My 19 carbon – sorry for the camera phone pic, and the build details

My 19 alloy

Both great bikes. I'm really enjoying the Carbon though at the moment…though the double was a killer around Hayfield a couple of weeks ago.

Excellent – nice link.

Whyte bikes should do them a couple of frames…

takisawa2 – Member

If its Xmas its Aldi Stollen.
Is it in the stores yet ?

Don't know but bang on! …cue naysayers :D

I use an old PocketPC PDA and it's fine…but with Quo rather than Memory map. Again it's the screen size that's the most useful bit about a PDA. I get about 4 hours on a full charge though (it's got inbuilt GPS). I'd go for a seperate cheap GPS device like the navman B12 and bluetooth it to the PDA.

09 BAT Carbons with SL wave rotors and some Marta Mags with formula lightweight rotors. The BATs are excellent, and great for adjusting on the move when it gets filthy. Very simple to bleed as well (the hoses are huge). Lots of modulation as well.

After a couple of years of use, the pro-elite clamp on the Ultimate / Feedback is a pointless thing, and offers no real benefit. Otherwise it's great, but buy a less expensive one – i.e. one without the "fancy" QR Pro Elite clamp.

I test drove a D5 SE Auto. The torque convertor was awful. Press the accelerator (imagine pulling out in to fast moving traffic). Wait 'till it does its trickery, feel the torque grow. As a consequence the throttle response from stationary is terrible.

If you're running it in to the ground and residuals are less of an issue I'd buy a manual.

Apart from being noisy and a bit basic inside, it was OK. It's being discontinued, (with no sucessor) and you can pick them up new for about 27k from drive the deal.

Is there supposed to be a link between the value and the fee? Here I was under the impression it was a randomly generated number that bore no resemblance to the value of the item or the effort involved, or indeed had to have any element of consistency :) .

Of course you can complain, but I wouldn't expect much to come of it. The issue is crated by a combination of planning policy and the extent of development, ground saturation levels / inability to percolate away, and record rainfall.

As for those towns, funnily enough the areas that have flooded are the flood plain, but in this case, the flooding has extended beyond the recognised existing flood plain "boundary". The areas now affected would have been part of the flood plain years ago. Flood plains change over time. Planners base decisions based on the likelihood of nn year events, and in this case the volume of water was unprecedented.

Looking at the aeriel pictures of Workington the flooded areas have always been susceptible and at times flooded, like the Cloffocks and Curwen Park – though not to this extent in living memory.

I know it sounds daft, but did you install it on the drive? Ubuntu will run happily from a USB, and you may have installed it there rather than on the drive itself?

I'd switch to ubuntu! My wife has an eee901 xp and the ssd primary disk is ridiculously small. I end up constantly clearing capacity, an it's issues are well documented. If you still want to go the xp route, use nlite. Guides here:

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=537793

http://wiki.eeeuser.com/howto:nlitexp

I tried using the gore(spare) outer amd liner and some bog standard shimano gear cable for the remote lockout on my SID WCs . The lack of the coating on cable created friction hell, they were unuseable. Also the inner liner has a little lip that stops it disappearing in to the outer cable. As this offcut didn't have the lip, the liner started moving as well – only slightly but certainly bunching. XTR cables ARE coated with some friction lowering stuff, so as long as you have the lip on the inner liner you should be OK. I'm specifically talking about the newer sealed Ride On cable.

Excellent cables though otherwise when properly set up. Shame about the price.

The forecast is irrelevant – it will be very wet, slippy and boggy.

Not there this year but the circus act of the guy up the ladder in the mosh pit trying to electrocute himself was pretty special last year.

It's a real laugh and a relaxed 2 days riding and drinking!

If you're thinking about heading that far afield then there's also:

Carsington Water which can get very busy (8.5 mile loop with a bit of riding on lanes) A couple of very short but steep hills, but you can bypass the bigger one now.

High Peak trail

The Manifold trail.

These are in the same rough area. A little further in to Staffs and there's Churnett Valley (right by Alton towers). A beautiful ride but can get a bit muddy / flooded at the Oakamoor end)

Of those the Manifold is my fave with the kids, and probably best for a trailer.

If you like the science, here's a very interesting series of articles by [/url]Scot Nicol; though these are over 15 years old.
Since then, Aermet 100 frames have been shown to have a high failure rate.

I've been looking for one for a couple of years and IIRC there have been just 2 on ebay in that time.

I tend to build (road bike, C2W and BMX the exception) as I enjoy the process and fettling bikes. Having said that, my wife reckons it's not too good for my health – ask me again when I'm cleaning up brake fluid that's jetissoned from a blown piston, you might get a different answer. Like footstomper I tend to look for the bargains, but the value of some off the peg bikes is pretty impressive, particularly at the moment with parts prices in the stratosphere. If you're patient though you can generally put something together with equal or better parts for less.

Keep your geeky investigations up – see what else you can uncover (another map geek here).

If you could link them and their new status that would be fantastic :)

Any idea how long before they update openspace with the 2009 map data?

Good point Doug. Not leaking, it just totally fails (somewhere) on the seal after I pump it up. Since I fitted the tubeless setup on that bike though, I haven't done any real distance bar on the drive to move the sealant around, plus turning the pedals when it's on the stand. Each time I've refitted it I've not ridden it…just pumped it up. I will put some miles on it and see how it fares! I don't really fancy it going bang on a downhill somewhere though.

Rim strip (DT IIRC) with (a lot of) Stans sealant in there. It would be a bit pointless without sealant :)

Maybe time to try bending the rim a little more.

Back in your box Lewis! I was mapping a potential route for you when you get your fat backside up here, though it looks like Mark is sorting out the route. Should be OK for a wannabee mountainbiker like yourself.

Thanks MT – Will do an extended Bakewell loop tomorrow then and add that bit in.

NBT – It's listed – but no idea if it's for walkers only or a bridleway.

but for UK use, the synthetic is a lot more practical. Not as sexy though…

That pretty much hits the nail on the head.

Bontrager OR – strategic gusseting, bonding / riveting, horizontal dropouts. A frame that launched all sorts of other builders to adopt the same approaches in the late 80s / early 90s…and mine is still going strong after thousands of miles.
Same can be said for the (bonded and riveted) Bontrager Comp fork.

Some others in no particular order:

Bushido

RC100

Boulder Gazelle

Yeti ARC

Monolith (just bonkers)

Sotello CRS (so far ahead we haven't got there…well Jones and co are thinking along the same lines now)

Although it's synthetic rather than down, have a look at the Haglofs barrier. I've been really impressed with mine, both as an outer shell and a mid layer. It packs down incredibly small as well.

I feel for you – I was in the same position.
I had to have an op and I was in backslab (pre / post op) for about 3 weeks IIRC, then a non weight bearing cast for another 6.

When the cast comes off though it comes back pretty quickly (mobility rather than fitness).

Ask your Orthapeadic consultant or the HO who's dealing with you. They're the one's with the x-rays. Do as they say though and don't push it as the last thing you want is problems with the joint.
Then for me it's just been a case of getting the strength back and letting the ligament damage heal. (If it makes you feel better, 3 factures, split Fibula & rearward dislocation ;) )

If it was bad I imagine they'd have done an ORIF (Pins and plates) so I wouldn't worry. Just take a list of questions with you to the fracture clinic.

Good luck with the recovery!

Novel Doug :lol: – having just recovered from a smashed ankle and leg I don't really fancy another inpatient stay or adding to the collection of metal I now have :) (which probably answers my question in itself !)

Yep, done that; well at least as close to straight as I can manage but it still seems to want to let go of all its air in a pretty spectacular way. Just wondered if there was anything else to think about?

09 BAT Carbons – excellent modulation and power. No issues at all.

Another Fox vote. My son's have taken a lot of abuse and holding up very well. Very comfy as well (so he says)

Go and see a physio! Your GP should refer you for a prolapsed disc as it can be debilitating.

The manipulation helps, but more importantly they'll show you the excercises to strengthen your back. I prolapsed a disc, then repeated it a couple of years later. Once it's done there's a very good chance it will happen again.

I'm now "tuned" to recognise the indicators though and do my excercises right away. It's the stupidest things that trigger it – for me it was 1) picking up a towel off the floor, 2) sneezing (as daft as it sounds).

Do the excercises and it's manageable as a condition, and I rarely get any pain.

Hope you have a speedy recovery!

Are any of you using a bluetooth GPS device rather than the inbuilt one? I'm assuming this improves the battery life (bluetooth vs GPS power consumption). I'm tempted to get a hero and pack it more safely in the bag, with just the GPS receiver exposed.

Try it on your mountainbike. Lots of people race MTB's in Cruiser / MTB class. You'll find the clubs have lots of 30 and 40 somethings who are getting back in to it (or never got out of it!). Go along to a practice / gate session.

I eventually bought a BMX though because I was worried I'd total a much more expensive MTB chasing round the track after my son. In fairness I much prefer the BMX anyway. I'm going to start racing this winter hopefully :)

With the "cheap" full face helmets, just make sure they're snell / dot or whatever approved. Breaking chinguards on cheap full facers can make a hell of a mess of your face…as can no helmet.

If you're getting your young kids in to it I'd think about some chest / back protection as well as the more obvious knee and shoulder pads once they start launching themselves. Any club will help you out with advice, and many will hire you out all the gear you need for an absolute pittance!

I fitted the GE-1s to my new xc bike last week. Very impressed at how comfy they were. I didn't get any numbness in my hands on a 30 mile ride where I normally would expect to. Not tried the ODIs though to compare.

Sorry for the hijack but have any of you been out on the Saturday am Matlock CC mtb ride? I'm thinking of going along and trying it out…or is it half wheeling all the way ? :)

The frames are identical aren't they? So unless you're after a specific colour it shouldn't be a problem. I can't fault the wife's 09 boardman pro.

3 x CRC orders since Monday – Both 1st class and Parcelforce 48 arrived within 48 hours. A parcel from Balfa seems to have gone AWOL for over a week though. E Mids again.

Are you trying to take a leaf out of Si's book to justify a new bike ? :P

If you choose the White Peak there is great camping here. Plus there is a great pub in the village too (Red Lion, the Druids Inn has gone a bit downhill, imo). We live relatively close (Derby) but still go and camp there a couple of times a year as it's so nice.

Hehe, I live about 12 miles away and echo all the above, including the relative merits of the Druid and the Lion.

tried these?

http://www.mtbsharp.co.uk/routes/peaks/white_peak/index.html

For me, Mapyx Quo software with the 1:25k and 1:50k map tiles of your choice, and a cheap Pocket PC or Windows Mobile device with GPS. If you just want to browse then obviously you don't need the GPS.

Quo is the least expensive for OS map tiles.

hotrocks aren't heavy at all for what they are. (some of the parts are tho) also but bear in mind the Redline is more than twice the price with no gears or suspension.

I always saw a bike as the sum of its parts. It would be much better without the sus but I imagine it would loose some of its appeal.

Jeez! It should be "nicely built" for nearly £500! £500 for something they'll just grow out of. Blimey there's some loaded parents around!

They do grow out of them, then you sell them on. I will get back pretty much what I paid for it. If I compare the engineering on the redline to my more (retail) expensive Formula cruiser it shames it. There are a suprisingly high proportion of kids on £800-£1000+ retail bikes at BMX races – but it's certainly not a sport with what you'd associate an equivalent number of "loaded" parents. I guess some people have different priorities.

Impressed with my BBB, particularly as it goes so low.

"Sometimes the ratchet doesn't seem to click when it should so you risk over-torqueing !"

Unless you're calibrated that seems a little subjective?