Whitwick / Coalville / NW Leicestershire Riders

The seals on the air springs are just o-rings. They are easy to change once the air spring’s been taken out – they just sit in little grooves and can be picked out with a pin / pick / tweezers / whatever.

I find that my seals start to leak a bit if the bike’s not been used for a while – I guess they dry out. A quick n dirty fix that might help is to remove the valve cores and bung a couple of ml of fork oil into the air chamber, then pump it up to pressure and ride / bounce on it for a bit.

But TBH removing the air spring and replacing the o-rings when the lowers are off is pretty simple.

mrbelowski has trumped my (admittedly limited) knowledge of rockshox air forks – looks like you’ll probably be fine.

My bugbear with jobs like fork servicing is do you just go to the effort of taking it to bits first, then order parts if necessary – thus potentially missing rides. Or do you order all the bits in first on the off chance, then take it apart and reassemble once?

Anyhow, you’ll never find out unless you give it a go. It is quite a satisfying job in a way – there is no doubt when you put it back together – it either fits/works or it doesn’t. Not like bloody rear mechs(!)

Oh and don’t do anything involving fork oil on a nice patio – I did, first time, and my missus had me scrubbing it with a brush and washing up liquid like a naughty child…………….

Cheers both,

I will have a look into it this afternoon and see what is required. I had planned a service day on Saturday anyway so if it takes all day it takes all day.

Thanks

Hi Guys,
Been lurking here for a while as I live in Hugglescote.
The wife and I took up mountain biking about a year ago to get fit so we just bought a couple of secondhand hardtails, a Giant and a Raleigh for her.These are not up there with a “proper” MTB but we have got fitter and have done the Kitchener at Sherwood a couple of times now on them. We are now looking to upgrade to better kit soon but would like to get out midweek instead of just the weekend. Just wondering if we and the bikes would be OK coming out on one of the Wednesday rides?
thanks
Morris

Don’t see why not – the more the merrier and all that. You’ll need proper lights though as even with the longer evenings it’s pretty dark when we finish.

Are far as suitable bikes go, there’s nothing round here that needs a fancy dream-bike so don’t worry about it. Some of the stuff we ride has a few steep bits that can be a little daunting if you’re not used to it, but there’s not much of that and there’s always an alternative route round them.

The pace is pretty leisurely, with ample time given over to milling around discussing how rad we are, exchanging abuse, talking rubbish, etc.

Tonights adventures start at 7pm from the Woodhouse Eaves Village Hall carpark. I should be around if my poorly kids go to bed without screaming the house down. I’m still in the bastard-book from last week’s turning-phone-off gaffe. I’ll be on the Fatty I think so I apologise in advance for being sssllllooooowwwww

mrbelowski – I like slow, seeing as I’ve only one pace.

moslynne – Come along. As said, the more the merrier. I have to say you ‘will’ need good lights, I can say from experience. It’s not nice, not being able to see where you are going at downhill pace.

So who else is out tonight? See you later 😉

I’m there this evening – it looks like being great weather. And a full moon – although I think we won’t be riding late enough to switch of the lights and climb by moonlight.

moslynne. Come along and see(!)

I don’t think we’d be considered a fast group – I guess it depends who shows up, really, but as I am there most weeks we deffo cannot be considered ‘quick’.

Lights are a must – apart from the plum summer months we have been using them all year – a solarstorm X2 and a XML T6 combo won’t set you back much more than £50 if you shop around – I wouldn’t charge them whilst I was asleep or out, but then I don’t leave anything charging in our house like that!

Bring yourselves, two bikes, two decent-ish sets of lights, some beer money and a cheery ‘hello’ and you’ll be fine.

An open-minded attitude to arcane access laws and good upper body strength for lifting bikes over gates also come in handy.

If you could also make sure that you contribute at least one mechanical breakdown in your first few rides (nothing spectacular, just a puncture or snapped spoke will do) then that would elevate you immediately to accepted members. 🙂

Looking forward to this evening, should be a bloody good evening for it.

Don’t suppose anyone in attendance would have a chain stretch checker thingymajig?

I have a chain wear tool – if I remember I will bring it.

You mean a ruler?

I don’t have one of those either

Hello, I will be out tonight. You might want to bring some ear plugs as I still have a selection of squeaks!

That’s OK bob, tonight I’m bringing a big hammer and will use it to fix your squeaks

I’ll be there comrades 🙂

I wonder which one of you lucky punks will get the 900th post…beers on them tonight 😉

Chaps,

I’m in, see you later (in a pub carpark, at 7, somewhere up the M1?)…

Haven’t packed the lights though – hoping there’s an emergency helmet light in the van somewhere, otherwise I’ll just use the farce.

Should be a good evening for it!

Cheers,

Scott (Orange Handjob!)…

lucabazooka.

7pm village car park in Woodhouse Eaves (next to village hall, scout hut, playground, tennis courts etc). It’s on Main Street – shouldn’t be a problem for you to find.

So this is looking like a good turnout:

Scandal
Bob
Asbrooks
Rascal
Mrbelowski
lucabazooka
Me

SEVEN!!!!!

What direction are you planning to head off in Dan? I’m still coming but having just picked poorly wee-man up from school early, he looks like one of those pathetic emo-zombies from that daft BBC3 program my missus loves so much (in the Flesh or something) who are all angst ridden about how undead and misunderstood they are. The whiny yellow eyed sissies. When I was a lad we had *proper* murderous brain-eating zombies on the telly with blood-lust and rancid faces, none of this ‘ooo isn’t life hard for the poor undead’ shite.

Er, now what was my point? Ah yes, this evening. I may be a little on the tardy side, so if that’s the case and I know vaguely where you’re headed I might be able to catch up with my super awesome fat bike skillz. As you, Bob and Andy are coming I’ll be guided by the dulcit tones of vomiting, squeaking, and chains chewing up spokes.

As luck would have it I was going to set off in the direction from which you normally arrive.

I.e. out of the car park and right towards the Bull’s Head. Then over the road and down that lane opposite, before meeting up with the bridleway coming up from Loughborough – then heading up that lane to the crossroads with Deans Lane and Breakback Road before climbing up Beacon Hill on the horse/cycle track.

This gives you a pretty good chance of riding ‘into’ us as we make our way out of the village(?)

Cool, if I see a trail of sputum and phlegm on the ground at the junction of the lane and the bridleway I’ll know I’ve just missed you and will turn right towards the Beacon and catch you on the climb (heh), otherwise I’ll head to Woodhouse Eaves and crash head on into one of you

Bring your wallet Daniel – you won.

Right, will get some decent lights as ours are shit so won’t be able to make it this week.
Can definitly contribute with a puncture as we seem to get one every time we go out, still “practise makes perfect” and I’m getting pretty quick at slinging a new tube in.Would get some decent tyres but as we are looking at uprating the bikes does’nt seem worth it.
Morris

An excellent series of posts.

Excellent news regarding Dan getting the 900th post.

Bugger – I thought someone else had already nailed 900!

I suppose that given the amount of rambling I do on this thread I was odds-on to get the 900.

I say “double or quits for the big one thousand?”

Morris – I use Slime tyre liners (the plastic strip, not the gunk). They’re a ball ache to fit but are really good at stopping thorn punctures – halfords usually sell them (along with their own brand ones which are complete toss). Might be worth a try if you’re getting loads of punctures

Have fun out there chaps, looks like a perfect evening for it. I’m finally doing a bit of riding again, and realising just how much fitness I’ve lost!

I’m away with work this week and next but hopefully I’ll be joining you soon. Subject to physio approval anyway – I’m currently under instructions to protect my knee by riding gently and avoiding hills, which I’ve interpreted as using a low gear and riding slowly. Yes, even slower than usual…

I am still alive!

I got home and then called 111 to check what I should do follow a bang to the head. They asked me some questions and then sent a Paramedic out to check me over. He arrived in about 10 minutes and after all sorts of checks said i was ok but should take it easy for the next day.

Today the shoulder is pretty sore and I have a partial black eye and I need to go shopping for a new helmet before next weeks exciting episode!

Cheers once again for guiding Danny – and i hold myself entirely responsible for the incident!

Blimey dude, didn’t realise it was that serious, glad you’re OK.

Smashing ride last night gents, really enjoyed it

I will leave the official post ride write up to Danny, in fact I’m disappointed it’s not already been done, standards slipping 😉

Absolutely glorious ride last night, really enjoyed almost all of it (old chap is very delicate)

Matt, I must admit I didn’t realise at the time that it was such a considerable incident, hope you are feeling better soon.

Muddy, you are welcome back whenever, I’m sure there will be plenty of volunteers to take it easy at the back whilst you get back up to speed.

Oh and whilst I remember, any chance of getting that group photo on here?

Standards slipping? Like a back tyre on a rock whilst climbing? I’d better get on with this, then or I might end up with a ‘delicate’ injury(!)

Matt – hope you are OK fella – I didn’t realise you’d hit so hard when we are actually in the woods, but I saw the bruise starting to form on your noggin in the pub and thought that it might have been quite a knock. Glad to hear you are (presumably) OK, a salutary tale for those who don’t wear helmets. I always look at people who ride without them and think “wow, they must have special heads – lucky them”.

OK – on with the write up.

A lovely evening with only the last 15 minutes or so in proper darkness. No real mechanicals – one minor binding brakepad to report. Mr belowski out of the saddle most of the way turning those mahoosive fatty tyres – a great effort seeing as the contact patches on those must be in the same league as most motocross bikes. Matt G and Bob ploughing their singlespeeds up some quite steep gradients and putting the rest of us mere mortals to shame. We took in some open stuff on the hills, including a nice scenic bit along the ‘back’ of Cropston reservoir looking back at the sun setting over the hill. A bit of road work involved, but it was a ‘chatty’ kind of evening, so no worries there.

Then rounded off the ride with a bit of ‘play’ in the woods – some nice textbook drop riding from Scott and Matt (before Matt’s off later).

Official post-ride debrief was done over some eye-wateringly expensive pints in the Wheatsheaf (albeit very good ones). So good, in fact, that some of us enjoyed more than one.

Good to see such a great turnout (nine – equalling the current record). Nice to see at least one new face – Scott, who immediately settled into the banter, double-entendres and general putting the world to rights.

As I have said before, if we add up the people who have come out on a Wednesday I reckon we would be at least 20 – that is a decent pool of riders – we could have the core of a decent-sized midweek ride each week, so keep it going people.

Back to earth with a thump for me in work today – loads of people going out of their way to cause me yet more work – but I can console myself with the knowledge that none of them have ever ridden a mountain bike on a sunny May evening sliding into a clear night. Great stuff, and well worth making the effort.

Next week – 7pm Man Within Compass Whitwick (21st May).

See you there/then.

Really enjoyed last night – did a few bits I’ve not done before and good to go the ‘other’ way around.
Good turnout – be good to get a few of the original NWLRC disciples out again too (Sam, Steve are you listening?) – let’s go for double figures! Glad you’re ok Matt – you made quite an impressive ‘crunch’ noise when you hit terra firma over that drop-off 😉

Only 1 week left in London then back to reality. Anyone out this Saturday?

Thanks Danny for the guiding duties, my legs are still sore today. Hopefully I’ll recover enough for Wednesday.
Have a good weekend gents!

be good to get a few of the original NWLRC disciples out again too (Sam, Steve are you listening?)

Soon, I hope mate. Taking it slowly at the moment after a knee problem and have also lost a lot of fitness so doubt I could keep up but I am finally back on a bike at last! 🙂

Good to see plenty of people making it out, I’m looking forward to getting back out for a ride (and seeing the new trails Danny mentioned too…)

Anyone know any good dh this way on, I only have the dh bike now do if someone wants to show me round that would be great but like
I say dh rig only so ride down push up lol

DH?

Hmmmm, not really the best area for that sort of thing. There are some jumps and drops in Swithy and a couple of gnarly ish bits in Cademan near Whitwick, but otherwise you’re struggling I’m afraid. You’ll be limited to riding a couple of hundred yards to hit one or two drops/jumps then pushing it back up.

There are some good bits that go downhill if you know what I mean, but they’re not ‘downhill’ in any true sense of the word.

Sorry to say, but Stile Cop at Cannock or Wharncliffe in Sheffield are probably the two closest proper DH spots and I don’t really even think Stile Cop is particularly taxing for a proper DH bike.

Nah chase is a bit tame but usually where I’d end up due to bad planning with mates lol, I just saw some vids on YouTube that looked like short dh/st blasts, I was just looking for something now the nights are light for a few runs after 8ish

So then, anyone out tomorrow evening.

Was thinking of spending a bit of time in the woods riding some different tracks to the norm?

Yes, I’m in.

No objections to more of a play ride here, we could even (buzzword alert) ‘session’ some tracks(!)

If I can pluck up the courage we could try a couple of the techy lines off of the trig point. I’ll probably bottle it there, though.

See you at the usual time and place.