by 
In this issue:
—An Interview With A Bike I Both Love and Hate
—Weekend Update
—What’s a Party Without Some Pity?
AN INTERVIEW WITH A BIKE I BOTH LOVE AND HATE:
Welcome to the Sunday Spore. I’m your host and King Spore, D2. Today we’re chatting with a Yeti Bicycle. Yeti, I’ve had the opportunity to build you and sell you, and I have to say, I think you’re pretty swell. But I’ve got a bone to pick with you.
YETI: Nice to be here, D2. You’re looking extra Spore-y today. What’s your bone? Let’s pick it.
D2: Well, Yeti, it’s this right here:
What the shit is that, Yeti?
YETI: Well that there is my internal cable routing.
D2: Uh huh. And can you tell me what the hell that’s for?
YETI: It makes me look sleeker!
D2: Uh huh. And what does it do for your functionality? You know, practical purposes and such?
YETI: …
D2: See, I’ve worked on a lot of bikes, Yeti, and I have to say you’re one slick looking bike. You ride damn well too. But it took me about an hour longer to build you just because of this silly routing.
YETI: I think that’s a bit of exaggeration there, D2. I mean, internal routing isn’t that big of a deal.
D2: I would agree…until you see this:
Would you mind explaining to the audience what they’re seing here?
YETI: Well that’s my strategically designed pivot near my bottom bracket shell. Oh, and the end of the internal routing. That there black thing, that’s a harness for the housing.
D2: Yes. Audience, take note of the awkward angle at which the housing exits the chainstay and then routs through the harness. Also take note of what’s missing in this picture: The front derailleur and crank. Because you have to take them off to route the cable and housing properly. That’s right: you have to remove these components just to change a cable and housing. What do you say to that, Yeti?
YETI: Well, I hardly think—
D2: I bled for you, Yeti. I BLED FOR YOU!
YETI: You’re not blaming me for that, seriously? That could have been caused by anything! A chainring! Even a zip tie!
D2: Oh, it looks like we’re out of time. Yeti, I trust you’ll be heading back to the mothership to report back on our interview today? You know, to tell your bosses that while you sure are a pretty bike that rides real nice like, you’re the bane of every mechanic far and wide, not to mention Yeti owners who dare attempt a new cable and housing installation—you know, one of the most basic repairs one can make.
YETI: Now listen here, D2, I don’t think you’re being fair—
D2: We’ll see you all next week, folks, when Cantilever Brakes revisit the show.
ROLL CREDITS.
WEEKEND UPDATE:
So you may have noticed that I never did part 2 of my Niner One9 review. Funny story, that. The bike ended up going back to Niner prematurely because of a technical issue, but it has returned and has been ridden. Part two of the review will be happening this week.
Rest assured I’ll have more gratuitous bike photos of this sweet Niner as well as a detailed review of its pros (of which there are many) and its cons (of which there are only a few).
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WHAT’S A PARTY WITHOUT SOME PITY?
On the heels of the Niner debacle, I posted last week about the Gunnar getting sold and my inability to replace it. Lest that be construed as a pity party post (perhaps it was to a degree), let me say that I am taking big steps to change how my life’s been going. Big Jonny got hit by a car and was almost killed; in some weird way, that led him to law school. My life has been something of a trainwreck these last few years, and while I would never claim to have gone through anything half as traumatizing as Jonny’s ordeal, I have, like him, come to some conclusions as a result of this stress and struggle.
So, I’m going back to school this fall to fill in the gaps on my resume. The more I think about the absence of a mountain bike in my garage, the more I am motivated to move on. To get better. To think smarter. As Bryce used to say to me at AZ Bikes when I’d fuck something up or be stumped by a repair, “Work Smarter, Not Harder.”
I got really stoked on going back to school after reading (and re-reading, then re-reading again) the Master’s thesis of one Mr. 40 Hands. The guy may be a Drunkcyclist, but he’s also a smart bastard who dedicated a lot of time and energy into improving himself. The result? Gainful employment and a generally good life…at least that’s the way it appears outwardly. Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. 40.
That said, both of my remaining bikes—the road bike and the commuter—are on the block for sale. I’m willing to go through this, because as anyone who has raced a 24 hour race can tell you, the struggle is what makes us stronger, better, faster, and generally more reliable on the other end.
I’ve also been fortunate, since the timing of the Niner’s return could not have been better. I rode it here in the Springs yesterday on a little four hour jaunt, and I must say, the D2 was pleased.
In next week’s issue of the Sunday Spore with D2: THE OFFICIAL PART II OF THE MUCH ANTICIPATED NINER REVIEW! STAY TUNED, SLUTS AND HOs!
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by 
i remember 40 saying he was doing an MA?
also, what are you going back to school for? I did it, a few times, and the economic return to education is very important, especially if you are going to take debt to fund yourself.
What program are you going back to?
Well hell, I just picked up a new One9 and I can’t wait to build it up and thrash it! School can be good for you, if you’re in the right secondary field. (Says the guy who isn’t using either of two degrees.)
Ain’t that many cables to route on a fixed gear. Look at all the time that opens up for drinkin’ and such.
Wait. What? You have to take half the drivetrain APART to change a fucking SHIFT CABLE? FUCK THAT!!!
canti brakes suck.
You think the Yeti is hard to change cables on. Try a Niner Air9 Carbon. You have to remove the cranks and press out the bottom bracket (along with the cups).
Mikey, Mikey, Mikey. We’ve been over this. Canti brakes are only as good as their setup. Never had a lick of trouble with mine in more years than I want to count. Feeling abit trollish this morning? Go for a ride, there’s a good fellow.
coaster brake
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Cantis suck.
@Barry: multimedia graphic design. The program fills in the gaps on my resume, even though it’s stuff I generally already know. The job market’s pretty damn competitive right now…
I likes my cantis fine. Squish, on t’other hand…
Barry you are correct, I’m finishing up an MS, not a PhD. D2 did bust his nuts to help with proofreading of the thesis, and the general “happiness” I posses that D2 speaks of will be discussed in a future post.
Haha…sorry about the clerical error, 40.
Said error has been corrected in the post.
@D2 I guess that was my point. If the job market you hope to enter on the other side of your grad studies is pretty competitive, then I would really do my homework, especially if you already have the skills. I live in an alternative universe, so I have no idea how much your field weighs credentials versus evidence of competency/experience.
good luck either way.
Giro?
That cable routing looks like a nightmare. Thanks for posting, I like it when people howl about crappy design- maybe it will prevent more dumb gimmicks in the future. Or maybe not- remember the cable routing on the Kleins? Seems like both bad and good ideas are continuously recycled.
Cantis can be good when set up right- in my opinion the key is a fork crown mounted cable stop and getting the straddle cable low enough.
Dude, same shit with Special Ed SL4 road frames. “Oh, can you just throw a new cable on it”?
No. Actually, that’s gonna be a half hour.
Does look smoove, though.
…that yeti design is idiotic for all the reasons mentioned…i’ll bet original yeti maestro, founder & major domo, john parker will be appalled when that detail is pointed out to him…the ‘KISS’ principal was obviously not applied & should have been in a situation like that…take off a crank arm & bb cup to thread a cable ???…wow !!!…this is not a tt bike where it would improve functionality…
…it stands to reason that certain technological designs must be logically accommodated due to a sophisticated working structure but in an application like that, that’s simply asinine & to accomplish what end ???…wow, again !!!…
…so, to avoid 5 inches of housing from showing somewhere down near the bottom bracket, the company will allow their designer to willfully complicate a design which extends the time & workload of running a cable ???…
…it’s either poor design & even worse company management in allowing it to proceed or that ‘designer’ is a better p.r. guy…“…look at this great design – no cable housing shows…isn’t this wonderful…don’t ‘cha think that’s great, huh, huh ???”…
…i can’t imagine a shop owner or mechanic thinking “…oh, good, we can make more money servicing that yeti…”…they’re just gonna think it’s fucking dumb…
…in keeping your post spore-ific, deetoo, i’m gonna veer away from center so i can offer up this link for a few regulars (they know who they are) who were crackin’ on my boy cav early in the season…
… http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/11978/Cavendish-didnt-give-up-hope-of-points-jersey.aspx …
…seems ‘doughboy’, as he was so eloquently referred to, is earning his dough even when the going gets tough & now that his particular working season is underway, he’s looking like a lean, mean racing machine…i think my point was made…
…not that i expect anybody to step up & admit a fucking thing…
The parts bag with my Niner had a Windhoek Lager cap in it…..just sayin’
Add Niner Jet9 RDO’s to the shit list because you have to drop the fork out in order to thread shifter cables.
While that yeti looks problematic because of the ..thing in there, that harness thing that’s gonna be impossible to clean on account of it being sandwiched between important shit, I’m generally a big fan of internal routing.
I’ve got two road Casatis and a MTB Klein with internal routing.
They’re a bit more work once a year or less, (maybe 10 or 15 more minutes) but every day they’re way easier to keep clean, have no casing rub on the frame look bitchin and in my opinion are way worth it. Personally I have a harder time wrapping tape properly than stringing internally routed cables.
but yeah, that yeti looks like problems.
Whats up with the ultegra derailleur??
@AfricanSingle,
Back in the day, back in the bush, my favourite beer was Windhoek 50, do they still make that?
We can get Windhoek Lager down here but it’s not the same.
But pretty damn cool to find it in your parts bag.
@Hurben: I think Windhoek Tafel is the current version. Infinitely better than the toxic swill offered by SAB. Please email me, I’ve lost your address.
D2- I was wondering about the Ultegra derailleur myself. Is that a required item with all internally routed cables? Mad props on the conversation with the Yeti. I like the use of artistic license of conveying the bike’s atributes in an entertaining way.
I myself am really interested your opinions of the eccentric bottom bracket on that Niner. Their SIR9 is on my shortlist, but I want to know what I’m getting into with that eccentric. Looking forward to the upcoming reviews.
Uh oh…D2 might have to print a retraction. That photo is actually from a road bike I worked on that same day. The Yeti internal routing actually comes out from the top or side of the chainstay (I can’t recall now). Equally a pain in the ass. I can now confirm that this wasn’t the Yeti because the Yeti did not come with the little cable liner protruding from the hole, which helps you guide the cable through initially. This means I had to fish the cable out with a sharpened spoke.
Which makes the Yeti even less convenient.
Like I said, a good bike, but come on. Internal routing? Isn’t that a roadie thing, Yeti? (and Niner, and Specialized, and blah blah blah).
@26: I promise that will be covered in the review, which I plan on posting this Sunday.
My Scott has internal cable routing, but only for the shifter cables and only on the down tube. It saves me, like, 0.1 watts per kilometer.
D2. Maybe I am biased…..
Takes like 5 minutes to remove a modern BB and Crankset nowadays….I have wrenched on a Yeti and cannot find the same issue, again maybe biased….but I also didn’t punch a chainring square on.
Also after working on a gillion TT superbikes that Yeti Routing is CAKE….try a P3, Argon, Trek TT……they all suck a bag of dicks !
hmm. ima go with 15 minutes to destall a mod BB crank lever taking into acct multiple explanations of schresta /praeder dilemma de tweakers which occur simulcast.
…“…so, like, dude, i was watching that tour of california on tv one night & one guy said that cannondale made ‘the best bike in the world’, right ???…so how come you don’t sell them ???”…