I’ve been using the Solarstorm ones for the last year, no issues at all.
I’ve shrink wrapped the USB connector and cable tied it back against the other wire. No problems at all.

The power indicator lights rarely correlate with my X2 lamp but with decent “Torchy” batteries 2 hours is no problem,

On the off chance you have SRAM shifters this may be an option.
Details on using SRAM 9 speed shifter with Shimano 10 speed clutch rear mech.
You may still find the parts to do this a cheaper option.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/9-speed-sram-shifter-with-a-shimano-10-speed-clutch-rear-mech-will-it-work

I tried to buy the £20 deal but the webpage reverted to £35.00 when I got to paying.
Let me know if you manage to get it to work, advice appreciated ?

After going through this exercise recently I went for the Buzzrack BC3 from roofbox. Really solidly built with tilting mechanism for £190.

BUZZCRUISER 3

Clearance really depends on how close your towball is to the back of the car, some are quite close, others with swan necks extend further from the bumper.

I’ve only used the rack with two bikes, if these are mounted furthest from the doors (VW T5 barn doors (what else !)) no problem opening. But if they are mounted with maximum clearance between the bikes one nearest the door and one furthest away only the door at the saddle end will open.
However if I slacked the towball mount the whole assembly can be swivelled slightly and both doors can be opened but only one at a time.

Forgot to mention the rack locks to the towball and the arms that hold the bikes also have locking mechanisms.

Sam,
Strava user is Peter . that’s Peter space dot
(at least that’s what it looks like)

If you can find some of my rides you’ll see there is a lot of climb / mile, there are some superb trails and downhills but they come with the uphills. Stroud is at the middle of five valleys (think of a star pattern) some of the tops are common land with good bombholes and flowing downhills. Have a look at Michinhampton Common, Selsley Common and Rodborough Common.

20 miles for me would be a three hour ride.

Martin’s advice is sound, he knows the local terrain well.

If you are looking for a 20 mile ish loop.

From Noah’s in Chalford Valley up Hyde Hill towards Michinhampton.
Turn Right across the common heading towards Box and Nailsworth.
Pass the Halfway Café on your left and onto the “W”.
Look on a map and you will see the W is named because if has switchbacks. At the left hand bend look for the trail off to the right.
“Aaaaaaaaaa” on Strava.
When you pop out on the road again keep hard right down “the ladder” also on Strava. This will be rocky, slippy and can be challenging, but that rather depends on your skill – that’s my perspective.
From Nailsworth find the road to Shortwood and head uphill towards Lower Lutheridge Farm (bridleway), Upper Lutheridge Farm and into Nympsfield.
From Nympsfield head NW toward Stanley Woods, if you look on an OS map there is a Gliding Club shown. Head into the woods near there and stay on the same contour level past Penn Hill, popping out on Selsley Common. Across the common however you fancy keeping the Severn plain to your left. At the NE end of the common you join the B4066.
Cross the B4066 onto Water Lane and follow this to Woodchester, it will be wet and slippy. (There is a spring half way down that was the water supply for the village).
You’ll find thi strailon my Strava feed.
Down through Woodchestr to the A46, turn right then left after Dennis Brown’s woodyard up Culver Hill, take the first left up steep tarmac hill until you see the entrance to a woods on your left.
OS map shows this as St Chloe and Hounscroft but I’ve no idea what the wood is actually called. This is a beech wood and at the moment the leaves are down, wet and hiding the plentiful supply of roots, which will be very slippy.
Keep on the same contour level following rooty single track until you come out on Bear Hill.
At Bear Hill left then almost immediately right onto small lane, OS map shows this heading North past Rooksmoor and Kingscourt.
Follow lane for about a mile until you see Rodborough Fort on the hill above you on the right.
Below the Fort double back to the right uphill off road over Rodborough Common.
Keep heading South across the common towards The Bear Hotel, cross the road towards Winstones Ice Craem Factory. (ask someone if you can’t see it).
There are two downhills from Winstones back into the Chalford Valley, the rocky one that Martin (qwerty) mentions above to the right of the factory or a smooth one to the left across the patch of common where the seats are.
Either option brings you out on a lane and then find the trail that goes over the railway line and down towards the canal into Chalford valley and back to Noahs. 19 miles in total.

Best of luck with that !
You did ask.

I’ve got loads of local rides on my strava if there is a way of you viewing it. Otherwise I could plot something on tracklogs. What sort of ride / terrain are you looking for ?

I ordered the same light 2 months ago. No light has arrived. No response to emails. No response to PayPal dispute.

There are good reviews on here but they took my money and ran, no communication, nothing. I wouldn’t go near them.

Contact Christian at Watchguy, between him and Mitka they’ll give you dates, model, original details and service your watch to your specification.

(Christian is a friend but there are others here who have used him to give additional feedback.)

Kaiser,
I can’t get any reply from them, neither can Paypal via their dispute dialogue.
Two months after paying for some lights all I’ve had is one email saying,
“We see you’ve opened a dispute, please close this and keep waiting”.

To be honest I knew it was a risk and somewhat wrote off the money as soon as it was paid, what has annoyed me is the complete lack of communication other than “please wait”.

Seems a mixed bag with this company, some people report excellent service, others awful service.

Word of caution on Gearbest Nitefighter BT21.
I ordered one over a month ago. Nothing has arrived and after an initial email reply via Paypal Gearbest have stopped communicating.
Find a UK seller for a Solarstorm X2.

Another vote for the Decathlon tarp,
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/tarp-camping-shelter-dark-green-id_2363223.html

For £20 this is a really versatile bit of kit.
We’ve used it at the front of a tent in a similar way to how you are proposing. Totally waterproof and comes with enough guy ropes and metal poles to configure in many ways.

There are riveted holes at each corner so you can go for a two pole at the front arrangement. We found the single pole better as you can get more height and the angle means rain runs off rather than forming a puddle. Poles come in short sections so you can build them up as required.

http://watchguy.co.uk/

First off Christian is a friend however if that was not the case I would still recommend him.
Check out the data and photos on his work on the website.
Meticulous and really loves what he does.

Was on Skye in June and surprised how few opportunities I found to ride.
I’ll try to explain, the terrain is spectacular but there are very few trails to explore as the hills are so steep or the ground is a boggy boulderfield.

We met two guys with bikes at the Quirang, (you’ll find it), they said they were carrying and pushing most of the way and I could see why.

Back to your question, take a hardtail.
Most of the rides I did were from the top of passes, down the roads to sea level. There’s some great blasts, winding small roads and very few cars.

If you can find a local guide I expect there is some great riding but by myself I didn’t take any risks. The Cullins look epic but you would need local knowledge to explore in there.

Wednesday night ride from Black8Bikes – Nailsworth.

Meet 6.00 to 6.30. Usually get away by 6.30pm, at the pub for 9.00pm.

10 to 12 miles round the local hills usually a group of 12 to 6 people depending on weather.

It’s a friendly ride, not a race, variable terrain but you have to like hills round here.

After borrowing an old Vitara from a kind stranger yesterday… Im very tempted. I hear its not ‘great’ on a motorway.

Think I may be missing something here. You drove a Vitara but are considering a Jimmy ?

If you liked the Vitara why not find one of them.
We’ve got a 53 plate 3 door, not bad on motorways, not exactly luxurious. It recently did Scotland and back, no problem.

Use “multi-release” cleats.
Here is the blurb from Shimano.

Not sure that all pedals come with these, I’ve always used them and been surprised that many people have never heard of them.

The considerable force mentioned below can be adjusted by slackening of the pedal cleat settings as mentioned above.

Shimano SH56 Multi-Release MTB SPD Cleats

The Shimano SH56 Multi-Release MTB SPD Cleats are quick and easy to use thanks to a convenient multi-release feature; simply twist or roll your foot to release yourself from the pedal. This cleat can also help to prevent the risk of toppling over your bike with both feet clipped in as it will release with a considerable upward force.

Shimano SH56 Multi-Release MTB SPD Cleats Extra Info
• Designed to work with all open design pedals
• Disengage from the pedal by rolling or twisting the foot in any direction
• The risk of toppling over with both feet still clipped in is minimised as the cleat will release with considerable upward force

Link
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shimano-sh56-cleats/rp-prod10969

Just posted this on the Spaniel thread as well.

Case of “Spot the Spaniel”
Scrambling across rocks Scottish West Coast near Arisaig.

Not sure what constitutes a mild heart attack, I guess if you walk away from it then that’s mild.

I can give you answer to your question about warnings.
Personal experience was occasional chest pains for about six months and then “boom heart attack”.

I did go to A&E when I had chest pains and was thoroughly ECGed and checked over, I didn’t ignore the symptoms / warning but the “boom” moment still happened.

For me it was 6 months before I could get on a bike and that was on the flat.

Michael,

Can only comment Re: off road,
Forest of Dean has purpose built trails that start at The pedalabikeaway centre which is relatively easy to find. The Forest of Dean is like the Bermuda Triangle if you don’t know the area or don’t have a local guide so the purpose built trails are a good start.
You’ll find the location via Google.

Stroud valleys / Nailsworth has plenty of good climbs and descents, if you check out an OS map of the area you will see why.
There’s a Wednesday night off road ride from Black 8 Bikes, Nailsworth which leaves 6.00 to 6.30pm. Couple of hours round the hills, usually about 10 riders and a fun ride rather than a race.

Rob, that’ll be the guy, was definitely a hip impact.
Sound like he’s positive despite some nasty injuries.

Probably the best days ride I’ve had, excellent route and considering I live nearby there was a lot of trails I hadn’t ridden before.

Proper off road singletrack which was great.
I did another event further north a few weeks ago and the terrain was positively sanitised compared to HOTS.

Impressed by the team spirit, everyone seemed to help each other out and it was good light heated fun. Weather definitely helped and whilst I was tired I doubt I would have made 75km if it was really wet.

Anyone know what happened to the guy who crashed into the tree and took a trip in an ambulance ? Hope he is OK.

Got your email. I’ll put it in the post.
No payment necessary. Pleased to help.

Yes, just checked and I’ve got one. It’s got the contents printed on the front cover so not quite the one you want.

Logged onto the HOTS website and found my order confirmation.

Thanks for the info, as I’ve never seen a facebook don’t know how I would have known this otherwise.

Where you riding around Nailsworth by any chance ?

If not we had the same thing, 14 people out, 1 electric bike.

I’ve had the same wobble and decided it wasn’t right.Seemed to effect positive shifting.

My solution was a layer of tin foil around the freehub.
Form it into the grooves and extend the foil above the freehub so you can drop the cassette over without snagging the foil.

Experiment to get the right fit and it works a treat.
Forming the foil into each groove is important so it doesn’t tear when you slide the cassette on.

It’s been dry and sunny for the last two days so trails improving all the time. Very little thick mud last night but far from being dusty.

Forecast for the next two days is dry, just a tiny bit of rain Saturday morning.

It looks like conditions will be good, probably a bit windy on the exposed sections.

Gloucestershire trails update.

Admittedly I’m 25 miles from Winchcombe however still on top of the Cotswolds with similar weather

Two hot and dry days have dried up the trails well.
Still that greasy top layer of mud in the damp spots but improving by the hour.

Weather forecast between now and Sunday warm and practically dry, so it’s looking positive.

Update. Massively impressed.

Sent an email 20 minutes ago to the organiser, since when I have had a phone call and my original entry confirmation resent.
(computer meltdown recently meant I lost saved files)

Thanks again.

Got your email, thanks.

Next slight issue is I note you need your confirmation email to register at the start.

Don’t think I ever had a confirmation email !

Have you guys had any info from the organisers ?

I’m apparently in but not heard anything since entering and paying.

Pallet Collars

Ready made raised beds, variety of sizes and bargain prices from ebay.

Never seen or heard of these before the weekend but they are a simple and swift solution (thanks Tim)

Donk,

Scratching can be an issue, I grind the edge of the teeth off to help a bit.
Could try a disc rotor, even a 140mm would be quite big.

Would mash spuds pretty quick mind.

Tom,

Usually gets a few jokes, many uses have been suggested……

When I typed available in a variety of sizes, I meant the gear rather than the “handle” !

Potato masher.
Oak handle from old fence post.
Available in a variety of sizes.

There are other forums ?

gren,thanks for the reply.

Tried that but all I can discover is that I’m 17th fastest for instance and then the list ends at 19.

Seems to be a similar pattern for all segments, my result then a few below, whether I’m top 20 or top 600.

Maybe you have to go premium for the additional data ?

Discovered you can see everything on the website though.

Can anyone on android tell me if there is a way of seeing your ranking out of the total riders for a segment ?
Or is there a way to roll back to the previous version ?

This is our Dunster cabin / shed, built 4 / 5 years ago, something like that.

I went for the 40ish mm thick timbers and it’s extremely solid. If I was using it as an office I would want the insulated version. They used to do an insulated option with double skinned wood and insulation board inbetween.

The timber was supplied untreated to the kerbside. Consider this if you have to move everything to the construction site and also allow plenty of time to treat each timber. I gave every piece two coats of wood preservative which took ages but was worth the effort.
This takes a lot of time and space. For my smallish shed I filled the garage with stacked timbers whilst they dried between coats.

Construction is fairly straight forward but you need two people to position the timbers, particularly the roof supports. A large rubber mallet each for knocking the timbers together, they are double tongue and grooved (if that makes sense) and a good snug fit.

The only element that has “settled” are the window surrounds.
They developed a hair line gap at the top which is easily sealed, so a minor issue.

If I was buying another one I would have no hesitation using Dunster again.