charlie – shimano xt freehub. had made some grifter sounds a couple of rides back, but seemed to have sorted itself. early enough to have been a comedy failure (on reflection). that happening at 80 miles wouldn't have been funny…

trying to get hold of a replacement so i can do a 100 later in the week as punishment.

they've created a classic. well done to those that put it on.

will be back next year. bound to do better than yesterday…
this happened at 2 miles: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hx6RpdfOj4

bankfoot ones are finished (at least the temporary traffic lights are gone). there's a new set south of ballinluig – near the turn for guay (snigger) – trafficscotland says they're not on at weekends:
http://www.nadics.org.uk/traffic.aspx?x=300400&y=747000&scale=198088&itemtypeids=3

took us 20 minutes to get through them on tuesday.

not delicate and tricky singletrack.
fair dos. misread your post.

not delicate and tricky singletrack
which bits are delicate?

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gloss_bo-z.html

A description of the Lomond-side bit would be appreciated. I've walked it twice, but some time ago and not with my biking head on.
the unpleasant (by bike) bit is between inversnaid to inverarnan. rest of loch lomond is fine as long as you take the forest road option between ptarmigan lodge and north of rowchoish.

lots push/carry bits due to big water bars and the like. takes a frustratingly long time – think it took us 3 hours. wouldn't "ride" it again unless i wanted a complete WHW.

my sincere condolences. have you thought about running away very fast in the opposite direction?

you mentioned 3 peaks and rules. expect simonfbarnes to appear on this thread imminently. 🙂

Is it Superstar for brake pads?
Yes, I hear they're very popular with STW forum users at the moment.

Looking forward to K100 A LOT. bring it on.

it's the organisers gig, so they can set rules as they see fit. maybe things like the space blanket are a landowner or event insurer requirement?

a set of brake pads weighs 30g (and aren't exactly bulky). go for an extra big jobbie in the morning if that's the worry. 😉

bikely?

from stockbridge i'd be heading west – cyclepath to cramond brig and out to towards linlithgow via kirkliston. can head into the hills on quiter roads from winchburgh. some nice stuff in the bathgate alpes. generally get a tailwind home.

which side of town are you?

quickest non-bypass option would be M9 J4/Avon Gorge/Whitburn/Carnwath/Peebles.

unless there's an accident somewhere, then bypass will still be quicker than the alternatives. listen to radio scotland / check trafficscotland before you leave.

as i understand it, only the redundancy element will be tax free. is the £2000 up top just pay in lieu of notice?

i've found my former HR department to be, um, not very good since i finished (although line management was very supportive).

alpine bikes?

around 3100ft up and about to go 2200ft down.

I stayed at Bunroy campsite in Roy Bridge on Monday. 10 miles to Nevis Range, 25 to Laggan Wolftrax. Quiet, good facilities and walking distance to two pubs (both of which do OK bar food). The clincher: they've got midge eaters.

http://www.bunroy.co.uk/

42×20 works for me on Scottish CX courses (42 used to convert it to a road fixed with a 16t cog on a flip flop hub). occasionally need a tooth or two more, but only at the start of races when i'm feeling frisky.

bounce on and gear down. i am weak.

i'm pleasantly surprised by STW.
i would like to withdraw this statement.

ground control/ground control extreme.

i'm pleasantly surprised by STW. thought it'd all be a bit Daily Mail.

Do you really think that Mr Bomber is now going to feel all warm and fuzzy because we've let him free when he's dying?
ever sat with someone who is dying? i have. things really affect people in their last days/hours. if he did it (and i seriously doubt it) then it'll haunt him to the very end. if he didn't, ditto.

what kennyp said.

Approx 2 weeks for every person?
and how many if he was to die in jail in a few weeks/months?

i think Scotland may look foolish for this
only if we see him beating usain bolt at the next olympics…

depends on what service you plan on taking. Edinburgh>Glasgow at rush hour is likely to be problematic…

generally speaking, scotrail staff are nice and sensible about bikes (it's the other passengers that were often pains in the ass when i was commuting with a bike). would hope they'd be the same about a trailer.

yup. 90mm is the shortest stem i've got on anything (except the bmx).

got a 140mm thomson in the shed if anyone wants it? form an orderly queue now…

I'm old enough to remember what the A9 used to be like.
me too – and what's now the A90 up the east coast.

one grandparent in Peterhead, the other in Inverness (with rest of that side of family on Skye). most of my school holidays were spent in the back of a vauxhall viva going nowhere quickly.

not a route i've ridden. but try http://www.bikehike.co.uk or http://www.bikely.com both of them allow you to plot routes and check elevation profiles.

black is the original route, sounds like you took the new red bit.

map on the 7stanes website is up-to-date.
http://www.7stanes.gov.uk/pdf/7stanesglentressinnerleithen.pdf/$FILE/7stanesglentressinnerleithen.pdf

He's holding the seat handle, which is between his legs – it has the brake lever underneath it.
i knew that, just amuses me every time i see someriding like that. 🙂

why is he constantly touching his penis?

"People and Vehicles that cant at least do the speed limit should be banned from the road"
Assuming she meant the **** useless **** that meant I took 2.4* hours to get to Bridge of Orchy from here last week and not cyclists then fairy enuff.

* 1.6 hours home…

ach, you'll be fine. 🙂

And then fast forward to the mess tent at Kielder, 21:00hrs, 05 Sept: could you honestly wear the T shirt or join in the banter around the tables and bar if you were Black-flagged (for you, zee race is over) at anything other than maybe the final cut-off point?
Yes. Stop being silly.

njee20 – come up and race up here some more. not all super-tech-fests. SXC series features some cracking courses.

10 in about 30 minutes of watching around 22:30. too much light still in the sky/light pollution for a proper view. shoulda headed a bit further north.

although the number of Scottish events that seem to entail a long dull climb followed by a super-technical descent seem to give some gravity to my comments!
some examples please (other than the recent British Cycling XC Champs)?

It seems to fall into the category of so many events in Northern England/Scotland of just priding itself on only being achievable by super tough hardmen who they will dub 'real cyclists' rather than actually being any fun!
places with hills tougher to mountain bike in that flat places, eh? dearie me, who'd have thunk it…

foxyrider's tickets are for the UK National Champs/Para-Cycling World Champs that are on the weekend before the World Cup.

i bought a merkur hd and a stack of derby razors (from http://www.timothyedwards.co.uk/) after a thread here last year. took a bit of practice (i.e. bloodletting), but got a nice close shave going now. main attraction for me was cheapness – reckon i'll save £60 over gillette mach3s over the first year.

now using soap, a nice brush and an alum block too.

as all of our trails up here are shared use, a bell is a must IMHO. a wee ding-ding seems to work better than a shout and marks you out as an approaching bike. horses get a "hello" first, then asked if it's OK to pass. rarely encounter any trail grumpiness.

it's from the extra training we get riding down to the border and doing this.