Yeah, I thought Ulrich was going to catch Mike's dot, but not now. Looks like a year of tough conditions for different reasons (not wildfires), but Alexandera Houchin is ahead of her own record, as her hefty SS gear seems to be better suited to the last parts of the route.

Front brake bleed and new pads on the old XTRs, bit of bedding in riding today, ready for an overnight on Saturday. Old fluid was pretty dirty and a fair bit of air came out so it was overdue (and felt like it was at the lever).

Agree, always wanted a pair of XM9s, and I don't think BOA is necessarily an upgrade and not keen on the looks of the new one - may have to find some old ones still in stock now..

Yes good point, found a tick on my leg after a ride on monday

Ditto to the above - live near the ridgeway. Very very dry and hard, and recent rain has merely damped down some of the dust which was getting looser in places. Yep, max vegetation so expect to be pulling stuff out of your rear mech and arms and legs tingling/scratched!

fatbikephil wrote: ↑Fri Jun 16, 2023 3:53 pm According to Josh Ibbets vid on that bikepacking they are in a lavvy

What other bike race could deliver such entertainment! That's a special time together

Doesn't get much cooler than this. Great article on Bikepacking.com:

I've used Hutchinson overide 650x47 and they're decent on road. Not really to my needs as I prefer a bit more off road and they span out on the rear too often. They are also only £30 on merlin right now (the pic is a 700c tyre, they come up fairly fat and true to size). https://www.merlincycles.com/...

That was a good read, and a nice mention of Jenn Hopkins' early SS record. It was her article in Singletrack that first piqued my interest in the race. Lael seems to be doing well, keeping in touch with her record and in a small bunch at a stop in 10th.

Each year I find myself rooting for Mike Hall's record dot. Kinda hoping it won't be beaten. Reading more about some of the riders taking part this year, it's definitely an interesting one. Be interesting to see how gravel racers, ex pros and ultra endurance racers get on...the weather and the mind ...

Quite looking forward to this one. Lael has ridden from Mexico as a little warm-up, as she tends to. If conditions are good then she could improve on her own record. Also have a lot of love for Alexandera Houchin, who has nothing at all to prove on the TD, but she's still going to hammer out a total...

Shaf, a tip for aiding visual ID or photos: as you have an Android phone, find Google Lens on either your camera or the app (it should be native free google app), and once open take a picture with Google Lens or you can use it on images from your gallery, and it'll help identify plants and animals, ...

Maybe Brant can buy it for a quid and it'll become HebTroBike..?

Hope they do keep going, but clearly a tough environment at the moment, and like everyone else, overstocked. Last thing any of the staff need is to loose their jobs or have added uncertainty

Sorry, should have updated the post as it's now sold. Apologies!

Great list of big name riders, and really good bike list. Most interesting is Isla Rowntree and her great looking custom bike:

Just a few new colours for the camino - v. boring

I’m probably being daft but I’m struggling to find anything on google, an article or maybe two but no overview map or anything? Often thought Mach as a start point and riding either to the northern coast or home (Chester) would make for a good weekend It's not been published or launched by Cycling ...

Apologies if this has been posted before, but a search didn't yield. Route description sounds good, and overall I think having a well thought out 'official' route is a good thing, as ones like the KAW have proven. I'm sure it'll take in plenty of previous BB200/300 rides, and also notes that it coul...

Saw something about brutal winds? Shame, he seemed to be doing really well...

Sonder teasing a new bike out soon...my guess is a steel broken road

Got some light hiking ones I use from Decathlon. Little bit of stretch, very fast drying and breathable. Got them because I got bored of heavy and too baggy mtb specific ones. Mine are a little bit on the short side but still fine, and just seen they do long versions: https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/m...

It's an adult Lego helmet!

As new, no packaging. Fitted to bike but not used. Ended up getting a Salsa EXP cradle so no longer needed. £40 posted

Replaced chain and cassette on the Camino. Changed chainset to my old SLX due to lack of availability of N/W rings for the 105 asymmetric bolt pattern. New 38t chainring, new pedals, and new 812 GRX mech which was in my cycle to work parts bundle. New gear cable and outer will follow when I swap bar...

Those Kona forks linked by PaulE look like they'd do the job and are a decent price. In a similar steel and straight steerer vein, Surly Straggler or Disc Trucker QR forks are the right a/c and have reasonable tyre clearance: https://www.tritoncycles.co.uk/frames-forks-c6/rigid-forks-c51/surly-strag...