Onzadog – This evening, I met Andy McNab. He's a really really nice normal bloke!

Did he tell you his real name?

Just upgraded my subscription with Sarah the subs fairy. The Todmorden accent has changed considerably since I last lived up North!

I spoke to Danny John-Jules at the MotoGP end of season party on Sunday. He's a big bike racing fan.

Then it is most probably my dodgy measuring technique. Shall we compromise on 55mm? 😀

Oh, and I interviewed Miss America, Katie Stamm, on the grid at the Indianapolis MotoGP round.

My Dad used to play golf with Lofty Wiseman, who would eat Bear Grylls and Ray Mears for breakfast!

Could be the rims. I'm running mine on Mavic XC717 disc rims.

No, I've definitely got the 2.25. They measure 60mm across the width at 35PSI, which is the same as the HR 2.3 I took off. Just measured both now.

I've just stuck one on my hardtail. It definitely looks wider than the Maxxis HR 2.3 I took off.

I was in the Royal Signals, and most of our officers had regional accents. We even had a Scottish one, with a proper Scottish accent!

Having said that, we also had a Scottish Officer (Black Watch) whose family owned large chunks of Scotland. If it hadn't been for the tartan trousers, you'd have never have guessed where he came from, as he had a voice that would have put a 140's BBC radio announcer to shame – very received pronunciation!

If you do end up in Drogheda, then you can also go North for riding. The Mournes are pretty good, and Rostrevor isn't that far from Drogheda up the motorway.

The race was delayed due to the onset of really heavy rain just as pit lane opened. It eventually got underway at 15.35 local time, which is why the BBC had to switch channels with 30 minutes to go.

I was stood next to Matt Roberts when he interviewed Valentino Rossi in Parc Ferme after the race, so I'm sure the BBC will show it sometime – maybe before the Valencia race in two weeks time.

Was a bit of a masterclass by Casey Stoner today, though!

Taken at this year's Ruthin Merida.

I did time with a mountain rescue team when I was in the forces. The majority of our 'rescues' involved finding people who were lost because they couldn't read a map – or in a number of cases, didn't have one – or struggling because they were wearing clothing that wasn't suitable for the conditions.

I don't remember ever being 'excited' when rescuing these people. It was quite amusing at times though, especially when we were called out to rescue my pompous next door neighbour who'd got himself completely lost because, while he had a map, it was the wrong one!

I had the 2D. It was nice and light, fitted me very well and deflected the ground quite nicely when I went over the bars attempting a drop-off in Spain.

Unfortunately, having done it's job it then split in half.

Bought another one though, which is still going strong – mainly because I'm scared to death of even a 2" drop-off now, and walk round them!

I had an '07 Nomad, which I found to be way too much bike for the trails I normally ride, including quite a few of the Welsh trail centres.

Got rid and replaced it with a Yeti 575 that can be built up fairly light for all day rides, but will still take a Talas 36 fork if I ever get my arse in to gear and organise an alps trip.

Chris Rock explains…

NOT SAFE FOR WORK!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ui6-Wc0PDc4

I wouldn't hesitate to vote for Hope. I've only dealt with them twice, but on both occasions their customer service people went above and beyond the call of duty.

But then I like CRC as well, because I've only ever had one problem with something I've ordered, and they sorted that out on the phone pretty sharpish.

Wiggle I don't use so much, but when I have they've been great too.

As have Merlin and a number of other retailers.

Maybe I've just been lucky.

Never used Charlie the Bikemonger, but might well do in the future as he seems to be on here nearly as much as I am!

I take my nine year old son camping, and our Vango Beta 350 is perfect. It's also useful when I go on my own to various trail centres midweek.

The tent doesn't take up much room in the car, is relatively easy to put up and stands up pretty well in all weathers. The porch area is big enough to store kit out of the rain, and it's actually big enough to sit in when it's raining if you get a couple of beach style low chairs.

We use cheap vango sleeping bags and two single airbeds – these tend to be cheaper than reasonably comfortable sleeping mats, and I don't have any trouble blowing them up myself when I forget to pack the battery pump!

I also take an old duvet, but we've not had to use this yet.

I bought a couple of cheap headtorches off eBay for those midnight toilet visits – cheap enough that I don't worry too much if they get broken or lost. I've also got a battery operated lantern (again, cheap off eBay) that we can use in the tent when getting changed etc.

For cooking I just use a jetboil stove and cook 'one pot' meals, but we do eat out as well on a weekend away – pot noodles just don't cut it for every meal!

I'd practice putting your tent up in the garden before you do your first trip, as you'll have a chance to study the instructions and scratch your head without the other campers, and probably your son, asking you if everything is okay every 10 minutes!

It's good fun camping with kids, but they do get bored very easily. Have a look on http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk for a site that's near to you, has good facilities including a kids' play area, a reasonable shop and a pub that serves food in walking distance. That way, he has something to do, and if it all goes wrong at least you can eat in the pub or go home – not that anything will go wrong, of course.

There should be plenty of these sites in the Forest of Dean and Monmouthshire area, as well as closer to home in Gloucestershire.

And I'd second the cubs/scouts if he gets the bug. Plenty of opportunities for camping and other adventurous type activities.

From the North West you can either go from Heysham, Liverpool or Holyhead. Alternatively, you can drive to Stranraer.

The Holyhead to Dublin/Dun Laoghaire ferry with Stenaline is probably your best bet, and it usually works out cheapest as well.

From the ferry port it's only around 90 mins to the trails Conor is talking about.

I can second Green Lanterns. Stayed there a couple of times. Good value, pub on the doorstep and the food is pretty good.

you mean him…

That's the man. Mind you, he looks like he's struggling a bit there. Was that just before the feed station? If so, I know why he was struggling.

They can't be that impractical, as I saw a guy doing the recent Ruthin Merida Marathon on one! Not sure how hard he found pedalling it compared to the more normal mountain bikes.

I've done it on the Avid Ultimates on my Yeti 575 – it was a bit of a faff as the instructions aren't great, but I figured it out in the end.

Can't say I've noticed much difference though – I only upgraded the brakes because the original rear hose was too short.

All the ferries across the Irish sea are extortionately priced!

However, the Holyhead to Dublin or Dun Laoghaire ferry might work out cheaper if there are four or more of you, especially if you do the 3.5 hour crossing by normal ferry, rather than the HSS.

I always use Stenaline for this crossing, as they usually work out cheaper than Irish Ferries, who only run a HSS service.

If you use the Stena Nordica ferry with a premium booking then, because they haven't updated the Stena Plus area, you get a complementary meal, a bottle of wine (to take home with you) and, most importantly, a 50% discount of your next trip (on the Nordica).

Obviously, this is only worth doing if you're going to make the trip again in the future – bookings have to be made before 20th November and travel must be before 5th January.

If you're driving from the South then also have a look at the Fishguard Rosslare route, which is also operated by Stenaline.

The other option is to fly into Dublin Airport with Ryan Air or Aer Lingus, and then take the Aircoach from right outside the door into Dublin city centre.

Getting around Dublin is okay, as long as you aren't going too far out from the centre.

Have a good trip!

This was my first Merida Marathon, which was entered as part of my new fitness campaign!

Really enjoyed the event. There was a good atmosphere in the campsite (although I didn't see any small spiders) and the 50km route was spot on – I don't think i could have managed any more with my current lack of fitness.

I did the 60km Brecon Beast route the week before, but I think I preferred the Ruthin Merida – less roads, which was good, although the climbs were harder.

Will definitely do another one, if only to lose enough weight to get into the large t-shirt I got at the end (they didn't have any XL sizes by the time I got back).

Damn – double post.

Stupid Internet!

Don't really have many friends who are into mountain biking, so mostly I end up riding on my own. Rode the Brecon Beast last weekend, and will be riding the Ruthin Merida Marathon this weekend (I was on a business trip to the mainland so bookended it with two MTB events) and it was a nice change to be out with other people.

Doesn't bother me that much though, I quite like riding on my own.

But then I am a bit sad!

I joined for the family 3rd party insurance, as my son is a danger to the western world once he gets his bike helmet on 😀

I have never ridden any of the other bikes on your list, but I have a 2007 Yeti 575 and I like it.

Saturday I had a tootle up to the Brecon Beacons Visitor Centre, and then on Sunday I did the 60km Brecon Beast. A good day out, but I felt everyone of the days I've been off he bike as I was struggling my way up the gap road!

Ready for the off…

Struggling up the Gap Road

Looking down onto Tal-y-Bont reservoir

I've recently built up an Endorphin hardtail, after a long list of full suss bikes. Took the Endorphin and my 575 to Wales recently for a weeks holiday, and spent most of the time riding the hardtail, even around Coed-y-Brenin – it just felt better.

I wouldn't sell the 575 though, it's too much fun on the downhills!

Was going to go to Coed-y-Brenin for the weekend, but might do the Brecon Beast instead now.

I've got a set of 36 Talas on mine, which seem to work pretty well.

As Blackflag said, 130mm for most things and then 160mm for downhill.

He is probably asking a similar question somewhere else on the web about your chances of stopping if somebody had stepped of the pavement.

He's probably not though, is he?

Like a lot of car drivers, it's more likely he drives in built up areas with no thought to his own chances of stopping if someone stepped off the pavement.

if the speed limit is 30 then that's what a lot of drivers aim for, regardless of what's going on around them.

I blame the isolation from the outside world that has become a selling point for more and more cars these days.

Thin Red Line.

A lot of people in the cinema left before it had finished, but I sat through it until the end just to see if it got any better.

It didn't!

I haven't got photos of the complete set-up, as I've never got round to taking any.

This is the main tank though, about two months after I set it up. It was designed to pretty much run itself, as I work away a lot and I'm gone for about a week at a time.

The biggest costs are heating and lighting. Because the sump is in the garage it costs a bit to heat in the winter, despite being pretty well lagged.

The 400 watt halide lights are on for eight hours a day, which also eats up a bit of electricity, and there are also four big pumps running 24/7.

But the biggest problem is that I live in Norn Irn, where NIE have a monopoly on electricity supply, so there's no opportunity to chase the cheapest rates with other companies.

Even if I was on the mainland, the running costs would still be expensive – a lot more expensive than the equivalent size tank with tropicals.

I've got a 30" cube with a closed loop and a remote sump in the garage. Had it for three years now, so the fish collection is coming along.

It's bloody expensive though, not just the kit but the daily running costs as well. You need to figure this in if you decide to go for a bigger tank in the future.

My last calculation showed that the tank cost me around £80 per month in electricity alone!