Today was the maiden voyage of the bike I call The Platypus. It doesn't know if it's a mammal, a marsupial, a bird, or a venomous reptile. But it's a lot of fun!




This is one of those builds that was inspired by an intriguing component, in this case the Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Road tires. The tires are 43mm wide, with a tread pattern that can be described neither as knobby or as smooth. Today's ride was 2/3 pavement and 1/3 dirt, a good mix for trying out the tires and the bike that I built around them.


On the way up:



As you can tell the weather was sunny and dry. Truth be told we are in a pretty serious drought here in California. During a normal weather year (traditionally measured from July to July around here) we get about 60 inches of rainfall in the wet little town where I live. So far we have 4 inches this year!






The drought has been especially difficult for the ranchers, some of whom are selling off part of their herds. These two cows should be up to their hocks in lush green grass by now. The rancher that owns them is more fortunate than most, still having one field with this much standing dry grass.




On the way down:




All in all a fine ride on the Platypus which performed very well on the varied terrain.
Brent