this one:

http://www.pinkbike.com/video/96658/

My boys love it!

Sound like I need an engineer first.

MSP – I did hear about the ‘elephant in stiletto’ principal, more foundations will be required.

I do have the loft drawings, new beams for the loft lean on other walls. The wall I want to take out seems to support the wall above and the 1 st floor floor joists ( judging by the floorboards ).

Perhaps pillars and more foundations?

Thanks, it is those bad experiences that worry me. I rather spend a little more and get it done properly, we are not planning to ever sell…..

Sad you have to check the ‘professionals’, and difficult as I do not have the expertise…

Simone

Go and see an osteopath!

My husband had years of back pain, saw NHS doctors, had X-rays and saw Physio’s, they all said his back was fine. He was still in pain though….

A few sessions with an osteopath sorted it, he has been back for a couple of sessions every few years or so as he has a sit down job ( driving instructor ). Osteopath has been great sorting my knee too….

Not cheap, but we only ever needed a few sessions when treated…..well worth it!

I always thought of the benefit system as a safety net, how wrong was I!

About 8 years ago we were a family with husband working (self employed Driving Instructor since early 90’s), and me looking after the 2 young children. We were involved in a car crash and my husband spent 3 months in a wheelchair.

I got the best benefit advice from a friend who worked at the CAB, but we still ended up getting less than a similar family of whom no one had ever worked, how can this be right?

We got less than our monthly mortgage at the time; we got incapacity (about £70 p/w) and income support. We had no saving apart from the money set aside for next tax bill (less than the bill). Being self employed you pay tax every 6 months instead of every time you get paid. This money got counted as personal savings, eventhough owed to the Inland Revenue and would be counted as such untill the bill was due (as fas as I am aware you pay in arrears?!). Money was deducted from Income Support (-£12 p/w).

We live in a modest 3 bed semi bought by husband in the mid eighties, so low mortgage. We did NOT qualify to have our interest paid as we had re-mortgaged (lots of good deals about back then) within the last few year and this counted as a new mortgage?!?!?

We would not have survived had it not been for my dad who put £3000 in our bank, and for all the friend and family who brought food/bought shopping.

We totally lost faith in the benefit system after that.

My husband had never even seen a sick note before that time, and had always worked. We also had to pay back any benefits we did receive out of our very modest pay out from the Motor Insurance Bureau (5 years later).

It definitly needs to change, but maybe concentrate on helping the people who do deserve it and really need their safety net…

curvature – any pics, would love to see how it fits…

All sounding good so far, just out of interest, are you guys running the one with or without bash?

Thnx

+1 for camelbak spares, I wish my youngest lad would stop chewing them!

Zafire, great for bike duty.

Also had 3 adults, 2 kids, 3 snowboards, and 3 pairs of skis + luggage in it last ski trip (we do have a roofbox, but still)……

…Tell the police…….i’ts all you can do if she won’t admit she has a problem. She may loose her licence and her job, but at least nobody will get hurt. This could save her too as it may prompt her to get help.

A drunk driver did this to our family car:

Head on crash with her doing between 60-80mph (in a 30 zone). Turns out seatbelts do save lives, our family (me, my husband and 2 little ones) survived, she never left her car that day…

The grey car behind the motorbike was hers…

….Again, tell the police………

Small 15.5 inch COVE hustler?

Lovely bike and great with pikes. I have a 2007 one (2 carefull lady owners) that has just had a new powdercoat (it was pink and I was thinking of passing it onto my lads) in kawasaki green with armoutex in London (and was inspected). Just about to get the local cove dealer to put in new bearings and have new decals…

Any good to you? I have some white pikes to go on it as well.

Great bike and I have seen it with lyrics before (eventhough it should be run with 140 forks)

email in profile

Simone

😀

Must be a 2011 then, sorry. Mine has got a tapered head tube and ISCG mount…. Time flies!

So £1500 not bad then…

Got my 5 pro with hope pack and coloured rims 2010 ridden 6 times last October for £1500. The bike is as new and same as the latest ones.

…and I love it!

Seems the one you are looking at is a little expensive I think…

Simone

We have a 04 zafira diesel top spec bought nearly 3 years ago with 67000 on the clock for £3700 at the time. Private, and 180 miles from home, but still a good deal on a honest car.

£5000 sounds very expensive for a zafira of the age and mileage you are looking at.

We love our zafira, we have 2 kids but still use te seats in the boot quite a bit. That car is a real tardis and very comfy drive in town and on long drives to Switzerland etc.

I would however not buy one of te newer ones ( we could not afford one at the time ), as the diesels ( not sure about the others ) now have fiat engines and are supposed to be not that good. From what I have seen from a few friends who have one that seems to be true. My brother in law has a garage and is our mechanic and has told us we should not get one of the new zafiras.

I’d say get one of the last old style zafiras ( maybe 05 if poss) and save yourself a load of money!

Simone

AndyRT:

We bought a full guide when out in PDS last summer. It is called Portes Du Soleil 53 MTB Routes. It is really good and grades all rides on difficulty etc. Also a section on bike parks.

I think it is printed by Vtopo, website listed is http://www.vtopo.com, maybe you can order one from there. If not buy one when you get there..

Hope that helps
Simone

…but that Commencal Supreme 24″ looks great!! , did see some in the alps and seems to come up more like the norco…

1 left at merlin….

I’d say the stinky 24 is a little small, the norco b line 24 comea up bigger, although it looks bigger than it rides.

We have one for our son, age 10 in this picture, but he is not very tall, about 137cm ish when this was taken.

We bought it for £270 in great nic and upgraded it quite a bit (drivetrain, forks, brakes and lighter tyres/tubes), is now weighs about 34lbs, so still heavy.

My son had a go on the cove g spot that is in the picture (15.5″ frame) and it was too big, but he could ride it (he only tried it in the car park and off some steps).

I’d say check the boys height very carefully, as all 12 year olds are different. I did see a young lad in switserland (local lad) ride a small 26″wheeled frame with 24″ wheels, I presume you will have to be carefull with the BB height…. Maybe the small big hit like suggested before and change the front wheel.

I do have the small cove g spot frame for sale if of any use? However, I think we will get 1, maybe 2 more alps trips out of our norco, so if the lad in question is small this may be an option?

Like I said, I think the stinky 24 is small, my boys also had a sit on one of these at the local shop, def smaller than the norco. Maybe a small 26″ kona stinky? I have seen people run these with 24″wheels….you could then change to 26″ when he grows?

Oh, i dont know, good luck!!

Simone

If no one else is, I am interested in the rims….

david.simoneATntlworld.com

I am worse for buying bike bits than my husband tbh. We are mostly honest about these things and both spend too much on bikes.

He once however decided to buy an used enduro at the local shop, eventhough we had dicussed it and decided we could not afford it at that time. He then informed me if this fact while with collegues at a retirement do!! 😯 I was furius! If he would have just nagged a little longer I would have probably given in (my usual strategy), but what he had done really made me angry.

I made him go back to the shop and take it back! (they were very understanding, bless)

He now has a different enduro, bought after I spotted it in the same shop and suggested he’d buy it.

I think he got the message, he has not done it since….

Simone

My kids are Rik and Stefan and I don’t think we get many Christmas cards from the uk that get it right, most from the Netherlands are ok…..

We mostly get rick and Stephan from uk friends….

Doesn’t bother me really. One friend did have some cutlery engraved for my boys when they were tiny and got both names wrong, bless.

go very gently used……just got a 2011 5 pro incl some upgrades, only 6 rides old and more or less looking new, for £1500 🙂

Lovely bike, blue and not neon pick (which would have been my choice), but beggers can be chosers…

Great bike and I love it!

Also when i was looking into new (frame only mind you) I did get offered quite a bit of money off by bikeactive. I think £1300 ish 2012 frame incl shock and colour upgrade and hope headset.

good luck
Simone

In am just having this done myself (at the LBS as I know chaindevices can be fiddly and may need modifying). Mine is a 2011 five. I did consider going 2×10 but the issue of max front chainring sizes came up. As far as I understand the problem arrises only when shifting to and from the granny ring, but correct me if I am wrong.

If you run 2×10 they recommend only running upto a 32 front (but I do know some people have run bigger and it was ok). They chain can otherwise catch the weld on the pivot when chainging between the middle and the granny ring. (I presume the mech moves the chain across before it drops down).

From this I took it that as long as you run 1×10, and you do not have to change to the granny, you can just run bigger rings. I have gone for a 34t, there were issues with the chain device and the swingarm, hopefully now sorted using a file..

Anyone please correct me if I am wrong (I suppose I will find out soon enough when I pick mine up from LBS).

Simone

The advantage of building your own means you can adjust the bars, stem etc to what suits your child. The reach on my sons new 26″ bike with tiny frame and stem is not that different from the 24″ hotrock it replaced (although finding a light and short reach frame is a challange).

I suppose my 8 year old is very tall, same size as his 11 year old brother.

If you go for a 24″ wheeled bike, make sure you get a large ish frame. My youngest had a hotrock a1 FSR, which although lovely, came with a tiny frame – much smaller than the a1 FS we had for his brother (one had a 12″ frame and the other a 13.5″). This did really make a difference and meant he outgrew it quite quickly….he would still have fitted the 13.5 inch frame…

We are weary putting him on a bigger bike, and going from full suss (he is a very lazy rider and not a natural) to a hardtail with 80mm (air)travel, but he loves his new bike and has ridden things he would never have done before.

His brother first had a 26″ bike and when given the choice between his own 24″ at the time (just before we replaced it) and his brothers bike he would always go for that.

I normally ride a 15.5 or 16″ frame myself and trying to ride my sons new bike 26″ is not easy as it really does feel tiny.

If your son is not very tall go for the 24″ wheels and get a good used one, although they are fetching good money this time of year. Or get one of the CRC frames, just use some short travel 26″ air forks on it, should be ok.

Good luck
Simone

My son has a bell bellistic (he is 10), great light helmet and not expensive. Lovely fit and comes up very small! Great for kids/juniors eventhough it is not a junior specific helmet.

I think bell have replaced this helmet with the ‘drop’, not sure if it has the same great fit…maybe try and still get a bellistic?

For pads, try race face junior pads, really nice fit but not cheap.

Good luck
Simone

build your own! We just finished building 2 bikes for our sons, age 10 and 8. Both are 140 ish tall and ride 26″ wheels with tiny frames and air forks. Especially my youngest has improved no end with his riding, he was on a 24″ spesh a1 FSR (great bikes).

I am not sure how tall your son is, but if you have waited till he is at the end of his 20″ bike, you won’t get much use out of the 24″. My son only had his for 1 year in the end.

i’d say try 26″ if your son is anywhere near 140cm tall, you may be surprised!

My 10 yr old has a 14″ frame and my 8 year old a 13.5″ (you may be able to get a 12″ if you really look), on both the seatpost are about 3-4 inches out of the frame?!? not a perfect mtb fit, but kids do grow like weeds!

Or go for a 26″ frame and stick 24″ wheels in like suggested before and wait for him to grow…

Good luck
Simone

i think the 5 is ISCG old, so looks promising then 🙂
Simone

Hi,

I think you will find that a suitable adaptor should be available for at least the older traverse wheels. I have a few sets and all came with 9,20 and the 25mm adaptors (the one you are after). I think they changed the hubs on the traverse wheels recently (2010 or 2011), so look for the older wheels and you should be able to get an adaptor. I am not sure if they do a 25mm adaptor for the newer traverse wheels.

HTH
Simone

I would have thought a 6 year old would fit a 24 inch wheeled bike with a small frame easily, unless he is extremely small. Kids grow quick so I would not bother with all the mods etc, look for a nice 24″ bike. My youngest is 8 and has now just gone up to 26″ wheels and he is so much more confident.

We alo own a norco b line with 24″ wheels, but the fame is quite big and my 10 yr old rides this in he alps eventhough he rides a 26″ hardtail.

We also owned a hotrock a1 FS and a hotrock a1 FSR, both good. The FSR has a tiny 12.5 inch frame and should fit your son. Full Susser that actually works for litte ones. Look out for a used hotrock with RST forks, these worked great, the sr suntour ones fitted to the newer bikes are a bit rubbish unless your son weighs 10 stone. We used both….

Look for a used FSR if you do a lot of descending, I think they have now been discontinued by spesh so hard to get hold of. We just sold ours when my 8 yr old moved up to 26″.

Good luck.

Looks good but only seems up to 34t. Also could I use my own bash?

Any others that will fit 34 and 36t so I can experiment?

Thx

These deals all sound great, our old yearly insurance included MTB, so they said (and stated in the documents). This however excluded anything downhill!?! When I questioned them this meant lift assisted riding in the alps would not actually be covered under the insurance.

We now use Dogtag, yearly a few hundred for a family of four (so will cover out winter holidsy too). Not cheap, but I dont fancy paying out for the helicopter and fancy swiss hospitals!

I’d say use adults elbow pads to get anything decent at his age. We did this for my very skinny 10 year old and he fits large race face or dianese elbow pads on his knees/chins. Your lad may need the medium or small. We have tried kids pads (661 dirt jump ones), but he said they were very uncomfortable and would not want to wear them.

HTH
Simone

the race face ones have an off set on the clamp and I think sets the saddle back further than a thomson with lay back. I had the same problem on my stiffee frame and went for the race face deus. My husband has a Thomson seatpost on his soul, the race face def allowes you to put the saddle further back.

HTH
Simone

Yep Theory only in Holland, changed the year before I took my test I think (about 14 ish years ago). I suppose in Holland everyone was riding everywhere anyway. We went from our primary school to the local sportshall for PE on our bikes, yep the whole class with one teacher! Dont think it would pass risk assess now…..

😯 wow it really means that much? I will have to keep this in mind next time I tell one of the youngsters “they have not reached the required standard”…… At least they don’t “fail” anymore lol (we should not really use the f word, the kids still know anyway…… “so I failed”, bless).

Mine was theory only when I did it in holland years back…

Simone

We use our zafira diesel for the two of us with 2 children. We currently have all the bikes on the roof, leaves lots of space inside for passengers and luggage. We have had 5 people and 5 bikes, 4 on the roof and 1 bike in the boot. That was a bit of a squeeze, so not much room for luggage but ok for a day trip.

Bikes on the roof is good, I also manage to put them on, it’s quite straight forward. The only thing that you need to keep an eye on with bikes on the roof is the total weight limit of the car roof. 4 bikes and carriers will come very close if not over for full sussers. We picked the roof option as we don’t have a Towbar, but maybe a Towbar rack may have a higher weight limit? Also I am not sure if a 4 carrier on the Towbar may be illegal in other European countries? My mum still lives in holland said something about that, unless tat was just certain ones or those heavy Dutch bikes?

The zafira is great though, get one!

Simone

…anyone tried it on a 16″ 2011 frame and has some advice?…..

Will the chainrings from my 9 spd set up be ok?

Cheers Simone

Mmm, still confused. I may just have to try it. Mine is a 16″ frame by the way fom 2011.

That’s a shame, as I like heavy gears and have been happy with the 36 up front. Would the 2×10 be ok with a 32 up front? or ride 1×10 on a 34?

Thx Simone

Don’t get the Atera ones! Ours would just snap open eventhough they were locked! We bought them from Roofbox company who exchanged them for the Thule ones. These do seem to move a little as it has one arm, but have performed great all over the uk and two trips to the alps.

[/u]To Itheisinger: We have four bikes on the roof, but two are tiny hardtails. How do you keep 4 alps bikes under the weight limit of the car roof? We have a zafira and last year when adding up the bars, carriers and bikes (2 were kids bikes and 1 hardtail) we only just stayed under the weight limit of the car roof. My husband will take his Enduro next year instead of his hardtail, so we are thinking of removing all pedals and seat posts/saddles to stay under the limit.

Simone