I have an On One Lurcher, it feels like it smooths out some trail buzz and chatter. I usually ride a 100mm 26″ FS bike and is is almost as comfortable for long lumpy rides. It is super stiff about the bottom bracket and head tube so transfers power directly. The geometry is spot on for general XC riding especially climbing. It looks massively overbuilt and is heavier than similar XC racing sleds costing £1K more, but that could be a good thing for the larger or clumsier rider.
Of course finishing kit will also hugely affect the feel and ride.
Downsides are that it is noisy, in a ‘lego in a tupperware box’ rattly way.

+1 for the lurcher. Very happy with mine…

one man’s overgrown bridleway is another man’s (bug’s, bird’s, small animal’s) nature reserve. Buy some shin pads or long socks, man up and ride it anyway…

Good for core and arm strength, standing climbs, grinding too big a gear, and keeping going when everything is hurting.
Some techniques aren’t best for riding geared when spinning is more efficient.
No knee problems, but lower back pain features frequently, when core strength is poor to start.

The oakley lenses are expensive

…but blooming good, hard wearing and worth the money

glad you had a good day out. I didn’t make it there today 🙁
The weather looked nasty, and visibility poor. Last Wednesday night marking out the course of the first descent, I was treated to a lovely view of the sun setting over the strangely lumpy hills on the West of Cross Fell, with the babble of the river and the hoot of owls below as the only sounds, oh and a few sheep.
The descent with no lights was interesting!

Not sure where up north is for you, but in Newcastle and Northumberland I see RLJing all the time

so do I, usually taxis, white vans and the occasional bus 😯
I have run a few on my bike too, or started early, to get away from motorists that don’t indicate mostly…

I had a lesson with Northside[/url] at Druridge bay a couple of years back, instructor was very relaxed and good. The waves were just right, the North sea in April was a bit nippy mind.

Lower burden of proof for “careless” over “dangerous” hence the lack of prosecutions for the “dangerous” offence. Basically the reform, needs reform…

I miss our cocker who died this year age 15. She was everyone’s friend, bombproof in every way, gentle, mischievous, biddable and stubborn. We took her everywhere *sigh*.

Our adopted Welsh Springer is a different dog entirely and very hard work.

Buy from a reputable breeder, make sure you see the dam (mum) before you see the pups. Train and socialise as soon as possible.

On-one Lurcher manages to be stiff and comfy and cheap(ish)…not overlay light though…

You asked you 13 year old son to do an errand and they did it without complaining or making a fuss – great result
You gave them far too much money for a loaf of bread (assuming this isn’t an Islington artisanal loaf we’re talking about) so they used some change for an alternative source of carbohydrate as well as the bread – fair enough
You flipped out – not cool.

You sound like the mum in Jack and the beanstalk…

strip them, change the oil, regrease and rebuild, before selling – they might just need a service…

We were at the false start in York, saw the Battle of Britain flight go over twice (a bit insensitive for the Axis countries’ riders but never mind…), loved the police outriders waving and high-giving the crowd and the gendarmes doing Judge Dread impressions. Lovely atmosphere, enjoyed the yellow bikes and bunting, top marks to York Minster for the “Allez Allelujah!” banner…

Nibali had a team mate to do the fake attack to draw out the legs of the bunch, Froome had lost Porte so will be happy that the gap was just 2s. Amazing climb up Jenkin Road, safe to say that the Froome turbo spin is up and running again this year. Great atmosphere on the route…we waved to Dave Brailsford…

maybe the Russian goalie thought it was a Spetsnaz sniper on holiday from Ukraine…
I’m glad they’re out fair or foul…

Jerseys, teams and team work. They’ll get the ‘it’s a long way’, and ‘it’s a race bit’ quickly. 6-8 year olds are pretty sharp in my experience so don’t talk down, and leave plenty of time for questions and interruptions.

Sit up and allow yourself to get dropped if you don’t want it?

I did that once and ended up stopped as the bloke behind didn’t want to come out and say hello, no matter how much I slowed. It was near a difficult junction on my first time through and I wasn’t 100% sure of the route, so sprinting off wasn’t an option.
and this…

Sometimes a wheelsucker can be annoying, riding through busy traffic I don’t want someone on my wheel in case I need to make split second direction changes or stop suddenly and I don’t want to be thinking about another rider on my wheel.

I did the Bike Treks big ride out from the link above last Sunday and it was excellent – one of my best days riding ever.

for the last 30 odd years I have tried to stay safe road riding by assuming that I am invisible to other road users, and that at least one person (or wild animal) will try to kill me.

+1 for the sedation. I’m told people pay good money for these sorts of drugs (benzodiazepiene hypnotics). I had a really nice sleep afterwards.

Wife’s cousin did it…
to quote Jim Royle “Candida? My arse…”

Is there a new verse to the “Stevie Gerrard fell on his arse…” song yet?

Get the Anthem. I have a Trance and a Lurcher. You will appreciate the damage limitation of a FS bike…

my rear shock and bearings lasted 6 years before servicing (Giant Trance), just a bushing change. It was ridden in all weathers. £300 for 6 years isn’t bad. Front shock I can do myself. Toying with replacing chainrings. cassette and chain, but new jockey wheels sorted out the shifting for a while.

Its a pretty cheap sport if you don’t go overboard.

Report the incident to the police. They can offer “words of advice” to the driver without pursuing it formally.

That said I’ve done versions of the route setting off at 6pm and coming back down well after midnight. That’s fun!

i.e. stumbling around the top of Cross Fell at midnight trying to find the trig point to regain navigation in horizontal midsummer drizzle. That was fun. I’m hoping for a different sort of fun this time, the one with sun, a gentle breeze, the sound of skylarks and curlews overhead…

we do it lots, usually after 8pm on a weekday evening, often it’s pouring with rain, dark and cold. Strangely, we don’t have any problem with walkers…

ooh! Bruntwood park looks a lot more interesting than it was in my day. It is populated by stupid parents though, as demonstrated by the time when a toddler was up to it’s neck in the pond. The horrified parent dived in to save the child, the toddler then stood up and walked out of the 12″ of water (newt infested sludge), leaving a very wet parent behind… 😆

32/18 here using the ‘sit, stand, or push’ philosophy I can get up nearly anything. The iO frame is really nice and hard wearing.

The Sustrans spokeswoman on BBC NE tonight was very reasonable. She explained that the police were called to investigate a significant metal theft (which was admitted on camera), that it had cost a lot of money to make safe the metal spikes left behind and restore a fence and that someones messy verge was another’s habitat for butterflies and birds. She was very reasoned and measured and hoped that the bloke would work with them in the future.
Sadly measured and reasonable doesn’t get heard these days…

Is it on telly, I hadn’t noticed…

If the rest, protein shakes, massages etc. don’t work, get along to your GP for a blood test. I had similar and it turned out I was low on iron and calcium due to coeliac disease (gluten intolerance), fixed by a gluten free diet.

Mine’s on order only 20 days to go…stealth blach rather than bumblebee yellow.
Fugly…maybe…but in a good way…

My son (11) spends his time building all sorts of things. Cities, underground train networks, TNT cannons, roller-coasters and logic gates are his favourites.

OK, thanks, it looks like I need to do some test rides 🙂

I’m not a fan of secret drafters, and prefer to go alongside and say hello before slotting in behind someone on my commute. A few years ago I mentioned this problem to a certain gent of this parish, his advice then was to stick it in the big ring and sprint. When the opportunity presented, I tried this out. After pulling a mini power wheelie, I sprinted as best I could for as long as I could. I didn’t dare look back in case he was still there…he wasn’t. I still feel embarrassed thinking about it now… 😳

@binners – rather emotional this morning?
Never said anything about not reporting or letting due process deal with things.
All I’m saying is that the dog may not have intended to injure the thing it was chasing, as opposed to a deliberate attack where a reasonably sized dog can do a lot of damage.

an accident is nipping someone in the middle of a rough game or when they reach for the stick the dog’s trying to pick up.

running out of a farm gate and biting a passing cyclist is not ‘an accident’ the point is – to the dog they could both be a game…

I accept that pointing out the difference between an accidental wound and a full on bite is controversial. Dog canines are sharp and pointy, human calves are soft and squishy. Combine those with a predatory instinct and a prey object to chase and its an accident waiting to happen.
I don’t think the dog should be put down for one mistake. I do think it should have been under control, i.e. tied up or muzzled in that circumstance.
I have two dogs and am very careful because I know that even friendly dogs can have accidents.

Two puncture wounds = not an aggressive bite. More like puncture wound from the canines resulting from a chase and grab response. A proper bite would leave you with a chunk of calf missing. (The long canines are the reason why dogs often pop cheap plastic footballs.)
It shouldn’t have happened and it could have been a child, but I wouldn’t say the dog was dangerous, you and it were just unlucky.