Why would you want to buy a new bike if you love the one you have?

Life must be difficult if you have a meltdown at something as minor as this.  Someone suggesting a lower priced bike isn’t taking the piss.

If you want a serious answer then you need to say the type of rider you are and what you want from the bike. If you just want a nice road bike for 3.5k then just pick the one that looks nicest, I’m sure all bikes at the price range will be pretty good.

What do you plan on doing once you get to your planned weight? I’m not sure 1200 calories is maintainable long term so you need a plan on what your diet will be once you get close to your desired weight.

Personally I’d rather eat a bit more and losenthe weight slower. Less likely to give up and end up binging that way.

That bike looks great fun! I think you’d be fine with either size, the length of the seat tube isn’t really all that important as they’ve been getting shorter and shorter on most bikes. Just fit a longer seat post if you need extra height and you’ll be laughing.

I think I’d find having more than 2 bikes stressful. Unless you’re into a lot of niches of riding then I’m not sure I see the point.

I think threads like this brings out the worse in people. On one hand you get the ones you are dismissive of people with nice things but aren’t the most skilful. Apparently we should all ride round on a supermarket bike and sports direct shorts until we are good enough to be racing at a decent level.

On the other hand you get people bragging about having a lot of nice kit and then thinking people are jealous when they get called out for sounding like an arse.

Buy what you want, and let others buy what they want to. Stop judging and just have fun. And don’t take yourself too seriously.

As someone else mentioned, there’s a few cases where it’s justified. Generally people who act snobbishly to others for having cheaper gear than them, or those who buy gear that hinders them just because they see pros using it.

But usually it’s used by people to put down those who aren’t as talented or experienced as they are at a sport. Why should someone new to a sport use cheap gear if they can afford the good stuff?

Why shouldn’t someone new to the sport use a portable bike cleaner after a ride at Cannock? Their bike gets mucky as well, regardless of the speed they ride at.

What’s wrong with someone who’s a keen rider but a bit rubbish wearing expensive mtb shorts? Should they be wearing cheap football shorts from sports direct instead? Surely riding gear is about comfort and practicality, it’s nothing to do with performance or how fast you ride.

I think we should be more welcoming to people who are having a go. Having someone show off about their expensive bike is annoying, but so is someone showing off about how great a rider they are.

There’s some decent mountain biking from Tong, but it does get very muddy in the winter.

I agree with David above. If I’d saved up for 3 years then I’m not sure I’d want to spend an extra grand or so (or whatever the difference is) on getting a bike that is a bit lighter. I guess it depends on how long you plan on keeping the bike, if it’s for years and years then it might be worth it, if it’s a year or two then it probably isn’t.

Personally I’d rather save that money and spend it on something else (or save it), but I’m not really one to spend a lot of cash. Once you’re on your bike, I doubt you will care whether it could have been a bit lighter or not.

Lots of people have already mentioned the pros and cons, I think you just have to decide your priorities and whether you think it’s worth it.

Pilates and Yoga are for different things. Yoga is flexibility and pilates is more core strength and mobility. I imagine pilates is far more useful than yoga for most people, unless it’s flexibility that you specifically need to work on.

If you have a lot of savings (or expect to have) then have a look at offset mortgages with no early repayment fees. It means that you don’t necessarily have to pay it off quickly, but any money in your offset savings account will reduce the amount you pay interest on. After a while, if all goes well, you’ll basically have a 0% mortgage where you can repay it whenever you like. You pay a slightly higher interest rate than a normal repayment mortgage, but you only pay interest on a reduced total amount (mortgage amount minus whatever money is in your offset savings account).

Edit – obviously it’s worth speaking to a professional mortgage adviser. The above was what they suggested to us 6 months ago in fairly similar circumstances, but it might not be best for you.

I’ve seen the term greed thrown about a lot in recent threads. Have the people who assume a brand is being greedy checked the profits of the companies? Have Isla started making a much bigger profit since they put prices up, or is it just to cover costs or improved bikes? If these brands that have put up their prices arent making more money than they were before then it’s not greed.

Obviously it’s for you to decide whether the increased cost is worth it, but it’s a different thing to greed. Not all brands cater for the premium end of the market, so criticising the ones that do is a bit stupid. From a customer’s perspective it’s good that there is a wide range of bikes at different price points. If you don’t have a lot of disposable income then there’s still a lot of brands out there that make decent affordable bikes.

650b really helps make the ride more comfortable on a hardtail over bumpier stuff, but I find my 2.8 Nobby Nics to be painfully draggy on tarmac. But then again, an aggressive 29 tyre would be as well. I think I’d pick a tyre suited for the fun stuff and just endure the duller part of the ride.

Or buy a cheaper set of wheels to try out 650b to see what you think of it before fully committing.

I love how a 160mm hardtail is suggested on a thread where the OP says ‘its only going to be used for very basic trails with my 2 children aged 10 and 13 so nothing too adventurous and a short commute to work’.

For the intended use, it’d be daft to pay 1200 on a bike imo. I think I’d go for the Bizango, or maybe the Marin Pine Mountain or the Genesis Yarn mentioned above. The plus tyres wouldn’t be great for commuting though.

It’s a pretty good argument really. Bags are useful, as are bikes. Different types of bags can be useful in certain circumstances, as can different type of bikes. People tend to switch bikes/ bags for fashion reasons as well as practical.

It’s also possible to get away with “only” 1 or 2 bikes/ bags, but you may be compromising suitability slightly by doing so. You can ride a mountain bike for “gravel” riding, you don’t need a gravel bike, but it won’t be as much fun. You don’t want a gravel bike for utility, you want it for enjoyment. Biking is only useful if you use it as a means of transport, not riding for riding sake, and any bike can be used for this.

As a society we love buying stuff that we don’t really need but enjoy. As long as you can afford it then buy whatever you want to, whether bikes or bags.

Be honest with the type of riding you enjoy and is practical where you live. If you live somewhere with a lot of quiet country lanes and gentle off road routes, then a CX bike is brilliant. Similarly if you plan on commuting a lot with one.

I bought one and never really got on with it as most of the offroad routes near me are better with a mountain bike, and the roads are far too busy to enjoy. The only thing I ended up using it for was commuting along a canal towpath every so often. I replaced it with a hardtail as my second bike instead.

Stanton Sherpa is worth a look too. If I were to buy a cross country style steel frame with decent geometry then I’d pick the one I like the looks of most between the Soul or Sherpa.

Jordan, you really aren’t coming across well in this thread. I quite like your bikes and think you’re t-shirts are great, but it’s not very professional to start slagging off an entire forum due to a few people making slightly negative remarks. A forum is a place for discussion so it’s entirely reasonable for people to discuss your bike on here instead of directly emailing you. It’s cool that you want to answer some of your critics, but make sure you do so in a reasonable way. I can’t imagine singletrack would be that impressed with you insulting their user base whilst you’re featured in their magazine.

Although I agree that the people moaning about your branding and choice of language need to get a grip. If they don’t like it then they’re probably not the target audience. Not all brands can appeal to everyone.

My 2 bikes are very similar to the two you want, I have a Stanton Slackline and a Canyon Spectral, both with fairly average components.

The Canyon is better for tougher terrain but I tend to have more fun on the Stanton on most trails. If you do a lot of techy riding then I’d be tempted by the full suss, otherwise I’d for for the BTR.

Geography is a relatively easy subject, whereas Biology and Chemistry are a lot tougher. If she’s going to do well in one of those then she’ll have to put a lot of work in, which might be tricky if they’re third and fourth choice and not a priority.

Although the top Universities also recognise this and value Biology and Chemistry highly.

Personally, I’d suggest she picks the subjects she has the most interest in as she’ll probably end up doing better in them. A Levels and degrees are hard when you find the subject tedious. I’d only pick a specific A Level if she has an Uni course in mind that will require it.

I’d go for 120-130mm, unless you have a specific use for the 150mm e.g. racing enduros or uplift days.

Although I imagine either would be fine for most types of riding.

Sherwood Pines blue and red sound perfect for her.

I mainly ride my hardtail in winter due to there being less things to break but it isn’t a winter bike as such. The riding I tend to do in winter tends to suit it more and it’s easier to fit mudguards to it.

Seems to work well when on the bike but it seems very sensitive when setting up. Every time I mess with the seatpost height I’m worried it’ll stop working.

Also had a warranty issue that wasn’t sorted because the distributor didn’t have a repair kit available. I’m not sure I’d get another one.

I have a Stanton Slackline too and it looks lovely in the flesh.

The gerbils we had were clean, barely needed cleaning out, sociable and friendly. They also were active during the day.

They we’re fairly easy to handle although they never really stayed still. I think they’d be a great pet for a kid.

We also have degus and they’re really hard work in comparison.

Both will be good and a similar style, I’d buy the one you like the look of the most.

Stanton Slackline fits your description. Also have a look at Production Privee.

I can’t really tell the difference whilst out riding, I’d happily have either although I wouldn’t see it as an upgrade.

Loads of bike shops rent them out, might be worth finding one in your area if you’re interested.

It’s definitely worth a go, some really nice sections although some parts drag a bit. I’m happy to travel 90 minutes to it.

If you like the Bird but worried it may be too much travel, have you considered the 120? 130 fork and 120 shock, but with relatively decent geometry. I think they’re pretty long too so shouldnt feel too work.

The other regular recommendation for this style of bike is the Cotic Flare. The Whyte is very well thought of too, and is very popular.

Are you able to test ride any of them? If you’re not going to test ride then one of the direct buy companies may be worth looking at too (Canyon Spectral or YT Jeffsy).

I think they make a lot of sense on a hardtail and like the extra squish and grip, although some really aggressive rides have had issues with thin side walls.

I have a Stanton Slackline and it’s a thing of beauty.

Personally I don’t think you can go far wrong with any of the steel hardtails mentioned above, I’d just pick the one with the wheel size you prefer and the one you think looks the prettiest.

The Switchback is the slackest and most downhill orientated. The sherpa is the most cross country orientated, and the slackline is somewhere in the middle.

Saying that though, the Sherpa is pretty decent on the fun stuff as well by all accounts, and the Switchback can climb.

I believe they have a little graph on their website showing which bike model is suited to which type of riding the most.

People don’t like a pay cut, even if they ended up saving money on their commute.

As others have said, allowing them to work from home more regularly would be a good middle ground. If you do decide to move to Leeds then do it for long term reasons, not just for some members of staff who may not be there for very long.

I can’t recommend audible enough, there’s a ridiculous amount of choice on there.

We cancelled our tv licence for about a year but still used Netflix and an Xbox in that time, which was fine as it wasn’t live TV. It’d be a bit trickier now as you need one for iPlayer.

Have a careful read of the rules on TV licences and make sure you comply with them if you do cancel. If they ask you about it, just tell the truth and say what you do watch. If they come knocking then you don’t have to let them into your house as they have no right to be there. Simply owning a tv isn’t proof you watch live tv any more anyway.

I think a lot of the discussion on trail centre vs bridleways says more about the local terrain of the user rather than inherent characters of either.

Even near where I live in west Leeds, some of the bridleways are steep and fairly rocky, whilst others are tame and flat. Go to the Peak district and some of the most technical descents and climbs I’ve done were on bridleways.

Similarly, trail centres can cover a lot of different types of riding. The red route at Hamsterley is massively different Sherwood pines; it’s far steeper, more technical and feels more natural.

Try the blue route, it shares the same trail as the red in sections and there’s some really nice bits to mix up the fire roads.

It’s also only half the distance of the red so doesn’t feel like a slog.