In my experience towns and cities with a university usually offer much in terms of cultural life. If you enjoy that sort of thing then you should choose Sheffield; even if you don’t, choose Sheffield.

And please lay off with the ‘oop’ north nonsense as it’s not at all endearing and nobody says ‘oop’, it’s ‘up’ with a strong and honest flat vowel 😉

I just inspected it, the tape’s perfect.

It’s leaking through the joint where the bead hook is so the rim’s most definitely dodgy. I’ll chase it up on the phone tomorrow.

Cheers.

Thanks spooky, I’ll take a look at the videos.

I was careful applying the tape and did stretch it taut across the rim bed. The rear rim sealed fine first time.

I’m new to UST so maybe I’m worrying over nothing.

Yeah, I used 25mm tape but it’s leaking through the side of the rim & the tape doesn’t go that far round. I’ve not used any of Stan’s jizz but then I shouldn’t need to with a UST tyre and tape …or should I?

TBH I’m not totally confident that the rim has the strength and integrity that it should have, the welded joint looks quite weak.

In response to

Any less-publicised gems tucked away in the city to think about?

…I think someone mentioned Urmston & Flixton. You get more for your money there than the likes of Chorlton, Didsbury or any of the Heatons. Urmston has a town centre with public library, Trafford General hospital’s nearby in case of a child based emergency (you mentioned family) plus you can catch a train to Oxford Rd station from Flixton, Chassen Road or Urmston and then easily walk to the university. I guess the trains will be busy at peak times though.

Montane Velo packs very small, either in its tennis-ball sized pack or simply folded flat and put in your shorts pocket or backpack, and is very light. It’s a decent windproof but only shower resistant at best.

EDIT: I see there’s an H2O model which ISN’T the one I have so you can probably disregard what I said up there! I have the featherlight which is indeed not at all waterproof.

DT Swiss EXM150s here, quite plush, not particularly stiff, 200 hour service intervals, seem to be well made and well finished and have been relaible for the last 12 months, and launch control is very useful for climbing.

Rockshox now do Revs with dual-position; so, a 150mm fork with a 30mm drop actuated by a crown mounted lever. If I was buying I’d buy these.

the small triangle of Stretford between Longford Park and the Metrolink used to be OK

Oi! It still is nice, cheeky.

Withington is a good location 5 mins from Didsbury and West Didsbury and a 10 minute ride to the Uni. Good bus links too.

Not much riding in sth Manc but you can pootle around The Ees along the Mersey and there’s even some hidden woodland singletrack and, of course, Chorlton mountain!

It takes me 30 mins by car to Roman Lakes at Marple from Stretford; loads of riding from there. Within 45 minutes you’re heading down the zig-zags towards Aspenshaw Hall and then on to Hayfield and all that the Dark Peak has to offer.

Morning.

Post commute ride brew from Coffee Nation vending machine …regular latte with an extra shot. S’ok.

I won’t be coming along, but y’all have fun!

Very nice, love the colours. I have a Helius AM and love it lots; it climbs very well considering its HA and 30lb weight, and of course it’s alot of fun descending. You’ll love your CC, it’s probably a better all-round UK bike than an AM …get fun getting fit!

Check this thread http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/nicolai-helius-owners-help

I saw a similar thing last year except there was 4 of ’em came down the bank on to the pump track to take a half-arsed attempt at riding the tight berms on a long wheelbase trail bike and all with very limited ability. One of them almost beached on his bashguard. It was quite pathetic really, no social skills whatsoever.

Fab! I Just spotted this …I’ll do my best to be there. Might have Zoe with me too.

Don’t forget your hat.

Sorry.

New bike if you can afford and justify it, service or upgrade with more modern used bits if you can’t.

Either way …Denmark you say? Try a Pronghorn PR6 on demo.

If you’re doing it to make profit set yourself two absolute(ish) figures for each holding that you have. One figure is the price at which you sell a falling stock and the other is the price at which you sell a rising stock. It’s too easy to hold on expecting losses to be stemmed or profits to keep rising.

Consider buying stock in companies that are gaining foothold in emerging markets; for example pharmaceutical or beauty product companies that will sell easily to the wealth-improving social classes in countries like China, Brazil, India etc.

Keep on top of your portfolio, particularly when speculating. This takes ALOT of time and effort.

I have a 13″ you can inspect/try out.

Fnarr

😯

Hope she’s o.k now.

Yes. she’s OK thanks.

She recovered v.quickly from her dizzy bout after drinking lots and eating a meal.

Had my Superstar flat pedals for a year or so now and they’ve been great. In fact I’ve not had to even think about them other than the usual pins getting worn and therefore fading grip.

There’s no play in the axle whatsoever and the bearings must be well sealed because they’re still perfectly smooth and have a resistance to spinning when your foot’s not on them which I like very much.

Interestingly, or not, Mrs Naranjada had a bout of very low blood presure (90/54 iirc) last week and it wiped her out so much that she didn’t think it safe to drive home from the train station without sleeping for 40 mins in the car first.

Apparently it’s generally considered to be a good thing as it is a sign of physical fitness, but it can have -ve physical effects too. If it’s a problem then you should make sure that you keep hydrated to maximise your blood volume and make sure you have enough sodium in your diet.

Beer and s+v crisps?

Whyte T120S – £2k for a complete bike with a slack’ish head angle, decent 2×10 and bolt-through spec’ & lifetime warranty on the bearings.

ChunkyMTB has hit the nail on the head.

The Boardman is not an obvious choice until someone mentions it, but all reviews that I have read are overwhelmingly +ve and the VFM is incredible when you look at the spec.

On looks alone the YT beats the Canyon; the Canyon graphics and colours are utter gash whereas the YT looks pretty classy I’d say. I also prefer the YT’s suspension linkage design rather than the rockers on the Canyon. Great VFM at just shy of £1400 but my German language is non-existent so I can’t work out shipping costs …is it 49,90E with an optional 14,90E insurance?

But you’d probably do better buying 2nd hand if you don’t mind the hassle of looking, negotiating etc. A nice Zesty or Stumpy Pitch would serve you well.

Si at 18Bikes in Hope has one and he really rates it. I’m sure he’d be glad to chat if you called him …BTW the shop’s closed on Wednesdays.

Another option I considered was a rigid, geared Inbred monster-cross with Mary or Midge bars. I really liked this idea and if I was speccing my own I’d probably build something like that.

I had a quick look at the boardman, you can fit a decent sized tyre in there then?

Yes, there’s plenty of clearance with the 35mm tyres I fitted, at least 6-8 mm each side and radially behind BB and loads more beneath the fork crown and between the stanchions. The one I bought was a small, but I have no reason to suspect the dims will be any different on larger frame sizes.

Easily upgradeable to drops if that’s what you want to do and it takes 35mm Sammy Slicks and mudguards.
Easy maybe,…cheap? Not a chance! – Don’t they come with MTB BB5s?

Yes, maybe not cheap but at £399 with BB5s as standard it’s not out of the question, budget permitting.

I spent several months weighing up what bike for my partner, I looked at them all, had a spreadsheet with standover calcs and everything on it, budget up to £1k. Almost bought a Cotic >X<, almost built a Kinesis Crosslight blah blah but eventually I had an epiphany (no, not an Ellsworth) and went to Halfords (I know!) & bought a Boardman Hybrid ‘female informed’ Comp; for the money (£399) you get a very, very nice bike that includes BB5s and Ritchey finishing kit. Easily upgradeable to drops if that’s what you want to do and it takes 35mm Sammy Slicks and mudguards. Very impressed I am and a third of the price of an >X< with Tektro disc and Tiagra upgrades.

I did have to tighten a few bolts and reset the front mech though, even though it had been PDId.

+1 Cube X-Race Comp. Good 105 spec for the money.

A great day’s riding …what a superb course!

Thanks to Jase and his team for all the hard graft, thanks to Warren for the poster and thanks to all those that raced for making it such a great event.

That’s an impossible question for an adult to answer.

I hear the foxy fellas have a 2nd album out …saw them twice in 2009, 1 intimate & 1 festival, both really good performances.

However, they’d have to have progressed or diverged their style a little to get me to buy the latest offering.

And yes, Smog / Bill Callahan=MIGHTY.

It’s a deal, but try and get my good side.

Tee hee …scooters are rubbish round corners, even worse than your average Hardly Dangerous Ultraglide.

I’d be more concerned about the embarrassment caused by the quite massive puffbands on that rubber …are there no bends or roundabouts on your commute?

Louise BATs here …lots of power, good modulation and feel. I really like them.

What a great thread.

2 Kims – Deal & Gordon

And Hilma Nikolaisen, the bass player from Sereena Maneesh …6′ tall, beautiful, plays bass and really has got the moves!

Yes please and thank you – I’ll be there, Zoe too.

Great vid, great score, great skills, great looking bike too.

rbrstr – that looks interesting, what’s the purpose of the rose joints at the dropout end of the seat stays?