I found was that the bike was more comfy; it diddunt make me go any faster, or suddenly be able to do stuff I haddunt before.

RB, that comes with time. When I first rode my big bike I didn’t do anything much more than usual apart from go a bit faster on the rocky bits. After a year or two my riding’s changed and I can now do loads more things I don’t do on the other bikes – but also with trickle-down my riding on other bikes has improved too…

For example; a rigid singlespeed is never going to be any good as a mountain bike

Really? I managed a few top 20 solo places on my fixie at MM and SITS.

Really? I managed a few top 20 solo places on my fixie at MM and SITS.

YOU just proved J-claws point.

MM and SITS isnt Mountain Biking ! Its riding round a muddy field. You could do that on ANY bike- BMX / CX whatever.

YOU just proved J-claws point

Except that wasn’t J-Claws point – he said that people buy niche bikes to hide the fact they are crap, whereas richpips has used a “niche” bike in an environment entirely suitable for the bike. There is no hiding of crapness in this case.

Whatever. People ride races/events/trail centres whatever as they cant read maps and go exploring, for fear of the unknown.

scruff, wot a load of old pooh you talk.
i have done 12 polaris events over the years, various weeks away in scotland following maps, but the biggest pure fun buzz is riding trail center descents, cos they are made for the buzz.

Whatever

Nice argument 😉

Does my tandem count as Niche? I rather enjoy the looks on people faces and the cries of ” you can’t do that” as we launch of down spooky woods ot the freeride!

However this does hide my crapness as getting any sort of jump / smooth line amazes folk who don’t realise that its relatively easy to ride and much better than I am.

So it does hide my crapness in a way but thats not why I bought it

….I have a question for J-claw?

…when referring to niche bikes – does this include Cotic hardtails? Is that why you purchased said bicycle in order to reinforce your excuse bag options during those guiding times when you just couldn’t keep pace with the aggressive XC freeride Lite clipped-in peak district yeti 575 riding singletrack subscribers?

Whatever. People ride races/events/trail centres whatever as they cant read maps and go exploring, for fear of the unknown.

Yeah sure.

Anyway, it’s a well known fact that crap riders actually go and buy an expensive bike, with lots of gears including the all important 34 rear sprocket, suspension (lots of it) wide sticky tyres, to mask the fact they’re rubbish at going up hill and down too.

When reduced to walking there are a plethora of parts on said bike that they can point to and claim that the setup of said part is not actually suitable for the current terrain conditions, otherwise we wouldn’t be waiting for them (again).

Anyway, it’s a well known fact that crap riders actually go and buy an expensive bike, with lots of gears including the all important 34 rear sprocket, suspension (lots of it) wide sticky tyres, to mask the fact they’re rubbish at going up

easy there rich…. 😥

Really? I managed a few top 20 solo places on my fixie at MM and SITS.

Yeah but how fast would you have been on a geared bike? Nonsense argument. Do two laps of a trail centre (Cwmcarn ideally) and compare times. That data I’d like to see.

I would say that anyone that comes on STW would seem a bit niche to “normal” folks.

Freeride god. WTF is that if not “niche”?

To your average person we’re all **** weardos simply because we chose to play in the woods on bikes.

Gears are for queers. Suspension is for b***** c*** w******.

I would say that anyone that comes on STW would seem a bit niche to “normal” folks.

Freeride god. WTF is that if not “niche”?

To your average person we’re all **** weardos simply because we chose to play in the woods on bikes.

Bloody hippy!

😉

I know a lot of this is tongue in cheek but there is a lot of bull spouting here. Niche is only in the eye of the beholder, there have been tons of posts on here in the past regarding people who buy expensive parts etc to make up for lack of skill… in 95% of cases I would say that is wrong, most people own nice kit because they can, becaure they have worked hard for their cash and want to spend it on their hobby! How many people on here drive BMW’s, Merc’s, or sports cars etc… Why? Are you Hamilton? No, you have what you have because you like nice things, if you stick to your formula of ride a bike suited to your level most of us would own a Skoda. Lets be honest most people actually like bike building as a hobby in it’s own right. I own a daftly pimped out DH bike, it is built way over my skill level, but I love it, I love changing it, fettling and yes showing it off, at no point does it make up for any lack of skill, I just ride it and have fun building it. My final word, if you have the cash to build or buy whatever you want (for anything in life)… and it makes you happy, do it and fek anyone who does not like it. It’s riding, it’s fun and we are all from the same stable at the end of the day. Im off to polish my Thomson and wax my CK

Yeah but how fast would you have been on a geared bike? Nonsense argument. Do two laps of a trail centre (Cwmcarn ideally) and compare times. That data I’d like to see.

Cwm Carn, I couldn’t tell you. Llandegla, Penmachno, Marin, Glentress, nothing much in it.

I will concede that something rocky and technical like Cavedale, Garburn Pass, The Beast etc I’ve been a bit slower down. Though I’m usually quicker up hills than when on a geared bike. So not much in it for me on a day out.

On the last group ride I did, there were four of us. Two on full sus, one on geared hardtail and one on rigid singlespeed. We all had fun.

I didn’t know you had a full sus Mike. 😉

Oh and 100. 🙂

Freeride god. WTF is that if not “niche”?

At last, a niche I can be part of! 😉

🙂

We did all have 26″ wheel though. Bloody 29er perverts.

I’ll ride whateva the hell I like & J-bore & his 8yr old friends can kiss my hairy arse….

Though I’m usually quicker up hills than when on a geared bike

Then you’re lazy and don’t try hard enough on your geared 🙂

Then you’re lazy and don’t try hard enough on your geared

It weighs nearly 7 lbs more. Or it did. I sold it.

Nah. Niche hiding crap riders…load o’ bollox mate.
I built a rigid SS once, loved it. Only got rid due to cash flow.
I was usually fastest up hills on the thing cos of keeping the same pedaling cadence as with gears. Skill wise I went everywhere my Enduro went.

emac65 – Member

I’ll ride whateva the hell I like & J-bore & his 58yr old friends can kiss my hairy arse….

I agree.

I’ll ride whateva the hell I like & J-bore & his 58yr old friends can kiss my hairy arse….

You do realise this is a troll, don’t you?

It weighs nearly 7 lbs more. Or it did. I sold it.

Then maybe you’re quicker on a 7lb lighter bike than on a SS? 🙂

You do realise this is a troll, don’t you?

Really 8)

i qualify was being a crap rider and very several niche bikes….

whatever…

I’ll ride whateva the hell I like & J-bore & his 58yr old friends can kiss my hairy arse….

I agree.

LOL,How goes it Will ?
(Eamonn)

Clearly trolling, disgracefull easy attack method and hindered by the fatal flaw that anyone needing to take the mick out of other cyclists because of their choice of bike simply proves that you’re either an arse or insecure, or both 😉

3/10

Hey JA, I was wondering where you’d gone. All good thanks. Living in Cananananada, riding a rigid singlespeed (BMX cruiser) and a road bike with risers and baaaa ends 😉 I hope to go mountain biking some time this year too. Hope all is cool with you and you don’t bump into those t0ssers Scruff and Snakebart on the Chase 😉

Sounds good mate :D.All good here,just fancied (yet another)name change.
I avoid those two,quite easy really as they normally just hang around the cafes doing wheelies

Well well well, all you ‘niche’ riders do seem to have quite the chip on your shoulders don’t you…
If you re-read the OP, you’ll see that I wasn’t saying that everyone who rides a niche bike is crap, or that you couldn’t have fun on a niche bike – I’m sure you probably can.
I have ridden a rigid SS before & I found it utter ****. I have a lot more fun, can go a lot faster & ride more trails/features/obstacles a proper mountain bike with gears & suspension. Why try & ‘handicap’ yourself with the wrong bike unless you’ve got something to hide? Of course, there are the odd exceptions to the rule – I guess some people like to make things harder on themselves for masochistic reasons.

Really? I managed a few top 20 solo places on my fixie at MM and SITS.

Riding around the same muddy field for hours on end is not my idea of mountain biking.

…when referring to niche bikes – does this include Cotic hardtails? Is that why you purchased said bicycle in order to reinforce your excuse bag options during those guiding times when you just couldn’t keep pace with the aggressive XC freeride Lite clipped-in peak district yeti 575 riding singletrack subscribers?

Its a hardtail with a 5″ fork, gears, disc brakes & ‘normal’ handlebars, so no I don’t consider it niche.

Ah, the fireroad fuhrer… Oh so fast up the smooth climbs, but walks down anything remotely technical. 😉

One man’s niche is another man’s standard.
My french bike: Full sus FR with 5″ travel 2.5 sticky rubber and gears.
My UK bike : Steel frame hard tail singlespeed.

I am using my uk bike at the moment and trust me people think I am a weirdo. When I used my french bike in the UK people though I was a weirdo too.

Nothing to do with your bike then……
You’re just weird…

Genuinely can’t even begin to imagine anyone who would buy a bike to cover or provide excuses for their inabilities, all they do is highlight the inabilities further. But for masochistic reasons I quite like my rigid SS 🙂

when ss bikes first started to appear, I thought they were for poor folk or studenty types with no cash. I’ve since realised they are for exhibitionists.

when ss bikes first started to appear, I thought they were for poor folk or studenty types with no cash. I’ve since realised they are for exhibitionists.

and ****