Last few years Sigma have had most of my business, followed by Merlin and then occasionally Biketart, SJS, and BikeInn. Wiggle’s demise probably won’t change my habits much.

general ennui has been ticking a bit

Ennui is the word I was searching for I think. There have been a few periods this year where I’ve found it difficult to get enthusiastic about anything really, or motivated to do anything interesting. Better after a bit of a break and a change to my WFH working to try and do more during the day other than just work, which luckily I usually have the flexibility to do, even if that’s just doing a little job in the garden or something.

Dunno about crisis, but I’m 53 and this year and lately I’ve found myself thinking more about the things I put my time and effort into and what I’m getting out of them. I don’t just mean financially but finding things rewarding in a more general sense, and it seems like the good bits are a bit too few and far between at the moment. I’m not going to be getting a Porsche any time soon but could do with some sort of change.

EDIT to say I’m aware I don’t have a lot to complain about really and things being a bit too ‘meh’ for my liking is not the worst thing in the world.

QR skewers have caught me out before and I’d have sworn it was the BB. Another annoying creak turned out to be where the spokes exited the hub on my Kysriums – BB creaks can be super sneaky!

They used to be the first place I’d go, but hardly ever use them now. Over the last couple of years it’s been Sigma and Merlin for me. I’m not sure I could pinpoint exactly why, but it didn’t help that both Wiggle and CRC redesigns were awful.

We’re going Interrailing in September, up to Sweden via Copenhagen. We’re really looking forward to it and train is definitely my favourite way to travel, but I do think you need to come at it thinking the trains are part of the adventure rather than just how you’re getting from A to B.

I suspect your trip probably needs to be just right too for Interrail. Too busy a schedule and I think your holiday could end up just a  blur of trains and stations, but on the other hand if you only need a couple of trains the interrail pass probably isn’t going to work out financially.

I added up all the trips we’d need to take and the pass was worth it for us, but YMMV.

For bikepacking bags, brands like Ortleib and Apidura produce high quality stuff, though I do like the made in the UK Alpkit range.

Restrap are also made in the UK, but they only do the bikepacking bags stuff. As recommended by tuboflard, Ultralight Outdoor Gear is a pretty good place to start for everything else.

BBC weather app works fine for me.

I think many people read it wrong though. 10% chance of rain every hour for three hours doesn’t mean that there’s a 10% chance of rain over those three hours. Instead it means that there’s a 27% chance of rain at some point in those three hours. Given that, it’s fairly accurate.

Some interesting bits here about things like the relationship between % chance of rain and the symbols you get:

BBC seems to be all over the place lately. Doesn’t seem to be much point looking at it more than a few hours in advance now.

They definitely have their place I reckon. You can smash out an hour before work or in the middle of the day in a way you can’t really by actually going out on your bike. Zwift is engaging enough to take the sting out of it.

I got mine at the start of lockdown in 2020 but it is basically unused for a good few months of the year. I’m still glad I got one though.

38mm tyres on 700c wheels with an internal width of 22mm. I actually don’t really know what pressures I’m at, but probably comfortably under 40psi.

I’ll give it a listen. They’re one of a few bands I really didn’t have much time for back in the day but I’ve come to appreciate them more since. That best of album with the faces on the cover is full of good stuff.

 And controversially I’m not sold on electric cars yet, personally I think its much more environmental to stop keep creating yet more vehicles and run the ones we have until no longer viable.

This used to be pretty widely accepted didn’t it? I wonder what changed. Probably (tinfoil hat on) car companies getting control of the narrative.

But I suppose you do still hear it said that electric cars better at saving car companies than saving the planet.

There’s probably a large element of “Fans had more respect back in the good old days” at play here, but that said I do think that maybe social media has actually made it  a bit worse. If nobody up there had a smartphone I think maybe there’d be fewer people going too far for TikTok or whatever.

But then there was that gendarme who took out Abdoujaparov in the 80s when getting a photo (I think?) so it’s always been there.

I would maybe consider sharing if it was just for one night* but for several days no chance, for all the reasons everybody else has mentioned.

*last time I did this with anyone other than MrsSalmon was on Snowdon doing the same as blokeuptheroad – I did get some sleep though!

Spent a night on Snowdon summit in a ‘2 man’* tent with a mate a few years ago. We were doing the Welsh 3000s/14 peaks. He’s a big old snorey unit and l discovered , a restless, mobile sleeper. We were up at about 03:30 to start – I’d had zero sleep.  I’ve done a few multi day walking/wild camping trips since. I always sleep in my own tent now. I’d never contemplate sharing again.

Depends what you want out of it I’d say. Personally I find the point where I’m wishing I was on a hardtail arrives pretty much as soon as I get off of something like Cannock fire road gravel and onto anything rougher. If the challenge of doing that stuff on a different bike than a proper MTB appeals to you, and maybe you have to ride a lot of road to get there, then maybe go for a gravel bike.

I got mine as more of an ‘all road’ bike that I can take off the tarmac sometimes, and I’m more interested in just being out and covering distance in nice places than I am in technical stuff. I also have a lot of road because 99% of the time I’m riding from my front door.

I do love my Camino but if I were in the OP’s situation I’d probably be looking at a hardtail 29er.

EDIT just looked at that Vitus – very nice, but I still can’t get over how bad Chain Reaction looks these days!

Any love for Nokia? Been looking for a phone for a similar budget and liked the look of them.

I’ve got a Nokia G60, which upgraded to Android 13 immediately. Very happy with it, but then phones are one thing where I really can’t see the point of being at the sharp spendy end.  I also had a 7.1 a couple of years ago which I also liked, until it wouldn’t charge properly after a couple of years

The spring thing is a new one to me. I leave it on whatever cog it’s on when I stop. If that happened to be the smallest one it might occur to me to move it up nearer the middle for getting going again but that’s about it.

Sounds like one of those things that is true in a very abstract sense but makes zero difference in reality.

I’ve got a V4 with 1x GRX. I’m on a 40t chainring and an 11-42 cassette. Like lots of others here it’s fine for me on the road – I start to spin out at about 45kph but in practice that just means I start coasting earlier on the downhills. It spends most of its time on the road with 700c wheels with 38mm slicks, but I have a second set of 650b wheels with WTB Resolutes on for gravel type stuff. Very happy with it.

49.1 mph on my road bike somewhere on the Dartmoor Classic several years ago. I remember being a bit surprised as it didn’t feel all that fast compared to other times that felt like warp speed.
Round where I live in the Midlands top speed on a ride these days is usually 40-ish though, combination of roads and being a bit older and wiser I suppose!

I do find that pads start to disintegrate after a while and replacements aren’t always available.

This was the end for my last couple, which I think did 3 or 4 years each. This time I got a spare set of pads at the same time!
Pads aside it’s whenever I get it into my head that it’s starting to seem a bit tired and maybe it’s been dropped or banged about a couple of times too many. I don’t think I’ve ever had one more than about 5 years.

I always wonder what they do with our data, do they sell it?

They do have this: https://metro.strava.com/

I’ve used them a few times and would happily use them again. I suppose they won’t ever be as quick as ordering from one of the UK sites but I’ve always been happy enough with delivery time given where it’s coming from.

I like the Endura F260 Pro, currently discounted 40% to £48 at wiggle except the logo falls off in the wash quite quickly

This does annoy me a bit I must admit. I mean obviously it doesn’t matter, but everybody else seems to have figured it out, so why can’t Endura manage it?
Anyway, I got some Albion tights over the winter that I really like so my next pair of shorts will probably come from them.

So who’s watching Beef then? Trying to resist binge watching it but have done 6 episodes over the long weekend.

Just finished it last night. One of the best things we’ve seen for a while IMO

Also in trouble ought to be whoever allowed him access to that kind of information, or designed the system that allowed it.

I’m sure I read somewhere the other day that 1.25 million people in the US have access to classified stuff. If that’s true, or even a tenth of that number, it’s not super surprising that stuff like this happens.

Got it on my 6th go but I’m ashamed to say I was reduced to systematically trying combinations that sounded most like they could actually be words.

the Ahsoka episode of Mandalorian

That was my favourite Mandalorian episode of the lot I reckon. This season is a bit patchy, but there are some great dogfighting shots!

Got it in 6 eventually. The answer occurred to me quite quickly but I was sure it wouldn’t be a word.

Met Office Mountain Weather and MWIS, in no particular order of preference

There was an article in the Guardian the other week where someone was claiming it’s basically the same as ELIZA from the 60s. I’m no expert but I think that’s a really lazy comparison. As for whether it’s on the cusp of a revolution, I think if a machine ever got to the point where it behaved and responded to things exactly the same as a human in every situation there’d still be people going “yeah, but does it understand what it’s doing like we do?”, which seems to me to assume that there’s more to what we do than just being super complex organic machines that couldn’t possibly be replicated.

Another Vango Helium 1 user here. Short pole length when packed, goes up inner and outer together, and had no problems on Glen Nevis campsite when the wind was flattening plenty of others. It’s neither the lightest or the cheapest you can get but it’s a pretty decent compromise I think. The only thing I don’t like about it is the porch area really is pretty small.

On a smaller scale there’s this:

I looked at one, got a Ribble CGR 725 instead and have recently changed that for a Sonder Camino AL with GRX 1x. I’d imagine an Escapade would be similar as a road bike. Quick enough for me on 700c with 38mm slicks, and comfortable for long rides over all sorts of crappy roads. If you want to go out with people smashing it on Aeroads though you are looking in the wrong place,, obviously

Elite Zumo, got it at the start of first lockdown so nearly 3 years. According to Zwift I’ve done 4586km,, over 6d 9hr 38m

There is a big wide world out there.  I only use mine now if injured

Very true, but they have their uses. Mine is mainly used for a quick 45mins- 1hr before work a couple of times a week in winter, with the odd longer one at the weekend if it’s too grim/icy out. I don’t see myself doing any of the longer routes on Zwift any time soon though – about 2 hrs is my limit.

I just got some Madison Enigma photochromics, first ride in them today. I was happy with them but I do wonder if they’ll go dark enough for a proper sunny day in summer.

Socks on top?

Genuinely surprised that anyone would do this.

It’s like a really long and mediocre episode of Torchwood.

This is true. But me and MrsSalmon are finding it entertaining enough.

I haven’t moved many on, but when I have it’s been bikes that I never felt like I really got on with. If I liked it I’d probably hang on to it even if I wasn’t riding it much any more.
My MTB is in that category now – I haven’t ridden it for a couple of years and I never likde it as much as my old Giant XTC so it will probably be moving on soon

Sounds like it like my laptop doesn’t drive HDMI over the USB connections. Dedicated dock specific for that laptop might well work, a generic one, probably not.

Hmm, that’s annoying. A £15-ish cable is probably about as much as I’m prepared to spend on this