Early bird catches the worm... and the low tide...

9am was a 1 meter tide so ideal for some rock crawling across the Carr rocks on the Surly Wednesday Fatbike. It was good to be back on the coast again cycling after a 2 week break!...
The rocks here at low tide have zillions of lines through them and depending on the seaweed and if greasy or not then there is always a new line to find as you thread the rocks together around the large rock pools that slowly drain after the retreating tide...

The Surly Wednesday is in my book the near perfect rock crawling bike with it`s modern Fatbike geometry and 177mmm rear hub being not to wide for threading through rocks standing up without your heels hitting the chain stays.  through axles increase stiffness and a threaded Bottom Bracket just makes sense for a bike exposed to the hostile environment below the high tide line.
Real wide handlebars also help lever the bike for step ups, and a 1 x drive system with a clutch rear mech makes for a perfect range of gears for on the coast.

Steel bikes suffer surface rust over time but i like toughness of steel for the occasional offs which can see the bike take a knock on the rocks.

5" tyres are ideal but i like the nimbleness of the Wednesday on 4" tyres on tight woodland trails,  and  being able to take the half way size 4.6" tyres which i plan to fit once the present tyres wear out will make for a perfect compromise in grip, float and trail handling.
Ghetto split tube tubeless also give the rims an extra bit protection from `rim strikes` from sharp rocks not to mention eliminating pinch flats.

Nearly 10 years of riding on the coast and i have found what is 99% ideal for the rocks.
A Lauf Fork would make the bike even better but there pricy, and for now i will be soon settling for a used Rock Shok Bluto from a friend. It will increase the bikes potential of where you can go on a bike, which is what riding Fatbikes is all about!...

Did not do as much filming as planned but here is a couple of minutes on the rocks,
Song is `Constants are Changing` by Boards of Canada...


Surly Wednesday; Rock crawling. June 17 from coastkid71 on Vimeo.

More soon...