I’ve just bought my first road bike; Fuji Sportif 1.3. Clearly, not a race bike, more of a commuter/winter trainer. The disc brakes don’t lock up the wheels unless you want them to. Same as on the mountain bike, they just work consistently in all conditions.

Obviously just me; I get about a year from a spoon before the stitching at the front goes.

I’m 5’7 and rode a medium hj, which pretty much spot on.

Buy the Deores and I’ll swap you for my Megas. They’re great when they work, but mine have intermittently sticky pistons, rub more than half the time and the one time I tried to bleed them had me seriously considering suicide.

And it’s 25 quid for the wee screw that holds the pads in.

I’m not.

I’ve always found the Outsider on George IV Bridge really good.

For me it’s Surfer Rosa. Kind of sums up what they were about. Saying that, I don’t hate the new stuff so my opinion probably counts for nothing.

I’m running 650B 150mm Pikes on my Saracen Ariel 14X. Works fine.

Asda Extra Special macaroni cheese (OK, but not mind blowing), Asda Extra Special French Shiraz (there is no finer bottle of wine for a fiver) and Mess by Liars.

I’m slumming it tonight.

The thing about revolutionary jumps is that you don’t see them coming. There will be evolutionary improvements to the kit we have just now, and then there will be the suspension that senses the terrain you’re riding in, the tyres that never puncture or tear, wireless electronic gearing and pivots that never need new bearings.

They are just bikes, though.

If you don’t mind subtitles, Les Intouchables is about as shamelessly heartstring-pulling as they come.

Shine, left me ‘slightly’ emotional.

6th one coming down Ben Lomond, probably.

I’ve done courses with MB7, a couple with Dirtschool and a day with UK Bike Skills. Without doubt, Jedi was the best of the lot. He’s got a very holistic approach rather than ‘here’s how you do berms’, ‘here’s how you jump’. It’s definitely the one that has benefited me the most and because he deals with the fundamentals of riding rather than specifics it has stuck with me more than the others. Also, unlike most others he has come from a training background and got into skills coaching rather than just being a good rider that reckons he’d like to make a living from it. Thoroughly recommended.

I tried out a Saracen 152 at the demo day at Glentress a couple of weeks ago. Without doubt, one of the quickest, most fun bikes I’ve ridden. Rode a SC Butcher and Blur Tr along with a Trek Carbon Remedy and the Saracen was easily the best.

Yes, it should pick up professional sports injuries, the obese and smokers. The point of paying for the NHS isn’t just to cover yourself in case you fall off your bike, it’s part of what binds us together as a society. We’re already a good way down the road to the sort of selfish, self obsessed society that Americans confuse with freedom. The NHS is one of the few remaining ways that we all help each other, regardless of ability to pay.

I’ve always got on with 661 Evos. I find them fine for 3-4 hour rides and they’ve also got a bit of side protection.

I got mine here:

Winstanleys

Proper retail ones with pump, etc.

Winstanleys still seem to be the cheapest in the UK.

Just bought Pike from them. Cheapest anywhere, said they’d be in stock in 2 weeks (before I pressed buy), arrived 5 days later. All in all, pretty good.

I got mine from Winstanleys. Said they would take up to three weeks, arrived in one.

Thetford?

Burst them! The only benefit of a blister is the satisfaction you get from stabbing them.

Replace the cable. I left mine for 3 or 4 months and it did the same, put a new cable on it today and it’s working fine now.

2 house cats, about £10 in food another £6 for litter and £25 a month for insurance.

Have a look at Winstanleys for Pikes. I just got a set from them and they still appear to be the cheapest (including the Germans).

I’ve just bought Pikes, but at 70kg with kit I don’t think I’ll need more than 1 or 2 on top of the one that’s in there. If anyone desperately needs one I’m sure I can spare it for a couple of quid donation to something or other.

I thought about this, and then went out and bought a Fuji Sportif 1.3 Disc on Cyclescheme. As a commuter, and indeed trainer for when I can’t be bothered driving somewhere with the mountain bike I can’t fault it. Comfy, disc brakes, and it hasn’t broken yet. I keep thinking I should get something a bit more pimp, then think ‘what for?’.

456 Evo Ti? Looks like spectacular value next to the Stantons.

Rattle can of gloss lacquer from Halfords?

She remembers the 1st world war?

I use MS OneDrive (previously SkyDrive) after Dropbox deleted everything I had on it and refused to answer my mails.

Demoed:

Covert
5
Remedy
Alpine 160
Pivot Mach 5.7

Bought a Saracen Ariel. Thus far, no regrets.

I had a bash on a SC Butcher and Blur Tr, Remedy 9.8 650B and the Saracen Ariel 151. The SCs were fine, really plush, but both left me a bit cold. I can’t really put my finger on what it was, they just weren’t a great deal of fun. The Remedy is fantastic up and along, but it left me feeling a bit beat up on the way down Falla Brae although that may have been down to set up. The Saracen was a revelation. I’ve got a 14X which I like, but the 151 is in a different league. It’s a lot longer and slacker and feels really stable. It made me want to go at frankly inadvisable speeds and try new lines, which I didn’t get from any of the others. I still think the frame is a bit pricey, but when I come to replace my current Ariel this is going to be pretty close to the top of my list.

I particularly liked

If you build three wheels that are 559, 650b, and 29″ with exactly the same hubs, spokes, and rims, the 559 EnduRAD wheel will be lighter every time.

Wild Beasts – Present Tense; not as good as ‘Two Dancers’, but a big improvement on ‘Smother’.

Liars – Mess; I’m liking this more than WIXIW, which is saying something.

Mogwai – Rave Tapes; never really got into Mogwai, but I really like this. Maybe I’m at that age…

This might seem like a silly question, but why don’t you just buy 150s? And U-Turn isn’t a thing any more, they only do a Talas like 130/160 version.

I’ve just blown my entire month’s data in the first week on this.

2 x pairs Loake brogues
2 x pairs Derbys
2 pairs NDC brogues
1 x pair combat boots
1 x pair running shoes
3 x pairs bike shoes
3 x pairs trainers

Bit of a middling haul in present company.

I’ve got an Ariel 14X and I really quite like it, but I got it cheap off of EBay and at that price I’d be looking at a Remedy or Stumpy Evo. In fact I could probably build quite a nice Banshee Spitfire or Cotic Rocket for that money. They’re a bit ambitious with their prices for what’s effectively a new brand (if you see what I mean).