The new ride came in and was it ever worth the wait. Now I'm not just saying this because I love my Salsa bikes. This Salsa Casseroll Single Speed is a dream to ride. When I picked it up, I was a little thrown back by the size of the tires on this thing. They are ginormously wide--Continental Contact 37 !! Wickid huge pal. But those things can take some serious pressure and I've got them jacked up to 115psi and they roll like nobody's business. And they roll over everything--cracks, bumps, small rodents (no not yet, but close) potholes, you name it these things plow over it with ease and comfort. I mean it's a commuter bike right? Small racing slicks would be a jarring, jittery experience around town and on the bike paths. I think these tires may be one of the best components on the bike. Let's talk abou tsome of the others. 

The frame is beautifully painted in a Guildens brown mustard with some nice sparkly flecks that glimmer in the sun--beauty. It is responsive when standing and smooth and stiff when seated. Stiff and responsive--yeah sounds strangely sexual, but hey it's a nice ride. The welds are beautiful and the matching fork dampers whatever else the tires don't absorb. The straight blades look like a tuning fork and are painted in the same lovely mustard color. Another really nice detail is a custom chain guard--it's sleek and has some nice die cuts that make it look super aerodynamic. Definitely not like the chain guard on that blue Shwinn we all had as kids. The rest of the bike is rounded out with a few nice Salsa parts--Moto Ace Short and Shallow bars and Delgato Cross rims laced up with Surly Flip Flop hubs . The saddle is pretty sweet too--a WTB Silverado Race with custom Salsa embroidery--I mean come on, too cool. The Tektro brakes do an adequate job in stopping. These brakes seem to be the standard in meduim quality, cost-cutting performance. What I do like about the calipers is that they are extra long and tall to accomodate the large tires. This means riders can easily use studs in the winter or a slightly smaller slick with a fender. Bonus points for that. 

I've decided to keep the freewheel on and use it until it starts to deteriorate, which should be in a month or so. It's one of those cheapo Shimano jobs. They are meant for really dry conditions--like desert conditions. I was going through about one a month with my MTB. Granted that was pretty wet an mucky most of the time, but so is commuting. About 5 years ago I made the switch to the White Industries and never worried about again. These things are bomb proof and if for some reason the leave them submerged in water for like 3 years and you need to rebuild them, you can. I have never had to. I use them on my MTB and my commuters. But for the ultimate in no worries/maintenace, just go fixed, which I plan to do this winter? Not sure what I'm going to do with my Redline as it's still in running order (and a fixed). I may just keep that for my foul weather bike. That is if I get another job...

What? Yeah this commuter was laid off last week. What does this mean for a guy who prides himself  a daily commuter? I don't know. It's sad really. Not only will I miss my job, but I'm going to miss the ride everyday. Yes I will still go for rides to the store and downtown for cookie and coffee runs, but it won't be the same. The urgency is just not there. I have started to line up some freelance work (I'm an art director and designer by trade) but look forward to the day I have a full-time reason to bike to work again. I did have a very proud moment this week as my daughter's teacher asked what a certain article of clothing was (she was holding up a tie) and said that some dads wear these to work. My lovely 3 year old said, "my daddy wears bike shorts to work." Thanks Pheebs.

Ride safe.

Zm