You know what? People who’re good on flats but have only tried SPDs for a single ride say much the same thing about those

But, what you’ve just found is at least one gap in your own skills that was being covered up by your choice of pedals, so that right there is a good reason to spend some time on flats til you stop jumping off the bike and start jumping with it. Your riding on SPDs will almost certainly benefit when you go back to it.

+1 good post.

I learned to ride on flats and so have no reliance on SPDs to keep my feet in contact with the pedals or to pull up on jumps or bunnyhops.

I can ride happily with either, but when using SPDs I hate the feeling of detachment I get when stood on the pedals, caused by float, so I choose flats in preference.
It’s counter-intuitive but I feel more attached to the bike with flats than with SPDs.

There doesn’t seem to be much in it when you look at the main names. The decision is Hard Tail or Suss. I guess for5 what I will be riding a HT makes most sense or a short travel 4x

HT surely?
For one, it is best suited for the described usage
For two, budget is too low to get an appropriate FS

Now then, about the Wales try. There is one fact which you cannot deny – It was a try. The referee said so. The scorecard said so. Move on.

Can’t deny this. Still doesn’t mean we can’t bang on and on about the Welsh being cheats. ;)

I was always worried about the Scotland game, they lift themselves so much to play the English. I’m pleased that the guys could grind out the win, don’t really care that it had to be an ugly win.
Now bring on the Irish in their silly 3 sided stadium, and the Slam. :P

Easton EA70 Monkeybar 685mm low rise here. Cheap, reasonably light, havent snapped it so I presume it is strong enough, and I like the shape.

Interesting reading:
http://www.ski-injury.com/prevention/wrist_guards

This guy recommends Flexmeter and Biomex.

Don’t really see how using them for biking is going to work, how are your going to grip the bars?

No she’s not. Sand, like grass, is virtually inert, she’s allergic to a substance that exists on the sand. These footballers are not saying they’re allergic to grass pollen, they’re claiming to be allergic to grass.

Well she is quoted all over as saying she is allergic to sand. So she is claiming to be allergic to sand.
Whether or not she actually is allergic to sand or something on the sand I neither care or find amusing.

Isn’t that long jumper, Jade Johnson I think, allergic to sand?

How I guffawed when I heard that. Oh, wait, no I didn’t.

They fail to address the key point of whether or not she was smuggling peanuts when referred to as PC Nipples.

Don’t smoke, just wanted to say good luck.

To be fair, despite my comments earlier I am tempted to stray from the iphone path… I have an old iphone 3g, in need of an upgrade and am curious to try something different. Trouble is I’d have to buy all my apps again, and my missus has the iphone4, and it is really lovely.

That and my friends experiences of going from android to iphone mean I’ll proabably end up with another iphone.

Christ there are some miserable **** on here.

Proper lol at derek starship’s balding pic, bravo.

Ordered a xfusion hilo, good price, quick delivery, tracking detail provided. As above really, excellent.

I have an iPhone4, my wife has an HTC desire.
she wants an iPhone.
I don’t want an HTC Desire.

This.
None of my friends have gone from an Iphone to an Android. Several have gone from Android to iphone, and never looked back.
Everyone I know who still has an Android phone wants an Iphone. No-one with an Iphone wants an Android phone.

The timing doesn’t matter

The timing does matter, because other people do get emotionally involved, if you bid late it gives people less time to get over excited and bid higher, meaning your highest bid has a better chance of being the winning bid.

Wait til near the end of the auction then steam in with your highest bid very close to the end.

Is that heavy for an adjustable seatpost?
I think a Thomson is somewhere around 300g, an extra 300g for the adjustable functionality is a trade off I think will be worth it.
My bike and I are no lightweights to begin with.

Fizik Aliante is their widest road saddle. I just got one to replace an Arione, liking it so far. The Arione was OK for short rides but not so good after 2hours or more.

Well the x-fusion Hilo has arrived after a short hiatus at my neighbours house, who signed for it then weren’t in for two days (grrr).

First impressions:
1) it’s a very smart looking bit of kit. Black with red anodising on the lever, seatclamp and the top of the outer tube, lucky it matches the red I have elsewhere on the bike.
2) there is absolutely no play or slop in it.
3) You really do need to use fibre grip on the seatclamp cones, and do it up tight, otherwise if you sit slightly too far back and drop the seat it will end up pointing upwards.
4) the action is pretty smooth and it will stop anywhere in the travel (as advertised).
5) after being at full extension for a while if you push it down, but off-centre, there is a bit of stiction and squeaking. Put it back up then down again, pushing in the same place this is not evident. Doesn’t seem to happen whilst seated on it, only when pushing by hand so probably won’t be evident in proper use.
6) It’s pretty light. I confess I forgot to weigh it before fitting. If I remember I’ll do it later.

Haven’t been on a ride with it yet, and have no other adjustable seatposts to compare it to, so these are just my rambling first impressions. So far I’m impressed. Will report further when I have ridden with it.

Agreed on Powerlock. Looks like a step backwards to me.
Have to live with it on my road bike (SRAM 10sp), but going to stick with 9sp on the MTB for the foreseeable.

Don’t see what it being a gay encounter has to do with anything.

e13 g ring is what you need. Just got a red 32t one for a 1×9. It looks great and 32grams only.

The renthal one looks nice but was £2 more expensive (times of austerity ;) ), and wasn’t red.

There was an instance recently on a website I use where a car of some classic/collectors status had unbeknown to the owner being part ex’d on the scrappage scheme. The car, which was in pretty good condition was obviously not able to be driven on the road again but it was bought by a parts dealer and stripped for a large profit.

How was it part ex’d without the knowledge of the owner? Isn’t that theft?

This is the third time in one day that this race has been posted on here.

That’s quality.

How did he miss the dog?! And some of the drops… 8O

It’s not just you.

I ride to work most days, is great, by the time I’m home I’m pretty stress free.

EDIT: to be honest I quite l like my job at the moment.

To the OP, it depends on a number of things:
1) Are you expected to provide a certain quality/age of car (for client meetings for example)?
2) Mileage, commuting and business miles.
3) Are you happy with a mid level diesel hatchback? cos that’s all your getting for that allowance, unless you top it up.

I’m fortunate in that I get an allowance but am not expected to use my own car for business trips, so I get trains, planes, taxis everywhere. I also commute by bike or public transport. As i only do personal miles I bought a second hand quick car for cash, and trouser the allowance each month.

In your situation, with significant commuting mileage and a reliance on car commuting I’d be getting the company car, for the convenience factor alone.

3.5k is very low for a cash allowance ime. Most are 2+ times more than that.

£3.5k is a pretty typical entry level car allowance. Higher management grades obviously get more.

I think tony_d is right on with his assessment of snowboarding being easier to learn. Yes you fall over more in the first week, but typically on a snowboard a beginner will be able to get around more of the mountain in their first week than the equivalent beginner skier, if only because of the dreaded sideslip all the way down the steep slopes.

Skiing defo easier in the first day or two on the bunny slopes and easy greens, but as soon as it gets a bit steeper the beginner snowboarder has it easier.

The lack of someone getting a beating to conclude this thread feels like a case of blue balls.

Because they are less faff, and because punctures are usually pretty rare really?

I remain unconvinced that the benefits of tubeless are worth the hassle and expense of trying it.

Just ordered a Hilo Fusion from actionsports.de in 27.2mm, non-remote flavour.

When it gets here I’ll let you know what I think. I couldn’t find many reviews, apparently there is one in Singletrack magazine this month that is favourable but I haven’t read it. I took a punt cos of the price, 139eur.

Cold, headwind and inexplicably weak of leg today = Rubbish commute.

Still, better than yesterday – the traffic was mental on Tuesday.

(in That London)

We’ve got mushrooms (kers).
I wanna know when we’re gonna get red shells, banana skins and ghosts.

My mate rides goofy and I ride regular, once time we were back to back and managed to turn right into each other. Fortunately we just bounced off and each went the other way.

I’m not a good boarder, and any time I needed to carry speed on a flat bit I had an off (it’s harder than it sounds, honest!)

Try one of the flat base boards from the likes of K2 (like the Slayblade). If you can’t straightline that flat bits on that then trade in your board for some XC skis ;)

Skiers = XC and trail riders – Like going fast, enjoy the whole aspect of the mountains
Boarders = Rad to teh power of sick DHers – Like going fast and assume that anyone else on the trail is a weedy little dweeb who shall bow down before their magnificence.

Splitboarders = beardy single speeders.

I find skiers stop just as much as snowboarders (I am both btw), more probably amonst my group. The difference is that snowboarders have to sit or kneel down as standing still on one edge for more than a few seconds is unstable and often results in either slippage or a comedy fall.
Once sitting, might as well enjoy some banter and the view.

Sitting, or standing, in the middle of the slope or after a crest is a bit silly. Both skiers and snowboarders do it, though it is probably more difficult to see the snowboarders as they may be seated.

Solution? ride with a little care and don’t go hurtling over blind crests.

Diddums.

FWIW, I think the SDG Bel Air I got recently is a bit “taller” than the Charge Spoon it replaced.

What about an IBeam jobby? They look like they might come up taller.

???