The Yema is really nice

While I love a good trailer, I’m also liking the bike, what is it?

It’s my gravel/commuter/errand/XC workhorse Pipedream A.L.I.C.E

Quite expensive trailer all the same, though considerably better priced that thew bob yak

Tell me about it! Basically if you want this at a good price, you need to live in the EU. Bob Yak is unavailable in the UK full stop, and the Bob Ibis is crazy money. And unavailable.

Anyway, how are you supposed to stop and take an insta-worthy pic without a kickstand?? Win win with the Burley 😉

I thought I’d update the thread in case anyone was interested.

I ended up with a Burley Coho XC over the Bob Yak, and I’m very glad that I did, for three reasons – the one handed quick release, the kickstand, and the suspension

Get to the shops but the bike parking bit is too small for bike+trailer? Unhitch and lock them side by side. Want to load the trailer whether the bike is hitched or not? Use the kickstand. Going over potholes and dirt tracks? Suspension.

It’s a great bit of kit. Well made and versatile. I’ve had it fully laden with timber at 35MPH with no speed wobble.

I’m also glad I went for a one wheeled format, as I can go around tighter bends without it catching.

Camping at Llandegla. The cold beer after a hot ride was sublime

Notice there’s no figures for double jagged who’s in hospital

I hope John Prescott is ok

Nice ride along a canal to get to Hemlock trails for berms and jumps.

Some riding mates knew that I’d be at the same spot as them later that day, so left a coded message..

Not such uplifting scenery –  pub on the way to Sherwood Pines

The Big Chill – all very mainstream but every song a gem

Easy Rider – just brilliant

I went through a big Lalo Schifrin phase a while back, my favourite being Bullitt.

Regarding blaxpliotation soundtracks, I find some of the popular ones (Shaft, Superfly etc.) to each have several cracking songs, but few to be great from start to finish. My favourite in this genre is Savage, by Don Julian. Avoid if you can’t abide jazz flute. A lovely album filled with jazz/soul/funk/Latin grooves.

Not seen the film, but the tagline is solid gold

I liked the idea of the SS but just got frustrated – braking or climbing on wet grass can be quite annoying. This was also the case on summer mornings’ dewy grass.

surely just better with a smaller tread tire all over with a rounded profile?

Yep  – this works for me.

As said above, to get any noticeable rolling resistance gains, I needed to pump the SS up more firmly than normal

Thanks for this PSA, which has come at the perfect time. Last night I was just thinking as I packed my shopping into my 12l rucksack that it was looking a bit old and a bit too small.

Clamps are a bit meh. Traditional joinery negates needing so many.

If this is not some over-my-head joke, I don’t get this. I’m a cabinet maker, traditionally trained, and clamps are essential.

It’s the more modern methods with pocket hole jigs and pinned tenons that negate the need for clamps.

Anyway, for me in general DIY mode, it’s unblocked nozzles for sealant/caulk

I just had a look and I had to get the filter as well as the gasket. It was called a ‘washer and filter set

In my experience of these things, make sure the size is correct. A ‘Four Cup’ size sounds medium but is actually tiny. Mine is a ‘9 cup’

Is it a known brand? My Bialetti one was a simple Google search away

Set up tent

did anyone else not hate Jackie Brown

I love pretty much every Tarantino film*, but despite trying several times, just can’t stand Jackie Brown.

I can’t see how he could access your account with just sc and acc no.

If it were me, I’d advertise it again (let him know in a message you’re doing this) and the buyer is the one who actually shows up. I would then offer to return the £50 should it go to someone else.

TLDR: not the magic brain beam I was hoping for, but so comfortable and convenient I use them every day.

I thought I’d post a bit of a review of the bone conducting headphones having owned them for a few months, in case it helps anyone.

I got the Aftershox Openmove ones. Seem well made, a sheet of ‘skin’ stickers to customise them (I went camo). USBC for charging is great.

In terms of sound quality, I was prepared for crap bass but still shocked by how awfully lacking in bass these are. Songs with deep bass can sound like there is none whatsoever. I’ve gotten used to it now – just be prepared.

The most interesting part for me is how audible they are – in short nothing like as good as I was expecting. I was hoping for a super clear loud signal to be beamed straight to my brain, regardless of what other noise is going into my earholes. Firstly, the volume is limited, and cranking it right up makes tickly vibrations. Secondly, audibility is absolutely affected by external earhole noise. You can be happily listening to a podcast on a quiet road, but as soon as traffic or wind noise pick up, you’ll struggle to hear the speech.

I use them in my workshop. As soon as a machine is running, audibility vanishes. As soon as I put in foam earplugs, I can hear the music again.

Someone above mentioned that they can hold a conversation at the same time as listening to their music, but that is absolutely not my experience.

Aside from this, I still use them a lot. Zoom calls, music, audiobooks, phonecalls etc every day. They are very comfortable and convenient and to pause/play is an easy tap the side function. Fine for MTB where you are away from traffic and tend not to get to wind noise speeds.

OP, what terrain?

Mostly smooth bridleway and potholed roads.

Thanks folks. Bob Yak looks to be around £550 with bag and axle.

Anyone used the Topeak Journey TX?

https://m.bikester.co.uk/topeak-journey-trailer-tx-bike-trailer-black-963117.html

Excellent stuff. Many dads would have become much less enthusiastic this many times around – a testament your superb dadding 👍

Short travel 29er would be fantastic.

The Sherpa – superb bike

My uncle didn’t speak of the war for decades, but here’s a couple of quotes after he eventually did:

“We flew from a remote base near Ely in East Anglia and were engaged mainly in sea and French railway yard mining operations as well as drops to the French Resistance. It was during one of these we were shot down. The Germans had the capability to fire vertically upwards. We were over Denmark and it was around midnight when my navigator’s table shattered and I knew we’d been hit from below. Everything happened so fast. We had to bail out and use our parachutes. The parachute wrappers used to put little notes in with the silk saying things like ‘all the best’!  Only three of us survived that night – the rear gunner’s parachute failed to open. That could have been any one of us for you just grabbed a parachute on your way out to board the aircraft…”

“I remember one morning though, two British fighter planes were circling overhead, making to attack because they thought we were Germans. We tried to spell out ‘POWs’ with towels on the ground but they came in, all guns blazing. Twenty men died – friendly fire I think they would call it today. Just days later we were freed by the British…”

Also if you have a copy of vag com it makes upgrading the stereo easier ( if you choose to do so). The bolero on that likely won’t have Bluetooth handsfree or streaming but you can pick up a Skoda rns315 amundsen unit cheaply enough that will give you music streaming, sat nav and hands free phone use.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3633540113058

Interesting. How easy are these to fit?

The Mk2 eBay link – that’s pretty much my car, but mine shows a glimpse into the future in terms of age and mileage.

Mine has 150k on it and had the cam belt/water pump done at 85k by a previous owner, than last year I bit the bullet and went to a VW group specialist and had it done again, as well as full service, including Haldex.

It runs really well, with no significant issues*

Things I like:

Lots of space, lots of handy cubby holes/cargo hooks/rear power socket. Can confidently drive over rough ground/through fords/on snow**. Comfy ride. Feels solidly built.

Things I’d change:

I’d prefer the wing mirrors to dip automatically when reversing. Mine doesn’t have the Bluetooth module installed.

For what it’s worth, aesthetically I like the Mk2 and Mk4, but not the Mk1 or the Mk3.

* the adjusting wheel to recline/adjust the passenger seat is dodgy and requires one to push in as well as rotate. Mrs CB can’t do this, so I need to lean over with my face in her chest to do it. I don’t mind this.

** luckily it came with four new 4 season tyres. These are wonderful, except they cost £120 a corner to replace

Did I say it’s dry? I seem to have led us into a pool of abrasive clay paste at the bottom of an old quarry. Mate with shiny new chain/chainring not best pleased!

Still stuck in the office for another 4 hours yet, ya bugger

If it’s any consolation, I spent the rest of the morning cleaning bathrooms, and have to go sofa shopping this afternoon

Ah sorry mate. It looks a pretty good forecast across the country from Saturday PM so hopefully you’ll get some riding in 🙂

☝

Actually no idea. There’s a lot of pisstaking ATM about paranoid dog owners viewing any sign/cabletie/peanut/cuddly toy outside their property as code.

Marking properties with dogs to steal 100%

A wooden spatula from the kitchen drawer, for easing (forcing) pistons back after a brake pad change if necessary.

Yep, two toothbrushes, one for cleaning the pistons and another for cleaning oily things.

Number two. I will have a fair idea how competent the riders are* so will try to choose trails that are doable. On one trail you pass an unexpected double on the ride up so I’ll point it out seeing as it’s there, otherwise it’s a quick verbal prep at the top then off we go.

* although I took a neighbour out last year and he dislocated his shoulder coming off :( In hindsight maybe a trundle/steady train would have been better, as I suspect he fell off going too quickly trying to keep up on unfamiliar terrain.

I’m pretty gutted about this as Watchwood is one on my regular haunts and I was just getting on top of the new ‘number 2’ line and would have loved a summer to master it.

The recent building/modifications were a victim of their own success, as it had gotten so busy. However, there must have been some communication with the community as the trails were modified specifically to exclude the bottom path. This means that all the dog walkers are away from any trails, and only need to share a wide fire road with cyclists who cycle slowly to the next trail, then sit talking for too long before descending again.

The only issue I’ve ever seen there is when someone’s runaway dog  chased a cyclist down one of the trails.

I think the only reason they haven’t flattened the middle trails is the density of trees there making it difficult (difficult enough with 800mm bars sometimes!)

I took the time on Friday to swap the wheels on my gravel bike, tubeless set up, clean, lube etc.

Quick ride to the shop half cut and I remember thinking ‘these brakes don’t feel too powerful’

Next morning morning at 5.30am, wheeled bike out for a proper ride, only to realise I had forgotten to swap the rear brake disc onto the new wheel.

What frame is that cb200?

Looks like Pipedream ALICE

Yup that’s the one

They are incredibly versatile, that’s for sure. My 29er gravel bike has 2.25″ tyres and is very capable.

This morning I’ve taken it along a few miles of singletrack. then bombed down some fast downhill sections (fast and fun), then on to the dirt jump area (not so great for standover reasons) and back via road.

If I were to have a gravel as my only bike, I’d have to have a dropper and low standover, other than that, no worries!

Thread needs a leg up

Biting off a bit more than a gravel bike can chew at the dirt jump and downhill parks at Pines

Great Post to read! Take care of yourself and well done