Ragley Blue Pig anyone??

My new ride, been missing a bike for just razzing round on.

These frames are awesome and i'm loving mine. It's built from steel (Ti & Alloy are also available) and features a slack head angle to get the most out of the 140mm forks ability and to keep the steering right for natural type riding, slow and technical.

Now the main issue with slack head angle is normally bikes climb like crap BUT they've thought of that bike sticking in a steep seat tube angle to put your weight and body in the right place, you end up riding alot more weight on the fork but without that "over the bars feeling" similar to my 69er really keep your weight forward and smash through stuff!

I'm still learning how to ride it (big fork and gears...very strange) but am quickly starting to love it and i'm looking for steeper nasty stuff to chuck it down.

More details here: http://www.ragleybikes.com/

Gardening leave.....well Riding time really!

So i've resigned at work...been coming for a long time really for various reasons. Gave my notice in on Monday and i've been given a months Gardening leave!
Basically i still work for the shop, but don't go to work like a month's holiday although they can still ask me to work in that time.

So i've not got a new job to go to at the moment so i've got a month to find something!, i've got a few ideas of my own bike stuff so we'll see how that pans out and we'll go from there.
Maybe i'll end up part time somewhere and getting my own business up and running.

One things for sure (other than the week we're in Spain) there's a whole load of riding to be done!

Transwales...done

What an insane event! Some of the most fun riding and funniest most random moments of my life!

Also some of the lowest points in my riding life, double punturering on a bleak moor looking round and their's no one, your tires won't unseat and your becoming very cold and feeling crap.

Then you get it fixed and crack on to the next bit of Singletrack or outstanding view...

The best event i've ever done, days involved massive grinding fireroad climbs, boggy moorland that left you pushing for what seemed like hours, climbs that "kick up around the corner" and some of the best descents and singletrack riding i've ever done. Every day you'd nearly cry and then nearly wet yourself laughing.

Day 5 was the longest and toughest with around 91km and 3000 meters of climbing is scared a few people. The day included the Red and the Black at Brechfa, imagine riding 50km (after riding 80km for 4 days before) and then chucking yourself down the steepest berms and drops you can think of! I could barely hold the bars at some points! That above is me at the end of the day

I'm pleased with my performance and as i was just looking to finish the rest was a bonus! I was 3rd Singlespeed and 30th overall.

Only 5 others have ridden the event Singlespeed now!

Singlespeed was fine for the event, rode a lot with Matt and Rob who were also Singlespeed, most of the week was spent hungover,buggering about,riding into each other,hitting each other with sticks and general shenanigans....but it really made the week, we helped each other through the low points and the rode the best bits together laughing and acting like school boys

A big well done to http://josh-ibbett.blogspot.com/ who got as drunk us and still managed to have a laugh and finish 2nd overall! Perhaps he could have won if he didn't dribble in his pint that time......

More of the same next year me thinks!

Transwales...

Transwales starts on Sunday and i'm trying to ram a large amount of clothes into a small bag and not forget anything.
Also my legs are still a bit shot from Bonty solo.

Transwales is a 7 day stage race around Wales, covering the some of the toughest areas on mid Wales, no one really lives in the area as it's that bleak in places and boggy and there's bugger all there. It covers 344 miles and some 16500 meters of climbing so i'm taking the Singlespeed...no idea why really but think it will be the better option.
Id rather walk than granny ring, although at 4am in a field in Plymouth there was a whole load of granny ring going on....

I'll update this when i get back but you can see daily updates here:
http://www.mtbtransuk.co.uk/wales/2009_roundup.php

and ill be doing me twitter thingy here:
http://twitter.com/rustyhitopphil

Fingers crossed ill finish

Bontrager 24/12 The aftermath....

Well that was a bit tough! Sorry for the slow update! Just about come round from my daze.

Yet again a cracking event, great course although tougher than last year with what seemed like endless climbing (340mtrs) each lap.
Awesome BBQ on friday from the guys at Trek uk with one of the best wines i've ever tasted provided by Keith Bontrager himself who joined us and laughed at the dogs playing up!

Race started and as much as id love to give a lap by lap account i have no idea what happened! Stand out things were:
Cramp lap 5...not good, slapped myself drank more and improved.
About 9pm felt sick needed salt and a cup of tea.
Darkness fell...course got slippery
Early hours...i fell down, bounced (hip) on stump...landed knee 1st on another stump...sat in the dark on my own for a while...nearly cried...man in Totoo picked me up and cuddled me, helped me clip in and sent me on my way. (Yes it did happen, man is on STW)
Last lap fully in the zone of being spaced out..fell down in the solo pit. Embarrassing...

Finished 14th Solo :-) with 17 laps. Felt rough and fell asleep alot afterwards, and for about 10days!
Think this pic sums it up..
http://www.joolzedymond.com/photocart/index.php?do=photocart&viewImage=49069&zoom=yes&q=55

Would i do it again??? Hell yes Top 10 next year.

Getting ready for the weekend...32 x 16

Good 5 and 1/2 ride on the Procaliber on Sunday in the wind, rain and mud! Bike stood up to it well, possibly broken an XO shifter though, seems ok after a quick rebuild but think it will probably give up at around 2 am Sunday
Handles well in the mud even with the XDX tyres fitted (Dry fast tyre)...damn tubeless makes you lazy for changing stuff around!

Now the weather has been fully rubbish for about 2 weeks now so conditions ain't sounding great down south in Plymouth. On a brighter note though it means i may be able to Singlespeed :-) as originally planned. The main climbs on the course should be all good as there pretty hard pack.
The singletrack is all pretty good for 32 x 16 aswell.

Riding SS should help with mechanical's in the weather, although a dry weekend is forecast, there will be so much water around already it'll be a mud fest leading to screwed chainsets and jammed mechs...not good for the wallet or performance!

So new brake pads and a bit of lube and it's 32 x 16 for me...although the Pro will be with me just in case.

Bontrager 24 just 9 days to go.....

Ohhhh crap....just 9 days to go and I'm only just back on the bike! Really looking forward to it again this year, was an awesome course last year and even more Singletrack this time.

Trying to picture the course in my head at the moment, strange the climbs don't seem so bad in my mind but I'm sure that road climb and the climb after the river crossing is a bugger!

Weather forecast seems to change by the second, but at the moment I'm going to get wet..very wet but not for long then the sun will come out...then very wet again, which should be fun!

Still not sure what bike to ride so the 69er (test ride dependant next week) will be there as well as the Procaliber although weather may help this decision! XTR chainset in the rain and mud..don't think my wallet can take it!