Thanks, I’ll give them a call.

Bought ‘lovely’ green Horsethief 2 from HiBike last month for just under £2K – with the euro it is probably cheaper now. Almost certainly lighter than a similarly priced Segment.

Thanks for the route. Fingers crossed, just passing Dunkeld and it doesn’t look too bad (yet). 🙂

Cheers, looks like it might be OK lower down. Could always footer about in Inshirach Forest and visit the cake shop. Any other suggestions for 3-4 hours?

Thanks for the info.

Was snowing but not lying to any great extent at 2pm. There were trees blocking the fireroad between BBB and blue velvet. We didn’t go any higher because of the weather. The top third of electric blue was also blocked by trees and pennel’s vennel is shut. BBB, zoom or bust and Good Game were ok.

Julian – do you have any info on the tramuntana route? Was walking there in October and wished I had my bike.

Thanks for the suggestions. The Unveil/Thumper looks good but by the time I do a full build it will be a similar price to the HT/Spectral. Also after Maverick going belly up it would need to be a better deal given they are a new/small company. Anyone know what it weighs built up and how it rides? Similar query to nuke about the Spectral. The Kona is a single chainring and with the hills locally I am only now thinking of taking the step from 3 to 2 chainrings – one at the front is a step to far. Sandwicheater – drop me an email, I don’t want them all sold before I decide!

The only bits putting me off the horsethief are the SRAM drivetrain. The green frame looks lush, my daughter has the previous version in a basic build which she loves. The canyon looks great value but in some ways seems too sensible. I have a Maverick so have a slightly off key sense of taste. The trigger looks interesting but after the Maverick I am a little wary of non standard shocks and it appears a bit heavy.

After a large frame. I noticed the radon slide but there is very little info9 on them. I am 1.88 and 93kg so looking for a large frame. I have always felt the is too much flex in the rear of the Titus.

You know the answer, it may not be aesthetically pleasing but it works. Chain Reaction had them on sale – Gravity Dropper.

Anyone tried the Broad Law route, can’t make up my mind if it is worth the effort.

Bizarre how some people know how the design performs without riding one. I have just gone back to my 2005 ML7.5 and am loving it. Not a perfect but still holding out well for something so obsolete. It would be interesting to know whether they had taken the design as far as they could. Ethan Franklin ex-Maverick admits more modern bikes are better on the really rough stuff,

I had wondered about the G form but worried after pulling them on a few times the elastic would give up.

Thanks, it is a pity as the black is my favourite bit. The cakes at Tommy Tosh’s will have to wait.

+1 for sun peaks. Can hire everything at the resort. Plenty of variety for a couple of days, just watch out for the bears 😯

Try googling arthritis research uk plantar fasciitis. It should take you to a good exercise sheet, instead of a rolling pin try a can of coke/beer from the fridge. Good luck

Any GXP experts out there? 🙂

I have one of the very 1st ones and it is now going on for 8 years old. Just under 20lbs with full ultegra triple in large. I have bought about 5 MTBs over that time but never felt the itch to switch the VN. I am just about to take it out for a quick spin but it is also great for all day trips. I think they have modified the frame to make it stiffer around the BB. But as a 14st masher I have never noticed any significant flex. Sorry no pics. The price for for a similar build to mine with decent hand built dura ace wheels now looks a little scary as I was lucky to get my built for £1.5k 🙂

Hi,

I had wondered about the Sisteron to Nice section. Main initial problem is physically getting to somewhere to start, how did you travel. What were the trails like? The raid looks fun but I am hoping to do a route with 4 days cycling. Any advice gratefully received.

Nipped out, freezing and clear but still nothing. Watched a fantastic display in Canada many moons ago but only seen a few poor displays since. 😥

Beautiful clear sky in South Lanarkshire but nothing doing. Wade – where are you?

I upgraded from 80 to 100mm and didn’t notice a huge difference. From what I have heard 120mm doesn’t handle that well.

Chris, really enjoyed the write up. Is it possible to get a .GPX copy of the route. I am hoping to something this September but will only have 5 days. Is there a section you would recommend that might be do-able flying into Geneva?

thanks

(email in profile)

Any other ideas/advice out there?

Thanks, the VTT tours site looks interesting. A lot to look through with some promising longer trips. What did you do in the end

The deore brakes I presume was £40 for one whereas the SLX is for a set.

I haven’t found a huge amount around KLB. An evening blast along the Sandwood track is fun and good for practising jumping over water bars. Another good route is near Arkle, I tend to start at Lone – http://www.offroadadventures-online.com/arkle.htm. There is a bit of hike-a-bike in the middle but if you choose your day carefully then most is rideable. I did it last year during a frosty spell but had to push a bit in slushy snow at the highest point.

Nah, the house is behind the photographer, a view to die for!

Very edge of Foinaven, Arkle then Stack taken from above Loch Inchard at the bottom of a friends driveway. 🙂

I used a raceface evolve with the slidey collar. Now switched to a gravity dropper.

I have been using a gravity dropper in a ML7.5 for a month with no problem. Hope you enjoy the Durance, it is a real pity there will be no more Mavericks.

What is the route like from Evanton, is it obvious from an OS map and how does it compare to the Bonar Bridge route?

That was what I was worried about. They have however lasted a reasonable time. Looks like I will need a quote from the LBS. Ta

Sounds like you only need a new freehub although these cost almost the same as the hub you won’t need to re-build the wheel.

Brill! Thanks

Did it self sufficent with 3 others about 4 years ago. Took 4 days and were very lucky with the weather apart from the last day which was freezing and wet. We went clockwise . If you want to drop me an email I can give you more info. Whatever you do don’t go up Col du Bovine on your way to Champex!

Have you had a look at runsweet.com. They have good advice on exercise, insulin adjustment and estimated carbs. Unfortunately can still be a bit of trial and error. She will also have to be careful for the 48 hrs after the event.

It is the middle section of the Biggar to Carnwath road.

I think the message is you need to be prepared for the unexpected including a wickedly off-camber corner where the fatal accident happened. This includes speed appropriate for the road and condition. To be fair there are very very few nutters on that stretch of road. The main road to Edinburgh is another story.