I’ve been given a pass so will be doing the 6hr solo. Is it rooty/rough enough that an unskilled and uncompetitive crock would want the comfort of short travel fs?

I’m rediscovering my sore back and butt……

They’re great – the ability to feel every stamp on the pedals and the outright speed is great but it does come at a price on rougher ground. I sometimes wonder about the long term effect on my back

Maybe I’m getting used to it! I just thought there was a bit more road than last time but it’s still got a great atmosphere.

Good event though I thought the course wasn’t quite as good as last year.

I run xtr with an xtr cassette. The engineering is superb and I get a kick out of it every time I use it. I sit on my arse all day in the rat race, drive a crap car and feel happy spoiling myself.

I use a chain bath and replace the chain at 75% wear. On 3rd chain so far.

I’ve got the 2.2 MK snakeskin black chilli on my mud/hack and really like them. They are small for 2.2s which is what I wanted for my XC717s.

Tyres are not something to scrimp on IMHO. Probably have more true effect than the difference between deore and XT as well as being a safety issue if unpredictable etc.

and some drugs. At least then you won’t care.

FTFY

My Ti a la Carte is 22lb.

Large Frame 1700g (not light but oh so good)
100mm SID race with remote
Full XTRincluding pedals
Van Nic Ti stem and bars
KCNC foam grips
USE Ti post
Gobi kium – not the lightest but V. comfortable
Crests, pro2 evo,CXray and brass nips (longevity)1550g
Ti non QD 9mm skewers
Hope Race Evo with 140/160 floating rotors (rotors quite a lot lighter than 180s)
Ron/Ralph 2.2s tubeless
2x ti king cages (not weighed)

I believe the weight as I calibrated the scales (1l bottles of water)and the flux is 24.5 on bike shop scales with heavier wheels, 120 forks and a frame that weighs 1kg more.

Anyway swings and roundabouts – you probably use yours more and without worrying about the cost of XTR cassettes etc 8O

I won’t be changing my car for 2 years as a result of this bike……

I know it’s been dry but there’s a fair bit of rain due twixt now and then not least Saturday night :(

Both my bikes on rons and ralphs…………..

Loads of CX bikes on it. Wonder how wet and muddy it:sgoing to be? Ron and ralph may have to come off. :(

I’ve pulled my calf and will have to decide on saturday. Maybe an entry going. Spent 12.mont :(hs training for this

That race was mental!

I woulda done better if I’d not crashed in the typical You’ve Been Framed over-the-bars stylee.

Not sure 30+mph downhill trails should be millimetres from a fence
(That’s not where I crashed though.)

Still, attempted a wheelie over the finish line

You wouldn’t have been riding a Lynskey would you?

The descent was proper scary. My Garmin said 30.6mph at the point my right bar was about 6″ or less from the fence 8O As I got tired my lines got ragged so I wimped out

Yes it was hard – especially as my first ever XC comp.

3 laps in about 3h15, great fun but utterly shagged.

I built a soul as my mud bike. Coming from a ti Salsa with ti post and 2.25 tubeless I was very stupid to be shocked when with alloy post and tubed 1.9.mud rear tyre it was harsh as hell! Now with 2.2 tubeless and carbon post I love it but it’s still not as comfy as ti.

I’ve done the long the last 2 years on my Boardman F/S. 2011 was dry, 2012 was muddy and a lot harder. There’s not much road and 2,226m of climbing. There are also some long fast descents.

This year I may go with my Ala Carte Ti with double shorts if my final long training ride is bearable. Otherwise it’s the Flux.

I’ve done the long the last 2 years on my Boardman F/S. 2011 was dry, 2012 was muddy and a lot harder. There’s not much road and 2,226m of climbing. There are also some long fast descents.

This year I may go with my Ala Carte Ti with double shorts if my final long training ride is bearable. Otherwise it’s the Flux.

I’m toying with it too. Would be first ‘competition’ though I do things like BORS etc.

Is it permissable to enter the 70m and go slow or is that going to get in the way and piss people off? How technical/bumpy is the course?

Also how early to get there to get an entry?

If they are like their new XTR bretheren they do support the foot more but at the expense of clearing mud,snow etc. My new style XTR race pedals were a nightmare in the recent snow. I took them off and use my old XT pedals from 2 years ago.

At £404 I got Hope Pro2 Evo, CXray, brass nipples (for longevity) and Crests from Moonglu. Weighed in at 1550g. Really good build quality, less than 24hr turnaround and fantastic value I think.

23.35 is light for a 29er no?

Wheelset gives the most advantage IMHO. Merlin Hope Pro 2 Evo + Crests = £350? Less yours on ebay = £260 net?

Replacing something that is worn out for a lighter version is much less expensive so a XT 32tooth cassette when your present one wears will save a fair bit and only cost you approx £15more? If your saddle isn’t comfortable a lighter Kium Gobi probably will be and lighter too. Ebay the old one and you might be £55 out or so.

Carbon bars and foam grips have a comfort benefit too so money spent here gets double use as does a carbon seatpost though now it’s starting to get spendy. Eastons EC90 SLs £90, esi racers £15, USE carbon Sumo £80 You can ditch the gear indicators too.

A lot of weight in 520 pedals.

Lightweight inner tubes save 75g each if you’re carrying them as spares. If you carry a couple then that’s 150g for approx £16 (continentals)

WW = ££££££. For all that expenditure you may save a pound in weight. Me I’d replace the cassette, grips, saddle if it’s uncomfortable and carry lighter tubes while plotting the super weeny build (for which you may have the right frame!)

I like them. My 100m isn’t the stiffest but they are as light as advertised and the quality is excellent. They do state road or XC use though.

Personally I get my KCNC stuff from Ready to Ride cycles which are generally cheaper. My just bought 110mm KCNC wing stem was £59.99.

Comfortable at 24.8lb
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Flux Cannock[/url]

Salsa A La Carte Ti Only slightly less comfy XC at 21.8lb

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Snow at Kingston Blount[/url]

Weighs more (but never will weigh) but does more miles than the other 2 put together – must be a moral in that

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Icey soul[/url]

It’s an XC bike 90% of the time so 110mm it is. It’ll climb better and be a tad comfier.

I’ve just built a large soul that I refuse to weigh because it’s not about that being my mud/trainer. It rides really well and I’ll only piss myself off if I weigh it. I did go carbon bars and post but that was only after I’d tried alloy and been shaken badly.

Scales need calibrating. My mates digitals over read by 9% which is great for fish but not for bikes.

Going WW on a steel frame isn’t wise IMHO.

I’m 6′ and ride a large Flux with 120 float bolt throughs. I use a 100mm stem and Easton monkeylites at 635mm which I like cos I don’t just do trail centres and want the ability to go long
er without feeling like an ape.

I love the bike but it does feel short on tt and high at the front. Grip climbing is nuts though I have to make a much more conscious effort to shift weight forward and the quick steering shows with quite a lot of bar wagging though some of that might be down to lack of skill.

I got a large classic soul in orange as I wanted a quality hardtail frame with big clearance for mud but no temptation to get weight weenie.

Built with xt, 120 rebas, hope/xc717, thomson and flat bars. Ride with skinny mud tyres and alloy post much harder than expected so will be trying slightly bigger tyres and maybe a cabon post.

I do want something quite tough so fragile sidewalls would be out.

The XR4s look pretty good and quite cheap though the blurb talks about loose and rocky which the Chilterns are not!

Might have to splash for a carbon post too :( . There’s a lot showing so maybe some comfort to be had there too.

What’s the best for using with a/filling a chain cleaning device?

I use the Park ‘chainbrite’. I run a clean bottle and a dirty bottle. The first pass on the chain gets dirty (which goes back in the dirty bottle and settles out clean if you pour with care) the second pass if it needs it gets clean which again goes in the dirty bottle.

I find that no matter how long you let dry and wipe it leaves a slight residue so I generally wash it off with a hose. This is a pain so I plan on switching.

My mechanic mate has switched to finish line degreaser for that reason. He finds it better drying.

I run XTR so am very anal about chain cleaning.

bikediscount.de were cheapest and delivered within the week.

Rode the Litevilled this morning and hated it. Hadn’t realised how stiff/taut I like my bikes (probably due to the lack of technical riding). Maybe I could get used to it’s active style but it’s not really me and I’d spend a lot of time dialling out all the movement it’s designed for.

Then rode the Flux – just loved it. Taut, felt bottomless, alive etc etc. It’s ordered!

Not sure how I screwed that up – anyways I don’t do dh as well as not djing and I was going to say that a 140 liteville could only be about a pound heavier and cover xc and trail pretty comfortably.

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Salsa Ti drives side[/url] by adshools[/url], on Flickr

Bargain frame – not such a bargain build. Worth every penny!

KCNC bones on the FS and Van Nicholas ti 630mm on the ht. Both are great but the VN are a work of art. KCNC bar e.ds on both.

Thanks – I’m not too pissed off – pretty good package. Good enough that Lavatrax is sounding attractive for next week! :D

I got knocked off by a lorry last year going up a hill on an A road in a 30mph village. I could hear him sat behind me for approx 500yards. I was due to turn off right or I might have considered stopping as he was making me feel uncomfortable.

Just before I was due to turn he started to overtake heading towards a blind bend. It being 6pm surprise surprise a car came the other way. It stopped – the lorry could have braked to a halt but instead decided to wipe me against a wall.

The statement he gave to the police was ‘he didn’t pull over to let me past….”

I did raise the levers. Then went for a test ride. I kept on thinking how I was running out of gears and doing my route so much faster.

At some point I got a little careless not realising how fast I was going when I tried to pick a less muddy line. Spinning hard on big ring and 7th cog (I counted after) meant it was a very hard off but I am only bruised/grazed and the bike is fine (phew).

Moving from 26lb FS with Nics to this rather highlights my lack of skill………….

Large frame 1700g
SID race 100mm
Merlin built pro2s, DT comp, Stans Crest
XTR triple group
Race Evo X2 with the green bits replaced, 160mm front, 140mm rear
Van Nicholas Ti stem and flat bars
KCNC extensions and grips
USE sumo Ti post
Gobi kium
Rons, Continental light tubes

Cost more than the car it’s leant against…..

Currently injured :oops: – faster with injury than FS without :D

Levers up it is then!

Thanks – bars actually slightly higher than I want so can’t raise any more and the levers will be all wrong if angle them up.