I can vouch for my route being 100% ridable as I designed Mach 1,2 and 3 about 12 years ago, even waymarked the Hyddgen to the bottom of the Chute section. I also organised Trailquests in this area for 8 years, before the Nant Yr Arian project was started. If you e mail me I’ll send a MMap file.

Follow the Syfydrin trail until you get to the res (Nant Y Moch), turn right over cattle grid and over dam wall on road, up hill turn left and carry on right through past road end and ford to left turn onto Mach 3, right up hill and down the Chute carrying on to Machynlleth. Restart Mach 3 till you get back to where you started on it and then fork left along sweet singletrack towards Anglers Retreat, through ford and gate along forest road to old mine workings, keep left and back to mountain road rejoining Syfydrin trail at Carn Owen, follow trail back to Nant Yr Arian via Bontgoch. A grand day out.

The Ear Hunter- Robert Di Nero has found his arse and his elbow, what’s next?
(sorry if it’s been done but just found this, brilliant)

It’s the Machynlleth comedy festival this weekend as well, http://www.machcomedyfest.co.uk/ some good acts on and not all in Welsh.

If buget is important and weight is not (very) then the Gelert Solo is fatastic value at £30, buying replacement Vango alu pole kit will save a few grammes and still bring the whole tent under £50
Mine withstood a very rainy WRT last year.

No problem in fitting wider tyres, should be easier than 23mm due to more sidewall. I would suggest that if you are planning to ride on poor roads, it may be better to get a pair of cheap wheels as well to avoid damaging your Ksyriums. Also if the roads are wet and gritty, the braking surface of your expensive rims will get worn out pretty quickly. There are some good deals on Shimano at places like Planet X at the moment.

Top tip to save buying one of the mega expensive cutting guides. Take 2 stems and bolt them back to back on the steerer with a blade width gap between them, this ensures you get a square cut. Also echo the measure twice tip.

Seem to remember a similar case involving some brakes and a guy called Real Man, or am I getting confused?

Flew to Mallorca 2 weeks ago with Jet2, I noticed when we had already booked the holiday and were sorting the extra bike cost that the weight limit was 20kg with a £20 per kg excess over this to a max of 32kg. Luckily we were road biking so managed to keep just under even with hard cases. Magically the bikes “gained” 2kg on the way back despite having exactly the same contents, our other luggage was under weight so we got away without paying extra. Just read the small print, it could save you £££

Good luck in buying any, the most usable size 13l is out of stock until further notice.

Khani, you may joke about the top caps shooting out and hitting you in the face but exactly that happened to me whilst leading the Whinlatter Duathlon at the end of last year. The rebound adjuster and shaft flew out of the top of my Floats, hit me in the face followed by a stream of damping oil and the forks then locked solid, I stopped and picked it up then pushed it back in securing it with a bit of velcro strap from my multi tool. I’d like to say I then staged a heroic recovery to win but mid field medeocrity was my result.

Anyone, please?

Looks like we’ll be paying 20% more for sports nutrition drinks such as SIS and Hi Five etc as they now attract vat. Get your orders in now.
Edit: Too slow again!

Best bet is to try Stif in Summerbridge North Yorks aka Jungle, the importer of Santacruz.

Going down Wessenden, if you look right just after the ford with the wooden bridge to the left, there is a small path heading up to the right. This leads to an old watercourse that contours round to Deer Hill, meeting the bigger trail that leads up from the Meltham – Marsden road and across to Deer Hill Res.

That tandem bike is fantastic, particularly the steering arrangement. Imagine having a dispute over which way to turn. Brilliant choice of word in referring to the riders being abreast the bike. Got to be the new niche for off roading. 🙂

Pook, OK no problem. I’ll be coming across from Langsett so can update the conditions. It’s raining hard here now and pretty windy but things can change quickly. Which side of Derwent Res will you be going out, I wouldn’t want to miss you if we are a bit later than 10.30. The East bank is off road and shorter.

Looks as though you are coming over to my neck of the woods, I’m 2 miles from Langsett. Is anyone up for riding over from this side on Saturday morning, setting off from Langsett carpark at 9.00am? Also if the group fancy a half way pint and some butties, I could try and talk the landlord at my local into opening for us. He keeps 6 real ales and would probably knock us up some sarnies and soup for not much money. He’s a mountainbiker and mountain rescueist so it wouldn’t be much trouble persuading him, the only issue is it adds about 4 miles but would include a good route from Hartcliff down to Thurlstone and the pub.
Pook, don’t want to hijack things, let me know if you are keen and an idea of numbers if it’s a goer, otherwise it’s the Langsett Cafe and/or Wagon and Horses.

In Scotland ideally.

Haven’t got a clue…but why remove it?

The clues are all there, you are moving house and want to take it with you? 🙂

You are looking for Cannondale to honour a warranty claim on an 8 year old second hand bike? You’ll be lucky, their warranty terms expressly state that they do not apply to anyone other than the original owner. You can feel free to paint it IMO

56 here, grumpy and intolerant, but never miserable. In any case, all these things are fixed with a good bike ride.

Fixed that for you Steve, hope life is treating you well. Age is only a number.

Wrap up warm kids, the forecast is saying -7 for Friday morning. I can see Outer Edge from my upstairs window and it is looking mighty frosty but not much snow.

No problem for me, see you at the main Langsett Barn CP at 10.00am.

What about the road up! It makes Sa Calobra in Mallorca look a bit tame, would love to ride that up or down.

Black (is there any other colour) Blur for me, I’ll wear a carnation in my buttonhole and carry an umbrella, code phrase is “Cold for the time of year?”

You need to look for the ones with a thumb loop to hold the sleeve, I got a couple of Smartwool Merino ones from TKMax recently which are very good.

Sod the claims for bits and pieces, if you’ve been asleep for over a year you need to be claiming thousands for lost income. 26th of Jan was last Thursday as well.(or did you get the year wrong?)

That Kia would have been the sporty Racing Soul often abbreviated to R Soul 🙂

Just watch the barrier if you have your bike on a roofrack.The other carpark is closer to the Wagon & Horses or Langsett Cafe for a post ride eat or drink, makes no odds really. I’ll be riding there off road so see you at 10.00 unless it’s really inclement.

I’m in for the 3rd time as well. Any chance of making it a challenge this year Stu 😉 What about 1st CP on top of the Long Mynd seeing as we’ll be going East.

Should be ok, the forecast is for minus temp until then so it should be hard enough! We could go over to slippery stones and do a loop around Derwent & Hagg Side, it’s about 20 miles starting from Langsett. I’ll probably ride from home.

Drop me an e mail & I’ll sort out a RV point, don’t mind what time we start or speed we go at.

Might be a bit busy on Sunday, it’s the Mickleden Straddle fell race, my wife is doing it so I’m probably riding over there to support her. Langsett carpark will definitely be chocka.

Might be up for this, I live 2 miles from Langsett so could ride from home. Done it twice this year so definitely know the way 😉

Not sure it’s a subject for a public forum, if you mail me I’ll reply.

MTG, It was much more complicated than that, I was there.The root of all evil was the main issue.

No one would ever think about running an Enduro race along a bridleway.

That’s fine then, where do I sign up?

TJ I think that the motorcyle events you are referring to were called Hare and Hounds events, a true enduro involves a very long loop of 40-50 miles, done 2 or 3 times in a day. The lap is broken down into several sections for which there is a target time and penalties for clocking in early or late. Ties are worked out by Special Tests where the fastest rider from A to B wins.
I competed in these events for 12 years and ironically the trails we used to race on were often bridleways.

I’m not having a go at Gravity Enduro or Enduro organisers, Lord knows we need good events which are well run. My observations relate to events which I have personally done in which the organisers seem unaware of the law, if enduros are specifically run to avoid such conflict then I applaud them. I would much rather see bodies such as IMBA, British Cycling and even the CTC trying to sort out this stupid law.

The Haworth Mudman Duathlon, unfortunately now defunct,bike section ran mainly on bridleways, the Kielder offroad Duathlon, the Coed Y Brenin Duathlon, the timed sections of the Trans Wales at Nant Yr Arian and , I think, in the Dyfi forest. All these events are races timed to the second and awarding prizes for winners etc, and these are just the ones I’ve either done or know the course of. I’m not trying to be a killjoy but often the organisers don’t know the law themselves.
I think my comment about racing numbers cannot be disregarded, competitors in such events will not just be pootling along in ones and twos and someone being injured by a rider with a number on will not necessarily care whether they were on a timed section or not. They see a race number, they will think there is a race going on.
BTW anyone know how the organisers of the Llandegla Duathlon or the British Cycling Go Race or Firemans Race deal with the bridleway that runs straight through the middle of the bike course?