new tyres

I ordered these MAXXIS Hookworm slicks on the net & they arrived from Brisbane fairly quickly. 

Man, the old Dirt Wizards were a bitch to break the bead on. Wow, there was only a very shallow valley in the rim and the tyres are very snug. The Worms are quite a bit heavier and I found that on my Salsa: the tyres that come with the new bikes are very light. I wonder if this is a sales gimmick or whether they're actually good quality? I recall the Fat Larry tyre on the front of the Salsa Beargrease had a great knob of glue holding a tear together. 

I found getting the wheels off showed the class in this build. Every step was easy and was engineered with quality. I wasn't looking forwards to inflating with my stumpy frame pump, but it worked out fine. 

Now on the road, they were killer good. Immediately I guestimated 5% more speed for the same effort. They're faster and smoother and I enjoyed more accurate feedback from the road. Yes, the reality is that most of my riding at the moment is on tar. No doubt I  am keen to ride gravel and trails, but for now these tyres fit the bill. The more kilometres I covered, 50 for the trip, the better it went and I adjusted my riding to suit. I can't express how it raised my mental happiness and it fills you with confidence to attack bigger tallies. 

I watched a youtoob of Alexander Houchin in the 2021 GDMBR in the morning so perhaps I was tuned in to my Inner Beast. 

I toted probably 15-20kg  of groceries on the return, but a kebab and Coke kept my energy up and legs spinning. The joy of the Krampus just grows. 

Bless all Cyclists!