I’ve got one more, taken on the way to work this morning…

On 40 front with 11 rear 43 mph downhill it the limit of where the spinning legs become blurry in motion…

It makes me wonder how do people cope with those steep, rooty, muddy climbs having single ring (32 or 30) – there are some around that the only way of getting to the top (at least for me) is getting to 24-36 and try to spin as gently as possible, controlling the rear wheel not to over-spin too much. No chance I’d make it on my middle ring (which is 30t)!
In the summer – no problem, you can even stand on the pedals. But does it work in winter glop? I’m talking about the mentioned technical and steep climbs…

Is it some “cheap & cheerful” cable?

I’ve tried many.
Only to realize there is only one for me.
Green Finish Line.

The scary thing is that it wasn’t “long time ago”…

So it looks that they work OK :-)

They would go on 100mm bike: general MTB and commuting duties (which big part is MTB anyway!).

Koolstops are brilliant too – and at least half the price comparing to Swisstops 8)

I’m pretty certain fabric conditioner would kill anything “-tex-like”.

But wool? Hmm…

I remember me and my friends used to inject vodka to oranges and watermelons… 8)

I’m not a strict non-drinker, sometimes I like to have a beer (last year I had about 8 I suppose…) – the ultimate advantage is that the beer tastes soooo bloody good after few months of no intake!

I can highly recommend Niterider Lumina750 as a front light. Self contained, nice looking, helluva solid mounting bracket.

The light has an excellent beam pattern, which lets me use it on Low Mode for most of the time (it’s 200 lumens then), even off road (combined with Lezyne Mini XL on the helmet). I was riding some pretty fast unlit roads last night and switching the light to medium (500 lumens) was like switching the sun back on! No problem with speeds around 30-35 mph.

I’ve never needed to use the High mode.

Lezyne Zecto to rear.

You need one of these. On and off in seconds and no broken nails, can even get it in the backpack

http://youtu.be/YtPRjMrcwFw 8O

Want.

I can teach you some Polish insults. Proper meaty stuff. They get the job done. Every time.

Saracen Mantra looks very good and it’s cheap!

It was very specific episode. I loved it to bits really, but it was the same with every other one (and I watched the whole thing twice…) :roll:

After-best-before-date Hi-5 gels bought on-line for under a tenner (for two boxes)! 8) They make the tastiest gels IMO.

I ride a road bike occasionally (mainly some extended commutes), but it’s borrowed, so I haven’t got one personally! :lol:

Dunno if yous have read this-

http://sonic.net/~ckelly/Seekay/bike_review.htm

How true is that! :lol:

Ridiculous deals = ridiculous colours! 8)

I still can’t get used to the glow-green shorts I bought there last time… :lol:

My Merida BigNine 900. Because it’s very comfortable (I’ve done such a long rides on it). Because I love it. And because I haven’t got any other off-road-friendly bike :lol:

I love mountain biking but really, what is there to say about it from month to month? All the places to ride in the UK are well known and I’m not really bothered about the difference between one cycling jersey and another or which hydration pack has a pocket for your credit card. It’s essentially just pedaling your bike up and down some hills in the mud, fun to do but I’m not convinced there’s much to write about really.

That’s why you should get one of the Privateer issues (they’re still available) and see how interestingly the subject of mountain biking can be approached. And I hope that Cranked will have that sort of spirit…

I think the dude’s been in the business deep enough to spot the need for a good paper mag! 8)

You’ve answered your own question. 8)

“Rouleur” is going quite good, very good paper mag, which I enjoy a lot – despite it is “for roadies” :wink: Privateer had the same publisher and very similar approach to the subject – focusing on people who create the sport/lifestyle, rather than “why you must to remortgage your house and buy the latest carbon wheelset worth more than your bike” :lol:

Oh man… If it’s at least half as good as Privateer (RIP) – I’m subscribing straight away! :D

ability to give a grid ref for other people. So now tend to shove in a map regardless of how local.

Yeah, last year I was riding very early around local b’ways (Paignton – Newton Abbot), at one point I was crossing a hilly field with marked footpath (I did walk that section!). I found a cow giving birth on the other side of the hill – the head was out already, looking at me! 8O Didn’t know what to do (I’m not very experienced as a midwife – my wife had Cesarean…) I rang the police…

– OK, can you tell me where is that?
– Of course I can, officer! – here I took out a map from my hummvee’s, quickly read the grid reference in 0,00 accuracy.
– OK, it doesn’t tell me anything… Where is that?
:|

That’s why all lights are dyno powered, along with garmins etc

Lights and Garmins are not really bicycle parts, are they?

Another thought just got to me: isn’t stuff like electronic shifting kind of against the whole concept of bicycle? I mean it should be powered with muscles, shouldn’t it? All the mechanical concepts work around this principal, even if they are getting easier to operate (like hydraulic disc brakes).

And the electronic stuff removes that “human powered” thing a bit: You click on the shifter just to let the computer know what to do? Nah…

Kona Rove Al?

Give it few more years and they’ll start selling Mind Controlled Groupset. No shifters and levers required!

Topeak Shuttle 1.1 have been with me few years – great little things! They passed the Ultimate Test Of Schwalbe Marathons Winter – and they did it few times, which means they’re unbreakable 8)

It will fit perfectly fine.

I’m on my 4-th year of OU now. The next course is starting in February.
1. I work full time.
2. My wife works in the evenings.
3. We have 6-years old daughter.
4. I am addicted to riding a bike.

All these four things mean I don’t follow the timetable given by OU. All my assignments have been submitted about 3 minutes before the deadline (#livingontheedge). During the course there is no particular “holiday time”, but when the course is finished – there is nice few months break (October-February)! :wink:

Are they not moving it (or “them” is a better word…) to any other page? Like “2”? Or front?

Only down side is its a zip-closure which if over-stuffed, will eventually split. Mind you, local sewing shop fitted a new zip for a tenner, so it still lives.

From what I know from the stories read on-line Deuter would fix it for you. Apparently they repair their products even if it’s prehistoric.

…we have a repair service in Gersthofen. Even when it makes no commercial sense, we will still bring products that are decades’ old back to life – as long as it is a technical possibility.

I wasn’t convinced with the lack of the pockets too before I bought it. I used to use an old North Face Hammerhead for ages. It had plenty of pockets, much more then the Deuter.

But after I made my mind and got the Race EXP I’ve never looked back. It’s just got one compartment (with a section for hydration bladder), where I stuff a pump, inner tubes, small bag with my tools, food (I eat a lot…), extra clothing – and if I need more room an all-around zip extends the capacity for extra 3 litres.

Small zipped pocket is good for wallet, phone, keys, small bits and pieces. Two side mesh pockets are roomy: normally one takes a handful of gels, the other a bottle of lube and one or two bananas.

Even when the bag is very heavy (like on “office clothes changeover day”) it is still amazingly comfortable to carry – no matter what and how you stuff into it, the area that goes against your back feels always the same – and that is the best feature if this rucksack!

“I hate it when a lovely bum goes past but when you catch up with them you discover you’ve been ogling someone who looks like Alf from Home & Away.”

I hate it too… :evil:

This
Awesome and super comfy.
And you’d still have a bit over £2 change for a beer! :mrgreen:

Front Mudhugger plus downtube CrudCatcher.