Took my eight year old daughter out last Saturday morning for some XC fun at Woburn. Stopped at the chip shop on the way home. Start ’em young so they don’t learn bad habits – that’s the way forward!

As above – fall over, stick out hand, land on sharp sticking up object. Suede palms for me – have saved me several times!

Aston Clinton if you are a bit gnarly…

http://www.forestry.gov.uk/website/wildwoods.nsf/LUWebDocsByKey/EnglandBuckinghamshireNoForestAstonHill

Woburn Sands has lots of XC singletrack. Think there is a club there as well – google should do the trick!

Good luck!

That looks fast and is therefore brilliant. Ride it like you stole it…

Thanks chaps for all the genuinely helpful comment. I was suitably encouraged to go check everything afresh and backed off limit screws and started again. I had got the indexing wrong (cable tension) so one shift never got actioned. All now working properly. Just need to go and find a hill.

Three cheers for the hive mind. Hip hip…

Edric 64: I am certainly capable of doing something stupid like forgetting limit screw, but on this occasion I don’t think I have made an obvious mistake.

Nespoonpas: that sounds worth a look. I shall venture to the shed. Wish me luck…

By an amazing coincidence I put a 32t mtb cassette on my road bike last week. Spooky. I don’t suppose he has an 8 speed Spesh Allez as well? That would be too wierd…

Being a non IT-qualified pauper without an Audi I only have a Zesty 214 😳

Having said that it’s been great. Bottom bracket is bobbins as you have discovered but not hard to put a new one in and they’re cheap. No other issues with mine after 2 years – rear end and bearings all still good. I love it but I believe other good bikes are available.

Sounds like whatever you get will be great – not a bad position to be in!

The Voodoo is a better spec. It has a halfway decent bolt through air fork so you can adjust the spring rate easily yourself. Pretty decent shimano gears, hydraulic brakes and single speed convertible if you are that way inclined. In the last sale seem to remember they did them for 500. At that price I can’t see why you would buy anything else. If the Voodoo is 600 plus the spesh may be worth a go if your budget is really tight. Either fork you mention above will be ok for a first bike but neither is as good as the one on the Voodoo I.m.o. Arguably the Rockshox a bit better but not enough in it to care about. if you are getting back into biking biggest factor is do you want to ride it? May be best to go with instinct and just get what you like the look of – chances are it will make you want to ride it!

Whatever you get – hope you enjoy it!

Not bad but I would also look at a Voodoo from Halfords, especially if they have a sale on.

+1 for Kalkan in Turkey. Stayed a few miles outside in mountains and had a great time.

A whole pallet load of work-stands in the Milton K branch at lunchtime…

That is actually remarkably cool. Am pretty impressed. Any of us likely at some point to struggle to keep going at this silly MTB lark due to health or age. Knowing there is something like that waiting in the wings is great. Have fun safe in the knowledge we all secretly want a go…

I was about to make myself a cup of coffee. Having read this I am far too stressed to risk it. I’ll have a cup of tea.

I’ll just check the OS maps to check my elevation first…

+1 for Voodoo.

Thanks for that – will upgrade now!

Fair enough from the OP with exception of the inimitable Count who reduces me to tears of laughter every time. Genius on a par with Ed Reardon. Agree the rest is dross though…

Or big bucks solution is some upmarket like etymotic et al and have custom fit ear fittings made – budget about £90 on top of the cost of the headphones so not for everyone, but best solution if you use them a lot…

Voodoo Hoodoo is 499 at moment at Halfords – even for the 29er which was more like 600. Cheaply nichetastic and good choice if it’s mainly a bridlepath type bike for first timer?

Loving ethiopiques. Thanks for that one!

Always loved this:

Quincy Jones, Hendrix, Weather Report…

Have recently taken my 9 year old daughter out for a few runs round Woburn XC stuff. Trying hard not to force her to come as I don’t want to out her off, but it would be great if she got into it! Glad to hear you had a good day – feeling a bit jealous.

Original was pretty good i.m.o. but I thought “the bridge” was better. Much better!

Thanks njee20 for the advice. Will find myself a cheap deore mech and try not to be stupid and ride big/big. Latter may be a long shot if I get really tired and lose the plot…

About to try this myself. I have 8 speed Shimano on the road bike with double at front and got to do a big hilly ride this summer with a mate (for charidee…).

From what I have read you may be able to get away with a road mech with some fiddling with the B screw (I have no idea what that means but will find out nearer the time!) and will probably need a longer chain. If your mech can’t cope then a cheap mtb one will work as long as you make sure it’s compatible with your shifters.

I have Sora 8 speed on my old Spesh Allez – anyone know what cheap mtb mech I can use if I need to swap (and apologies to OP for thread hijack).

Seen this at Woburn which are not only “official” trails but I have a permit to ride there. Very shoddy show…

Congrats!

To counteract the (depressing but admittedly accurate) post from muke, go read the “things that are just ace” thread and see how many people mention their kids.

Best. Thing. Ever.

You will find a way to ride your bike when you need to. +1 to the suggestion to grab a short blast when you can. The spontaneity can make it even more fun.

To the thoroughly excellent post from tommid may I respectfully add to De La Soul and Tribe Called Quest the surely compulsory:

Jungle Brothers

And added onto emsz

Fresh baked Sourdough bread. Yum. My home made attempts not bad and getting better. It’s the little things in life…

Thanks wwaswas. Off to the shed armed with some copaslip…

+1 for 6Music
Arcade Fire
Riding bikes in the woods
Almost everything about my children
Curry
Beer
Wine
The Bridge (conclusion this weekend – don’t forget!)
A well sharpened knife

Could never understand why people do them up tight in the first place? Surely the thread direction means even if they are barely more than finger tight they won’t come off? Hope so anyway as all mine aren’t torqued up much…

Oh what the hell – may as well join in.

Able bodied people parking in disabled parking spaces – banned.
Able bodied people parking in disabled parking spaces in large expensive cars – banned and then shot.
People who stop in boxed junctions – banned.
All the summer rioters – banned.
Parents who only feed their children processed crap and never teach them to cook and eat properly – banned.
Smokers – banished outside.
Daytime TV – banned.
People who are much fitter and faster than me on a bike – banned.
Collar bones – banned.
Punctures – banned.
Tyres that are impossible to get on or off – banned.
Anything on a bike that can’t be removed with a 10mm spanner and needs a special tool that you don’t have and no-one local has in stock – banned.
Mass produced bread – banned.
Pot holes – banned.

And…relax.

Weill I got my shorts. I ordered a “L” as according to their size chart that’s a 34″ waist. Imagine my surprise when a mahoosive pair of shorts arrived, clearly labeled 36″.

No problem I thought – I’ll email them and ask for an exchange. It must be a mistake. But no – apparaently the size chart is “just an average” and these are just fine and dandy. Apart from the fact that if I try and wear them they will fall down…

I have emailed one last time so let’s see if there is any semblance of customer care at work here. If you are thinking of ordering, I’d ring up and ask them about the sizing as the website is clearly bugger all use and if they make a mistake they expect you to pay for it! Shame, as the shorts look OK.

Have Gatorskins on road bIke. No punctures since I got them. A bit sketchy in the wet but overall happy with them.

Had my only big crash at Woburn last spring due to dry conditions! In wet the sand packed down and gripped well – in the dry hitting a big deep patch of soft dry sand and needing to both change direction and slow down rapidly proved a bit much. Make the most of the damp – it suits Woburn pretty well I think!

Just got a Voodoo 29er off eBay for similar purpose – commute plus occasional off road excursion. Perfect sort of bike for the job. Probably heavier than one of these though- that’s a nice bike for 250 quid!

Bolle safety glasses
Army surplus goretex trousers
ebay for bikes
DX for lights
NHS for rider repairs

Wonder what a bizarrely specific sort of crash the OP had to do that to the bars? The mind boggles…

😉

Thanks OP. just got some shorts.
🙂

Avengers? Rubbish? I can’t go along with that. I’ll grant you the gearbox on mine was a bit iffy but other than that it was sound as a pound. Probably in a scrapyard now. Very sad.