Damn ticking on the SS and new tires on the Switch

Still dealing with some ticking noise on hard acceleration with the SS. I took the bike out today at lunch and everything else worked fine. I had to lower the bars by swapping a spacer but that was it. Bike rode pretty solid. Will probably have to replace the slightly used cog for  new to see if that is the problem. Too bad....the bike looks and otherwise runs perfect but little problems like this really annoy the hell out of me. Makes we want to buy a new SS..almost.

I picked up some Bontrager Big Earls from a friend for the Rocky Mountain. These are the GumBi compound wet versions. The front is supposed to be 26 x 2.5 but it looks just like the 2.35 on the rear. Doesn't matter, I think I'd prefer that anyway. These are probably the best tires I've ever used for NE riding. They shed mud well and stick to wet rocks and roots provided the air pressure isn't too high. I also have a set of the 26 x 2.5 Big Earl dry versions which work great as well but are a bit heavier and slower. I am looking to lose some weight on the bike. The tires are always an easy fix and these Bonty's will roll faster than the Stick-E Kendas I had on there previously. Going to try them out tomorrow. Next will be a lighter bar and stem combo and hopefully something not as stiff as the El Norte setup I have now. This will be predominantly for trail riding. For DH riding I typically swap the bar, stem, wheels and tires for something more heavy duty.