KMC Z82s are the chain of choice down here, they seem to be stronger than Shimano’s 7/8 speed offerings.

Big Ted, now you’re using the Surly ring remember to check your chainring bolts every so often. The Surly ring will flex under load more than an alloy ring and in extreme cases can break the bolt holes on the spider. I know.
On the plus side they look good, wear well and you can turn them round to use the other side of the teeth when they are a bit worn.

Dean Colonel made to measure, Threshold’s is the only other one I’ve seen mentioned here.

How many people will be tuning in tonight just to see if she’s still there?

By being so pathetic she’s probably boosted the viewing figures more than any of the others in there and in the eyes of the ITV bosses will have well and truly earned her fee.

Life really isn’t fair is it 🙁

Plus points:
Weatherproof gears
Your chain will last longer and cost less to replace
Gear changes at a standstill

Minus points:
Slow pickup from freewheeling
It’s a bit of a lump in one place
Wheel removal is a little more involved than undoing a QR

The only reason I don’t use my Alfine more is because I ride the bike singlespeed most of the time. All the minus points are quite eaasy to get used to. I can switch my bike from singlespeed to Alfine geared in under 15 minutes now.

Electric bikes = two wheeled invalid carriages.

If I wanted power I’d do it properly and get a motorbike.

The area’s very big for windsurfing so I’d be surprised if biking wasn’t an option for calm days at the windsurf resorts.

Thanks. To answer tomhughs, it’d be 2D. I’m likely to have a bit of time on my hands here at work over the coming quiet season and I’m a bit curious as to how similar the setups of my various bikes differ from each other and I also have a slightly unorthodox design for a 29er kicking round in my head.

1) Why don’t ducks fly upside down? —- Because they’d quack up.
Rubbish I know but it’s short and I can’t type very fast.

2) Organise a cycling event

3) Sometimes the right song at the right time makes me smile, chuckle and feel incredibly good about life

4) Sunday roast

5) I don’t really know anyone here well enough to single them out but as a collective you’re all great

Still love Dirt because it was all about having fun and features mostly the sort of bikes and riding that us mere mortals could realistically aspire to.
I never got the same buzz out of Chainspotting, perhaps because it looked like it was all shot in the depths of winter with low light levels and bare trees.

I made up some gaiters last year out of off cuts of neoprene I had laying about. They run from mid-calf to the top of my Shimano winter boots and do a great job of keeping the water out even in the wettest conditions.

Grapes for me, can’t stand bananas, even the smell of them makes me cringe.

Mid fifties for me these days. Isn’t fitness all about being able to maintain a high rate for a long time and having a quick return to normal when you stop.
I used to be able to hit 200 in my twenties and maintain 140+ for a couple of hours back then but now I’m in my forties I can’t get past 170 although my stamina on a fast ride is hardly reduced.

14.75″ but they look bigger because my ankles are quite skinny at 8″.

Some of the commuter lights give out just enough enough light for very gentle off roading for £20 to £40. If you’re riding behind the kids with a proper light you’ll be lighting up a large part of what they need to see.

Yep, I can vouch for that. The worst I can remember was stopping at a petrol station with hands numb to the wrists and staying for 20 minutes lurking, wincing at the pain as circulation returned.

It’s the pain in the end of my ‘frozen baby carrot’ that stops me riding much road in the winter. Baggy shorts over lycra would probably work but look daft on a road bike and I have had limited success with wearing a ‘third sock’.

Get some pedals that are flat one side and spd the other. When you’re worried about the conditions don’t clip in.

Ditch the tug on the disc side, it won’t grip the frame as well as the QR nut will.

Crass

Didn’t know this lot were still going but it’s kind of nice that they are and they still have some very angry/moronic followers judging by the comments on the youtube page.

16inch, quite BMX/trialsy.

I was over there in late 94, staying in Puerto Del Carmen. Almost all the trails I found in the south of the Island were dirt roads. I got plenty of miles in seeing the scenery and can’t remember finding any singletrack although I didn’t get to the northern third of the island.
I did a day trip on the ferry over to Fuerteventura but apart from some good beaches there wasn’t a lot to see within 15 or so miles of the ferry terminal.

A fine argument. You have wheels on your legs and shoes then?

In addition to my bikes I am also the owner of a fine pair of singlespeed roller blades 😉

You don’t have gears on your legs or shoes. When you’re not on a bike you’re walking or running and when you get to a hill or go up stairs you push a bit harder with your legs. Singlespeeding just feels sooooooo natural, hence riding with gears is unnatural and a perversion that should be mocked and eventually banished from this planet.

I’ve had several Marins through the workshop where front mech set up is a pain due to the chain only running through the correct part of the cage when the suspension is sagged.
One of the owners is a good foot taller than me and a lot heavier so I can’t even check that one by riding it round outside the shop (without upsetting his saddle and suspension settings).

Our 14 year old cat had several fits over a couple of months last spring. We thought it was a sign he was coming to the end of his life but he’s been fine since so maybe just an unexplained ‘phase’?

DMR currently sell two rear hubs, the 6 pawl 9 speed cassette (RRP £99.99) and the 9 speed hub (RRP £59.99). I don’t have any experience of the 6 pawl design but it is exactly the same mechanically as the Halo 6 Drive hub. I have been pushing the cheaper hubs to my customers on the strength of their cheapness of servicing, two bearings at £4 each and an easily replaceable freehub at £12.99. I’ve personally used a Club Roost which is the same for five years now and think they’re great.

I can’t recommend the DMR front hubs so strongly though. They are designed for a 20mm through axle and use inserts to convert to a QR fitting. These inserts seem to allow a little play in the wheel no matter now tight the QR is done up.

I bought Wifey a voucher for the local tattooist to call her bluff after a chance remark. I fully expected to end up using it myself but five months later she finally went for it.

and as to proving the concept works, James Bowthorpe has done that.

James Bowthorpe would have made full use of the gears to keep the pedalling load as light as possible to minimise fatigue throughout each of his 100+ mile days.
Any of you out there with singlespeeds, stand alongside the drive side of the bike and push a foot down hard on the pedal. Watch as the lower chain run develops up to an inch of slack. That’s what a belt drive will have to cope with on a singlespeed.

Oops, must take the link off my profile. I stopped running the website some tme ago and it looks like the domain resellers are trying to tempt me into buying it back. They should try pictures rather than words.

Possibly not so many end of year bikes going cheap as in previous years. Most of the distributors I deal with were a lot more cautious when ordering 2010 stock than they were in previous years.
If you’re 5ft nothing or 6 and a half foot plus you’ll probably find a bargain though.

The Duo set up offers 44/29 and various other combinations. I remember a magazine test a few years ago saying it felt a little flexy so better suited for spinners rather than stampers.

Matt from Middleburn popped into my shop a couple of weeks ago with a sample of one of his external BB cranksets. It’s quite similar to the RS7 and uses the same detachable spider so you can run it Duo, 4 bolt or 5 bolt (MTB or Compact) depending on your preferences.

TheSwede – Member

Jeezus **** christ Sheldon, what the hell did you do with all that?

Had some jewels mounted in his head badge, a new car, two weeks in the sun and a wok extension. Perks eh

I don’t care if he did, it was a cracking weekend.

steve_b77 – Member
Set them where they feel good, obviously taking into account you must have a stem no longer than 70mm and bars no narrower than 725mm otherwise you’ll be ridiculed by the STW masses for ever!

600mm bars on a 105mm stem about 3 inches lower than the saddle.
Ridicule me if you can catch me. 😆

15.5 miles yesterday with my aforementioned 9 year old on mainly hard packed trails with a few squidgy bits mixed in. Wifey dropped us off after a family day out and we rode home with a brief pub stop half way.

I’d much rather be on the MTB when it’s cold and wet but I have had some great road rides in warm rain!

Short sleeve with a small vee at the neck for those warm days here please.

And long sleeve for the winter too.

I’ve known issues with saddles tilting unexpectedly on them. Twin bolt posts like Thompson or FSA are the most secure in my opinion.

My 9 year old has had no problems riding 15 miles for the last couple of years. I’ve not taken him further but if I did I suspect motivation would be the problem more than tiredness.
He’s big enough to ride 26inch wheels now so I built him a 14inch framed singlespeed for his last birthday as he always refused to change gear on his last bike. On the way home from cubs this week he managed to spin up to 21mph on 32:20.

Running might be a better way as you will be working your arms as well as your legs and hence demanding high blood flow over more of your body.
Riding off the saddle may not be too far behind though.

Half mile level road sprints in slightly too low a gear should do it!