Jehosefat

Put the chain on your current chainring and check before installing everything else. It seems to be chainring dependent. I've heard of people being able to use their current chainring but my one would not fit at all (XT M8100 chain on M8000 NW 1x chainring). And changing the quicklink would not have helped.

If swimming is your issue then Trinity or Redhub are pretty much the same. Both pretty chilled dam swims, both 1 lap for the sprint and 2 laps for the Olympic. The bike and run at Redhub are way harder though (hillier bike and "trail" run as opposed to both being super flat at Trinity). The next one is only on the 17th of Jan (Trinity) or 31st Jan (Redhub) and both usually allow entries up to a few days before so as other people have mentioned, hop in the pool as much as possible between now and then and see how the swimming fitness progresses before deciding between the Sprint or Olympic). As far as swimming in a bunch is concerned, you really don't have to. I was a super nervous swimmer (still not great because I had to take a few months off swimming after separating my shoulder in a MTB incident) and you can just start towards the back and take it easy/ stay wider around the buoys and avoid other swimmers. Obviously this approach is not going to win you the race but it's a good way to get into it and get more comfortable. I would also recommend hiring a wetsuit and hoping that the water is cool enough for it to be a wetsuit legal swim. Swimming in a wetsuit is way, WAY easier.

Any chance you could have another one of these for me?

It depends on the length of your chain stays as well as the gear combos you are using. Just having the gears is not enough info.

I'm not sure what the old Mongoose is but I as far as I know, the new Titans are very much "XC racing" oriented and as such, still have very steep head tube angles. And I don't think that the "progress" in geometry can be compared across bike types. E.g. an XC bike today will very likely have a steeper head tube angle than any Enduro style bike from 10 years ago even though it may well be slacker than XC bikes from the same era.

I think we can all agree that cable discs are the worst type of brakes. Pretty much all of the cons of both systems.

Problem is that watches etc. don't use GPS to determine altitude (something that GPS is notoriously bad at btw). They use GPS to determine position and then survey maps to determine altitude at said position. So in that case your elevation gain is actually based on how accurate the surveyed elevations are in the area that you are riding (and how accurately the GPS is locating you on said surveyed maps) which is also not a given. Both approaches have their pros and cons.

Nope, the site explicitly notes that the price excludes shipping, duties and VAT:

Technically 16.5% VAT (15% on 110% of the value).

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Canyon (I own two of them). But almost 100k for a bike with Shimano 105 components is just madness (regardless of the comparison to other brands). If you want a comparison, the Spez Shiv with 105 components (and rim rather than disc brakes) is R55k.And their top-of-the-line model is R220k (didn't get as far as comparing specs on this one)

I usually just say "Hi, I'd like to pass when there is some space." and then when there is some space "Can I pass on your right/left?" and then pass. 99% no issues rate. In the odd case when there is an issue and the person won't let me pass I just wait for the trail to open up a bit and then go bundu-bashing and make sure I'm well past them before merging back onto the trail. No need to cut them off and respond to douche-baggery with more douche-baggery.

Looks awesome but R290k for the top of the line and R95k for the "entry-level" option with Shimano 105 components is just far too expensive... (these prices include shipping, duties and VAT. Excl. those they are R211k and R67k respectively)

Guess we have differently shaped heads then I find it super uncomfortable with my sunnies, the padding squeezes the sunglass arms into the side of my head and gives me a headache. No issue like that with goggles. Yeah, like I said, I hoped it would be cooler because the extra protection around the back of the neck is a plus. Still have the XC lid for when I need it. That said, I've ridden with just the lid bit in 35° and I didn't die so it's not terrible. Just warmer than an XC lid which is par for the course.

We can only assume that at this point she has absolutely no **** left

I've got a pair of the Ciovita baggies and I like them. Much more tailored fit than the Fox baggies I have. My only gripe is that they only have one tiny pocket on the bum. Would prefer a few more pockets. Otherwise they are comfy, don't flap around and are pretty hardy. I've had a crash or two wearing them and they have stood up pretty well.

Try taking it in to Garmin anyway. I had a 945 and the battery failed out of warranty a few months ago. Took it in and they replaced it for free. Worth a shot.

I've had one for about 2 years. No major crashes and no complaints about comfort or build quality/durability. My only 2 "complaints" are that with the chin bar on, it's super uncomfortable to wear sunglasses so you need a set of goggles. Which is fine, but you look like a bit of a muppet if you keep the goggles on after you have removed the chin bar. And secondly, the ventilation isn't great without the chin bar compared to my XC helmet. I was kinda hoping that I could get away with just the 1 helmet but I still find myself grabbing my XC helmet for long rides rather than this lid. That said, I'm not sure how it's ventilation compares to other convertible helmets because I've never ridden any others.

Can second this. My girlfriend just got the Norco Fluid FS3 from them and it's a lekker little bike. Brakes aren't the best and the 11 tooth smallest gear is not ideal but it's a good option for the price. Only downside is that it's fairly heavy (hers in a Small weighs a bit more than my Large enduro rig (Canyon Strive CF 7.0)).

The two will literally never tie up unless it is coincidental and they are not designed to (You might get pretty close if your trainer difficulty is set to 100% and you are not doing a structured workout though). In Zwift your speed is determined by your power output, your weight, an aerodynamic coefficient that is determined by your height and the frame/wheel combo you are riding and the in-game gradient and is pretty accurate. Your "Garmin" speed is determined by how fast your trainer is spinning and what your wheel circumference setting is. If you are doing a structured workout in ERG mode, they two are completely independent since your "Garmin" speed will only depend on your cadence and gear combo while your Zwift speed will be determined by all of the listed factors above. If your trainer difficulty is <100% then your speeds will also differ since on higher gradients in Zwift, you will be spinning your trainer faster since the apparent grade is lower.

Fair enough but by the same token you shouldn't judge all road discs based on one bad set.

Investec works as well

Can't say it's ever taken me more than 10 minutes to align a caliper on any of the 4 bikes I have that have disc brakes (my 2 mtbs, my gf's mtb and my road bike). Either take an old credit card and pop a bit of it between the disc and the pads on both sides then tighten the bolts on the caliper or squeeze the lever and slowly and evenly tighten both bolts holding the caliper. 90% of the time it works every time Yeah, when you replace pads you need to open the bleed port at the lever and gently squeeze the pistons back into the caliper using either a dedicated tool like the parktool one or just a plastic tyre lever. Can get a bit messy if you don't have a bleed funnel. I've never had an issue of new pads rubbing after following his approach. But again, each to his own. I like working on my bikes so the bit of extra time it takes with discs isn't an issue for me and I've not had to take a bike in to the shop to get the brakes sorted yet (all shimano: XT on the MTBs and Ultegra on the road).

Replacing pads and bleeding the brakes takes about 20-30 minutes but you honestly only have to do it every year or two (depending on how much you ride) so it's hardly a large issue.Eh, most of them are running TA's without a built in or attached lever to save weight. If you don't have a support car you just leave the lever attached. Also if you are not in a race does an extra 2 seconds really matter?Again, taking your time would solve the bent disc problem and you get brake blocks that clip in between the pads for travelling to prevent exactly that.Can't say my discs have ever squealed unless they have been wet or muddy.But again, as everyone has said, ride what you prefer.

He was at Lousa according to the full qualifying list. Qualified in like 70th (iirc) so didn't make the start hut for the main race.

On my road bike I used to just carry the necessities: spare tube, small multi-tool, tyre levers, CO2 bomb, and adapter. Lost the small multi-tool and replaced it with one with a chain-breaker which has come in handy once or twice (on my bike and helping others). Also had two incidents in races where I needed more than the single spare tube (was in a rush and pinched it like a moron). So now I've added a pump and another tube. On the MTB I carry everything including the kitchen sink (I'm wearing a camelbak so space isn't really an issue) and it's come in handy a few times. Always offer to help unless there is already quite a big group in which case I assume that someone will have the necessary tools or it's too broken for a trail/road side fix. Generally I don't get taken up on the offer but it feels good when I am and can actually help.