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New rubber fitted to the 'hardtail' with some 42c @wildernesstrailbikes Resolute tyres added. Not really into tan walls, but they're growing on me. Definitely the tyre of choice in our WhatsApp gravel bike crew… literally every bugger now has them! #gravelbike #gravelcycling #gravelcyclist #wildernesstrailbikes #resolute #wtb #whytebikes #whytefriston #friston #mtb #mtblife #tanwalls #cycling #roadcycling #checkoutmygravelpit #drivewayneedsweeding #gravgrav #hardtail #hardtailhardface

A post shared by Andy Roberts (@kernduro) on Aug 26, 2018 at 1:01am PDT

I’m in (team: ripsilver).

Maes

Garay

Wright

Dale

Courdurier

Thomas

Aye, SWKE was fun, thanks again to you Scott and Ed etc for a fun day out!

22nd in Masters for me.  Dropped my chain part way down Stage 2 so tried to do a poor man’s Aaron Gwinn to salvage some lost time.  I wasn’t as successful as he was though!

Poldice is worthy of the Mega particularly looping in Carn Brea and Carn Marth.  Further afield, Grogley Woods between Bodmin and Wadebridge is also good.  Helston/Porthleven area is lower lying and rolling hills – some fun but short trails off Tregonning Hill and Godolphin hill nearby but not much locally there in need of much travels really.  Trails are fun on a gravel bike though.

Nearish Strava routes here and here for an idea of the trails.

Also, some links to other riding spots and MTB t’ings, on my blog here 🙂

Yep, SW race for me too. Looks like it’s gonna be cold…current forecast says a hint of snow Sunday morning! 😬

I’ve got a Dakine Hot Laps 5l which I’ve got on well with. Review on my blog here.

Dakine do two smaller ones as well – one which just holds a bottle and one which is just a utility belt.

Plenty of local stuff links on my blog if it’s of any help 🙂

Yarp, I’m doing Haldon.  Only ridden there a couple of times before so a new venue for me.

Not ridden a huge amount this year for one reason or another but made the most of the summer this week and rode Mon, Tues and Wed so feeling more racey with each ride.  Grogley was prime on Wednesday!

Not a solution to the OP, but noticed Joe Barnes’ new Alpine has bottle cage mounts.  Coming to the Five in the near future as well perhaps?

https://www.instagram.com/p/BuUP_HQA404/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Rallon. And go custom colours.

I switched to a Dakine Hot Laps 5l pack together with a locally made MTB Strap On strap last year. Works well for most rides and races… rarely use Camelbak now, only really if I need to carry more water or spares than usual.

Reviews of the pack and strap are on my blog if it’s of any help 🙂

Arghhh, it’s so annoying!

ancelled my subscription a couple of months ago but I’ve only recently lost my ‘P’ status. Getting this privacy pop-up almost every page that loads up and when combined with the ads slowing page loading times, I can see what all the complaints are about now…it’s just horrible to use.

Do you think anyone at Haas has realised their new sponsor, Rich Energy, has stolen Whyte Bikes’ logo?!

Edit: similarity already previously noted – https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/rich-energy-and-whyte-bikes/

Testing…

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtYns1jFzsb/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Stoked for the SW Series! Grogley is my local spot – will be great not to have to travel half a day minimum to do a race.

Pinkbike published an interesting article last year on the environmental carbon vs aluminium production “Which is better?” debate.

Not as clear cut on either side as some may think. Worth a read.

Just to add to this…got some new MT500 SPD overshoes just before Christmas and the zip on one failed (pulled off) on the second use. Just tried fixing it myself to get it back on and the zipper snapped. Eurgh…guess I just voided my warranty 😖

Ikea

Locally made (well, to me they are) gravel/CX tyre inserts by Ratbite might be worth a look.

scottfitz

Member
An even longer drive for me so I definitely won’t be doing it. Exciting to have a brand new venue for the series though.

Maybe for distance but not time. M25 is not the one.

Ha maybe. I wouldn’t fancy the M25 for sure. It has taken me 12 hours to drive to races in the Lakes and Scottish Borders though thanks to traffic on the M5 and M6. It’s drives like that that make you question racing for fun sometimes 😀

They are annoying today apparently. I can confirm is a really cool venue that wasn’t used by UKGE or BES. I can also confirm is a really long drive for me (if I go).

Give them a break Scott, we all have our bad days sometimes 😀

An even longer drive for me so I definitely won’t be doing it. Exciting to have a brand new venue for the series though.

Do you even drift bro frame protection?

Got my entries in for 4 of the BNES rounds.

I can no longer afford to fix my broken rear wheel nor Christmas this month 😂

I’ve got the Exposure Link which is really good as a ‘be seen with’ light. Had several comments that drivers could see me from far away. Both front and a rear lights on the unit and can mix and match both with constant and flashing illumination.

Off-Road.cc has a forum although it too is a bit sparse on usage

I’m a convert to the fanny bag/bum pack for medium length rides.  Got a Dakine Stealth pack which is good, review on my blog here for anyone interested in it. 🙂

Bez

Well, let’s just hope that next year’s Williams isn’t another bag of crap, then.

I suspect it will still be.  Maybe a bag of not very stinky rabbit crap rather than one full of honking cat turd, but still a bag of crap none the less.

You don’t have to enter them all in one go. Sure, the Ard events sell out in seconds but most of the rest don’t. Should still be entries going in Dec, Jan and Feb for most races

Stooooooked!

With some family commitments going on next year, I wasn’t thinking I’d be able to do much racing but 3 of the rounds are almost certainly doable, one is almost certainly a no (PMBA) and the Southern Enduro round is a tentative :-(.  Really hope the No Fuss Events round works out for me but I’d be gutted to miss Minehead seeing as that would be my ‘home’ race!

Can’t wait to hear more about the SW Series too!

Really liked mine last year. Probably too late now but take a look at my review on my blog if interested 🙂

Wish I’d seen that CRC deal sooner as I would definitely buy another!

Orbea Rallon…it’s not pronounced as ”rah-lon”

Let’s face it, we English speakers are pretty rubbish at bothering to pronounce foreign names correctly, even when we know how they should be said!

<div class=”bbp-reply-author”>scottfitz
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Planning is well under way for the BEMBA National Series, Mid November for Dates, Venues etc…

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Whoop! 😁

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No, not seen or heard anything yet 🤔

DMR Sled

Yep, no decent riding in Cornwall.  Move along, nothing to see here 😉

I’m not going to be able to commit to races months in advance like in the past due to some changes at home, so the big events like BEMBA National Champs/Tweedlove etc might be out for me unfortunately.  Intended on doing the full WGES this year but missed a couple of races so hopefully will do it all next year along with last minute entries to Southern Champs and possibly whatever BEMBA set up as a national series.

It’ll be my last year in Masters and I’m generally top 30-35% but increasingly just focusing on having fun rather than trying to break into the top end – proper, regular training isn’t quite for me I’ve discovered but I’ll do a bit to keep my fitness ticking over now I’m no longer riding to work every day!

Close to buying a new bike – although the sensible part of me says there’s no point if I’m not racing as much.  SHUT UP BRAIN!!

I’ve got the Dakine Hot Laps 5l which I’m getting on well with…review on my blog here

Dakine does a smaller, cheaper one with a water bottle holster too..

I’ve got a pair of 7idp Hydro bibs, with impact protection – review on my blog here

Whyte Friston?

My thoughts here

Yep, I did @kelron.  The tyres aren’t the tightest but the main issue is the offset spoke holes on the stock rim – even using an Airshot, loads of air just escapes as there’s not a full seal between the bead and the rim.  If you whack in and inflate an inner tube first to seat the offset holed side, remove it and then set up tubeless as usual, it should go up.  I did wrap a couple of extra layers of rim tape in initially as well to help.