I bought some 6 months ago and love them.

Got the braided hoses and floating discs.

They look very nice and work very well – the feel is great and they are powerful enough for me. That’s not to say they aren’t powerful as I can only compare to SLX and they are so much better than them.

If I needed another set of brakes these would be top of my list.

I’ve been cycling since I was a kid but got into MTB in my final year of Uni back in 91.

I hit a car side on and wrote off my road bike and as the roads were in a crap state (no change there then) I splashed out £400 on a Giant Escaper.
Joined the MTB society and started riding with them at local spots and Cannock Chase.

Started racing and bought a Team Marin in ’95 or ’96 when I didn’t get a job in the states.

Still wonder if the Uni guys still ride – I remember we started riding the 15miles to the Chase to join a 20m group ride then hammered it home. Improved my race results no end.

happy days

It’s these sorts of posts/comments that helped me decide on Hope hubs and brakes for my recent build.

Great kit, decent prices, superb backup and British.
Why would you not buy Hope if you had the choice.

I’ve had this before with SLX brakes.

I removed the pads – pumped the pistons out a touch and cleaned them.
Push them back in, clean and repeat 4/5 times.

I also replaced the spring and after this they then move back to give some clearance after braking and stop rubbing.
I found that if I don’t do this regularly they end up getting the discs rather hot on long descents to the point the at the fluid heats up and causes the brakes to come on and make a hell of a noise

I think they may need proper stripping down and cleaning at some point.

+1 for an Atera

I bought this
Atera Carrier and took 4 bikes to the south of France with no problem.

Being low down is good for economy if you’re going a long way and it allows the bikes to slide away so you can get into the back of the car/van. Only issue I had was going up a very steep path where the carrier grounded – no damage though as it’s very well built.

I also used the extra straps for peace of mind

Edit:
Forgot to mention that I like the way that the carrier locks to the towbar and the bikes all get locked to the carrier.
Not secure enough to leave them overnight somewhere unsafe but they can’t be taken off easily without the keys

I’ve also got a Wing Stem 80mm with Bone flat bars, bar ends and bar ends. Fitted to a Van Nic Tuareg.

Not noticed any flex – there’s more movement in the front tyre and I can’t see how fitting anything else would make a remarkable difference.

The kit is very light, well made and looks good (IMO)

I have a Honda Accord Estate and recently had a tow bar fitted.
Bought a Atera STRADA DL 3 to 4 bike carrier and it’s a pretty good solution.

The carrier slides away from the car so you can open the boot, will hold 4 bikes (there is a weight limit but if the bikes are a reasonable weight – under 35lbs then it’s fine)
You get 2 straps which I put around the roof bars for additional peace of mins when there are 4 bikes on

It’s not cheap but if you add up the cost of the bikes it carries and the cost of replacing a frame if a cheaper carrying solution failed it’s worth it

I recently built up a Ti hardtail and waited until I got all the bits I wanted.

Took me 4 months to decide and 8 months until I had all the parts.
Then got a LBS (Alan @ plush hill) to do the build while I watched and drank tea.

6 months later and I still love the bike and wouldn’t change a thing.

If it’s a dream and you’ll only do it once then I’d recommend waiting, saving up, buying the bits as you can afford them. Otherwise you’ll just be thinking about what you’d have done if you’d waited.

I’m a size 7.5 normal (ie not wide or narrow) and wear size 42.
They seem to be ‘normal’ sized.

Expensive shoes but well worth the money – I’ve had 2 pairs in 15 years of riding and the current pair have years of life left in them.
This makes them cheap.

I have a pair and ran them last winter whenever I thought I could.

They have a sticky compound and on the road drag feel like your riding in treacle, when new you can hear them as they get pulled off the road. On soft ground they feel OK but not fast

In proper mud, what they were designed for, they are excellent, amazing. You can ride through mud when all around you are slipping.

Not sure when I’d ride them now as they are a pure mud tyre and unless our local trails get stupidly muddy it’s not worth the additional drag.

On a similar note all you really need is a pair of Ralphs – I’ve been riding these in all weathers and conditions and they are excellent at best and fine at worst – not the best grip in mud but enough if you keep the speed up. On everything else they are excellent and if you ride one tyre only you just get used to how it rides.

I do the same as MrTall.

Had then for nearly 4 years, don’t use them for months then recharge and they last about 3/4 of what they did when new I reckon.

The smaller battery when new lasts 3hrs and I reckon it’ll do 2hrs 30 now

44 physically but substantially younger mentally

Why not a towbar one ?

I’ve just switched from a rear mounted one to a towbar and got an Atera one. it tilts away from the car so you can open the tailgate (I guess not an issue on a transporter) is far more secure and takes 4 bikes.

I’ve got one with HRM and just fitted the cadence sensor to the road bike. Got bike mounts which are fine and a wrist strap as well – the unit just clips into either.

Slightly bulky but never bothered me.

Loads of bits to play with – I like the virtual training partner.
Decent battery life a bit slow on initial satellite location but I just turn it on as I’m getting ready and it’s not been an issue.

+1 for KCNC.

They look amazing and as a result make you a better rider – fact.

It’s not appropriate to say anything to anyone about anything.

Your job, as a mate, is to be there to pick up the pieces/get drunk (but not too much) with him, if/when it all goes wrong.

Needs a black stem and a better rider :-)

I bought a Van Nic Tuareg and love it.
Lovely detail, rides like a dream.
See this thread for details

Congrats on doing one – best thing I ever did.
a few random thoughts that stick in my mind…

+1 for notepads – buy a few very nice ones (and some really nice pens) and use them – write all your thoughts down – don’t rely on a laptop etc as you will lose/trash it and you won’t back it up properly.

The hardest part is writing the thesis. Especially the background stuff you do in the first year/18mnths. The exciting stuff you do later is easy to write up so try and document the background stuff as you go – try and get some papers published as it gets you into the habit of writing properly.

Don’t get carried away with the ego side of doing one as you are essentially now at the bottom rung of a different ladder and it isn’t easy. As mentioned, the most important part is sharing ideas with other research students – Looking back I think a degree teaches you how to learn stuff semi-independently, where a PhD teaches you to think/be creative on your own. It’s nothing like doing a degree and by the end you should be the world expert in your niche. You should be directing what you do in the last year as you should know more than your supervisor.

3/4 years is a hell of a long time to spend on one niche area (with associated reading on related and non/related topics) so accept that you will get fed up at times. I recall a couple of weeks where I didn’t leave the pub most days – I also spend many weeks working until 3am when things were going well – it’s not a job it becomes your life.

Makes me want to do another one now :-)

The real joy of a wet and muddy Mayhem will be the reaction of the newbies we talked into doing it who think it can’t be that hard.

9miles and then 3 hrs off ?? Easy.

Bring on the banter.

My 11yr old daughter will be pleased to hear of your experiences.
I bought some for a camping trip and when used she complained that it really, really, really stung.

I told her to MTFU (to paraphrase of course)

Normal spray on antiseptic doesn’t sting apparently but the spray on plaster does. Who’d have thought.

‘Worth the money’ is an impossible question to answer.

I recently bought a Ti frame and built it up and it’s probably the best bike I’ve ever ridden, is it worth the money? to me yes to others it’s just a bike.

If you’re getting one and are worried about it snapping then it’s worth thinking about the lifetime guarantee that first time owners get with Lynskey (and many other Ti frame builders) frames.

If you decide to part with the cash then it will be worth it, if not then it won’t.

I’ve recently (last 2 years) bought 2 bikes – one with a test ride and one from bits.

The test ride was a Yeti ASR and there was no way I was going to spend that much on a full suss bike never having ridden one. Test took a while to arrange but it convinced me I had to have one so ordered the same day.

The HT I built up cost more that the Yeti and I was and am very happy with it as I knew what I wanted it to be. Took a long time to spec it and buy the bits.

The moral of the story is it depends if you know what you want. If you do then you don’t need to test ride, if not why wouldn’t you if its a shed load of money.

Very quick look as I’m about to go to bed.

…on Chrome the main menu on the left is a serif font (in green) where the rest of the text is in a sans-serif.

Would look better all the same

As you change menu items on the top might be good to switch the pic at the top to be relevant to the item

Switching to the blog menu item gives a different LAF to the others – embed it below so it looks the same.

I have such little free time with working away that at the moment I do very little.

My feelings are similar to IanMunro – government cutting funding and expecting everyone to pick up the slack by doing it for free. Makes me less inclined and I feel bad about that.

Would be nice to see a list of all the stuff senior ministers do for the big society – I reckon I have as much free time as they do.

It changes and so varies year on year but is usually around 8-9 miles.

We’ll know for sure in a week or so when this years course is announced.

It should be quite simple.

You have a notice period and your current employer needs to pay you for it. They may or may not want you to come into work.

I wouldn’t work for the new company while still being paid by the current one (and you don’t seem to want to anyway). Your contract probably excludes it and it doesn’t send a good message to the new people.

You can always tell the new people that you need to see what your current employers say regarding your new start date and then work out how long you want off before telling them when you can start.

No doubt they want you ASAP but I think it’s a very good thing to have a decent break between the two. You get proper separation, time to spend with family etc before starting what usually is a time when you’ve a lot on your plate. I have said in the past that I need a holiday before starting etc and it’s never been a massive problem.
Works for both sides but new employers rarely see it that way.

EDIT
As for transferring clients – What does your contract say ? Take that as a guide and I wouldn’t explicitly talk about it to the old company.

If the clients decide to move themselves then that’s their decision – just be professional (which I’m sure you are/will be)

Depends where in the country you are.
Doesn’t seem too OTT.

None of it is particularly difficult – IF you know what you’re doing and you have some decent tools.

Might take a shop mechanic a couple of hours and if you, as shop owner have to pay him a decent wage, have shop space, buy tools and pay yourself it’s fair enough in my book.

I use my LBS on occasion as I don’t always have the time to do stuff – they usually do a pretty good job and I find it’s worth it.

I recently built up a Van Nic Tuareg. I’d not ridden a Ti framed bike before but had steel Team Marin from mid 90’s whcih I just loved to ride. it had a connection to the trial that my new Yeti ASR doesn’t quite give.

The Tuareg rides like a hardtail but isn’t quite as filling rattling over the rough stuff, it has that immediate acceleration you expect from a hartail but I can go so much faster over rough ground that I can’t do on the Marin – some of this is no doubt due to the forks but the whole bike (in XC build) just feels fast and connected.

If you’re unsure you need to test ride one, I’d always wanted one and am thrilled with it, reading other peoples reviews over a 3 year period made the decision for me.

Gator Linear Fade.

At least the intention was there.

There’s always next time…

PL – so how was the riding ?

I won a Kenda top 2 years ago at Mayhem in the lucky dip.

Exactly what you ask for and I like it.

Just tell yourself to do a gentle ride – not far, not fast, only 20mins.
Or arrange to ride with someone.

Worth while getting a few rides in now as you’ll want to do very little the last week or 2 – that leaves you about 3 weeks or so.

If you can’t then don’t worry, MM hurts no matter how much training you’ve done and as nickf says it’s the mental aspect that counts for just as much.

Here’s my recent build

On top of the Long Mynd

90 Giant Escaper
94 Team Marin
09 Yeti ASR
10 Boardman Team Roadbike
11 Van Nic Tuareg

As well as the physical aspect I’ve found the mental side probably harder to cope with.

Be prepared for the fact that at some point it’s likely that you will want to stop and not do another lap, you’ll make excuses as to why you can’t\shouldn’t do another.

It will feel like you’ve no energy, you hurt too much etc but once you get on the bike you’ll get back into it and be fine (assuming you have been eating/drinking). Just set off at a leisurely pace and see how you get on.

I try and eat something as soon as I finish a lap and drink as much as I can, mainly water. Take some emergency food with you, I’ve only ever needed some once but it’s a nice thought that you have it there.

Surely all you have to worry about is your contract with the consultancy, and they won’t pass on any agreement that you will only ever work for them in the future.

What they agree with the client is their problem.

+1 on the fantastic course.

First time I’ve done it and as a pair we managed 11 laps. 6 for me and felt OK apart from a painful lower back, so might have to try an event solo at some point.

I’m doing it in a pair as a chap I know had all his usual riding mates wimp out for one reason or another.

First time for me at this event and looking forward to it.
Shall probably ride my Ti Van Nic Tuareg and have the Yeti as a spare :-)

Just off to make flapjacks