I've always thought we all need to be ambassadors for our sport, and we need to promote a good image of mountain bikers. It can only be good for the sport and the opportunities available for us all in the future.

I ride lots in Yorkshire and also in the South West and occasionally have the odd walker having a go at me, generally the ones who only come out when its sunny or on a bank holiday and then spend their whole walk staring at their shoes rather than looking around.

I think that when a walker has a go at a mountain biker, they don't see a person, they just see a collective, or a group, so its easy for them to label all of us and dislike us. I guess when you're wearing your helmet and you're behind your glasses then it only adds to that 'impersonal' feeling. When you stop and take your helmet off it's much harder for them to have a go at you.

There is a massive miscomprehesion regarding bells though. The law does not say that cyclists HAVE to have a bell. The Highway Code states that cyclists 'Should' have a bell, and if you check in the glossary you'll find that 'Should' = Advisory, whereas 'Must' = It's the law. Not that we're even cycling on roads when the problems occur.

Also, on the occasions I have experienced where a rider has used a bell, it has startled other trail users far more than a friendly 'Hello' or 'Morning' etc from a reasonable distance would do. A bell isn't the kind of noise that most people expect to hear when they're out walking, so it surprises them, it certainly does me when I'm (shock horror) out walking and a mountain biker sounds their bell at me.

Let's stop seeing each other as groups, and start realising that we're all just people. Mountain Bikers, Roadies, Walkers, Horse Riders, Motorists, Football Fans, Fishermen, Kayakers. They're all just people, and one day they might go for a walk, the next they might ride a bike and the next ride a horse, and they probably drive a car every day. They're just people, individuals, not groups that you can label and hate.

Feel the love. Can you feel it? I can…

You can hire boats in lots of countries, but like you say, it's similar to bikes, when you're throwing yourself down a rapid that might just kill you if you get it wrong, you want to be in your own kayak, that's just the right size, you are 100% familiar with and trust, and is outfitted properly for you.

If you were going to Africa to ride down a big-ass mountain, where you could die if you got it wrong, would you hire some shonky African bike from the 1970's that you hadn't even seen, with dodgy brakes, no suspension and which was probably going to be the wrong size, or would you take your own?

Well it's the same with kayaking, only more so.

I believe a big part of the reason that this has come into force is that BA use Terminal 5 at Heathrow, and the new automated baggage handling system can't deal with luggage over a certain size.

I'm a kayakaer and until these restrictions came into force BA were the airline of choice when it came to flying with a kayak. No longer, they won't carry kayaks, or surfboards, skis, paragliders etc. It's been discussed to death in kayaking circles.

Virgin seem to be the long-haul carrier of choice now when it comes to taking your toys with you, although I haven't flown with them myself so can't comment personally.

I've got some Syncros DS28s on Pro IIs on my Heckler and they're definitely burly enough for All Mountain use, and surprisingly light.

They come in black or white and aren't too expensive at £45 each for the rims.

I do need to big up Syncros/Jungle too for brilliant customer service. They're outstanding.

Worth considering and a bit of a change from your usual mavic stuff.

Usually the bleed valve core can be removed from the radiator and replaced fairly easily. You'll need a radiator valve key (like a big, square allen key with a hole in the end) a new bleed valve and some PTFE tape to seal the threads on the new valve core.

It's very common for bleed valves to get painted over and stuck. You're very unlikely to need a new radiator just because of a leaky bleed valve.

I have no idea, but I am incredibly jealous. I lost my springer a couple of months ago after fourteen lively, joy-filled years with him.

Just enjoy it.

Andy P, I hope you get hit by a truck, real soon!

The bar mounted one does have a glowing button it. It turns red when the battery is running low too. It looks like exactly the same head unit and battery pack, just with a helmet mount included.

What I would do is completely ignore what the qualified doctor with years of experience says and instead, ask the advice of a bunch of people you don't even know, and who know sod all about medicine, maybe on the internet or something.

You'll be back to full health in no time!

The classic Ramsgill, Middlesmoor, Scar House Reservoir, Shooting Lodge, Descent into Ramsgill route is one of the best in the area, especially on a nice day. Great trails, good climbs, good descents and fantastic views.

The route is published all over the place (it's in MBR every other month) it shouldn't be too hard to pick up somewhere.

Enjoy!

2BJ in fact.

Bonus!

Buy one, if you want to look like a twonk!

Seriously, almost no additional protection, from a flimsy bit of screw-on plastic, that makes you look like a reject. You'd get more protection by growing a big moustache and gurning at the dirt.

Either wear a full-face of or don't. I'm assuming that if you think that a Met Parachute will save your mug in the Alps, then you haven't been yet. Oh yes, I'll bash my face into a granite mountain, just as long as you put that wafer thin bit of wobbly plastic in between my face and the scenery.

Just like there isn't 'one bike that does it all', there isn't one helmet that does it all.

Unless you don't have to be worried about losing your looks of course 😉

And you'd better get some good beer in. And plenty of it!

Clearly if you've got a mini you must be a girl, therefore a chavette.

Where the hell do you put your bikes?

Get a real car FFS.

Poser 😉

Do it, you'll be more popular, I promise. Honestly! I have proof!! And the maintenance is minimal, and dead easy once you get the hang of it.

You wouldn't want to end up in bed with sasquach would you? Well what makes you think your girlie wants that either? Look after yourself FFS! You get your hair cut don't you, you clean your teeth regularly presumably, maybe you even use aftershave and moisturise occasionaly. Well look after the rest of yourself.

Oh, and the comment of it adding a couple of inches (not that I need it myself, clearly, in fact I'm thinking of having a couple of inches lopped off) but its true, trust me.

Do it, I'm getting so much I'm thinking of taking someone on to help me out!

From that picture, she could do with a sandwich. Not that I'm into fat lasses, clearly! But it's just one picture, and we all know you can get a picture to show pertty much whatever you want to.

If she's happy, more power to her. She brightens up people's lives, good work I say.

I wish people wanted to post my picture on the internet (and for all the right reasons of course).

Happy days!

Every person on here shares one thing, and that is that they all grab life by the balls and meet it head-on, and that's obviously true about you.

Hit it, it it hard. Hard like you really mean it. And when you come out the other side you'll have all these other riders whoopin and a hollerin' like you've just nailed the biggest, sickest, gnarliest, knee-tremblin gap this side of the 'shore. 'Cause that's what it is, it's time to suck it up and believe you can stick it, because you know you can.

Go to it man, and go good, with all of our energy!

The lever pulling too far is often caused by the caliper not being centered over the rotor, the lever pulls too far because one piston is coming out much more than the other, and the feel isn't as good because the pads don't contact the rotor at the same time.

To get a good lever feel you need to make sure the caliper is centered over the rotor. Push the pistons back into the bores and use the shims if they are the old type, or the mounting bolts if its a post-mount to center the slot in the caliper on the rotor. Then pull the lever whilst watching how the pads contact the rotor. If one pad is contacting the rotor before the other, and deflecting the rotor, use a flat bladed screwdriver, behind the opposite pad to push the pad back that's moving too far, whilst pulling the lever to allow the piston that isn't moving as far to come out a bit more. Keep tinkering like this until both pads hit the rotor at the same time and the rotor isn't being deflected by either of them.

This is a bit of a crap description of how to do it, there's a video on the Hope website that explains it much better.

It really improves the lever feel and throw and is really worth the time you'll spend faffing about to get it right.

I've got both on different bikes. The clamp thing on the Elite is okay, but you have to be careful how you tighten / loosen it. It doesn't hold the steerer any tighter than the one on the X4 and the bolts are pretty low profile anyway.

I'm surprised at people saying the anodized finish is delicate. I've got an eight year-old Superlight and a twelve month old Heckler, both anodized, and they both still look like new. I'm not saying that the powdercoat option is delicate, but the anodized frames look new for ever in my experience.

I think the tolerances around the pivot joints etc are better on the anodized frames too (I had a painted Heckler before the anodized one, until it was stolen).

I also think the RP23 is easily worth the upgrade, especially on a 'simple' single pivot bike. They really work, and I can only imagine the small amount of weight you would save going for a basic Float shock. Maybe the same you save by going for anodized over painted. With the pro-pedal on the bike sits up a bit for climbing, effectively eliminates bob and gives a taughter back end. With it switched off the bike sits into its travel a little more, giving a slightly slacker head angle and a much more plush action. Maybe these traits suit the Heckler better than a superlight, it probably depends on how you ride.

I like set-and-forget suspension, but I do like the RP23, a lot.

If you want to save money don't buy a SantaCruz.

Five Tens again. They're the Daddy. No, they're the Mac Daddy, in fact they're the Daddy of the Mac Daddy.

Get some NOW!

Denton House Bunkhouse in Keswick

http://www.vividevents.co.uk/Denton%20House.htm

Cheap, friendly, good hot showers, bike storage, parking, good riding from the door and within walking distance of beer, food, bike shops, beer, more beer.

Stayed there lots of times. Recommended.

It's sunny, there's hundreds of miles of dry, dusty singletrack in the most spectacular scenery you will have ever ridden in, it's super accessible, the vibe is super-chilled, the bike shops are really friendly and will help you out with route advice, bike hire, where to stay, even someone to ride with, and when you've finished riding you can eat until you burst and then drink cold beer while the sun turns that fabulous view redder and redder and redder.

I mean, what's to like about that?

Go, every mountain biker should, it is the definitive Mountain Bike Mecca.

I had a white 07 Heckler, white Syncros rims, white bars and a white WTB saddle, until some scrote robbed it. Santacruz do look great in white.

Mind you the silver ano replacement looks a bit classier, and it still looks brand new 12 months later.

I don't think they fit, it's a different BCD measurement for XTR.

Leave the marker pen in the drawer and get your wallet out instead. Empty it on the counter and ask the nice man for the bits. You know it will just bug you otherwise. It's only an 'R' but it's a big one.

Looks pretty worn to me. A lot of the troughs between the teeth are uneven, being worn more on the 'drive' side of the teeth.

Makes them look like shark's fins, look two teeth to the left of the 32T stamp on the largest sprocket, almost at the bottom of the picture.

New cassette and chain recommended. You should be able to feel any lateral play in the freehub.

PC Frank, thanks for the further post.

I echo clubber's comments.

I would, however, like to clearly point out that the majority of thefts in and around Bristol may well be of bikes left on the street, but I am completely sure that this does not constitute anywhere near the majority of the Value of bikes stolen.

The type of theft that the majority of Bristol Mountian Bikers are concerned with is Targeted, Organised theft of High-End, Valuable Mountain Bikes from inside people's homes and outbuildings. A typical bike that we are talking about is probably worth in the region of £3,000 – £4,000 or more. The thieves are not simply kids wanting a new bike; in several instances the frame of the bike was cut to facilitate the theft. These bikes are clearly being broken up and sold as parts in an organised way.

I realise that you stated in your post that you are not a cyclist, and therein lies a problem. Lots of non-cyclists find it difficult to conceive that even small parts of a Mountain Bike can sell for hundreds of pounds, even second hand. The theft of my bike, just one bike, probably nettet the thief (or whoever sold on the parts) in the region of £3,000. This is serious business for them.

If there were a crime spree of people in Bristol having thousands of pounds worth of jewelery stolen from their houses by apparently organised criminals, the perception amoungst us is that it would be taken much more seriously by the Police, and not for example take the force three days to even attend the crime scene (as was the case with my theft).

Statements that tell us that the Police consider the majority of the crime, and therefore their focus, is on bikes stolen from the street is very frustrating and leads us to believe that the Police do not understand the nature of the crime, or those perpretrating it, and will therefore fail to fight it in any effective way.

I hope this doesn't come across as negative. It is very important to us that the Police clearly understand the nature of these thefts. My perception, and that of many other cyclists, is that the Police do not understand it at all and our crimes get lost, just because of which box gets ticked when we report it.

You may well say that this isn't true, but is this is clearly the perception of the victims of these crimes and the Police need to address that and convince us that something is being done to address this increasing problem.

It’s true, they managed to take the very best rear mud-guard design and completely ruin it. I never had an issue with the previous two-bolt clamp design.

I certainly didn’t over-tighten mine, the retained circular nut started spinning round in the bracket before I could get it tight enough to stay in place, on a nice thick seat post too. Clamping the plastic either side of the nut with a pair of mole grips works, but shreds the plastic in the process.

Buy some of the old design while they’re still around.

The flaps on the nylon pouch wrap around your top tube and then one of the plastic buckles passes through the other to ‘secure’ it. Probably not secure enough for off-road riding so get a piece of velcro to wrap around it too, I’ve got one from an old Cateye light.

Works for me.

Just build it strong, lay off the pies for a couple of weeks, or just half-fill your camelbak and throw out the three spare tubes and four mars bars then go out and have fun. That’s what Chameleons are meant for.

No pics but 36s here, wouldn’t have it any other way, it’s as fun as can be plus climbs well and rides all day.

Get one like mine, they’re easily the best, all the others are rubbish.

That’s the answer you’re always going to get.

£2,500 will get you a very nice bike. Buy some mags, read some reviews, and more importantly than anything, ride some bikes and see what you like the best.

The Orange 5 Pro is arguably the best 5″ trail bike out there for the cash, and no, I don’t have one. Mainly because Hecklers and the best, and all the other bikes are rubbish. Oh, apart from Chameleons, but they’re not full-suss.

Avid 7″ discs are actually 185mm. The adaptor you need is this:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=13721

Avid Mount Adaptor Front IS 185mm, £6.99.

Hope that helps.

Got mine within two weeks from DX. Their order tracking stuff is pretty helpful too.

This thread has been really helpful, I’ve been having the same problem with my rear SLX.

Off home to fix it now.

It’s great when STW works like this!

I got my bike-specific light from DealExtreme yesterday.

I am genuinely stunned that you can get such a great piece of kit for £50. 900 Lumens is very, very, very bright. Great beam pattern, no hot spots, great penetration, tiny battery. All you need in one box.

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.25149

I can’t see why anyone would now spend £500+ on a Lupine, Hope etc.

Incredible.

I subscribe to Singletrack, MBR & Dirt. I buy MBUK pretty regularly.

I’ve had an MBR subscription since, well, they used to have breasts in it (a long time ago) but I’m planning to ditch it in favour of MBUK. MBR has been dumbing down so much over the past couple of years, and the ‘Technical’ article a few months ago on ‘How to Change a Puncture’ (I’m not joking) where they only actually told readers how to change a tube, put the tin lid on it. When I read the letters page I simply can’t believe there are so many thick mountain bikers out there, AND there’s a magazine aimed at them!

I’d say…

Singletrack for those who enjoy the simple pleasure of riding a bike with just the right amount of humour and reviews thrown in.
Dirt for awesome photography, race reports, real-world kit reviews and occasional thought-provoking writing.
MBUK for fun, and articles about the way we either ride, or would like to be able to ride, these days.

I love reading bike mags.

I’ve always used Dry Teflon (chain etc) lube as advised by my LBS some time ago. Clean bike, apply lube to stanchions, cycle forks up and down a couple of times and wipe off excess.

Keeps them running nice and smooth.

I understand there are specific products out there, but this has always worked for me.

You don’t need a pic, just do it. Hecklers look great in white.

It’s a shame you can’t get anodized white, the anodozed frames look new for ever.

I’ve got a Flux, no problems with overheating, although don’t know how it compares to a Xen.

As Rich says, if you’re on limited time and want easy navigation then Ashton Court & 50 Acre should hit the spot.

Great riding there, props to the guts who do all that work, must get down and join you some time.