+1 for Charnwood. Got c7 due to knocking a few walls out and opening up rear of house! Love it.

Brick sessions are a must, but you’ve picked up on that already. Like others have said, the second run is a killer. I found that doing a bit of (what is now in vogue) “crossfit”, did me the world of good. Basically, burpees, squats, press ups, rowing. You can find plenty of workouts online. This really helped strength in legs for second run. It’s amazing how quickly your body deteriorates after the bike section. Good luck!

Lapierre do a full range from basic to all singing. I’d have to sell Banshee. Awesome bikes with a decent following.
Charge bikes. UK, good back up and offer everything from urban to full on fat bikes at a decent price.
Finishing kit – Spank. The usual shimano/sram Groupset stuff. Maxxis tyres.

The Forbidden Forest (puns welcome!)
The last Ninja
Manic Miner
Kickstart

All C64

No worries. Understood!

I’ve got the Ison demo at the mo, in large. I’m 6″1 and would say the sizing is bang on for me. Ride wise, it descends like my 2012 Meta Sx and feels like it has more travel than it’s actually got. Never felt a harsh bottom out. Due to the anti-squat characteristics it pedals really well, so good in fact that you find yourself putting in pedal strokes where I wouldn’t have usually. It encourages you to ‘give it some’ at any opportunity. Climbing is awesome, as long as you stay seated! Traction is good and no noticeable pedal bob until you stand but I have this with any bike of this amount of travel. It feels really stable in the air and drops are not a problem at all, just seems to soak it all up. Really close to purchasing one. Just gotta weigh up whether hanging on for Codeine 650b might be worth it but I really, really like this bike!

Hey Brant, I know you left at end of June but can you tell me whether 650b version will have same anti-squat characteristics as 29er? I’m weighing up whether to purchase a Spitfire or hold out for Codeine 650b.

WTB Frequency i25 29 rim. Only 5g heavier thanks Stans but stronger with 25mm internal width at nearly half the price. All my bikes now built with WTB rims. Only good things to report here.

Had a herniated disc about 8 years ago. Back has never been right since and not likely to be without regular maintenance. Bought a book on recommendation from a mtb buddy who also suffered from regular back pain. Back RX by Vijay Vad, M.D. its both yoga and Pilates based and takes between 15-30 mins. What a difference. Core is stronger and pain has reduced significantly. Couldn’t praise it highly enough and I’m pretty sceptical about this sort of stuff usually.

Thanks for all your input guys. I’ll definitely be testing a Phantom soon! One last thing. How did the rear shock situation turn out Shackleton?

Totally agreed maxtorque, but as you can see from my OP I’m on IOW so getting test rides proves somewhat difficult logistically. I like to do my research first so that I can try and book as many tests in a single visit to the big island as possible!

Hey Shackleton,

Notice you said the Phantom was quicker through Inners DH and have also read through thread on mtbr. V interesting. Looks like I might try and get my LBS to get the Ison demo in (if they have one!). Can you tell me if there were any shortfalls in comparison to Spitty? Do you think that you could take everything on that you could on a Prime? Like I said, majority of my riding is trail orientated but try and get away once a quarter to Afan, FOD and BPW and relish taking on DH with maybe an Alps trip thrown in for good measure and maybe a gravity enduro or two. Also a bit of air here and there which usually becomes a ‘man-test’ between mates who all ride 160mm FS (sb66, alpine160, covert). I must say, best bike I’ve owned so far was 2012 Zesty. Could ride most things on that with relative ease and that was a 140mm 26er, so shorter travel wouldn’t bother me too much (don’t quote me on that !). Just don’t like the new ones. Rear brake housing is crap if you’ve got big feet!

Anyone ridden a Phantom in the Alps? Didn’t really have this one on my radar. Would it still handle, say, 8ft+ drops?

Thanks but its how the On-One compares to the Spitfire Im interested in. Although we dont have a lot of altitude over here I still tend to hit drops and ride as agressive as I can (even though I wont get any VOD’s). Love the Commie I’ve got but its gotta go – wrong size and is not for climbing and flats. Also ride Gravity Enduro’s but this has to be a bike im also happy riding all day on. Think I’ll just bite the bullet and buy the Spitty.

Totally agreed Brant. And thanks to both you and Keith Scott for making this decision so hard!!

Cheers mrhoppy. I would be taking majority of bits from my Commie which i’m happy with. Obviously new forks and wheels along with frame. I could get the whole bike from On-one for price that frame, wheels and fork will cost if I go Banshee route. Lucky enough that I can afford it. Whther I can stomach it is a different thing!

Thx frazchops. Am sort of swaying towards the Banshee as am loving the demo. Would still be interested to hear from any Codeine owners though.

Tribute – Tenacious D
Stacey’s Mom – Fountains of Wayne

Charge Cooker. Ive got the older 2012 model but the new ones are still relatively skinny tubed with modern geometry. Tange Infinity tubing. Really ‘twangy’ but nothing it can’t handle with a decent set of wheels. British too!

Rotator cuff? That would swell. Did mine back in Sept at Eastridge UKGE. Still not healed now. Did snap shoulder blade in half at same time tho. If I could offer any advice (from experience), don’t come back too soon! I did and may have to pull out of an Alps trip! 😥

The insurance company told him to chuck it away. I’ve been using it as a training bike on a turbo due to the crap weather we’ve been having. No sale. Now thinking about taking it out in crappy weather as johnnystorm has suggested. Interesting comments from those that have industry knowledge, thanks.
I’m pretty confident about his ability as an engineer and he does indeed test carbon structures on a daily basis. With this in mind and the advice above I shall venture out into the big wide world!

Fair point scotroutes. Just wanted to know if anyone had had a similar experience. Its a bit of a scary situation for me. Never ridden a road bike before!!! 😮

Charge Cooker. Love mine. Brilliant frames throughout the range and ideal for upgrading later.

She doesn’t know who ‘Tufty the Squirrel’ is …………. And what the hell is a road safety film?

A little boy named Train – Green Day

(Waiting for the) Ghost Train – Madness

Oh, and…………Coal Train to Hatfield Main – The Housemartins (sorry, couldn’t find a vid!).

Also a bit late to the party but you wouldn’t be going far wrong with a Charge Cooker. Just in process of building one for same reasons as OP. Although mine is a 2012 model and the new ones seem have lost the ‘classic’ look. Still some 2012/13 frames about for under £300 in small.

Kneel down and place a ping pong ball on your affected calf. Sit back on it. It’ll hurt but eventually the pain will ease. After another 15secs move ball down an inch and repeat. Worked for me.

Ending your sentences with a question could get you into a never ending conversation, couldn’t it? 😉

Man made trails: Gorlech, Y Wal,
Centre: BPW
Trail: Ho Chi Minh (IoW)

Ps – not made Scotland yet

If the car is not road worthy then not only is your insurance invalid but your are also committing an offence. If you happen to be involved in another accident (your fault or not) expect the strong arm of the law (both crown and civil) to come down on you hard. I know the garage would want they’re courtesy car back. Is it not possible for your wife to contact insurance company on your behalf? They usually don’t mind if they have permission of policyholder. An insurance company’s obligation is to put you in same situation you were in before the incident happened. Whether that is through financial compensation or sourcing a new vehicle, the choice is theirs. Explain once the car goes back they have not satisfied neither.

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image[/url] by niksnr[/url], on Flickr

Because Mrs Snr wanted wallpaper on chimney breast I had to knock something up that would offer fire resistance to within 600mm of woodburner. Made it out of Versapanel, which is Fire Grade 0 fibre cement board. Picked it up in B&Q for about £15 per sheet. Only needed 2 sheets and a router! Just got to finish skirting and carpet now!

You’ll cry if you want to?

Howard the Duck, FTW! 🙂

Yes, it does have pedals.

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image[/url] by niksnr[/url], on Flickr

+1 for Le Raguenes Plage! Did a tour of France 4 years ago in my beloved T25. From Dieppe down to Dijon then across middle of France/Loire Valley to Ile De Re, up the Atlantic coast through Brittany and back to Dieppe. As you can imagine we stayed in plenty of campsites. The one FieldMarshall mentions was one of the highlights of the whole trip. Really friendly owners, beautiful scenery and beaches for the kids. Pont Aven is definitely worth a visit too. Apart from another campsite on Ile De Re I would say this one was head and shoulders above the others!

One day Jedi training! Couldn’t (or wouldn’t) have even attempted something like this beforehand. Going back in April – can’t wait!!
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Biggest[/url] by niksnr[/url], on Flickr

+1 for the scaffold poles. Both my man shed and local boxing club use this method to hang heavy bags. Cheap as well if you can pick up second hand at reclamation yard.

I know you’ve stated carbon but it’s worth considering the Trek Domane frame. It has a pivot type arrangement where the seat stays meet the top tube which helps it absorb chatter. Makes for a very comfy ride. The alloy versions are very good value.

I finished my own 1×9 to 1×10 yesterday. Shimano to shimano. Sounds exactly the same. Just fit everything that came in box. No issues here.

My 7 year old daughter is doing a class project on Queen Victoria. She googled ‘Prince Albert’ images. Jesus!!!!!! Missus nearly had a fit. Hilarious thinking back now tho!