Carl
I picked up the fully built bike from Rob and Bino today. It looks amazing and the fit is fantastic!. Crummy weather prevented me from riding it more than a couple of miles today, but I can already tell that I'm going to love this bike.

Attached are some pics. Feel free to post them.

Working with you on this bike has been a real pleasure.
Best regards
Jon Brenner

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Carl,
I've been fortunate to enjoy a few good month's of riding on the new bike, and I feel it's time to give you my impressions of the ride. It's hands down the best bike I've ever ridden. It is exceptionally quiet, smooth and tracks dead-on straight. It's also the most beautiful bike I have ever seen (I may be a bit biased here). Your craftsmanship is second to none, and the final product exceeded my expectations. I loved going through the process with you, and felt that you were able to transform my wants and needs into an engineering masterpiece. The bike offers both the fit and aesthetic qualities I was looking for. Above all, you are a true gentleman, easily accessible, and displayed tremendous customer service before, during, and after the build.

Thanks again for a beautiful ride.
Cheers,
Mike

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This has been and remains a truly amazing ride. I should admit I was a little put off at first on what I thought was the ?fit.? It didn?t ?feel? right ? but that?s probably because it was perfect and I hadn?t ridden perfect before. I think I even called Carl about it.

Anyhow?very soon, very quickly?I was just simply amazed at how it felt on the trail. What truly blew me away was how smooth it was, especially coming off full suspension bikes. The rear felt like it stuck to the trail better than my Epic. I didn?t miss the suspension at all. It?s smooth. Responsive. It always feels like it stays put in the rough stuff. I have a few bikes, and every time I come back to this, again, I?m just amazed at the feel. Hard to explain. The S-works epic is long gone, I kept some of the parts. This is my main primary ride. Hard to describe ?feel? but it truly is perfect. And none of my component swaps have affected it.

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Custom geometry steel by Carl, 29'er wheels by George at Speedgoat, and the details from my LBS add up to the best hardtail ride one could experience. The welds and finish are impeccable, and the blend of tubing makes for a ride that is both stiff and compliant. Like the bike I rode in the eighties, there's no rear suspension, just me and the trail. After riding this bike, no one will ever convince me that 29'ers are slow-turning or awkward, ot "too tall"; this one is nimble on the tight trails of the PA mountains, and navigates logs and rocks with sure-footed grace.

Last year Carl built me a road frame which proved to re-awaken my interest in riding; and now this bike is doing the same off-road.

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In short, I'd say you nailed it. Yesterday was the virgin ride. It was 13 degrees out with a wind chill of zero....yeeouch! The ground was hard as a rock and as chewed up as I've ever seen it because of all the moisture we've had this winter. In case you don't know, our trails are very much like East coast trails. Tight, rocky and covered in roots. And yesterday's conditions might have just been perfect for putting the new rig to the test.

I was a bit concerned that this bike was going to be harsh when I saw the seat and chain stays. They're quite a bit beefier than my other bike. Well, it's anything but. It's a fine ride for sure. Supple across the rough stuff, tracks like it's on rails, dissipates the chatter and, most importantly, is up to the task of taking a pounding out of the saddle without flexing like mad. All this and it's nearly ¾ of a pound lighter than my other custom 29er.

Thanks for the beautiful ride. For people whom have never done custom before, they might not appreciate how great it is to work with a frame builder who does what he says he will do, when he says he will do it. It's a novel concept in the bike industry. I'm really gonna enjoy and ride the absolute hell out of this bike.

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