Looks a little bulky, certainly seems good value though. I’m not a massive Superstar fan though, haven’t had the best of experiences with their products.

When you no longer want to get out and ride. The type of riding you enjoy might change, so will the bike you need, but there’s more to riding than keeping up with others. I hope I’ll be riding until I can ride no more, and I’ll be spending money on bikes right up until that point.

That one, I’d shut. Others I’d exercise my own judgement as to whether or not it was intended to be open.

No

Whether or not you think the money is being wasted is besides the point. The fact is that a huge amount of money was spent on these trails and there is time and money going into maintenance, and you’re whinging about a few quid to park for the day. Don’t show your disapproval by using the trail centre for free, do it by avoiding the trail centre and cycling somewhere else – you’re in Scotland, buy a map and make the most of your open access laws.

I still find it surprising that some people will argue over parking charges at a trail centre. I think the most I’ve ever had to pay was £9 at Whinlatter. Okay, £9 is quite a lot for parking (although cheaper than parking in most city centres all day), but you’re not just getting parking. For less than a tenner you’re buying access to purpose built and maintained mountain bike trails that are rideable in most weathers, for however many people you can fit in your car, for a whole day. There aren’t many other sports facilities that cheap.

High Roller LUSTs 2.35″

I really don’t understand why anyone would ride sections like Derwent Edge at the moment.

a) As others have pointed out, just because it’s knackered doesn’t mean it won’t get worse. You’re not only ruining it for others, but you’re ruining for yourself come drier weather.

b) It’s no fun slogging through boggy sections anyway.

c) There are PLENTY of other options available nearby that don’t suffer in the wet.

I bet the Xmas parties are ‘interesting’

That’s what we save the ether for!

I just went to “borrow” some ethanol and, wouldn’t you know it, there was a nice big bottle of Propan-2-ol right next to the ethanol!

Yep, I’ve looked for isopropanol/propan-2-ol/etc. but not found any. I think I’ll just go with the ethanol for now.

Yeah, I’m keen to do the service this weekend though. Maplin seem to have IPA too, but there isn’t one anywhere handy.

I wouldn’t be worried about the strength of the SLRs, but I’d want a wider internal rim width with those tyres. I run 2.35″ Maxxis High Roller LUSTs (which I believe measure up a fair bit smaller than the 2.35″ Toros) on Mavic XM819s (same internal rim width as SLRs) and I wouldn’t want to go for any wider tyres. I think the combo you suggest would be prone to tyre roll and have a non-ideal tyre profile. If you want to keep weight down then go for a narrower tyre. You could even swap out those Pikes for Revelations given the type of riding you describe.

If you like technical riding with little flow and no real elevation or descents then do the Sligachan route. Personally, I hated it. The views were amazing but it was the only time I’ve been on a bike ride where I wished I was on foot, and that was on a gorgeous summer day. I’m sure there’s plenty of amazing riding to be had on Skye though.

Why bother? Gravity Droppers are awesome. They go up when they’re supposed to, down when they’re supposed to, are relatively light, user serviceable. Only downside is that they aren’t as pretty as a Reverb.

Straitline 50mm FTW. Strong, stiff, light, wide clamp, low stack height, looks good.

I might be wrong, but I would have thought the thick/thin thing would work just as well with a 9-speed chain.

Thanks for that, looks ideal.

Slight hijack – I’m also looking for a DAB with CD player, but in a single unit with speakers. Any suggestions up to £300?

By the way, it’s not for me – I’d definitely go down the separates route, it’s a xmas present for someone that insists on a single unit.

I’ve also snapped one with a standard Maxle, although it lasted a lot longer than the previous ones did with the stepped Maxle light. Hope offered free replacement with stronger steel axle upon returning broken one – not got around to sending off the broken one yet (as replaced it with a spare aluminium one) so cannot comment if this solves the problem.

Oh no, a potentially dangerous trail feature!

Hardly a big drop either is it – perfectly rollable, and not hidden around a corner. Can’t see it being much bother for horse riders or walkers either.

Have to agree with the OP, my Five is fun almost everywhere. My Intense is better downhill but sucks if you have to pedal anywhere, my 456 is better is better on long non-technical trails but is not much fun on technical downhills or when it gets really rough, my Orange Air O is great fun street riding on a BMX track or 4X course but is too short to be any fun if you have to pedal anywhere.

I don’t believe there’s any bike that is fun everywhere though. The Five would get out of its depth pretty quickly on full-on DH tracks and that wouldn’t be much fun, but that’s why I have more than one bike.

Ours was £40 for a 5′ one with stand, from a bloke on the side of the street. It was outside a shop and semi-official looking. It’s one of the ones that doesn’t drop too many pine needles and it’s a nice bushy little fella!

Just get them! I’ve got a pair ok Mk 2s that have taken an absolute beating and are still going strong. Don’t get Superstars if you’ve got big feet, the platform is way too small. There’s not even really a weight penalty with the new Burgtecs, and they’ve got a great shape.

The only other pedals I’d consider at the moment, for my size 12 feet, are DMR Vaults. I’d wager that the Burgtecs are stronger and will last longer though.

I’m one month in. There’s been a couple of days where I’ve smoked, but I’ve made sure to get straight back on the wagon. The first week was a nightmare but it has been fairly easy since then. I’d avoid the e-cigs – I tried them a few times and always ended up back on the real things after a couple of weeks. You’re not breaking the habit of smoking with them, which is the key thing in my opinion.

I ate loads during the first week (I didn’t try to fight it, quitting the fags was bad enough) but after that I didn’t find that I had to replace the cigarettes with anything. Maybe try and avoid booze for the first couple of weeks too, but if you do cave while having a drink then make sure you throw away and cigarettes that you have left at the end of the night.

I’m 6′ and ride an 18″ 5. Would definitely go bigger if I was any taller.

Went OTB in the same invisible hole a few weeks ago.

I’ve got an older version of the 661 Pressure Suit. Great for DH but far too hot for anything else. Don’t see any reason not to wear it for boarding/skiing, it’s not really restrictive.

Yes you do.

Not really a trail centre, but a trip to Chicksands doesn’t add much to your journey time. Well worth a visit if you like that sort of thing. Probably not the best place if you’re firmly in the wheels on the ground at all times camp.

Meh, I’ve never owned or used a torque wrench. A bit of mechanical sympathy and common sense is all you need.

Maybe I’d use one if I had carbon bits.

I’ve tried various USB cables – the one that came with the unit, and ones that have come with external hard disks, cameras, etc. that all work fine with other devices.

I’ve called Garmin and they’ll replace the unit for £37 – even with what I originally paid, that still works out as a cheap(ish) GPS, so I’m not too pissed off.

Cleaning the connectors hasn’t helped – wasn’t really any dirt to clean off.

Yeah, mine works fine otherwise. It charges via the USB lead but in Windows I get ‘USB device not recognised’, on the Mac I get nothing.

Yep, done a hard reset.

Cheers boblo & swampi, just what I need.

Does anyone make these out-front mounts to fit an Edge 305?

I find their sizing pretty much spot on.

Legend – signed

Exactly what colour noise said. Then mix in some Tommy K to taste when served – boom!