Decided to treat my Sandman

My Sandman Hoggar Fat Bike will soon be approaching 2 years old. I have enjoyed every moment of owning and riding her and since purchasing my Fat Bike she has seen more use than any of my other bikes.

Some new bits n Bobs

The beauty of a Fat Bike is that it can almost do it all. Whether it's a day playing in the woods on muddy trails, a day out at the beach, or come the winter forget about building a snowman, you can head out on your Fat Bike for an epic adventure.

Anyhoo I decided I would spruce up my beloved steed and treat her to a few new bits n bobs. So I had a look on the line and decided to purchase a new set of Race Face Respond Bars (white) and a new Charge Spoon Saddle (again in white). I must have spent a fortune over the years on saddles, never really found a one that suits. I always get sore no matter how much I go out trying to get used to a saddle. May be it's because I'm an amputee and I sit differently on a seat...I just don't know. Of all the things that makes me quit on longer rides it's an amazingly sore butt. Anyhoo as I was fed up spending a fortune on saddles I decided to try a Charge Spoon sometime ago. it's British made, so that's a plus and coming in at only £20 odd quid it's very reasonably priced.

Mmmm Not sure lol

 Not sure if I like the white components, Mmmmm maybe they will grow on me. One thing the new bars I got are a higher ride and feel a bit more comfortable

Another few purchases last week, beginning of this were some new Race Face Strafe grips. I really like these as they are Fat. My hands tire and ache when I use small diameter grips, these are just the ticket. Which reminds me I must get a new pair of grips for my NS Soda as the ones that are on aren't lock on's and they are real skinny and like I say make my hands fatigue and ache.

My most expensive purchase, but a must have for me was a new seatpost. Unfortunately my Crank Brothers Joplin dropper post gave up the ghost a few weeks back. It wouldn't stay up and was also a bit wobbly, like side to side when I sat on it. I really like a dropper post as it enables me to ride more comfortably. You see I have to stay clipped in on my prosthetic side when starting or stopping. This can be a real pain at junctions if I can't get my foot down on my good side if my seat is too high. Using a regular seat post I find I have to have it so it's easy to get off my bike, however I find I get a lot of pain in my good knee as I'm generally sitting too low. And so I treated my bike to a Rock Shox Reverb. I had used one of these on a loan bike I was riding whilst out in Utah last year and found it to be a great post. Big shout to  Matt Howard at The Bike Shoppe out in Ogden Utah http://thebikeshoppe.com  I'll never forget your kindness whilst on my visit to see my good friend Mark Peterson.


 

Just got to get her stickered up

New saddle and post, still not sure about white, but should look good at Pace Rehab conference

 And finally I set about finding somewhere local to do me some stickers to pop on my bike. I had one or two Left Side Inc stickers (Left Side Inc is the logo and company of my sponsor on the Bartlett tendon, Brian Bartlett) however they didn't match. I wanted to pop a sticker on each of my fork legs, since the Answer Flame ones had faded and so  I removed them. I also wanted some stickers advertising my blog and Pace Rehabilitation who continue to support me in my riding. I thought these would be apt for the end of April when I'm off down to London to a conference to do a bit of a demo on my bike on behalf of Pace.
I was fortunate enough to find a excellent place to carry out my sticker needs. A place called Design Xpress. They are situated on the Number one Industrial estate at Consett. I spoke to Kate over the phone and she was absolutely brilliant, asking me to call up and saying she was sure she could sort me out with my designs. Kate took my order and promised to call me back with a price, which she did the same day. Kate also found the exact fonts I was after and emailed me the designs before commencing with making them. A top class service and I would definitely recommend her business for any of your printing needs, very reasonably priced too.

http://www.designxpress.co.uk


So I intend getting my bike all cleaned,degreased, transferred. Ooh which reminds me I was also in touch with Sandman Bikes and they have promised to send me some new decals for my bike. Sandman I have to say have been absolutely awesome throughout my ownership of my bike answering any queries and offering excellent support.