If you can’t lift a 25kg ebike over a gate or stile, then you really are a dweeb. Do you even lift bro?

I don’t mind admitting that I can’t lift my RM Altitude over a 1.60 metre high gate – not and actually lower it down the other side too.
I’m officially a dweeb then, it seems…..

monkeycmonkeydo
Free Member

^Nice post mate,thanks.

Thanks, man – it’s just basically how I feel now. Some days it’s an effort to motivate myself to get out the door and ride but afterwards I’m always glad that I did. And trailbuilding – bloody hard work but well worth it especially when others are appreciative. I have plenty of free time and the tools plus I enjoy it at least as much as riding.

I came to mountain biking late (around 36, which was 1988, so not late in the mtb world) after m/cycle trials, enduro and sled dog racing. The fortunate side of it is that I was a far better trials rider than enduro rider and so outright speed hasn’t always been the over riding aspect of what I’ve done – ok, in sled dog racing it is but that wasn’t all down to me….
So now I get my satisfaction (now that I’m 70…) from seeking out technical descents and climbs and attempting to ride them clean, mixed in with a razz around some of my lifetime favourite areas. I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that I’m a better technical rider now than I ever was – people sometimes say to me “enter some enduros, man, you’ve got the skills”.
Skills yes, speed (and bravery) no longer, so I just do what I can do the best I can and try to take something really positive back from every ride – to replay in those bleak, sleepless hours at 4am or even in however many years (or months) when I can no longer do the little that I’m capable of now.
We will all (if we’re lucky) grow old and less capable than we formerly were but we should just accept it (and I know it’s not easy) because to do otherwise leads to pain and depression.
Don’t ask me how I know this….

All tractors have their rear tyres fitted the opposite way around so the point of the V hits the dirt first when driving forwards. I think as soon as you’re in proper mud this way around works better to clear the tyre so you get more traction.

It also improves traction as the soil is forced into the V by tractive forces, rather than being expelled out the sides of the tyre, and so aids power transfer to the ground. This is why (on soft surfaces) the braking performance is better in reverse than it is going forwards.

Strange – if that’s the case (there being no UK site now) why didn’t they just tell me that instead of all this “Isle of Man not being recognised” stuff? Weird…

Yes, it probably is Shopify – same as Bike Tart, with who I had the same problem but at least they got back to me and told me that they’d “manually over-ridden” it so that I could order – and sent me a money off voucher too.

Thanks for that, Robz…

I can, I suppose but it just annoys me that companies that I’ve dealt with many times in the past just make it impossible for me to do so now – and besides, there are several items that are next to impossible to get unless you buy direct.

I have a confession to make, which might either label me as a pauper or a tight-arse (or it might not, who knows?) but in 35 years of riding and sometimes racing mountain bikes I have never, ever gone out and bought a new bike, or even a new frame.
This whole “factory fresh” idea is, for some odd reason, one that has no special appeal for me – it’s not just bikes either, all but one of my electric basses were bought second hand – and I have some pretty nice basses….
I was out riding a few days ago with an old friend ( both on RM Altitude e-mtbs, both purchased used) and I managed to rip the rear mech clean off mine.( 80 of my finest pounds then) So I shortened the chain and rode it home as a singlespeed – it worked surprisingly well tbh….

Anyway, it got me thinking back to how some of my best and most enjoyable rides were maybe ten or twelve years ago when all I rode were rigid singlespeeds – nice ones, but rigid steel singlespeeds nonetheless. No suspension to faff with, no mechs to rip off in the middle of nowhere, no endless bloody cleaning after every winter ride but just fun, as I said to my mate -like being kids again playing about on pushbikes.

I do still ride singlespeeds but only alone – at 70 I’m not out with the young ‘duro dudes (not on a rigid SS) or xc racing whippets and pretty much everyone else I know rides e-bikes 100% of the times, including my mate.
It’s probably one of the things that most saddens me – that I’ll never be able to relive those days.
More random bullshit from an old man then…..

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soundb0y
Free Member

So…. are they worth getting one??

Quite tempted for something to rag about the farm.

I’ve ridden one (albeit briefly) that belongs to a friend of mine…
To say that I was underwhelmed is putting it mildly. No way is it anything like riding a proper motorcycle – mind you, in my friend’s defence, he bought it to just cruise around the big camp site that he owns and runs, so I’ll let him off…

In your position I’d buy a three or four year old trials bike, especially if you’ve got some good rocky gullies or steep banks to play about on, it’ll be far more fun, believe you me.
You can get something pretty tidy for less than you’d pay for one of those Sur-ron pieces of s**t.

I personally can’t decide if it’s really MTB or not … but it certainly can be fun.

I treat it as almost a whole different discipline – not as different as a trials bike is, but sort of halfway between.
As a friend of mine said – like m/cycle trials back in the old days.
I like trying to get up (and down) rocky stream beds and stuff like that. Like Chris Akrigg, only older and more shit….

I particularly like climbs that, owing to the steepness/technicality I only ever consider as descents on a normal bike.
This is not just me being old, by the way – a lot of them I couldn’t clean even when I was a racing whippet 35 years ago…

Are Velocity Blunt 35s still available in 26”? I used a 26 and 29 for one of my Hummingbirds about 18 months ago.

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singlespeedstu
Full Member

you need a brake light

You really don’t.

Back on topic.
As ever it’s not the bike , it’s if it’s being ridden in the appropriate manner and place that’s the problem.
As with any bike.

This, exactly….

And no, you don’t need a brake light if you don’t have any other lights.

Was that not 26’er that could be 69er model? I would say the 26er rear is going to hold it back on price.

Rather 69er that could be 26” F&R with suspension forks….but better as a 69er.
26” tyres are still available btw.

The only thing that’s as nice to work on as an mtb is a trials bike, especially an air-cooled twin-shock. Like working on an oversized toy….
Compared to working on pretty much any car or van that I can think of they’re a piece of piss. I used to enjoy working on series Land Rovers but even then, at this time of year, you’re out in the cold, more often than not.

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supernova
Free Member

I’ve never understood the idea that skinny mtb tyres ‘cut through’ the mud – I’m always happier on a pair of 2.8s in winter.

If it’s only a couple of inches of mud on top of, say, a stoney forest road then maybe the narrow tyres would be better than skating around on top of the mud on wider tyres. Maybe…
However in real mud and very soft conditions what is the tyre supposed to “cut through” to, when everything is just peat bog (or it is around here atm…).

T
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thegeneralist
Full Member

Meh. Bloke on [ albeit restricted] bike with a motor rides up steep stuff.

Yeah, I know – you do this sort of stuff just to warm up.
I wish that I could….

He is truly superb – that video with Steve Jones (who is no dummy,imho) was really, really excellent.
I’d be like SJ – just totally broken….

I watched about five minutes and never got past the shorts/undergrowth bit. I just gave up…..

I’m using one with a OneUp lever and one with a Wolftooth.
To be honest, I can’t say that I notice one being any better than the other..

This “sessioning” thing is what I do loads of, either when I’m out on my own or with a good mate who’s similarly minded (we’re both ex trials riders). Even just on a “normal” ride, if I cock up a section that I know I could do better on I often say “I’m not f**king having that” and go back up for another run at it..
It seems a lot of people aren’t that bothered about cleaning and finessing stuff, so maybe I’m in a minority…..

I’ve been trying to get a lot better at exactly this kind of stuff for the last five or six years, since I started watching a lot of the “Vertriding” videos.
I suppose that I have improved but not as much as I’d like and, it goes without saying, to nowhere near the standard of those guys….
But I’ve enjoyed trying, I’d second the Ryan Leach tutorials as being well worthwhile and it’s been really useful when it comes to riding stuff out in Greece – mule tracks and goat and sheep paths in fairly big mountains, where it’s all rocks and very unforgiving.
I’ve also ended up with two Liteville 301s because -hey, that’s what they all use, so……

There’s something really satisfying about taking a bike somewhere that bikes have never been before.

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HoratioHufnagel
Free Member

It would be useful to know what motor it is? Where did you get the spares?

Dyname 3 (Rocky Mountain). The only proprietary item of those I’ve listed was the sprag clutch and that came from the excellent Zero Bikes.
Primary chain, although available as a kit, is just AISI 0.25” pitch roller chain, so I just bought a metre of Renolds chain and a few connecting links – roller bearings I think I got from Wyche Bearings although it might have been somewhere else.
I forgot – I also fitted a new output countershaft (the original had worn splines) – about £25, again from Zero Bikes.

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teethgrinder
Full Member

I wouldn’t touch a second hand ebike with a shitty stick.

I did, about 18 months ago. I’ve replaced a couple of drive shaft bearings, fitted a new primary chain and a new sprag clutch….cost not a lot and just pretty much normal maintenance type stuff.
Probably the only thing that would be more of an issue to work on is the ECU – even stator coils would be available and not that hard to replace.
They’re not witchcraft, it’s just a machine.

Presumably you wouldn’t touch a used car or van either?

Not singlespeeding anymore Bonz?
Because you were pretty damn good at it…..

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DaveyBoyWonder
Free Member

[lights touch paper]
Aren’t all e-bikes for old folks?
[/lights touch paper]

Yep, I’m a 70 year old and I’ve got one (RM Altitude).
And a Liteville 301 and a couple of nice singlespeeds….

You’re not alone in feeling like this, man. I’ve been riding for 30+ years and this year I’ve felt less motivated than ever. I can’t seem to find the “right” people to go riding with, that’s a big part of the problem and the fact that I’m as near as dammit 70 doesn’t help.
I’ll never be as fast as in my racing days, I can’t to 10 foot to flat drops or 20 foot gap jumps like all young dudes seem to be able to nowadays, I’m not that interested in boring fireroad rides, miles just for the sake of it either.
I like finding, sessioning and hopefully eventually cleaning tricky, techy sections, either up or down. I can spend a couple of hours faffing around in some small area finding new lines to try, same as I did in my trials riding days. This usually involves a few minor (hopefully) crashes, a fair bit of swearing and cursing but, at the end, a lot of satisfaction.
But a clean ride doesn’t count if there’s nobody to witness it and most folk aren’t bothered about this kind of stuff – but it’s not much fun on your own either.

I’m seriously thinking of going back to trials riding, to be honest.

which I think just stands for “Le Huile Minerale”

Liquide Hydraulique Mineral

Hopefully there’s more demand for the Swift than there is for the Hummingbird. I recently tried to sell a pretty much immaculate frame and forks and had zero interest….

I’ve got a raw Liteville 301 and I don’t do anything else to it other than wash it and occasionally “roughen up” the top tube with Scotchbrite if it gets too polished looking.
I don’t mind it not looking immaculate, although it looks more immaculate than the black ano. one that I have, which looks like a faded, washed out old pair of jeans.
I don’t mind that either, it’s had a hard life.

I use either a squirt of line marker paint or a few strips of hazard tape on branches – or both.

@Andy-R – Beautiful mate. Kilabrega?

No, the Slieau Curn road, right where you can turn left to drop into the top of Glen Dhoo (The Port). One of my favourite ways down.

I like Killabrega but it’s over all too quickly….

Good to hear from you Bonz – our paths haven’t crossed in years!

You lot with your Stooges – I have to make do with this old thing…

Ti Singular Hummingbird with custom Singular Ti forks (465mm a/c, 62.50mm offset).

They won’t ship to the Isle of Man though, for some unexplained reason. Not that it’ll bother most of you….

Some of the flow thing when MTBing is similar to the groove thing for me, when playing bass. Operating beyond consciousness.

A pretty good comparison, actually – I’ve been doing both for a very long time. Hopefully my bass playing is more consistently accurate than my riding sometimes is otherwise no more gigs for me……

1988 Kona Explosif. Or in the tool line, a little hand-made hammer that was used by my late father and given to him by his uncle.
Probably around 100 years old.

I think it’d be a better design to isolate the motor and electronics from this, and just use a normal replaceable bottom bracket and crank axle, maybe driving the chain via an “idler” type pulley, but I’m not an engineer. Maybe it’s just too heavy that way.

Like Rocky Mountain do then. The downside is a more complex and slightly noisier drivetrain.

Sometimes (at 69) I think about it but if I’m having a good day then I don’t so much. I’m mostly riding on my own, so maybe I should act more responsibly but then I suppose the most “responsible” thing to do would be not to go out riding at all or stick to places perceived as being safe…..
If I was going to do that then I’d just go hill walking instead, which in itself can be far from safe.

Just to add to my post above – I was out depping yesterday evening with the Peavey Palaedium, through the Trace/Mackie head and the two 2×10” cabs in a loudish blues/rock band in a biggish venue but with no PA support for the bass.
A guy in the audience came up to me at the end of the night to tell me that the bass sound was “probably the best that I’ve heard in thirty years, in any situation”…..

So, even at my age, I must still be doing something right…..
The Palaedium is a pretty impressive bass, mind you. Not if you’re a slapper, maybe, but I don’t do much of that now.