A new bike for the TR?

July 9 – 54 kms in 2:21
I'm so excited. On Wednesday I was in my local bike shop and I heard a customer talking about the deals on road bikes he'd seen on the store's website. So, Wednesday night I checked out the deals and found a bike that looked like it would suit me perfectly. On Thursday I dropped in at the bike shop to enquire. The bike is located at the Burnaby branch and I asked them to hold it for me until Friday.
Before heading to Burnaby, and eventually Bowen Island, I had to pick up my road bike. I'd manage to break a spoke on the rear wheel and it took a while for the right one to come in. When I got down to the shop the bike was not ready so I hung out and ended up helping out. (I replaced the tyre and tube on a stroller.) I guess this is the reality of bike shops in the summer. When the weather is nice, everyone wants to ride.
Well, it turned out that the weather was not quite as nice as it might have been. Stinking hot. Well, stinking hot for Vancouver. The temperature was in the low 30s C/high 80s F. But I had enough water with me and made it out to the Burnaby shop in pretty good time.
This was the first time I'd seen this particular model, but my previous experience on other versions of the same design, and everything that I heard and read had led me to the conclusion that this would be a good choice for me and my style of riding. So, what was this mythical bike? A 2009 Rocky Mountain Element 90. The Element has won more stages on the TransRockies than any other bike. Last year's open men's TR7 winners, Marty and Stefan, and Colin Kerr, second place in the open men's TR3, rode Elements.
The 90 is one step down from the Team and has a slightly lower parts spec. The big difference is the Team has a scandium/carbon frame, while the 90 has an aluminium/carbon frame. A slight weight penalty, but the 90 will be about half the price of a new Team. The mechanic checked the bike over and I took it for a spin around the neighbourhood. The big difference between the Element and my 2002 Giant is this bike has Fox suspension fore and aft. And the Fox fork uses the QR15mm axle. A slight weight penalty, but a really solid feel. The fact that the rear suspension remains pretty active under braking should help on the descents.
At the shop I ran into Bryan Anderson, the new Rocky Mountain rep for BC. He rode in the 2009 TR but had to pull out after his partner broke his wrist. He had an Element before he worked for Rocky Mountain and loved it. He said that the suspension really helped on technical climbs as the rear wheel maintained really good traction on loose terrain.
It was pretty much love at first sight and I asked the shop to hold the bike until Tuesday when my apartment situation should be sorted and I can buy a new bike.
So, off to Bowen Island. I rode west to the Second Narrows bridge and then along the shore to Horseshoe Bay. It was stinking hot all the way, but I drank both of my water bottles and didn't feel too worn out when I got to Horseshoe Bay. On Fridays, the busiest day of the week, the ferry schedule does get a bit out of whack. So, the ferry was a bit late and I used my time resting and having an ice cream.
From the ferry it is a short ride home, but with a bunch of tough climbs. The gearing on the cassette on my road bike is not really a match for my 52 year-old legs and 16% grades. This means that when I ride my road bike on Bowen Island I end up doing more climbs out of the saddle. Not the most efficient, but a reality.