Actually, thanks to Extinction Rebellion and Kill the Bill protests, I think we still can march without getting arrested.
Note the word ‘think’ here. That is how bad the erosion of our freedoms have got.

Are there any plans for a massive protest in London this weekend? Has anyone seen anything?Isn’t it time 100,000s people packed the streets and demanded his resignation? Government is truly broken so it’s time to march isn’t it?

That’s so cool lunge. I’m really new to this lark but went out and ran for almost 2hrs in the woods today. So much more interesting than on the road. Really engaging.
Man my legs get sore though. Tons of cycling fitness but very little running. Went super easy but still.

Thanks for your help on this guys. I ordered some bits from Uber bike on Thursday and they arrived today. Top marks!
Fitting a 203mm rotor to the rear of the bike and have an assortment of kevlar and e-bike specific pads (or extreme endurance as they put it) plus the sintered pads I already have. Love the rotor, it’s a big old chunk of metal.
Am in final process of honing my body now. Riding every day and able to climb decent hills without too much effort. Everything is aligning nicely.

Speaking of which…
Can anyone recommend me a trail race in the SE of England around September/October? I like hills btw.

I had a look at the website. Still looks an incomprehensibly long way. Heck it’s taken me longer to RIDE the SDW than the fastest time.
Since seeing it I’ve harboured a desire to do it one day. Only started running a year ago but have been enjoying parkruns and did my first half marathon this spring (1.29). I’ve been focusing on an upcoming mtb stage race but when that’s done in 6 weeks time I’m going to spend more time running. I think a trail half then full marathon would be a good way to progress.

Hey Turboferret.
What day is your sdw race on? I’d love to come and watch it.
I came across this event a fair few years ago whilst riding a big 24hr loop incorporating the sdw from Steyning to Eastbourne. I started seeing runners around 8pm after joining the route and soon ascertained what was occurring. Rode in the same direction as them deep into the night, the quality of the athletes improving as I moved up the field. I was struck by the power of the occasion and its stayed with me for ever.

I’ve just been out for an hour to enjoy the rain! Will only ride off road when it’s wet, hate getting buzzed by cars on wet roads. I adore it in spring and autumn when it releases all those lovely smells.

I can put a couple of spare pairs of pads in my backpack. XT brakes so they’re really easy to put a new set in mid stage if I have to. Keen to try organic. I once put a pair on my cx bike BB7s and they were very quiet like you say.

It’s going to be brilliant isn’t it. So out of the ordinary for me.
Just plan to soak it all up, learn, and hopefully have a great time and make new friends.

I thoroughly enjoyed muttering ‘go on lad’ at scharzbauer in the final. In yer face global superstars! Pidcock looked well peed off after the race. Hee hee! Don’t worry, Pidders will be just fine. He’s a cracking rider and an uber-superstar. He’ll cope.

Had a quick look online. A cliff bar has around 50g carbs in it. Taste great too and virtually indestructible. You can crash hard onto them without ruining the contents. Not so with a banana.
Man I’ve been in this game too long 😄

Pulling this back a little from the scientific discussion, whilst I do fuel highly intense rides with maltodextrin/fructose mixes, for everyday riding I’ve found fig rolls to be an economical and convenient way to keep my energy up. I eat them when I get hungry.
Bananas are my favourite source but a pain to carry. I went through a phase of buying boxes of cliff bars and naked bars when I was doing a lot of centuries. Really great fuel for me.
Peanut butter and cheese sandwiches seem to work for me too. Especially when I’ve had enough of sugar.

Get yourself over to the Trainerroad forum. They’ll answer everything for you.

I’m expecting to be extremely tired so 26t will be much loved I reckon. To put it into context, the first stage is also the French national marathon championship. 95km/3000m ascent. That alone will destroy me. Then have 4 more similar days! Can’t even comprehend how that’s possible.
My only goal is to finish, so plan to spin and eat my way around the mountains. Noisy brakes would mess with my hopefully zen like state so I’ll try organic. Maybe the earlier idea of organic on the front, sintered on the back will help me learn about them. Can always just use the front if the back gets too noisy.

Stevomcd.
I’m on Sram 11sp so limited to 42t as biggest rear sprocket. Normally I run a 30t chainring but really appreciated a 28 when I did the BeMC 3 day mtb race. Have bought a 26t for the Epic as I can’t see any flat on the elevation profiles just lots of climbing.
Does this sound like a good idea to you? Am I right to be expecting 15-20% climbs. Race is around Briancon, Sere Chevalier, Vars.

Ha! Just when I thought it was sorted 😄
I’ll take both and treat the week as a learning experience.
Hoping this event (yes it is the Alps Epic) will be the first of many serious adventures in the proper mountains.

Cool. Cheers guys.
I’ll go sintered. Boost the rear rotor to 180mm and will have the luxury of the bike mechanic service at the race if I need a bleed.
Tell you what, for €750, getting 5 days of marathon xc racing in the Alps, accommodation, food, massage, bike wash and tech support, plus shuttles to transport links, feels like incredibly good value compared to some UK events.

Bearing in mind that this is an xc stage race with 5 days of 2500m+ of climbing, would you still recommend that? I’m not a weight weany but reluctant to spend any more money getting the bike ready.

I’ve just gone from 160mm to 180mm on the front and switched from Sram to XT brakes. So much stopping power it’s turned me into a right hooligan 😆.
I’ll consider doing the same with the rear.

I’m not worried about stopping power. It’s plenty for my light build. It’s only overheating that I’ve no experience of. Is there a difference with sintered compared to organic? If not I’ll definitely stick with sintered. One less thing to worry about.
Will have 4 pairs spare anyway just in case. They weigh nothing so why not.

IGM.
I had that problem when trying to book a month ago. Gave up and tried a day later and it worked.

I ride the blues and some reds in lycra and normal helmet. Also love climbing and aim to get around 2000m in. Found a couple of different ways up by following tyre tracks into the forest about halfway up the fire road climb.

Yeah I could have done that Tired, or used the broken cable to put some tension into the mech. But I thought it’d be more fun to ride overgeared.

That’s a neat idea

I did stop for a cuppa and thought about jury rigging a couple of sprockets down, but decided I fancied the challenge of 42/11 instead. Single chainring btw, not the inner of a double.

I’m not a proponent of fasted training btw. It’s just a fact of getting up early that often a cup of coffee is all you can be bothered to have before riding. Eat if you’re hungry, ride easy if you’re tired. Just ride for at least an hour/day and you’ll be amazed by how fast you get three months down the road.

A few bananas next to the turbo are a cheap and handy way to fuel. Don’t overly think about it to begin with, you’ll find your way in time. Trick is to just get on that machine and do something, anything. Do it regularly and you’ll find some massive improvements in your fitness.

It has a rounded profile that gives you loads of feedback when it’s traction is running out on a corner. Let’s go very progressively.

Have used XR3 both ends for years now. Totally trust it as a tyre in everything from BPW flat out madness to churning through some god forsaken bog.

How about that the population needed a cost of living shock to slow down inflationary pressures? I’ve been listening to NYT podcasts, which discussed these types of things and find this concept interesting. I noted a government minister stating that people needed to feel the increase in energy costs. Wonder how this all ties in?

Isn’t the base rate at which you start paying income tax going up from 10k to around 12k in July? How does this affect those on say 20k/year?

I believe the amount which you start paying income tax will rise on 6th July? I think this’ll return take home wages to pre April levels for the less well off.

It just bothers me that they can get away with it as there’s no police presence. So I take matters into my own hands.

We’re not talking about overtaking here. We’re talking about cocks driving up your ass to show their displeasure.

And yes, I’m a careful and considerate driver. That’s a good thing in my book.

I’m a nightmare. I’ll often slow right down if someone’s aggressively tailgating me. Have been know to do it alongside a lorry if on a duel carriageway. Once or twice I’ve put on my hazards and slowly come to a complete stop.
Sorry, but I hate these idiots in their stupid cars (usually a bmw), so it’s my petty way of getting revenge.

I think it’s in pretty poor taste that some of you are having fun playing your little war games whilst real people are experiencing such horror. You’re enjoyment of the situation is frankly sick.

Flippin brilliant Kryters. My plan for just cruising went out the window when I realised I was loving going really deep, so I got down to the job in hand. Had the good fortune to catch a lad just before the first significant descent. He was proper quick so I just let go of the brakes and followed his lines. My goodness it was a thrill! Death or glory.

I’ve found that if you go slow and eat plenty, it’s amazing how far you can go. Don’t be afraid to get off and push if a hill becomes too steep for you. Makes a nice change to walk for a bit.

Hi mate.
The Hope marathons thread illustrated perfectly what you can gain from letting go of the need for results.
I’ll still ride hard and push myself on the Builth marathon on Sunday but I’m also going to do a massive day on Saturday at BPW. The simple act of not worrying about a number on a results sheet has freed me to create a fantastic weekend of mountain biking.

Offer’s still there for a chat. Not to try persuade you to do anything, but to talk about the bereavement process that comes from letting go of something that has dominated every waking hour of your thoughts for many years. I’m not even being melodramatic. It’s really hard.