Serena's Official First Run Back on the SART

Serena and I triumphantly gazing out over the SART

It was a crisp morning today and I was happy to be able to commute to work again now that Serena is back in action.  I'd been on a couple of very easy rides this weekend to test out the new back wheel (WTB DX23 700c) and all seemed good so I decided to get back out there and take to the SART again.  For some reason I've got a sore quad so I thought I'd just do a moderate ride to the office but as soon as I turned onto the SART I could tell Serena wanted to run.  Serena's like a top Thoroughbred who wins from the front so when the gate opens, all you can do is get a hand full and try to stay on for the ride.  The sun was above me, the SART was wide open, Mumford and Sons was blowing up in the earphones and I took off like I was shot out of a cannon.

I have no clue if wheels have anything to do with speed but right away it seemed like I was hauling ass and the new DX23 wheels were giving me an ultra smooth ride.  My concerns that the guys at The Path had sold me an 'entry level' wheel were quickly put to rest because the ride felt great at high speed and the new wheel had no problems when I had to take sudden evasive maneuvers to avoid a broken bottle. So far so good!  Viva Serena's new wheel and viva the guys at The Path bike shop!

Serena and me at about 85mph on the SART

Serena New Wheel Test Results

I took Serena out for some serious testing to try out the WTB DX23 700c.  Behold the results...

BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL!!

Serena is back!  Check'er out, looking dark, confident, intimidating, and sexy with her new back wheel!  I was excited when I got her back so I immediately took Serena for a short spin around the neighborhood and gave the new rear wheel a close inspection.

The folks at The Path bike shop chose a WTB DX23 700c aluminum alloy wheel for me (below):

I have no clue about bike wheels but it looks pretty freaking badass to me.  I'm not sure what a 'c' is, but my new rear wheel's got 700 of them so I'm sure when it comes to ass kicking on a bike, there is no match for the WTB DX23 700c....clearly the technology and materials used for my new wheel are second to none.

After giving my new rear wheel an easy test ride and a close visual inspection, I decided I needed to do more research on this WTB company.  I looked up WTB on the computer and clearly these guys are freaks when it comes to wheels.  On their 'about' page, it talks about how they were founded in 1982 in California when mountain biking was a mostly unknown sport.  Then I saw this photo of their original crew and knew I had a high quality product from a bunch of well hard bike riding professionals:

That's the WTB crew back in 1986 at the Nationals in Durango Colorado.  Check those dudes out, they clearly know what they're doing. 

After looking up WTB as a company, I wanted to read about the DX23 700c and see what people had to say about this ultra badass next generation equipment the good folks at The Path put on Serena, and that's when things went south.

Turns out that even though The WTB DX23 700c looks like some sort of futuristic weapon, its classified as an 'entry level' wheel.  What the hell man?  Entry level?  I'll admit I'm no Lance Armstrong, but I'm sure as hell not entry level either.  My kid's pink Hello Kitty cruiser is fucking entry level, not Serena!  On top of Serena's new wheel being called 'entry level', the reviews for the WTB DX23 aren't exactly stellar either.  To be fair, WTB is considered 'legendary' by most folks but the DX23 700c had a couple of people say it gets bent out of shape very easily, which is a concern to say the least because the last thing I want is to be hoofing it down the SART....AGAIN!

In the end, I'm going to just trust the folks at The Path even though I'm clearly not entry level and I'm insulted to be classified as such.  Normally I'd return to the offending party and demand satisfaction but the guy I talked to at The Path had a goatee, tattoos, and he looked like he smokes a lot of weed so he's gotta know a lot about bikes right?  I shall give him the benefit of the doubt and take Serena on a brisk ride today soon after I take my morning shit.  Stay tuned for the results.