The info on the BBC site says it no longer supports PC format. All code is written specifically for Tablet and mobile devices

Actually, it says that they have one site, that renders differently according to whether you appear to be on a phone/tablet/whatever. Whether what they are now offering to a desktop browser is pleasant experience or not is another matter.

How far do you want to go? Want some added culture shock? I was just chatting to a colleague about this trip. Did it last year and it was great.

http://www.mountainbikekerala.com/category/singalila-ridge

I had a short but fun blast around Swinley on one too.

Not much to add over what has been said above really – it was a nice fun ride and as kudos says above it was surprising how hard you could push it in corners, and (as much as you can tell at Swinley) it was very composed if you pointed it into downhill sections and just let it go.

I am about the same dimensions as Alex and rode a large with a really short stem (35mm I think). I was surprised just how long it is in a L when I looked at the numbers the other day – it was a little lively in the front end with the short stem but I certainly didn’t feel over stretched. I think I would probably go with a M if I was to buy though.

Currently still mulling over options to upgrade my current 26″ bike, or to go with a long travel 29er to sit better alongside other bikes but the Aeris is still in the mix as a 650B shaped wild card …

Its a Rocky Mountain love in – I love my Element too. The UK distributor has been trying to shift a couple of 2014 ones (mostly black) on eBay for a while now in M and XL if that’s any help, though it sounds like you have the parts and just need a frame.

My Rocky Mountain came with a (fairly heavy) wheelset with DT OEM rims.

I built a set of wheels with LB XC rims on DT240s, and while they are a big chunk lighter (best part of 500g), the most obvious thing on the first ride was the bike just going where I pointed it and tracking accurately over roots etc. I came home with a huge grin.

So yes, well worth it for me and would definitely do the same thing again.

I must have nabbed that photo from someone else – I don’t own a Pentax, and its actually from 2011. It’s evolved quite a lot over the years, but I think the stem/seatpost/headset are from the original build. Now sporting slightly lighter forks and new brakes and shifters but otherwise much the same.

The paint is pretty good for its age but the picture makes it look better than it is. I probably gave it a good clean and polish before that trip too.

Ace bikes. Mine’s almost a teenager now and still going strong, but I think it might be time for something new and shinier this year!

"I can't believe he brought this old bike!", "Tyres look a bit skinny too!" by Gary Hill[/url], on Flickr

You’ll feel it – think of it as the reverse of blood doping and you are not going to be far off.

e.g. I did the local Saturday training ride a couple of days after donating last spring. I got a push up a hill from someone I’d easily dropped the week before.

So you need to figure out if that matters for the G-W ride – sounds like it isn’t a race …

Just to put the cat among the pigeons – the loop bar sweeps forward from the stem so personally I would expect to need a shorter stem to maintain a similar default grip position (bearing in mind there is a lot more variation in grip available with the Jones bar).

Though I’m a bit of a muppet, as the centre section of the loop bar also leaves a longer grip section. I think the “tinker” suggestion is best.

My bike with H-bars has never had anything else on to compare with so no direct experience to offer!

Just to put the cat among the pigeons – the loop bar sweeps forward from the stem so personally I would expect to need a shorter stem to maintain a similar default grip position (bearing in mind there is a lot more variation in grip available with the Jones bar).

For the old H-bar Jeff recommended starting with the same length, so you would kind of expect a shorter stem for a loop bar. The image in the link should be helpful in visualising it

http://blog.jonesbikes.com/h-bars-and-stem-length/%5B/url%5D

Set up 2 factor authentication while you’re at it.

Interested too (Southampton based supplier though)

I offer this purely on the basis I bookmarked it after a similar thread aeons ago.

http://www.wjcarpentry.co.uk/index.htm

Still not done anything about my kitchen so if you find any good options around Southampton would be interested to hear!

I’ve run interviews using coding tests and I’m much more interested in how the candidate attacks the problem than the solution

We’ve taken to using some kind of test for pretty much any technical role to get exactly this. You get real insight into how someone works rather than some text book answer and it always generates some useful discussion.

We use real simple problems like FizzBuzz, so there is no need to Google anything, and we expect candidates to come up with a solution appropriate for their level of experience (Even interviewing at quite experienced levels I think only one person has come close to my ideal solution using interfaces & dependency injection with supporting unit tests).

It does a good job of weeding out people who really don’t know what they’re doing and you can really tell those who enjoy developing and solving problems. Much better experience for everyone (assuming a good candidate) than the “tell me about your last job” approach.

Nearly time for new Neil Gaiman :)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trigger-Warning-Short-Fictions-Disturbances/dp/0062330268

I went pretty much direct to a judo training session after my first donation. Not done that again :)

Another thread on a similar angle probably worth a scan too:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/mtb-holidays-nepal

Tangi is rather loosely associated with Pokhara these days AIUI – he’s now based in Kathmandu. This is his website these days:
http://www.enduromtbnepal.com/%5B/url%5D

Still got it – had a Jones review that tipped me past interested into an expensive test ride : )

Mike D ought to be on commission for that review :)
[oops, trigger warning for the “all mag reviews are corrupt” brigade]

I think that’s what you call a non-explanation explanation.

Its all a bit “same words, different order” isn’t it. How hard would it be to have a statement along the lines of “in conjunction with our broker we have established that the minimum covers should be x/y/z.

Looking at the BC cover, Silver membership provides personal liability which hasn’t been mentioned explicitly anywhere in the UKGE discussion – does that mean that the event is explicitly providing that for all entrants (i.e. insuring rider error as opposed to issues with the way the race is run).

And if its all so important, I don’t really see how you can exclude juniors from requiring it.

Still clear as mud :(

I reckon their intention here is to go after the the riders insurance in the event of an accident. If there was a Llangollen type incident, the riders insuree will be held liable instead of the race organisers. As long as they can prove no negligence on their behalf the liability will sit with the rider. If they make sure they have insurance then they dont have to worry about either them or the rider being out of pocket (unless the insurers deny claims and say the rider was negligent etc)

But that would be 3rd party insurance, not the “i broke myself” cover that has been described. Which is why the whole thing is a farce unless UKGE can present a clear statement of the minimum cover required. Until then I’m in the “not entirely daft idea, but implementation barely thought through” camp.

So your forfeit your membership of BC by racing enduro?
I though you’d just not be covered by the insurance for that event?

Of course not, its just lazy language, in line with the explanation of the insurance situation.

I don’t really have any skin in this game, as not likely to enter any of the series, but you would think they would have learned a bit about getting communication right after all the discussions that kicked off around the helmet rule.

How hard can it be to state the minimum requirements (arguments about NHS cover etc. notwithstanding) so people can easily check existing policies. Why should I have to phone their broker so that I can cross reference my existing annual policy that covers mountain bike racing.

Tinfoil hat mode : I wonder if Bespoke insure the events as well. Nice way to offset the insurance bill :)

Some southern France options on 1001 Sentiers.

http://www.1001sentiers.fr/plate-forme/subscriptions/browse

I scribbled this name away from a previous thread (that I can’t search out now) – website was not this fancy then!

http://www.b-hide.com/%5B/url%5D

Not used them (yet) and not cheap, but maybe worth a look depending on how much you like the saddle!

Mine is that style frame but 125mm travel. If your mate’s one has a 2″ travel shock then its 125mm, I think the 143mm travel came just by squeezing a 2.25″ shock in of the same length.

Which I reckon (whilst ready to be shot down) means that if it was a 143mm one then the static geometry will be the same regardless of shock and it will just end up slacker if you were to end up fully compressed.

FWIW, I’ve currently got a Revelation at 140mm on mine, I dropped it from 150mm because it was a bit too “chopper” on climbs. Changing fork length affects more than just head angle. Before that I had a 130mm Manitou, but, it’s length was about the same as the Revelation at 140mm.

So I agree its a little odd to have the back end having more travel. But I don’t think anyone will die :) Find a +5 headset bottom cup/crown race and just ride. But bear in mind I also have a 660mm bar and 100mm stem on mine so my opinion may be suspect :)

Older Hecklers ran very well with a 140mm Pike.

The question is, how old is this one.

My ancient one (2002) runs very nicely with 130-140mm forks, and if its one of those, then stop worrying and start riding.

But if its the newer one with a 150mm back end then I wouldn’t be surprised if it became quite a handful to ride. Mine was awful when I had adjustable forks and forgot to re-extend them after a long climb!

Can’t disagree with the comments on the course – the Gorrick crew really know what they were doing and I thought this one flowed really nicely. Which makes it even more annoying that I only managed 1 lap :(

I was really enjoying the course and feeling pretty good … then managed a freak crash in the last singletrack section before the end of the lap and some how managed to snap the front skewer which led to ripping the wheel out and bending my fork. Possibly my most expensive race lap ever :(

Hey ho, presumably that means there is some really good luck just around the corner!

Phew – nearly forgot to enter, thanks for the reminder! Hopefully I’ll not end up ill and staying in bed for this round. No thawing out the trails please.

Some possibly useful info – 15% off Tridents on CW site until midnight tonight with code TRIDENT15. There are also some £50 vouchers knocking around. If you can combine both offers (may not be possible) that would be a nice saving. (Yes I’m tempted)

Bah, just down the road but I’m not around on the 6th.

You might want to clarify what you want to get out of the trip to help figure out who would best to go with. You will get the cultural experience whatever but do you want adrenalin or to test your climbing legs?

I went to Mustang with Tangi from Enduro Mtb Nepal 3 years ago – it was an awesome trip. His background is downhill, and his trips are focused more that way, so if that is what you are after then that is the right starting point. Around Kathmandu and Pokhara we had some uplifts as well as riding up, in Mustang there was a fair amount of up on foot and on bike but nicely balanced with tasty downhills.

He had plenty of stories about meeting people who had ended up on trips that involved mostly fire road type riding and were feeling disappointed – so if looking at anyone else, ask some questions about the nature of the trip. That said, the Upper Mustang trip on the Himalayan Singletrack website sounds frickin’ awesome.

Also beware the risk of big mountain addiction. I’m just back from Mountain Bike Kerala’s Singalila Ridge trip, and as above, Mike’s trip was awesome too and I am sorely tempted to book up another trip with him. That trip (which is at the wrong time for you) does crisscross the Nepalese border but its quite a different experience from the rest of Nepal.

You can find pictures from the recent trip and Nepal in here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/garyhill/sets/%5B/url%5D

In summary – JFDI.

EDIT – almost forgot, if you do go to Nepal, you really must make sure you see more than just Kathmandu and/or Pokhara. Obviously there are a huge number of things to see around Kathmandu but it is also hectic and polluted. It was a real shock coming back to it on the way home.

No allocation this time according to the website

Well, due to tubeless woes it looks like I’ll be running a Ralph/Ralph combo.

I’m either going to be quite fast or lying down a lot

The course is really weather proof. You’ll be fine. (I have a 2.4 RR on the front of my bike, been fine at Ashton Ct before)

OktoberFest in Bristol – 8h rather than 12, closer than D2D but still further than you’d like, but you’re running out of options at this end of the year.

Bristol Oktoberfest Oct 11 – entries still available

You really need to clarify what you need to insure to get any useful advice. As above, the limits on various policies mean that what is great for one person is useless for someone else.

FWIW, I went through this 12 months ago when the previous M&S terms changed for me. Outbuildings is one potential catch and the maximum amount for a single bike is the other obvious one. £2k seems to be a fairly typical limit. I was less bothered about cover away from home, more about someone taking the lot from home. Some companies will let you specify higher value items but it can get pricey.

I ended up with a decent quote from Hiscox, but when I went to cancel the M&S renewal they came up with a much better quote than the website so for the sake of a few quid I ended up just renewing.

This year’s renewal quote just arrived and seems pricey so will be watching here for more good ideas …

Saw one of them in the air over Upton this afternoon – was driving back from a race and as it banked around there was a gradual “that looks like an unusual shape” to “that looks like a Lancaster” transition. Unfortunately I was about to take a turning and didn’t see it for long.

Then dropped in to my parent’s who had come across old RAF work books from my grandpa who served in bomber command. Strange coincidence!

Interesting – without having read anything about it I’d assumed it was going to be a system that required dedicated tyres etc.

I’d be quite tempted if the street price is somewhat less – I seem to have developed a habit of snake biting tubeless tyres near the bead anytime I go somewhere rocky – (I could even try and persuade myself) this might actually save me money in the long run :)

Not that its all that helpful, as a sample of 1, but a passport control guy once told me my (very battered) passport was showing signs of water damage and I might want to think about replacing it.

I couldn’t really see any major issues with it and I think I used it for another 3 years or so until it ran out, no-one else ever commented on it..

The guy suggested that certain destinations, e.g. USA, would be more likely to get twitchy than others.

So what races are available to have a go at in the next 12months within 1h of Newbury/Reading then??

As others have said, not so much this year, but in addition to the above:

There are circuit races on the MoD base at Ludgershall nr Andover. Usually there is a weekend winter and weekday summer series but there was no winter series this year, not sure about 2015

Circuit races at Thruxton – typically a couple of weekends earlier in the year and then a summer evening series

VC Venta and Sotonia have run crits in the Park and Ride car park outside Winchester.

Winchester city centre criterium is a fun one off in August.

20mph? Wow, OK, that is a touch quicker than I was expecting for Cat 4.

Sounds a bit high to me – I can hang in the bunch in a cat 3 race (as long as its flat) and I don’t think I’ve ever logged a 20mph average for a solo ride of any distance! Positioning, confidence in a group, getting out of corners cleanly, etc. are far more likely to be factors in you getting dropped than out and out speed.

And to the guy up to looking for something like this for the odd bit of DH/skills stuff get a cheap FF rather than replaces your XC lid then you have 2 lids easily.

Dunno if you mean my comment, but I already own a cheap full face helmet. Which is fine if I’m off for some uplift fun or something. But flying with it as well as another helmet is a PITA, and that’s when having a bit more flexibility might come in handy.