Kid in the school I work in ran up a £392:00 bill a couple of months ago on contract. Daddy wasn’t a happy bunny.

Chamonix is great for what you want but is very touristy in my opinion. What sort of walking are you after? Take a look at the Morzine area (Portes du Soleil). Most of the websites really push the DH side of the area but there are hundreds of km of superb XC trails available, uplift ahoy! Goodness me- I love telepheriques!

A good start would be this book,
http://www.vtopo.com/?-VTOPO-Portes-du-Soleil-English-
and a suitable map, the 1;25 000 IGN ones are pretty good, although if you wanted you could easily use your time just following the routes in the guidebook- it uses IGN maps anyway.

Tywi track in Mid Wales-
http://www.offroadadventures-online.com/rr049.html
or Google ‘Strata Florida landrover’. Wet, fun, fast in places, technical in others and superb views when you reach the top. And a bothy to boot.

Or the Dan yr Ogof Descent. Mentally fast, super riding, coming as the climax of a LONG moorland ride. Few people do it (to their loss) because of the long approach. 35 km of well rewarded hard work and Beacons views. With a lot of getting lost potential too.

the ride from Geysir to Hvitarnes in Iceland. You ride through the middle of nowhere and then turn off the track onto a smaller even sandier and wash-boarded track. And then later, onto a smaller one still, hoping to be greeted by the sight of a mountain hut close to the glacial lake. 35 km of pure slog and satisfaction.

But for pure mtb-fun. The Ardent loop via Morzine- Zore- Col de Joux Verte- Abricotine- Mosette- Lac Verte- Col de Chesery- Les Linderets- Ardent- Lac du Montriond- Morzine. 30 km of pure fun.

Two sites in Morzine, one actually on the PPS route, on the Montriond side of town on the lane leading up through the meadows beside the Dranse. Never stayed there, looks nice enough though. It’s here 46°11.898’N, 6°41.355’E.

In Essert Romand, a tiny village about 5 mins drive, 10 mins walk from Morzine’s fleshpots is Camping Les Mormottes.

http://www.campinglesmarmottes.com/en/index.html

46°11.718’N, 6°40.651’E

Or try in Les Gets 46°09.041’N, 6°38.550’E, La Grange au Frene. I know nothing about it at all!
http://www.morznet.com/more/morzine-accommodation-camping-caravans-la-grange-au-frene.htm?id_service=11321

To be honest though, I’d suggest that you book a chalet if there are 6 of you. Prices are not as high as you might think. And no camping kit to carry either, plus a roof over your head if it rains. Search online and then phone and talk to the letting agent/ owner. There are deals to be had for people staying more than one week. Remember to book a chalet with the correct number of bedrooms though, (most) consider the sofabed in the living room to be included in the bed count.

We’ve stayed here before and are doing so again this summer. Good people but note, not ABTA? bonded. But VERY reasonable prices!

http://www.mountainbikemorzine.co.uk/4.html

Get it seen to! I’ve had three shoulder dislocations and each one has been properly medic’d. And each one has taken a VERY long time to be properly sound again.

I went to college with a number of Iranian guys- some of the friendliest people around. Go there, open minded.

Bugger. Its a shame, the boys were doing well :(

Abarthchris- get well soon mate. I too ended up laying my face open- trust me, the scars will fade. And the surgeons at Morriston are real top quality folks.

OMG- sign me up for some of that!

Spot On- your turn?

‘We’re on a mission from God’

My C2’s are now third hand on my son’s bike and have done sterling service for many years now. Inc a shedload of alpine descents. But I’d not advise the ‘ahem’ bigger built rider to use them on a long steep descent.

I gave away my original ParkPre Comp Pro? to my plumbing friend in return for the work he did helping me rebuild/ replumb my bathroom. he rode it for a couple of months and then nothing. It is sitting forlornly in a barn now, a real shame. STX RC rear mech, some RS Judies, M600? V brakes, straight pull hubs (name escapes me).

When I go on holiday with the bikes on my wife’s car… the bike locks and security cables are worth more than my car. I spent a small fortune on security, getting cables specilally made up at the chandlers as well as the usual commercially available stuff.

There are days where I think I’m a bit of a d1ck though. My bike is worth over 50 times a FS Halfords special. There is no way I’m a 50 time better rider because of it. And I doubt that I get that much more pleasure either. But it is an absolute joy to ride and I wouldn’t want to give it up.

http://www.mtb-wales.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=XForum&file=viewthread&tid=21975

AFAIK the board walk sections are there to protect the very unstable ground. It is in reality little more than a bog. Putting the ‘standard’ Afan armoured surface down that would be needed to cope with the level of traffic the route sees would damage the ecosystem, impede the water flow and perhaps look even worse than the wood does possibly due to the ammount of aggregate required.

In the past I’ve had to walk Goodwood due to the strong winds and rain. It can be bonkers bad weather up there at times. Whilst walking the section a while back I was surprised at how many loose boards there were.

The Cafe at Trallwm is a real double edged sword. Super grub but if you stop you are doomed!

I’ve never done the Llanyrch Yrfa to Drygarn climb in the summer. It’s fun in the snow though!

Just put Boy1’s stuff into storage. He’s 16 now. A hornby layout, 8×4 feet, built up over the years by generous rellies at Christmas and Birthdays.

Take a looky here…

http://www.offroadadventures-online.com/rr049.html

Route passes two bothies. 40 miles is. I last rode it in November and it was hardgoing over the top from Carnau down to Rhiwnant. In the summer the Nant Paradwys is fantastic. That day it was a real slog.

I seem to remember that IMBA had a X Wales route passing through the area too.

I can email *.mmo files for all the routes mentioned above if you want.

Dan- I’m feeling like you are, so I’m off to Moel Prysgau me thinks tommorrow.

So back to ‘A’ then. Alivio, Avid and Avoriaz.

Rake and clean out the cracks to a decent depth- 5mm or more. Fill with a good proprietry filler such as Tetrion or mix up one yourself with a filler powder thoroughy mixed in with PVA adhesive plus enough water to make it workable. Apply when fire is off. Smooth as normal. Allow at least 12 hours to dry. Sand if need be. Paint. Relight fire. Job’s a good’un.

And remember that if your pride and joy is in your shed your powertools should not be!

My RUSS Ride for a flight Tee Shirt, closely followed by the Mint sauce strip where he rides with his dad… sniff

Salva Mea- a Faithless classic.

Back in the day… 1974

Justin, my best mate became a dad. He was 12. GF was a similar age. GF had little to do with raising the child I believe- but I moved away with my folks when we moved house so I’m not certain.

This sort of thing has been going on for years- but it isn’t right. Physically developed is not the same as emotionally mature.

Is ‘Salva Mea’ on your list? I’m dead lazy tonight and haven’t read the preceding posts…

Yo- Go Joe. Big respect.

It’s still not too late for a ubercool name like Ambrose is it?

Ystradfellte, Sarn Helen. A local ride I’ve not done in months :(

bbArdvaark- If at all possible you need to fit the drivetrain components all at the same time. The individual components (inc. the chain) will ‘wear’ to fit the most used component. This means that a brand new chain and casette will not mesh properly with a too-worn chainring and vice-versa. Chainrings, chains and cassettes need replacing at different intervals. It is the chain that is the common link (excuse the pun, not intended) between front and back so keeping it in tip top condition/ replacing it is a good plan as it is generally the cheapest component of the system.

FWIW- I run a shimano steel granny- I use it a lot. I’m a wussy wimp riding big nasty hills. The rest of the front end is Middleburn hardcote. About as much longevity as is possible from aluminium.

SRAM PC991? chain. Bought 10 in bulk ages ago, MUCH cheaper that way. Get a consortium of mates together?

SRAM XT equivalent (X.9?) cassette- again multiple buy with mates for discounts.

I’ve heard it said that a cassette will last three times as long as a chain. If replacing the big ring up front I will generally do the same with the chain. But the touchstone is the the condition of the chain. I use a ParkTools chain checker. I replace before 1% wear. Works a treat for me.

Cymru am Byth :)

I baked heart-shape pink coloured vanilla shortbread bikkies and then a visit to IKEA followed by a meal in a ‘hard to get a table’ local pub/ restaurant, the local camra pub of the year.

SORTED for brownie point m’thinks ;)

Cymru am Byth!

I’d go solo. Spirit of adventure. perhaps you could use a gps and a reliably sourced route? Not much different from following a highlighted route on a paper map.

A really tiny bit of copperslip on the interfaces, plus a retorquing of the bolts cured my creaking square taper Middleburns. Fitted to a Royce BB. Two years old and running super smooth. Alps and wet wintery Wales have had seemingly no effect.

looking at le Clusaz at the moment- any information anyone?

Do unto others as you would be done to. All you militants- well I hope that I’m not anywhere near you and that your anti social attitudes don’t have any effect upon the general population’s perception of MTB riders. Or contribute to my rising insurance premiums. two wrong’s do not make a right.

Leave a note, expect a call. Do the right thing. acidents do happen, in this case aggravated by the person parking in a daft/ illegal position but that is no justification for damaging the vehicle.

Hora- if you are really interested I could get you some ‘proper’ bacon. A friend rears a few pigs and when the time comes she slaughters them and then some joints go as pork, others as bacon. The boary stuff is REALLY strong- I generally soak it in water for a while to try to tone it down but even then I can’t eat a lot! Nobody else in the family will touch it! The sow bacon is milder but it is all relative- it is nothing like you will have bought in any shops I know of, and I used to be a butcher.

No mail order available, but seeing as she is only 40 mins from either Brechfa or Afan, as am I, next time you are headed this way give me enough warning and I’ll arrange some for you.

Slight hijack- my XTR pulley wheels are looking like ninja stars. Seem to work fine though. I will replace in the spring but prices seem a tad high! for what you get. Any recommendations for aftermarket replacements?

,

Oops, I forgot the comma before Sir. Sorry.