34.6 lb Legend Installation Lap

So my Legend has been transformed into a light weight DH machine.

34.6 lbs is its weight in full trim for DH riding. If I were to ride a super rocky course I'd change wheels to my heavier duty set-up, but as the bike sits now, I will ride MOST DH tracks in current spec.

The major recent changes to my bike have been new wheels and a Rock Shox 2010 Boxxer World Cup and a set of I-9 wheels with Stans ZTR Flow rims.

I've done many things to lighten my bike but these two parts have made the biggest overall difference that noticeably improve the ride and handling of the bike. To say I am impressed is an understatement. The instant acceleration or the ease in which the bike can be tossed around is incredible.

The trail that I always ride as the installation lap is Goldmine at The Woodlot. This trail has all the elements of a great DH oriented track. The fork is amazingly tunable and the wheels feel so damn light it is incredible. When matched to Super Tacky Maxxis Minion UST Tubeless tires, you feel like you can ride on or over anything.

I then rode Snakes and Ladders which was a hoot and stopped at one point to do a little trail work. After finishing up Snakes, I ventured left towards the powerlines to see how far the Trans Canada Trail work had gone. To my surprise, it appear complete. The road at the bottom of Snakes now links up 'easily' with the powerlines which is the new north arm of the Trans Canada Trail.

I then went up to Bloggy which is turning into a nice fast rugged line and then straight into Shotgun. I must say, light bikes sure fly easy. I found myself over shooting trannys and entering corners much hotter than normal.

I had an eye opening rip of a ride and could not be more pleased with the performance of my Legend Mk1.

2009 Race the Ranch - Day 2

Race day.

I did one pre-run of the course and felt comfortable top to bottom but to be honest I just didn't feel FAST!! It was hot, windy and dusty which is typical for Kamloops so the course was fast and loose.

My race run went okay but I seemed to be holding back a little and because of this, my race time was not a good as I had hoped.

I'll be back next year for another stab at The Ranch.

Me caught mid air on the lower part of the course.
Photo courtesy of Dave Mackie

2009 Race the Ranch - Day 1

Once again I attended the Race the Ranch in Kamloops. One year older and a new bike to ride on a dry dusty course in Kamloops.

The day for me started early at 5:30am so as to have an easy relaxed drive up. On arriving in Kamloops I got myself a coffee, went and signed in for the race and then headed over to Rob's place to get our bikes ready for the race.

By 10am we were both at the race course and doing some practice runs getting used to the changes made to the course. There weren't really any features that I didn't want to hit but there were some lines that were a lot faster than other, so getting them right was imperative.

I followed Connor down the DH course to get a good handle on the course and footage to review later that night.

Race the Ranch DH 2009

Later in the afternoon Bryan, Rob, Karaleen, Conner and I did a few laps of Harper Mountain which was a hoot to say the least. Video below.

Harper Mountain

I then hooked up with the Trident Banshee team and did a few runs of the course with them. I was really the first time I had met these guys and the first time I has seen another Banshee bike.

Jay from Banshee was at the bottom of the course snapping photos and took a few of me.


Then after all this, I went to Rob's place for beers and a BBQ. I went to bed with a full belly and a mind completely consumed with thoughts of the race the next day. Rob provided good times and was a great host.