Its been over 10 years since i had to endure the madness of Swedish shopping… I do remember the sensation of finding your car had shrunk when it came to trying to get all of the flat pack cr@p into it.

Careful which runs you choose.. depending on ability its either steep techy death or rooty fast steep techy non death, with a sweaty pedal up or push back up. We use it for getting our eye in for big mountain trips… If it is wet then double the skill level required.
On a more positive note there is some lovely riding across the road in Wendover woods and the Ridgeway is a bridleway all legal for MTB use.
Pop into Lovello bike shop in Berkhmasted and they will help with places to ride in the area and are also big supporters of Aston Hill.
Have fun. 🙂

My 2p worth…
I am 40 and quit from a lifeless job in vehicle diagnostic sales tech drudgery working for people who had no interest in me or developing me. So I took the plunge and a paycut and went back onto the tools and started working for a heating engineer mate at the beginning of June… It’s tough and very physical but the variation on the work is fantastic and the experience I am gaining is essential. Some of the courses you see advertised are not worth the paper they are printed on TBH you need to be hands on day to day.
Its a calculated risk and I have the support of my family and friends and the money will come but on the whole I am much happier and don’t work for people I resent in a dying industry.
Do it and Good luck.

I gave my forks a lower service and couldn’t for the life of me remember if I had put the oil back in them, this thought only occurred to me whilst riding it!!!.. Hence a very quick inspection when I got home and thankfully I hadn’t had a brain fart…

@Northwind you were doing that man looking thing weren’t you?.. we’ve all done it mate 😀

32/16 in the Chilterns has worked really well for me… when we did Charlies SS event in Swanage I changed it to 32/18 as the hills are bigger and we had a few more beers in the legs. Most of the guys who singlespeed in our (non club) club run 2:1 +/- 1 tooth.

My Eye !!!
]

3mm ones… We’ve just finished a bathroom with same size tiles.

Like that Tony… good work mate.

Swanage for this years Bikemonger single geary fun.

Wow atleast you can see the woods for the trees, mate you only have one life and at 42 rather then 82 you have realised that things aren’t right and something has to break …. don’t let it be you again please… be selfish and make a plan that helps those that you care about which includes your kids, stuff the wife she doesn’t sound like she cares for you from what you wrote in your OP. Stay focused, talk to your friends, ride your bike and have a beer and most importantly keep your dignity.. I’ve been through something similar and it will end and get better.
Good luck fella.

Had mine for 18 months now , 2 alps trips and many miles in they are still working beautifully, with the standard pins.I would have another pair if I ever need to replace them.

Didn’t think I had seen many diesel Ferraris…. 😉

They contain better / more / some detergents that normal and certainly supermarket fuels do not have. All these do is help to clean the fuel system of gluey deposits from injectors and the internals of the injection system prolonging the life of the components… In theory a cleaner system will run more efficiently and is less likely to glue up especially if you run a variable vane turbo (VW) or a EGR exhaust gas recirc system… Most people don’t thrash their Turbo diesels and pootle around which causes most of the these sooting up and gluey problems… I run a tank of super through if we have a decent journey to do and everything is going to get a good work out…

Molini de Triora and surrounding area this year…

Can we go back soon pleeeeease?

Hope have replaced the lead to my 4 year old 4 cell battery again , no quibble or questions asked and 3 days later its in my hands and ready to use again… love Hope for this type of service, hence they will get my business again.

According to the map above it seems to be heading for Morzine !

Our riding bundle of bikers find a well timed release can aid the tail enders decide left or right on a trail fork

Matt Baker (Countryfile and One show fame) out walking his dogs on a local ride in the Chilterns…he seemed a bit embarrassed when we said hello.

Emma Forbes (Saturday kids show presenter in the olden days) at Nice airport on a recent trip to Molini

Recent spill was trying to scoop under a branch of a fallen tree, which was slightly lower than expected and caught me by my camelback cue being ejected from bike which ghosted down the trail and me being spat into the undergrowth with a large branch for company… mates thought it was hilarious and slightly spectacular.

I’m using one of the Unzen 10’s I really like it and it’s very comfortable. I would try one on first as they do feel a little strange without the hip/waist strap but otherwise are very secure for XC use. First ride out with it I took a bit of a tumble and landed on it (typical eh) and it survived without a scratch. One feature I like is it is very slim and hugs the body well so great for skimming under things, trees etc.

Nice one OP we live on a street where you have to park on the road /pavement and there are certain people you don’t want to park near as they use your car to park so to speak. We did have Asda drive across the front corner of our car and even with a witness and damage and all the hassle of insurance companies they got away with it….
Like the note under the filler cap idea.

I used the AA and the instructor I had was brill..

Customers door bell today…`

There are wild Deer roaming where we ride and we have had a few near misses. Quite a big beast when they run between you and the guy you are following. Hope your buddy is ok

Ditto Slackalice but put a 11-26 on the back it works a treat in Summer Chilterns dust!

Backed the trigger bell which seems to be on track (ish) looking forward to receiving it

The company I used to work for have had one flop very badly recently (oh dear)

@cnud what compounds were/are you running ?

Hmmm tempted to stick with the DH Minion tacky on the front and try a HD SG on the back then… The main advantage is I can run it tubeless too. Do love the minion as it has been faultless.

Recently got my hands on a pair of Freerider VXi elements having owned a set of Impact lows … The new sole does allow you to reposition your foot once you’re on the fly which with the older style stealth sole you had to physically lift your foot off the pedal and back again.. The grip when moving is enough to keep your foot where you need it, I have caught myself thinking I was clipped in and trying to pull up on the climbs 😳
Not as chunky as the older style shoe either which I prefer as I found the impacts a bit clumsy and hefty and behaved like sponges, so far on the wet rides the elements have been brill. I like them.

Been using mine for over 6 months….
Very comfy, well made and feels incredibly secure.
It is a warm helmet though and on super hot days I have a 661 recon which has bigger vents although this feels slightly inadequate after the A1.
I would buy another if anything awful happened to it.

40 and no fillings… I had a treatment done in my early teens where they seal some sort of paste in your molars with UV light, this stops stuff getting deep and trapped in your teeth. Seems to have worked … No wisdom teeth yet though!

Thoroughly enjoyable weekend, we did the SS route on the Saturday , riding along the beach was a first for me and I won a Tshirt for not being knocked off. Drank a few beers, met some very nice people, shame about the punctures but hey.. The slippery descent after Corfe castle was fun I can still feel the stinging nettles now.
Sunday we left the gravel rashers to it and did a pub crawl, it was pretty messy by the time we got to the Red Lion.
Well done Charlie and the gang another cracking weekend to remember, thank you.

If your family jewels are bouncing off the front of the saddle its time to stand up 😉 .. all my riding is off road and the nose of the saddle interfearing with areas it shouldn’t has not been an issue. The back of the saddle is very solid and can sting a little if you are hanging over the back of the bike and don’t quite clear it when leveling back out and reseating. Again this is no longer an issue its a matter of adapting to your new saddle. Try a demo one for a week.

Foam cushioning/padding is non existent by design , but the rubber of the seat does flex and move when you put your weight onto it. You do feel the flex and absorption over bumps in the trail and the rubber soaks up vibration really well.

If you are a fan of the traditional Brooks saddle but don’t want to ruin one with riding in mud and wet weather or worry about the upkeep of the leather then the Cambium is well worth trying out. Some Brooks dealers have demo saddles you can try out.

Compared to the SDG its heavier more expensive and in my case your backside needs to adapt to it (it is a brooks after all) so might not be instantly comfortable but I ride a lot with it and don’t even think about it which means its working just right… It should last a lot longer than a SDG too.

I got one for my 40th its fitted to my SS hardtail which mile for mile gets the most use… It took a little time to get used to it as it is slightly wider than the SDG Bel Air my ass is familiar with and I could feel it on my sit bones. Having owned it now for over 6 months it is very comfortable and absorbs trail bumps with ease, very tough, beautifully made, looks good and always scrubs back up nicely after muddy rides. Really glad I got it.

SS 29er with some bounce on the front.. should be perfect for hills and pubs

I’ve recently invested in 5:10 freeriders with the new vxi sole.. they seem to work very well with my F20’s

We have a fixed one yes it’s a bit ugly but I find the lack of parking “bumps” from my neighbours who think that bumpers are to be used instead of parking sensors or a sense of space very useful. It’s also handy to hook the dogs leads around to stop them wandering across the road when emptying the boot of towels and other dog paraphernalia. Apart from the cost and looks there is no difference in how they function.

They will fit I run this combo for the Summer Alps trip. Get as much of it on as possible and then get a bit mean with it and really bend and pull the tyre right over the opposite rim towards you. Use the lever to pop the last bit in, then relax sweat a bit and pat yourself on the back with a cuppa

No, although I’m running 140mm on a 5 with offset bushes turned to full offset and it’s brill, the geometry IMO that the 5 should have been built with. Try them and if you don’t die and it’s rubbish change the offset or pop the original bushes back in and sell the unwanted ones on the classifieds on here.