Afraid so, I’ve not seen first hand what trails the council have flattened but I don’t think its pretty.
Such a shame as IMO they really weren’t hurting anyone and its a great spot for the yoof to do something positive.
Give it a few weeks for the heat to die down and the trail fairies will be out in force

Yup, I’ve just got one! And it’s marvellous. I sent the shock to TF Tuned with a view to getting the Vorsprung Tractive being fitted but the engineer said to get the Megneg as it would do what I wanted far better than the Tractive system.
I was having similar issues to your self, but my main issue was no mid support unless the pressure was mega might. The Megneg has solved this problem and I now have so much more compliance and grip from the back end of the bike.
I’d defo recommend it!

Did the marathon and the sport. As others have said the marathon was a bit of a joke. I did a lot of training for this event thinking it would be a belter – how wrong could I be. The icing on the cake was being told at the “feed” zone that you could only take one cereal bar!! Oh and the fact that the Maraton didn’t even get a mention at the Prize Giving came as no surprise.

I love the Ard Rock and I’ve attended the last 5 but I think this one will be my last for a while. I can’t make my mind up if the organisers are creating more events so more people can come and enjoy the festival, or they are maximising the amount of money they can make?

Has anyone any thoughts on the choice for the Marathon event? I’m happy with my selection for the Sport Enduro on the Sunday but I’m having a nightmare deciding on what to run for the Marathon.

Rear I’m thinking minion S S as my usual xc tyre of choice  Racing Ralph just seems way too flimsy. Oh and I’m on a hard tail as wel???

My brother in law has just got back to me and he can’t make it after all. Due to him not going the Lakes my sister has withdrawn his biking pass

Sorry for getting your hopes up but I recon someone will be along soon who’ll have it off you

Cheers

Mark

Afternoon,

I’ve just asked my brother in law if he wants it. I’m going up and I know he was supposed to be going the Lakes but his riding buddy has bailed on him so he might be tempted.

I’ll let you know one way or the other as soon as he gets back to me

Cheers

Mark

Cheers joemmo, really appreciate it 😉

Yep, can’t fault the Decathlon one – especially considering how inexpensive it is compared to others.

Thats the bag in all its glory mounted to my NP Mega.
Another good Decathlon find was this water bottle https://www.decathlon.co.uk/500-ml-flexible-water-bottle-id_8487344.html

hardly notice it stuffed in your back sky rocket – so much comfier than a bottle

Sory for adding to the barrage of people flogging their wares but I’m currently selling this on fleabay…..
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/162821043300?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2648

It builds up to a very competent XC race bike. With extra cash you could build up some carbon wheels for it and have VARY competent XC race bike 😀

If you’re not training in any kind of structured manor I really wouldn’t bother. I train using Trainerroad and wouldn’t be without my Stages Power meter – however if I didn’t use TR I’d have no use for a PM.
If you have money to burn like that spend it on an “experience” rather than a thing – skills sesh or an uplift weekend?

+1 magic mushrooms!! However the resulting effect was worth gagging them down

The jury is currently out with regards to my answer. If I were to base my answer on their performance yesterday It would be a resounding NO!
My daughters almost five and most of the time shes pretty good value, but my son who has just turned two is a freaking NIGHTMARE. Its like having human siren anchored to your leg. From the moment he wakes up all he does is whine! My wife is literally at breaking point 😯
I’m sure it will all come good soon enough, but till then I have my bikes to keep me sane 😀

In my ongoing quest for a DIY Huck Norris I stumbled across these…. https://www.csixx.co.za/products/foamo
You can get 4 shipped to UK for less than £80! Seems like a great alternative to the HC with a more realistic price tag
Cheers,
Mark

Thanks for the input chaps, found a couple of places that do the Plastazote in strip form so I might go down that route…. or just suck it up and get the HN 😀
FYI – I’m 75kg fully tooled up and I’ve spazzed quite a few rims in my time even with 25psi + tyre pressure. Just think its a good idea for that bit more security
Cheers,
Mark

It not really the puncture protection that I’m interested in – it’s more for protecting the rim. Or am I completely missing the point

They also do a rubber version which might be tougher but a tad heavier…
https://shop.deltarubber.co.uk/rubber-strip/solid-neoprene-rubber-strip/solid-neoprene-rubber-strip.html
Slightly more expensive as well but still a fraction of the price of the HN

CheesybeanZ – I put the slack set in first and ran it with a set of RS Rev’s. Made the bike feel so much better, but I just hated the noodly divey nature of the Revs. The Pikes transformed the bike, and made it feel a lot more compliant in pretty much every application…. Steep, fast, tech, it just seems to handle drama so much better than it did with a straight headset and 140mm forks

I suppose it all comes down to what and where you ride. Its defo my go to bike for most occasions and I rarely drop the travel on the fork to 140. It still climbs really well and its an absolute riot when you point it down.

I’ve not done it for yonks – but you might be able to make use of this Strava link…..

https://www.strava.com/activities/85780239/segments/1767503683

I run a set of Pike 160’s DPA’s on mine. I’ve also fitted it with a 2 degree slackset and offset bushes. IMO the bike rides a lot better like this than it did with 140 forks and without the slacky bits
Go for it!

Love this little add on.

Here’s my pootle round Wharncliffe yesterday

You’re on point there Northwind – When I bought the Codeine the Mega 290 was just a twinkle in the designers eye so wasn’t even an option – Hence me trying to turn the Codeine into a hard hitting #enduro 29er 😀 If the 290 had been around the Codeine wouldn’t have got a look in!
As mentioned the Codeine is rather short in the reach…. especially with a 35mm stem! I’ve just put a 50mm stem on to try and emulate the longer reach of the Mega and see how that feels.
I still have a 2011 Mega which has also been a brilliant bike so I’m more than curious to see if its big brother is a much fun.
At the end of the day I don’t know who I’m trying to kid – I’ve got it in my head now that I want one and it’s my 40th next year so guess what I’m going to treat myself to hehehe
Thanks for the input folks, more than helpful as ever 😀

I bought these two….
I seem to have got papped quite a bit this year as well. It was really hard to pick which ones I wanted (limited myself to two) as the quality of the pics to choose from was pretty darn high

Amazing weekend as well 😀

Personally I wouldn’t bother with the Mosedale loop. The Old Corpse road is good but i don’t think its worth the slog to get to it.
if you like technical riding and are up for a challange I would do Nan Beild as your planning and go up Gatesgarth on the way back. When you get to the top of Gatesgarth do a left up onto Harter Fell and go back down Nan Bield to Haweswater.
I have to admit Nan Bield down to Haweswater is one of my favourite UK trails. It’s an absolute brut
I might have a Strava route of the above that I could GPX for you if its of interest
Cheers
Mark

I’m doing just that. I started with 140 Revs and for me they just dint feel right. The Pikes are in a different league to the Revs granted, but the extra travel does add a new level of confidence. I’ve also put a 1.5 degree slackset on it and offset shock bushes to make it a bit longer, slacker and lower. With these few mods it’s made a good bike amazing.

I too have been SS for about six years and through the winter the SS is my go to bike. My current SS is an On One Inbred – 30/18. That combo is a bit “spinny” but I can get up all my local climbs so I can live with the compromise. The On One replaces my much loved and missed Orange P7 SS which got pinched last year.
Every SS I’ve ever had I’ve always tried to build as cheaply as possible. Not really sure why, but there is something quite satisfying about flying past folk on “uber” bikes knowing you’ve spent less on your bike that what their seat post cost 😀
Anyway 1Kcove take the plunge and work at it – its hard in the beginning, but pick easier trails and work up. You won’t regret it 😉

Orange P7 2011 in single speed guise – a little piece of me died when I discovered it had been nicked 🙁
The first incarnation of the NP Mega
On One Codiene – my current go to bike
One bike I thought would be love at first stroke was my long gone Evil Soverign – no matter how much changing of this and swapping that I did it never felt anything other than distinctly average

+ 1 for Candito – even if you don’t follow his plan check out his form on the big lifts – he’s as good as it gets and he explains things really well. I’ve learnt quite a bit from his vids

If you’ve made good gains with the strong lifts programme over 6 months I’d look to change your routine. Training works best when periodised.
Use the winter / off season to build strength (as you’ve done) then as summer approaches maybe reduce your frequency to two gym workouts a week with a routine that complements cycling better than strong lifts – getonyourbikes example looks really good imo.
I know if I do heavy squats within three days of a ride my performance on the bike suffers.
I wouldn’t completley avoid lower body workouts, just reduce the volume, frequency and intensity – I suppose I’m saying look to maintain your gains as apposed to keep trying to lift bigger numbers.

+2 biro on banana skin
Equally pleasant is biro on the sole of a slipper with a rubber sole

After much procrastination I dragged my ass up to RivI – all the way there I was thinking “should’ve gone the gym” – but once there and kitted up it took all of ten seconds of riding for the thought of the gym to be a distant memory. It took even less time for me to think that “mountain biking is ace, I love bikes me”

I’ve got a Cube Elite (2014) and for XC racing duties it’s amazing. Very light, nice and responsive – back end could be described as being a bit unforgiving but i quite like a stiff rear (ooo err) it defo ticks the head down style your after – it really makes me want to push hard on the climbs and its eats single track.
At the end of the day it is what it is – an XC bike. My Cube sits along side a Codiene, NP Mega and an On One 456 so I’m lucky enough to be able to pick a horse for the course so to speak.
The Cube is a very capable bike but if it was to be my only bike I’d probably look for something that was a little more rounded
Mark

I’ve experimented with a few home brews over the years and I’m currently using this lot at the moment – Maltodextrin, BCCA’s (for protein) Taurine, Caffeine Tabs, Electrolytes mixed with a drop of tropical squash from Aldi. I only use this mix on BIG rides or races. It works for me and it costs peanuts

Cold – those massive bags of mini frozen ones are best. Cook, cool then bladder in tomato sauce – yom yom
Been know to devour a a full bag in one sitting 😀

Thank you all for your input I really do appreciate it. Its definitely a heart or a head thing and the head seems to be singing loudest at the minute.
As fit as I am, keeping the commute up all year is optimistic and I’m not getting any younger (37) I imagine it would be very easy to sack the bike off in favor of the car, and this could spiral into driving everyday – I think I need to ditch my rose tinted glasses 😀 The wage for the new job is pretty much at the ceiling and the only way to increase this would be promotion which could take some time. I’ve done a mental pros and cons list of the new job and it has wayyyy more cons that pros. At the end of the day I have to put my family first and as much as I’d love this new job I have to do whats best for them. I’m going to show this post to the wife tonight as it has certainly helped me reevaluate what I’ve got and what I could lose by jumping ship.
Head wins….. for the moment 😀
Thanks again folks
Mark

I was supposed to be doing it but last minute work commitments have scuppered me having the time off 🙁 I’m truly gutted as I’ve trained hard for it – on the plus side the guys organising the event have been fantastic and postponed my entry till next year. I hope the event is a real success as it would be brilliant to see more race formats like this in the UK
Best of luck to all involved and see you next year

This is a route I did last year that took in Whiteless Pike. The route is a bit of an epic but it gives you an idea of what’s on offer https://www.strava.com/activities/194029463#4562794921
Whiteless Pike is defo up there as one of the best descents in the Lakes – ok its a footpath but its not as busy as some and I’ve never had any grief on there.

This is a route I did a few years ago that also took in the Whiteless Pike a bit less severe but still a quality loop
https://www.strava.com/activities/21376824#382411814

I can’t wait to get back to the Lakes got to be one of the best places on the planet to ride 😀

I’m in – Me and the brother in law will be there bright and early Sunday morn. I’ll be mostly crashing into trees on my vintage Nukeproof Mega:D
Its my first Enduro and I’m excitedly kacking my pants
See you all Sunday

Plenty time to lose the Christmas timber. Not made my mind up on the camping yet

+ 1 Cards Against Humanity – Played it last night with a few like minded individuals after polishing off a bottle of Tequila. I seriously cant remember the last time I laughed so hard. Brilliantly simple and completely wrong 😀