Cube X-Race Comp. Looks well fast for a shade under a grand.

XXL Gore Phantom fits me well.

Skiing/Snowboarding
BMX/MTB
Bodyboarding/Surfing
Rollerblading/Skateboarding
Rugby/Football
Xbox/Playstation
Tea/Coffee

Do I need to keep going?

If it’s fun, what’s the problem? I started snowboarding in 1991 and skiing in 2002. I like to do both and there’s no real difference between the two any more (although skiing means more control = more speed and bigger tricks, plus you don’t have to fanny about swapping between board and snowshoes).

Actually, I don’t do either any more as I moved back to England and don’t really see the point of going for a week or two. I do find it interesting that so many British skiers/snowboarders are full of opinion, despite only spending about 30 days on snow in their lives.

Don’t they always have a sale on? DFS of the cycling world.

I’d not bother trying to create official trails under FC sanctions or whatever. Just have a quiet word with the ranger about doing a bit of clearing. It doesn’t have to be a ‘trail centre’ for you to ride it.

Those of us that were really there remember how shit we looked. My particular favourite of the time was denim-print lycra shorts matched to a baggy t-shirt. Clashed nicely with my Orange Clockwork.

I’ve found Bontrager gel tape to offer a good balance between comfort and durability. It’s pretty cheap too.

the younger someone is the less likely theyre to use punctuation

I’ve pondered on this, particularly in relation to how more and more children are reported to pass their GCSE exams every year.

I run a mix of Crossmark rear / Advantage front. Works really well in dry and soft condition but, as said above, spins and clogs with mud easily.

Advantage is a cracking fit-and-forget tyre. Nuch more predictable than High Rollers and rolls better too (in my experience). I’d consider a 62a for the front and swap between one for the rear and a Crossmark, depending on dryness. I run a 70a on the rear ‘cos it lasts longer.

Having a baby

Variety is the spice of life. Leave it for a while and do something else.

It looks like the area around Dunster should be riddled with singletrack

Answered your own question there. I can email you some routes if you have Memory Map?

My surfer’s ear is starting to be a problem so gonna get some of these:SURF PLUGS[/url]

Any good?

Second hand is your best bet at that price-point. My mate just paid £500 for a Merida with full 105, carbon fork and decent wheels.

This was in the description on the CRC site:

Steerer: Aluminium, Tapered only for Trail specific 29″

. How is that ignoring the question?

QR drop outs okay: CLICK HERE

Can I have your bike if you don’t like it?

I used to play, but my massive hands prevented me from progressing into more complex strumming.

I also sometimes used to use a felt plectrum.

Super Troopers made me laugh.

Swift, email me your phone number and I’ll give you a shout if we stay local on Friday.

Couple of us going from Barnstaple Hospital on Friday (~4:30pm). Not sure where yet but may make the effort for Exmoor. Alternatively, might just go on Ilfracombe coastal route. Will probably need lights for the latter-part of the ride.

Snaps (above) is an absolute font of local riding knowledge. Nice bloke too (although we never seem to actually meet up for a ride). My mate, Jon, may also come on Friday and he lives in Ilfracombe.

I live in a small town in the Westcountry. to reassure you, it’s frustratingly expensive to buy a decent gaff around here.

Hi foxyrider.

You are right, you don’t need to buy any. Colostrum is for people who train hard. That’s why it’s chosen by professional athletes and those at the top of their game.

Was this intended to be a rude as it sounds? Are we perhaps not worthy of your wonder-product as we’re not superstars?

What’s that Welsh phrase ‘Where are you to?’ all about? Or ‘Where’s that to?’ What’s the to on the end for?

Also commonplace in Plymouth. Makes no sense but I still say it.

Perhaps, rather than claiming they’re shite, you could express your thoughts as ‘Thomson seatposts are awfully strong and pretty but could really do with a revision of the head-design’?

‘Ere. Don’t mess about with all that foreign muck. You wants a pasty, innit!

Mavik Aksium is a good balance between strong light and cheap (if you get ’em from Merlin). I’m 115kg and use them for cyclocross with no problems. Look pretty too.

Telemark is wicked fun in powder. Fat tele-skis with a set of skins and adjustable poles are a recipe for a day of fun (and aching glutes).

If you’re there for the season, try both and decide which FEELS better. Don’t worry about how you think it looks. It’s actually really nice being able to do both.

I snowboarded for years (started in 1991). My second season away, it stopped snowing mid-Feb (honestly, not one more flake all Winter). I learned to ski as I find snowboarding on pistes a little dull and I’m too big for park stuff. Came back for a third season and found skiing to be far more pleasurable all-round. I like the style of tricks, the extra control and speed and the reduced faff of having to swap between board and snowshoes. Ski-touring with skins is ace too.

I haven’t done either for 4 years though, so perhaps I’m a bit out of touch.

Either way, my winter seasons were the happiest years of my life (don’t tell the wife). Have a good time.

If they were used for their intended purpose, ie racing, you would soon realise that slowing down is the least of your worries

This is true. I’ve not had any need for more braking power during races (which is why I think discs won’t take off on high-end race bikes). The trouble is that I don’t have another grand to buy a road bike for training, and cantis are scary at 30mph.

RedTed, do you mind if I ask what the seatpost diameter is, please? Wondering if I could go for a frame/fork/rim swap with my existing 26er.

Oh, what BB format does it take?

Trying to do a decent job of developing a presentation for a job interview this week. My perfect job (public health practitioner) in the perfect location (Plymouth), so needs to be spot on. On here for a 5-minute breather.

May nip out on my road bike later, just so long as it doesn’t chuck down with hail again.

Black looks cheap. Red is definitely best.

I’ll buy the Avids if/when you change them.

Mini-Vs or Vs with a cable run converter should be far more powerful than regular cantis.

Cracking bike. It’s bang on how I’d uild it (except for the bars). Been toying with the idea of buying one of these and feel a little more convinced.

Did anyone read the Cycling Weekly article regarding how courses are too easy nowadays? Having only been racing cross for a year, I can’t really comment.

They also featured an article saying disc brakes have poorer mud clearance than cantis, which confused me a bit.

I wasn’t aware there was such an array of booze-free booze. Reckons I might nip to the off-licence tomorrow.

I’m thinking of calling my impending child Sebastian. Will he be treated as an outcast for being the only kid at school with a normal name?

Knackered back = no racing ’til 21st November for me (West Buckland, Devon).

Vote for Wagner in X-factor and watch Simon’s discomfiture put another few quid in Simon Cowell’s pocket

You could, alternatively, not vote at all. If the total viewing audience did that, it’d really make him squirm.

Not on any bikes I like, they’re not.