I haven't ridden my suspended bike for as long as I can remember with the weather being as it has. It's been nice using my Swift with an Alfine for the lack of upkeep required. Obviously, living in Suffolk means that I don't spend much time clattering down rocky descents but we have our fair share o...

I use a Garmin edge 200 (presumably equiv to the basic etrex) for route recording and general nav following the bread crumb trail. If I need to see where I am I use UK Maps (£7.99 for all of the UK OS maps). If all else fails. Paper map.

Interesting ... sort of a cross between a Vargo Triad, a Zelph Starlight and a Red Bull. I've looked for suppliers of carbon felt* in the UK but never found one. *There's some carbon felt in the middle of the stove to act as a wick. I think the guy in the States who makes the Back Country Boiler su...

Rab Storm body, sorry Bivi Bag courtesy of SteveMorg :)

Having never previously bothered with a pillow and having been amazed at just how uncomfortable a rolled up fleece could be, I asked santa to bring me a proper camping pillow. My wife, er santa obliged with one of these: http://www.cheaptents.com/acatalog/thermarest-down-pillow.html It does need a b...

Half-links at £2 each seemed a bit steep to me. I bought one of these:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/DiamondBack-Hal ... 642&sr=8-1

Dan_K wrote:The post man brought me a Grivel Munro ice axe today. Should come in really handy in this part of London

/switches over to BBC News24.....

At the risk if falling into the "I've got this so it's the best" trap my Thermarest Haven is under budget and combined with a decent mat does a great job. Took me a while to accept that I wouldn't die from lying on a mat rather than bag filling!

Now that there has been plenty of sensible advice, I can say that a couple of pints of beer, some peanuts, a dressing gown and a towel are all you really need for good trip.

I've got a rack on my Fargo. First test, pre-El-an Back was to deliver some Xmas pressies. Tin of quality street, few bottles of wine & beer, etc. All seemed fine until about a mile into my ride when I stood up for a bit of oomph up a hill and it felt like the bike was going to keel over! Note t...

Far too many bike films have as much pseudo-spiritual guff in them as riding. That's not to say I don't find riding a purely mechanical activity but they often sound so false. "From the inside out" is particularly guilty of this IMHO.

Dunno what you're whinging about.....




I wish the snow stayed long enough to justify buying a fatbike.....

Sounds perfect, cheers! :D

I've got the olive coloured one as it's less "look at me I'm camping illegally" but each to their own.

Do you find it large enough to fit the mat into as well? Breathable enough for a down bag? Green or Orange?

Cheers!

I'm going to give this tarp & Bivi lark a whirl for my February "Bivi a month challenge". The Hunka XL looked a good bet as I should be able to fit me, sleeping bag and the Xtherm inside. Alpkit appear to be out of stock with no indication yet of when more will arrive. Any suggestions ...

More info on the x-lite bars please...

The mk2 Exposure Six Pack has just arrived to join the Diablo. I think eBay is gonna get banned at home. :?

That looks spot on! :)

A good day today for me! New foam lock-ons for the Swift (so I can remove the Alfine shifter easily when swapping to SS), 3-pairs of On-One merino socks in "dennis the menace flavour".....and an Exposure Diablo Mk4. A massive indulgence on my part as I've always been an advocate of Chinese...

I've got a Simple stove and Alpkit mug with lid for day out brew-ups. For El-an Back it was a jetboil with alpkit Ti Pan to boil up two meals at once. MSR Ti cutlery from Uni days when 15 years ago Ti was a big deal and they cost twice as much back then as they do now! I did find the built in igniti...

Tax dodging is only bad when its Jimmy Carr & Starbucks, eh?

I think most weight issues can be avoided by riding in Arizona or similar, it's warmer with less mud. Then again think of all the water needed..... :?

Ooh. These look an ever better idea:

http://clee-cycles.co.uk/esite/P955/product

I've got bb30 on my roadbike, its 105 but with FSA cranks. It creaked like a bugger once you got 20 odd miles into a ride. I've stripped it and slapped grease on the bearings and crank axle which improved matters a lot. I have a PF30 on my Spearfish frame which came installed. I greased that from th...

Mate of mine has the Cube Cross Race £999 so just sneaks in.