I think me, Rich and Mick will all be non-starters this year, I know Rich def can't make it on the Sat, I may be able to, but will need to start negotiations now and prob lose all the brownie points I've been amassing. Will let you know later this week.
For the charitable among you, My friend is helping to organise a charity bike ride type thing for Yorkshire Cancer Research.
Its called Pedal for Pounds, its on 7th Sept at Harewood House. Sponsored bike ride in aid of YCR. Starts and finishes at Harewood, and taking you through countryside and villiages of Wharfe Valley. There's a 24 or 47mile course. You get refreshments, sent a training guide and t-shirt, medal and certificate. Free t-shirt if you raise over £125 or sweatshirt over £250. To enter go to www.ycr.org.uk/pedal
John can you post a clicky linky for the Fox and Hounds - not sure I'll make it as I have to wash and pack the bike in the bike bag this evening - might see if the hardtail is in a fit state to ride though - forgot to check the light's batteries again but I should have a charged set somewhere in the shed!
You mentioned a darkside ride as an alternative - what are we riding on or off the road? - I'm assuming off but I could be up for a roadie ride.
the darkside idea was a joke I use my road bike for commuting, not for fun - that's what the MTB is for...
wash the bike before a ride? strange.
route will be up the side of Arthington Claggy, sorry Quarry, then over to Harewood, through Eccup to Golden Acre, Breary Marsh, Cookridge & back. Probably about 12 miles, maybe less.
The rain stopped, the sun came out, there was dust (real dust, not Yorkshire dust) and even the nettles weren't that fierce. And then when the sun went down the moon & stars came out to play - not a cloud in sight until I was driving home.
And yes Ric your right. After getting home, kicking the dog, the cat and even getting the rabbit out the hutch to give that a kick as well a new chain is on the cards
Any suggestions on make, how much to pay???? Anyone??
As above. SRAM chains are excellent and come with a Powerlink, which makes splitting the chain much easier. Spare Powerlinks also work on shimano chains, cost £2 and are worth carrying in case of chains snapping.
If you buy a new chain you'll need to shorten it to the correct length, which means you'll need a chain splitter/chain tool. Make sure it's the same number of links as the old one. For the same no. of links it will be about 0.5cm-1cm shorter.
I use SRAM 991 chains, although 971 and 951 models are perfectly fine and a little cheaper.
But, like John said, your bike has put in several years service and the chain is fairly worn. A worn chain tends to wear out your rear sprockets and chainrings quite quickly. Unfortunately this means a new chain may not run very well on your existing cogs.
There's a good chance you'll need a new rear cassette, chain and all front rings (certainly middle ring). It might be better buying a couple of powerlinks and patching up your existing chain.
Deore stuff is fine for the night riding we do. It's a little heavier than the fancier componentry but is mostly steel so lasts ages. Deore cassette, SRAM 951 chain will cost you less than £30, although you'll need a cassette lockring tool and chainwhip to remove the cassette. I've got all the tools so if you can get to Horsforth one evening I'll swap everything over in exchange for a beer.
Personally I'd patch your existing chain. And buy a Chain Wear indicator so you can change future chains at 0.75% wear. Changing chains early means the rest of your drivetrain lasts much longer.
or you could buy three chains & rotate them, one week on, two weeks off, and store them in a jar of petrol when not in use. It's a fantastic cleaner/degreaser, apparently.
Petrol is a bad choice because it contains lots of additives. Diesel is better, as is white spirit. I prefer isopropyl alcohol (IPA - £5 per litre from a Pharmacy) because it evaporates, whereas the other two need to be washed off with lots of water or they destroy any chain lube you put on.
Chains last me 6 months so rotaing will probably get confusing. Aussie Nick gets through a chain every 100miles!
