I’ve got a 5 year old fenix 3. Its on its second strap in that time. I really want a newer model with music, wrist based HR etc etc but this one will not die. Still works as well as it did on day 1. Will be replacing it with another fenix series when it does go.

Tycho – Dive

Fujitsu – Corals

My top 2 chill/ambient albums of the last few years

Bike rental is available everywhere in NZ – it’s also cheaper and easier than the UK. Show up to one of the numerous bike rental places, £40-50 and usually about 5 mins later you’ve a decent bike for the day.

The difficulty of the trails is a bit inflated here.

Harvey – you thinking of sticky woods?

I’ve been through this, as someone who skis exclusively in the backcountry and the slackcountry.

I dont have an airbag at the moment, but will probably pick one up on my next trip! Like you, I probably get 10-15 days a year in – wish I got more, its my favourite thing to do!

Dont kid yourself it’ll be fine – go and arm yourself and your family with good decision making skills, avy safety skills, conditions assessment skills, dig some pits every day etc! Do a course – they’re loads of fun. Airbags are great, but they’re a specific tool and not a catch all. What will really save you loads of trouble in the back country is good planning, good decision making, good backcountry skills and drop the ego – ski to the conditions. If you’ve done all that stuff then yeah, buy a bag, but if you haven’t then do all that first!

Frosty whip round whinlatter on sunday, plenty of ice around and mountain rescue doing a few call outs. Last mountain bike ride of the year for me most likely!

I got one of the free ones with Spotify family.

It’s pure garbage – unplugged it a day later and never used it again. If we’re being honest with ourselves, it doesn’t really do anything useful, and it sounds terrible. Plus, it’s listening to everything you say.

If anyone wants it (minus the power cord – standard micro usb) for cost of postage let me know.

Beaten to it by BWD

I lived in hayfield for about 2 years – before I got into mountain biking.

Commute will be much better if you can arrive at 8 or before and leave at 4ish. Half an hour later and it’ll add at around 30 mins to your commute. Still not terrible at peak times, but worth checking out if it’s a big factor.

You’d have no problems air BnBing the place at all imo. The campsite 5 mins walk away from the centre of the village is heaving all summer. The demand is there, so if the place is up to scratch then you’ll have no issues.

Pros:
Hayfield is a lovely place to live, plenty of biking , running, easy walk up kinder scout from home is nice. You don’t need to drive to do a good ride(road or mtb), pubs are really nice, chippy is decent. Easy enough to get into central manc by train if you want/need. Easy to get to edale and ladybower etc. It’s peaceful there and it’s a very picturesque place.

Cons:
Not many really.
Parking space is limited. The car parks for kinder scout are pretty small, so the village gets busyish sometimes. Not a big deal if you’re chill and don’t mid walking a hundred meters to get your car. There’s not much in the village, if you need a pint of milk at 9pm you’re gonna have to get in the car. No gym if you’re into that. Roads occasionally get a bit snowy.

Tucker and dale Vs evil. If you’ve never heard of it or seen it, don’t do any research on it – it’s one of the funniest films I’ve seen in the last few years, but it hits so much better if you go in blind.

I live locally, ride my cross bike along the edge quite a bit. Never found anything worth breaking out the mtb for along there. That’s not to say there isn’t anything up there though.

Better option for a mixed group would be the long mynd. Short drive away, easy to do multiple loops of stuff, nice pub and a bike shop.

Stan: I’ve been told a lot of things about pot, but I’ve come to find out a lot of those things aren’t true! So I don’t know what to believe!

Randy: Well, Stan, the truth is marijuana probably isn’t gonna make you kill people, and it most likely isn’t gonna fund terrorism, but… well, son, pot makes you feel fine with being bored. And it’s when you’re bored that you should be learning some new skill or discovering some new science or being creative. If you smoke pot you may grow up to find out that you aren’t good at anything.

I’ve been.
It’s really good. It’s a step up from revos in difficulty but it’s a similar style of riding.
There’s not much (nothing) to ride except the jump line if you’re struggling with the other 3 tech lines.

Need something second hand

Go to classifieds

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Bin it all off, go to pinkbike

Am I alone?

Yeah he had no business being there

Last year I splashed for the gemini titan and duo after a couple of years on the cheap ebay stuff.

Really happy with them in general, but the biggest game changer is the wireless remote and only 3 modes. It controls the helmet and bar lights together, so push button on the bars as you drop in = no faffing with 15 modes on each light. Keeps the ride flowing at night when its cold and wet and grim.

I’ve had a capra and a strive.

Capra is for sure the “bigger bike”, more DH focused, feels burly, very confidence inspiring but worse to pedal. Very easy on the maintenance. If they still come with the E13 dropper then that will need replacing after a few wet rides.

Strive can still handle the bigger features but its more balanced and nicer to pedal around.
The shapeshifter is annoying, it will break at some point, and then its replace (£100) or put a modefixxer in. The shapeshifter takes the strive from “meh” climbing geo to “meh” descending geo, its not amazing. Its also another thing to mess around with when you drop in. Having said that, its a nice snappy bike, and it will be able to handle everything you throw at it.

If you’re going to do a lot of uplift then I’d get the capra. If most/all of your rides involve a good amount of ascent then get the strive.

There’s a beginner loop at hopton but it probably wont take more than 20 mins to complete – and not much cake around!

I would head to mortimer forest – park at black pool, and its a short ride up to the top.
Plenty of easy and flowy trails, but not “trail centre” surfaces, its loam and roots. The trails all drop out into the car park and there are plenty of cake options in Ludlow, just round the corner.

Eastridge/Hopton/Bucknell/Bringwood all have big climbs.

Long Mynd is worth a visit, natural riding mostly with great views. Pub at the bike shop is ok, and free parking there.

Other side of the mynd you have eastridge for trail centre riding – the home dug stuff there is waaaaay better than the waymarked route. From here you can access the natural trails on the stiperstones with a short (20min) pedal. Eastridge can be brutal especially if you are planning on linking it with other rides. A typical 10k ride of eastridge can be 2000ft of climbing, so plan accordingly.

Shelve is the next set of hills over again, its not amazing but worth a stop off if its dry and you’re in the area. Avoid if its rained in the past week, its really boggy and doesn’t drain well.

40 mins drive from bewdley you have mortimer forest for nice easy trails. Sessionable from black pool car park, dont think anything is signed, but have a look at strava/trailforks and you cant go wrong.

Other side of the valley from the mortimer trails you have Bringewood for steeper loam/clay downhill type stuff. Plenty of official and unofficial options.

A little further on (1hr from bewdley) you have hopton trail centre and bucknell DH track. Plenty of options for trails at both of these locations.

Some CX and road options on the lanes around mortimer forest and nice views.

If I had one day to ride then I would head to mortimer and bringwood for the best trails the area has to offer, these can be easily linked off road without using the car. Finish with food in the pub by the river in Ludlow. If you want views and natural riding with some good trails, then I would go for mynd, eastridge and stiperstones – this will be a big day.

Have fun!

As an ex-chemist; I’d say it depends. If he wants to have a career in technical / R&D, honestly I’d say a masters won’t cut it; there are so many PhD’s from the UK and overseas that that is really entry level now. A first degree or even apprenticeship is worth almost as much as a masters and gets you started earlier in a technical or plant chemist role and then build from there.

If wanting a career in business within chemistry – I’d say a business related add on would be more useful, which could be taught or on the job / day release.

Real truth here.

I’m a chemist. My advice would be know what you want to do, specialise as much as possible and make sure your projects are geared towards your goal.

If he doesn’t know what he wants to do then dont do the masters. It’ll always be there later.

Its pretty grim in all honesty.
I’ve been working away from home for the last 8 years give or take. I’ve no kids which is a blessing.

Currently in the UK, and I get home at 9 or 10pm most fridays and have to mob again Sunday afternoons. Don’t see my mates because I basically have to spend time with the other half because we haven’t seen each other all week. Might get one cheeky ride in a week.

I used to bring my bike, but it got stolen out of the van so that’s done with now. They key is staying away from the booze, hit the gym, stay active if you can, it’s 99% mental. Pure gym is £14.99 a month and is everywhere. Don’t eat in the hotel, and try and explore wherever it is you are staying!

There have been some good times however last year my house got compulsory purchased. My notice is going in this week and then I’m going to cycle tour the world with the other half – starting in November. I won’t be travelling in my next role whatever it turns out to be.

Not strictly BnB but there are camping pods behind blazing bikes at the long mynd.

Bike shop, nice pub on site, and easy start/finish to riding the mynd.

Close to the 49 too so easy to explore the other trails in the area if you want.

They’re still standing, but won’t be for long, the demolition crews have been gearing up on site for the last few weeks. I think it’s a matter of days before demo starts.

I live locally and I’ll be sad to see them disappear.

Yes, park at black pool car park, head back out under the height restriction barrier, turn right and follow this fire road up, you’ll start seeing trails in no time. Most of them dump back out into the car park.

Easy to link in with bringewood if you want something steeper/longer day.

You’re not alone.
My notice has just gone in – last 3 years I’ve been working as a contractor, on the road Monday to Friday, get home late Friday have to mob again Sunday afternoon a lot of the time. Money’s good but it’s killing my soul, my social life and my will to live. On the other hand I’ve nothing lined up but I do have a good amount of savings, a part time freelance job to fall back on, no children and a partner who is about to do exactly the same thing.

Change is good, embrace it, but be smart about it. Listen to your heart and your head.

Your post is a bit confusing, but if your friend is buying the bike from the UK for local pick up by you, they’re definitely going to charge the vat. You’re friend can claim the vat back if mason are part of the tax free shopping scheme (doubt).

They wouldn’t charge the vat if they shipped it to the USA, but there would then be no way of dodging the import fees etc.

Hopton is probably closest, and it’s really fun. Nice xc loop and some dh trails there.

Bucknell is steeper and not marked so well but worth a visit.

About 25 mins away you’ve got Mortimer forest trails, a few nice easy runs tucked away near Ludlow – park at black pool car park. These are easy to find and most runs filter back to the car park so easy to call it a day when you’re done.

Other side of the hill from Mortimer is bringewood, steeper than hopton and Mortimer more of a dh focus, and not the easiest to find but super fun.

I was in the Bose shop in portsmouth on Thursday – they were selling factory referb QC35 II for £170. In a box, new condition. They said they had about 15 pairs left.

I have had a pair for a few years now, they sound ace, noise cancelling is mint and they’re bombers.

Geo-environmental/geotechnical engineer here – you can hand dig an inspection pit, as munrobiker says.

Other options include – mini digger if you think its close to surface. Any more than 1.5m/2,0m ish deep and you might struggle. GPR is possible, again if the rock head is closeish to the surface, and it can “see” through the rest of the strata.

If its deeper than a couple of meters then you’d be looking at a cable percussion drilling rig, around £800/day and a bit messy, or a CPT rig at around £1500 if the formation above the rock is soft enough to push through.

In your shoes, I’d hand dig a pit with a site spade – dont just do a single pit, do at least 2!

I will take any opportunity to talk about noise cancelling headphones! I have tried a few pairs of cheaper (£80ish sony and panasonic) ones, and they dont stand up. Less comfortable, sound worse, noise cancelling a bit shite.

I have a pair of QC35 II and a pair of QC 3s.

I didn’t realise how much passive noise I was exposed too – they make a huge difference to my day to day life, but its especially noticeable when travelling.

The QC35s are one of my prised possessions, they come everywhere with me, have survived 3 years of twice monthly long haul flights, trains, gym sessions (not recommended – a bit sweaty), shitty hotels, loud offices etc etc and have never missed a beat. Put them on and you are suddenly in a peaceful place. Battery lasts forever, and takes a standard charger. They work as passive headphones if you run out of battery. They are comfortable for long time use (I once did 16 hours without removing them). These were bought to replace the QC3s because I wanted wireless and over ear.

The QC3s were given to my boss to try out on our last flight. We got to our connecting airport, and the first thing he did was go and buy a pair of QC35s. His wife now has a pair too, and apparently no longer hates flying.

£300 odd quid on headphones is a lot, but once you’ve experienced how much of a game changer they are you wont regret spending that money.

My advice – get any of the expensive ones, but make sure your wife tries them on for as long as possible and the fit is right.

Not really talking about smashing it to pieces though are we? But cracking the plastic/scratching it/damage or smashing the screen – course you could in a crash. The fenix is noticeably tougher.

Yeah its 80g vs 40g, but its still pretty light compared to a lot of watches.

Not trying to have an argument though, my missus loves the 235, I love the fenix, get the one that does what you want it to. I like their products in general, though I do have a few niggles with them. Garmin connect in particular is a bit shit.

Yeah, its alright and does the job, but it does feel a little plasticy and doesnt have all the functionality. My GF has one and I used it for a week, then ended up with a fenix 3 (secondhand) which I love.

If you can stretch to the fenix then its worth it, the nav functions on it are much better if you’re into exploring. Its a bombers watch and has survived several crashes that I think the forerunner may not have. Fenix can select the notifications you want, and can display them.

Id love a fenix 5x if money was no object.

Hello!

Kayaker of many years here – join a club. You can try boats, get instruction and meet other people, its social and fun. Kayaking is awesome, however it is far far more sketchy than most other common outdoor sports due to the environments you will find yourself in. So go to a club, have some fun, pick the correct gear and above all learn how to be safe.

Did Japan, Banff, and Garmisch last year – dont think I’ll get as lucky this year, but I’m hoping to get a week somewhere.

@digby

Don’t be put off going to Japan by the crowds – the big resorts are pretty horrible (Niseko) and do get tracked out quickly, but the smaller resorts have arguably better terrain, no crowds and lift accessed deep powder, with a shit load of touring/skinning ops. If I was to go back, I would be in Niseko for no more than 2 days.

Dont wear lycra on the mountain bike.

Dont wear lycra on the road bike.

Dont wear lycra on the cross bike.

Dont wear lycra.

Just go ride one.

A lot has changed in ten years, give it a good go and see if you enjoy it.

I’ve been riding enduro and trail bikes for about 3 years now, and I love them. I thought I would never own a drop bar bike, never even really considered it, wasn’t interested and didn’t want to know. Thought all drop bar bikes were lame.

Last week I popped into my local bike shop to buy a cleat bolt. Inside they had a second hand Genesis Crox De Fer 20 – it was £600 and pristine and I liked the look of it. Took it for a quick test ride, bought it there and then.

Its absolutely **** ace man, it munches miles on the road, gravel, bike paths, double track, fire roads, easy single track and beyond. Done 300km of mixed surface riding after work in the last week. Anyway, I dont really have any bike recommendations or any of that stuff for you, but you should buy an adventure/gravel/touring/cx bike thing because they are stupid fun.

Check that your personal settings are correct – Height, weight, age etc etc.

Connect wont re-calculate after you change the stats though…

@tjagain

Agreed. Lots of people here full of criticism but no alternative solutions being heard – your needs are not more important than:

1. Majority of users

2. The wellness of the fells

Agreed with TJ – Mike and Justin, if you could give us the best way of repairing trails that accommodate all users with the minimum economic outlay and maximum longevity I would love to hear it.

Until then, stop thinking about yourselves, and start thinking about the millions of people who visit the lake district not on a mountain bike each year…

Errrrrrrrrr coz amost everyone using it is walking it? Its not rocket science is it – there is a limited budget, so do the best, most economical option for the overwhelming majority of users (aka hikers).

As to why exactly? Basically, every other type of trail will erode and become a horrible sloppy rut in the ground in a year or so. This makes all the money spent on maintaining the integrity of the fell pointless.

I say this as a lake district local – MTB is a tiny fraction of users, and at the end of the day, economics win. I for one, am glad to see fix the fells getting to it!