Mountain Biking general thread

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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

I suppose it depends what you want to achieve, I use one of the flexible ones over winter, I'm only really interested in keeping spray/mud out of eyes and they're more than good enough to do that.
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ZedLeg
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by ZedLeg »

I bought cheapy mud plugger guards, they just zip tie on. They do the job.
An absolute unit
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KiwiDave
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by KiwiDave »

That is very fucking cool Mr Jobson! :D
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

I didn't realise that the Bosch Purion display is the actual hand controls too. How does it feel in use? I'd be a bit worried about how vulnerable it is on top of the bars there?
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

Hand controls? Other than turning it on and switching between assist levels, there are no controls per se.

It feels fairly tight to the bars and compact but I guess it could be vulnerable. I’d definitely prefer just an on/off switch somewhere out of the way on the frame, maybe with remote +/- buttons on the bars.
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

Yeah, you switch between modes fairly often - presumably you couldn't put the bike down upside down?
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

The Purion is pretty low profile - the bar rise would keep it off the ground.
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Gavin
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Gavin »

I have the same mucky nutz mudguards. Not perfect but do keep your face cleanish.

I actually made one out of some Perspex, vinyl wrap and a nice Ultra Marathon sticker. I did use the old one as a template but if you are so minded, there are how tos on YouTube using old bottles.

Went out yesterday and did 8 miles in the sun and wind with a mate who was running, on a long hill I realise my fitness has dropped a lot in just a few months of crappy weather and a sore shoulder.
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

I was out with my bro on his electric Kenevo (me on my Non-e Capra) again yesterday and we tried a "Top gear" style race. There's a flowy down hill run that we both started together and did a fast run down, I then rode/pushed as fast as I could back to the top, whilst he rode back to the top and did a second run.

He still beat me back to the top.

So that basically proved it for me, ebikes mean you can happily do twice the fun stuff in the same amount of time!

Also, I saw this group test earlier (Jobbo you might like it - not the exact same models of YT, Specialized or Orbea, but very close).

https://youtu.be/bXKL-Usxst8
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

I didn't get a chance to go out on mine over the weekend - too many things already to do. But the quick ride I had on it last Thursday definitely put the lie to anyone who thinks it's cheating - it just feels like a normal bike to ride, but with help at lower speeds. As you say, less time doing the boring bits, more fun :)

ETA: I shall enjoy that video - I've clicked through the links and yours gets a Shredder award, while mine gets an all-rounder award; looks like I chose wisely, purely based on looks :lol:
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

Finally took a break from work to ride it properly this morning. I only spent a couple of hours out because the frost meant my toes were chilly, and I lost one of my overshoes before leaving the house 😄

Back in 1994 when I was working at Lucas (on a metal matrix composite material which was used in the original Elise brake disks) I bought my first ‘decent’ MTB and rode it pretty much every day after work. I’d chuck it in the back of my Peugeot 205 and often head to the Cotswolds; I regularly cycled up Leckhampton Hill past the Devil’s Chimney. Since I now live only a few miles from there, what better way to christen my new bike? The only better way would be to go there and fall off within about 20yds of the car park 😂

The track I started up wasn’t the one I used back in the 90s; I think the car park is a more recent addition, and I used to start up a different route from Daisybank Road. The track looked a bit steep, with tree roots and plenty of stone. Which turned out to be very slippery with e-bike torque. The rear wheel spun, I fell gracelessly onto my right. Just pride hurt, it was impossible to get going again on that bit so I pushed it up to the next flatter part.

Image

After that it was great; I used a bit of sense as to what it would grip on (slightly damp ground, lots of solid stones and just above freezing). And I didn’t cycle up beyond the old limestone kilns about half way up because the next bit looked a bitch. I remembered it was summer when I used to ride here...

So I took a different route instead and had an absolute blast. With the motor, riding up is as much fun as riding down so it was definitely the right thing to buy. I made a lot of use of turbo mode, and wished my mudguards had arrived.

Looking forward to slightly warmer days so I can go out for much longer without hypothermia.

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Gavin
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Gavin »

Sounds like a good first ride. I would imagine, having had a two minute blast on an ebike, that it would take some getting used to and figuring mode useage etc.
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

Gavin wrote: Sun Mar 07, 2021 9:11 am Sounds like a good first ride. I would imagine, having had a two minute blast on an ebike, that it would take some getting used to and figuring mode useage etc.
not really - if you can do gears then you can do modes - need more help up a hill, whack it up a mode. That's pretty much it!
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

Yeah, modes are fine. And it only assists when you pedal anyway.

Modes are even easier than gears because you can change them while stationary.
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Coaster1
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Coaster1 »

I like that @Jobbo
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KiwiDave
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by KiwiDave »

Excellent news! Good to see another convert enjoying them! :)
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

Well I'm a little bit excited, my decoy is out to delivery on a van 10 miles away, so I'm hoping to have it today... then it's charging the battery (hopefully the charger is in the package) and applying the invisframe protection tonight (hellish job, but worth it) then Sunday out with the crew to play!
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

Can't wait for Sunday - I've had a ride up and down the street, but that doesn't tell me much as they stop assisting after 15.5mph, I need to use it on the tight twisty ups and downs. I expect I'll be derestricting though!

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McSwede
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by McSwede »

Nice!! 😎😎
Shlergen
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Shlergen »

Nice bike. I just bought proper helicopter tape. Not cheap but cheaper than the kits and is holding up nicely.
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