+1 for your view on CTC and helemts. I have CTC membership but dont agree with their view at all. Plain dumb.

Crossing the M48 bridge with side winds and gusts not fun. Could it blow me over the railings and in to the Severn? Man over board or lawn dart into the mud!

Its strange people wont spend the money to protect their money. To me a few quid spent meeting is good insurance I wont loose all my money and I get to see the bike before parting with cash. I have bought bikes preloved and met before I handed over the cash.

You not seen the other threads about this?

dont – collect or meet and pay.

The base camp mapping route software tha comes free with the garmin is very good I use that, base camp.

turn off auto recalculate route

+1 BWD I like my 2.25 maxxis ardents they seem almost perfect for any situation and roll well. I find I just adjust tyre psi depending on conditions. Been meaning to try out DHF Minion

oh p.s and check your hydration pack do you really need that tool, pliers, saw, shovel spare everything? Some of the junk I have seen people put in their camelbak ….. Then chat about bike weight 😯 Wilderness maybe, events no take the risk.

+1 amedias its rider weight thats more significant and cheaper to remove 🙂 What CX bike for Bike Fest?

Also having sensible components that allow you to hammer down makes you faster and rider weight and fitness is the major issue going up hill.

Imagine being 2 – 3 kg lighter and the speed that would provide – kinda puts removing the bottle cage in perspective

My strategy includes staying firmly in Z2 heart rate. Regular pit stops to fuel. Go slower to extend endurance. I eat regularly throughout the ride. You can get to a point where if you stay within Z2 and fuel more or less equals fuel spent. Want to go faster? Improve Z2 endurance, strength training in gym, more miles. Try back to back to improve endurance. Very cold weather does have an affect. I find I perform much better in mild weather.

+1 done open free access for all

Avid brakes to bin please.

2nd hand Ford Focus, wow life don’t get any better than that (gun to head pulls trigger)

cycling home passed a school with a lone rider jumping up on to BBQ table. Great skills he must have been 8 – 10 years old. I cycled humbly on knowing not matter what improvements I make I will never be that good. For some stuff you need to be young again ha ha Drop offs are my limit.

Blair makes a good point when he says the left is in danger of going back to the party of protest. We want politicians with policies, new ideas and a vision for the future. Not the same old left right rhetoric.

+1 ernie_lynch

I cycled the border last year. Its very much changed now lots of Chinese holiday makers. The locals took more photos of us than we did of them. Also visited the Hanoi war museum. The Vietnam war with the US is covered very honestly but its interesting to note that North Vietnams interventions in Cambodia and China’s attack receive just 4 very poor black and white photos. Their so bad its impossible to tell what’s even in the photos. No names or locations. The descriptions don’t even name China despite it being a victory (or more accurately a Chinese failure). Simply says Northern and Western Border 1979. It’s a sensitive period for them something I think they genuinely want to see firmly in the past.

Just my views

I have 1 MTB bought new, I have 1 road bike (second hand). Note priority here! Plenty of people have huge number of bikes (n+1) which in total terms often exceed 9K. So if it was the bike for me I would still drop the money on it as my only MTB. Why not, I have 8 year old car it does the job. But my MTB is where I choose to spend my money.

Want to race – join a event that will give you real feed back. Or why not join the STRAVA challenges thats more of a level playing field.

Well they were definitely shocked and dislocated and as far as lightening goes it was only a hundred hours of ground war. The strikes on communications, logistics, command and control was pretty decisive and would be again. At the tactical level the attrition was spectacular.

They have promised ‘shock and awe’ in the past, but failed to deliver this decisively imo.

you missed Iraq the war 1 & 2? I think they would beg to differ.

I have got to 55 retirement final salary but have good easy job offer so I intend carrying on working for a bit longer. Will get some more pension and state pension at 66. Enjoy the work and its easy money really. Dont think there is any one answer to this but not having a plan is planning to fail.

Found the wider bar to be great + 55mm stem great combo. Don’t over tighten 🙂

Was told that she hadn’t wanted me for a long time and I have to go

Go back to your bed and tell her to leave or sell and split the house.

Mine left the house I wasn’t going to leave. Too many men think its they that have to leave. Surprised a few people that I didn’t go down the traditional route. Marriage over? Good bye leave me and the kids you go find yourself a new home and arrange when you want to see the kids.

1. damo dont pay by time you pay by work completed.

2. My fault should have said this first. You have a detailed quote – how you asked a separate builder to do the same job? I would ask 3 to bid cost the job and then down select from that based on quote and warranty/time. This is normal commercial practice and ensures you get best price.

3. You agree the schedule up front by work completed. Dont agree a %. If the drive is laid and completed its done and you pay. Why?
This limits your risk in case they dont complete something. You dont pay and get someone else to do the work and pay them when they complete.

Its your responsibility to check the work done. You have a detailed quote. Standards – they should provide a warranty with their work. Ask to see it.

Final payment agreed in schedule after you identify the snagging and they complete the work. Job done full and final settlement payment.

You should expect to agree a payement schedule based on work completed and an agreed final payment upon satisfactory completition. You should agree a ‘snagging’ inspection day where you inspect everything done and agree what needs to be put right. On completition check its been done and pay the final sum.

Pension?

and then China invaded north vietnam

when your trying out the tent make sure its one that the two of you can sit up in with some room. I have used 1 man with 2 people its not recommended. 2 – 3 man tents are a better alround bet. I have a 3 man tent and use it for mountain marathons etc. You have to be able to live in it. Like footflaps one is ideal. Get both of you with your gear in the tent when you try and remember you will need to be able to cook in the door way in bad weather.

easy jet allows extra sports bags?

for 26″ wheel I would go for a head angle 68 – 66 degrees. I had Giant and came to Zesty from RM. Zesty has them beat up and down.

I dont think

lapierre wouldn’t be on my list as sell on price is going to be hit hard by the fact that they wont sell spares to anyone but the original owner!

has anything to do with how the bike goes up and comes down plus thats wrong about spares there are no issues.

IMHO up and down is combination of mostly skill and fitness and a bit of bike. Look at geometry not makes. Everything will be acomprimise, short – long stem, short or long chain stays all have positive or negative affects depending on going up or down. But you can change cling ons.

Eg I have 55mm stem on zesty so going up I need to ride well over the front to keep the wheel planted but a short stem is ideal for technical downs. So you can change some stuff and get a ride to suit how you want to ride. What you cant change is the bike frame. Hence comments about bike frame geo being important. 4 bar suspension IMHO is the best overal for climbing and downs.

+1 Lapierre

+1 trailofdestruction Used mine many times and hope many times more 🙂

A sound investment

1. Evoc, quick easy, well made – borrow a mates I often lend mine out
2. If you skimp you risk not only your bike but the holiday

China has already started urgent talks with NK and US. I suspect this maybe more talking to NK to avoid being drawn in to anything that could damage its reputation. An aggressive move by NK would bring universal condemnation and would put China in a difficult position of trying to support an ally. Its more likely that NK will try a quick land grab around the disputed islands or a air/sea incident. Thus starting the reactor can be seen as safe move by NK in terms of prestige.

You get up earlier and train in the mornings I start at 0600 in to work by 0800 so thats 2 hours every day and I grab the odd long ride at weekends. Go figure where you can add time. Mileage itself will be enough for what you want to do. I did the Trans alps enduro in 2011 and lots of other multi day long distance. I used Afan a lot just went there and cycled loops to help train to get enough climbing. I also found a very steep hill about 15 mins from home. 2 hours of up and down intervals on that was enough to kill me. Its not technically difficult but the climbing is tough. Its easy you need to see what you have locally and get using it. Dont expect it to come to you.

Like everyone says its tough its meant to be tough and you need to train hard there are no short cuts.

Yes he lives in Harrow where else would he get a crochet mat for his push button state of the art telephone?

Guess zippykona you want to wait until you see Bristol or Birmingham glow first?

You can use a plug in wifi extender in your normal power sockets is the best bet

OMG I’m a road noob ….. shuffles off head down