I love mine – I have 2 pairs – carbon to race and something very similar but not carbon to train.

Comfy, stiff, good quality.

Width wise seem quite normal – similar to my Northwave boots, wider than Shimano.

I trashed the buckle in a crash – new pair of shoes under warranty.

Nice.

Be prepared for some “character” to appear underneath the clearcoat

They are quite narrow and the protections ones have served me well. Seem to grip well, be reasonably tough and quite fast rolling. Bit like a Rocket Ron but a bit heavier construction than the Schwalbe snakeskin

Unless you are in monumental mud they are OK as a rear in the winter

I have the KOM of the segemnt round my back garden

Can you have a KOM in your privacy zone?

Ages ago. A couple of short ones and some very long ones. Garmin 800 data.

I’m not going to kill myself on the flat so I suppose it doesn’t really matter.

I am pretty religious about changing just before .75 and it’s meant I’ve lost count of the number of chains my XTR cassette has had.

Last month I checked my commuter/trainer and it was at .75 or a tad over. Changed chain – SLX cassette skipped. Junked cassette as I’m precious about the chainrings (XTR for Stages – cheaper than buying a new powermeter)

I did have similar with a Campag cassette that wore into the chain after 20miles or so.

I’m happy to change my chain just before .75, save a bit on rings and have the extra reliablility. It normaly works for me. I suppose it might be more expensive but MTB is my only vice and I really don’t care.

I have a non disc and it’s lovely.

My only gripe with the newer Enigmas is that they went 31.6mm across the whole range. I assume it was for manafacturing simplicity but for a long distance bike I’d prefer 27.2mm – stiffness etc isn’t really where something like this is at shirley?

I have created my own segments – despite being on popular routes it seems I am the only rider to attempt them. Maybe they are too similar or something.

You can cut out the more boring bits by Wallingford

https://www.strava.com/activities/523754100

Nettle rash – severe

Hill repeats, going uphill at about 5mph, slid into rut, tried to keep going but gently fell into young nettle patch.

Had to get pissed last night to get to sleep.

How good are the maxx D’s at “low” for riding singletrack when you’re 12 hours into a solo and tired, mounted on the bars?

They’re OK but need a helmet to back them up.

I use a MaxxD for 12hr races on a 6hr setting and it’s good but it definately needs some help from a helmet lamp. When a team rider is in the vicinity (probably with a million lumens on a 1hr setting) it’s pretty feeble.

For a 24hr I suspect you’d be happy to have 2 MaxxDs or the longer burn of a Sixpack.

Another ThuBu fan here. Lighter than Race Kings and SB8s too, which you might appreciate at hour 11.

Another view might be that at the 11th hour, tired, in the dark, you might appreciate an ability to use your brakes!

Anyhow for me its an x king front,race king rear – both protection as punctures in the dark and tired suck.

I’m more worried about the correlation between the BBC and absolutely appalling English.

I give mine a twirl with my fingers every time I swap my Stages which is pretty often. If I feel any dryness/grit I give em a squirt.

I think thinner grease would help. Seeing as I do mine quite frequently thin grease would be fine

Yes mine does it and I end up removing the circlip and replacing while still using the tool.

I think it will die more quickly without the seals

Fixing a puncture might drop you out of the rankings but does allow you to continue to ride at race pace, mixing it etc. If you’ve tapered for an event (Kryton!!) just walking back might leave you with a bit of a hole in your training.

It was base and the foundations were there so although hard that wasn’t an issue. I rested a week then I didn’t warm down after my first long hard ride and tweaked my hamstring, came back, got ill. At least base takes a while to erode.

I’m happy to peak, rest, lose a bit and come back etc but the last month is annoying

PMC by

I’m starting to think that one of the main requirements for improvement is how to deal with adversity. I tend to feel that time invested in training = improvement but recently I’ve had 3 involuntary breaks from training (over and above planned rest weeks) which means my CTL gets good then tumbles.

Now because I am behind, instead of riding outside tonight I have to do 5x15m Z4 in the shed of hell – oh joy.

I also take Omega 3 fish oils to support my heart on a precautionary basis since I was diagnosed with eptopic beats

I too have ectopics. I wasn’t aware of omega 3 doing anything for them but a brief search shows that the results are mixed:-

http://www.livestrong.com/article/497020-can-fish-oil-cause-an-irregular-heartbeat/

I think any supplement pales into insignificance compared to the trigger factors of tiredness, stress, caffeine and alcohol. You will probably find one of those is the dominant cause – in my case acohol which is why I more or less stopped drinking.

I run 2 wheelsets. The spare has discs, cassette and QRs fitted and it’s just a case of removing one wheelset from the bike and adding the other. To do this I’ve had to shim out the discs (syntace shims) so there is no need to adjust calipers. I started down this road to have a spare for racing in case of punctures.

If I had to pfaff with discs and cassette I’d rather change tyres.

I’m looking forward to my first outing at this Sunday’s Wentwood 50.

Ill 🙁

I have tech x2s on my training bike – the knobs help adjust for pad wear and they are a nice brake.

The Race are quite a bit lighter and very good. You can adjust with a tool. Unless you are regularly going to ride with very worn pads I’d reccomend the Race.

just gaining opinion on others views of the effort vs the outcome.

Cyclical for me – motivation comes and goes. Spent the winter doing massive traditional base and entering events. Now ill, coming back from injury,moving house and demoralised.

Have to force myself to remember base takes a while to erode. Doing as much as I can and shifting the emphasis of my season to August/Sept/November.

The point being I think you have to expect downs – the key is how to adapt.

Must admit I got slightly irritated hence the somewhat aggressive post. I’m sorry.

You put yourself up against others in a regional event with less than perfect kit and a far from perfect training regime (no taper etc) that hasn’t been targeted at your chosen discipline for very long.

You obviously have talent to get where you did but there would appear to be some fairly simple things you could do to improve. If ever there was anyone who would benefit from a coach it would be you.

Cheap Shimano QR done up tiiiiiight plus a drive side dmr tugnut worked for me and I tried to make it slip (place front wheel against wall, stand on cranks, bounce a little)

3 months of slow/appropriate weight loss to a target w/KG and diet discipline, 3 months of no booze, 3 months of turbo training only to come 33rd in a Regional A XCO race.

It’s about realism. Any expectation that that amount of training and devotion on an alloy FS while slightly overweight could get you better than average at a regional event is surely misplaced.

Anyhow this is how I coped:-

1. I set realistic staged long term goals. First year take part, second year mid pack, third year top 10, Fourth year podium. I got a couple of podiums in year 3, one a small field, one well deserved.
2. I got a coach
3. I got help from STW about a year ago when I was pissed at picking up 2 places in the Gorrick 100 (my third) after a years serious training.
4. A wake up call is good – I got some more hours in and rode more XC courses as part of my training.

I’m going trackends as I want light and simple and it worked well on my Simple. Means carrying a cut off spanner for the tug but I didn’t have any slippage or have to realign the caliper.

I’m sensitive to seat height.

Vets is one of the hardest categories – all the buggers in there are fit, strong, experienced riders who didn’t make/are too old for Elites

Ha you should try Grand Vets – a considerable number of ex elites

Hardly an XC race but I’m looking forward to my first outing at this Sunday’s Wentwood 50.

Adsh, do you mean Curtis S1 SuperMoto, oooo they make a 29er version too……….

Well yes and no. It’ll be a straight copy of my XC9 (which was custom geo based on my Whyte 29C) but with track dropouts. Not sure what that makes it but the idea is to keep on riding off road next winter.

Though I may start in the summer as I’m getting a bit bored of geared riding

Curtis XC10, track drop outs, custom geo (longer TT, shorter ST, 69.5HA).

Missed the boat for this winter, will be ordering ready for next

Brilliant bodgery.

What will you charge to make me a 32er or a 36er.

I’d personally not tubeles such a narrow rim. Far too much burpage

I found I sometimes needed to reinflate mine when I raced on them. They didn’t burp noticably but less than careful line choice etc and the rear would gradualy get a bit lower.

Bought 1×11 y’day at 1pm

-Shifter and mech from Evans – paid for next day, delivered by 1030am
-Chain from High on Bikes – ordinary first class – post office tells me it is due for delivery today
-XD driver from JRA – despatched y’day first class – may or may not be with me
-XX1 cassette from CRC – paid for next day, despatched this morning which I presume means not next day delivery.

Just paid for 1×11 for my race HT. Currently running on 1×10 (30T 11-36) which is fine for racing but a bit limiting for training/more general riding.

XX1 cassette
XT m8000 Ispec B shifter
XTR M9000 medium cage mech

Training wheels will run a XT 11-40 cassette (save on XD driver and allow move back to 10speed for other bike)

“What I do requires a significant investment of personal energy and extra time. Of course I want to be professional but it will be hard for me to produce the quality of work you are accustomed to get from me because, inevitably, my mind is on my new role. I think it would be better for the company if I could hand the work over to xyz who shows a talent for…. Of course I’ll be on the end of the (soon to be disconnected) phone blah blah.”

In other words make all of it about your boss and your company and about their work and none of it about wanting to get the hell out etc.

Pity it’s East London – probably a 3hr plus round trip which isn’t feasible.

Any midweek racing closer to Bucks, Oxford, Berkshire? Only think I can see is the Banjo midweek CX.