Talkemada +1!!!

Good effort! The bike looks great – hope you enjoy it!

I'd e-mailed Madison directly at sales@madison.co.uk to ask for advice on an XR1 wheelset as they import them – they came back very quickly on that with a link to the DT Swiss website with specs and their own website for part numbers. That's your best bet I think!

great video – hope the fingers heal well!

I use x9 9 speed on the MTB and 10 speed on the road bike and they are simply awesome. Much better than SRAM and Shimano. Better performance, better on wear and great longevity. Highly recommended!

If the tyre is flat topped then change ASAP! Cracks in the sidewalls aren't good either. Try conti ultra gatorskins for longevity – I really like the GP4000 otherwise.

+1 for chucky or the weldtite kit – I've had a repair in a nobby nic for over a year and it's fine! Much cheaper than a new tyre!

Cool – was thinking the same thing! I've got XT servowave brakes on the spare bike so really wanted the parity between pads and bleed kit for both bikes to save the hassle. Hope I can sort this or it's Hope x 2 for the bikes. Here was me trying to save money . . . . ho ho.

Bit of both MrH86! They prefer you to go through your LBS but will field queries, so I've tried them directly. To be fair, a product that sells for over £300 should have a bloody good warranty. Not to mention seal and piston kits! Suggest we both post what we're told here too!

Hi Boris!

I've mailed the guys at madison to see what they say, but today pumped the pistons out and cleaned them, cleaned the inner bits of the caliper and am ready to re-assemble them. One of the pistons (the one that works) has a couple of small marks on/in it so I'd prefer to replace it, but don't think the guys at Shimano make piston kits. Which is totally pants if that's the case!

Look at the xcracer.com shop – at £8.97 for 8 they're just over £1 each for a 16oz cartridge. I've used them for a while and they great – the shop is run by Anthony White and he knows his stuff!

http://www.xcracer.com/shop/viewproduct.php?productid=62

eeek. Will try madison and the cheaper seals first!!! As a thought – are all the pistons the same size across SLX \XT \ XTR???

Pete – thanks for your efforts on the trail building! Interesting point about the Gorrick races causing more damage than perhaps we'd been aware of – fair point and thanks for making that (along with cinnamon girl!)

Hi guys – resurrected the thread as I have the same problem with my M975 brakes and a sticky piston. I have taken the pistons out, cleaned around etc. but do Shimano not make piston kits as above? £250 of brakes that cannot be repaired makes no sense to me at all!

I'm not being difficult here but . . . .

I think reluctant and cinnamon girl have a valid point on the trails – assuming everyone went there to trash the place. I don't believe that was the case though – the riders went to race and not specifically ruin the enjoyment of trails for everyone else afterwards. There is a difference to be fair.

Trail management is an issue moving forward though – have you contacted Gorrick to discuss this??

willsimmons – many thanks for that. I really like the M975's but want a brake that will work in the wet. I'll try the servowaves in mud and see what they're like in comparison.

+1 for nicks. I was parked next to Anthony White and he had no pads left at the end of lap 2 and he was on xx as well. I think they'd just assumed it would be more of the same for the remaining laps. Nice. The course wasn't dangerous – bit gloopy in places and a couple of muddy spots but nothing like SITS or Mayhem in the rain.

willsimmons – interesting point on the servowave brakes. I was on xtr m975 which are fine in the dry but they were simply crap in the conditions – worked well but made a rubbing noise ALL THE WAY THROUGH. I have servowave xt on the other bike though – do you really think that they made a big difference with the adjustment? THX!

thisisnotaspoon – fair play to you for going there in an MG midget in this weather. Respect!!!!

Just check out the results on http://www.timelaps.co.uk – only 3 riders made 6 laps out of 7 – nobody made 7 laps. Great course but not too fab in the weather – a great effort from Gorrick again though!

I tried eggbeaters for the same reason and hated the feel of them and reliability was poor. I like the SPD engagement 'feel' and I'm getting my XTR pedals serviced for the first time in 8 years of heavy use – they've been amazing.

Ti29er – that is an EXCELLENT excuse :-)

As a thought, are there any brakes out there that won't eat pads in half a lap in conditions like those???

+1 for weldtite but not so great on the trail! Punctured a nobby nic on some glass so it spewed sealant everywhere. Fixed the puncture the day after and it was spot on and has been great for a year.

I like Stans sealant as it works well for small punctures but make sure to get the particles in or it won't work.

I changed pads F&R at the end of the 2nd lap – they were grinding metal halfway through lap 2 – and at the end of the 3rd lap they'd both gone to the metal again, so I retired. An expensive race – 4 pairs of pads :-( Left for an early bath and slid all the way out (only time I've ever wanted a 4×4) – the fireroad was getting nasty so am glad I got out early!

Guy I was talking to at the end said the three leaders (Ian Leitch & Rob Lee included) on the 7 lap race all pulled out at the end of lap 2 with no pads left either. I felt much better knowing that!!!

Zaskar + 1.

loulouk – good effort and well done you for asking a difficult question and looking for difficult responses. Especially on here. I really like your blog and the pictures are excellent! Just ignore the fools out there who think it's funny to mock you – it's not funny and as has been said here your commitment is clear which we all respect. Just keep going – it's one pedal after the other . . . :-)

There is a clear point to lighter wheels and overcoming inertia – but only if the wheels are stiff enough for supporting rider weight and good tracking. That's where the cost comes in! I prefer lighter wheels but not stupidly light with 24 spokes, as weighing 95 kilos I will break them. On long endurance events like the kielder 100 or events with lots of climbing with all of the small accelerations adding up you will feel the difference. All personal choice though!

Tyres make a huge difference to how the bike feels on the trail as mentioned above, so note that you can save 200g on a tyre too!

For me the key to training is just to enjoy it, so I do both to get a bit of mix in the riding as I think they're both great but really prefer MTB. For endurance training I work close to anaerobic threshold on road and MTB for four hours +. I like road (sadly I hate bad or careless motorists but never mind) as long as a good effort is made – lots of hills added in for that and I keep my MTB sessions to longer and harder efforts to keep me motivated. I get bored though so use a low volume mp3 player on road or only plug one earpiece in; and use loud music offroad. The other thing is not to work too hard and burn yourself out – and focus on your recovery afterwards! Good luck!

I'd just pass them and say hello as I would anyway. Good effort on their part for getting out on the trail IMHO. If anybody would pass them and take the pxxs out of them for it they deserve a very hard slap.

+1 for middleburn – I really like the hardcoat ones and they last ages longer than Shimano.

As theyEye says – you can get a new crankset for £60 and that is worth thinking about!

+1 for Gaz – top tip!

I just got a flyer through the door – I was mortified to see that rubbish in my own house. Straight to the bottom of the recycling bin.

Fast and flowing with some nice technical stuff to keep me awake!

The course last year was around 10.6 miles long with 750ft of climbing per lap, so great for longer rides and the hills aren't toooo bad at all!

I apply it twice after I clean the bike, then once more quite liberally before I head out. The chain is much cleaner than with normal lube in wet and dry conditions, although on longer rides (4 hours +) it does tend to make a wee bit of noise so I just reapply a bit.

Matt – TBH I'd just sell your bike and buy a lighter one – much easier to manage and usually cheaper unless you go mad! You can get some excellent light-ish bikes for £1k or less, especially second hand from the forum!

Splat +1! Also, the cynic +1. When under fire for riding too much I went out on night rides more and gave time back to balance the books where possible. Always a dilemma – but the fairness thing really matters on both sides. If she isn't then she's unreasonable and I would push back hard at that point. Good luck fella!

Lovely, lovely bike. Am very jealous!

Good luck Andy – all the best!