Thanks for that guys.
I know it’s not the best area for off-road biking & tbh I will be on a Gravel / CX bike so I can enjoy the lanes more.
As I’m going to be there anyway I thought it might be worth checking the Preseli Hills out. I wonder if I should just include the forest section in an otherwise road only ride?

I have been riding a Grade with TRP Hy/Rd brakes since June 2015 and they’ve needed very little attention.
I do know of another owner who has swapped his for mechanical Spyres though, as he had issues.

I guess his eyes are closed in prayer?

Saved it pretty well though iirc.

I absolutely love Elbow!!!
Seen them 5 times iirc, starting with the second album (Cast Of Thousands)Tour, but not since they became hugely popular & the ticket prices doubled!
Some of their songs are among the most emotional pieces of music I’ve ever heard. It’s a shame all you seem to hear on the radio is the more commercial stuff like One Day Like This. The first time I saw them perform Newborn live, it literally took my breath away – on a par with the best moments ever at a music event – a full-on assault of the senses.
Guy Garvey is a great frontman and a sound, down-to-earth bloke. The missus and I met him at the Leaders Of The Free World album launch in Brum.
I’m not hugely into these kind of bands as a rule, but Elbow have something special IMO.

Postierich wrote:

Font size is still an issue for me

Me too. (Getting old, innit.)

I’m sorry to say I cancelled my subscription this year.
I love a printed magazine and Singletrack was a joy to behold, but as someone else posted earlier, I feel like the mag has left me behind. (Or the whole MTB scene tbh.)I used to read every page, but for the last couple of years there has been less & less of interest.
For my tastes there’s way too much Gnar / Enduro / dropper post / flat pedal content now – the lack of which previously was what made ST different to the other mags.
It’s a shame to end my support, but I’m wasting my money if I don’t read it.

On the plus side – I’m still buying & enjoying Grit.Cx in paper format.

I’d be happy to pay a bit more than the online prices when purchasing from one of the local shops, but 9 times out of 10 they haven’t got the item in stock and I’ve had bad experiences being let down when they’ve tried to order things for me. I’m afraid that I don’t bother any more apart from things like wheels or bikes that are better bought face to face and might need back-up care.
I use them for more involved repairs / servicing etc, as it’s generally as cheap as buying tools that you’ll only use once every 18 months or so.
To be fair, it’s not just bike shops. Most stores don’t have a great depth of stock these days and I often come away empty handed. It’s not so much the price for me, more the lack of range / sizes, you name it. I won’t order from a shop when I can get it faster and cheaper on-line, but I would pay more to walk out with what I was after if they had it in the first place.

Alternatively, there are some great routes south of the Mawddach, which are easy to navigate and although may be very wet, shouldn’t pose much difficulty.

I’ve ridden Pont Scethin & it’s a great route, but I’m not sure it’d be the best in November. If ridden clockwise the track down to the bridge has the potential to be a bit of a morass if there has been much rain and the tops are pretty exposed. There will be carrying if tackled either way round, but nothing too bad.
It’s got the feel of a proper wilderness route, but packed into a small area.

LOL! Indeed!

Fair play to Wiggle.
Stupid answer from Sram. You’d have to re-grease the BB after every ride in the UK pretty much from what they’re saying.
I can’t understand why nobody can make a BB that lasts a decent length of time anymore. The old square taper Shimano ones used to last me 5 years or more, through all kinds of wet & filth.

I’d have said 11spd Shimano 105 too.
Works well, reliable and reasonably durable.
Also won’t cost the earth to replace bits as they wear out, or in the event of getting damaged in a crash.

I got stung on the tongue by a bee while road riding near the Clee Hills.
Felt like being hit in the open mouth by a furry stone, but I think it was a glancing blow as far as the sting was concerned.
It burned a bit, but in one small area and the rest of my tongue felt like I was just numbing up at the dentist! I was worried it would swell up and restrict my breathing – I was a long way from home and help, but it wasn’t too bad considering!

DJ sets are a good way of finding new tunes. I’ve bought loads of artist albums after hearing their tunes played in DJ mixes.

I don’t listen to radio stations much – internet or otherwise unless forced to at work. I don’t like having to sit through music I don’t like to get to something I might.
I’m a bit of a music hoarder, so I listen to samples on social media and music distribution sites and buy the albums I like from what I hear.

Just remembered, I’d add Tame Impala to my list of likes.

Never heard of Triple J either… 😳

Never heard of Double J – just had a look and it looks like a winner – thanks!
(I quite like the Pixies. The new Dinosaur Junior album sounds good too.)

I don’t think there’s necessarily anything pretentious about liking music not many people know about. I was just trying to explain why I think this, but had to give up as I couldn’t find a way without sounding pretentious, LOL!

I do have an odd range of tastes –

I also like The Divine Comedy, Elbow, Shooglenifty and loads of other bands to balance out the crazy stuff.
(But mainly psytrance & techno. 😈 )

I don’t like a lot of what they play on 6 Music, but it’s a hell of a lot better than most of the other daytime stations out there.
I wish we could have it on at work instead of Radio 2, Absolute Radio, Free Radio or other stations for the brain dead.

DezB wrote:

Hmm, nor in the case of “Ooh-aren’t-I-scary-making-exactly-the-same-sounds-as-100s-of-other-bands” death metal…

Ouch – right back atcha! 😆

To be fair, most genres sound all the same if you don’t like them.

John drummer wrote:

Definitely not ‘urban’, manufactured pop, country or western.

Sums up most of the music I loathe too.

I used to be massively into thrash / death metal & hardcore in my youth, but gradually made the switch via grunge, indie and ambient to electronic music.

These days 95% of music I listen to is psychedelic trance or techno.

DezB wrote:

“Anything apart from R&B.”

Dismissing a whole genre of music is odd.

Not in this case. 😉

The Cock & Magpies on the Hagley Road near Bearwood.
Now a Steakhouse or something.

All my bikes have been bought from shops that are fairly local, but I haven’t really settled on one “LBS”.

The last few bikes I’ve bought have been from Swinnertons at Cannock Chase, Two Wheels Stourbridge and one ordered online, but collected from and set up by Evans Birmingham.

I’d always rather buy a bike or frame from a shop so there’s an easy point of contact in case of any worries.

The Que Club Birmingham was epic in the 90s.
Atomic Jam for Techno & Spacehopper for Psychedelic Trance. Words can’t describe how awesome those nights were.
(I’m in this video!)

simondbarnes wrote:

Any shop with a ZyroFisher account can get you a pair of Gravel King SK in a 35c. £34.99 each.

No one seemed to stock them, so I e-mailed Zyro. They didn’t reply.

crikey wrote:

If you are trashing tyres on any bike, it’s you that’s the problem.

I’m not. I’ve not even punctured once since I bought the bike in June last year. I was just after a bit more volume!

The only real reason for the title of my post was because I’m frustrated that I can’t buy the tyres I want in this country. 😳
I’d have thought they would have been worth the distributors importing by now.

Nothing should come between a man and his tyres! 👿

Your second point is mainly why I bought the Grade, Flange.
It’s almost as good as a “proper” road bike for fast tarmac rides and pretty capable off-road, most fun when mixing up the two.
There’s limited MTB worthy off-road near where I live, so I bought it to allow more riding from the front door. (I could have bought a CX bike ages ago, I guess, but the idea didn’t occur to me until I started seeing the GT Grade adverts & videos and I liked the slightly more road bias of this particular bike.)

I’ll be the first to admit that the Gravel tag is a bit stupid here in the UK.
I’m just enjoying big(ish), fast(ish), miles over a variety of terrain.

Thanks for the replies – a few answers to suggestions / comments so far:
I’ve done my fair share of riding MTBs over the years and have been re-discovering the joys of drop bar bikes of late.
I don’t “race” any more but I’ve done the odd Adventure Cross CX style sportive and similar events. I ride a GT Grade and 35c is the max tyre width that’ll leave any mud room. The “Gravel Specific” tyres I mentioned come with puncture protection layers which CX race tyres don’t as I understand it. I’ve not tried proper CX tyres on my Grade, but have been put off by plentiful reports of multiple punctures when riding Cross tyres away from the race circuit, as they are built for speed, grip & lightweight, rather than robustness / durability.
I’ve done some fairly rugged rides on 32c with not a single flat, but would like a bit more airspace for extra grip / comfort / protection.
I do have some 35c Landcruisers, but they are waaay heavy for longer rides, especially where a lot of tarmac is involved.

I can get by ok with what I have, but it’s frustrating when you can see riders on what appears to be exactly what you want in the USA and you can’t buy here.

Love the Warbird! 😀

My brother and I both had 90’s Zaraker LE frames and neither of them showed any kind of damage after a good deal of (ab)use.
I don’t know about the supposed ride properties of the Triple Triangle design, but I can say that I thought my Zaskar was pretty comfy – but I did come to it after riding a couple of Klein Rascals!
I’ve not been interested in GT for many years after they lost their way, up until the Grade came along and I HAD to have one. I bought the alloy 105 version and the ride is superb, if the finishing is rather workmanlike. I do love this bike and have spent more hours in the saddle since buying it than I have for years.

I much prefer drops to flat bars, but getting the set-up bob-on for comfort and ease of lever reach from hoods & drops is tricky.

Most top CX racers almost never use the drops from what I can see.
I prefer to descend on the drops though – not from a braking perspective, but I’ve had my hands bounced of the hoods and it wasn’t a great experience!

Kona Cindercone 1990
Klein Rascal
GT Zaskar LE
Cove Stiffee 69er

Spineless. 👿

My favourite chill-out album ever. 🙂