spode@thinkbikes

Woken up and I'm pretty achey - but really enjoyed London yesterday. Met some really good people - some for the first time and some that I haven't seen in a very long time, so that was cool. It was great to see some creativity in the riding rather than just moving on to the next tap - even from those on 26" and 20" where pulling the moves Seems like I need to ride with some more 24" guys to be "Inspired" (pun intended) - it was a like a return to the old school!

It wasn't two! They were both me! No more planned at this stage

Woohoo! I won! And met one of the actors in the film I was at the premiere for...

http://www.spodesabode.com/misc/Anchorman-Sweded.mp4

He? They are both me.

I want to ride *anywhere* but London - and annoyingly, I think that's the only day I can make. But I'll be there. If any of you are selling a 24" - bring it on the day so I can check it out and pay cash

If that's how you guys are treating your discs - no wonder you complain they don't lock ;)

I couldn't really put this down as a biking video... Entering a competition at the moment just for journalists - so figured I'd put a little effort in. This is a remake of a scene from Anchorman - it's meant to be "sweded", like in Be Kind Rewind. In other words - crappy looking

I'm on it

Had a great time there, must be said

Where was my invite Mr Hill?? Have to say - you're looking thinner in these pics And some beasty riding

Beasty. Was that a home-made lens though? It looks like it's been scratched more times than a DJs decks...

Some photos of them in action: http://www.thinkbikes.com/gallery-view/bug-lovin-2009 Example:

No, it's been really poorly machined. HUGE groves in it - just won't bed in. Needs replacing. Mine's pretty solid after a single ride.

Christ - if you corrected everyone's SPAG on here - you'd have a full time job! Andy is having some disc trouble - he needs a new rotor on the rear. But from what I saw of his riding today - he's doing pretty well

Think Bikes has been sponsored by Tarty Bikes for the last 2 years! Dave likes his spinny gearing - suits his riding style more. I was very tempted by 18:15, but I'm really enjoying 18:16. I knew someone would pick up on the lack of pedals We're running those fairly standard caged pedals - Echo VP style thingies. All welcome to try them if you're ever down our way - and we do use them in our training sessions too - hence the dual direction bash guards!

This is the picture Adam sent us before we went to pick them up - will get some "in action" shots soon. But as you can see - three virtually identical YaaBaa 1499s - with slightly modifications. We have changed the handle bars for TrialTech, and went for dual Try-All discs front and rear (180F + 190R). Dave and The Boy (Andrex - Andy) didn't want front freewheel so are riding Hope Pro II hubs on the rear. The Boy is using an 18:16 ratio while Dave is using a 17:16 ratio. Spode kept with the stock front freewheel but adjusted the gear ratio to 18:16. We all changed the rear type to Maxxis Minions, with Dave sticking to a single ply due to his slight figure and preference for a light rear end. Certainly, I've found it an excellent bike to ride. It seems to just fly around - gaps are easier (on both front and back wheel), side hops are easier. It feels easier to tuck on - it spins better. Overall, it's just better. It holds on the back wheel without any effort and the higher stem, to me feels like a more optimum position for energy transfer - bringing the bars closer to a bench press position. I have my own personal concerns about horizontal drop-outs (I may well end up sticking a 74 Kingz on there), but other than that, I can only concur with Dave - that it's the nicest bike I've had yet. Now that I've mostly recovered from my knee surgery - I'm very much looking forward to the year ahead with anticipation. The Boy has worked out very well over 2008 and it's been a pleasure to bring him in as a full-time team member, something he is also pleased with as it means he gets a new bike He has also had the hardest time adjusting - moving from a short Zoo with dual maguras, but from what we saw of him at the Tarty warehouse, he's adapting quickly and won't have any embarrassing squeeks next time we're performing in a deadly quiet school hall Big thanks to Adam, Ali, Stan and the rest of the chaps at Tarty Bikes . We look forward to seeing people in and around London and Kent for street riding - or even at our demonstrations. Feel free to follow us on twitter to see what we're up to and where we are!

http://twitpic.com/4px0u This is the picture Adam sent us before we went to pick them up - will get some "in action" shots soon. But as you can see - three virtually identical YaaBaa 1499s - with slightly modifications. We have changed the handle bars for TrialTech, and went for dual Try-All discs front and rear (180F + 190R). Dave and The Boy (Andrex - Andy) didn't want front freewheel so are riding Hope Pro II hubs on the rear. The Boy is using an 18:16 ratio while Dave is using a 17:16 ratio. Spode kept with the stock front freewheel but adjusted the gear ratio to 18:16. We all changed the rear type to Maxxis Minions, with Dave sticking to a single ply due to his slight figure and preference for a light rear end. Certainly, I've found it an excellent bike to ride. It seems to just fly around - gaps are easier (on both front and back wheel), side hops are easier. It feels easier to tuck on - it spins better. Overall, it's just better. It holds on the back wheel without any effort and the higher stem, to me feels like a more optimum position for energy transfer - bringing the bars closer to a bench press position. I have my own personal concerns about horizontal drop-outs (I may well end up sticking a 74 Kingz on there), but other than that, I can only concur with Dave - that it's the nicest bike I've had yet. Now that I've mostly recovered from my knee surgery - I'm very much looking forward to the year ahead with anticipation. The Boy has worked out very well over 2008 and it's been a pleasure to bring him in as a full-time team member, something he is also pleased with as it means he gets a new bike He has also had the hardest time adjusting - moving from a short Zoo with dual maguras, but from what we saw of him at the Tarty warehouse, he's adapting quickly and won't have any embarrassing squeeks next time we're performing in a deadly quiet school hall Big thanks to Adam, Ali, Stan and the rest of the chaps at Tarty Bikes . We look forward to seeing people in and around London and Kent for street riding - or even at our demonstrations. Feel free to follow us on twitter to see what we're up to and where we are!

Awesome Rowan. Certainly makes you look at your technique a bit more doesn't it. People worrying about brake slippage all the time. I've often found - If my brakes slip, my technique was wrong Still - nice to have them there, you know, just in case

Not yet. Don't worry - if we do, It'll be on the site.

And that's why you'll always be The BOY.

That's just because you love Suzi Perry...

He's got talent

Hi Chaps, Just a video of us performing at The Gadget Show Live 2009 at the Birmingham NEC. For anyone waiting for us to appear on Britain's Got Talent - our routine was very similar to this one. http://www.thinkbikes.com/video/thinkbikes-gadget-show There are also some pictures from the same day: http://www.thinkbikes.com/gallery-view/the-gadget-show-2009

Andy didn't want to post this, but he's just too shy. Which is odd considering how much he loves the attention of thousands of school girls (who doesn't??) http://www.thinkbikes.com/video/thinkbikesandyjohnson It's a bit TGS, but still fairly enjoyable. It'll be interesting to see how he compares to this when he gets his new YaaBaa next week, and all the riding he's been doing with David Lowe