Crowborough Mountain Bikers

Kit, we all love it, and we want it... here is some of the kit we use, and what we think of it.

In an ideal world, we’d all be great at every discipline of mountain biking, from XC, to Downhill, to trail blasting, and we’d have a bike sat in the garage for each of those types of trails. but, unfortunately, unless you’re name is Steve Peat, it’s very unlikely this is going to happen! So, most mortals want a bike that can do a bit of them all, you want to do an eight hour team race, then next month go to the Alps for some serious trails, whilst blasting round your local haunts in between.. what type of bike could possibly do all this..

First, for the uphill bits, mine is a shade over 26lb, so, this means with the Fox RP23 shock set on Pro-pedal, the Fox TALAS set at 100mm (locked out if requested), you can lean into the climb without the front floating up, but lifting it over obstacles is effortless, with efficient pedalling you will be rewarded with a sense of real achievement as you reach the top of most, if not all of those steep technical climbs. I’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s the closest thing you’ll get to a hardtail but with the benefits of full suspension traction, personally I am amazed that a 6” suspension bike can climb this well.

Large suspension bikes have never really been renowned for their sharpened skills through tight, twisty technical single track, they can be a bit wollowy, and the forks can flex as you’re constantly twisting them through corners etc... well, not with the 575, the frame is super stiff (30% stiffer than the previous model), once again using the RP23 if you want to sharpen up the rear end, switch the TALAS system into 120mm, and the 15qr system ensures you’ve got a machine that is at home on any single track trail, sharp and responsive, and of course super quick.

Now down to the fun bit, open the shock, turn the forks to the 140mm setting, point the bike down the hill, and go, go, go, it’s absolutely incredible, it will handle everything and anything you can pretty much throw at it, it sucks up roots, rocks, drops, jumps, it’s easy to bunny hop, and most of all, confidence inspiring, you can actually put your faith in this bike and it will always deliver, you’ll be reaching for the brakes then have second thoughts and just go for it, it’s a controlled ride with an adrenaline rush that you will want to do again and again.

I cannot wait to get out and ride this bike again and again, it looks the business, it rides like a dream, and It makes you feel like you’ll never, ever need another bike.. and this is exactly the feeling you want when you spend a few thousand pounds on Mountain Bike, anything else will just not do!!

Specifications:
Yeti 575 frame with Carbon rear and Fox RP23 Shock
Hope Headset
2009 Fox 32 TALAS RLC 140 QR1 Forks
Hope Mono Mini Brakes with braided hoses, 180mm front, 160 rear
Easton EC70 ML XC Carbon Riser handlebars
Thomson Elite Seatpost
Thomson x4 70mm stem
Full XT Chain set, shifters etc
Mavic XC717 rims with XT hubs

It seems that the older we get the more our balls shrink! Dave was certainly finding this and after a conversation on a ride in Hornshurst with Sam he decided to take the plunge and invest in a pair of 661 Kyle Strait knee pads.

The next week out and Dave was flying down the hills. The new found confidence he maintains is down to the pads. They are comfy and you very quickly get used to them. On hot days they don't seem to get particularly sticky and on the one time he's fallen they've fully protected his knee. Great buy!

After buying a bike, tyres are one of the most important choices you can make, getting the right tyre for the right situation can never be decided by the bike manufacturer, and getting it wrong can have dire concequences.

After trying different makes of tyre, listening to other MTB'ers, and reading reviews, I decided on the tyres above, the Kenda's on the Front, the Ignitor's on the back. Since putting these tyres on, I have not looked back, they have never let me down, punctures are very rare, and no matter what the conditions, they simply grip where you think they shouldn't. A match made in heaven i think.

Candy Bros: I must admit, I liked these pedals, they always clicked in easily and securely, and never had any trouble getting out again when things got a bit dicey, and no matter how clogged up with mud they got, I always clipped in first time. HOWEVER, these pedals have a severe reliability issue, in two years I have gone through two (free) sets, one pedal was rendered useless after cracking the metal bar on a rock, and one just stripped off the spindle in the middle of a ride, luckily I wasn’t too far from home.

Shimano SPD: So I bought the XT version of this pedal (£54 from Merlin Cycles), they look good on the bike, and match the other XT components (we all like a bit of bling), first impression are ok, I wouldn’t say the clip in/out action was as smooth as the Candy’s, but with a decisive click you do seem to be seated securely, I don’t notice any great difference while actually riding as both pedals have roughly the same platform area, and after one ride the XT logo on the side of the pedal is already scratched. It will be interesting to see how they last in the next year or so through the seasons, but if the reliability is good, then I would have to rate them above the Candy Bros.

Getting the bladder in is a mammoth task as well, if you want the full 3 litres it pays to empty out the main pack first.

And lets not talk about quality. Two busted zips and a rubber strip that's come away from the main pack. Not the best thing I've ever bought!

Specialized Tahoe MTB shoe - £58
When buying an MTB specific shoe, there’s a multiple of choice, but mine was down to two, do I go racer style to ensure maximum efficiency, or leisure style for a bit more versatility.
After trying on several options I came home with the Specialized Tahoe MTB shoe. The thing that swayed me was the comfort, there is not much difference between these and a pair of cross style trainers, on or off the bike they look good (I can even wear these when taking the kids for a ride), and with the sole being flexible and grippy, I don’t think I would have any trouble doing hike a bike climbs. One thing I was especially keen on was ensuring that I could wear my extra thick Seal Skin socks without restricting the blood flow into my toes, even to the point of trying them on in the shop with the shoes, with the lace and Velcro strap system of these shoes I don’t think I’m going to have any issues on that point, so far, highly recommended.

Gore Bike Wear - Cross Gloves - £35
Well after my Sealskin gloves fell apart after one season, I needed to invest in a decent pair of gloves, after looking around I came across these gore-tex ones. Not cheap, but they seem to fit well and have a fair amount of padding, thanks to the Gore-tex fabric being waterproof and windproof, I was hoping that it would do the job. So first time out with these gloves, and the temperature is -8c according to Pauls Car, this is the coldest that we've ever ridden in, to be honest, my fingers were bloody freezing, frequently having to take them off and re-warm my hands under my armpits. However, I don't think this is the environment that these gloves are designed for, and I must admit that after three more rides where the temperature has been about -2c these gloves have performed suitably well, fingers have been reasonably warm. I don't have any problem with gripping the handlebar and braking is not an issue, the only slight downside is that they can gather slightly around that palm, but most of the time is was not noticeable.

They are also brilliant for taking the kids out in the snow, handling snow for an hour and my hands were warm and dry, including dipping them in a stream to get stones for eyes!

On One Inbred 456 (by Mark)
Like most people I started on an aluminum hardtail and progressed to a full suspension bike. However, having upgraded my hardtail and then to see it left in my garage seemed a waste especially as I was thinking about a good low maintenance second bike. So with a limited budget the idea of a new frame for my old hardtail seemed the best option. The more I looked on the Internet for ideas the more I kept reading about the virtues of a steel frame. Orange, Voodoo, Cove, Genesis, and a little company up North called 'On One' came to mind. So at £179 for a steel frame the decision was easy and I went with the On One Inbred 456, so called as it can take a 4,5,or 6 inch fork. I also liked the fact they're English, although the frames like most frames are built in Taiwan. However, they are designed for UK weather conditions and therefore have huge mud clearance, and anyone who claims to work from a shed in my eyes is a worthwhile cause!
The intention was for me build it, but in the end Ian at Futurecycles (Forest Row) put most of it together for me at a very reasonable cost.
So how does it ride? Well at just under 5ft 11ins I chose an 18" frame with an 80mm stem. It may sound small but these frames are built for fast single track riding and have a long top tube. After being out on it a few times it still amazes me how comfortable it is, even after 4 hours of riding. It's surprisingly forgiving and climbs very well for a hardtail with 120mm forks. It's early days but for single track riding around Crowborough it's a cracking bike and a lot of fun, so much so that my Stumpjumper FSR has become my second bike! On One will do a full build for you, just pick the spec that suits your budget.
SPEC
Frame     On One Inbred 456 18''
Forks     Marzocchi Bombers MX Pro 120mm
Crank        Raceface Evolve XC splined
F/mech     Shimano Deore LX
R/mech     Shimano XT
Brakes      Avid BB 7's mechanical discs
Stem         Zero 80mm
Bars          Easton EA50 low rise
Seat Post Easton EA 50
Wheels    Continental Vertical 2.3' tyres on Alex rims
Useful websites:
www.on-one-shop.co.uk
www.futurecycles.org
www.merlincycles.co.uk

High5 Edurance Drink
£20-£25 a tub
This stuff really helped us out on the 100km enduro in the Isle of Wight, not only does it make you go further, faster, but it also helps in the recovery, especially when you've been out on a ride Sunday morning and you've still got to entertain the kids in the afternoon. Ok so it's not cheap and you've probably got other priorities on the MTB purchasing list, but believe me, it really does work

Exposure Race Maxx front light
£204.99 (chainreactioncycles.com)
So, how much do you spend on lights if you want to crack a bit of night riding, you don't want anything cheap, as it's going to be counter productive, but you also don't want to spend a fortune enabling you to feed the wife and kids. So £200 seems so sit about the mid range market, I did think about going for the Exposure Joystick as it seemed to be getting some rave reviews, but as I couldn't get them for a while I thought I would spend another 60 notes on the Race version.

They don't dissappoint, considering that you can spend another one or two hundred pounds on Lupins etc, these do the job as much as you would want them to, and in some cases just as well. the light is spread over the trail ahead in good proportion and seems to light up the whole trail without haveing a spot light effect. On one ride the weather was extremely wet, and after two hours in continuous rain, this didn't seem to dampen the performance.

Easiest the best functional light you can buy, all you do is attach the quick release bracket to your hanlebars, then when as required, clip your light in and out of what seems a very sturdy and secure method, as this light is small and light, and without any wires at all, you can also use it as an every day torch. Battery life seems good, after a 2 hour ride, mostly on the maximum setting, this doesn't seem to be an issue, simple button operation to change between light settings, and charging is no problem as the battery doesn't have to be discharged before charging.

If you don't want to spend a fortune on a light system, that's easy to use and does the job, lightweight, fantastically easy to mount, and can be used for every day torch duties, then this is the light for you.

Suunto T6 HRM (by Dave)
Not the cheapest HRM in the world, but a great gadget! This little baby
measures your heart rate to laboratory condition accuracy. You get an
easy to use piece of software that allows you to measure seven key body
perameters, heart rate, energy consumption, ventilation, oxygen
consumption, respiratory rate, training effect and EPOC.

The Training Effect is an indicator of how much the training session
improved your aerobic fitness. This is based on your measured EPOC,
(Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption) value during the session.
Training effect is based on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being Minor and 5 being
Overreaching. It's interesting to note that on one of our 4 hour rides I
spend most of the time at level 4, Highly Improving Training Effect.

In addition the T6 is able to measure altitude and temperature. It can
also be hooked up to POD's, peripheral observation devices so you can
measure speed and distance either via a clamp on your forks, a POD on
your shoe for running or a GPS unit.

The T6 hooks up to your PC very easily by way of a clip onto the watch
and a USB2 connection to your PC.

Data can be seen in graphical or tabular format for analysis. Both
formats are easy to use and read. You can do a training route and see
how your performance improves.

All in all a really great product.

Update 4 May - I've now added the GPS Pod to this great bit of kit! It's where we get the ride miles and climb from amongst a whole load of other stuff!

www.suunto.com

Tacx Imagic T1900 (by Dave)

Well I only picked this little baby up on Sunday and already I can see
what a great training tool it's going to be, if only I get the time to
go on it.

What is it? It's a virtual reality turbo trainer. You rest a bike in it,
plug it into your computer and pedal away.

Except it's not quite that simple. The magnetic roller is braked to
allow you to have to work at a higher wattage to turn the wheels. Speed,
heart rate and cadence are measured electronically and Watts generated
by you are calculated.

So far what I've sussed out is you can:

*       Work to various training programs using the catalyst software
*       Cycle in a virtual world against pretend opponents or yourself
through various road circuits. The brake in the mag roller simulates the
affects of going up hills.
*       Via Netathlon you can race other users in virtual races
*       You can use the Analysis software to analyse your performance
*       There's an optional steering rack so you can steer your bike!
*       You can download additional routes for a small cost
*       You can save a route you ride on your GPS and upload it to the
software

The only problem I've encountered so far is that my laptop is a bit of a
dog, so some of the time the sky goes black.

As I get to use it I'll provide more updates!

Update 4 Sep, I've just bought the Tacx Training Software. A great bit of kit although the forums suggest some stability problems with the software. You can now download a route and ride it on Google Earth, download routes from the Bikenet and race other people, and a greatly improved Catalyst just add even more to the Imagic!

www.tacx.com

Dakine Nomad Hydration Pack
£65
So after a year of stashing a bladder into a daysack, I thought it was about time I upgraded to a bike specific pack. For some reason, I've never been a fan of CamelBaks, probably because I thought they've always been a bit expensive for what you got. So after a good look around in magazine's, internet and the shops, I thought I'd go for the Dadine Nomad.
First Impressions are pretty good, the front compartment means that when you unzip, everything is viewable and directly accessable, in the main compartment you can get a jacket, spare gloves and more. There's a lined pocket for a camera or phone, 2 more pockets on the side, and a netted pocked for a helmet or whatever on the back. With a 3 litre bladder, you know it's going to last for those all day epics as well. I also like the way you can detach the drinking tube from the easily accessable bladder, although check the connection on the bladder as mine was from a faulty batch and had to be replaced (with a better model luckily).
It seems to sit on the back comfortably, and being stealth black, good looks come into thebargain as well.

Specialized BG Ridge Classic Glove
£19.99
Comfortable enough, although I am finding that the material seems to gather around the palm, as for the long term durability of these, I'm not sure as there does seem to be a few threads that are coming loose already within six or seven rides, personally, I wont be buying them again. Updated: I replaced these after falling off, they did the job but were useless afterwards.

Dave says he loved the old version Graeme was moaning about, but the 2009 ones, a crock of toilet stuff! These things are too low in the wrist and have no snot wipe. A real let down.

Updated 03 Feb 09:
These gloves only lasted me one winter season, the lining was a complete nightmare, trying to get your hands in when wet was impossible, and then when you took them out again you had to be very carefull as not to rip the lining out, in the end this happened so the goves became unusable, I would have to think carefully if buying again.

Maxxis High Roller XC 2.10 (folding)
£19.99 each
One of the problems with my Marin that I've never been happy with were the tyres. I never really felt that confident when I needed to push the bike that little bit harder, especially when cornering. However, after putting the above tyres on, that seems to have changed, not only do they seem quicker in a straight line, the difference on the corners was pretty impressive. They do blow up quite skinny as the rest of the internet reviews suggest, and perhaps look like a 1.9 tyre, but I'm hoping that these will also see me through the winter as they seem to cut through the mud ok.

Update: Some of you may have seen the hole in my arm in the injuries page of this website, this was while I was using these tyres, I took them off and never used them again. I also used the 2.35 versions which were much better on grip, but were not so quick on the roll.

Endura Pheonix jacket
£69.99
I was after a jacket, and this seemed to be in my price bracket, I couldn't affort a top of the range Berghaus so I thought this would be a good compromise. I would say it definately keeps me dry (as it did in Afan). I wouldn't say it compressed massivley but enough to get into a mid size daysack and is light enough. Some people would be put off by the red colour but I quite like it. My only problem so far is the zip, after only one season I wouldn't say it was lasting brilliantly and seems stick a bit.