Maybe my arms are not so short, but I tend to have a really high seat position (hence the love for long droppers). I think I’d probably be ripe for a 29er, but have two 26 in bikes and the Bird is obviously 27.5.

I can not get another bike though!!!

I’m 6 ft 2. I have T Rex little arms and long legs, or so it seems.

The long dropper helps, so much so that that I fitted a similar one to my full suspension bike.

The Bird rides so nicely, it’s great fun and confidences inspiring. I definitely like a bigger front tyre; helps with the the downhills and rougher stuff.

Interested in this thread. I bought a V2 (non-boost) Bird AM (also matt black) in XL. It was to replace my 2017 26 in Bfe (which was just too short).

I love the Bird. Have it specced as follows:

XL frame
150mm Pikes
Hunt Trail Wide Rims (30mm internal width, so take a decent size tyre)
800 mm Thomson bar
Hope Tech3 E4 brakes (200/180 mm)
50mm stem (race face I think)
210mm One Up dropper (really like this, seat gets nice and low)
Mish mash of 10 speed XT parts (with RAD cage for the big cassette)

I really like the bike. Great fun to ride; like the way it has plenty of room for big rubber, even though it is not a boost model.

I am just about to stick the summer tyres back on and am thinking Minion DHF (2.6) for the front. I (did no research and) bought a 2.3 Minion SS for the rear, but think it will not work that well with the rim width; I’ve got an Ardent 2.4 that should be ok though, as a rear.

XT stuff is being moved over to my other bike and I have some box fresh 11 speed SLX, which should do the job.

Being able to plan something, or anything. A ride. Camping with friends. Seeing extended family again.

Thanks Martin, going to change it this evening.

Just to add to this. My rims are 30mm internal width (Hunt Trail Wide rims), so I think the Minion I bought a whole back may be too narrow. Oops.

Interested in this as I am looking to buy one for my daughter. We have a very old Macbook (I think maybe 2007/8); interwebs does not really work that well, it’s not supported by Apple anymore and the battery does not charge.

I don’t have a clue about IT but was thinking a chromebook or equivalent, as I don’t want to spend loads.

Do chromebooks allow you to write basic stuff in a word processor* or equivalent program?

*please don’t mock my 1990s terminology :-)

Scruff, I took Mrs G on a trip the year before last. She had been off the bike for a while (we have young kids, I am selfish), so was not as confident as I am.

We went for a dirty weekend to Verbier (admittedly not the cheapest place in the world). What made the trip was the guide. PureBiking Verbier were awesome. It might not suit as a location, but I recommend getting a guide (unless a really well signposted bike park). My wife effectively had tuition and lots of support from someone who wasn’t her impatient husband. They know the routes and can quickly assess what would work best for all.

I think tuition at Glentress/BPW/Afan/Swinley (depending where you live) is a great shout, before you go away for a week.

Good luck.

Jonny; not me buddy.

Thanks for the map link Bushy and advice all. I don’t know why I could not find that map previously (internet incompetence on my part).

I ended up joining the Afan a Blast Wed night shop ride. We did Whites climb (always knackering for me) and then part of the Wall descent, linking into Graveyard and Six Feet Under. I found some of the steep stuff too steep for me on the hardtail (I was making a meal out of some of the tight corners), but really enjoyed it.

Awesome bunch of people and very hospitable.

Conti Trail Kings come up big, but might be more than you want. I have a secret fetish stash of unused/used 26in Rubber, including new Cedric Garcia Panaracer All Conditions, some new Michelin things, a ton of Maxxis Rubber etc. Most of mine are more general biking around rather than XC; although I think Ardents are good in 2.4

Conti, Maxxis or Specialized all worth looking at.

Thanks Warns74. Trying to find a map online that shows both the White’s level and Blade; seem to be being a bit slow, had no luck yet. I’ll have another look for one and have a look at the route.

Thanks.

Does anyone just us a tablet to edit video?

Coming from the perspective of someone who loves both a road-trip and quite likes flying, I can see advantages and disadvantages to both.

The spares point above from mashr is a really good one; even with basic bike, plus pads, helmet, bike shoes etc, it is easy to go over the 23kg allowance when packing a bike bag. Some airlines only give you one bag for free, some you have to pay for sports equip regardless. I had a weekend with Mrs G in Verbier (flying into Geneva, transfer by train); everything worked like clockwork, but hoping we made the connecting train time was a bit stressful (we were there for a short weekend only and had booked a guide starting the afternoon of our arrival). Bikes on roof of car/in back of van is also less hassle, on arrival.

On the other hand, unless you have a group of you that can share driving (so hopefully more than two), driving is still tiring. Travel in general can be a ball ache, but at least on a flight you can read a book, listen to music etc. If I was going again (on a biking trip), on balance I would fly (but then we are lucky that we live 35 mins from the airport). It is possible to get up really early, get on a red eye flight and be riding that afternoon.

This year we are going to drive to the Alps as a family for the first time (to go skiing). The main driver was on cost of flights, as we are stuck for choice and need to travel in Feb half term. The kids are only young, so it might not be the most relaxing journey…

I had a 2016 Bfe (bought in 2017). Loved it, but was just slightly short in the frame (for me). Have since seen they do an XL model, but I have moved on to a Bird now. Took the Bfe to the Alps (Verbier) for a long weekend in 2018. It was ace and the only thing that struggled was the small rear disc rotor (160mm), as it got hot.

Ran it with both a 150 and then 160 fork. Think your right on fork length, 140mm should be plenty.

I have the Trail Wide in non Boost. Absolutely fine last summer with 2.6 DHR front on my bird. Might run something lighter this summer, but currently work fine with 2.6 Hillbilly.

I have 2012 Mavic Crossmax SX rims that I have had 2.5 Maxxis tyres on.

I stayed here with Mrs Gribble. Really nice couple running it, nice rooms, amazing breakfast, secure bike storage, parking off the street.

They can organize dinner for you, or you can go to the very good curry house, which is a five minute walk.

Very happy with mine. I work for an e-commerce company, so know the logistics of getting orders out on time is not always straight forward. However, I thought their delivery service was great (which in my view is one of the first steps of customer service).

I ordered mid afternoon and had my wheels by mid-morning the next day. Tyres fitted (tubeless went up a breeze) and they were ready to go later that day.

I’d order from them again.

thanks all.

Bump for the evening bored at work and ready to go home crowd.

Thanks all. So looks like still optional, even if if advisable. Agree it isn’t totally clear though.

Just replaced the front tyres on the car and they are M+S rated. Weirdly they are the same model as the back pair, which aren’t (albeit they are an updated version of the same model – Pirelli Scorpion Verde). I know not as good as a winter tyre, but can’t hurt if I don’t change them change them and get a full set of winter rubber.

I have ordered a pair of snow socks in any event.

You could give these guys a call. I think they know their shizzle: Mac Upgrades Cambridge

You can post your machine up to them and they’ll do likewise.

I changed (or asked The LBS to) from standard to XD driver on my Hope Pro 2; I run it with Eagle 12 speed on a 26 in wheel.

You can get some good options on 10 speed and 11 speed set ups. I would look at Bike Discount DE or Bike Component DE at their upgrade kits; you can basically by an 11 speed upgrade kit that comes with wide range cassettes, mech and shifter. I converted a 10 speed XT mech with a RADR cage from One Up, but I think you’d be better off buying a 11 speed set up now, which would not be too pricey.

Cheers Mikkel. Now ordered paperback version.

Loved Chickenhawk and Dispatches; unfortunately ‘Back in the World’ is out of print and seems to be going for quite a lot on Ebay. Have not read Hasting’s book on Vietnam as yet.

I recommend Dear Mom: A Sniper’s Vietnam by Joseph T Ward.

I’ve got nothing helpful to add, but I love these kind of inspirational/planning threads. Makes me envious – hope they have a cracking time.

For what it is worth, I found trains from Geneva Airport into Switzerland fine with bikes, if massively expensive; lucked out on space and managed to then get room on the bus up the mountain into Verbier from the station down the hill (we were there out of season, so gondola not running).

I think I drink too much (often sharing wine with my other half six evenings a week). Just need to keep yourself occupied with alternatives, in my view – which I have not been doing enough. I could take a leaf out of a more sensible person’s book, for sure. I am gong to watch this thread.

I wanted to do 1,000 miles on the mountain bike this year and have ended up at around 872. I have lost my mojo these last two months and filled the evening time with too much wine. Hoping to make sure I smash 1,000 next year though.

Well, it is a hard thing for me to advise upon as my young family and I have never lived abroad as a family unit. However, I did so as a kid (Hong Kong, then San Francisco, CA) and loved it – but I was 3-7 yrs old, so not working or taking any admin stress on. I would move abroad with the family if an opportunity arose (unlikely in my wife and I’s job roles), but complications of increasingly involved in grandkid’s lives parents on one side and a very ill mother mean it is very likely not going to be a realistic option for us. I don’t mind missing out on UK stuff, but would of course miss family and friends.

My perspective is of course different and I don’t know what your relationship, family, employment or other details are, so can not really add anything useful. But as posted above, I would instinctively be encouraging and say go for it.

Places are expensive for a reason; I assume like many international cities, because Vancouver is nice and lots of people also want to enjoy the lifestyle and take advantage of the work opportunities. But think of the things you enjoy doing – if it involves the outdoors (which I guess certainly involves being on a bike), you would be living next to a goldmine of winter and summer mountain sports. I am sure there are loads of rich cultural opportunities and unique experiences that you would benefit from.

We don’t get a second run at life, so my advice is to give it a go. There is no shame in doing so and then coming back in 2 years and saying it didn’t work. You would have tried at least. You would be gutted if you were also saying to yourself ‘what if’?

And as an aside, if the only downside is that you can’t get mince pies (I was totally unaware of this), my wife makes amazing home made ones and I will fly them out to you – I have to say I am looking for every excuse possible to go biking in Whistler and think that sort of good deed would be a valid reason to pay for a ticket.

Not ridden much. For me it is family and (for the majority of November and December), the weather. Keen to get out again when I get back home though and the weather is looking up, sort of.

My folks live just outside the town, but are selling up and therefore not much help long term.

As you know, a lot of houses in Dartmouth are relatively limited in space (and I would assume any useful storage too); garages in the town are like hen’s teeth. Out of town in the surrounding countryside, there are a number of farms, but not sure how happy you are with your Cotic stored in a barn/outbuilding.

Are there any clever storage options you could look at for your Mum’s house (like hanging the bike off a wall, bike bag at the back of a cupboard etc? I am sure you have considered all options, but thought I would ask.

26in ain’t dead.

Thankyou Lewzz10.

I have some non-boost 650b trail wides. I think there fine. Had them on for maybe 6 months, but no issues. One slightly kinked spoke on arrival, but did not worry about it and I suppose I could change it if I could be bothered.

Do they make the trails come alive? – absolutely, I can feel the moisture content in the loam…

I only got them as I wanted to spend around £3-£350 max. My usual Hope Hub/Stans Flow (whatever the current generation is) seemed expensive; I think they do a basic Flow S1 wheel, but not with Hope hubs. I like the wider internal width – I have run some fatter rubber on the front and rear (2.6) – I like a bit more volume in the hardtail tyres (as it helps take some sting out of the roots/rocks), even though it is not a boost frame/fork combo.

So just as an update, I went for the following: 16GB RAM upgrade. I then went for the external SSD option (running off thunderbolt, so it is quicker than old USB); I know an internal SSD would have been quicker, but thought that option would stop be from re-using the external SSD in the future on another computer, if I upgraded.

Seems to run loads better and boots up quickly. I know it is going to be pish for any editing, but once I get a chance I’ll test the Go Pro footage on the current set up and perhaps upgrade the ipad if needed.

Put proper winter rubber on both bikes (Specialized Hilbilly on the hardtail and Maxxis Shorty on the full suss).

Also fitted a riser bar to my full suspension bike; have no logical reason for doing that in winter, but I had a day off and just was in the mood.

I have a V2 210mm post. Really pleased with it. But… I should have topped it up with air prior to fitting. Once up to the correct pressure, worked well. I have lubed up the plastic bushing around the neck of the post.

Bit of a funny whine/squeek coming from it when going up or down, which i have not sorted yet. Does not seem to affect the operation of the post though.

Thanks Jason. I am going to take it slow. I will cost up all the various options above and then in the mean time try and get some footage to have a play with.

Appreciate all the suggestions; some good ideas.

Well, it seems like there is a big(ish), but relatively simple decision I need to make; sell my Mac Mini seems a given, but chosing the replacement not so simple. I have heard about people just using an Ipad to edit stuff, but mine is only a 32GB IPad mini 2 I think, so again perhaps old hat.

Could I sell off my Mac Mini, then just get a better Ipad for editing and use cloud storage? I wonder if I am better to get rid of a desk top altogether and just use cloud storage (the only other key item for me is where to store photos – I don’t use itunes anymore and just use spotify; have thought about using Go Pro’s cloud storage subscription service.

I like the idea of a desk top/lap top and have an ok screen, spare USB hard drives and an apple keyboard and track pad; so a mac mini (as per the pimped refurbed one above) seems like an obvious choice.

Thanks all for the help. The graphics card is integrated and I think totally kak for anything of use. I think it is Intel HD Graphics 4000.

Not sure if it is, or isn’t worth spending the money on the machine, or elsewhere. I am not very on the money with this sort of tech stuff, so perhaps it would be better to get an iPad to edit instead? Any advice welcome.

New Macs seem like big dollars and I like the idea of keeping my old mini going, but I am not sure if you can add external graphics power to them, or if this is like trying to make a Trbant into a Porsche.

Do it. Riding from your doorstep makes a huge difference to your ability to get out for short or cheeky rides. I have kids now so can’t head over to Peaslake for a whole morning/day anymore.

Commute is a pain when it is hour(s), like mine, but good time to read, work, listen to music.