I see there are some MTBers, and many cyclists, but I was hope there would be a few more riders* on here. Have I got the wrong forum?

*by rider I mean some one who isn't really interested in all the fluff (weight, bling etc), but who goes and rides the shit outta whatever they have, and comes home covered in dirt, sweat and cuts, wearing the biggest grin.

of course

Of course I have the wrong forum???

Yes, you definitely have the wrong place 😉

Of course, I'm not sure quite whether I meet your criteria since I'm a "rider" ("goes and rides the shit outta whatever they have, and comes home covered in dirt, sweat and cuts, wearing the biggest grin.") but also like "the fluff (weight, bling etc)"

Please define clearly for me exactly which category I should mark myself down as for the people who seem desperate to compartmentalise everything.

BTW, what type of rider are you? Freeride, trail, XC race, XC trail, Agressive XC, Power XC, DH, DH race, commuter, road, touring, Freeride-lite, DH-lite, Fro? I can't really know how to interact with you if I don't have this essential information…

personally, i just like to look at the mags and hang out here. i can't be bothered to get all muddy or out of breath or anything.

Get muddy? You sir, are insane.

p.s nice mild trollage.

Ride my bike? Am learning but right now it is more a case of pointing my bike down hill and my bike taking me where it wishes, you know, into trees, fences, ditches and stuff that on the whole isn't quite where I was aiming to go. Sometimes I go in one direction and my bike in another too.

Yep, I'm a rider, I batter the crap out of all my bikes, but, because I'm also a fully rounded human I can also think about other things as well, so can quite happily care about "fluff".

Strange.

Just about everyone. But riding is something we do, not talk about. Which is why we talk about stuff instead.

Nout wrong with a 'rider' liking their 'fluff' 😉

I'm into pub style poodle xc now. All the real riders know it's the true source.

Please do not feed the Troll

Oh come on, it's not like it's a decent troll.

Freeride, trail, XC race, XC trail, Agressive XC, Power XC, DH, DH race, commuter, road, touring, Freeride-lite, DH-lite, Fro?

There's some quality fluff right there. Good man Clubber.

Nothing wrong with a bit of casual fluff-loving but from my limited time on here, it appears that the fluff obsessed are in the majority. I aspire to be a better rider, not have a better bike. Just wondering if others have a similar mentality. Call it trolling if you like, but then you would , wouldn't you. 😉

I aspire to be a better rider, not have a better bike

Very snappy, you want to pop that on a t-shirt.

I'm not interested in bikes and bling.
I only ride because it gives me a legitimate reason to wear lycra in public.

I aspire to be a better rider, not have a better bike

Ah well there you go, I just like getting out in the countryside a bit.

I ride my bike & replace bits when they break/start squeaking too loudly/fall off.
Does this count?*

*I am currently looking at a new bike as mine does feel a bit long in the tooth now. Is this considered 'fluff'?

We're (mostly) blokes and blokes like shiney toys.
We buy them because we can afford them and MTB-ing is our pastime.

You're forgetting that people on here are clearly not out riding so we have to get our fix in a different way which is by doing the 'fluff'…

I still don't see why you want to make things a choice of one or the other. I aspire to be a better rider and to have a better bike. One doesn't preclude the other, does it?

Riding's cool. I do it a lot. Unfortunately I need money to pay the bills so I go into work. Work has an internet connection.

I aspire to be a better rider, not have a better bike.

Do you aspire to be smug and superior too?

Troll-lite.

A bit like one of these.

I suspect most of the fluff/talking is work avoidance and plenty of riding gets done at the weekend/after work…

You can ride without talking about it endlessly. There's a lot to be said for it.

Yay another STW troll.

I'm I supposed to be the Gruffalo or the child? (love the Smartest giant in town btw)

I was just asking a question, and to be fair, I got a couple of reasonable replies. Being labeled a troll because I have no real interest in the fluff wasn't the type of response I was hoping for.

Do you aspire to be smug and superior too?

No. I'm a regular Joe, who tries to get out on my bike(s) as much as possible. For fun, for fitness and to get my 'nature' fix. Like Stumpy, if something breaks, i'll replace it with something better. But I wouldn't dream of changing something because the colour doesn't match, or it's a year old, or …

Hmm, would you change something if you had the money and you thought it would enhance the experience? What about if you fancied a change?

Yeah I personally think some people are over the top with their obsession with having the latest kit, but plenty of people would call me ridiculous for spending a grand on a mountain bike in the first place (which is considered cheap-ish for a decent full suss). If it makes them happy and they can afford it so what?

Coming on an internet forum about biking then slagging people off for talking about bikes is why you are getting called a troll.

(Just out of interest what bike(s) do you ride then? I only have the one mtb – 'I'm just a regular Joe' etc :))

I am an ex rider, now some git has pinched my bike last night grrrrrrr

Euro, I don't do the whole "bling thing" either. I use the bikes until they fall apart then fix them up as cheaply as I can.

I was trolling too. 😉

I thought that George the Giant was a bit of a mug and the small animals were taking the piss. Monkey Puzzle is our favourite.

I'm a bike rider, but pretty mch obsessed with the hobby of owning mountain bikes. I wouldn't call it fluff, cos it's more important to me than that. I currently have 10 bikes in my garage owned by various people, some of which I'm fixing, servicing or replacing bits on – cos I enjoy it. Some people play f^&*ing computer games for a hobby, I think mine's a bit more healthy than that.

However, both my own bikes are over 3 years old and I only replace bits when they break, wear out, or something cheap comes up on the classifieds 🙂

Anyway, this is an internet forum – it'd be pretty empty if people weren't into the "fluff" eh?

(Just out of interest what bike(s) do you ride then? I only have the one mtb – 'I'm just a regular Joe' etc :))

I've a bottom 'o' the range Marin for XC use, which has been 'breathed'upon 'cause the poor thing thinks it's a DJ bike and gets treated accordingly.

A bottom 'o' the range Commencal Mini DH, again slighlty upgrade due to abuse/breakages, and my current favourite

DMR Drone. Nothing broke, so nothing fixed.

What about if you fancied a change?

Seriously, I go ride somewhere different. I do have the money for more exotic bikes, but really don't see the need for it.

Must keep an eye out for Monkey Puzzle, Harry.

Also check the Snail and the Whale

What's the need for 3 different bikes then? Sounds like 'fluff' to me.

Is that what bikes are for then? I did wonder.

I ride a bike most days but wouldn't describe myself as an MTBer or a cyclist. I'm just an adult who still likes riding bikes.

I've a bottom 'o' the range Marin for XC use

Do you have a beard and wear tracksters?

I'm wearing lycra right now and about to jump on the bike so I guess that makes me a cyclist who will ride the crap out of my bikes once I choose to road or mtb it.

So I'm on this forum as I'm a cyclist.

Crap one at that…right forum then!

Drat rain.

You have more bikes than most people on here. You have a bike for jumping, a bike for riding along and a bike for going downhill.