2005 - Kona Stuff, .243, DJ2

In 2005 I got my super sweet GT Backwoods mountain bike stolen. More on that bike and story later, but losing that ride gave me an excuse to pick up something new and even more awesome - naturally I went with Kona Stuff. This bike was purchased for "urban assault", obviously. Disc brakes were new to me at the time, so that alone pretty much blew my mind.

Oh, you noticed that? Yea, its the original EVIL SRS bulletproof bashguard. Before the whole E-13 nonsense name change.

As is the story with any new bike, eventually it had to be upgraded. In this case the upgrade was very necessary - it's clearly absurd for someone to do 5' drops to flat over and over again on a XC fork - so here comes Marzocchi Dirt Jumper 2, in all of it's Italian glory. I've always loved the old english font they used for the 2005 year graphics.

Note the sweet flip Motorola, they don't make them like this anymore.

The next step later in the year was to change out the frame. Little did I know when I bought my Kona Stuff that it's kind of long and awkward for the kind of riding I wanted to do. Plus steel is real - so in comes .243. Canada represent.

Who needs a bike work stand when you have a perfectly fine floor? Just spread all the parts out all over your kitchen and get to work. Jam a screwdriver here, hit something with a hammer there, and you got yourself a bike.

And there it was, my .243. I loved that bike for many years to come until it was later replaced with a Evil DOC. Sure, 8 lb frame is kind of ridiculous to even think about, but I assure you, it rode like a dream.

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