For all of the concerned readers who've flooded my inbox with impassioned concerns for Big Red's health and recovery, I offer a quick update. Nate at Bike Tech sprang into action and hunted down a replacement suspension link. Okay, in truth it was sitting lonely in their spare parts bin. Anyhoo, for the bargain basement price of $20, I've got a slightly used link with bearings in better shape than the ones I had. The link is from an '06 bike and it is heavier than the hollow link of my '07 by a few grams. It's also one friggin' cast piece with no welds to break. I'm sure the hollow links are fine for skinny racer boys, but they won't work in the big boy leagues.
So, after an evening of hectic assembly, I put the bike back on the trails, only to find that my new chain makes it painfully obvious that the middle chainring is way past usable. When you torque on the pedal, the chain skips around the chainring like a big damn ratchet. Plus the pulleys on the rear derailleur sounds like a yard sale coffee grinder full of marbles. I'm off tomorrow at lunch to pick up a new chainring, some derailleur parts, and a new shifter cable.
Fear not, loyal readers, Big Red is on the mend and should be back in the thick of the fight next week. If Sunday truly is sunny, the road bike will be back in service while Red recuperates. Wait till you see the black bike with new TeamFlipper livery.
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