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Hairy we all know you pick your teams based on looks...you Harley rider 🙂

Deffo some "enduro" sections in this track and if its wet, its going to be beyond wild.

That comment about Gwinny was a bit nasty Hairy - were you trolling them yanks?

Trashy, my HT has a Stans Flow on it and the Enduro a WTB i29 but one of the cheaper versions, so probably a lot softer metal than the Stans. The enduro was running a 2.5 aggressor and now has a 2.4 WTB tough casing tyre which is a lot stiffer than the Exo Maxxis. Funnily enough, the HT runs an Exo Ardent 2.4 out back without issues despite being used for similar trail riding. The answer is probably a strong rim like your DT and a tougher sidewall tyre out back. I'm not sure that a more stable tyre prevents rocks hitting rims but you may be right.

Its all relative I suppose - what you experience might seem normal wear to me. I certainly didnt mean that my narrower rims are unscathed, just that they seem to get fewer serious dings in them than the other, wider rim. There are definitely many variables in the equation too, one of them being the type of rim material used. There is a massive difference in hardness between a cheap 6061 alloy rim and ones made from 6069 like a Stans and some of the WTB rims.

I'm not convinced wider is always better. Maybe up front but out back, my experience is the wider rim gets less protection from the tyre as there is less tyre overlapping the rim eg with a 29mm ID rim and 2.4 tyre than when you're running say a 2.4 on a 22mm rim. This is based on observation of rear rim damage on my two MTB's. The narrower rim is on a hardtail and takes a beating with far less rim damage than my long travel enduro bike with a 2.5 and 2.4 on a 29mm rim. I'm looking for a 25mm ID rim for my enduro bike...

Now that looks like fun - unlike another Epic event we know well 🙂

That's radical. Long live 2 strokes.

I just bought a hydraulic bike lift stand thing from TracMac Bellville. Cant wait to lift my monster off the ground for shock/swingarm refurbishment. The lack of a stand/lift has been hampering progress. while I was there I spotted these two bikes belonging to the owner. Brought back some memories.

I quite like the look - very different to the 890/890R on which its based.

Maybe she was offended by the pink tannus in her face?

So my DR750 restoration is ongoing. Its a cheapish job so no sand blasting of frames and such like, but lots of wire brush in cordless drill action is happening. The aim is to get the bike back to largely original colours with improvements to make it look better. I'm moving from the back to the front and have resprayed the rear of the mainframe with white smooth Hammerite (white is the original frame colour.) Other parts of the frame that are hidden and need some decent protection from the elements are getting normal gray Hammerite brushed on. I'm impressed with the paint and the finish looks quite professional compared to past efforts of mine. Next step will be removing the rear shock and cleaning and painting that and the spring. I'm thinking Ohlins yellow for the spring and silver/gray for the swingarm and shock body. Some of the body panels were so badly painted that hot water softens the outer layer and it virtually rubs off. In other areas a better job was done making the stripping far harder. The tank is going to need a professional spray job and minor dent repair. Mechanically, I have the carbs to sort out and have just received rebuild kits for them from Mototech (thanks for the referral). The forks will need new seals as the left/brake side is leaking. I also had rear brake master cylinder mounting bolt break off in the cylinder which will need some careful drilling to remove and probably an easy out tool. Steel into aluminium with no anti seize doesn't work so well. I'm going to leave the wheels and probably the brakes until I've got the bike running and can test them properly. Rear brake does look as if it needs a service though - I suspect the pistons are a little sticky. Pic below is the look I'm aiming for - the frame, tank, side covers and fork boots that is.

Pink Cushcore mic wtf, I hate the way these dh racers make such a joke out of their sport. Coverage should be more like the Epic where the commentary is either purely factual (well at least according to Gerald De K) or an advertorial for the Epic series or how tough the event is. Just now people watching the DH will start thinking MTB is fun. 🙂

And he's never done well at Lourdes...

That was a great race weekend - Epic last day win for ze Germans and then amazing DH. Quite a nail biter on an amazing track. First time Fin has beaten Loic in a straight contest - i.e no big issues for one rider, or am I mistaken? Greg was slow but solid and still beats 70% of the field. I was rooting for Fin and he came close. The women's season is shaping up to be a good one. Camille seems to be progressing well and Myriam is still up there. That save of hers was amazing. Watching the slow mo, you could see how her front wheel went off course but was saved by a hit on a pole or stump that knocked it back to the right. No stump and she was a gone. Oh, and from what I saw, the F1 was pretty good too.

Ya, 'recently serviced" is a euphemism, for 'at risk of failure" in my book. Well maintained and running well for many weeks before the event is probably what's required. A brand new bike is also not always the answer, especially since OE hubs and wheels are often low end on the 'comp" type models some people are on. The shite that came on my Spesh spring to mind.

I doubt the wannabe dictators of the world are there solely because of big egos. There is probably a healthy dose of abnormal pathology present in Putin and Trump for instance.

I'm probably just an abusive rider and mine was on a 2x10 with a crappy lower chain guide that probably contributed to the problems...

I don't find it too much of a problem. If you really want equality then the whole event should be covered for men and women via separate streams or a split screen. They are always very good at coming back to the action and showing replays of earlier exciting incidents that may have been missed. The coverage is actually next level. I doubt any women are put off riding the Epic because of perceived bias in the coverage.

I recall fitting an XTR chain to a bike a few years ago - it was the worst chain I've ever had on a bike - broke a few times and I simply got rid of it well before it was worn out

What kind of pathetic thin chains are these pros using? I mean who breaks a chain these days of you're using the right one? 🙂 (Actually there is some truth to this bit of attempted humour - I suspect those lightweight hollow pin and cut away side plate chains are not the strongest)

I think people forget that spending more money on a bike with no motor does not make you faster or more likely to finish...

Actually i was referring to the route being harder... I also wonder about Covid 19 but I think there is a tendency now to blame any illness on Covid, like the bug I had in January this year and the recurring tummy bugs everyone seems to be getting at the moment.

Seems a lot tougher than last October's event. Covid honeymoon is over...

This flimsy tyre issue has been a thing since way back when and yet the top riders continue to take the risk. I suspect that they test tyres and opt for the most efficient option because it is that much faster. There is no doubt the less your tread squirms and bites into the ground, the lower your rolling resistance. They accept the risk and sometimes it just doesn't pay off....