Had a Galaxy Watch but sold it and got a Garmin Vivoactive 3.

Samsung has an amazing screen and rotating bezel is great for scrolling through screens. The app store is rubbish – watch apps are largely rubbish anyway! It does<span style=”font-size: 0.8rem;”> sync with Strava but due to some sort of issue with the Samsung Health app and Strava API, only a small number of activities globally can sync each day. So unless you finish an early morning ride, it won’t sync with Strava until after midnight, so really frustrating. Also, the Health app doesn’t use the same HR zones as Garmin so if you can’t compare if that’s important. I did find the HR readings to generally be ok but did regularly get wild readings.</span>

Much prefer the Garmin now. More reliable HR readings, no Strava sync issues and better for training. Still does the main phone sync issues such as messages and notifications too.

The Galaxy is a beautiful watch but definitely a smart watch that does a bit of fitness. If you’re more interested in decent fitness info, go for a Garmin.

Maxxis Tomahawk is fast rolling as well. Available in DD casing if still needed and going for £30 on the Maxxis site in all diameters

MTB Strap On strap for me. Small UK business and available in colours of your choice to match your bike 👍

Definitely got a way to go this year, I very quickly realized my fitness wasn’t where it needs to be after the bus stop sprint on S1.

First race of the year + mud + much pedalling = lots of people feeling exactly the same yesterday including me! I’m really hoping 2020 isn’t going to be a UK ‘Enduro Wet Series’ 😆

@kimbers – ah sorry to hear about the issues. Didn’t see ya around this time. Hopefully will get to ride with you a bit more now we’re in the same category again 🤘

FoD Mini Enduro yesterday – who raced & how’d you get on?  Shame about having to do Stage 4 again although I might have managed a quicker time second time around!  My first race in Vets and finished 11th so quite happy with that.

Next race for me is SW Kenda Enduro at Haldon.  I hear there’s a killer sprint in there 🙁

Another vote for Dave at RSF Suspension also.

Splurged on one of these from Tredz…and yes, in stock – arrived next day unbelievably!

Have to admit though, I assumed it came with a 3l reservoir as all previous Camelbaks I’ve bought did, but this doesn’t 😔 Still a bargain compared to everywhere else online but need to factor in another £30 for a reservoir if you need one.

Definitely a lot more to ride in that area but I appreciate you can only publish what’s on PRoW. Worth exploring for anyone in the area…look up the local MTB groups and we’ll tell you where it’s worth deviating

Shoes…innit

Ah no, not his daughter(s) on board as well?? ☹️

NBA fan here…absolutely shocked. Was never a big fan of his but always appreciated how great a player he was. A tragedy for the families of all those who lost their lives.

Opted for a set of Trail Wides on my enduro race bike, my idea being that I’m physically a light rider and also try to keep the bike fairly light over the chunky stuff so felt I could probably get away with it. They are the newer ones with the tougher alloy rims and had them for 6 months or so, including several races.

I did still manage to put a small ding in the rear somehow early on so opted to put an insert in as back up but apart from that, no problems at all. The hub pickup is really quick which I like and yes, consequently, it is loud! But that’s handy for making my presence known to walkers up the way sometimes! No issues with loose spokes or nipples and no more dings thanks to the insert.

Should I have gone with the Enduro Wide wheelset? Maybe. Do I regret my choice? No.

Great value wheelset IMHO.

Orbea Laufey

https://www.instagram.com/p/B6Lx8kTnjf6/?igshid=1h4h4ter4ov2x

Good list of enduro races on More Dirt

Love my Pixel 3a.  Great camera (the new Astrophotography mode is voodoo work), great screen, stock Android so will get Android updates as soon as they’re released, really like the haptic feedback and has plenty of memory.

Ratbite did a CX/gravel insert but I think the chap who runs it has taken a step back from things this year. You could drop him a DM on Instagram to see if he has any stock left.

View this post on Instagram

Have you got a gravel bike? Do you run tubeless? Want more comfort and peace of mind? Our RATBITE gravel and CX inserts give comfort and protection, with great customer reviews. Grab some at ratbite.co.uk #antiflatter#ratbiteuk#cycling#cyclocross#gravelbike#gravelbikes#gravelride#tubeless#tyreinserts#tyreinsert

A post shared by RATBITE Tubeless Inserts (@ratbite_uk) on May 14, 2019 at 11:08pm PDT

It really is a fun bike, the new one. Got mine as a winter alternative to my Rallon and my first hardtail for a few years. I was intending on getting the mid spec but my LBS had the base spec in early and I figured seeing as it’s main role is for some winter thrashing and the base spec was still pretty decent, there wasn’t much point for me spending more. It actually came with an upgrade on the cassette and rear mech to XT which was a surprise.

Been genuinely impressed with the Recon fork actually and the stock Orbea branded kit does the job fine. The only upgrade I want to make really is the brakes. The sub-Deore level brakes aren’t bad but do need two finger braking to get half decent power so I’ll get some Deores on it at some point.

My large bike comes in at 31lbs with a Rimpact insert in the rear so it’s not overly light but neither are the forks or wheelset on it. Certainly plenty of room to save weight if I wanted but it rides so well that I’m not bothered. Feels really confident downhill and there’s nothing I wouldn’t ride it down that I’d take my Rallon on.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B4-A1rDHe1X/?igshid=1p5c2f6hm4h85

Are you the same Ed that posted on the Rallon FB group yesterday?  If so, then you know that I love mine!

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3g_kDYHGAL/

@oikeith

I’m 5’8 but as mentioned, 32″ waist and 32″ leg.  Depends whether you are long in the upper body or long in the legs really.

32″ leg and waist for me and likewise, medium pants fit perfectly 👌

The Race pants are awesome, love mine! Perfect for trail riding as they’re not baggy…just nicely tapered from below the knee with enough room to wear knee pads underneath. Really comfy kit.

Endura MT500 overshoes (with decent riding trousers) have been a game changer for me this autumn – my feet stay lovely warm and dry. I don’t tend to get off and push much anyway so can imagine they probably wouldn’t last long if hiking up loose stoney tracks, but mine have been very durable so far.

http://www.instagram.com/p/B4-A1rDHe1X/?igshid=nppcqdxmh9dt

I’m in for Graythwaite. One of my favourite races of the year so well worth the 7 hour trip up from the south west!

But was that without training properly?

Fair point yeah.

<span style=”font-size: 0.8rem;”>Definitely hoping he can crank out some vids as well as some finals appearances all in one go 👍</span>

Comparing his race results, he’s only been a bit quicker than Jay Williamson in recent years.  Jay struggled to qualify for the World Cup finals in 2018 and didn’t bother this year (I think the cost of it all was likely a big factor).  Cathro will struggle to qualify but good luck to him.

Love my Royal Racing ones. Really comfy and warm, high rear waist band to stop draughts and a couple of zipped pockets.  Lower legs are very tapered but fit is great for riding and there’s extra room for knee pads.  No vents as such except for laser perforation which could be a slight issue if you run hot, but it’s been fine for me.

BNES venues announced…

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Here we go, technically its Monday now so here is the full series info !

A post shared by BEMBA / BNES (@britishnationalenduroseries) on Nov 3, 2019 at 4:01pm PST

Did anyone here do PMBA Llangollen last time?

I’m quite tempted for next year as it’s somewhere I’ve not raced before but I watched the highlight video yesterday and whilst steep is fun, I got the impression it’s basically one hill face with a few relatively samey ‘scaletrix’ tracks down?

Unit Cycles in Cornwall also have a couple of Occams in stock for touchy-feely requirements. Offering a 10% discount too I believe.

6.90 here and no issues

moonsaballoon

orbea laufy

Just got the new Laufey as a winter bike to give my Rallon a break.  Got the H30 and it’s a damn good bike for the money, really impressed.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3g_kDYHGAL/

Dealers have been getting a bike or two in early but they’re not generally available until mid January.  I bought my LBS’s bike as I didn’t want to wait until then so if you’re near an Orbea dealer then worth taking a look.

Apparently so.

Maybe I’ve been lucky in the past then as I’ve not had a problem with various tapes sticking to new frames. I’ll clean it as best I can and try again 👍

Brand new frame so as clean as it’ll ever be.

Tried a hair dryer which helped it become a bit more malleable. Top tube and down tube strips went on reasonable well but squarer section tubes not so much.

<div class=”bbp-reply-author”>thisisnotaspoon
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Finally cracked and bought the full GX bike. With the discount making it £900 it just seemed hard to build something comparable.

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Huh…what £100 discount is this?!

Was sure I’d seen the BEMBA final points somewhere (with my token 4 points for taking part in 4 races!) but can’t find it. May be getting confused with the SW Series (where I got more points 😁) but thought it was on Action Sports Timing’s site.

I think the National Series worked well piggybacking existing races. However, I did both the WGES + BNES combo weekends and all four races felt compromised a little as a result, so not sure I’d do the same next year…one or the other for me.

I’ve heard rumours of potentially more races in the series next year so I’m thinking the organisers felt it went well generally.

Whyte Friston/Gisburn is, relatively speaking, long and slack.  The Gisburn comes as standard with a dropper although a crotch-grab style one.

I’ve got a Friston which is great, they’re definitely grav bikes aimed at MTBers looking for some drop bar action.  It’s aluminium but is far from a harsh ride especially with 42c Resolutes on.

+1 for JMJ Designs

Google Pixel 3a – pure Android, great camera, in budget.

Another vote for JMJ Designs