Bleeding

Finally got a chance to bleed my brakes. The bleed screws need to be vertical to do a good job, so I rigged up this sweet setup with an old road bar (I've never owned a road bike, but somehow I have a bunch of old road bars sitting around. The unstoppable accumulation of stuff.)

I didn't have an old rotor, so I used the 25t "Sam is a giant pussy/ Diedre wears the pants" Breckenridge cog to hold the caliper.

The brakes feel good, all my bearings are re-packed, and I think my bike is ready to go for Dragons Tale. Which is good, because I'm heading to the Bird's Nest tomorrow.

And I'm finally retiring my trusty Giro Atmos. Way back in 2010, at the WVMBA Championship race, I rode into a big hole going about 20 mph. My bike was swallowed. I went over the bars and landed squarely on my head. It left a big dent in my helmet:

I probably should have retired it right away. But I kept putting it off, and before I knew it two years went by. Whoops 

So yesterday I grabbed a Giro Xar, which the Viking Cat refuses to let me photograph.