Fresh Goods Sunday - Bontrager Race X Lite Foam Grips

I was after a pair of new grips for the Beast of the East, not that there was anything wrong with the stock Cannondale lock on grips, they are super tacky and felt comfy but heavy'ish.
I normally but Kcnc grips but fancied trying something different this time. Many years ago I bought some Bontrager XXX (15g manufactures claimed weight) grips but they are very thin and get sore palms after a while.
I have never tried the next model down - Race X Lite, manufacturers claimed weight 28g - check out the photos below of true weight. They are a lot fatter so open better cushioning and more comfort to your hands. Only slightly heavier but well worth it.
They are tight to put on but better than being slack. The fit is better than the Kcnc but time will tell if they start spinning if water gets in down the ends, so far no problems but its early days.
The rrp is £9.99 but shop around, Triton have them for £7.49 but have postage to pay if you don't make your order up. They also come with a pair of bar end plugs and can be cut down if using with gripshift etc.

Manufacturers blurb -

Race X Lite sheds grams without sacrificing comfort. Minimalist cushion texture, super-lightweight EVA foam, and molded ergonomics deliver an outstanding ride feel.

Features:

• Special EVA Foam is lightweight and offers a comfortable ride
• Cushion texture for improved comfort
• Unconditional Bontrager Guarantee
• Model : Race X Lite
• Material : EVA Foam
• Length : 122mm
• Colour : Black
• Weight : 28g
• Sold as pair

logos rubbed off already!






carbon bars had alu inserts so had to use smaller dia end plugs from my stock

New- Kielder CX/MTB Event - Night & Day

TWO STAGES.....TWO DAYS.....100KM

You can enter either one event or both, the choice is yours...

A late winter off road cycle sportive set amidst the vast expanse of Kielder Water & Forest Park, Northumberland.

The Park spans 600 square kilometres & is home to the largest forest in England & the largest man-made lake in northern Europe. The area features an extensive network of off road tracks with mile upon mile of purpose-built trails including forest rides, woodland singletrack and heather clad moorland. Combine these features with England’s first Dark Sky Park, then you have the perfect setting for this unique new event.

The Kielder Cross is a brand new off road cycling challenge based in the remote but beautiful expanse of Kielder Forest Park. Held over two days, this unique sportive style event will consist of a 40km night ride around the full circuit of the Lakeside Way on the Saturday evening. This is then followed by a more challenging 60km circuit on the Sunday incorporating a wider variety of terrain.

The courses are designed primarily at cyclo cross bikes but mountain bikes are certainly welcome. These will be fully marked so no navigation experience is necessary.

 

Date: Saturday 20th February & Sunday 21st February 2016

Distance: Saturday Night Ride 40km & Sunday 60km

Start Time: From 1730 (TBC) & 1000 (TBC)   

Venue: Hawkhirst Activity Centre, Kielder Forest Park, Northumberland, NE48 1QZ

 

40km Course: Surrounded by the vast expanse of Britain's largest forest, this is a unique off road route encompassing the whole of Kielder Water under the dark skies of Kielder. The route incorporates one full circuit of the Lakeside Way, which is a multi-user trail that encircles the full 27 mile shoreline of Kielder Water. Although non technical, this is an undulating route with 1,480' of ascent.

 

60km Course: This will be one 60km loop encircling Kielder Water, but with such an extensive network of tracks we have added 'a few extras' including forest tracks, grassy trails, woodland singletrack, forest rides, open moorland, purpose built mtb trails (blue graded) & sections of the Lakeside Way. Add to this a few little unique features & this will be an incredible route. Ascent: 3,600' approx.

 

Included: Professionally run event, qualified & experienced personnel at various checkpoints, qualified medical support, online registration, fully marked routes, route maps, gpx downloads, refreshments at finish, hydration & feed stations on the course, on site catering, on site accommodation, event photography, free event parking, changing, toilets, showers.

 

Entry Fee:

Saturday Night (40km) 25mile Only   £25.00   (a little pricy?)
Sunday (60km) Only 37mile               £25.00   (good value)

Discounted Entry:
Both Saturday Night and Sunday 62 mile £45.00  (even better value)

Entries & further details will be available soon. Minimum entry age 18 years old.

 

Facilities & Accommodation: Hawkhirst Activity Centre will be offering full board accommodation and camping on-site making it an ideal venue for a full weekend. For further details & to book email: info@highterrainevents.co.uk

Website LINK

 

 

Fury Events 4x4 offroad roading & South Shields

Saturday we had a 4x4 offroad driving experience booked with Fury Events. We did this three years ago and we had an excellent time. It was wet three years ago, well on Saturday it was even wetter as you can well imagine. This experience is based just outside Wolsingham where they used to have all their events based before moving to Broom House Farm. Todays instructor was Edward, the co owner, he was canny crack and excellent with the kids.
2hrs = £120 or 1hr = £70, you can get four in the back and one driving and share the time / driving between you. WEBSITE LINK - Jack takes the bookings.
The mud was just unreal and as you can see in the photo above we had a go at winching this time. The two hours went over in a flash, we were all covered in mud along the Defender. Off to Stanhope Dales tea room for a cuppa but it was freezing inside so finished off in the chippy in the market place, first time in and its spot on, excellent service, very reasonably priced and the food was hot.
PS they want to back to the quads / shooting now!

come on love get out the way

 

Today (Sunday) we had a drive over to South Shields, yes it was still raining, cold & very windy. The waves were massive on the beach, went for a swim (no not in the sea) @ Haven point and polished fish n chips down in Colemans, canny end to the crimbo hols.

Fresh Goods Sunday - Lightweight Edelhelfer Bottle Cage

Part 2 - Cage this time. Following on from last Sundays Fresh Goods I also ordered the bottle cage with bottle from Sigma Sport as part of the order with the additional water bottles. The cage rrp is an eye watering £70, Sigma chucks in a 500ml white bottle and I got an extra 10% off and free p&p.
The cage is just a piece of artwork in my eyes and is probably too good to fit and use it, but that's what its for.
The cage comes with two torx black bolts which are also very light. Fitting is simple and no hassle but go steady when nipping up the bolts so not to cause damage to the cage.
As you can see on the photos the claimed weight is 18g and my scales were hovering between 16-17g and 19g with the bolts.
Here is the manufacturers blurb on this beauty -
The perfect accompaniment to your Lightweight wheelset (in my dreams) or just a very nice finishing touch to your bike, the Lightweight Edelhefer bottle cage is a scant 18 grams in weight, made from high quality HM Carbon Fibre and is incredibly strong and stylish. With a Reservetank bottle, this is the perfect finishing touch to any bike.
With a high quality matte black finish the attention to detail is amazing. Using the famous Lightweight spoke design this cage securely holds the Reservetank or any other standard bottle. So beautiful in design it would even look pretty cool as a piece of art sitting on your mantelpiece!

Features

Edelhelfer bottle cage

• Lightweight HM Carbon Fibre material
• Spoke design
• Ultra lightweight at 18g
• Fits all standard bottles

and here is the manufactures WEBSITE

Then I fitted the old Cannondale carbon cages onto the Bowman Pilgrims

I need to straighten the top rubber looking at the photo above