Just read this and as a local the first thing I thought is could this be D and lo and behold just seen your strava feed. When Tom goes out (you have probably guessed who this is now) I always make him send a Garmin live track just in case. As you say it’s a bit hit and miss but it’s something at least. Get well soon buddy.

A mate liberated a sticker off the tube and had one of those purple coloured ‘please give up this seat if an elderly or disabled person needs it’ on the saddle of his trials bike.

To be honest pretty much anything will be better than the Roccia’s. On my lads XLA SL we went with WTB i21 rims and DT 240 front, Novatec rear, and CX Rays. I’m tight so sort out the best prices on the parts from eBay etc, think they came in around £240. Weight wise just under 1600 grams but the big plus is no broken spokes which was pretty much every ride on the Roccia’s.

IMO Rival is pretty rubbish at shifting as well, son has it on his CX bike. The Force on my bike is OK but would rather have Shimano.

Couple of things to check are the B tension screw as Sram 1×11 is really fussy with that. Also if its anything like my sons Rival check the cable routing on the rear derailleur. The inner cable should go round the black quadrant and then through a hole and to the cable securing bolt. Took me a while to sus that out after a shop had originally replaced the cable incorrectly first time around. The symptoms of this were exactly what you are describing, rubbish shifting to the lower cogs. Works a lot better now we got that sorted but it’s still not Shimano levels of shifting.

As a fellow local please take it further and don’t let the cops fob you off. The next person these idiots do it to might not be so lucky. It wasn’t only assault as the police stated, imho at the very least it was also a close pass if they managed to hit you from a moving vehicle. Someone was definitely watching over you as that is a fast downhill. I’m actually sitting here pretty fuming, if I punched a copper would they come out with the it’s only assault line, I think not and rightly so.

My son’s had the same cassette wobble from new and it didn’t cause any issues. As said above just cheap wheels really. He had numerous broken spokes in the first couple of months so we replaced them pretty sharpish.

Is it this ?

https://www.alltricks.com/F-32736-pieces-freins-hydrauliques/P-1292367-promax_hydraulic_hose_kit_solve___dsk_923_2000mm_black

Mind you for that price you may as well just go for one of these and replace the whole lot.

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/clarks-m2-hydraulic-disc-brake-set/rp-prod135586?utm_expid=.ckkRuxI9QieiYxXQHS8d3A.0&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.chainreactioncycles.com%2Fmtb%2Fbrakes%3Ff%3D2258%26sort%3Dpricelow

Check the cable is routed correctly at the mech end. From memory it goes about half way round the black quadrant and then through the hole and bolts up. I had one set all the way round the quadrant and it displayed these very symptoms.

You need these levers, absolutely swear by them. When I had tubeless tyres stuck on my rims after days of trying everything these managed to just slip in between the rim and bead and they were off in seconds. Available in lots of places but here’s a random link to a set so you know what to look for.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Schwalbe-3-Piece-Set-Tyre-Levers/dp/B016ACESVS/ref=asc_df_B016ACESVS/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309775958298&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3457144428032707711&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006716&hvtargid=pla-426934055907&psc=1

I’ve got a couple of Phenoms in 143 on XC bikes. Really comfy. Use them for 100+ mile epics and my arse is fine at the end if maybe not my legs.

I like CX Ray’s so would pay the extra. My son was breaking a lot of spokes on his cx bike wheels but since changing to cx Ray’s none. When I last bought some these guys were the cheapest and quick delivery to the UK.

https://www.wheelparts.shop/en/collection/

As for alloy nipples been running them since the early 90’s and only ever had 1 failure so I still use them in all my new wheel builds.

Thought it was just me, shifting on my sons Rival 1 is rubbish. As above it doesn’t shift cleanly but if you pull the cable it works. I still haven’t fully sorted it, trying full outer next, but a few things I learnt so far.

As above b tension is far more important than with shimano. I set it so that it just about shifts into the 42.

A teflon or some sort of slick cable is better but still not perfect. I think half the problem is outer cable routing as it exits the lever and follows the bar. Generally without the cable taped to the bar the shifting is much better. Tried a couple of bars but still the same.

Check you have the inner cable routed correctly on the rear derailleur. On Rival it comes about half way round the black quadrant in want of a better description and then goes through the small hole. Not all the way round the quadrant like a local shop had set it up.

But all in all shifting was great for a couple of weeks and since then rubbish. This is on his cx bike so gets pretty filthy bit my Force 1 on the Slate has been fine if not as slick as Shimano. If it wasnt for the cost of replacing it I would be taking the Rival off and fitting Shimano.

Wait4me – changing the inner is not too bad but you may find it easier to remove the tape, not essential, but its fiddly getting the inner cable into the outer as it exits the lever.

Think you will find if you add more than a certain quantity, I forget what number, it jacks the delivery up to stop people buying it to resell as a guess. I know because I found the same when trying to buy 20 for me and my lad.

You want these really thin roadie tyre levers. I swear by them after spending days trying to get a tyre off a m60 rim these did it in seconds. Available in lots of places but here’s a link

https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bike-maintenance/bike-puncture-repair/schwalbe-tyre-lever-set-x-3?cm_mmc=Google+PLA-_-Bike+Maintenance-_-Bike+Puncture+Repair-_-585692&istCompanyId=b8708c57-7a02-4cf6-b2c0-dc36b54a327e&istFeedId=62b447cf-331e-4fec-a47a-9985ff72d404&istItemId=wwtwwwmaw&istBid=tzwt&_$ja=tsid:94971|cid:1537737264|agid:57150689005|tid:aud-80976661069:pla-401679905680|crid:291898457030|nw:g|rnd:10950389001436686759|dvc:m|adp:1o1|mt:|loc:1006596&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIp7nvlvye5gIVQbTtCh1bOAQ7EAQYASABEgI4T_D_BwE

My lad got an XLA SL with Rival HRD back in Sept. He is really happy with it. The stock wheels are a bit meh in my opinion but the are fine for training and me being a serial component swapper upgrades are already on the way. Dont forget if you do the pick it, build it, ride it, deal you can get another 10% off. For the money I dont think you can beat the XLA or XLA SL.

PS the stock saddle is worth upgrading. My son literally snapped his in half riding across the park on the way back from a training ride.

Still got an old Merlin titanium which I bought new in 1997. Was completely underwhelmed by it to be honest and never really saw why everyone raved about Ti but then again it may just be that particular frame didnt suit me. As said above they can break. It still brings a tear to my friends eye that his Xizang cracked, Litespeed made so not just cheaper manufacturers. Personally I would stick with what you’ve got.

Not a bus but it is bike related. My brother and I had our bikes on the tube heading to a race at Eastway in the early 90’s. Got chatting to an American Women who then tells us her brother makes bikes, turns out it was Gary Klein’s sister.

Well done, we said you would make it, we all had faith in you 🙂 .It was nice out today we did a bit of the course on a loop we were riding and it was pretty fast going. Must admit the heat didn’t help and it was a bit blowy in places this morning I thought.

Right then 75 done so it must be the SDW 100 miles next, but maybe a bit more training for that one and no mishaps before hand 🙂

Well done again.

Good luck tomorrow buddy. As for pressure I would run about 40 psi but then I’m old school and don’t do this 20 psi business. I would leave the lock out off, apart from the road bits perhaps, and then see how you feel. Although the downs link is flat pretty much and that’s a big chunk of the ride you may be glad of a bit of squish for comfort especially if you have your tyres quite hard. Should be good tomorrow, the downs link does get a bit muddy in places but should be nice and dry for you. As everyone else said just take your time have plenty to eat and drink and most of all enjoy it, you’ll be fine !.

Report back with how you get on, we need a picture on this thread from the finish !

As been said before you can flip the stem to positive rise but then if you still need more look at Specialized Hover bars.

Had a similar problem with Enve M60’s and G-One tyres on my Slate the bead just would not budge. Normally you can just pop the bead into the centre channel and job done pretty much but some combo’s are so tight you cant move the bead full stop. The answer buy yourself the levers in the link below which are available in lots of places not just Tredz. They are bloody brilliant at getting in the smallest of gaps as they are so thin. I literally spent days trying to get my tyres off and tried everything. This was the first time I had a problem getting tyres on or off in over 30 years of riding. 1 minute with these bad boys and they were off.

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Schwalbe-Tyre-Levers-3-Pack_93008.htm?mkwid=s_dc|pcrid|333160007882|pkw||pmt|b|slid||&pgrid=41559144175&ptaid=aud-441056574464:dsa-295372780045&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIyPjj5d3d5AIVlOFRCh15LAODEAMYASAAEgL3gPD_BwE

You will be fine. It’s actually a pretty easy ride just pace yourself. Once you get to the downslink most of the climbing is done so just keep plodding away for the next pretty flat 30/35 miles ? and then its one last climb really up to the youth hostel on Truleigh hill (10 minute walk up the first steeper bit if needed) and then downhill all the way. I’ve done it on full sussers, hardtails and gravel bikes. Hardtail is probably my preferred but they are all fine. If you’ve got some fast rolling tyres those would be my main preference.

I’m not doing it this year, for probably the first time in 5 years, but may ride the first bit up to the downslink and then head home. I will be on a black S-Works hardtail with my lad on his CX bike so say Hi if you spot us. Bit bored of the downslink to be honest as we have done numerous coast and back rides this year via that route hence not wanting to do the full ride on Saturday.

Main thing is take your time if your concerned over fitness, it’s actually a pretty cool feeling when you get there having ridden from the smoke to the coast mostly offroad.

Not just fun for the youngsters. Was over there this morning with the monthly cycling club offroad ride. One of the chaps must have been well into his sixties and he thought it was great as did the lads on their CX bikes. Despite it being fairly local I must admit I dont go there that often as I prefer Pirbright etc mainly because it’s quieter but it did make a nice change.

‘They’d managed to delete it off his main computer’

Are you sure it wasn’t his email/computer that was hacked rather than a hack at the agents ?. If it turns out the agent has been breached then potentially some big fines could be coming their way under GDPR.

Oh and definitely report it. I’ve reported stuff to action fraud and got sweet fa in response but at least it adds to the stats if nothing else.

Another vote for Gravelkings. I’ve got them on my Slate. Pretty much slick so more biased towards road although surprising how much grip you have offroad, except in mud.

Thanks guys. Danreilly out of interest how much seat post do you have sticking out of the frame. A bit unscientific I know but adding roughly 2 inches to your measurement will give me an idea of how much he would have. Keen to place an order in the next day so he can get out practising for the cross season over the summer holidays but just don’t want to order the wrong size.

Got to be two parts from the Pace Rc100. The Bullseye cranks which were basically hollowtech years before it became a thing. Secondly the headset and one piece stem and steerer which you tightened via a nut under the crown was an early predecessor to the aheadset. Quite an innovative bike really.

Absolutely useless when I get stuff delivered to my work. I work for a large motor dealer and despite the company name in six foot letters outside the showroom and about 100 cars of that particular marque on the forecourt and lets not mention all the flags and other brand related clues Yodel insist on delivering my parcels to a unit tucked round the back of the local lock and store place down the road. Then whatever you do don’t ring them. Despite actually being no help its some stupid premium rate rip off number. When they lost the forks I was waiting on from CRC I think 3 calls to their helpline was something like £28 which they wouldn’t refund even though they lost the damn things. Well I say lost they didn’t deliver them to me but they delivered them somewhere so in their logic it was delivered.

MuddyFox and Kiss Miami (which I think was related to MuddyFox) had crackle paint jobs iirc. The Muddyfox one I have in mind was burgundy and black I think.

Another vote for Ryanbuildswheels if you can live with Sapim rather than DT’s. I always used DT’s in the past but then had a few aerolites break so went over to Sapim CX Rays which have been really good so far, and a fair bit cheaper as well.

Run alloy myself for the headset top cap. Lighter than ti plus they come in tarty colours which is always a bonus and cheaper as well. Another vote for ProBolt but then again not had any issues with ebay Ti bolts either.

100% record for me like others. Applied every year since it began and not got in once !.

Never had a problem with alloy bolts in steel frames myself. Just put some copper slip / anti-seize on them and if you are worried they might get stuck give them a wiggle or take them out every few months and add the anti-seize again. My experience of red coloured steel bolts for my car build is that the colour is very washed out compared to alloy and they are a lot more expensive.

Me and my 16 year old son have an old Gary Fisher Gemini tandem. First thing I would say it’s certainly a lot harder (technically) than riding solo. Especially singletrack where the captain cleans an obstacle and starts pedalling only for the stoker to have crank strikes. Technical downhills are funny, neither of us small, and fully rigid with v brakes on an old steel frame that flexes it’s basically out of control. Certainly need to be on your game but I actually quite like it. Possibly the best bit though is it cruises around 25mph on flat roads so the roadies have a double take as an old bloke and a kid on a mountain bike come flying past.

If it was mine I would be covering the frame in gaffer tape and making it generally look undesirable and tatty. IMO just the Giant name will draw attention, put some Apollo stickers on it instead :-). They will nick anything, my friend had his forks pinched whilst he popped into Sainsburys once and left it locked up outside for 10 minutes. Maybe consider changing some of the bolts to Torx or hex head to slow down any opportunists with a multi-tool removing components.

Sounds exactly like the sort of thing I do ! . When my son was 9 or 10 he was riding around on a tiny framed 26″ wheel Offroad master but fully tricked out with all my retro bits that I dared not part with (but since have). Tioga disc drive, Grafton cranks, RS1’s and Xtr M900, pretty much dream build stuff from the early 90’s.  Doesn’t get any better the older they get, he’s now nearly 16 and riding around on a Badboy but with Enve wheels and Tune hubs. Don’t judge you would cry if you knew how cheap I got them. Aim is to get this under 20lbs but not easy as it’s a heavy frame and rigid lefty fork which is a bit of a lump. Now the moral of this. Do all these trick bits and weight savings make much difference to him, probably not in all honesty. Does it make me happy, yes,but that’s because I like my bikes to be one off’s. So personally I say go for it 🙂

From my experience try Qwerty cycles for anything Cannonade related. Although that may not help you if you wanted to pick up some bolts locally today. Cant hurt to give them a call they may be able to point you in the right direction. I’m not sure exactly what bolt you need but just remember as it’s part of the braking system it will most likely be hi tensile not just any old bolt.

£40k down south undecorated for my conversion including a dormer. Still gave us a good sized bedroom and another bathroom and was cheaper than moving. It’s all up to regs so like to think I would recoup most if not all of that cost if I came to sell. If it wasnt up to regs then I would say it’s a lottery, some folk would probably still pay silly money but personally I wouldn’t say it adds a huge amount of value.

Get some really thin roadie tyre levers, I use the blue schwalbe ones. Then washing up liquid in between the tyre and rim and try and work it under the bead a little at a time using the levers. I feel your pain I had this issue with g-ones on a m60 rim but after days of trying this was the method that finally got it off. Never been brave enough to try fitting them again !.

£100 for the wheel from CRC.  http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/dt-swiss-xr1501-spline-one-front-mtb-wheel-ps-/rp-prod174971 . As it happens I have one of these wheels in 29″ size on its way to me that I won on ebay yesterday from the Wiggle outlet for £79.40 so would happily pass it on for the same price posted if anyone wants it as I changed my mind after winning and ordered the carbon Rise 60 wheel from CRC instead. I ordered some of these RS1’s on Friday as been looking at them for quite a while but the cheapest I had seen was around £500.  .