Mark McGowan (aka Artist Taxi Driver) is sound, just a bit misunderstood, and not wanting to make you feel bad, but he does have bowel cancer.

Actually, that does make me feel bad.. :oops:

Love frankie to bits but that other bloke is a total bellend.

My old 2007 Spesh Stumpjumper FSR, just a perfect fit, super confident when riding it. I miss you stumpy. :wink:

Had my X2 29er now for 8 months, really good all rounder. Only thing to watch for is the sizing, it is a big bike and with a long wheelbase feels big on tight technical trails.Ive always had medium with Giant bikes,but the Anthem is the first bike where the small size may have been a better option in hinesight. So a test ride is a must.
Reliability wise no problems.

p.s the Anthem X 29er isnt being discontinued its being sold next year alongside the 27.5 for 2014

my nexus 7 downloaded android 4.3 yesterday, and when it restarted it then updated all the applications. Ive had no problem with mine since the updates.

…and both of my current Giant 29ers are now, in Giants eyes at least, Sh1t..
well that was 3k well spent.. :oops:

check this out for some marketing / science / spiel, there is also the 27.5 giant range shown too

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/showcase/anthem-27-5/#customtechpage

[quoteAfter the excellent-ness of Quaver Catering, I thought the catering tent was absolutely awful. When we arrived on the Friday afternoon, it just seemed like they were cooking a load of random stuff and calling it a ‘combo bap’.[/quote]

I find it unacceptable that they dont give you food included in the entry fee, i pay €8 to for a XC race and get a full meal at the finish and a beer, UK race organisers should pay a visit to some euro events to see what VFM really is.

my regular 25.3km road loop gives me 1174m climbing (15.7 miles, 3850ft), not in the UK so not really fair to compare i guess, but still a great workout. :D

im actually getting a bit peeved with Giant on this, i sold my 26 fs because i was told that the 29er bettered it in every way, now im being told that smaller wheels might be better after all. I think next time im going back to Specialized, at least they seem to know what they are doing and sticking to it (29er)

just a case of mixing up long steady rides (4hrs+) with shorter harder ones, coming up to winter you could also try some turbo sessions for some speed. hours spent on the bike are more important than miles ridden if you want to increase endurance

ahh bollocks to all of this, im going out on my roadbike :wink:

[quoteHaha.. 29ers are history thank the lord it was just a fad for rich folk who can’t ride for toffee. One down just the 650 to shift now aye [/quote]

i never found my 29er to be a skill compensator, in fact i found it harder to ride in most situations over my 26. I just love the ride of the 29er….

[quoteHaha.. 29ers are history thank the lord it was just a fad for rich folk who can’t ride for toffee. One down just the 650 to shift now aye [/quote]

i never found my 29er to be a skill compensator, in fact i found it harder to ride in most situations over my 26. I just love the ride of the 29er….

Big risk for Giant as most of their 29ers get good reviews, the 29er Anthem came runner up in ‘bike of the year’.

I think we have all been nicely conditioned now to accept 27.5. We all already know 26 and have had the 29 benefits drummed into us for the past 4 years so, when a bike company offers a bike with all of the benefits its hard to counter the argument.

There have been posts in the past on here (alot) that diss the 29er as just a marketing tool, i initially disagreed but im starting to wonder if the whole thing was planned, with 27.5 being the end result. :|
conspiracy?

works fine, just turn off data roaming. Strava only needs internet when uploading the ride, which i always do when i get home on wi-fi or go past the town that has FREE wi-fi for everyone… (take note Mr Cameron)!!!

I spoke to a Ford salesman, and even he admitted they were a bit naff- using alot of outdated previous model Focus running gear. If i was in the market for that type of vehivle i would look towards the VW Tiguan which is a fab car or a Honda CRV, if you can get past the quirky looks

There is a range of Giant XTC 27.5 hardtails on the horizon. apparently.

[quote4 months to go on the mortgage but we could pay it off today ,so yep debt free.[/quote]

so no then

a lynx ran out in front of me today on a fast descent, one of those ‘wish i took the go-pro moments’

good cars, the 1.6 engine is pretty bombproof and reasonable on fuel too.

look out for : reject a car if the radio display says ‘safe mode’ as the cars electrics and engine mgt run through the stereo

as with any car walk away if any warning lights showing or the car unusually low on oil or water

Teaching English is possible if your students are intermediate level or above, but im pretty sure you will need a recognised qualification to teach in France. like CELTA or at least EFL.

it depends how often you ride, if you have been riding for 10-15 hours a week for years, two weeks off will make no difference and may have a positive effect if you didnt eat and drink yourself silly that is.. :wink:

Pure class from Froome today, and to be fair he seems like a well rounded, nice guy. I still however, just cant get my head around why he is representing the UK and not South Africa?

Must have something to do with Sky maybe?

on and on – that scapel is lovely, for some reason though they scare the sh1t out of me :roll:

its the last year martin is holding it at Newnham

that is a shame if true, ridden a couple of 12 hr solos there and it keeps you on your toes, but is also interestng with it with so many varied sections. He will have to work hard to match it

a litre of local brew 1.20 euro. straight from the pub tap

[/quote] I was looking to buy a carbon Santa Cruz frame from a certain Lakes bike shop…the bloke serving told me the one I was looking at had just been bought a dentist and then asked me what I did for a living! If that wasn’t bad enough, he then asked my mate a few questions about my employment too!

he is pre qualifying you to ensure you can afford it, such behaviour is normall at Porsche and Mercedes, a bit sad that a bike shop feels the need.. :(

brilliant bikes, comfy ride position and a nice smooth ride. Not the stiffest frame, go to carbon for that. i covered many 5-6 hour rides on mine without any drama or fuss.go for it

How about we refresh the whole bike line and sprinkle some of that stuff in there? Maybe go for wheels that are just a little bigger?”

27.5 it is then

for me im not too bothered about KOM,s, and cups but i have become obssesed with altitude gain a month back i targeted myself with 5,000m in 28 days, which quickly turned into 8500m, 10,000m and now im aiming for 15,000m in the past 28 days. Trouble is i can only get out a couple of days a week at the mo which means if im to maintain the momentum i need rach ride to clock about 1400m worth of ascent. needless to say Strava is slowly killing me!

Most dealers use CAP as this takes auction values, which dealers prefer if they have to offload the part exchange down the block. Glasses guide isnt always very accurate and is more of a retail selling price guide than to value a p.ex.
Its also worth noting that some car values differ wildly between Glasses guide and CAP, especially top end cars, BMW’s, range rovers, and strangely some french brands esp Renault normally come out with higher values on glasses guide.

If a dealer is really struggling with a valuation i have known them to price it on we buy any car dot com!

Cracked Anthems…

anyone on here suffered a frame failure..

http://forums.mtbr.com/giant/anthem-x-cracked-frames-675553.html

seems a number have suffered failures of the fatigue sort including 2012 and 2013 frames

I always get a little suspicious when i read posts like this below taken from that mtbr thread :

“Giant was quite good with the frame replacement for me (although they refused to change the Anthem 29 frameset for a Trance 29, even if I was willing to pay a price difference).”

could it be that some of these Anthems are being subjected to some big hits, This guy obviously feels the need for a Trance X, which makes me think the Anthem may have been on the very rough stuff that it wasnt designed for

[quoteAndypaul, sag doesn’t affect the height you need your seatpost[/quote]

im clutching at straws really, just assumed that if there was too higher sag while sizing the bike at rest you would need to compensate by extending the seatpost more to get the correct ‘leg stretch’?

I am 6ft 1 and 34 inside leg. Setting the seat you are supposed to have a straight leg with your heel on the pedals and I did that, having to have the seat tube at its fullest extent (minimum insertion).

something doesnt seem right, with a 34 leg on a large you shouldnt need the seatpost at minimum insertion, what sag are you running on the shock?

if you’d ever ridden on the roads here in Slovakia you would know that manuals and bunnyhops are neccersary to survive :wink:

I dont really ride my road bike much, so on strava i have stuck MTB next to my name to justify my poor peformance on the road….that does however put far more pressure on me when im off road!
No excuses then :wink:

It’s interesting to see that, despite years of marketing to the contrary, gears don’t make that much difference and neither does suspension.

difference to what?

fleetwood mac

have a set of 2013 slx and VERY impressed so far