So quite a few months ago a few people shot me a link to Summit's Ibis clearance. I was all "damn that looks like value!" but didn't have any real intention of getting a new bike at the time. Then when I was in New Zealand
@Mattyp sent me "dooooooooo it!" link to Summit's Santa Cruz clearance. Of course I was on a holiday and really couldn't justify. Or could I? Well I ummmmed and aahhhhhhed myself into missing out on the SC. Then when I got home another SC appeared on their site. I was busy and kept forgetting then fell asleep when I meant to buy it and then the next day or was gone. But the Ibis...the Ibis was still there.
I spoke with the Summit crew and they were happy to post it to me, but there was a fee...so I put together an itinerary for a trip to Melbourne that would include buying the bike. I set myself a savings goal, achieved it, ummmed and aaaaahhhhed...then I found a 170mm saint crank and knew I needed a bike to put such a big crank on! That's it, time to blow those savings.
I made plans for Melbourne. These included dropping in
@link1896 to collect some bike parts he has held for me since about 2019. We caught up last year and the bike parts slipped out minds. I knew from previous travel experience how much of a pain in the arse travelling with a bike box is and decided to see if I could acquire the bike locally. I got no reply to my inquiry with the importer about any local dealers. Then I also saw Mondraker were having a clearance. Fuck me they don't look like a shitting dog anymore! Oooooh they have awesome suspension and oh...what's that? 28 hole rims in all their bikes? That is a bit of a no deal for me. Hmmmm...for a taste of that juicy juicy ohlins suspension I could flog off the wheels and grab something suitable. Talk about a price blow out. I got lucky there as I'd be trying to order nuke proof wheels from CRC who just stopped international trade.
I worked out who the local ibis dealer is and dropped in for a chat. Unfortunately they weren't interested in making a deal and only offered me bottom shelf floor stock options. That isn't going to cut it. Then as I sat down with a coffee I got a reply from ibis importer letting me know they had some mail server issues and had heard from my local's earlier that day. We had a quick chat and they were all too happy to make the Melbourne hook up happen but then suggested I reach out to a fantastic shop in Sydney...a quick email to
https://brewmanscyclewerks.com/ and I had a bike! Without the hassles of dragging it around Melbourne and flying home with it. The best bit was I could ride it from the shop! Well as long as I brought some pedals, which I have too many of.
I couldn't be happier with how easy Brewmans was to deal with. Excellent communication, easy invoicing, great workmanship on the assembly and fine tuning it today, and just all round good vibes. The only hurdle being that I thought Matraville was a lot easier to get to (I thought sort of jammed in around Marrickville/Petersham/Dulwich Hill...oh I was wrong. And what a day to be wrong on!!! Fuck me I am going to be dehydrated for weeks after today.
The far out new fangled geometry is going to take some getting used to and I won't be giving this much of a testing until late March or early April, but I know that I like the feel of the suspension units and have been a long time dw fan.
From the stock spec I plan to sell (so form an orderly line):
- SRAM G2 brakes (levers and calipers, not rotors)
- SRAM nx crank (if my saint crank is going to work with the 12 speed, I want it to work so much!)
That's probably it really. The rest (mostly ibis branded generics) is going to be just fine for my occasional trail riding. I also think I'll learn to pedal a bit more.
Thanks to everyone for believing in n+1! It truely is the way.
