Good luck everyone! Gutted I can't ride this one but my little girl's birthday has to come first. The weather's looking kind so it should be a fantastic ride. Enjoy!

flatfishy wrote: @Mark
Hope your right. How long did yours take?

Posted on Sept 29th, received Oct 10th.

I think most of us westerners have gotten a bit soft in these modern days of central heating and creature comforts. Me & a mate just spent a few nights in tents at a couple of campsites in Scotland and the people at both places thought we were bonkers. We were the only tents at both sites, every...

Damn, I procrastinated on these & missed out on the UK ones in large. Have just ordered some from USA ebay. I'd rather not have a repeat of last winter's cold fingers in my Sealskinz "waterproof" winter gloves

flatfishy wrote:The bigger one is somewhere over the atlantic on it's way to me.
Expecting it any day now.

btw, no customs charges

This one is the .450 (not the bigger .600). I'd say the latter would definitely be a good option for the Trailstar if this one is anything to go by.

Ian, that tiny Mountain Lion looks cute! After shamelessly allowing Ian to be the guinea-pig for Ruta Locura's carbon tarp pole, I proceeded to order my own & it just arrived... http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t433/pedalhead/Various%20stuff/th_2012-10-11143809_zpsd5730319.jpg 80 grams and it...

The poles do feel like the weak point, strength-wise. I think they're all aluminium, though I haven't paid close attention to the black interconnecting bits...could be fibre I suppose (doubt it though), I'll take a look next time it's out.

After a quick trip to Scotland for some car camping and 7Stanes riding last week, I can offer a few thoughts on this bargain basement solo tent. (I paid £35 for mine on ebay). We camped for three nights in cold but still conditions (around freezing, there was a hard frost each morning). Good stuff -...

Outstanding!

Good old Crikey, how much... " for comfort pre and post-ride, travelling and sitting outside cafés." I'm thinking the average Crikey, how much customer probably does quite a bit of the latter ;) (actually I like their stuff, but their marketing makes me want to punch my computer screen).

I wanted a cheap & cheerful solo tent for car camping & specifically for a trip to the 7 Stanes coming up where we'll be wild camping in between trail centres. £35 for a Gelert Solo on ebay & for the money it's not bad at all. Very easy to pitch, seems moderately stable, although it's qu...

Looks very cool Chew. Got a pic of the kayak loaded up?

Hmm sadly I'm not really known for my culinary skills, and I'm thinking Supernoodles may not be up to scratch for this one. I better get the recipe books out...

Ian wrote:

s8tannorm wrote:...take a tarp just in case...

Precisely which tarp and how you pitch it remains a subject of unresolved discussion

Doesn't it just! For another thread perhaps, but I'm hoping your Hexamid tarp with that tougher pole will be good for 95% of conditions.

1. You almost certainly "need" less than you think.

2. Make sure you're having fun. This may require carrying more than you "need".

No worries matey, most of the route was nicely ridable, and some bits were downright bloody marvellous (I'm thinking in particular some of the stuff around Burrator Reservoir). I can imagine that the exposed moorland trails could be a nightmare if saturated..they were pretty slow going even when mos...

Sounds good to me. I may have to squeeze in a sneaky lap of the trail centre as that's one of my favourites.

Careful that rubber band doesn't wear through that uber-light material Ian . I couldn't guess what it was but Ian revealed it to me the other day. I won't spill the beans (yet!), but am very interested on how much space there is in there for a Neoair / Peak Elite plus lofty bag..?

Super pics, looks like a great trip!

I've been experimenting with a low carb diet recently, just to try & get my body trained to burn fat better. I've definitely noticed an improvement in general energy levels (no more peaks & troughs), and on low intensity rides I find I need to eat less. I still feel that I need simple sugars...

Here's a shot taken of me not posing at all :D , somewhere in the Picos mountains...

I use GP1 Biocorks on my long distance bike & they were a revelation. I've stopped using gloves on that bike as the grips are so comfy & supportive on their own, and that's on a rigid bike. Ragley Carnegie bars help too. I've also used ESI Chunkies for a couple of years & quite like them...

aw I missed out on the hot tub! What a great weekend. Super weather, some great trails and a peachy bivy spot. A few pics (album link - http://s1059.photobucket.com/albums/t433/pedalhead/Dartmoor%20bivy%20trip/ )... http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t433/pedalhead/Dartmoor%20bivy%20trip/th_55ce23f...

A new (to me) Salsa Selma 29er frame arrived this morning. Beautiful thing, and hardly a mark on it... http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t433/pedalhead/Salsa%20Selma/th_fe8cf4af.jpg http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t433/pedalhead/Salsa%20Selma/th_a493999c.jpg http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums...