The weekend pics thread might have an interesting challenge as a twist this week…

I got to 55…

POIDH

Lake MXZ304

I had an older model of them. Warm upper. No insulation below and a big hole in the waterproofing for the cleat access. *facepalm)

Just watch some of this for what a proper bike fit is like.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoITk4L2KbnSHwHwwiweNEQ

If you are funding your own infrastructure builds through “printing money” why won’t people just charge more for stuff? What stops inflation going through the roof?

Maybe that’s one of the reasons we don’t do MMT?

And other countries who don’t do MMT at the same time have a more valuable and expensive to us currency, so making importing or trading a more expensive thing to do.

My Shimano MW5’s are the shizzles for me using SPD’s. A tad wider than many Shimano, warm, dry enough, and just a nice boot generally.

Touring / hybrid I know, but mrs_oab’s ‘light’ hybrid (Merida eSpeeder with hub gear @15kg) gets a lot of attention. A few weeks ago we bumped into a friend with a step through touring ebike. She, and her 6 companions, were all amazed at the light weight of mrs_oab’s bike. They had all been told by shops to avoid hub motor or not even told that such a light bike exists. Many had paid more than we had. All commented that the weight of their bikes was an issue – they could not lift onto car racks, not east to get into sheds, even lugging them at the cafe we were at etc etc. A few took a spin on mrs_oabs ride and were surprised how powerful it was, commenting that they rarely use full power on road.

This of course is a non-mtb selection of 50+ ladies and touring bikes…but there are parallels I think.

IMO, much marketing on ebikes is about POWAH and huge range. Yet the average punter does not need that much power (certainly on road) and appreciates a much more balanced approach to the spec / range / weight etc.

So I think we will see a blending and balancing, away from mini-motorbikes.

We have some Japanese Maples in big pots – they are about 2m high and wide.

We also have some super dwarfing plums, bought from Appletreeman in Perthshire which get to about 3m high.

Hello!

My body is all sorts of wonky and asymmetrical lengths. Eyecrometer it and stop over thinking….

Come north of the border and you find 6million with the talent.

I love it.

This is a true point. The Scots have insult down to a fine art, maximising both the language used and the delivery of the words. There’s also a fine mix of rude words, repurposed words, and old Scots words which adds a certain je ne said quoi to things.

Again, too early and not enough clear information as yet. MAIB report will bring this all together and that is the one source for all speculation….

(I am clearly new here….)

if you drive like a grandad and aren’t using the capabilities of a grippier tyre, there’s no reason to buy them.

Until the moment something pulls out in front of you and you have to use every bit of the braking and steering performance to avoid something…

Neoprene is waterproof. Completely.
The holes in the bottom, hole in the top, and stitching is not.
Plus your feet sweat. More than you think.

Closest you will get are Spatz.

The real question is “what aero socks should I wear on my ebike?”

You’ve done it now. I await a new Kickstarter for eBike specific just below mid-calf socks…

Until someone has to go through all that with Lewis, no one knows.

Magura are 5 years too, and European made.

I too am of the view dog behaviour and owner attitudes are declining.
I try to ride off, occasionally have got bike between me and hound.
I’ve once as a pedestrian ended up kicking a dog which was attacking the collie and child I was walking with at the time. :(

IME, the A1 was closed 20mins before the stated time and while the diversion signs were still being put out, leading to a few of us being properly lost somewhere in Northumbria until I fired up Google maps.
This was 4 years ago..YMMV

Also, just buy good quality tyres, If you can’t cope in the UK winter

Are we talking Aberdeenshire or Kent winter?
Asking for a friend..

How do these people manage it?

A lifetime of thought and practice in being a nasty and hate filled human?

I’ve just spent the last 4 (summer) months on new all seasons on the rear, old worn summers on front.
I didn’t die.

Why Google can’t put a refresh button on the toolbar I don’t know.

Because a quick pull down does that anyway?

I’m guessing they have either lost their way of are using some crap routing software.

Komoot tries to send folk up the A9 on a few sections….

Seems I’m an unfashionable heathen, still wearing trainers socks regularly on summer rides…

Blimey never realised that the sides of the mirror do indeed look like sarcophagi :O)

I had a thought that it was a gilt framed painting of nbt and bunnyhop, like a royal painting….

I’d guess 15-20 years will be more like the age current EV batteries will get to the point they’re near useless in terms of being able to hold charge and as others have said who know what tech will exist then to regen them or if governments will offer subsided replacement schemes etc.

But it seems that many batteries are designed *not* to be easily replaced or upgraded.
It seems to me that having an easily upgraded battery would be sensible and desirable.

The masterstroke by our organiser (BiL) was to go from Gretna to Ardrossan, ferry to Brodick on Arran and depart Arran via Lochranza, thereby eliminating the entire debate about how to get through the central belt of Scotland.

I’ve always wondered why this isn’t a much more popular way of doing lejog.

Is some of the ‘fastest and most direct route’ a bit of a roadie culture thing? Whereas I would want quality and quantity over speed…

I would say is that the most direct routes for lejog are a bit too much of that and not enough of the quiet roads thing for my liking.

100% this.
I’ve had two sets of friends who’ve done it.. Both disliked all the main roads and direct routes.

For me I would be taking a gravel bike and plotting a much quieter route, even if that’s twice the distance.

I shudder at how many folk head up A82 / A84 etc and the speed of distracted tourist drivers looking at the view…

The event is the loser. I honestly think the organisers will be in crisis management mode now deciding whether or not they put out a statement and apology

Nah.

Redbull got thier marketing opportunity, and the images, short videos, etc have no interest in the politics of the event, who won, or even who the competitors are.

Cheers all. @Alex – ygm

Second hand is the way to go at that budget.
We’ve an XS liv lust that’s great for shorties…

Meh, Blofeld did basically the same thing but from inside a super secret hollowed-out volcano. ;-)

Makes you think…

Buy a Volvo avec the Shopping Bag Flap of Elasticated Sensibleness.

I just put a curver box on the boot of any car. It’s great for single shopping bags etc

Yeah, I think the compound of the tyres is very hard and cheap.

The Nobby’s on my Marin when it arrived were lethal…proper aftermarket Nobby’s were so much better…

Noice *thumb up emoji*

That gate needs some oil…

It does seem to be a number of factors, and lets be honest there was a wobble a couple of years back I think?
Disappointed we won’t get to go see another, we really enjoyed going.

Amazing watching.

How is Cam Zink? I can’t find anything about him.

Dervla Murphy – Full Tilt – Ireland to India on a bike.
She’s an absolute legend and a great read.

There’s a long way to go yet….

(Tesla lying/playing hard to seek with the truth when ‘launching’ some ‘AI’ ‘Robots’….)

It sure seems like the Optimus robots at Tesla’s event were under human control

I guess those against the digging have never and will never visit a trail centre or purpose built MTB trail in the UK?

What a place.
The nearest comparison in the UK is behind Nationwide in Swindon I hear.