Yesterday I finally liberated my BH from the clutches of FedEx. I wanted to get it put together and go for a quick ride, but FedEx got the last laugh… as I started to screw the rear derailleur on, the hanger broke off! Apparently it cracked during shipment (not surprising- it was handled roughly enough that the driveside pedal had broken its way out of the box).

I called around to shops in town, and noone carries a BH hanger. I talked to Boss Man in Dallas, and he said things were too hectic there to get to a post office and overnight one to me. CRAP!!! The last thing I wanted was to not be able to ride my bike around a few times to get the fit just right BEFORE racing 100 miles on Sunday. Last time at VOS, that same thing led me to some pretty ishtty knee pain when I didn’t get it set up exactly right before the race. Not a big deal for relatively short races, but the same pain over 100 miles… not something I’m willing to tolerate!

I digress… Ryan and I started checking all of the bikes in the house to see if we could make something work. The hanger off of his Kuota Kebel actually looked like a close match. It went on, but only one of the screws would line up with the holes in the frame, so as of right now, my rear DR is being held on with one tiny screw, the pressure generated by the QR skewer, and a couple of prayers to various deities.

After figuring that out, it was too late to ride. I figured I’d go ahead and work on swapping out my handlebars. I’m not sure which model was on there, but I like the feel of a compact bar, so I swapped them out for a set of FSA Omega Compact bars. After I got everything set up just right, I took it out for a spin up & down the street…

Sweet nectar, that bike is soooooooo nice! It was a bit late, so I snapped a couple of photos in the garage. I’m sure I’ll get more this weekend.

Oh yeah, and I got some brand new team kit, too! Hincapie clothing is freaking AWESOME! It all fits perfectly! My arms are stupidly long, and the long sleeve stuff/arm warmers are very accomodating to this. I also have found that a lot of women’s jerseys are too short… not a problem with this stuff. I can’t wait to get it out on the street!