A new bike - Trek Procaliber

 Last summer the shop started carrying trek after open road closed. I had been trying to get a new XC race hardtail for awhile at this point but the Cannondales and Orbeas were out of stock. Although strangely, the exact Alma model I wanted was available on the pro's closet, in my size, brand new. Don't really understand how they get those bikes when we're told none are available. I think the cannondale would have still been my preference because it's a little lighter and a little slacker.

Anyhow, with Trek they have a great and easy to use EP program, allowing you to order or backorder whatever you want. The more videos and quizzes you finish, the better the discount, so I chugged through a whole bunch to get the highest level, which is significantly lower than wholesale pricing. Cannondale only lets you EP a bike when there are a certain number in stock (but at a similar discount to trek) and as far as I know orbea doesn't have EP and you have to pay wholesale.

So anyway, I filled out the form and ordered myself a trek procaliber 9.6, which had the shortest ETA and the best frame color. It showed up in september.

Not quite the build I wanted though, with a pretty heavy and terrible fork, mid range shimano drivetrain, and narrow aluminum wheels. No dropper either. It also weighed slightly more than my hei hei. So all that stuff came off

By november, I had pretty much all the parts I wanted for it but then it was winter.

I kind of went all out. XX1 with a rainbow cassette (although mechanical not axs), Sid SL ultimate with a lockout and the shiny blue lowers, the new Kovee RSL 1200g wheels, a transfer SL, level ultimate brakes with 2-piece rotors, rainbow ti bottle cage bolts, rainbow valves...

So yeah, that made it weigh about 21.5 lbs. I also ditched the 2.2" XR2s for 2.4 pirelli scorpion XC/RCs with the bright yellow hot patches.

(the kendas went on for the mullet climb along with a rigid post)

short answer: it's light, and it's real fast uphill. But riding downhill makes me really appreciate the hei hei, even in an XC race.

Depending on the course I'm still riding the Kona, even on a few that went all the way to the top of marshall, where the procaliber might be faster overall. I just didn't want to ride it down the full descent at race speed. The kona was the right choice for the Spirit bear race in kalispell and the Butte 100 as well (for butte I borrowed the wheels from the trek). 

On the plus side, it is pretty good for a lot of missoula riding. Last week I just went up the road to point 6 and back. It's also ideal for my regular quick trips up to the overlook and our recent "death ride graveL" And it turns out I've actually ridden both MTBs about the same amount this year. I did also still race this bike quite a bit on wed nights and at scratchgravel in helena. Pretty ideal for that course. Also, I wasn't super thrilled with the fancy fizik 3d printed saddle I put on there. So now with what seems to be a more comfortable ergon I'll be happier about riding it?

It is still a very different experience downhill and at higher speeds. head tube angle is 68.75 degrees, which, not great, not terrible for an XC bike, but that number creeps up when you're actually riding it. The hei hei is 67.5, and longer overall, and with more reach. Both have similar stack, and I put a 20mm longer stem on the trek to get the bars in about the same spot. Little more drop though, and you're more over the front of a bike with a steeper hta. I find it a little harder to stay balanced on it and the pretty low handlebars probably don't help. I suppose that just comes with the territory of an XC hardtail, and I did ride one for many years with a tall seatpost just fine. But I still find myself wondering what the cannondale would be like, as it has a 67 degree HTA (or 66 something on the himod with a 110mm fork). 

So I'm contemplating what I really want for both MTB riding and racing. Maybe a racier and lighter full suspension bike like the new oiz or a scalpel in place of both bikes. The hei hei has been really solid all around but it's getting up there in miles and is just slightly heavier than I'd like as a race bike. I'll probably stick with both bikes for another season though.