dropping from 82kg to 73kg

Honesty is best approach and avoid entering in to the blame culture. Stick by what you say and use facts. If nothing else you will maintain the moral high ground. The truth will come out.

Go tubeless you will be surprised how much lower tyre pressures make to traction without rolling resistance. I run Maxxis HR 2.3 up front and Advantage 2.1 on rear all year. Pressures down to 20 psi and lower if you want. Great grip all year round. Dont take this the wrong way but people use tyres as a prop. Stick with the same tyres all year, get used to them. Also look at your technique etc it can make a big difference to traction. Try spinning a lower gear and stay off the slip inducing brakes.

I use my walking over trousers and cycling clips (edit: has now been promptly arrested by fashion police)

http://www.bikely.com/

http://www.gpsies.com/upload.do

You will find the MBR routes on these etx

yeti 575 FS you know it makes sense 😉

I have to admit I am one of those people that never stretch off before or after. I kinda start out easy and slow down near the end. If your wondering I do mountain marathons, enduro’s trans alps etc so fitness is good. [list]There is a a school of thought that says that stretching cold can do the damage.[/list] If its a race I warm up before the event either running or cycling a few warm up miles. Works for me.

panniers and disks = perfect

No nukes in Scotland?

So no nuclear submarine bases up there then? 😆

I am old enough to remember the power cuts in the 70’s. When you loose all your power, heating etc I can assure you you will think differently. All your food goes off in freezer, no washing machine, no hot water, no TV only candles. It was pretty pants time.

So hence my vote for proven technologies. The save batteries cut down on waste etc etc is of course a good idea but will not in all reality prove effective enough to meet demand.

SC – Thank you.

+1 for nuclear

why destroy our coast line with acres more wind wave crap? Most waste is reprocessed. Most waste comes from other sources such as hospitals etc. Cant see that waste diminishing any time soon.

Nuclear takes up little space, more bang for your buck. Agree we need to use less but looking at the trend in 4×4’s and consumer electronics and white goods I vote for more power.

Bump

Function over form for me. Looks like a chain set to me.

SOH – Nepal, there are plenty of very good maps for Nepal:

try these for GPS
http://www.nepalgpsmap.com/en/order.html

SOH – Try here for paper
http://www.stanfords.co.uk/

Paper is the cheapest option but GPS is far better.

I would recommend a GPS with a AA type battery size for remote parts of the world as they are cheap and readily available even in the remotest regions. I have Garmin 450 which I use abroad and its perfect for walking, MTB, cycling. Health Warning. People should be proficient with the GPS before leaving the UK and they try using it in a remote area.

Garmin Oregon 450 – because its bullet proof. This baby has already taken a lot of abuse. Remember if your going to have it on the front of your MTB what its likely to face over the coming months. One finger gloved operation very easy.

Trans Alps
Portugal new year
Morocco booked

Who knows what else – keep my options open. Been a great 12 months done loads mtb and:

Nepal
India
Japan
Dubai
France

what happens in next 12 months? No idea take it as it comes.

Any chance of posting gpx please

+1 firestarter
same situation here only its my cousin.

I work they do sod all.

TJ – its about time some people got off there ass and struggled along side the rest of us to make a living.

and anyone care if it is? Who’s going to stop you?

+1 XT Used XT all year and still going strong – not even looked at them. Maxxis LUST go on and off easy and inflate every time. No faff. Tyres go up with a track pump 1st time.

depends where you ride.

I think i can safely say I wont be in the top ten 😉 so hotels are in Whoop!

LOL really – I have seen the blogs. No thanks to hour long ques for toilets, smell and sleepless nights with hundreds of other campers snoring their heads off. Hello on suite meal, duvet, plump pillows, comfy bed and young chamber maids!

Yours Mr likes his comfort

I aim to go hotel. Any idea of cost?

All depends where you ride. Maybe 2.1 rear with my Maxxis HR?

Mountain King II UST
26 x 2,2 black/black Skin UST foldable 820
26 x 2,4, black/black Skin UST foldable 880

714 here since Jan

Brilliant up and down. Very, very efficient. Great rear shock setup and I love the ride. I do mostly Afan and Cmwcarn trail centers.

+1 for hotels. Race account from this year.

Trans Alp Mountain Bike Stage Race 2010

Have this also in sights but not sure :-S

Miklkie

long shot but make sure you put enough sealant in. Its 2 cups if I remember correctly. You can repair tubeless.

All issues with tubeless are from bodging instead of using tubeless rims and tyres. Run XT tubeless down to 20 psi easy with Maxxis. Brilliant solution to traction without rolling resistance.

AA batteries are available anywhere in the world if your the more adventurous type. Oregon also has the Points Of Interest option. Can tell you the things of interest within the area you are in and then lets you navigate to them with one touch. Very useful to get to station, bank, hotel or tourist site.

Oregon 450 here I use OS 1:50K mapping is standard throughout the GPS’s works fine off and on road. Very robust unit with simple to use touch screen. If you do a lot of on road I would recommend the Oregon as it has a car sta nav routing mode which is great on road as it shows you a arrow for the next turn etc. Will not work off road. I used mine for all the Welsh classic MTB stuff and works well. Off to France this weekend touring on the road bike with mine. Brilliant piece of kit. Not had any battery life issues, I use rechargeable Lithium.

+1 for wider tyres in wet + with LUST you can run really low psi and just about anything will grip. ++1 for trail centres.

+1 Gobi – arses for saddles one size dont fit all.

zero go fast and its fun

BWD you tried garmin then? Just tap and go with the setup. Its very easy no drop downs etc. I quite like the ability to arrange a profile and you swap from one profile to another with one touch. All the screens are customizable – touch the one you want to change and you get a further option to select and your done. Two taps.

Ok I have to admit in the summer we want geo caching with kids. Was fun, but any gps can do it. garmin just has it built in. Garmin is wireless enabled to share info.

I use my Orgegon all the time with my gloves on. Black mountain classic, Sarn Helen, gap etc etc Not like IPOD which is a bit of a pain. But top tip – use enduro single track gloves and the finger bits are brilliant for IPOD.

My point OAP. I think satmap is a little less robust. OS maps are OS maps but satmap has larger screen true. Garmin you can add HR, power meters etc if you need.

Look at all the options and maybe try before you buy.

BWD touch screen one finger WSIWYG use so very easy to use in gloves. Easy to change settings on the fly with one touch. I think its pretty well set out and very customizable. If you are thinking of using on road the garmin does a great routing option like BWD says. You can use this in the car as well. Works like any car satnav showing you turn markers like a car satnav. Also auto recalculates your route if you miss the turn. Great for on road. You might like to consider how robust your unit needs to be. Mine takes a fair amount of abuse LOL and I think its heavier than satmap but is pretty much indestructible.