SARA

me me pick me...def fall into the crazy/stupid category..

Also recently started working on my core strength. Been at it for about 2 months and it's already making a difference. Yoga is great esp if your yoga teacher knows you are a cyclist and thinks it's fun to torment you all your shortened muscles and hits the little ones u neglect. I feel like a joke when at age 24 there are ladies twice (or more) my age who are more flexible! I do however have an excellent headstand now. My physio is a cyclist as well and he gave me loads of good exercises. Just find one of them useful people.

I just googled the biodegradableness of banana skins and found a huge discussion on whether or not it was OK to throw a banana skin. http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/17280 geez there's a lot to say about banana peels.....

Agree with Spinnekop, I have ridden some top V's and top discs and afraid in terms of stopping power discs win hands down, I can tell you right now that I go faster on downhills because I know how well my discs work and how quickly they stop me. Controllong my bike is so much easier.

blah blah blah Im going to go and test my brakes again.

we havent mentioned hydraulic vs mechanicla either, not that mechanical even register...hydraulics all the way...

no what i meant was that they make disc's pretty damn light nowadays and weight is an issue for me a little bit of extra weight makes more of a difference to me than it would a heavier person, theoretically. You are right though I dont count grams much personally!

ur right there Mud Dee, but there is more... it all depends on the individual really. Discs, a top of the range disc brake is fantastic, Ive got hope mono minis and they stop on a dime. means u can go that much faster cos u can stop that much faster. Def gives you more confidence, maintainence for me hasnt been bad they havent given much trouble and Ive had them for 2 years, on average though they are more admin. A cheap even middle of the range disc brake is still outdone by a good set of V's, so if it's a choice btw top V's and average discs it's V's. Discs perform way better in the wet weather so if u like playing in the mud it's a better choice. Nowadays I wouldnt say the weight difference is that much of an issue.

While on the topic of proper bike set up, if you are training lots ie millions of pedal strokes inflicted on your body over time, get your biometrics checked out. Seriously it's so simple just go, it's one appointment and check your bodies alignment. Don't wait till you have patellofemoral syndrome aka useless knee to find out that you displace your hip by 2 cm just by walking about and simply have to crack your back back into place before you ride, if one had known this one would not have patellofemoral syndrome. cough. oh and stretch people.

ah speaking of middle burn do you guys know that the yare now bringing them into the country! hooray!

Ah yes. I have been mtn biking for 4 years and recently got a road bike (5 months ago). I completely blew myself riding the road bike in the first couple of weeks because it doesnt feel as intense as mtn biking. I pushed too hard and overtrained to get the mtn bike feeling. The road bike is almost continuous pedalling so although your HR may not be that high it is always elevated. Mtn biking u are either high in the red zone or chilling on the downhill. They are like 2 totally different sports. That feeling that you are going slower and slower. Yip I think everyone gets that. You are probably getting faster and faster actually. I think the fitter you get the harder you push. You think that getting fitter makes it easier? Nope you just push harder and go faster.

U also get a way better chain line, save weight. yip. I have considered it as well, just start paying more attention to which gears you use and most importantly when climbing how often do you actually use the granny. As long as you arent gonna miss her 2 blades is the way to go, ever considered going back to 8 speed? Now there is another interesting discussion.

or I could have sed it like thatsmileys/smiley1.gif

Well I've got a Sweep and I hardly notice I've got anything on my head. Can def recommend from the actual wearing pt of view but then my head is most likely different to yours. If I think about it the bell sweeps are quite a popular choice around here. Usually a good sign. Don't know much about the others. Try them on see which one feels good and of course if you are a real cyclist you will be most concerned about how fast it makes you look. Apparently. Couldn't believe it when I heard a bunch of boys discussing the colour scheme of their helmets!