Dusting off your French.. mine needed a jetwash and a full polish:) Reminds me to recommend a book, Rides of Passage by Matt Lamy. You might recognise his name from the cycling press where he's been a writer and tester for years. It's about him and his father (Arthur Lamy who owns a bike shop in Gue...

I'm a bit sceptical of theories that the industry killed them off out of fear they'd take sales from other formats :) Surly and others would have kept supplying a niche demand if the demand was there. Maybe the more common 27+ gave a bad impression of the Plus thing? They're a small part of a small ...

I don't know much about 29+ from direct experience but 27+ always felt too conditions-specific to me. Which is fine because tyres generally are, but they were at least cross-compatible with 29" standard. 29+ was maybe quite niche? I think the main thing was how few people want a dedicated rigid...

Cheers for reading it Ben, and Phil + others - it's good to have a place to post trips and re-live it a little.

John, thanks - maybe the easier we all make these things (just pack a bike and pedal, what's the worst that can happen?) the more easy it is to be inspired?

La Bérarde is the best ride in the Alpes I think so. Strong competition around but it's also not really like any of the classic cols. I've mapped out a route that follows most of the dead-end roads into the Ecrins but it's 650km in total, a lot of out and backs and climbing meters. I went up to Pre...

I have a very old Fat Airic that has a small delamination bubble. I thought about using a needle to inject some latex solution into it, or maybe getting some seam grip into the area to re-laminate it. Injecting seam grip sounds difficult but maybe with a larger bore needle? The hole the needle makes...

A long post but it's got pictures to help you through if you can face it : ) This July I made it out to the Alps again after 4 years. I just missed the mountains. It felt so good to be back on French roads, simple solo road touring again. It's not epic, it's not hardcore and it's barely worth report...

(just checking)

^ 'El Camino' .. Very good.

A "third way" is something I really enjoy - looking out for suitable old buildings. I've kipped in old barns (supremely comfy in the hay!), caves, churches, doorways, disused caravans, hen houses, industrial buildings, anything with a roof. Or part of a roof. We each have our own "mo...

it also looks utterly f*****g miserable, as do most of the competitors :shock: Big difference between 'tired' and 'miserable' .. though they might look pretty similar! Lael Wilcox in particular always amazes me by how happy she is out there. Good luck with it all Sam. Must be a fascinating line of ...

It's a good website too.

Good luck to the lad.

+1

'it's just like riding a bike'.. so we tend to just learn and improve as we go. Most sports or activities involve some coaching to get better though. Fitness coaching should boost mental strength in an event if only because you're able to cope better physically, which helps mentally? If the training...

This was never a problem when we had bar ends... "when we had ..." ? Some of us still have :lol: This was never a problem when we all had bar ends... :grin: I sort of still do - loop or H-bars. I had Scott AT4s BITD. It was a close call really, almost developed a liking for aerobars. You ...

This was never a problem when we had bar ends...

Nice idea. -Inspiration of the year (media/person/object etc)* - Can I mention a place, a very general one, as well as a person? The English lanes in autumn. Since being back in the Cotswolds and finding my way round again I've had sunny autumn days on the bike that just make me feel inspired and fu...

Sheesh .. Kanye Lemmy-Tempwest, that's the chap, you know who I mean right?

Wasn't a big fan going back a few years, but anyone with that level of creativity and life story is interesting.

Haha yes sorry - Life of Kai .. Kai Lemmy the surfer

A quick google and I see.. Kae Tempest docu will be worth watching. Personal and artistic change since I was aware of their work last. Thanks!

Verena wrote: ↑Fri Dec 01, 2023 9:15 am It was one of you on here (who are you?) who brought Kae Tempest to my attention a couple of years ago.

"Being Kae Tempest" is on BBC iPlayer now, have just started watching it.

I saw that on Red Bull TV a while back, incredible surfing footage. The wave at Nazare is jaw-dropping.

Even the Cannondale CAAD 12 and beyond (lightes alloy frame on the market I think) frames are probably on the higher probability stakes of failure due to the ultra thin walls of the alloy used. Just a reminder to keep em checked over. 1 thing worth remembering generally is how metal bike parts tend...

It is, despite my typo in the title!

To be fair to Planet X they source from suppliers who make frames and forks for a lot of brands. But yeah, inspect stuff from time to time. The topic came up on STW and there's people saying essentially 'anything can break' and it reminded me that in the summer I found a 2″ crack on the bend of an A...

On BBC iPlayer now. Think it's quite an old documentary but I'd not seen it, enjoying it.

*insert another facepalm gif*