This week started off with an upgrade to the RV. After work on Monday we decided to put together some of the modifications that we had purchased for the RV so that we would have more time on the weekends to ride bikes. We first tackled the door lock. We switched from the stock keyed lock to a combination electronic keypad/fob/key lock. This way we could leave without the keys and lock the RV without fear of being locked out. This would make walks a little more enjoyable with one less item in our pockets. We purchased the lock on Amazon here.
Installation was supposed to take 10 minutes so we decided to film it. Well as things go, it took well over an hour in the full August Texas sun. The lock went into the door just fine with clear instructions and a fairly simple plug and play design. What took the rest of the time was that the new lock bolt was not lining up with the old strike plate. It was much further forward than the old lock. We tried bending it with a hammer and finally ended up using pliers to pull the door frame out farther and putting the strike plate back on so that the door would open and close easier. By the time we got everything working and back together, we were afraid to take it apart to finish the video and have it not work again. So we scrapped the video. At least we got some more practice setting up the camera and tripod to get more of these types of videos out to you. We also tried to tackle the bathroom vent cover but discovered that to replace it, we had to disassemble the entire vent inside and out to be able to replace the top cover and that we may or may not even have bought the correct hinge type as there is more than one type. So we left that project for another day when it was cooler.
On Tuesday our new bikes got delivered! We picked them up and stored them in their boxes in the X5 until the weekend when we would have time to put them together. We were very excited and it was hard to resist opening them and taking a peek inside. They showed up pretty late though so we didn't have much time to be tortured before it was time to get ready for bed.
The next day we washed the Orbeas in preparation for sale. We are selling our 2018 Orbea Occam TR H50 with most of the upgrades we've made. We needed to make sure that they were in showroom condition so that when we take pictures, it comes through how well they've been taken care of. They came out great.
Saturday we got up early to set everything up to assemble the bikes. We thought about going live on YouTube for the assembly but decided to film it instead. We haven't gone live yet or assembled our own bikes so it felt like too many firsts and we want our content for you to be great, not fumbling if that was going to happen. It took about 30 mins per bike which we thought was pretty good and staying aware of the camera did present a few challenges so we were glad that we filmed it for editing. We checked every bolt and tightened them to spec, adjusted the cockpits to our liking and rode them around a little to check that everything was in working order. They rode great and we were excited for ride day.
Sunday we took our new bikes to Erwin Park in McKinney, TX since that is our local trail that we know well and we've ridden so much that we know what it felt like on our Orbeas to be able to compare the differences. WOW! The differences! The technology in the suspension and pivots allowed the bike to float over roots and rocks as well as meant that we didn't lose any power while pedalling and the 50t cassette climbed like a goat.
We tried to go live at the trailhead to reveal the bikes to everyone, all shiny and put together but the app would not connect. After 15 minutes of fighting with it, we decided to just ride and figure it out later. The ride went really well. Strava and our watches wouldn't connect to GPS so we lost almost all the data from our first ride to be able to compare to our ride last week on our Orbeas, I was bummed about that but at least the bikes did great, no one got hurt, and we had a bunch of fun! The climbs were easier with the bigger cassette and with the anti-sag technology in the pivots and rear shock. We were able to carry more speed through the technical parts of the trail thanks to the big squishy suspension. I made it through some areas that I've never been able to ride through in the 2 years we've been riding this trail. My new bike has 27.5" tires which make it a lot more nimble in the corners than my big, fast rolling 29" tires. Overall, this bike is the huge upgrade that we were hoping for. We can't wait to share the unboxing video with you soon.
See you next week!
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