Brilliant! Sounds like we just need to wait until nearer the time and find something last minute.

anyone recommend who to book with? Or is it best to find accommodation and go straight to them?

Thanks for the ideas, Dolomites appeals. 

would be looking at staying a resort ideally and only doing day hikes from there. My wife is not that much into bigger stuff, so would be looking for easy and well guided.  

Do the Pyrenees and apennines have plenty of easy going trails with lifts etc? 

Just bought the v1 CC linkages on sale too!

+ 1 for RS Super Deluxe. I am using a 205X60 shock rather than a 57.5 and using a 2.5 travel limit spacer which I bought and then cut a slot in to fit it to the shaft. Nothing has exploded and I did not die and I did Boltby bash on it last weekend.

The difference from the DPx2 was amazing, so much smoother but holds up really well too without blowing through the travel.

Sentinel alloy owner here too, would buy another one in a heart beat. They do work a lot better with a coil IMO. Really surefooted, climbs amazingly, heavy but not noticeable when on the bike.

A mate has an alloy nukeproof mega, they are very good value, but not sure they are quite as good quality as a transition.

@sturdylad, if it’s still available then I would love it! Will send you a pm.

It’s amazing how many “new” bike ideas have already been done by Cleland bikes forever…

So I went once, it was awful, but I did find an easy way out.

There is a footpath running right through Centre parcs, so it can’t be “closed”. I found this and a gap in the fence on the southern boarder near a water tower that looked straight out of war of the worlds lead me out to freedom.

If you look on an OS map you should be able to see it.

Dunno if anyone has mentioned, but I have a Mercedes Citan crewcab XLWB and it’s mint. Split folding rear seats which fold completely flat.

Fit 3 people and 3 fully built up 29ers with kit no problem. Works as a one person camper. Can fit loads of bikes in without wheels on when seats are up too.

Not to pricey too.

Lifeline do some nice nylon coated steel levers (just search on wiggle). I have also found crank brothers speed levers really good.

I am not suggesting you don’t know how to fit a tyre at all, but once I figured out the significant difference in making sure that both beads are sat in the central channel of a rim as much as possible made a massive difference. This is especially true on wider tubeless rims which ramp up towards to edges to ensure a tight fit.

3 Saturday enduro tickets here. Logged on at 6 and then straight in. Think being on so early helped.

I love the comment someone said “almost the Glastonbury of mtb”

Totally agree, it’s awesome. I don’t like paying to ride my bike but I love Ard Rock. Proper party atmosphere all the way round.

One more thing, for those that have been in this position (or in this position). I had a bad spell today and got really, really low. I had taken some tramadol a couple of hours earlier, does this sometimes do this?

How do folk cope mentally with the pain? I think I need to address that too.

Hopefully having acupuncture tomorrow

Thanks for the exercise @Fat-boy-fat.

It’s the length of time that’s bugging me. Had a bad couple of days, just getting flare ups from nowhere.

Ears have started ringing too, apparently a side effect of ibuprofen (!) I do suffer from vestibular issues from time to time anyway.

Physio tomorrow! Going to have to hit the strong painkillers just to get there. Fun.

Thanks, that makes sense. Lying on my front does help at times actually.

The exercise that I have been told to do is lying on my front and doing a press up but keeping my pelvis on the ground (whilst relaxing my glutes).

That helps.

Ok, think I will get a bike fit for my road and gravel bike. I would assume an mtb is less of an issue due to moving your position around a lot and it being less about the pedalling. I tend to ride reasonably gnarly stuff on the mtb and longer/Xc stuff on gravel which is a more static position.

Does running lower gears help?

I actually had a pain between my shoulder blades a month before things got bad, it only lasted a couple of days.

Hope that’s not related…

That sounds brutal @johnhe, sleep is sometimes an issue, but not to that extent.

Standing desk would be great, before I was signed off work I was alternating between lying down with a laptop on my chest and standing at a high table but couldn’t do this for long at all.

Sounds like we need to create a support group!

It’s interesting that a number of you have found walking to help. I can’t say I find walking helps at all. I go for short walks as instructed by my physio, but it does hurt after a short while.

I take on board what people are saying about not rushing recovery. I can cope without riding for a while as long as I can get out and walk.

I am about 3-4 weeks in, so sounds like I have a way to go, but you are all giving me a lot of hope!

I was supposed to do the calder divide last weekend! Will keep that as a long term goal.

@oldnpastit was it “treat your own back”?

This was recommended earlier in this thread, so have ordered a copy.

If not, always happy to consider other recommendations.

I need to consider the position on my bikes, especially road/gravel as I have become a fan of longish and low – but perhaps my body hasn’t!

Another question – are people pretty much doing a little bit of hobbling around but mostly having to lie down (only way I can get comfy). I can’t sit for more than a couple of minutes.

Trying the odd short walk – but that makes things worse.

Ok, next question is painkillers. Gp has prescribed tramadol, which I was taking spaced out throughout the day with ibuprofen and paracetamol.

Appeared to be helping, but then I was running out of tramadol, so went back to gp. He said it’s not a good long term drug so said I need to reduce it. Now I only use it for bad pain but I the ibuprofen and paracetamol is not working well enough and means I am pretty much lying down most of the time – with little walks and potters around the house every half an hour or so.

Gp didn’t offer an alternative! What have people found that works? Just so I can ask the gp about them…

Ok, so there is a trend here.

Perhaps we could do a GCN and do a STW core exercise thing?(they did a cycling specific core workout video) GCN core exercises

Wow, so it’s quite a lot of us.

@timba I am seeing a physio who diagnosed it, so I am hoping they know what they are doing…

What about causes? Is it a riding thing without paying attention to other muscles?

Wow, really appreciate you both sharing your experiences. It sounds really awful, I feel for you both. Really good to hear the positives in both your cases.

At the moment it appears to be slowly getting marginally better, but sitting down is a no no, as is riding.

Let’s see how things pan out with the physio.

I have ordered the back book.

Man, that sounds tough.

I am really hoping that I don’t need to go as far as surgery.

At what point was this decided the best route?

Yep, 10 speed microshift advent x for about a year now with an ali express cassette (this was due to availability) and it has all been amazing. 10 speed on two other bikes too.

I ride 29ers, so use a 28 chainring with 11-46 cassettes and have plenty of up hill gears (I always gear for the ups, not the downs).

Yeah I have read this and came to the conclusion that I can get four people in. It was the way they where sold which was confusing.

Cheers @alpin and @Elbows – will message you

Wow, weeksy that would be ace! I am sort of M/L so that would be cool. Will message you.

Sram appears to suggest a 1.85mm spacer is needed.

If you fit the wheel into your frame without the cassette, does it spin freely?

Are there any axle end caps you have missed off?

Thanks for the heads up, found the thread on bare bones and managed to open up the hub.

Bearings were not terrible, but the main issue was that all of the internals where completely rusted up. Obviously not very well sealed.

Thanks, but is it stiff to the point where you can’t rotate the axle by hand?

I have it fixed in a vice and it is hard to rotate still.

Are the pro 4’s in good nick? If so then Mavic Open Pro’s are amazing gravel rims (if the spoke count is right). Run mine tubeless with 43 mm soft tyres and they have been rock solid. Replacing the rims is the cheapest option.

Locations pretty spot on, there was a secret bothy in there too, but only internal shots so no clue of location.

Thanks for the replies.

Used them last night and they didn’t go out of sync once!

Anyway, didn’t even think about just using the button on the light to get them back in sync!

Wow. Lovely list. Should one of the rules be:

“Don’t feel the need to comment on everything on STW”?

Oh hang on.

Dam.

The folding bike rack things are in…jury is out regarding how relatable they will be.

They work for sure and mean that the bikes are not leaning onto each other or the van interior.

Need a trip to test it out.

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I have also made the bike rack things properly now and they fold so they can stay in place when the seats are up.

Need to fit them all though

Yeah, didn’t think about those areas. Got to do something the the back doors too, but don’t want to carpet them because they will get wet.

I have been busy making a little cooking pod though…