I grew up riding MTBs in the hills outside LA, but stopped after a bad accident in my early teens, and now I'm almost 40. I have a motorcycle but the only time I've been on a bicycle since then was during college, when my roommates and I had some cruiser for quick trips to the store. I moved to Central Oregon last year and the MTB scene here is so good that it felt like a huge shame not to take advantage, plus I need the exercise. A downside of the area is a severe lack of good affordable used bikes though – I think most local riders came here as transplants who already had much nicer bikes – and it took around 3 months of checking FBM and the local outdoor consignment shops before a good bike in my size and price range finally showed up.
It's a 2018 Salsa Timberjack 2.75+ ("28") and is a little scuffed up but is in good mechanical condition, verified by the very well-regarded consignment and service place where I bought it. It's got a few upgrades on it, most notably an Ascend dropper with a Brooks C-17, which looks and feels brand new (still has the "fuzzy" stuff from the mold around it). It's also got some Wellgo metal pedals and pretty new-looking aftermarket grips but I think I'm going to replace both of those. It's also tubeless, which I think is a conversion, but it's gonna need tires relatively soon, probably end of this season. I paid $735, which I think is decent given that it came from a brick and mortar store that serviced and guaranteed it.
There's a gravel road and some woods with mini-trails behind my house so I took it out and rode for maybe an hour, admittedly with a lot of stops. My last MTB was a full rigid late '90s Gary Fisher and I can't believe how far the tech has come. (And my bike is 8 years old now!) I'm in way worse shape than I was as a teenager and yet stuff that I think I would've struggled with back then was doable on the new bike. The one thing that's really giving me a hard time is that seat though, I'm gonna have to go get some padded shorts and try it with those, but may end up selling it and getting something a little comfier. Once that's dealt with I'm really looking forward to getting out on some of the local beginner trails.
by archerdynamics
9 Comments
Interesting. What songs can you play on it?
Yes mate! love it ! Great that you got little trails behind your house also, perfect for building that confidence !
Im 39 and bought a used Nukeproof scout a few months back and have been out on it loads these past few weeks now that the weathers nice. Absolutely loving it and wish I’d done it sooner.
Not acoustic, just say normal
I see a bicycle and a motorcycle. Where is the guitar?
Sweet gas powered E-bike too!
I guess people haven’t heard the acoustic bike reference. I hear it a lot.
Padded shorts help but you need to find a seat that fits you. I ride really flat saddles. Talk to your local bike shop. Some of them have loaner seats you can try out to see what style feels best. Once you find a good one you have to toughen up your keister some by riding.
It’s not a guitar…. But then again it’s 2026, so it can be whatever you want it to be! But on a serious note, awesome bike!
Lol I like acoustic bike. My old apprentice called older Subaru windows “boneless” and I fuckin cackled.
Enjoy!