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Decided to go to this. Pretty pricey, but looks well organised and a fair bit more thrown in than the standard bike event.
I'm looking forward to it, but swithering over tyres.
I'll be riding my Rose DX Cross. It has DT Swiss wheels that I've set up tubeless, but more road biased....
Have a 30mm Schwalbe S-One (pretty smooth tread) on the back and a 31mm Vittoria XG Cross (medium knobbly tread) on the front.
Starting to think I'm going to get sore hands!
I'd like to put bigger tyres on it, but I can't afford to buy new ones and can't be arsed setting them up tubeless either.
Think I can get away with running mine at rear 50/ front 45psi (I'm 90kg in kit) and I guess I'll splash out on some more bar tape for a double wrap
Link doesn't work.
If the route takes in all the fire roads around the south of the island, I'd be tempted to go slightly bigger tyre wise, As they tip scalpings out onto them reasonably regularly so can be a bit rough. The road from Whiting bay round as far as Machrie can be a bit tasty as well, some really dodgy bends, generally on bridges across burns, and under trees so will be slippy in wet.
Hope you get good weather for it.
As I said to my friend when he emailed me a link to the event last night:
At £1.50/km someone is having a laugh.
Bugger, two weeks before our baby is due, neither the cost nor the weekend away would be approved I suspect!
As per the 'do I want a gravel bike thread' I think my slicked up Superfly would be ideal, feels quick on the road but confident off road, might even drop the tyre pressures a tiny bit 😉
[quote=fifeandy ]As I said to my friend when he emailed me a link to the event last night:
At £1.50/km someone is having a laugh.
Free pair of socks tho
Add ferry, shuttle bus, three meals, live bands, bike builders expo etc.
Bigger tyres would be recommended- 40's ideal.
Add ferry, shuttle bus, three meals, live bands, bike builders expo etc.
Bigger tyres would be recommended- 40's ideal.
Yep, more than comparable to any other event when factor those costs in.
And free giro socks. They will go nicely with my giro shoes, shorts, gloves and t-shirt. The whole set!
and a Fabric cageless waterbottle?
What boxelder said.
Shame I can't make it up.
[url= http://theradavist.com/2017/05/the-complete-grinduro-scotland-experience-on-the-isle-of-arran/#1 ]Radavist was impressed.[/url]
🙂
the island of Arran doesn't have mountains per se
Er, aye it ****in does!.
I'm going with The Bicycle Academy.Really looking forward to it. I'm building a new bike for it, because it seemed like a good, or at least adequate, excuse.
Btw, I'd advise getting ferry tickets booked ASAP, since the prices were dropped a couple of years back, I've known a few folks that were knocked back, even as foot passengers, as ferry was full, been going to Arran for 30 odd years and never heard of that!.
Er, aye it **** does!.
He's American, so used to biggerer (and we didn't take them up Goat Fell)
Btw, I'd advise getting ferry tickets booked ASAP,
If entered, the ferry is booked, as foot passenger with bike and separate baggage transfer.
I bet the Lamlash midgies are already licking their lips at the thought of all that fresh new flesh on the Island?
Funny, the website doesn't mention that.
I have a week in lamlash every July, it's not a bad place for the flying sharks....
Smidge is deffo on the kit list.
Anyone got some badges and a nice message through the post?
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Had a nice warm up ride today, managed to do about 85% of 50 miles on gravel tracks (not bad for a city centre dweller) and got some top 5% Strava segment results which surprised me since I stop to speak to dogs a lot (and have no idea where the segments are).
Got my 30mm tyres sitting at 55psi which is working nicely and double wrapped the bar tape.
Hope you get a day like today,taken 5 minutes ago, Lamlash right in centre of pic!
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[url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/nobeerinthefridge/34958007854/ ]2017-07-08_04-47-43[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/59995395@N03/ ][/url] - [url= https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dariogf.flickr2BBcode_lite ]Flickr2BBcode LITE[/url]
Today is perfect.
This was my ride in the lovely sun today.
https://www.relive.cc/view/1073468166
Probably a bit lacking in hills as a warm up TBH
How was it then? well attended? weather was shit on saturday, sunday decent though.
It was very good.
Brilliantly organised - great having the ferry and luggage and everything sorted out.
Food was good, interesting things to look at etc.
Attendance wasn't huge, think they got less than they expected. Seems like a lot of money behind it.
The weather was quite bad on the Saturday. Lots of cycling around inside a cloud etc. That's not a big bother, but a lot of the singletrack sections were unrideable on a cyclocross bike. Even some of the mountain bikes weren't making it - they were very chewed up.
An incredible selection of bikes too, lots of things to gape it.
The Saturday night partying was very good too, good to have a band playing etc.
Overall, a very good event. Definitely felt worth the money and I plan on going back next year. Though, to be honest, I'd actually ride my mountain bike. A rigid bike with 30c tyres was just overwhelmed by a lot of it - was a lot rougher than the fireroads I was expecting. I should have know - the guys who put the route together did another "cross" challenge thing I did a few years ago which was just all mud and I wished I'd had my mountain bike.
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Aye, I had a look at the course map on saturday, some of it defo very testing for an average Joe on a CX bike. The condition of the fire roads is dependant on whether they've just 'resurfaced' them with scalpings or not, if they have then they're as RAF.
Some great photos summing up the event [url= http://road.cc/content/blog/226182-grinduro-2017-fun-times-and-great-racing-isle-arran ]nice here[/url]
Oof, does look awesome, but I think I'd feel a bit cheated if I rocked up on my 'gravel' bike and got handed wet muddy rooty singletrack and 'secret' drops 😕
I guess now that they've run one event people will have a rough idea what to expect, and that singletrack did look very nice. Guess I'd swap my slicks for some Clement X'Plors or something...
Yeah. I did a lot of walking, especially with a 30c slick on the rear*. I also forgot to climb any hills when I was 'training'**
The fastest two guys were riding mountain bikes.
It was a great event though. I'll be back next year, on my Turner Sultan. And hopefully with a gig for my band!
* set up tubeless. Which, even though I suspected I was under-tyred, put me off going for 40mm knobblies as I am crap at tubeless set up and was too busy to fanny about with it and too poor to buy a second set of wheels and my MTB wheels, while they fit, are set up with tyres too big for my CX bike. Amd they are tubeless too so didn't want to fanny about with them either.
**cycling to work
[quote=dja25 ]Some great photos summing up the event nice here
However, they don't have a photo of me queuing up for breakfast in my crocs and dressing gown with a lot of serious men in lycra.
Or me dancing around to the DJ with no shoes on.
Or having been eaten by these weird blow up kite/drybag/seat vaginas they had
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This one you mean?
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YES!
Was just finding this thread to post that.
Nae pants either