Rossi won’t retire…..yet.

He still has a year left on his contract and he’ll be interested in the new regs with controlled ECU, Micelin tyres, etc….

Could make the playing field even more level and with Rossi’s experience with tyre preservation over a race distance together with this years performance, you may just see a similar year perhaps with a few more wins thrown in…..

2009 Orange Crush is my first proper MTB. This is hideous!

Controversy. Decision from Race Direction will be interesting….

Very helpful guys. Thanks very much indeed…..

Pedals not straight!

My Ducati has been sat idle for around 5 years now. At first it was because I invested most of my time and money into MTB and with the belts needing doing, it just ended up being sat there. Up until that point, I had been riding non-stop from the age of 16 – 25.

Another reason is the accidents and fatal rates which have been a major factor in my reluctance to return to the road.

I will however be getting the bike ready for a trip to Almeria next year and will probably keep the bike for track use only with the possibility of a return to the road one day….

Burning, looting, raping and a shooting….

Not the ones I like otherwise they might get too popular! Joking aside, I’ve been to a few amazing Neon Trees gigs that were fairly intimate, in terms of numbers, and can’t quite understand how they’re not that we’ll known in the UK to the average joe.

Best London Burger for me is Honest Burger followed closely by Patty & Bun then Meat Liquer / Market.

Still yet to try Bleeker, Lucky Chip, Dirty Burger, Bread Street Kitchen and The Admiral Codrington (known for their limited edition burgers).

I try and go somewhere different on each visit I make during gigs. I don’t think I’d even bother with Five Guys but that’s not to say they’re bad, just not as good as the others mentioned.

If it’s Pizza though, Pizza Pilgrims every time but Homeslice is the next stop for me….

No excuses, guess I’ll have to get wet then….

So who’s planning on riding today / this afternoon?

I was going to go from Cocking to Amberley over the SDW and back but looking like a washout!

:-(

When I changed my Fox 140’s to a Pike 150 on the Five it felt a lot heavier at the front end, probably due to a slightly bigger station and 10mm increase.

This made wheelies a lot different to what I was used to but you just alter your weight / balance point slightly to get the correct feeling once again.

So if FS is quicker, should I just sell both bikes and get the SC 5010 I lust for?

I’d agree brand is irrelevant as most manufacturers will make a tyre to suit all conditions. I’ve had good experiences with Continental and Maxxis so am happy to stick with those brands for now.
I’d happily try other brands if there was a particular tyre that best suited the kind of riding I do and came with good reviews.

FYI

For XC the X-Kings have all the grip you will need, even when wet. If you do QECP in the summer, I’d say leave an X-King on the rear and put a RubberQueen up front.

I think the RubberQueens are now called MountainKing however, but same tyre. Again, go for the Black Chili compound. Expensive but worth the extra grip and longevity….l

I also ride QECP and SDW but prefer SDW at the moment. I ride the Five at QECP but always the Soul for SDW.

I’m currently running Conti X-King (front and rear) on the Soul. It’s a great tyre, durable, hard wearing, fast rolling and not a puncture in 800 miles.

The rear is starting to wear but I reckon it’ll clear 1000-1200 miles by the time it’s changed for a new one. The front still looks new!

I’m running the Black Cili Protection with tubes for you info.

X-Kings look awesome too….

Nice one. Cheers CFH.

26.4 lbs

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/my-first-new-build

I did the SDW on a ’12 Five Pro but next time will do it on the Cotic Soul 26. Either are well suited to that distance….

Has Stephen Hawking narrated on that video…….terrible! :D

Manuals are more difficult than the wheelie….

I find a smooth tyre like a DMR Moto also helps out due to being smooth and having a good contact patch. I like to have my seat at a medium height just under the waistline when stood next to the bike as this improves centre of gravity. Having the seat too high will make you top heavy which will have a negative effect on your lateral balance.
Geometry makes a difference too. I’ve changed my fork on the Five from a 140 to 150 and because of the extra weight/length it’ wheelies completely different .
I’d definitely recommend learning on a hardtail rather than a FS as all of the torque/power from your pedal stroke will go straight to your wheel rather than being lost in the shock.
Spend around 30 mins at least four times a day and you will learn within a matter of weeks.

This was a couple of years ago after a days riding in Afan. On the balance point you can see my knee coming out for lateral balance.

Also compressing the front before extending the arms out and being slightly out of the seat when pushing that initial pedal stroke to lift the front up.

I too tend to wheelie most of the time as it’s just a fun thing to do.

Lovely bike CG. I’d love a Sync myself, just not in 29 as they currently offer.

I love my Soul. I got it when they were selling the last batch of green 26 for a discount in January this year. Cotic offered a swap for the 27.5 when I asked but I decided to stck with the 26, and I’m glad I did.

I’ve done 95% of my riding on it this year and barely touched the Five. It’s as good as people say it is and depending on the build, very aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

Hi guys,

Just curious, does anyone know why there is a huge log left in the middle of the trail on the SDW between The Milburys PH and Holden Farm? It’s just as your approaching the farm if your heading for Winchester..

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If you continue along the South Downs Way trail which passes the zig zag berms on your left, take the trail to the right where it forks off which leads down to Halls Hill car park. The new start should be on the level part of this trail on the left just before it starts to decend. There is a bench nearby over looking the view with a statue of a lamb or sheep.

How are people that previously had the 26 finding the new size after a few months of riding the 27.5?

Slightly late to the topic but what an awesome looking bike. The Sync has to be my fave looking frame but this is just as stunning!

I’d love a Kinesis Maxlight Sync Ti. It would have to be a Medium sized frame though, with 650b wheels rather than 29.

Computerised bikes which dont need a pilot to ride them. Your bike can take itself for a ride on the trails whilst you sit back and have a beer!

Just built mine with 140’s. Love it.

All sorted now after taking it all apart, twice!

The inner edge of the seal was sitting slightly wrong making the out edge sit lower and wider (exposing the crown race).

Cheers guys!

Cheers Rich, I’ll do that.

For some reason, the wheel was off centre but is now sorted. It’s no wonder I had an issue indexing the gears with them feeling as though they were grinding away. Oh to be the novice.

Still, that’s tge whole reason for building my own bike, to learn to do things myself in irder to have fun, relax and gain knowledge.

Just managed a quick spin up the road. At 26.4 lbs it’s fast, very fast (at least compared to my Crush and Five).
It wheelies nice and geometry feels very good.
Can’t wait for a proper ride!

Cheers guys, nice to get the feedback.

As for the dropper, I was going to use the Reverb on my Five until I realised it was the next size down. Really like the simplicity of the Thomson post and will be using it a lot for the xx rides.

Have to agree with the seat clamp. I think it looks better the other way round but apps tilt this is how it should sit. I’ve got it the other way round on the Five. Controversial.

There’s stuff in the room, just moved aside for the “Photo Shoot”. See my “Mancave” thread.

Thanks Liftman, never noticed that until pointed out.
I’ve looked at but closely and it dies appear off centre to the right, not sure why.

The wheel is sitting where it should in the frame and us spinning true. Is there any chance I’ve set it wrong?

Very helpful, thanks very much.
Thought it should be looking like that.

I also have an integrated Hope headset on my 2012 Five and the crown/bottom seal (which I think are the same size as my new external headset) fit flush with the base of that cup.

Looks like it’ll be an email to Cotic as ordered the headset from them.

It must surely be a simple solution but I’ll get there in the end.

Right. Taken it apart, again, tried the bearing both ways round and looked where the race crown would sit off the fork.
The crown and seal fit in the exact same location with the gap remaining the same.

I’m baffled.