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Nancy Tranzow
VB Team Member
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Posted: Sun Mar 16th, 2008 11:45 pm |
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| I'm looking at buying a cyclocross bike but have a pretty tight budget right now. I love Kona and have a mountain bike of theirs so I would really like to buy a Jake. I've heard great stuff about the Jake the Snake but nothing about the Jake. Any opinions? Would she be a good entry level CX bike?
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BethWellie
VB Team Member
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Posted: Mon Mar 17th, 2008 03:05 am |
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Hey Nancy -
I just started racing cross last fall. I did the first 3 races of the season on my hardtail mountain bike and then got a Jake. It was sooo much better than my mountain bike. I liked it a lot, and while I have no other cross bike to compare it to, I'd definitely recommend it. The frame is actually exactly the same as the Jake the Snake, just the componentry is different. I made it through the season without any mechinical issues (once I learned to gently set it back down on run-ups so I didn't bounce the chain off - that was my problem though, not the bike's), so it stood up very well.
I'll be doing a few upgrades to it before next season, but the Jake is a great entry-level cross bike. And with the team Kona deal, you can get one for a great price!
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Nancy Tranzow
VB Team Member
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Posted: Mon Mar 17th, 2008 03:43 am |
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| Sweet! Thank you so much! I am excited to get her!
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SlowPoke2320
VB Team Member
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Posted: Mon Mar 17th, 2008 03:21 pm |
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I also have a Jake and think its a really good deal for beginning 'crossers. The one drawback is that the triple front chainring is not the best for real 'cross racing (the bikes meant to be a commuter during the week and a 'crosser on the weekend). However, I swapped it for a Tiagra compact crankset with one of those chainguard things. It's not the most high-end setup in the world, but it's a good way to get a complete raceable bike fast and inexpensively.
Plus, mine's a 2007, so it's metalic blue with pink bar tape. Perfect Bella colors! He's (all my bikes are metrosexual males who like pink accessories  ) my least expensive bike, but still my favorite!
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BethWellie
VB Team Member
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Posted: Mon Mar 17th, 2008 04:57 pm |
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Oh yeah, I forgot about that...since I got my mid-season and just wanted to get to racing on it right away, I just dropped the small chain ring to make it a double. But I'll be getting a compact crank set for next season.
hmm, I wonder if that's why I kept dropping my chain...
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