Gavel ride from Broompark Picnic Area to Parkhead cafe (Crawleyside) n back on Creo 1

 

Today was the best day this week in the long term forecast so I booked a holiday in from work. I got the bike ready last night- front and rear lights charged up and fitted, pumped up the tyres, fitted my Garmin, water bottle in the cage and it was ready. 

I was up and out well before sunrise and parked up at Broompark picnic area. I hoped onto the old railway towards Consett and it was lovely and quiet. The open sections were frozen but still damp in places in the shaded / wooded areas. By the time I reached Lanchester the Garmin had dipped to minus -4.5 degrees! It was nippy but I had three long sleeved tops on, winter tights, boots, gloves and new Merino Baa Baa Endura winter socks. I also had my 45nrth peak cap and balaclava to keep the old noggin warm'ish. There was no sunrise at 7.50am but the sun did try and come out when I reached Knitsely. That was short lived and it was mainly overcast and a slight headwind all the way from Consett to Parkhead cafe. I seen Colin Murley and his son coming down from Parkhead and I had a tailwind may I add. I also seen tall Alan (canoot remember his surname) from the old cx / Derwentside CC days going up. Then I seen Colin and his son heading back up the line, fit as a lop! The sun did come out around Knitsley again and made the remaining ride much more pleasant on the way back. The frost was melting and coming out of the top of the old railway line, starting to make it soft going in places. Canny few dog walkers out from Lanchester onwards which made it rather stop / start but my legs needed a rest by then. Once back to Broompark I had done 43 miles in 3hrs 17 min, ave 13.1mph with 1600ft of climbing. Below are a few snaps from the ride, enjoy and hopefully more soon- 

Fresh Goods Sunday - Ragley Stubbing Stem V2 (31.8mm - 50mm Black)

 

This is part three of a series of components I have swapped / fitted to my Trak Marlin+ emtb hardtail. This week covers a stem swap. There was nothing much wrong with the stem that come with the bike standard from the factory but there is a reason I had to find a replacement. 

When I bought my Trek Procaliber xc mtb I removed the Fox suspension forks as I was not using them really and fitted some rigid carbon forks. Then when I bought the Marlin+ the suspension forks that come were not the best to say the least. They were a chaeapo very heavy pair of low end Rockshox. 

So I thought I would fit my Fox forks instead. There is just enough clearance for the wide tyre but the steerer tube was coming up approx 5mm short with no spacers in. 

I tried ever stem I had in my spares tub but the stack height was too tall. After some googling riders recommended a Ragley Stubbing stem. This has a stack height of 36mm so is lower than standard stem stack height approx 41mm giving me the 5mm I was after. 

There was another option of swapping the headset to lower one from Cane Creek but there was none in the country and it was quite pricey. 

So the stem landed and was the same length as the one I removed from the bike. I was not expecting much for the price I paid the quality looks really good. The bolts look like good quality and there is plenty of machining out on the stem. I like the suttle graphics on the stem as well. Fitting is simple enough with some good quality allen keys and only takes around 10 mins or so. Now the streerer is a perfect length. The stem is really good value at £28. It comes in a few colours and lengths. 

Part four of series is carbon riser handlebars next Sunday. 

RRP £39.99 and I paid £27.99 from Wiggle 

Manufacturers blurb - 

After the success of the original Stubbing stem, Ragley has created this updated V2 model to deliver a range of new features for rock-solid integration with your mountain bike (MTB). It looks similar to its predecessor but now features an updated faceplate to give a wider clamping area, plus additional machining to save more weight. This is also combined with Ragley's ‘Lock-Down’ clamping system, which allows riders to use the two top bolts fully and leave tensioning to the bottom bolts. As a result, it avoids any problems with uneven tensioning across the faceplate and makes for an incredibly stiff front end setup.

To ensure you get the exact correct length for your bike, Ragley offers the Stubbing stem in three length options to choose from: 40, 50 or 60mm, as well as in four colour options. All of the stems have a 31.8mm clamp.

Ragley has also designed the Stubbing stem together with the updated Ragley Wiser handlebars (available separately) to make sure you get a no-compromise set-up that is designed to work as one. To emphasize this, both products feature a beautiful matching finish that's also anodised for additional protection against corrosion and increased durability in all-weather conditions.

FEATURES:

• Material: CNC'd from 7075-T6 Alloy
• Stack Height: 36mm
• Clamp Size: 31.8mm
• Length Options: 40mm, 50mm and 60mm
• Rise: Zero Degrees

Fresh Goodies - Assos Trail Steinadler Jacket & Absolute Black Sram disc pads & a hike around Stanhope Moors

 

Friday me and Jane were off work so decided to have a spin up Weardale and park up at the Dales Centre at Stanhope. We donned our walking boots and headed for the hills. It was very warm and not too windy to start with. The singletrack through the woods was not as muddy as I was expecting. On the open tops the wind was strong but still felt quite warm. All in just over 6 miles. We had a walk around the town afterwards for some shopping before heading home via Holmside Farm Shop for some more goodies. 

No ford crossing, water level too high! 

Last week I mentioned the absolute BLACK disc pads I have bought from my Creo 2. Well today after washing the car, van and bike I decided to fit them to the bike. I have to follow the bedding in instructions before I start my next ride out though.  

I bought them from Gary at Inspiral Cycles as he did me a good price match against Team Cycles rrp £49.99 and I paid £31.25 a pair and he used a photo of my bike with the Ass Saver Wing Win 2 rear mud guard fitted that I bought from him for his January email newsletter. 

I also ordered a new off road cycling jacket =this week from Chain Reaction Cycles. I opted for the Assos Steinadler. More on this soon but the rrp was £200 and I paid £120.