Wernervdmerwe

If you like long and easy: http://www.thecoromandel.com/new-zealand/hauraki-rail-trail/?scrollto=locationMap

Hey OneMac, I have now been a Kiwi for little over 4 months - lovely country to cycle in! Rotorua is great, bike hire and all sorts there. Kinna the commercial hub for MTB in NZ. Woodhill is a personal favourite of mine, also commercial, bike mechanic on site, pie shop etc. Trails are nice and flowy and something for everyone. West Auckland. Whitford is also very cool - many options including some nicer technical areas. Not commercial, so nothing there but trails. In theory you should get a license, but I have not heard of anyone buying them. Even have a bike store arranging weekly rides there without one *shrug* It is in east Auckland. Maraetai forrest is next to Whitford, also apparently good. Both Whitford and Maraetai is maintained by Puhutukwa. http://pcbc.co.nz/ 440 is apparently off the charts and competing for the prime spot - http://www.fourfortymtbpark.co.nz/ I have not been as it is not the cheapest place to ride, but, with your ticket you get shuttle passes....... Plenty more - Riverhead is also nice for more Enduro riding, check out the links here: http://aucklandmtb.c...ls/quick-links/ http://nzbybike.com/regions/auckland/ http://www.nzherald....jectid=10798604 Those links were my initial research before just getting out. Many bike shops also have arranged group rides, which is always cool. It is an awesome country MTB-wise!

My CRC order will be delivered today, rather that calling customs, does anyone here have the customs code used on the documentation and the actual percentage that code refers to? Will make it easier for me to fairly split up the duty between participants of the order.

Just did a R7500 myself on my 9th order.... It is actually scary - I won't mind paying slightly more, but you just don't get the variety here - not the retailers' fault though. CRC very legit and exceptional service.

I use spirits - cheap, easily obtainable and, if times are tough, it can provide a drink!

And, although more in the motorcycle side of things - this the reasons from Yamaha: http://www.yamaha-motor.ca/cached/be4b1fc0ed21e519aa02b04057d04aff.gif Inverted forks are positioned on the motorcycle opposite or upside down when compared to conventional forks. The leverage forces that cause fork flex are greatest at the triple clamp area and weakest at the front axle. On inverted forks, the large outer tube of the fork is clamped in the bike’s triple clamps and the sliding inner tube holds the axle and front wheel. By locating the large diameter tubes in the triple clamp, the inverted or upside down fork have their largest and strongest parts combating the highest stress. This arrangement gives the forks high rigidity, which improves their response by reducing the side loading of the internal bushings (sliding surfaces). This kind of response is particularly important in high performance applications. Most inverted forks use cartridge-type damping systems.

I know I might get flamed by the JB himself, but Maverick have been making inverted forks for a long time now and they're very highly rated. Their reasons: INVERTED DESIGNTake a close look at either Maverick fork and you see that the design is inverted from a traditional mountain bike fork design. The stanchions that are traditionally at the top of the fork are on the bottom. The advantages to this inverted fork design are many: • Gravity is keeping the lubricity of your fork at a maximum. Oil is always being forced onto the seals and sliders by gravity, resulting in a smoother fork, all of the time. • The stanchions are not up by the tire getting mud, dirt and rocks flicked at them all the time. Since the integrity of the fork relies on the stanchions sliding through the seals without leaking, it definitely makes sense to position them out of harm’s way. • Allows us to use rock-solid uppers, which suspend the weight better and allow the wheel to be more active in the bumps. • By placing the larger tubes at the highest-stress part of the fork, you get better fore, aft, and lateral stiffness. • Our design is light. In fact, the DUC32 is the lightest 6” travel fork around (3.9lbs). Overall, the result of our inverted design is more active suspension, a better ride, and more control.

Bana, I'll have my new armour in the next month, then you can use mine to see it is worth buying if you want. You more than welcome to head out with us to Paarl or so as well. The other guys does the things I can not yet do (frustrating thing it is not my ability that stops me from growing, but my head). So yeah, drop me a PM with your number if you keen and we'll drop you a line next time we go. We section the trail once, doing every drop or jump a few times before we do runs, so you'll know exactly whats comes - helps to not have surprises!

Also, the point of a FS is the increased grip and ability to do bigger things, IMHO the smoothing factor is on the lower side of the benefit list. But if you want to smooth the perception side of things out a bit, this might help on climbs and straights.

+1 I found 710-720 to be great in trail and I ride 745 on my AM bike

Crossmarks... I take it you ride XC? I went from Nevegals to High Rollers, much less rolling resistance and very close to the level of grip the Nevegals provided (and without the 'dead' portion that the Nevegals had) I do run 2.3 at the back and 2.5 in the front, so not quite sure how the 2.1's would react, it is surprising that they would differ that much between 2.1 and 2.3's though - interesting....

They are very highly rated. Slightly heavier than the competition, but unbreakable and extremely capable. Nice slack head angle (depending on the year you looking at around 69deg) - making for nice confidence in single track whilst not wavering too much on technical climbs. Quote from bikeradar: "The Meta 5 simply makes any trail a fun place to be. You can’t help but feel confident on it." The Commencal Meta 5.5.2 is an outstanding trail bike right out of the box. It’s the kind of machine which the pioneers of the sport probably fantasised about while waiting for their runs down Mount Tamalpais on their rigid Klunkers. Check out some of the reviews here: http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/bikes/mountain/product/review-commencal-meta-552-09-19714/ http://www.mtbr.com/cat/bikes/allmtn-full-suspension/commencal-bicycles/meta-5-xx/PRD_413447_1547crx.aspx http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=262200

You can PM me, The Crow or Yumaya for more detail or if you have specific questions, we love ours

Yup, had them on my Mojo classic, then bought a new set for the HD Very light, best engagement ratio of hubs I can find and super strong They are in the CK range, slightly heavier, but with better engagement and cheaper/easier service. VERY easy to swap axles should you upgrade bikes and need a different axle (QR/10mm/12mm/20mm etc)

Sorry - was on leave See the q was answered, and as was said, is how quickly from the moment you start pedaling the freehub engages. If you ride technical stuff, you will LOVE the advantage this gives you, a quarter crank might not give you much on a Hope, but just about all will translate into momentum on a CK or I-9. So if you mountain bike, Look at the CK or I-9, if they too expensive, look at the Easton Havoc (1650g for an AM wheelset!! Still with a better engagement ratio than Hope) If you do offroad riding or XC, Hope is easily the best weight for buck choice, plus a great hub all around. (Hijack on - I am selling my wife's gold Hopes ones if you interested as she is not riding anymore and the gold does not do it for me - Hijack off)