Thanks RolfH

anyone?

…..The XT hubs are centrelock – does that make it a non-starter?

Go to see someone who can assess your knee properly. At the very least you should be icing it & doing basic balance/strength exercises. The swelling is there for a reason – NSAID's only address the effects, not the cause.

I had a DHX3 pushed. Not sure why, but it felt more confidence inspiring than before. Worth doing when a shock needs a service, but not before IMHO (Jedi riders may appreciate it more).

Thanks. I'll be the fat old bloke on a blue Nicolai if you are around there that week. 🙂

Thanks for the replies. Hugh, do you know of anywhere that does skills courses locally? We will be there for a week commencing Aug. 17.

Another vote for weber. I light it using a hot air paint stripping gun, it's up to cooking temperature in 5 mins. It's good for anything from burgers to a 4Kg rib of beef or 3 whole chickens.

Aldi occasionally have a bike computer with HRM (bike mate IIRC). I have one – it works fine.

Zara Ford is a good osteopath in Bristol – I’d go & see her, if you need further investigations she’ll point you in the right direction………

Have you been checked for sensory or motor deficit by anyone? I’m an Osteopath & if someone came to see me that would be the first thing I did, followed by the strong suggestion that a visit to a neurologist would be in order (unless there was something obviously wrong which was suitable for my type of treatment). X-rays are probably not the investigation of choice, an MRI (or possibly CT) scan of the head and neck would be more use, but more expensive. I’d want it checked & soon.

I would check with your surgeon rather than listen to a load of opinions from, at best, dubiuosly qualified web jockeys……4-6 weeks would seem pretty quick to me, with a gradual build up.

Fernie’s good, especially if you are into backcountry. The pistes were pretty limited when I was last there (5+years). If you go try to get a short term day-trip cat skiing to Island Lake Lodge (or stay there if you are minted). I’ve stayed with Canadian Powder Tours – chalet holiday style, nice & helpful. They also do Kicking Horse which is supposed to be good.

The Salomon pro-dirt ones (I got them from Snow & Rock) have a detachable airtex-type padded liner & vents – I like mine.

Duc’s probably right. Check the relationship between your pelvis & low back – if you hold a broomstick from your sacrum (very bottom of back) up along your spine there should be a space over your low back before it touches further up. This should still be the case when you pedal, your pelvis shouldn’t move from side to side either.

My speedball works fine (18 months & counting). I use a rear mudguard to keep it that way.

Don’t forget a packed lunch – best eaten whilst drifting in the shipping lane or close to the ferry route.

Weber charcoal, light it with a hot air gun (for paint stripping) – ready to cook with in 5 minutes.

I’ve been going to an Iyengar yoga class for ten years & love it. It’s good for strength & flexibility and make you aware of differences in each side. I would strongly suggest a class, not a book/DVD, to make sure you do it properly. It took me a couple of years to realise that trying to do the postures as well as I could rather than trying to go as far as I could in the general direction of the posture was the key – yoga is more about the process than a goal, even good teachers could do the most basic postures better & so still get something out of them. My class ranges in age from 80-30’s & everyone gets something out of it & isn’t bored.

A muscle (Peroneus Tertius I think) inserts into that area – you may have inflamed the insertion with more use than it’s accustomed to. A rudimentary test for a fracture is to get a tuning fork, hit the double end to start it singing and then put the single end onto the suspected fracture – if it makes you swear a fracture is more likely…..But best of all get it checked by someone who is properly trained.

If You liked the Helius why not talk to them about a custom frame?

Pay to go and see an Osteopath or Physio who has an interest in knee problems (ideally via recommendation). Get them to say what they think is wrong, what they plan to do about it and why. It should be improving within 2-4 visits. If it isn’t ask your GP to refer you to your local knee surgeon (things can get expensive at this point).
There are loads of causes of knee pain, many/most not diagnosable via a biking forum.
Good luck.

I’m a 50 year old southern shandy drinker & would aim for a 3-4 hour ride – if an XC-ish loop springs to mind please let me know.

Thanks

nick

Good news. I’ll go there for a pootle on Sunday then.

Hi ho silver lining?

tb-m: I’ve not worked for him (I live near Chichester) – but he was a good teacher & I would be very happy to recommend him.

Porterclough – internet diagnosis is hit & miss. If your neck is ‘crunchy’ you probably hold your head too far forwards (the noise is probably from joints at the back of your cervical spine). This tends to be associated with poor breathing patterns &/or tight pecs. Whoever you go to should at least look at these things.

I was taught by Vian Neville-Towle (?spelling), he’s good & works in Reading.

Go & see a properly qualified Osteopath, Physio or Chiropractor who is recommended by people in your area. They should have a plausible explanation about what has happened & what they propose to do about it. If it’s not improving in 3-4 treatments seek a second opinion. If they say the disc has slipped out & they are going to put it back in leave without paying – it doesn’t work like that.

@Richc – the majority of those suffering back pain gain nothing other than a dose of ionising radiation by having an x-ray as the problems tend not to be boney and therefore don’t show up (unless there is a history of major trauma or suggestive of cancer). Historically X-rays were used as a sales tool by Chiropractors as much as diagnosic tols.

@Dr death – randomised double blind trails are difficult with physical medicine. Having said that there needs to be more research done (as ever….). IME physiotherapy on the NHS tends to be very protocol driven, which would be fine if thinks such as ‘back pain’ are uniform entities. They are not, so I believe a more personalised treatment plan is better – but then I would, I’m an Osteopath.

TINS – if the doc reckons you have a meniscal tear you should be seeing an orthopod, it won’t heal on its own. There are exercises you can do to minimise wasting pre-op.

Lying on your front propped up on an elbow with your knees together get hold of your ankle with the same side hand – do not pull the foot towards your buttocks. Push the bone at the front of your pelvis into the ground by flattening your low back. Extend your knee up and away from the pelvis in an arc. If you have your knee more than a couple of inches off the ground without feeling much stretch then (& only then) pull the heel towards the buttock. This will stretch your quads and hip flexors. Don’t do it if it causes low back pain.

Thanks – whats Lochgilphead & the Campbeltown trails like if it’s been wet?

I’m with podium. CTS should only affect the thumb side of your hand. Make sure your forearm, chest & neck muscles aren’t too tight & your wrist bones aren’t jammed up. I’d do this first and then ask for nerve conduction tests as well before being sliced open.

Get an X-ray, if it’s not fractured some osteopaths manipulate them – not nice (done wearing marigolds), but can be vary effective. Make sure they are experienced in doing it.

Whatever one you get (I have a maverick remote & it’s great) I’d sugges† using a rear mud guard with it – not the best look but it keeps the post clean & helps reliability (plus a dry ar$e is a good thing in my book).

Icebreaker hopper t?

anyone?

It has great kitesurfing/ windsurfing/ surfing. Not sure what time of year is best.

I’m probably being a bit thick/naive. We have a wireless router/modem which gets our ‘broadband’ (0.1Meg) This is attached via an ethernet cable to the iMac (I was getting occasional drop-outs using it wireless). I then need to get data from the iMac to an airport express (at the moment only 1, but potentially more in the future). Does this help?

Nick

The Airport Express is now connected using the cable from the modem. I am now being told ‘Problem 1 of 2: internet connection. Your Apple wireless device does not have a valid IP address. Make sure it is connected to your broadband modem or local network, verify your settings & try again….click continue to proceed.’
If I click continue I am then asked if I ‘want to continue without resolving the problem’…..but with no indication if it matters.GRRRRRRRR

andym: what is this setting to sync manually of which you speak?