here we go again...

a little more than 24 hours out from the start of the new year and a new journey.

i feel like i should have more trepidation or mixed feelings than i do. (i remember this from last time as well.) probably, i've just spent so much of the past few months anticipating the whole thing and discussing the design and release of the deHcade that the advent of 2022 is (almost) an anticlimax.

but that's also kind of ideal. i'd really prefer the march toward the mundane to be accelerated, because the point is to experience one fixie as my everyday. getting past the newness and excitement of it being "a thing" is part of the goal.

in terms of "newness" though, it's definitely interesting to compare the original eH from 2012 with the deHcade and see the ways in which it's circled back (pun intended).

most obviously, the guts have changed. when steve buffel and i discussed the initial eH, being able to do challenging string tricks was paramount. although i was doing plenty of stall-based stuff, a lot of it was used to weave together typical 1a elements. as a result, the og eH had a pretty wide gap (3mm) and low response for a woodie. as it broke in, the dimpled response didn't provide a ton of grip, and i usually had a totally dead duncan sticker in there to add some traction. when we produced the 1st tmbr eH, the gap got 0.5mm narrower and those holes got deeper and sharper, eliminating any need for stickers.

like the past few eH's, the deHcade's gap is 2mm at the axle. i asked colin to incorporate a version of the deep negative recess on his most recent fremont because i liked how it played. it's aggressive and can take awhile to break in, but i love the effect on response and control.

although the deHcade has an added 1mm of diameter, it's lost that twice that in width compared with the original. this drops the mass from 57g to 52g. again, that reflects a sea change in the type of tricks the 0a style really focuses on. the deHcade handles stalls, regens, flips, spins, and stop-n-go's with considerably greater ease than the original, which prioritized spinning play.

the defining feature of the eH has always been the profile of the "shoulder". from a sharp corner at the outer hub, there's a flat section which has varied by 1-2mm through the various releases before the inner hub curves toward the response. this facet has a specific tactile "flavor", and to me is what has kept the eH feeling like the eH. you really feel it on varials, balances, and fly-away somersaults.

anyway... the new year looms.

i'm not thinking of this as a resolution. i don't believe throwing fixed axle is actually "ideal" or that the 1-yo-yo-for-a-year thing reflects some lasting change i crave for myself. it's just the start of a journey - one i've walked before, but the trail grows in over a decade. it's the yo-yo equivalent of a long retreat into the mountains. when i come back out i'll have changed, but every year changes us - on some level every throw does, too. a lot of this is about HOW being intentional with what i throw affects my outlook and experience.

one thing I know going into it this time around is that come new years eve 2022, I won’t be able to encapsulate that in a pretty post.

see you on the other side.