Shortage of chainring bolts?

No CX races near you? They really are rather good fun. What about the days when there’s ice or snow on the roads? Take off through the woods or off road paths

A CX doesn’t replace a road bike, it gives you more options……

Mate of mine used to be a digger driver. One dig was next to a major pipeline that required all sorts of risk assessments and engineers with detectors confirming the pipeline position. Finally he was given the go ahead and 10 minutes into the job – clang!

Cue exclusion zones and lots of engineers with very red and nervous faces examining maps and arguing. After an age it turned out he’d hit a piece of scrap pipe that had been buried 20ft from the pipeline!

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Sorry, don’t know how to do quotes but Blader1611 & Weeksy, it looks like that trainer doesn’t actually control power, it only communicates output speed etc

Probably a bit of both length and diameter. Unless yours is a different version, mine’s an older one that the cable enters from the bottom of the junction box

But yeah, it seems you do have to be prepared to do a bit of fettling to get them to work properly

I think they’re also sensitive to the size of the ferrule on the end of the cable, try filing it down a bit

As above, depends how far the trip is. I was on holiday in the area and did it on Thursday in under two and a half hours on my CX and I’m far from fast, there’s nothing very technical. Nice day out on a bike though, I’d do it again

My wife smokes and I don’t, so I justify my purchases in cigarettes

Her – “Is that a new xxxx?”

Me – “Yeah, only cost x packets of fags and it’ll last a lot longer”

She still hasn’t found a comeback!

Having looked at the front page, all the words make sense but I still don’t understand what they actually do……..

“Just a quick question”

If you’re going to Dyce then the beach is no good

You’ve little option but to cross the A90. I’d just take the main road out of Newburgh up to the junction with the A90 and go straight across. There’s usually a queue at rush hour so you should be able to zip up the side of that and if there is a queue folk are usually good at letting you out. You still have to cross the northbound lane but at least there’s a filter lane to sit in. From there a combination of back roads to Newmachar then the line to Dyce. No way on gods green earth would I cycle the single carriageway of the A90 at rush hour. I see some hardy souls on the dual carriageway and that looks scary enough. I’ve a Boardman CX for commuting and I’d happily do that route on it

Nothing to do with me, but I’ve got an Alpitude and think it’s great!

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/genesis-alpitude-frame-for-sale

I had winter tyres before fitting Cross Climates. The winter tyres were terrible on wet, greasy roads i.e. a lot of the time. I could could spin them up to third gear off a roundabout (Fiat Doblo, not some super car!). The Cross Climates haven’t let go once. It’ll be interesting to see how they fare in snow and ice

210k on an 11 year old Mondeo TDCI, seems to thrive on neglect. Apart from the usual wear and tear all it has needed is a new clutch at 100k. Still on the original battery, the only time it’s failed to start is when it mysteriously once lost its injector codes

Be careful what you wish for! When my son was 5 I bought him a brand new shiny bike and he wasn’t the least bit interested. Learned in his own good time when he was about 8. He’s now 14, the same height as me and can pinch my bikes!

Despite the name the crown race the Smoothie comes with is for straight steerers. You actually have to buy a separate 1.5″ crown race to make it fit tapered steerers. They don’t appear to have any in stock which is probably why they’re selling the headsets cheap

You need to work on a better excuse – how I lost my finger

I once made a bike out of spaghetti – my wife was amazed when I rode pasta………..

Talking of overtaking, worst I ever had was being stuck for miles on a rural road behind an old codger doing 35 whilst I’m behind him towing a caravan. I can see a long line of cars behind no doubt blaming me for the hold up. Come to a short stretch of dual carriageway so I overtake him, he then floors it, overtakes me and squeezes in just before the end of the dual carriageway and drops back to 35! The memory still makes me seethe!

No words. Just try and think of the good times

Just let it go – I’m not trying to be condescending, I have felt the same outrage but in reality there’s very little you can do. You’re not the first and you won’t be the last

As the plumber said to his girlfriend – it’s over Flo

Do consider a drop bar bike, I use a Boardman CX, disc brakes for when it’s wet and can also get used for other things at the weekend. Mudguards are handy

I’ve fitted a rack (can be removed in seconds) and use a Carradice Bike Bureau that I got cheap on ebay. Bombproof, holds an amazing amount of stuff and looks fine off the bike as well for the days I drive

As others have said, leave lock at work

Why no lycra? I’m old and fat but still wear it, it’s just more convenient. I’ve a selection of long and short sleeve base layers, fleeces and a soft shell jacket that can be combined as conditions dictate. If it’s properly raining I either drive or accept that I’m going to get wet either from above or from sweat. Haven’t found a cheap waterproof yet that’s breathable

Shoes are ok in the summer but a pair of winter boots makes all the difference when it’s cold and wet

What’s the difference between a weasel and a stoat?

One’s weasily recognised and the other’s stoatally different!

Not just touch screens, even my old Mondeo has up/down buttons for the heater controls with digital bars to show what level they’re at. So instead of a quick and easy turn of a knob to exactly where you like it, you have to peer down and try and count how many of the little bars are in the display

Does Fenwicks etc cut through chain oil? I generally use car shampoo but by the time I’ve washed the rear mech and chain rings the brush gets coated with oil that then gets spread round the rest of the bike. Even if I do the mech and chain rings last, it still gets left on the brush for next time. Gunk will take it off but spreads like diesel. I’d like something in between that will remove chain lube but rinse off with no residue

Have a look on here – http://www.ecurieneep.co.uk/forum/

They have an easy ride group until you get up to speed. Lots of info about local venues, routes etc as well

Done it once, interesting to see how the system works but lots of hanging about. Got selected the first day, a Polish guy accused of assault who required an interpreter. We’d heard from a couple of witnesses and things were getting interesting, broke for lunch and came back to be dismissed as the trial was being postponed. Turned out the interpreter had been putting her own spin on events rather than translating exactly what the defendant was saying. Wasn’t selected again

Yep, I gave up when it was 2/3 through and went to bed……..

Sills – check the slight rust patches really are slight. Helps if it’s had mudflaps fitted

All the engines seem to have their little foibles, I gave up on my 1.8 TDDI when the fuel pump went for a second time (but it was a S/H one that was fitted after it went the first time)

I was happy enough with mine, high top means you can get full bike straight in, SWB are a little too short. I’d have another. Electric pack would be handy, winding windows seemed such a PIA especially if you wanted to open the passenger window to speak to somebody!

Work fine here too, but if you’re at the ‘less athletic’ end of the scale you might be better with a steel freehub rather than an alloy

Aberdeen to Sheffield, S/H cars were really expensive up here compared to down south at the time

Your OP says it has to be approved by a manager, so is it approved or not? If the protagonist hasn’t obtained approval then surely it puts them in a less favourable position?

Are you carrying a few extra pounds by any chance? When I was at my heaviest it was almost constant but since losing a couple of stone it’s virtually disappeared

Honda MT5
Suzuki AP50

Passed test in 83

Renault 5
Austin Allegro
Mk3 Cortina
Mk2 Escort Linnet
Mk2 Granada 2.3
Mk3 Escort 1.6 Ghia
Mk2 Granada 2.8 Ghia
Mk2 Cavalier SRi
Sierra 1.8 Ghia
Mk3 Cavalier SRi

Then kids came along, money got tighter and function became more important than style!

Citroen BX
Mk2 Mondeo
Citroen Xantia
Galaxy 2.3 (3 kids by this time)
Another Xantia (I had a genuine affection for these things and if wasn’t for the fact that replacing hydraulic lines are more than the car’s worth I’d probably still have one)
Mk3 Mondeo (current family car)
Transit Connect
Fiat Doblo (current commuter/bike hauler)

The one that got away – before we were married the wife and I used to babysit for a couple the wife of which had a Mk1 1.3 Escort Sport. Metallic purple, quarter bumpers, bucket seats etc. I coveted that car and made the husband promise to give me first refusal if they ever sold it. Hadn’t seen them for a while and asked after the car, to be told the wife had hit a dog and he’d sold it for virtual scrap because he’d thought I wouldn’t want it. It had only needed a new valance and wing, I could’ve killed him!

I bought one as an alternative to a Garmin as I always have my phone with me anyway. Most of my rides are <3-4hrs so battery drain doesn’t bother me. Iphone 6, Bontrager interchange speed and cadence and Wahoo Blue HR all connect and work fine without problems. Tried the back light once, it shut down after quite a while with a message I couldn’t read, presumably something about battery life. Powered back up no probs. It was mounted on the out in front mount that comes with it and turned out that I could see the display fine by the glow from my light anyway. Only down side I can see is that to get navigation would require a subscription to Ride With GPS or something like that

Handles down and random for everything apart from pointy/sharp knives which go handle up. I seem to recall a woman dying or being seriously injured when she fell on a blade sticking out of the basket. Even just a jab could be painful enough!

I bought a pair the last time they were reduced. They haven’t had a right soaking yet but seem warm enough. They’re my first winter boot so nothing to compare them with. The sizing is incredibly small though, I’m a 43-44 in a cycling shoe and ended up with a 47