Been out again with mph showing on my Garmin.
My natural cadence sits nicely around 10mph in 38/22 (32/18), which seems like a nice round number and as an average speed makes for easy maths.
This makes me happy but the utter silence of a freshly oiled SS drivetrain makes me even happier.

Once again, thank you to everyone who's contributed. I'll take all of that advice and let you know how it goes.

Thank you. That's what I needed to hear.
I'll try a couple of weekend trips to places like Yorkshire to get comfortable with how it all works.

I think that'd give me the most confidence.

I'm naturally the sort of person that hates uncertainty, therefore I'm really struggling with the concept of taking my bike on longer train journeys. I only recently started using local services and love how easy I've found it, especially as I'll generally be travelling on a weekend. However, whenev...

I've not researched the route yet. Just want an excuse to ride through Northumberland tbh.

Back from a test run.
Just tolerable on flat tarmac with fast rolling tyres and an unladen bike, so should be bob on with full payload and off-road.
Thanks for your help.

Have finished fettling.
38/22 ratio which is roughly the same as 32/18. Sorted using what I already had in the spares box.
Need some rain now to create the mud.

This is good news! I found I already had the cable, must have come with the light and I have 20Ahrs of power bank storage. Nice bit of flexibility for charging GPS and phone too.
Bring on winter!

Hey all. Anyone know if I'd be able to use this cable to run my exposure strada off a generic power bank battery? Or at least extend the run time of the light by trickle charging as the light was in use? I see that exposure sell an external battery pack but it's expensive and I already have a couple...

Thank you Sean. That's very comprehensive.

I guess I could take a range of sprockets and do a mini test trip. The swinger system on the Les allows me to change from 18 -22t on the same chain.
32t chainring seems the normal starting point.

I think my next adventure might be up the Penine way (I think there's a route on bikepacking.com) From Derby to Edinburgh. I visited Northumberland (Kielder) on my way to Edinburgh this summer with my family and I'd like to ride through this landscape as part of a bigger adventure. It was so silent ...

I'm sorry if this has been asked 100 times. I love riding SS, it's the main reason I bought a Pivot Les. I've not used it without gears for bikepacking yet though, just racing and general riding. Normally I gear for the flat. From memory that's 38/18. I hate spinning out and as a decent climber, can...

Sillybigfella. Can I just check you received my pm? I've not heard back from you.

Sounds great! Have pm'd you.
I'm only 5'11 so guess either length would be fine.

Could I have recommendations for a decent 4 season sleeping bag?
I'm a little bit allergic to down so hoping to find a synthetic bag that's warm enough for trips into the UK hills and mountains during winter.
Will be hiking so bulk not quite such an issue as when bikepacking.

There is another option which seems more and more attractive and that's to not bother with the bike and just hike instead. Still get to explore and can pick out more gnarly routes. Nice thing is that my uber expensive bikepacking gear is just as great for backpacking. As long as I get out there then...

I keep looking at trips in Scotland but the thought of driving for hours puts me off. Reading about the rubbish cycle provision on the mainline trains is hardly inviting. The Caledonian sleeper seems a bit more welcoming?
Anything else I've missed? Coaches for example?

Black Forest is brilliant for riding. Loads of climbing on doubletrack one day then follow a cycle path along a river valley the next.

So will he do it? He's got to do a complete Tour of France in 21 days including riding an 'etape de tour' each day. Tough gig.

My favourite thing about Bontrager tyres is I've never had a problem setting them up tubeless. They hold air even without sealant.

Nice to see lots of love for Bonty tyres. I've always really rated them and race xc on xr2 or 3's.
Currently have Vittoria Terranos on my bikepacking 29er. Obviously very fast and quiet on the road and coped ok when caught out on horrible chalk mud for a day of a recent trip (NDW)

....I'm extending my Sunday morning ride a little beyond my normal sphere and getting a train home. Nothing epic in any way, just a chance to spend time on my beloved bikepacking bike, seeing a few new sights, and having that little frison of adventure feeling. Yet will still be home for lunch :lol:...

It's the only road of any significance that crosses the entire 100 miles of the SDW. Whilst it is busy down here, it's not all bad.