Theresa Fielding had been waiting on a Long Haul Trucker since before they were available. She has a long cycle tour planned and the Trucker was the right bike. Finally, after waiting patiently, with her very good shop help Kathleen from Free Range Cycles calling and writing me every once in a while to make sure things were progressing, we finally got the frames, so I called Kathleen. Theresa's is the very first LHT to be sold, and she seems to be very happy with it. She even sent a photo:

So that's cool. I think it looks hot. Some unenlightened people who seem to prefer flashy, tacky paintjobs have expressed a distaste for the sage green, but I submit that (a) there's no accounting for taste and (b) the color looks different in person than in the photos.

For setting up geared Karate Monkey bikes, we've always recommended using "traditional style, bottom pull" front derailleurs. When we introduced the Karate Monkey frameset, there was a plethora of good front ders on the market that worked great and allowed adequate rear tire clearance. Since then, Shimano has come up with a new "dual pull" derailleur that is both "top pull" and "bottom pull" all in one derailleur. While this may be good for bike shops because they only have to stock one derailleur that fits the use of two, these "dual pull" front ders are hideously large and don't give you proper rear tire clearance. Now it seems Shimano wants to push this "dual" der onto the market.

What can you do? If you're setting up a new Karate Monkey, insist on getting a "bottom pull" der, not a "dual pull". Other ways to add rear tire clearance are by using a button head cable pinch bolt instead of the stock cap head bolt (see photo), or by using the included Monkey Nuts on the rear hub to keep the wheel 5mm back.



This photo is a Karate Monkey frame with the wheel all the way forward in the rear dropouts, NO Monkey Nuts were used, a Shimano Deore LX M571 "traditional style, bottom pull" front derailleur with a button head cable pinch bolt and full-sized Kenda Klaw 29" x 2.1" tire. Plenty of clearance, Clarence.

If you've been waiting for a Long Haul Trucker frameset, we now have them in stock for the very first time. We just spent the last two days inspecting and going over all the fine details with a caliper and micrometers, installing parts, looking over all the welds, checking their alignment and dimensional tolerances, and staring at the beautiful Sage Green paint. These rock! Your local bike shop can now order this frame for you. Yeehawwww

Surly Bob, web dood and the yang side of the CoFlo & Bob Virtual Experience, found this somewhere. Now, I'm not suggesting you go on this ride, even if you live in NYC and have nothing to do tomorrow. What I am saying is that you should get yourself an inflatable suit.

On a different subject entirely, Mitch M. had read my entry wherein I mentioned my Crosscheck with Nitto North Road mustache bar and asked to see a picture. So here it is...

Mix of stuff. Deore hubs, well used Brooks B15 saddle (no longer made. a gift from Will over at 63XC.com....thanks Will!), I have the rack set way back because my gargantuan feet hit my panniers if the rack is level. Race Face crank, and yeah, my old XT platform pedals. And finally, as Andy O sez: cantilevers are the only brakes that make you go faster when you use them. True, that.