I bought the Floats for a DW 5-Spot with the intention of adjusting them down to 150mm with the internal spacer, but tbh it rides so well at 160mm I've never bothered! Worth thinking about though if 160mm proves too much.

Using a prime lens is restrictive, but in some ways that can be a positive, making you think more about composition etc.

Have yet to ride Surrey Hills or Swinley this year base on tales of swamp-like conditions. Instead have ridden a lot round my local patch of Puttenham Common, as well as Hindhead, and St Martha's. Had hoped to ride Surrey Hills this weekend but given the rain, will likely be doing Puttenham or Hindhead instead.

Tim – come and join Dave and I in the Slopestyle club! One going for sale on Pinkbike recently.

They're on Bikeradar…..

Old

New

Never had any problems with other people when I had my TVR, as most recognised it as being British (can't say the same for police or the engine though!!!). Suspect you'd get the same +ve response in an Aston. Porsche, Ferrari etc seem to be a different matter though, as if you've been a traitor by buying non-British.
Didn't have too many problems with my M3 when I had it as I guess not "exotic" enough. Heard plenty of horror stories from friends with Porsches, Ferraris etc though.

Doing a quick google, yes it is a bit – main difference seems to be 1deg steeper seat tube and 0.5" longer chainstays.

whats changed from that one to the new one besides tubing and price? is the geo any different?

From what I can tell, that's about it! The recent MBUK review got me interested, so have been keeping an eye out for one. Paid just under £300 for it which seems pretty good value. Should get it at the weekend and am keen to see how it compares to my 456 and my mate's Dialled.

I've got two and found them to perform like you'd expect a headset to, but with a couple of observations…
– v low stack – can be good or bad, but was a reason for me using them on a particular bike
– difficult to fit – for some reason seem to be toughter to get home than a CK etc, even with a proper headset press
– some of the exposed surfaces have rusted a bit – not something you'd expect from a premium piece of kit

Trouble is you can't get a bike rack on anything but a 911! D'oh!

Oh that's nice! I've bought the 853 frame that was on Ebay in green so am excited about building it up. Will start with Pushed Pikes and see how I get on!

Carry one. Once managed to rescue a mate's ride by letting down the shock pressure to free up a jammed chain then repressure.

150mm Fox Floats on mine and much better than the previous Pikes.

We were one of Flow's first guests back in the day. Can't speak highly enough of Guy and Sarah as hosts and knowledgable riders. Much fun was had by all! Guy in action…..

Turned 40 last year………

Leica M9………mmmmmmm

Just interested as I would like to try and make a bikey video at some point, and I was wondering how well it would work with the 20mm lens as the autofocus seems to be a bit jumpy in video mode.

Grum – make sure you keep checking for firmware updates. The most recent one improved the autofucsing during video mode.

As for the debate about the GF1 being a DSLR replacement, I don't think that's where Panasonic have been pitching it, leaving that instead to the G1. It's been more that reviewers and users have found it has often replaced a DSLR for photo duties, me included.
Regarding value for money, then yes the GF1 is expensive, but then it is using new technology, which often results in a premium as the developers look to get back their investment. I don't think it's overpriced though.

Whilst I like my D90, what stops me buying a more expensive DSLR is the frustration that the more you spend, the bigger & heavier they become.

nice video – what lenses were you using?

All shot with 20mm.

Missed this post earlier, but would also add that the GF1 is an awesome camera, and has meant the D90 has largely been unused since I got it. Also worth bearing in mind the video quality is pretty stunning too – this was shot on a pair of GF1's…..

Cheers. Think I'll ride my local patch at Puttenham and give Pitch a bit longer to dry out!

Had ridden SPDs for 15 years until last summer. A trip to the Alps convinced me of the advantages of flats for certain types of terrain and riding so made the switch. It took me about 3 months to get used to it and be able to ride the jumps and drops I was riding with SPDs but it's been worth it as I think my riding has improved quite a bit. It's now great to be in a position to ride both depending on the ride / bike / conditions etc.

Was at Rogate on Friday for the first time (video posted on here yesterday), and it took my mate and I a while to pluck up the courage to hit one of the gaps. Two things made it do-able: (1) peer pressure, and (2) being able to visualise riding it – literally running through it in my mind (speed, position on the bike, where I wanted to land etc). To me, the mind games are the most difficult on a bike, but also the most rewarding!
Oh – speed, a full-face helmet, and a load of padding helped too!

Not that much riding in the vid…and it all seems to be of the same section..

You're right – I wasn't really planning on making a video so we only got the cameras out for two sections. It's spurred me on to film some more though!

not bad for a first effort,what camera are you using?

Have you a powerfull computer if its in high def format,1080i,the picture quality is great!

All filmed on a Panasonic Lumix GF1 with 20mm lens. It's not full hi-def (think 720) but still good quality. Editing is done on a macbook using Apple's iMovie software which is pretty good to use.

What bikes are you riding?

James is on an SX Trail with Totems, I'm on an Intense SS, also with Totems.

is that near Petersfield or a different Rogate?

Same Rogate.

is the gap to the right of the one you were riding there, or the road gap.

Still there and we looked at it, but doesn't seem to be ridden much as run-in and run-out both littered with rocks etc. Road gap – ha ha – too old!!

took a look at that jump today but the stump scared me.

Know what you mean, but doesn't come into play!

Fountain of Youth by Latch Key Kid – blatant rip-off from ROAM!

it would not be as much fun on the way back down,
???

Sorry Brant – just didn't get on with it. Love the 456 though!

Oops – first upload to youtube too. Made public now!

Stiffee all the way for me. Had one, sold it, and regret it. Have an On-One 456 which I like, but it's not as much fun as the Stiffee. Tested an mmmBop and just didn't get on with it – it felt really "odd" and whilst it would easily outclimb the Stiffee, it would not be as much fun on the way back down, or playing around.

160mm forks would be too much for the Stiffee – Pikes are the perfect fork as you can wind them down to help on the climbs.

Mine too.

Worth checking which way the wind is blowing. Prevailing wind is from the west, which is why most folk do west to east I suspect. The weekend I did it was from the east so we reversed it and did east to west.

Stayed in a cracking pub in Amberley, although cant remember the name!

Regret ever selling my Explosif (1992 vintage). Would be interested in buying if it's a Tange Prestige frame……

Great looking bike. Swap the Lyrics for Float 36's -should lose you quite a bit. Mavic SX wheels are cracking – have a set on my Intense SS, and will save you a bit of weight but expensive.

Check out the post today about friends wanted to ride with. One chap noted his club recently had a ride which 43 riders were on, in the North Downs. OK – they may not have been on Pitch / Holmbury / Leith, but large groups are not helping either with the erosion issue or the perceived dangers to walkers etc.

Vince at Recycle!!! Ha ha -funny memories!

I bought an ex of mine a copper-coloured DeKerf back in the day with matching Judy's. It was that or a Yo Eddy as the only frames that fitted someone @ 5'! I did a test ride with Vince and loved them so got one for her, although due to it's size, I never rode it.
She did quite a bit of racing, and ended up with Vince / DeKerf sponsoring her, so she also got a Generation, and loan of the only road bike in the UK DeKerf made for training – it really was a thing of beauty.
We parted ways over 10yrs ago but suspect she still as the mtb frames.
I ended up trading in my Pace RC200 for a 96 Hei Hei King Kahuna with Vince which I still have and is about to undergo a bit of a reincarnation!

Happy times!!

Sid's are good. Bought a Mojo frame off them a few years back and v helpful They have 2 stores – one each side!

Gary_c – I used to have a 6-Pack which was built up to 32-33lbs, but still felt it was too much for an all-day bike. Not so much the weight, but just the general ride was more about play bike than distance. A DW Spot may not come in a huge amount lighter (mine is just under 30lbs) but to use the standard mtb cliche it rides lighter.

Fox have also updated the RP23 to include boost valve technology, although DT/DW commented on MTBR that they felt the frame rode better without it…

Chucky – and that's a large frame running 160mm forks!

Re: longer rockers – I originally got them when I had Pikes on, and agree, prefered the old ones so switched back. I then had the idea of trying with longer forks (in pics has Lyrics set at 160mm and currently has 150mm Marz Z1 Lights) and the bike is awesome. Handles pretty much the same as the old rockers with Pikes, but with the extra 1/2" or so of travel and sl higher bb.
I don't think DT ever waranteed the HL version with anything longer than 140mm forks, so no-one really tried them, but given how bomb-proof the frames seem to be, I can't see too many problems running 10-20mm longer.

rexated – I left the zirks in. on hl spots they are an interference fit so quite difficult to remove. i just had to scrape the paint away to clear it. i removed all the bushings but as a result there was powder coat on the bearing surfaces which took me ages to remove (sharp knife and needle file), so in hindsight i'd leave them in, and remove afterward to replace with new ones (i was replacing all the bushings anyway).

Lowey – I used windridge. I broke the frame down and removed rear triangle, bushes etc, and they chemically stripped the frame. Think was around £70. If I did it again, I'd leave the old bushes in, as they all needed cleaning up.

Si – no they are at full height. My original intention was to play around with the settings so I have the adaptors to take it down to 140mm and 150mm, but tbh I like the way it rides at 160mm. Before getting the 36's, I ran it with the Lyrics now on the yellow HL and played with various heights, so knew it would be good at 160mm, so not too surprised that's where it's stayed.