Greetings

Heaviest I ever used was 17:15. I just don't like heavy ratios, light ratios make the bike feel lighter and you need more speed than strength to get things done. Plus run-up distances are a lot shorter. Hooks and big taps are obviously more difficult, but that's what short cranks are for

Went back to stock today, changed ratio to 18:17. Feels a bit weird but I'm doing things first try that I couldn't do at all on the 24. Meh, I love this wheel size.

My friend rode a mod while being 2m tall. It looked a bit ridiculous, but he coped perfectly.

In all fairness though, good driving is also anticipating what the person in front of you will do next and it was pretty obvious in this case. Plus the biker is trying to overtake on a double line and a pedestrian crossing.

Recently posted some clay animation that was just plain weird. This is too - to an extent - but it's soo funny

Finished reviving a polish trials forum yesterday. Weeks of hard work which proceeded the purchase of a broken forum database. We were without a forum for 3 months and it was working badly for half a year, now need to get users back into the game since Facebook has taken over a bit. Also reviving my muscles, probably not in the way you should in order to achieve the best results but it's a way that speaks to me as someone who couldn't be arsed to exercise. I've set myself a target of 50 wide grip pull-ups a day (yeah, that's pretty low), 180 push-ups in sets of 30, also going to start Air Alert next week. A month of that should bring my legs back to normal. Also building back the 26" tomorrow, so no more sorry excuses about a new bike being the cause of my poor riding.

Established middle class apparently.

oh my god http://www.wimp.com/ricemaking/

Got some pics. I really need to fix the right side of that car. Asked for the dent to be sorted, rear bumper can probably stay that way, front one needs to be glued back together... Things are constantly falling off this car, looks nothing like it used to. I'm sure I can paint most of the stuff myself though. We're starting a team, 4 drivers in 3 classes. Might help get some sponsorship next year or at least take things a step further.

I'm going to hazard a guess that the torque will depend on the clamps, not the handlebars. There are at least 3 types of clamps I can think of and I'm sure that tightening all 3 types to the same torque will not result in the same clamping force. I've owned a pair of Bonz carbon bars for probably 2,5 years now and never paid much attention to appropriate torquing of bolts. Had lots of different stems throughout those 2,5 years too. Obviously you'll be safer torquing them correctly but if you've got a feel for tools then you'll be fine.

Flew a model aeroplane today, flight lasted about 10 seconds and I need a new plane It's VERY different to the simulator we were using for the last month. Thankfully only the fuselage is broken, everything else is intact.

The weirdest one I saw today was http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWApF3aKoA8. It was aired separately. You know something is weird when in one of the final scenes a father who has become a warewolf attacks a sheep which is actually his son's body with a sheep brain dressed in a sheep outfit, while his son is trapped in a sheep's body dressed as a child. And since the sheep's body in which he's trapped was pregnant, he gave birth to a little sheep which he later attaches to a kite and flies it. And for some reason there's a sheep throughout the film with the rear half of it's body missing, and it's just standing there eating hay which falls out if it as soon as it swallows. Brain = f**ked.

I went to a film festival today, the theme was animation with adult content. Really enjoyed these two:

Got further motivation problems with riding, this time a bit more serious. It's normal that after winter I have absolutely no stammina but after this winter, I have no muscles left. They're physically there, but they don't work. It's sooo frustrating, I find myself using most of my strength while setting up for the gap and then on preload I feel like my muscles are exhausted and arms can't hold the handlebars. It's bad. And with a new bike, I'm constantly thinking that perhaps my riding is poor because of a new setup. It's almost certainly not, but subconsciously I believe that it is. I'm trying to ride, but find myself going back home after 5-10 minutes tops. Living in a remote location doesn't help practising with a fellow trials rider who could get me out of this rut.

Diff sorted, changed ratio from 4.45 to 4.27. Took part in a competition called BMW Challenge which is part of a larger series called AB Cup, it's mostly held on airfields around the country and attracts drivers from all over the place, so if you want serious competition on an amateur level, this is the series to take part in. Managed to win the BMW Challenge Open class which has no restrictions other than BMW chassis and BMW engine, took 1st place overall in BMW Challenge and 3rd in AB Cup being beaten by a friend in an Impreza Type R and Evo. Annoyingly, I had the lead after 5 of 6 special stages and if I wasn't told that my lead was only by 0.5s, I wouldn't be so tense. Made 2 mistakes which were the only ones on that event and those cost me over 10 seconds. First time on racing slicks and I'm astounded at the grip. Also the tyres lasted only this event, they're dead. So pretty expensive. For those interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsVlpOhjZZ8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VRhEAyPNP8 Rear view, really like this one because it seems to convey the speed much better, especially parts like 1:28. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VY2cBUpfLms

I'm sure a lot of R&D has gone into designing this bike so the price is not that silly. After all that's what you're paying for, the first proper CF frame trials has seen. Trials needs more technical exercises like this, the parts we use haven't progressed in years, they just undergo small tweaks in geometry. Good job Monty.

Crap I forgot about that one Yeah it's a pretty old frame, probably not too strong and badly designed. But it looks more interesting than Equi and Becausi. The King has been with me since 2006 Matthew, the one on the Monty was a BMX model, Anzo bought those off me for his Monsterboy IIRC. But this one is easily 10 years old, I got it 2nd hand in well used condition, just changed the hub shell. Came back from my first ride, not hugely impressed but I guess that could be due to the complete lack of muscles on my upper and lower body. Need to ride it a bit more and if it still doesn't float my boat I'll revert to the Echo.

FINALLY. It took me ages to get a rear tyre this thing, finally ordered one from CRC and got it in 30 hours. I've been thinking about a 24" for ages and now that my motivation to ride is close to nothing, it's a good time to experiment with something new. Off to grind the rims, set everything up and ride trials for the first time in 6 months.

One thing's for sure, they can't be happy with all the media attention this is getting rather than Kim's threats (yes, I know Dave, the mainstream controlled media).

I f**king hate this country sometimes. More so, idiots who run internet bike shops and stupid importers. I've spent 2 WEEKS trying to get hold of a 24" Big Betty (though if you count in all my attempts, it's going to be over half a year now). These 2 weeks were crucial - the importer finally got these tyres in. So I ordered them online from what I now know is an incompetent bike shop. I've been told that they are expecting the tyre to arrive with them within 2 days for the last 2 weeks. Today I lost it and cancelled my order in rage only to call the importer and find that I cannot order the tyre because they have run out. I got contact details to a company which ordered a large amount, called them up and found out they won't sell me one because they build performance wheelchairs and they have the exact quantity needed. So, I've ordered one from Chainreactioncycles which is what I should have done ages ago. Cost me like 8 quid more with express DHL delivery. Hope this is a 24 hour service. I want to ride ffs.

Well, you've been doing track days for ages now so driving in close proximity probably seems natural to you I don't understand how you can hold the same 6ft gap between a car in front of you while braking from 130 to 60mph and shortly after trying to negotiate a line with a few other cars literally a foot to your left or right. There is no margin for error. My dentist took part this weekend, it was his first race ever and he managed to come 5th in class with a 370Z literally stuck to his bumper for 4 laps. I'd just give in at the pressure and let him pass...

Yeah, I'd leave parents as the last option when everything else fails. I guess it all depends on what your parents are like, but having someone worrying about you, constantly intruding to make sure you're all right can cause additional stress. Personally I was never a fan of talking things through with my parents for that very reason, even though I know they can be trusted. Apart from what Skoze already mentioned, I think you need to talk to someone who you respect and isn't scared of judging your decisions - on the contrary to the above post. I sometimes have friends come over to talk to me about their problems and strangely, they appreciate how harsh I can be sometimes since they feel such a discussion is a lot more productive than hearing "everything will be all right" or "don't worry". On the other hand, you need the appropriate attitude to have such a discussion, if you're fragile then I'd probably avoid it. But you still need a good listener and a constructive one. Perhaps the improving weather can help you back on your feet? Think of all the things you can do now, that you couldn't when there was snow around and just do them.

Race weekend over, was a lot of fun. SLS = Eargasm I initially wanted to take part in this, I even got a BC racing license last year but then thought that the initial 1 minute of each race is probably too much for me to cope mentally. And after seeing what goes on live, I stand by my statement, it's scary as f**k. I can only imagine that the 126p guys must be a lot more relaxed considering the cars are a lot slower. Probably going to get the M3 ready for these this year so I have some more options apart from rallysprint in 2014. It's mostly safety requirements, at least 3 grand needs to be invested to meet them :/

Yeah this topic is great for someone who just built up a 24". Finding out you've built something which is inferior in the fields you find most important is fantastic, really.

Articles on this website are fascinating. http://www.extremetech.com/category/extreme