Thursday Morning Shredfest

DB5 with Shredded Chain

I don't know if "it's darkest before the dawn" but when I saddled up this morning it was well before dawn and it was so dark I nearly collided with a couple of pre-dawn hikers on my way to the lake (I like to ride by moonlight when I can).  When I met DB5 around 6:00am the lake was shrouded in mist and the eastern sky was just starting to give up the ghost.

We decided to hit the hills on the west side. Of course this demanded that we eventually assault (again) The Sidewinder from the downhill side. I bailed on the first punch and waved DB5 in on the Furly single-speed. He fully committed all 220 pounds to the assault but unfortunately his two year old chain failed him, well, catastrophically. I mean it just shredded. I've seen many broken chains in the field but this was the first time I've seen the side plates on a chain literally ripped in half.

We took 15 minutes to laugh about how bad it could have been, take some pictures, repair the chain, and saddle up for the return leg.

An hour later I was showered, dressed, and at the office...snickering to myself and glad that there are DBs in this world who also like bikes and are crazy enough to ride them in the woods with me. In the dark. In the early morning on a weekday. It's one of the things that gets me through the day...

Chris

"Cycling is like church-many attend but few understand"
     -- Jim Burlant