Actually can’t remember the last time I had a rough pint, apart from at some festival on day 3 when it’s all gone a bit ropey

Pretty lucky to live in Chester which has a belting range of pubs serving decent stuff – if anyone consistently served crap quality they wouldn’t last long

5 mins walk from my house – great range, relatively reasonable, and 100 in the fridge too

https://untappd.com/v/bluestone/10718461

Ah…Mark’s such a good DJ and a properly solid guy

We had him on our radio show (that we’re currently taking a breather from due to life) a while back – but folks can check the show out here

https://soundcloud.com/nexustechno/full-edit-radio-21

We’re still throwing the occasional party round Chester if anyone fancies a real-life dance at any point. Nice crowd, good range of folks, nice venues 😉

Have moved through a lot over the years (1210s, Traktor, Serato), but now a pair of XDJ1000mk2s, A+H 96 and a pair of Reloop Vinyl decks

It’s quite a spendy setup, but in my/our defense, we do throw club nights and do a radio show – and it means we don’t have to hire in kit as most guest Djs are more than happy with that set up – so it’s paid for itself in hire fees

Toss in a strobe, lights and our rig – and we do throw some reasonable house parties 🙂

Loooooong post…sorry.

Hey all

I’ve held off commenting on here – I’m not super active but lurk/read regularly – but I want to throw my two pennies worth in. I’m not looking for an argument – life’s busy and arguing on the net is not top of my list of stuff to do tbh…

Firstly, I really appreciate the folks entering into dialogue with an open mind, sharing experiences and trying to get their heads around the issues. I’ve read the thread and I’m putting myself in the position of a trans person reading this and there’s a few things that I think it’s worth saying, because I wouldn’t speak up if I was that trans person.

No-one’s denying the rights of someone to feel safe in a space – but I can’t help feeling that some of the language being used about trans folks in this thread mirrors what would have been said about LGB folks a few decades ago: “I don’t want them in my space”, “I don’t feel safe with them around”, “they’re not my people”.

I think it’s worth remembering, or learning, for folks who aren’t too up on LGBTQ+ history – that trans people were an integral part of the ‘scene’ since the very beginning – chucking bricks at coppers at the Stonewall Inn, etc, and as much as middle-class straight-passing gays might like to ignore it, it’s the trans folks, femme guys, butch girls and the like that get 90% of the abuse on the street. I marched in my first Pride event when I was 15 back in 1995, and have been doing stuff since, and there’s always been trans and non gender-conforming people involved.

I’ve been, and still am, friends with trans people both m>f and f>m, as well as drag queens, non-binary folks and even cis folks (I’ve done A-level chemistry, and it just means the opposite of trans, please take it up with Wikipedia if there are still issues please). I can assure you that they’re all more bothered about the fact that no-one in the Uk does F>M lower surgery anymore so people are stuck with half-completed procedures, or that friends and family are going to reject them, or they’ll get attacked (again) in the street. In my experience, they’re often acutely aware that if they ‘pass’ as their preferred gender, and pull when out and about – not being upfront very early could well lead to a dangerous situation down the line. As the stats come in at about 1 in 4 Trans people in the UK having attempted suicide and 9 in 10 having thought about it – I’d have thought the vast majority have more pressing concerns than coming up with a dastardly scheme to catch sight of some genitals in a changing room.

For a bunch of people that have usually been on the receiving end of at the very least verbal abuse, bullying, coming-out worries, etc., and at the worst physical attacks, there’s a very vocal minority in the ‘LGB’ community who seem to be challenged by their world being cracked open a bit. For example – I’m bemused as to why, if it’s so obvious that’s someone’s Trans on a dating site, and that wasn’t your bag, that you wouldn’t just move on to someone who is your type.

There’s tons of right-wing, evangelical, religious, and politically-motivated opposition to the LGTBQ+ community as a whole, both in the UK (still) and more widely abroad that are rubbing their hands at this, and I still question the tie-in between American evangelical anti-LGBTQ+ groups like the Heritage Foundation and some of the key players in the LGB Foundation.

Are there conversations to be had about how best to navigate accommodating Trans people in sport, or what happens in someone transitions in a single-sex school, or how to deal with the tiny minority of predators? Yep, there probably are – but I’d question whether throwing our trans cousins under the bus, who’ve been allies and part of the crew for bloody ages, is really the way to build bridges.

Oh, and by the way – all those folks who are saying the UK has been a wonderland for LGBTQ+ people since 1066 or thereabouts – I must have imagined sofa surfing with friends for 18 months when I was 16, being put in hospital when I was 18, and being sacked when I was 23 (early highlights). Your anecdotes are lovely and they make my big gay heart heart glow, but they doesn’t mirror the experience of most LGBTQ+ people growing up back then, or some even now.

Ah…sorry – just seen your reply – so probably too late.

I must admit I didn’t see the 400g requirement. Tbf, if you zip the skirt out it’s 600g rather than a kilo :/ , if I’m not working a climbing day the hood cinches up brilliantly round a beanie, cap, or nowt, with little flap, and it is longer than any Montane jacket I’ve had (always have issues with them riding out of a harness hipbelt, the Marmot I don’t).

Just trying to give a tiny review based on what I’ve found based on experience – you can take it in the helpful manner it’s intended, ignore it, or be mildly snippy, totally up to you!

I’ve been using Marmot Spires for work for the last few years, and reckon they tick most of your boxes…

Got a few colours on Sportpursuit at the mo
https://www.sportpursuit.com/catalog/product/view/id/1896371

’93 Kilauea – still gets ridden 🙂

I’m in pretty much the same boat – moved to Sheffield recently but haven’t had much chance to get out. Would be happy to tag along and do some exploring if you fancy it at some point (or to hook up with some folks with more local knowledge!)

Email’s in my profile

Cheers

I know this was last weekend, but if anyone’s about and is up for a ride on Sat I’d be up for heading out – just moved to Sheffield and finding my way around, so a bit of local knowledge would be good 🙂

Cheers (emails in profile)

Got: Genesis Croix de Fer (58cm) – less than 50 miles on the clock – with a free set of road tyres (Paselas)to chuck in too

Want: Something else – surprise me. Maybe something retro, or maybe a hooly hardtail, tourer, full sus, something xc/racey

Based in Nottingham

Worth a try!

P7's a great bike though – if I didn't need to cut down as we're going abroad it'd be a keeper. Rides brilliantly.

rear's a Tortec expedition, fitted to the drilled holes.

Front's an OMM Sherpa, fitted to a longer QR you get with the rack and clamps round the forks. You can get a rear OMM that fits in a similar way if you don't have mountings.

Get them through Carradice – or buy my front one for £40 posted!

Currently done up for off-road touring, and tentatively for sale with or without racks if anyone's interested!