano Tiagra, 50/39/30 (triple)
Cassette: Shimano Tiagra 12-30, 10 speed

Saddle: Bontrager Affinity 1 WSD
Seatpost: Bontrager Approved, 27.2mm, 8mm offset
Handlebar: Bontrager Race VR-S, 31.8mm
Stem: Bontrager Race Lite, 31.8mm, 7 degree
Headset: 1-1/8" semi-cartridge bearings
Brakeset: Alloy dual-pivot

Grips: Bontrager IsoZone Microfiber tape
Extras: Fender & rack mounts

Come in to Bumstead's Bicycles Today to see all of our 
great bikes from Trek and more! Ladies and mens, children's 
and adult bikes — a little something for everyone! 

We hope to see you soon!

We are located at 1038 W. 4th St in Ontario, CA.
You can reach us by phone at (909) 984-9067

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

If You're Rear-End Doesn't Feel Great After A Ride — Maybe You Need A New Saddle

Getting A Seat That Fits

How comfortable a seat feels has a lot to do with where your sit bones (those bones you feel when sitting on a curb or bench) rest on the seat. Ideally, those bones will rest on the saddle's padding. If you've been using a seat for a while you can usually see indentations formed by the bones, which allows gauging whether or not the seat is appropriate for your anatomy.

It's hard to predict which seat will be right for a given rider. Sometimes a wider seat solves pain and other times the narrow ones do the trick. It's all a matter of which seat suits your body shape. For starters, the wider your pelvic anatomy, typically the wider you want the seat to be.





Modern Seats Offer Improved Comfort 
Cutaway seats relieve pressure on sensitive areas.
Over the years, more amazing seats have been designed than probably any other bicycle component. And today, there's still a wide array of models to select from, some with fairly wild shapes. One feature shared by many of these seats is a cutaway in the saddle top designed to relieve pressure on sensitive tissues in the genital area. Our customers have found these saddle types to be particularly helpful for eliminating problems with numbness. There are also models that have softer sections in the center of the seat designed to work the same as the cutaway.

Another pressure-point eliminator is gel. Some seat makers use this in the sensitive areas to prevent pressure that causes pain and numbness.

 

Wear Cycling Clothing

When trying seats, be sure to do so wearing your cycling clothing because if you're wearing pants with seams in the crotch area, you'll feel the seams and won't be able to judge the seat comfort. Also, after putting on a new seat, it's best to re-check saddle height because the shape of the new one may be a little taller than the one you've been using. If a seat is too high or too low, you'll feel discomfort from the incorrect seat position and won't be able to feel whether the seat is an improvement or not. The easiest way to match seat height is to measure it before you remove your original seat. You'll then have the exact height to place the new seat and you won't have to experiment to find your optimum position.



Come to Bumstead's Bicycles for all your cycling needs.
We are located at 1038 W. 4th St in Ontario, CA.
You can reach us by phone at (909) 984-9067

Monday, March 17, 2014

Guess the Bike: Balanced and Nible Handling, DRCV Platform and 29" Wheels

The 2014 Trek Fuel EX 9.8 29er Performs Brilliantly On The Kind Of Trails You Want To Ride

Bikemag.com “The EX performs brilliantly on everyday singletrack— the kind of trails you want to ride for hours upon hours. Its handling traits are balanced and nimble, thanks in part to its low bottom bracket and ample standover. The efficient DRCV suspension platform and the 27.5-pound weight combine to make the EX 9.8 feel like a no-holds-barred race whippet while on the pedals”



IMG: BikeRadar

Overall, the bike is playful, relishing in medium-sized drops and small doubles and happily attacking bermed corners. As on the 26in Fuel EX, rear-suspension performance is 
excellent. The feel may be slightly firm off the top but the spring rate is steadily progressive with lots of pop through the mid-stroke.

The Fuel EX 9.8 uses a carbon front triangle, and the rear triangle is composed of carbon fiber seatstays and aluminum chainstays. The rear suspension is Trek’s Active Braking Pivot with Full Floater technology (the shock’s bottom mount bolts to the chainstay, not the main frame).

The large wheels and neutral geometry, mixed with the bike’s efficient-yet-active suspension allow the bike to scoot up hills like no other. It is also competent and predictable on descents. The RockShox Reverb Stealth dropper post performs flawlessly throughout the ride and adds confidence when charging.

While certain bikes are made for incredibly specific purposes, for most riders, the right tool for the job is a bike that is capable over the course of an entire ride, not just one or two segments of it. The 2014 EX 9.8 has been designed to be the Swiss Army knife of trailbikes. It’s light and efficient enough to be pressed into service for a cross-country race while retaining enough All-mountain DNA to tackle trails that would usually be reserved for much more specific bikes.



Frame: OCLV Mountain Carbon main frame & seatstay, alloy chainstay, Carbon Armor, ABP Convert, Full Floater, E2 tapered head tube, BB95, internal derailleur & dropper post routing, ISCG 05 mount, magnesium EVO link, G2 Geometry, 120mm travel

Front Suspension: Fox Performance Series 32 Float w/CTD (climb-trail-descend) FIT damper, rebound, E2 tapered steerer, 15QR thru axle, custom G2 Geometry w/51mm offset, 120mm travel

IMG: Bike Radar

Rear Suspension: Fox Performance Series Float w/DRCV, CTD (climb-trail-descend) damper, rebound, tuned by Trek in California, 7.25x1.875"

Wheels: Bontrager Rhythm Elite Tubeless Ready 28-hole disc wheel system, 15mm front hub, 142x12mm rear hub

Tires: Bontrager XR3 Team Issue Tubeless Ready, 29x2.30"



IMG: BikeRadar


Shifters: Shimano Deore XT, 10 speed

Front Derailleur: Shimano Deore XT, high direct mount

Rear Derailleur: Shimano Deore XT Shadow Plus

Crank: Shimano Deore XT, 38/24

Cassette: Shimano Deore XT 11-36, 10 speed


Saddle: Bontrager Evoke 3, titanium rails

Seat Post: RockShox Reverb Stealth, 31.6mm, zero offset

Handlebar: Bontrager Race X Lite Carbon Low Riser, 31.8mm, 15mm rise

Stem: Bontrager Race X Lite, 31.8mm, 7 degree

Headset: Cane Creek IS-3, E2, alloy cartridge


Brakeset: Shimano Deore XT hydraulic disc 

Grips: Bontrager Race Lite, lock-on 



Come to Bumstead's Bicycles for all your cycling needs.
We are located at 1038 W. 4th St in Ontario, CA.
You can reach us by phone at (909) 984-9067

Friday, March 14, 2014

What Can The 2014 Trek 1.5 Road Bike Offer You?

Versatility, Race-Ready Detail, and Aerodynamic Shaping Makes for a Light and Exhilarating Ride that is Easy on the Budget


The new 2014 Trek 1.5 frame features some Kammtail-esque tube shaping that is a trickle down from the fine looking Madone aero tube profiles and the geometry is still the same well proven H2 fit.

A reviewer at Girodilento.com says that the ride quality of the new frame is a step forward over the old bike. It seemed more comfortable to him and the Tiagra componentry worked very well right out of the box.


Bicycling.com included the 2014 Trek 1.5 in their 'Buyer's Guide: Entry-Level Road Bikes', saying, "Anyone who has recently caught the cycling bug should enjoy this versatile, spry model from Trek. The compact crank offers lower gears to help you summit any hills in your path, and the frame comes in eight sizes - making it easy to find a good fit. Mount fenders and rack to turn this into a fast commuter."






Here are a few specs, including sizes available.

Frame: 100 Series Alpha Aluminum
Fork: Trek Carbon Road
Sizes: 50, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 62, 64cm
Frame Fit: H2

Wheels: Alloy hubs with Bontrager Approved alloy rims
Tires: Bontrager R1 Hard-Case Lite, 700x23c

Shifters: Shimano Tiagra STI, 10 speed
Front and Rear Derailleur: Shimano Tiagra
Crank: FSA Vero 50/34 (compact)
Cassette: Shimano Tiagra 12-30, 10 speed

Saddle: Bontrager Affinity 1
Seatpost: Bontrager Approved, 27.2mm, 8mm offset
Handlebar: Bontrager Race VR-C, 31.8mm
Stem: Bontrager SSR, 31.8mm, 10 degree
Headset: 1-1/8" semi-cartridge bearings
Brakeset: Alloy dual-pivot

Grips: Bontrager Gel Cork tape
Extras: Fenders and Rack Mounts


Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Should I Go Tubeless on My Road Bike? How About On My Mountain Bike?

Pros and Cons of Going Tubeless for Road and Mountain

Road:

Flat Protection -

Anecdotal evidence from testers at bicycling.com suggests that tubeless systems incur fewer flats than tubes.

They go on to mention that road tubeless tires currently available are thicker and heavier than the high-end, nontubeless clinchers — making a comparison difficult.

Lower Pressure -


Road tubeless are designed to work at lower pressures than most road clinchers. Hutchinson (a tire company that developed road tubeless with Shimano) recommends that cyclists use as much as 13 psi less than they would run in a tube.


Some riders claim the ride is as smooth as a tubular tire. Lower pressure can also boost traction when cornering and braking, as softer tires stick to the ground better.

Others claim that riding tubeless isn't as supple as high-quality, traditional tubulars or even the best open clinchers.


Security


Hutchinson claims that its road tubeless tires, built with no-stretch carbon beads, cannot roll off the rim. Assuming Hutchinson is right, the tire will stay on the rim should you go flat.

Cons of going tubeless


Limited Selection


There are currently 25 tubeless road wheels and 10 tires on the market. More options are on the way, but nothing like the breadth of products available for cyclists riding standard clinchers.

More Maintenance


Working with road tubeless wheels and tires isn't as simple as handling a regular clincher. You have to be patient when working stiff beads on and off rims, a process that often requires soapy water.

You have to be careful about choosing tire levers, repairing punctures, and installing valves, rim tape, and strips. You may also need an air compressor to properly install many tires. You have to remember to refill the tire with fresh sealant every few months — and if the sealant can't fix a puncture out on the road, the repair is much more time-consuming and complicated.

Sloppyness


If you ditch tubes, you should use sealant. But putting it into the tire can be messy, and inserting a tube in the event of a bad cut will be even messier. You'll also need to strip the old goop from the rim when it's time to add new sealant.


You can make the decision for yourself about fitting your road bike with tubeless tires. It won't save you a lot of weight, and setup and maintenance are a little harder than normal. Once everything is together, the system requires a little more vigilance, but the ability to run lower pressure offers a smooth ride and good traction.


Now on to Mountain Bikes.


From Utahmountainbiking.com , "Tubeless is an advantage to hard-core riders who want maximal responsiveness and control, while avoiding pinch-flats in difficult terrain. 'Going tubeless' is not worthwhile if you're basically a gutter-bunny who occasionally ventures onto smooth dirt trails."

Once again, the pros of going tubeless on your setup are as follows.

No Pinch Flats


If there is no inner tube, you can't get a pinch flat! You can however, cut a hole in the tire, and you are more likely to cut a hole through the tire casing while tubeless than with a tubed system, because there is no inner tube to add cushion between the rim and tire.

Remember that when using a regular tubed system, there are great tire liners out there that can keep you from getting a pinch flat as well, at a fraction of the cost of a tubeless system.

Better Bump Absorbtion and Control


When there's no inner tube pushing against the tire casing, it will deform more easily when it rolls

over a rock. That means sharp bumps become softer bumps. Tiny bumps don't cause as much vibration and shaking.

Reduced Rotating Weight


If you're converting a standard rim to tubeless, using rim liner, sealant, and a standard tire, the wheel's rotating weight is less than with a standard inner tube by about 50 grams. The reduction of "rotating weight" makes the bike "zippier." It accelerates better, corners faster, and brakes faster.

Flowmountainbike.com encourages you that weight should not be your main motivation. If you're trying to save weight, you inevitably end up with tires that are too fragile and are susceptible to flats, thereby exacerbating a problem you were trying to avoid in the first place.

And Now The Cons.


Expense


To go traditional tubeless, you need to buy special UST rims, which are not cheap. You can spend up to $1000 to upgrade both wheels.

The cheapest way to go tubeless is with a conversion kit. You add a rim liner to your standard rims, fill a standard tire with sealant, and you're there.

You will still have to buy sealant, Tires (new ones every few months rather than once a year or so), and C02 cartridges.

Backup Required


You can repair small punctures in a dry tubeless tire with superglue. You can repair sealant-filled tires on the trail by patching it internally. But tubeless riders who don't pack an emergency inner tube (or two!) will, sooner or later, face a long hike. On the trail, you'll need a patch kit, spare tube, and maybe even a little bottle of sealant.

Power Inflator Required


To seal a tubeless tire against the rim, you need a sudden burst of air pressure. Your mini-pump just can't do that. Most tubeless owners find they need a compressed-air cylinder in your garage, or a gas station with real compressed air (not just an insert-a-quarter type electric pump) or you will burn a C02 cartridge every time you mount a tire.

Post a comment with your thoughts or experiences! We'd love to hear from you!

Come to Bumstead's Bicycles for all your cycling needs.
We are located at 1038 W. 4th St in Ontario, CA.
You can reach us by phone at (909) 984-9067

Friday, March 7, 2014

2014 Trek Domane Classics via Trek Project One

BikeRadar: "Ride and handling: Crisp handling, meetrear suspension"

Article originally posted on Bikeradar.com

While race bikes traditionally are tight and jumpy like cats, the Domane Classics Edition is more like a lion; the pro-edition fork offers plenty of agility up front, but there is no mistaking the fact you're driving a long bus. Turns and quick dodges can be rapidly and easily initiated, but the rear end takes a split second to come around. Depending on how you like your bike feel — and where and how you ride — this can be a good thing.

On rough roads, for example, the Classics Edition truly shines. When you hit washboards in a group and the errant bottle escapes its cage on a bike in front of you, a quick flick of the bars will suffice to jump out of the way.
 

There are few remarkable things going on with the geometry and frame construction.

The Classics Edition shares the crazy-low bottom bracket (7.5-8cm drop) and long chain stays with the rest of the Domane line. And, as with the rest of the line, the IsoSpeed 'decoupler' allows not only the seatmast but the entire seat tube to flex far more than with a rigidly connected seat cluster. Trek claims a two-fold improvement in comfort and it's wholly believable. But the Classics Edition gets a faster-handling fork that the Factory team riders demand, plus a shorter head tube for getting low and aero.

The pro-edition fork still sweeps far forward (5.3cm rake) with the dropouts cutting sharply back, offering a mild leaf-spring suspension effect while retaining a tighter front end. Put it all together, and it feels more like you're riding down inside the Classics Edition than up on top of it.

While IsoSpeed offers hearty helpings of comfort, the Classics Edition is not magic. The bike is still constrained by many standard parameters of road bike design. For example, the fork does not flex anywhere as much as the IsoSpeed rear does (to do so would do bizarre things to the handling). As a result, you feel bumps about twice as much at the handlebar than at the saddle.

Trek includes an integrated chain catcher and there's also a pocket on the inside of the left chain stay for a Bontrager DuoTrap ANT+ sensor for speed and cadence data without having to zip tie plastic bits to the frame.





Offered as part of Trek's Project One custom-build project, you can dress the Classics Edition a variety of ways. Trek sent this tester equipped with Shimano's latest and greatest, Dura-Ace Di2 9070, and outfitted with its house-brand wheels, cockpit and saddle. Quite often, "house brand" means "cost effective," but Bontrager has earned its status as a quality standalone brand. We endorse Di2 9070 highly, and we'll focus on the Bontrager parts here.

The Bontrager Aeolus 5 wheels features Zipp-made carbon clincher rims laced to DT Swiss hubs and spokes. Prior to this bike, we have ridden and raced both the clincher and the Bontrager-made tubulars on road, cyclo-cross and triathlon bikes quite a bit, and the aerodynamics, durability and braking are all on par with the best-in-class options out there. Bontrager recommends its cork pads with the Aeolus hoops.

As you'd expect with a bike aimed at taking the sting out of the road, 25c tires provide the cushioning grip, specifically Bontrager R4 clinchers on our tester.

There are plenty of build options available through Project One. 

www.trekbikes.com/us/en/projectone


Bumstead's Bicycles
1038 W. 4th St.
Ontario, CA 91762
(909) 984-9067
www.bumsteadbikes.com