RJ, not wrong chap. Full English with poached, sets the day up nicely… Now, where’s me bike!

Nice one, hope the weather treats you nicely. OK today down here, awful tomorrow, but who cares hey…

Interesting conversation this, I have 2012 XT brakes with 203 up front and just upgraded my rear from 180 to 203 as well 😯 I have a faily burly Five at 29lbs and weigh 16st, I also try to ride as fast as I can on technical decents. I found that whilst the front was perfect the rear needed quite a bit of ‘pull’ on the lever before I hit wheel lock*, especially when my weight was well over the rear tyre. Saturday’s ride was great, I found the locking point on the rear was much earier, I have basically tightened the modulation and find it much easier to work with.

* I’ve read the posts about breaking skills with interest and look forward to my yet to be arranged schooling. But IMO whilst there is good advice from experianced riders, there is no standard to keep to, just use the brakes that allow you to ride the way you want.

180/160 on an ASR5 sounds fine unless like me you’re heavy and find you need tighter modulation.

I tried and it could do everything, but was never brilliant at any one thing. Two bikes are where its at for maximum fun.

Really, neither brilliant at “any one thing”? You must be very, very good or have a very extreme definition of do-it-all. I would guess the issue is not bikes at either end of the scale struggling with the bits they do well, it’s the grey area inbetween. I think the answer to the OPs question lies in his definition of do it all and the type of riding he enjoys, not the collective which by default will be more complex.

I have a pretty high end 140mm trail bike and for me it’s a do it all bike. I’ve flirted with a second HT but frankly can’t imagine any time when I would want to ride anything other than my full suss (although wet night rides might be the exception), this is because I don’t ever enjoy flat XC and if I do a more mediocre ride I still spend all my time looking for lines where I can use my bike for what it is designed for. Standing staring at a line of bikes wondering which one is most suited for the trail you’re heading for??? No thanks, I’ll have a bike that suits my riding not where I’m riding (Extreme DH and competitive XC not included).

I think what the OP needs is a light ish 140mm trail bike with lockout rear suspension to liven up dull flat trails. I have a Five but I think Scott do some very nice trail bikes with lockout suspension.

White forks, black wheels with white and silver decals;

And another

Very good… Seems that way!

GSP1984 that’s a typical incorrect assumption. My car had been in the garage over night and I approached it from the right rear. I didn’t park it and I pulled out of a parking space into something that would not normally be there. I was even with a member of staff and they could have said “hey, be careful of the bollard we we can’t drop”. OK I could have walked the perimeter before getting in the car but when was the last time you did that?

I appreciate the fun this is for everyone… But I’ve been using this garage for years and (for dlongman’s benefit) these bollards are never deployed (or at least I’ve never seen them used) when the show room is open. The one in question is not a fixed device. I’ve parked there probably twenty times and didn’t even know the bollards existed. Small point I conceded but…

Blimey you lot are a tough bunch.

The idea that this put’s me firmly in the ‘blame everyone else’ bracket is a bit humbling… Chelsea tractor though… really? And as I’ve never hit a child I assume I’m pretty attentive most of the time.

Simply didn’t expect a bollard to be raised in the middle of my route out of my space, that’s all. As I was parked in the parking lot of the company who had just serviced the car I’m hoping they will take some responsibility as IMO the bollard should have been dropped or clearly identified.

For the record. I was parked correctly and yes, I gave it an almightily whack! I wasn’t going fast but as the bollard would not move and is considerably stronger than my car so it made a right mess.

Keep it coming though… entertainment for the rest of you on a miserable Friday evening 😥

after a bit I learned to look around more and pay a bit more attention before doing something, you might get something out of them..you might not..
But I bet you don’t do it again…….

I appreciate the comment but really, how many people walk round their car [edit] before they drive off just to make sure there isn’t an obstruction in the road?

Project… really…? comparing a two foot high bollard to a cyclist. Or are you very, very small?

Wibble, I took the photo sitting straight, but it is a bit low I agree. Two more…

Another from the drivers seat. The bollard I hit is near the wing mirror.

Here’s a shot from the passenger seat

Cheers guys… funny, but not helpful.

I’m 6′ and have a 17″, I have a short leg so the lower stand over is fine and I find the size feels very nimble to throw down hills 😀

Unless you have abnormally long legs I’d guess it’s fine.

Quite interested to see how this turns out.

Arrest made

If I didn;t I’d float!

Very good… Made me giggle that did.

Nothing to add ass TJ et al have in covered. But having read most of this thread I wish to say in the strongest possible way…

Aracer, you scare me… positivly terrify me. You sound like exactly the sort of driver that causes chaos on the roads and pisses everyone off. You drive around with a complete missunderstanding of the HC and worse, you feel it’s your right to obstruct other road users just because they don’t fit your mistaken idea of how a traffic should work. My god man, I bet you drive along at 70 in the outside lane (with two clear lanes inside) just to prevent others from ‘speeding’. Please sell your car as soon as possible and leave the road to people who understand it.

And for gods sake, what is wrong with overtaking a queue anyway if it’s safe and legal to do so.

Nice one… again. Great vid. Love that drop towards the end, looks fun!

I broke my dads nose when I was about two or three. He was leaning over me in the bath and I decided to stand up. A lesson I learnt well. I have always been very aware when playing / washing my kids. Never assume they will stay still!

If I’m hungary and it’s not yet lunch then I go here for a treat. Always dished up lovely food but not the cheapest around.

Vingt Quatre[/url]

Open 24h and Chelsea not South Ken, but worth the trip.

Lane blocking is just petty. “I’ve sat here pointlessly for ten minutes, so everyone else will have to as well.”

Absolutely. Driving to Dover last Summer down the dual carriageway we hit a lane closure and queuing traffic some ten miles out. As we ‘slowly’ traveled up the [clear] outside lane about half a mile from the merge a car pulled out and blocked our path, bloody sat there all the way to the merge then pulled in. WTF!!!

I quietly invented some choice swear words… 👿

Speed can be dangerous, you’ll get no argument from me there. But most problems I see on the road are from ignorant or just plan bad drivers. The “I’m driving within the limit so don’t need to look where or what I’m doing” brigade are the most dangerous of the lot.

Driving down dual carriageways at 50mph then pulling out last minute right in front of a car travelling at 70mph to over take a lorry. Then take five minutes to pass the lorry causing a tailback, then not pulling in because there’s another car half a mile ahead and they might need to pull out again… shoot the bloody lot of them and give me a fast driver who actually drives considerately and is aware of what’s going on around them.

Rant over…

Anyone else have any good suggestions?

Thanks Paul. Will take a look at those.

Errmmm – nope – surely its up to the faster rider to ride fast without causing incidents. Its is polite to let them past when convenient – and I often do but its on my terms when I can without spoiling my ride

So that’s a yes then. Let faster riders through when safe and convenient to do so. It works everywhere because it the best thing to do, if you don’t let them past it’s unsafe and unfair. It’s no difference to Skiing / Snowboarding, the onus is on the rider above but those below should always be aware to the possibility of a faster rider coming past and ride accordingly.

Fat people are always angry

Not all of them, just those who like beer, tattoos and footy… It’s short people you need to look out for 😉

The fat bumblebee should have pulled over, that’s basic etiquette in any situation where you have people moving at different speeds (other than racing of course). Still, the chap with the camera should have backed off once he realised he had a selfish idiot in front.

Another +1 for uppy downy posts.

Whoops, just showed that to my wife 😳

Hope he’s OK. Nasty.

Buzz, this was up on Gibbet Hill near the Devil’s Punch Bowl in Surrey. We deliberately rode all our favourite trails as it was nice and dry, there are some DH tracks if you know where to look. Nothing too gnar but hit them fast and it’s a whole lot of fun 😛 😛 😛

Jambalaya has it in one. I’m never going to be a DH monster (to old and too many responsibilities for that) but I’m on a mission to be the best I can whilst I’m fit. God it was fun yesterday. Afan later this month, all booked and hoping for good weather.

Ohhhhh, I like secrets 😀

Yes it does matter because the way you are doing it is not optimal

OK. To qualify what I’m personally referring too is fairly steep or technical decents that where carrying quite a bit of speed. Rocky gully’s and fast downhill sections etc… Not fire roads or singletrack etc.. Think decents where you get over the back wheel. I use the rear brake a lot to hold speed in check whilst feathering the front brake where necessary to add greater ‘slowing’ power. This is really where my question stems from.

As it happens I’m planning to a trip to see Jedi so I’m sure this will come out in the wash then.

Yep, that’s pretty much as I have it. Thought I’d ask the question anyway, always ears to a good tip or two. 🙂

I’m in. Only 170km in March so a nice target to beat.

I have noticed the rear ‘extending’ under extreme heavy braking probably once or twice, so they haven’t completey eradicated it. But I haven’t suffered any loss of suspension under normal braking even when hard on fast sections. Orange seem to have limited it pretty successfully but it’s a single pivot thing so will never go away completely.

Agreed. But on steep switchbacks I’m not letting go and sometimes you have to get on the brakes for various reasons, usually because of a mistake… But I digress. This is not a cornering / braking question but braking in general. Does it really matter if you favour one or the other? Or is just the case that as long as you have your speed correctly checked for corners who cares.

This…

Try a few then decide

At the level your looking there are a lot of great bikes. I test rode several when looking late last year and have subsequently tried a couple more. My personal observation is that whilst almost everyone will adapt to and enjoy any decent bike, they all are pretty good, the difference between one you love or one you just enjoy and then get used to is quite profound. A decent test ride will tell you.

Oh, I bought a Five frame and had my LBS custom build it for me. It is quite simply the most amazing bike i’ve ridden offering huge confidence down hill (I throw it at everything) with a build at less than 30lbs, so good for use everywhere. To me it’s perfect 😉

Nice out isn’t it… Glad you had a good one but…

Finally its what I thought it could be.

What on earth have you been doing up until now?

😕

Plug in with Ethernet cable and see if this works. Check WiFi properties and make sure DHCP is selected. If all else fails see what Claire’s IP address is and manually set yours to something on the same subnet but different last address.

Yep. Sounds great. When I think of the areas I could visit on a 20mile loop well, it’s a lot. I’m off to find a deal 😉

I did think that there was (kind of) some sliding scale. Silly of me really I suppose but I couldn’t spend big bucks on what’s clearly a trail weapon and then mince around on it

WTF…??!!! Is this what they call trolling? Deliberate attempts to wind people up. My god man do you think people should be interviewed in the LBS before buying a bike, go on some sort of course to determine if they are ‘good enough’ to buy a trail bike. Buy your estimation anyone in a Porshe should be a racing driver, if you own an Omega Seamaster you should run around risking life and limb like James Bond… God forbid if someone bought an expensive road racing bike, would you then expect them to ride like a tour de France rider every weekend???

We live in a consumer society where we can buy what the hell we like, regardless of skill or what we’ll actually do with it. Either that of the simple fact that you don’t own an expensive bike defines you in ways I’m not going to mention…

[edit] by which I infer nothing about you at all. Just that you can’t read anything into a person by what they buy. Happy you nailed the drop and had a good ride.

Nothwind you summed up my thinking. Whilst I can ride out of my front door into the hills I need a good two hours to really get out on the MTB; once I’ve got ready and cycled to the top of the hill where the fun starts I’m about 45mins in. On the road I could be around eight miles away in that time…

Back to bikes, anyone care to put a figure against a new road bike then and maybe post a pic or two as well. I know what’s needed to get a decent MTB but haven’t a clue about road bikes. Without going completely mad what should I be looking for? Alloy, Carbon, what group set etc… Reading that blog rOkEtDoG provided a link to I guess I want something that’s more fast tourer rather than racer… if that makes any sense?

DT78 that’s hilarious, I hope to god that I don’t start down that route… I just spent a week in Mallorca and couldn’t stop giggling at the efforts some roadies go to ‘look’ the part!

Fastindian that’s what I’ve been thinking, not replacing the weekend MTB ride (well maybe once in a blue moon) just taking advantage of longer days and getting out in the evening. I have this rather prosaic memory of riding down quite lanes on beautiful sunny days and it’s very appealing…

What do I need to spend to get something nice? I’d happily go SH but knowing me will probably end up in a shop 😉