ah dammit I dont have a 29er or a ht.. 🙁

do you know (well) any of the areas you will be going through ?
It maybe worth asking here for local knowledge of specific areas and then link together trails…
south devon based here if you need any help, but its fairly obvious (but a bit dull) to use the cycle path (sustrans route 27) to tavistock from plymouth. could detour a few twiddly bits here and there on the way though..

*watching with interest as have thought about this this summer*

Stage 2 (Smelly Ring) has been in existence (in roughly the same guise) for over 10 years Used to make great night riding

still does, i love those trails!

my 1st time last year went to morzine, loved it..I didn’t overly notice any massive braking bumps and we went end of season, had a mate with us who guides there so did some ace off piste stuff but I loved all the main lines too, could ride the pleney all day!!flat out fun! as said up there morzine has great access to all the areas so i’d say go there.

we did les gets/ chatel/ morgins/ swiss side stuff/ avoriaz (sp?) all within a short space of time, can’t wait to go back out there…

@mikesmith…that does look like a lot of fun too!!

mine has been terrible, ive had a bearing failure which destroyed so badly i had to buy a new axle assembly and it also left me mid way down the nutcracker and suddenly on a fixie!!!not too safe!
pawl springs break with frightening regularity, all in all I’m really dissapointed with this one, my bulb was faultless for years…wish i had never ‘upgraded’

for road bike.

small pack it is then..

volume spacers…cheap and easy to fit.

i have mandarin orange, i did see a neon yellow the other day very very nice…makes me want to change the colour of mine, the pink is too much imo.

22nd here, will mail you with my contact details.

you’ll need to check the frame manufacturers data, i can’t find any on my morewood, as they no longer do any archive data…so im guessing !

@IHN i found this pdf here

which i think has the info on it but its not too clear, by the look of it i need a UN26-E 113mm to give me a 50mm chainline (which im assuming is right for the frame as i can’t find any details anywhere!!)

so after all that i reckon the UN55 crc have in a 73mm x 113mm spindle should be ok……..

i hope.

i try to go every weekend and sometimes on mon/tues during the day…really liking supertavy at the moment, they’ve done a litte work on it and its really riding well. proper job is just fun fun fun…what a great place.

I heard the council are thinking of introducing a parking charge there…bless them.

my best is 13 runs, didn’t like the push up much after 7 tho!
will be booking soon i reckon i could afford bi monthly uplift, the other weekends will be pushing..
i have mondays off so thats always good!!

out of interest toys19 what bike do you ride? you a regular there?

ive walked it, it would be great apart from the glacier crossings and the unrideable climbs…
would love to see a blog/report on it though…

bucko mine is in 3 weeks too! although I’ve got nearly a decade on you!
dads dartmoor/tox ride? I’m flexible on times, we organising an afan trip in march too if you fancy coming along?

out of interest how many runs did you get in..?

I’ll be going on tuesday, will post up then..

@del, yes i think i have your mail still, I’d be looking at getting to haldon around 5:30ish so could do a lap or so then pootle over to meet you lot, she starts new job in around 3-4weeks so will contact you nearer the time, will have to go look at smelly if its been sorted now, sorry cant help with building on thursdays…work commitments.

oh and fridays still work for me too..

@sm see you before then for build on at mine..!!

@northwind there was a thread on here about that ages ago, i think JL use a much higher content of silicon* hence the slightly higher price…

still, its very good stuff. but the cans don’t last forever as mine has just run out…

*disclaimer, i could be talking out my arse.

i was on the blue route to day with my boys and noticed a lot of stone work on the bottom section of smelly after the gully bit where it goes into the really boggy section, it looked good.. hoping it’ll go down to flint too!!

@del, what time is the nite ride on wed? my mrs is changing jobs soon so may be able to make it out now…it’ll beat riding solo up there on Friday nights!

cheers jim, a tad on the small side for me unfortunately… btw im following you on strava for some stealthy route tips in your area… actually its your fault im getting a roadie after you suggested it a while back…

@ steve haldon not my local as im in plymouth but i ride it on the way home from work quite a bit, i’ve had the benefit of locals show me the good stuff for the last few years 😆 the race will destroy some of it im sure but hey ho thats the way it is, it’ll sort itself out in the end..
yes i did get a 5, quite happy with it so far but got a qr swingarm, wouldve preferred a maxle…i’ll gladly show you around, could show you cafe side too (mainly short dh tracks), not racing the woodland series i prefer to save my money for trips away. i may come to watch a few though..
would quite like to come down your way to have a look at poldice etc, if you are up for that..?

edit: just seen that hamishthecat rode the east dartmoor loop today, have mailed him for a conditions report…

the xpresso’s are on sale on the merlin site…look good and light £38.
keo’s and the shimano’s all look ok too, I have dodgy knees (hence the times on my mtb) the xpresso’s look quite adjustable so are looking favourite atm..

@ Si, report will be delivered!
Haldon for me over the last few months have pretty much just been ‘on piste’ the off piste stuff is pretty trashed in places, and I prefer not to **** them up for the “summer” the odd time i have bothered to see what they were like it was as bucko says, some bits ok some hideous…I’m not sure what trails they will use for the enduro but it’ll be fun whichever, although after a few hundred sets of wheels on it i dread to think what it’ll ride like! have fun though!

heading to cardinham on tuesday 😆 no mud!!!

have been borrowing my mates roadie to see if i like it (and i do) but using my time atacs and shitmano stormtrooper shoes isn’t the best set up! hence I’d like to get some roadie specific kit I’ll have a look at the shimano ones, wide platform i am most definitely after.

@zelak i do all my loops on a 1×10 and up til last month all on a 1×9…you won’t die!

@bucko it gets easier, my 5 year old only comes in at 3am when he is hungry and wants breakfast (which is only 3-5 times per week now) hth!

bucko, you’ve still got my email addy then drop me your phone number, im up haldon most friday eve after work around 5:30ish for a few hours. was going to ask about the baby situation i hope all is well!!

also been doing the same old runs at haldon and any other boring old routes to avoid the trails..consequently the cleave etc i havent touched for months and months.

but i reckon they’ll be awful.

@bucko we should really hook up again once the trails are ok..

i have one set up for 32t on my 5, its fine and never had any problems.
I had it on my 224 before hand and whilst being fine in the uk it dropped loads of times in the alps.

Anyway…I look far more shifty than that cat….

agreed… 😆

if it helps ease the suspicious nature of the stwer, I have met him, I was round there today picking up my dhx coil and a spacer for my rp23, he did offer to drive them round to my house to deliver them (20min drive)…a thoroughly nice chap and i wish him well with his business, would highly recommend…

so suspicious cat no need to be suspicious..he all legit.

<watches with interest after not finding anything on tinterweb>

2nd what nickc says apart from the soul bit as i never rode one, my pa lasted 2 rides before i sold it on and went back to an inbred.

mines mandarin (no pics sorry) very tempted to change mine to neon yellow after seeing one in a shop the other day….mmmmmmm neon.

tbh the paint job on mine is rubbish, the welds are grinning through, they must’ve been running out of paint when they did mine…

my d2b stuff gets abused on the dh bike (and trails sometimes) it holds up fantastically well, from what i remember of that thread most peoples rants went something like “i paid next to **** all for this jacket and its nothing like the <insert really expensive brand name> one i have, so they are shit”
my t-shirts are still new looking after ages, the £12 softshell jacket is worn to death and still hasn’t even started to wear out.
i guess i must’ve just got lucky with every purchase i made from them (or my expectations are lower?).

anyhoo good psa…fill your boots! although craghoppers are out of most sizes now.

i got the defiance softshell from d2b yesterday, its a fantastic piece of kit.

@cpleez, ive stripped a crank arm thread on an old crankset with a removal tool, that was a concern as i knackered the old one so easily…

run away very fast do not buy…do a search for it on here and mark anthony…if its the same shop (and i think it is) the bloke is a c unt of the highest order.

my experience was to buy a set of pedals, then wait then wait some more then wait some more, then phone him he was very rude to me and he twice hung up whist i was being polite and asking where my stuff was, told me it had been dispatched but couldn’t supply me with the post office/parcelfarce tracking number as he didnt have it (he hadn’t posted them) a few months later they turned up.

the guy is proper rude and borderline abusive on the phone if you dare ask (even politly) where your stuff is.

lots of topics on him here……avoid..