FINALLY My Project One Winner!

[fatbottomedgurl]

I finally got my new bike! This is the Trek Fuel EX 9.0 that I won in the design contest, so she has my own paint job. A very beautiful bike with a wonderful component set. It has a carbon frame! She weighs in at 26.4 pounds without her pedals, which is very reasonable for a 5" travel bike. Plush! She also has SRAM shifters which have two thumb shifters instead of index and thumb. That will take some getting used to. I had a terrible crash last week and am nursing a bad quadricep contusion so I can't even ride her. But she is pretty to look at.

[jobob]

It's lovely ! :)

Gee I hope you heal up and be able to ride it soon ...!

[Thistle]

she is really really beautiful.. both you and the bike. well done! are they going to market her? I love the design.. i'd buy one :D

[chickwhorips]

beautiful! you did a great job! i want one!!!

[margo49]

Gorgeous! Gives new meaning to Wake up and smell the flowers!

[Wahine]

I love the paint job. It reminds me of the paintings I saw in China of the cherry blossoms. Beautiful. Nice work.

Hope your quad contusion gets better fast. Just a word of warning. A small percentage of people can get calcium build up in the quad after a bad contusion. If this happens it takes medication and a longer rest to reolve the problem. So just watch for any weird problems like progressive loss of range of motion, hot areas around the contusion and extreme sensitivity that is not getting better but getting worse. If these things happen see your MD.:)

[LBTC]

She is fabulous and gorgeous! That is a pink bike I would actually ride!

Like Wahine said about the quad contusion....watch it. The MD I used to ride with warned me about that, too, and suggested that any contusion requires massage (yes, that does sound like it hurts, doesn't it?) in order to keep the circulation going and to prevent that calcium build up. So get in your happy place and massage it as much as you can tolerate!

Hugs and butterflies,
~T~

[Mimosa]

She's a beauty!

[sbctwin]

Wow, what a pretty bike. I hope, once you are healed, you have fun riding her...

[rocknrollgirl]

Beautiful, absolutely beautiful!!!!

Let us know what you name her............

[emily_in_nc]

Stunning, simply stunning! It must kill you not to be able to ride her yet, but I am sure you'll log many happy miles as soon as you can. You did a lovely job with the design and must be very proud!

Envious Emily :D

[jeannierides]

Absolutely beautiful! Congratulations! :D

[Bad JuJu]

Gorgeous! Maybe part of your healing process can be envisioning yourself riding your new best friend!

[mimitabby]

aha, i was right! this bike turned out really well!
While you can't ride it, you can gaze at it and take lots of pictures of it.

what does 5.5" travel bike mean?

I hope you heal up really soon!

[cosc]

Congratulations on a very sweet bike. Sure hope your quad heals quickly.

[Lifesgreat]

Purdy bike!

Get feeling better soon!

[fatbottomedgurl]

Thanks. I started massaging over the weekend. Ouch! If you twist my arm I will post a photo. ;)
"Travel" on a mountain bike means how much "squish" the suspension will give you. So with this bike it will "sag" a little just from me sitting on it and then when I hit all those bumps I have a 5" shock on the front fork, and the back suspension/ rear shock will soak up 4.25". Ahhhh....
Plus, the front fork is adjustable so when I am climbing I can drop it down to 3" or 4" to correct the geometry. I can totally lock out the fork so it doesn't bounce and the rear shock can be switched to very little travel. Spoiled, I am!

[spokewench]

FBG: What a wonderful bike and aren't you glad that other people will be able to ride on your design as well. It really is quite beautiful!

[Bikingmomof3]

Congratulations again. :) She is a beautiful bike. :D

[caligurl]

OHMIGOSH! she is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GORGEOUS! i'm SO jealous!!! *sigh*....

[five one]

Simply stunning! It makes me happy just looking at the pictures. Not being a mountain biker, I'd love to see that design on a road bike. I'll take one in blue, please :D .

I hope your injury heals quickly, and I look forward to seeing pictures of you riding her.

[Hammer]

I'll echo everyone else and say that it's gorgeous!! Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Did you buy the additional components, did you just get the frame from Trek? I was thinking about the setup, the frame is expensive... But then buying components to put on the frame gets pretty spendy quick too! Awesome bike.

Also, when should a person look for the contest if they were to consider entering? I've been trying to watch the Trek site. I didn't know about it last year until it was too late. Stiff competition though, obviously. :D

Congrats!

[annie]

Absolutely gorgeous bike! You should be very proud of your artistry. Hope you heal quickly so you can get out on her.

annie

[bcipam]

Thanks. I started massaging over the weekend. Ouch! If you twist my arm I will post a photo. ;)
"Travel" on a mountain bike means how much "squish" the suspension will give you. So with this bike it will "sag" a little just from me sitting on it and then when I hit all those bumps I have a 5" shock on the front fork, and the back suspension/ rear shock will soak up 4.25". Ahhhh....
Plus, the front fork is adjustable so when I am climbing I can drop it down to 3" or 4" to correct the geometry. I can totally lock out the fork so it doesn't bounce and the rear shock can be switched to very little travel. Spoiled, I am!

Definitely a unique one of a kind bike. It's awesomely beautiful. Have fun riding (once you get a chance). 5" travel bikes are very plush. Downhills are so easy! (sortof). I love the newer components - my Specialized had ProPedal with the full squish, lock out and Propedal - I usually just kept it on ProPedal. My new Santa Cruz has the same thing. It's like a hard tail climbing but comfortable downhill.

Let me know what you think of the SRAM shifters. I passed on those - just thought for me (since I am such a dufus) maybe too difficult but friends love them!

Happy trails - a beautiful bike well deserved. Hope they do this again. I might have to come up with something and win me a bike (as if it were that easy!!!)

[colby]

Wow, that paint job is even more awesome in person. You are truly talented. :D

I agree with Wahine -- it's a pink bike even I would ride! Hopefully you get well soon and can take her out for a spin!

[Teddyparker]

Sorry about your crash and I hope you are healing. What a beautiful bike. I am looking foward to reading your ride reports once you are back in the saddle.

[7rider]

That thing is almost too pretty to ride and get dirty!!
Wow. Really nicely done. Congratulations!

[Running Mommy]

Heck I don't even like mtn biking, but I sure could take up that side of the sport with one of those!! She is SWEEEETTT!!! I think you have found your calling- designing cool bike paint schemes!! :D

[velogirl]

Hope your quad contusion gets better fast. Just a word of warning. A small percentage of people can get calcium build up in the quad after a bad contusion. If this happens it takes medication and a longer rest to reolve the problem. So just watch for any weird problems like progressive loss of range of motion, hot areas around the contusion and extreme sensitivity that is not getting better but getting worse. If these things happen see your MD.:)

Could you explain this a bit more? How does the calcium build up manifest itself? Are they little lumps?