The SON 150 mm hub, suitable for Jones' Truss has a wider flange than the 135 mm option. No funky spacing needed for the rotor, unless the Truss is even more funky. Mine's the older 135 spec truss so the SON is a spaced standard body (not sure whether it's F or R disc spacing). It'd work but I'm fu...

Ah ok, yes! Hope you're well Phil! I seem to remember sitting around in Nice having a beer in the heat before the ride to the airport, if so maybe that was something to do with the hoik it and go approach : )

I think my Jones (2012, original 29er geometry) is a great all-round bikepacker. These days I want a bit more from it when unloaded on trickier trails but for loaded mixed-terrain riding it's one version of perfect. I have one built as a SS and one with gears for loaded trips and summer long distanc...

I do wonder if the cleat ( attached to a rather large heat sink) is the root cause. I believe so. Nothing I add to the top of my feet/shoes or increasing sock layers or insoles makes that much difference. Eventally my feet freeze and the heat loss feels like it's at the ball of my feet. Battery pow...

I've used the Nice airport boxes 4 times now, backed up with plenty of tape plus taping loose items to the bike I've no issues apart from the odd hole. They're flimsy but if the contents is all one item they work ok. Still.. it's a worry and not part of the journey I look forward to (to continue my ...

I had a bottle of Penderyn and just couldn't get on with it ... not sure why .... the only bottle of whisky I've ever given away

I remember trying some in a bar in Wales many years ago and not liking it. There's more options now, the Madeira edition is one I've enjoyed.

^ that was the best TNR travel year, really enjoyed the ride up from Nice. Also when I realised how getting there is best thought of as part of the trip itself.

Morning! and thanks Jason.. an amazing route, : ) European Bike Express is my recommendation if the timing works for you. You might need to drive to a pick up / drop off location they use but you'd be driving to an airport anyway. They don't go to Turin but they go to the eastern Alps and they retur...

It works just as well when taking a tyre off.

It does, same principle.

It's great that others are finding out how this works, one of those things I thought was so good when I was shown how to do it. 'Simple when you know how' : )

Not sure where I picked up a taste for whisky but it's well-enough known that I got a Glen Scotia, a Talisker 10 and a Laphroaig 10 at Christmas :-bd I bought a Jonnie Walker Black Label in Tescos for £22 not long ago, that's good for the money, slightly Islay/peaty but subtle. I was having drinks i...

Hi Alex, thanks, it is - unf the 13" laptop sleeve in that one is a bit smaller than I need.

Hi Alex, is the Borough bag inc the frame that clips to a front block? What colour is it? Thanks

Looks like a great weekend there! Sunshine, some excellent bivi spots and that water wheel cave is quite a thing.. brilliant stuff.

I wish that was the case, walking is the problem I have, being on a bike is actually easier for me, I have learned that you don't recover from a brain tumour, you learn to live with a new version of yourself, I doubt I will be able to bang out a century in a day again with ease but I will be able t...

I've found a down gillet or thin jacket adds more warmth as an upper bag airspace filler / blanket collar kind of thing rather than wearing it inside the bag, to back up what Stuart's saying. Maybe it stops some of the warm air getting out as well as adding insulation.

The 20K ultratrail was born.

The track is constantly evolving but some highlights tend to be there

Strada dell’Assietta
Colle delle Finestre
Gardetta Plateau
Via del Sale

A familiar route. You could've done the TNR and saved yourself £250 ; )

^ exactly. It's one of those things that you're shown once and it's a eureka moment and you understand what a rim well is for. I worked in a Raleigh dealer's as a work experience week when I was 13 or 14 and it was one of the first things they asked me to do - "here, chuck a tyre and tube on th...

Sorry to read that Loki. Could you get out on foot with bivi kit? I've been thinking of doing a hiker bivi recently, should have added it to the list here. Since we all have the gear I wonder how often many of us get out on foot rather than the bike. Thanks Dyffers and Psling. Mark Rigby is someone ...

More regular 2 night trips from my door into Wales would be good, around the Brecons and Black Mountains. Riding to Eurobike again if I can swing it as a work product test trip (it would be, honest). The new venue is in Frankfurt which isn't as nice as Friedrichshafen as a destination but the ride a...

Plus, ensure the tyre on the opposite side of the bit you are levering on is right in the well of the rim. This and making sure you start opposite the valve and work each side round equally back round to the valve. That bit maybe obvious but I'm suprised how often I see people trying to put a tyre ...

Thanks - thought so. GLWS.

The Strada beam pattern is good for road and MTB ime. It's not got such a defined cut-off that it's no good off road (eg compared to the low, distinct cut-off of the SON Edelux II) Ideally I'd have a dynamo and Edelux or similar on all my bikes and add/use a head torch for MTB as needed, but for the...

Interested. I'm getting fed up of fixing holes in mats and never really liked the air mattress roll/bounce. A foam mat could make a useful base or support to a bar roll / bag etc. I was thinking that picking a spot with softer, grassy ground might make it ok. I do like a decent sleep on rides these ...

Hi Keith, interested but it's probably a size too big for me. I'm 6' / fairly slim and a med Montane jacket fits great. I think this will be more roomy and maybe a bit big, any opinions on that / how do you find the fit? Thanks

Not exclusively, I'm not that much of a luddite : ) Mostly SS for unloaded MTB rides though, have been for ~13-14 years now. I got fed up of servicing suspension forks or sloppy bushings and cleaning triple chainset gearing back then, went rigid SS for a winter (Genesis iO with Titec H-bars, loved i...