I got it built Friday evening, and rode it up and down the block to be sure everything worked. Jenn rode it briefly, made a comment about having trouble staying on the saddle, and I rode it again to see why that would be. I moved the saddle back a bit, and that helped. In total, the bike had about two miles on it--until today.

For its first foray out of the neighborhood, I chose to use it for a grocery run. The nearest, easiest to get to grocery is a Kroger (Hubbards and Westport, if it matters). It is a bit over two miles each way.

For the one or two of you interested, I've changed a couple of key details from the stock parts list. First to go was the Wilderness Trails Bikes saddle--its shape is all wrong for too many folks, myself included. I've been pleased with the Brooks B66 that is on my Raleigh, so opted for a B67 for this bike (same saddle top, same suspension, but single rails to work on this seat post). I bought a Surly handlebar with an almost-beach-cruiser profile (if inverted, it would be pretty close to a mustache bar), and had initially chosen a shorter stem. I found an adjustable-angle stem that we had taken off a bike sold through the store some time back, and kept it in reserve if the stock stem doesn't suit me. I recently upgraded the Ergon grips on my Globe to some with bar-ends, and moved the older Ergon grips to this bike.

First impressions on the Big Dummy: Wow! I can feel the extra rear length on this thing. It pretty much feels like riding a tandem bike solo, with less noodle-ness. The handlebars feel big and wide, adding to the substantial feel of the bike overall. With a modest-weight load, the bike feels quite stable (I didn't take time to weigh the grocery load seen below, but there is about $140 worth of food and stuff in the bags). It didn't feel heavier, the way a trailer similarly-loaded feels behind my Globe.

I'm not quite done dialing in the fit adjustments. I built this bike thinking that Jenn will be able to use it from time to time, but it will mostly be my bike for use in hauling job site stuff to and fro (the insurance guys have been bemused when I told them that I intended to do what hauling I can by bicycle, naturally). I may eventually letter it to reflect that it's a work bike used by a tradesman, not just a goofball's toy.

Another bike in this category that caught my eye was the Yuba Mundo. The folks at Joe Bike, in Oregon, claim that their staff has a Mundo ownership ratio of 1:1.5 or something, suggesting that several of their staff have two or more Mundos. None of their staff have Big Dummy bikes, and the implication is that the Mundo is more stable under heavy loads. As I was a bit pinched for time at purchase, I opted for the Big Dummy for a couple of reasons--the larger of which was timeliness of delivery, and the other was the component package on the stock bike.

I'm not normally one to worry a whole lot about component packages. My Globe has an Acera 8-speed rear derailleur, for example, and I see no reason to upgrade it. I tend to value the overall ride of the bike, and the frame is the single biggest factor in how a bike rides (well-built wheels tend to be wheels, a given tire tends to be that same tire regardless of what bike it's being used on, and so forth). If I were to get a Mundo, I would have to start with a frame set (which doesn't appear to be currently available...), as the stock configuration confuses me. The stock rear wheel is a freewheel-type using a seven-speed drivetrain (well, it DOES have triple chainrings, but a freewheel hub? Really? Move the drive-side wheel bearings away from the frame another inch--the axle won't bend?). Rather than fight all those headaches of piecing together a custom-spec bike, I went with the Surly.

This is not to say that I won't, at some point, trade up for a Mundo. I like that their front carrier is frame-mounted instead of fork-mounted. I like several things about the accessories that Yuba offers (and that Joe Bike offers), when compared to the Xtracycle options that the Big Dummy is made to accept. I'm not in a hurry to change bikes at the moment, though. I'm happy with what I've experienced so far with this Big Dummy.