Is there something you want to share, colonel?

lols! Please note the careful use of a capital T 🙂

Please stop showing pictures of Tallboys – I’m trying to deny their existence…

did you use it much with a rack and were you carrying much weight?

Did a month touring Portugal and Spain.

We were travelling pretty light, two panniers taped together carrying the heaviest and non-hand luggage-able items were just over half the checked in bag allowance for easyjet (i’ve a crap memory for numbers).

There were a couple of evenings that i put a 5L bottle on top of the rack or the run from supermarket to campsite so my guess is that’s what did it, although I didn’t notice it when stripping down rebuilding or cleaning twice. It was the third time of cleaning when I was back I noticed.

I’m chalking it down as an expensive fork and a wall hanging 😀

I wouldn’t worry about it; it is a really nice bike to ride (have been doing some off-roading on it too.

I’d be interested to compare our comparisons of the two bikes when we’ve ridden the new ones a bit.

See the bottom square profile bar section of the rear drive-side dropout? Mine is bent in an almost perfect arc. Upgrade have offered 25% off a replacement, as they say it’s not a warranty issue, but I’ve kinda lost faith in the design so figured I’d go the slightly cheaper route of a Kaff.

Until it bent I was really liking the Tripster; it feels fast and direct, I was doing similar paced sprints on it as I can on my carbon road bike, while still being suprisingly comfortable. I don’t think the Kaff will be as efficient but as I have the roadbike for fast stuff it’s not such an issue and I’ve a bad feeling that I’ll want a custom frame in the new year when I’ve see dirtygirlonabike’s Shand so there’s no point spending too much on a replacement 🙄 .

Be careful how much weight you carry if you are putting a rack on the Tripster as that is the only thing I can think of that could have caused the dropout to close up (what Upgrade say has happened) as it hasn’t had any impacts (that I’m aware of). It is also the first one they know of that happening to, so maybe I was just unlucky…

Epicyclo – what teflon tubing do you use and where from please?

Nice looking build and a nice wee blog too, will add it to my blogroll.

BB7s on my winter bike/tourer and were on my 29er.

Very happy with them. On teh drop bar bike tehy are running normal shimano cables and outers and are still nice and sharp with a short lever throw. A bit of patience, albeit no more than with hydros, setting them up will pay dividends.

That looks tidy. I might have one if they had been out when I ordered my Tripster and was tempted as a replacement for the aforementioned when it bent but can’t justify the outlay so am going to order a Kaffenback instead.

Not running at lunch as I seem to have done something to my achilies (think I over stretched it on Wednesday) and don’t want to risk further damage 🙁

I’ll give the I-beam bel air a 10, rode for 3 weeks solid and not the slightest niggle. The standard railed version I’d only give a 7 – I figure my arse likes the firm base of the I-beam.

Spec Toupe 143 on teh rodabike is probably an 8.5; one day i love it the next it’s not quite right.

Off to scour ebay for an slr to strip down, I’ve a funny feeling I might like that.

I think Cynic-Al may have one but he seems to be AWOL.

I’ve drooled over his Flickr site for a couple of years and if when I was to get a custom frame built I’ll go to him. Lovely looking fillet brazing.

Posts on here occasionally too.

Heh-heh 😀 – even though I’ve got about as soft a Northern accent as you can get.

There’s a place down at Newbridge (on teh road that goes across the end of the runway) who made a couple of wee brackets for me once and have made some big ally transects for the ecologists at work – I’ll see if I can find the name…

The Pro Six Disc does look like an option, although I’m a little dissapointed with Kinesis at the moment…

Custom Shand is only twice (and the rest) the price 😈

Nice one, thanks folks!

TSY – you still getting letters or have they given up?

Move the cooker to between the back door and boiler?

When I helped my old flatmate do the kitchen we were able to move the cooker without a gas cert plumber but I can’t remember how far it moved or what plumbing was involved, it might have just been a case of a longer flexible hose… – not much help really.

You want your cooker and prep space in minimal walking distance of your pantry so it’s easy to grab things as you go, it gets really anoying really quickly if you have to cross a large space every time you have to grab another ingredient, and in my case you probably burn the garlic in the process.

You want the sink and fridge in that area as well, I don’t think the dishwasher is so vital.

You can use a wok on electric, but not on induction – at least not a traditional round bottomed carbon steel wok. Gas would be my preferance with induction second, nothing else has that instant temperature control although you do tend to get used to whatever you have.

In that space I would keep the main cooking area in what was, presumably, the original kitchen then add an island unit or breakfast bar to divide the space – sort of in the area between the two doors-ish – and then have a nice big table in the larger part of the room so when cooking you aren’t seperated from everything else that’s going on. Maybe a bit of casual seating and storage space up there too if the space still feels too big.

A bit of an essay, sorry, been thinking about kitchens a bit recently for some reason. Oh, and check out McMoonters kitchen for a bit of a different take on kitchen design

Sure your chain isn’t too short? Should be big to big (not through derallier (sp?)) plus one full link.

Can’t see how the frame can be causing chains to snap unless alignment is out (kept happing to a friends singlespeed as the eccentric bb wasn’t sitting in exactly the right spot).

Been thinking a lot about training recently as currently doing some very unstructured stuff. Went to a Q&A session with some pros last week and they were saying that the idea of slow winter base training is seen as quite out dated these days, which makes me wander if the Joe Friel book is somewhat out of line with modern thinking (I haven’t read it yet and have been leant an older copy so maybe I’m being unfair…) – any opinions?

I’ve unsubscribed from so many mailing lists recently as the ammount of spam seems to have rocketed.

see that de-humidifier you’ve got? that and leave the lids off the containers so condensation doesn’t form. Mould and bacteria need moisture to multiply.

Or possibly bags of silica gel in the sealed boxes, take it out and zap it in a low microwave occasionally to dry it out again.

Can’t help with the cleaning, although, at a guess, wipe them with a dilute bleach or Milton type solution (obviously test it on your least favorite pair of shoes to make sure it doesn’t damage them 🙂 ) and let them dry well before storing again.

Please get one and spend as much time as possible winding up Brad and MD!

p.s. you coming tonight?

Most seem to wear stuff like Endura, Altura, Polaris, etc

which is weird considering how often threads pop up on here with how bad the quality is…

p.s. sorry OP not helping get your thread back on track here

I think Cedric Gracia is a great example of a ‘brand embasador’ (sorry couldn’t think of a better term). He is careful about what and how many sponsors he works with and doesn’t walk about like a mobile billboard with dozens of different companies logos up and down every available bit of space on his kit. It would seem like at least some of his sponsors like it this way, judging by how long Oakley have stuck with him. Results certainly aren’t everything.

And FWIW my O’Neal knee pads (the SAS-tec foam ones, I can’t remember the name) are great (protective, comfortable for riding for long periods, stay in place) and I’m sure they will still be protecting my knees long after EPD ones would have needed replaced – pure coincidence it’s the same ones CG is wearing in that pic!

I picked some up from

Mrs Bike Chain

😆 last night and the weather was so minging this morning they were on for the commute in to work. I can’t see me ever using the indicator function but otherwise they seem good and well made.

Herman Shake – I was thinking about that too; the light & battery section is screwed into the ‘plug’ section that has been tightened with an allen key. You could unscrew the light part and take it with you without having to take out the plug part which would be as quick and easy as taking any other light off.

Probably, but have you tried it with a Vodaphone UK SIM? An Orange UK locked phone (HTC Desire I think) worked with an Orange Spain PAYG SIM.

I just like to rack up ridiculous phone bills when I’m travelling rather than take that kind of sensible approach 🙄

Or is it to do with needing a Blackberry tariff rip off add on possibly?

If that’s a ‘are they any good’ type post; I’ve bought a few things off them and they’ve been good. They don’t send you a ‘your item has been dispatched’ email, so it’s sometimes a suprise when they turn up. Very helpful on the phone too.

I’m using Pearl Izumi road ones. I think a road cleat would fit the mtb ones but not 100% sure – they don’t do the mtb in XXL 🙁

Really liking them so far esp as they are velcro closure rather than a stupid zip that you’ll (I’ll) break!

The mtb ones have a funky material that looks like it should deal pretty well with british winter grime.

Ground Effect too

hiking trouser

?

I just got some stuff from them and it arrived in just over a week and no tax 🙂

It shows that you do actually care about who is in charge of the country but you don’t believe that any of the people you have to choose from represent your views. You then don’t get lumped in with the whatever ridiculous %age of elegible voters who don’t bother to turn up an das I said:

You have no right to complain about whoever does get into power if you do not use your vote!

Spoiling your paper is still using your vote.

If you don’t feel you can vote for any of the candidates in your area you need to register that by spoiling your ballot paper.

Not bothering to go to the poling station is just lazy and most of the reasons people give for not voting in some way shape of form are feeble excuses.

You have no right to complain about whoever does get into power if you do not use your vote!

Sounds like a test designed to give the results they want – otherwise they would compare the same set up with the only change being the spoke profile.

Bad science make mustard sad 😥

and besides the folk who do it look like ****.

– some random did shout abuse at me one day, ’twas rather amusing 😆

Going for some minimal shoes though, too many of the footpaths round here are tar and chip and the bruised feeling from running on them was a bit random.

Aye TSY get on it!

I’ve been trying to figure out an English mtb CtoC but on road may turn out to be the best as it can be done in a day rather than a week…

Milton?

I got the Scott shorts that Evans were flogging cheap, but seconds after I had put in teh order a friend told me her husband had got some for Kielder 100 and they didn’t make it to teh finish line intact…
So far they’re doing well commuting on t road 🙄

I loves it I do!

I think from a passing car it may not be all that obvious that you had a puncture or are people wary about offering a lift to someone with a manky bike in these dangerous days we are living in? 🙄

On a happier note; in the summer the GF and I were walking with the road bikes after one of her spokes randomly snapped and threw the wheel far enough out of true for it not to turn without rubbing the frame, I had my bike on my shoulder so she could push hers with my wheel. A builders van that had passed reversed up the road to us to ask if we needed a lift. I’m sure he said he wouldn’t have thought anything of it if it hadn’t been for me having the bike on my shoulder rather than pushing. I hope that karma has paid that gentleman back with a lottery win (or at least a free pint as he wouldn’t take anything for going out of his way to take us to a train station).

Northwind – I’ve the 150mm rocker you can borrow if you want a shot of it. I’ve not ridden it but it’s not for sale, never know when I’ll get an urge to do something silly on it… Mail me if you’re interested.