"I've not updated the Mountainboard Derby page in a while, but the Monday Night Sessions have still been rolling on, with somebody (me) out on the slopes every (most) Monday, rain or shine. Going back to the original rough plan of action, it was proposed that the formal sessions would carry on until late October when the clocks change and the light levels would prevent safe lessons to take place. Realistically though, if I'm able to get to a session for 7pm, at most we are getting an hour riding before last light, and this is only going to decrease as the nights draw in. Therefore, I'm taking the decision to cease the Monday Night Sessions as they currently stand. Lessons will still be provided on request although these will most probably take place at the weekends, or afternoon if I'm able to juggle work.
However, riding will still take place every Monday night where possible, but the shift will be to either the woods in Allestree or the occasional visit to Hemlock stone, or anywhere else people suggest. Bring your torches and keep an eye to the Mountainboard Derby Facebook Page for your most up-to-date information regarding riding plans. We hope to see you out there!"
Monday, 17 September 2012
Mountainboard Derby: September Update
Copied from the Mountainboard Derby Blog:
Wednesday, 12 September 2012
ATBA-UK Downhill Round 2 - Write Up
I spend the days leading up to Round Two flicking between various weather forecast predictions, searching for the most optimistic of the bunch. They all say 'rain'. Undaunted, I pack the car prepared for the worst with all my items nicely grouped together in various bags:
- camping bag
- normal clothes bag
- riding gear bag
- more clothes to replace the ones that will inevitably get wet, bag
So with all this and a back seat stacked with boards and an mp3 player chocked full of tunes, Phill and I head off at midday, Friday in the rough direction of Mid Wales.
Day 1
Travel goes well. We cross the M6 at speed, whilst the cars below sit stationary. We are almost there in terms of distance, though only half way by time. Fun twisty, windy Welsh roads, here we come!
The directions to the campsite, though basic, get us there. Far from the idyllic patch of land I'd imagined, this was an exposed field already packed with tents. It was also raining and full of very serious looking men on mountainbikes. Ahh, the three day biking event was well underway already. Well, we're here now and so I drive down the track and onto the field. And instantly get stuck. Phill pushes me on a bit and one of the campers gives me two bits of advice 1) Don't go down the hill, you won't get back up, and 2) Don't get stuck. Cheers!
No sign of any other boarders, though we do see a van with a Bugsboarding sticker on the side...
We put up the tent close to a large stone in the middle of the field, offload as much as we can and then attempt to leave the campsite in order to find the competition track. Carefully this time, I avoid all the other ruts and exit the field with only one close encounter with someone's tent. His fault really for parking so close the the muddy puddle.
Finding the track is easy, it's exactly the same as last year, and there is good parking at the bottom. Only one other car parked up and certainly no sign of anyone around so we pad-up and make our way slowly up the 1.3 mile course. 3 cars come down the track, the drivers grinning and waving. What they were doing on a friday afternoon up a welsh hill is anyones guess, or perhaps they were just laughing at us with all our clobber. It is 4pm.
After climbing the hill for what feels like forever, we reach the finish line. It is still raining. I should have parked higher up.
After longer still, we reach the top. Due to us only riding uplifts last year, it was interesting to look at sections of the track in detail. We meet Andy Moon and family half way up. They are all looking very happy (and were probably happier still 30 minutes later when back in their car and the heavens opened). The top section goes on up and up and up and we debate where last years starting point would have been. In my head, I remember relaxing at the top, with several of us sitting on chopped logs. Unfortunately, someone had moved the logs. Still, there wasn't much to be gained from going much higher and so after both of us marking our territory on a couple of trees, we strap in and roll down. Not much to say on this, except that it all looks very much unchanged. No nasty surprises which is nice, so with knackered legs already, we head back to the car, fling everything onto the back seat, and jump in. It is 5.40pm already!
Discussing our tactics for the night, we decide rather than going back to the campsite, where I will inevitably get stuck again, we'd park in one of the towns carparks and head to the pub for some grub and a pint. Only the one, mind, as we're finely tunes athletes and an early night will do us good. Turns out that the pub we're in overlooks the fountain that will get turned on as part of the opening ceremony of the 'World Alternative Games'.
The pub is busy full of locals, couple of media types and various members of the Llandovery Male Voice Choir. We find a seat by the window and order up a couple of pies, plus a couple of pints to wash it all down. Yum, yum. We discuss the track and tactics for the next days event. Go quickly is the key!
The opening ceremony of the 'World Alternative Games' had to be seen to be believed but I will paint a picture in your mind. Imagine an enthusiastic samba band, a mountainbike chariot and a 6 inch fountain turned on by the local ex-mayor. There you go! The rain has stopped (for now), so all is looking good. In the excitement we go back inside the pub and have another pint. I get the feeling that the locals think Phill and I are an item. Hey ho, another pint it is then.
A plan of action is required. We're too drunk to drive but the campsite is only a couple of hundred metres away. "We could go back to the campsite now, or we could get a few emergency beers from the Spa, and try the other pub?", suggests Phill. It is raining and I think this is a fine plan of action. Good job we're finely tuned athletes and all that.
At around 11pm we stumble back onto the campsite with as much baggage as we think we'll need. It is dark and the serious mountainbikers are all tucked up in their beds - not quite the party we thought it may be. With a belly full of beer, sleep comes relatively quick. I bet the weather will be much nicer in the morning.
Day 2
I look out the tent at approximately 7am. It is raining and my head hurts. I vaguely remember seeing portaloos on the other side of the field. Its far warmer than the last time we camped up at Whinlatter, but that is little comfort right now. Is this what it's like in the Olympic village? We dismantle as much as possible and wonder why we brought so much stuff when the car is so far away (about half a mile it turned out) and dump everything in the boot. My system for separate bags for things has gone right out of the window and my set of Allen keys has disappeared - I'm sure that I had them on yesterdays run?
Anyway, we pad up, the Campbells arrive and park up behind us, the timing system is ready at the bottom of the hill, the van is ready to take us to the top of the hill and approximately 25 riders are ready to do this! Only one problem, and that's that the starting ramp has been inadvertently broken by Beiren on his first roll in. The solution, rather elegantly, is a wooden roll-in from the rear of the van. This allows both a 3 foot drop to gain initial speed and give two other riders time to strap in behind with further riders queuing up through the side sliding doors - clever!
"Where's the starting point? It's where the van was parked up first time. Where was that? Oh..." For the second and subsequent runs of the day, the starting line is very well defined.
Incidentally, the finish line has been moved up the track slightly as the track was running slightly slower than usual due to the bad weather. This made making the last corner a quick one less of a priority as there was far less rolling to do after this point.
The communal get together of all these boarders in one location must have appeased the riding gods because as the day went on, the weather just got better and better to the extent that I was applying mosquito spray just after lunchtime - Jungle Formula, very effective! Lunch was a couple of bacon sandwiches and beans provided by Phill - cheers Phill, the fresh Welsh air had done wonders for our morning sickness.
The riding was very quick and is best described in video form. First up, my on-board footage, and secondly, the official ATBA-UK version. From this it is clear just how much speed was being held through the chicane and on through the lower sections.
2012 ATBA-UK Downhill Series: Round 2 - 'Dave' from Adrian McCordick on Vimeo.
So, Phill and I rode until tired. Everyone else kept going, with Mark Sewell and Beiran looking tight at the top by the time we left. We hear that the times keep being chipped away with Matt Brind the overall winner with a staggering 3:00 minute run. The results in full are on the ATBA-UK blog here.
Our drive home is steady and uneventful. Kit is chucked in the garage and the long, long sleep begins.
Fantastic riding as always with great support from the boarding community travelling far and wide to attend. Big thanks to the ATBA-UK for organising such events and for taking the time out to repeatedly drive us all up the hill time and time again. In addition, it wouldn't be much of a competition without the time keepers who take time out from riding to clock us all out at the top and clock us all in at the bottom. And finally, the medics, who are there just in case, to patch us up after any silliness. Lets all do this again soon!
- camping bag
- normal clothes bag
- riding gear bag
- more clothes to replace the ones that will inevitably get wet, bag
So with all this and a back seat stacked with boards and an mp3 player chocked full of tunes, Phill and I head off at midday, Friday in the rough direction of Mid Wales.
Day 1
Travel goes well. We cross the M6 at speed, whilst the cars below sit stationary. We are almost there in terms of distance, though only half way by time. Fun twisty, windy Welsh roads, here we come!
The directions to the campsite, though basic, get us there. Far from the idyllic patch of land I'd imagined, this was an exposed field already packed with tents. It was also raining and full of very serious looking men on mountainbikes. Ahh, the three day biking event was well underway already. Well, we're here now and so I drive down the track and onto the field. And instantly get stuck. Phill pushes me on a bit and one of the campers gives me two bits of advice 1) Don't go down the hill, you won't get back up, and 2) Don't get stuck. Cheers!
No sign of any other boarders, though we do see a van with a Bugsboarding sticker on the side...
We put up the tent close to a large stone in the middle of the field, offload as much as we can and then attempt to leave the campsite in order to find the competition track. Carefully this time, I avoid all the other ruts and exit the field with only one close encounter with someone's tent. His fault really for parking so close the the muddy puddle.
Finding the track is easy, it's exactly the same as last year, and there is good parking at the bottom. Only one other car parked up and certainly no sign of anyone around so we pad-up and make our way slowly up the 1.3 mile course. 3 cars come down the track, the drivers grinning and waving. What they were doing on a friday afternoon up a welsh hill is anyones guess, or perhaps they were just laughing at us with all our clobber. It is 4pm.
After climbing the hill for what feels like forever, we reach the finish line. It is still raining. I should have parked higher up.
After longer still, we reach the top. Due to us only riding uplifts last year, it was interesting to look at sections of the track in detail. We meet Andy Moon and family half way up. They are all looking very happy (and were probably happier still 30 minutes later when back in their car and the heavens opened). The top section goes on up and up and up and we debate where last years starting point would have been. In my head, I remember relaxing at the top, with several of us sitting on chopped logs. Unfortunately, someone had moved the logs. Still, there wasn't much to be gained from going much higher and so after both of us marking our territory on a couple of trees, we strap in and roll down. Not much to say on this, except that it all looks very much unchanged. No nasty surprises which is nice, so with knackered legs already, we head back to the car, fling everything onto the back seat, and jump in. It is 5.40pm already!
Discussing our tactics for the night, we decide rather than going back to the campsite, where I will inevitably get stuck again, we'd park in one of the towns carparks and head to the pub for some grub and a pint. Only the one, mind, as we're finely tunes athletes and an early night will do us good. Turns out that the pub we're in overlooks the fountain that will get turned on as part of the opening ceremony of the 'World Alternative Games'.
The pub is busy full of locals, couple of media types and various members of the Llandovery Male Voice Choir. We find a seat by the window and order up a couple of pies, plus a couple of pints to wash it all down. Yum, yum. We discuss the track and tactics for the next days event. Go quickly is the key!
The opening ceremony of the 'World Alternative Games' had to be seen to be believed but I will paint a picture in your mind. Imagine an enthusiastic samba band, a mountainbike chariot and a 6 inch fountain turned on by the local ex-mayor. There you go! The rain has stopped (for now), so all is looking good. In the excitement we go back inside the pub and have another pint. I get the feeling that the locals think Phill and I are an item. Hey ho, another pint it is then.
A plan of action is required. We're too drunk to drive but the campsite is only a couple of hundred metres away. "We could go back to the campsite now, or we could get a few emergency beers from the Spa, and try the other pub?", suggests Phill. It is raining and I think this is a fine plan of action. Good job we're finely tuned athletes and all that.
At around 11pm we stumble back onto the campsite with as much baggage as we think we'll need. It is dark and the serious mountainbikers are all tucked up in their beds - not quite the party we thought it may be. With a belly full of beer, sleep comes relatively quick. I bet the weather will be much nicer in the morning.
Day 2
I look out the tent at approximately 7am. It is raining and my head hurts. I vaguely remember seeing portaloos on the other side of the field. Its far warmer than the last time we camped up at Whinlatter, but that is little comfort right now. Is this what it's like in the Olympic village? We dismantle as much as possible and wonder why we brought so much stuff when the car is so far away (about half a mile it turned out) and dump everything in the boot. My system for separate bags for things has gone right out of the window and my set of Allen keys has disappeared - I'm sure that I had them on yesterdays run?
Anyway, we pad up, the Campbells arrive and park up behind us, the timing system is ready at the bottom of the hill, the van is ready to take us to the top of the hill and approximately 25 riders are ready to do this! Only one problem, and that's that the starting ramp has been inadvertently broken by Beiren on his first roll in. The solution, rather elegantly, is a wooden roll-in from the rear of the van. This allows both a 3 foot drop to gain initial speed and give two other riders time to strap in behind with further riders queuing up through the side sliding doors - clever!
"Where's the starting point? It's where the van was parked up first time. Where was that? Oh..." For the second and subsequent runs of the day, the starting line is very well defined.
Incidentally, the finish line has been moved up the track slightly as the track was running slightly slower than usual due to the bad weather. This made making the last corner a quick one less of a priority as there was far less rolling to do after this point.
The communal get together of all these boarders in one location must have appeased the riding gods because as the day went on, the weather just got better and better to the extent that I was applying mosquito spray just after lunchtime - Jungle Formula, very effective! Lunch was a couple of bacon sandwiches and beans provided by Phill - cheers Phill, the fresh Welsh air had done wonders for our morning sickness.
The riding was very quick and is best described in video form. First up, my on-board footage, and secondly, the official ATBA-UK version. From this it is clear just how much speed was being held through the chicane and on through the lower sections.
2012 ATBA-UK Downhill Series: Round 2 - 'Dave' from Adrian McCordick on Vimeo.
So, Phill and I rode until tired. Everyone else kept going, with Mark Sewell and Beiran looking tight at the top by the time we left. We hear that the times keep being chipped away with Matt Brind the overall winner with a staggering 3:00 minute run. The results in full are on the ATBA-UK blog here.
Our drive home is steady and uneventful. Kit is chucked in the garage and the long, long sleep begins.
=======================
Fantastic riding as always with great support from the boarding community travelling far and wide to attend. Big thanks to the ATBA-UK for organising such events and for taking the time out to repeatedly drive us all up the hill time and time again. In addition, it wouldn't be much of a competition without the time keepers who take time out from riding to clock us all out at the top and clock us all in at the bottom. And finally, the medics, who are there just in case, to patch us up after any silliness. Lets all do this again soon!
The top-5 mountainboard videos available on-line right now
Hot Action by One-5 media
HOT ACTION from one 5 media on Vimeo.
If you liked this, then also check out: Shralpdown
Inshredible Part 1by Tom Sharp
If you liked this then also check out: Part 2 of course!
Giving Birth to Rad Mag by Tom Kirkman
Giving Birth To RAD mag! from Tom Kirkman on Vimeo.
If you liked this then also check out: Any of the ATCproduction videos
The Bull, Board and Bikepimp by Harry Jessop
If you liked this then also check out: Mountainboard Cable Cam
HOT ACTION from one 5 media on Vimeo.
If you liked this, then also check out: Shralpdown
Inshredible Part 1by Tom Sharp
If you liked this then also check out: Part 2 of course!
Giving Birth to Rad Mag by Tom Kirkman
Giving Birth To RAD mag! from Tom Kirkman on Vimeo.
If you liked this then also check out: Any of the ATCproduction videos
The Bull, Board and Bikepimp by Harry Jessop
If you liked this then also check out: Mountainboard Cable Cam
Monday, 10 September 2012
Self Timing Systems : The Verdict
I guess you're all wondering just how well the Timing System worked in practice at the recent ATBA-UK Downhill Round 2 event in Mid-Wales? No? Hey ho.
I've still got to do the event write-up at some point but I don't think the following will be too spoiler-ific.
Day 1 - Training Day. It is raining. I hadn't considered whether a kitchen stopwatch would or would not be waterproof. It is not waterproof and the display goes funny. I can read the display however if I rub the screen in the right way. The stopwatch on-off switch appears to work all right though. I manage to time myself down the run although the time is meaningless as we don't quite know where the start or finish line is going to be.
Day 2 - Racing. It is still raining but the stopwatch is still working. As the day gets drier, the track gets dustier and the display gets harder to read. However, the the stopwatch is still working.
Run #1 - I forget to start the stopwatch until halfway down the first straight.
Run #2 - Faster run. In my excitement, I forget to stop the clock as I cross the finishing line.
Run #3 - Success. However, I crash halfway down and finish with a slower time than the training run.
Run #4 - Can't read display. Decide to concentrate on the riding instead. End up with personal fastest time of the day.
Summary
The system worked, and probably would have worked better had a) it not rained and b) I'd remembered to use it. Attaching the clock to the upperside of the deck, whilst a very safe place to put it, is slightly wasted as in no part of the riding did I feel that I was in a position to look down and read the numbers - I could have just of easily dropped it in one of my pockets or somewhere similar. Plus, the actual numbers are almost meaningless anyway - the ATBA have almost got the timings down to a fine art form with overall run times produced very, very quickly.
Epilogue
Couple of days back home and the stopwatch unit dries out. It totally works! I still chopped it off the board though - too much trouble to be worth bothering with. GPS, that's the future.
Day 1 - Training Day. It is raining. I hadn't considered whether a kitchen stopwatch would or would not be waterproof. It is not waterproof and the display goes funny. I can read the display however if I rub the screen in the right way. The stopwatch on-off switch appears to work all right though. I manage to time myself down the run although the time is meaningless as we don't quite know where the start or finish line is going to be.
Day 2 - Racing. It is still raining but the stopwatch is still working. As the day gets drier, the track gets dustier and the display gets harder to read. However, the the stopwatch is still working.
Run #1 - I forget to start the stopwatch until halfway down the first straight.
Run #2 - Faster run. In my excitement, I forget to stop the clock as I cross the finishing line.
Run #3 - Success. However, I crash halfway down and finish with a slower time than the training run.
Run #4 - Can't read display. Decide to concentrate on the riding instead. End up with personal fastest time of the day.
Summary
The system worked, and probably would have worked better had a) it not rained and b) I'd remembered to use it. Attaching the clock to the upperside of the deck, whilst a very safe place to put it, is slightly wasted as in no part of the riding did I feel that I was in a position to look down and read the numbers - I could have just of easily dropped it in one of my pockets or somewhere similar. Plus, the actual numbers are almost meaningless anyway - the ATBA have almost got the timings down to a fine art form with overall run times produced very, very quickly.
Epilogue
Couple of days back home and the stopwatch unit dries out. It totally works! I still chopped it off the board though - too much trouble to be worth bothering with. GPS, that's the future.
Friday, 10 August 2012
Self Timing Systems: Build Notes
I've written previously about my intention to mount a stopwatch onto the deck of my board in order to give me an idea of timings at next Saturdays downhill competition.
Far from being hard to do, I still managed to cock-up a few bits and thought that a few pictures might demonstrate just how easy it should be (in principle) and from this, just what possibilities are, erm, possible.
I started by mounting a push switch onto the end of the brake handle as shown below. As the brake lever won't be required for either the start or finish, I should be able to start and stop the clock without having to do too much all at once. If there is a starting gate to pull out of, this may be a little tricky, but I won't know until the day.
Wires run from the switch, through the brake handle and out through a side hole that also has the hydraulic hose running through it. This is then secured in place with a cable tie with plenty of wire (about double the length of the handle) inside the handle in case I need to pull out the switch or the cable snags.
The wire then runs down the hydraulic hose, secured together with alternating cable ties and electrical tape before running onto the deck and into the stopwatch. Again, excess cable is looped together at the bottom of the hose for possible modification later. If nothing else, a connector to remove the stopwatch from the deck may be useful in future.
The sides of my stopwatch are removable and are large enough that a 2mm hole can be drilled allowing access for the cable push through. From inside, lots of black wires can be seen linking the front-side pushbuttons to the main circuit board. I've stuck to the back of the LCD screen a couple of low profile junction connectors that in theory allow me to snip the start/stop wires and reconnect allowing for hijacking with my new push button.
I say in theory, because this is where I made my cock-up by a) making a huge presumption on which wires to intercept, and b) accidentally chopping through one of the wires making it too short to reach. I now have a stopwatch that can only be started via the brake handle and can only be reset by the front panel. Hey ho. No biggie and I could have simplified all of this by just soldering a couple of points. All very well, but every time I solder, it looks as though I did it wearing boxing gloves - blobs of solder everywhere.
What I have been looking out for are either a slimline version of these cable hijackers (as shown below) that connect one wire onto an existing wire simply by clamping the top shut, or something similar. Any suggestions much appreciated as these are far too fat for this application.
On the back of the stopwatch, I removed the clip/magnet and chopped off a couple of raised sections in order that the back of the unit was relatively flat. From here, the stopwatch can be easily mounted to the deck using my favourite bodging solution - industrial Velcro.
Next up, testing!
Far from being hard to do, I still managed to cock-up a few bits and thought that a few pictures might demonstrate just how easy it should be (in principle) and from this, just what possibilities are, erm, possible.
I started by mounting a push switch onto the end of the brake handle as shown below. As the brake lever won't be required for either the start or finish, I should be able to start and stop the clock without having to do too much all at once. If there is a starting gate to pull out of, this may be a little tricky, but I won't know until the day.
Wires run from the switch, through the brake handle and out through a side hole that also has the hydraulic hose running through it. This is then secured in place with a cable tie with plenty of wire (about double the length of the handle) inside the handle in case I need to pull out the switch or the cable snags.
The wire then runs down the hydraulic hose, secured together with alternating cable ties and electrical tape before running onto the deck and into the stopwatch. Again, excess cable is looped together at the bottom of the hose for possible modification later. If nothing else, a connector to remove the stopwatch from the deck may be useful in future.
The sides of my stopwatch are removable and are large enough that a 2mm hole can be drilled allowing access for the cable push through. From inside, lots of black wires can be seen linking the front-side pushbuttons to the main circuit board. I've stuck to the back of the LCD screen a couple of low profile junction connectors that in theory allow me to snip the start/stop wires and reconnect allowing for hijacking with my new push button.
I say in theory, because this is where I made my cock-up by a) making a huge presumption on which wires to intercept, and b) accidentally chopping through one of the wires making it too short to reach. I now have a stopwatch that can only be started via the brake handle and can only be reset by the front panel. Hey ho. No biggie and I could have simplified all of this by just soldering a couple of points. All very well, but every time I solder, it looks as though I did it wearing boxing gloves - blobs of solder everywhere.
What I have been looking out for are either a slimline version of these cable hijackers (as shown below) that connect one wire onto an existing wire simply by clamping the top shut, or something similar. Any suggestions much appreciated as these are far too fat for this application.
Next up, testing!
Tuesday, 7 August 2012
ATC Mini Action Cam: Pole Mount Footage
Just a short couple of films showcasing the ATC Mini Action Cam pole mounted. Both videos are shot around 8pm in late July/early August so the natural light levels are relatively low. Despite this, and the usual shaking that occurs when boarding, the footage is remarkably good on its default setting. The microphone picks up a lot of wind noise which seems to be the norm for this sort of thing, but certainly adds atmospherics to the video. I suppose I could always add some music if it was really an issue.
As usual, there have been plenty of crashes and its very easy to knock the camera on the ground or whack into the occasional tree as we ride through the woods. Despite this, the camera, though a little mucky, is running 100% fine and continued to film without issue.
However, as much as I enjoy the pole cam shots, a lot of the time I want to keep my hands free in order to concentrate on the ride itself, so I have invested in a helmet mount. Unfortunately, this will involve dismantling the pole mount but this is not a massive job, just not one I'd do out in the field.
As with all these things, there will be a bit of compression when the videos are uploaded to YouTube. By all means, if you want some raw footage to view, just give me a shout!
As usual, there have been plenty of crashes and its very easy to knock the camera on the ground or whack into the occasional tree as we ride through the woods. Despite this, the camera, though a little mucky, is running 100% fine and continued to film without issue.
However, as much as I enjoy the pole cam shots, a lot of the time I want to keep my hands free in order to concentrate on the ride itself, so I have invested in a helmet mount. Unfortunately, this will involve dismantling the pole mount but this is not a massive job, just not one I'd do out in the field.
As with all these things, there will be a bit of compression when the videos are uploaded to YouTube. By all means, if you want some raw footage to view, just give me a shout!
Monday, 6 August 2012
noSno bolt break-down
Diagram showing the order of items normally on a noSNo Bolt:
From inside out:
Storing everything on the axle keeps everything safe whilst the hubs are away doing other things...
From inside out:
- Large Washer
- Split washer
- Hub comprising bearing / spacer / bearing
- Split washer
Storing everything on the axle keeps everything safe whilst the hubs are away doing other things...
'Manhick-a-likes' - any interest?
As replicated on the Surfing Dirt Forums...
Here's the deal. I have a contact, Matt, a precision metal engineer who produces custom motorbike parts for one of the Ducati racing teams and has recently gone part time in order to produce small quantities of parts for private individuals i.e. not bespoke, but not huge numbers that you'd go to china for.
We've sat down with a set of primo trispokes to look into the possibility of producing a two-piece solid aluminium version and have established that it is well within his capability and that of his workshop. Next stage will be establishing the most efficient way to mass produce with a prototype to follow to establish a rough idea of costing.
To make things work, as a rough starting point we estimate that we'd need an order of approximately 30-40 units, or 10 sets of 4. Obviously, more will need to be involved if people only want 2 for the front wheels.
So, questions are:
if we could manufacture solid aluminimum trispokes, would people be interested?
If so, would people be looking for 2, 4 or more hubs, and how much would be too much?
Are there any features that are important, such as keeping weight up/down?
Does anyone remember how much manhicks originally went for? They seem to go on ebay for around £20-30 + p&p.
Matt will be costing this up at his usual business rate. I'm not looking to add a percentage on top; I just want a supply of manhicks and from the way they sell on ebay second hand, I suspect others do too.
For those wondering why we are looking to do this, manhicks are heavy, but allow ABS-type brakes to compress directly on the rim of the hub without the need for disks. In addition, the added weight adds breaking power.
So... any interest folks?
Forgot to mention, what probably wouldn't be possible without quite a lot of work is to include the small indentations as used on the Primo Strikers as just about visible in the right hand image.
I notice however that the manhicks appear to be smooth as per the link below, so... has anyone had an issue with wheel slippage i.e. apply the brakes, hubs stop turning, wheels continue turning?
http://www.mountainboard.ru/2008/05/...t-1-pro-diski/
Naturally, I have asked for the hub sides to be smooth and logo free.
Need a name though. Dirty Hubs?
Here's the deal. I have a contact, Matt, a precision metal engineer who produces custom motorbike parts for one of the Ducati racing teams and has recently gone part time in order to produce small quantities of parts for private individuals i.e. not bespoke, but not huge numbers that you'd go to china for.
We've sat down with a set of primo trispokes to look into the possibility of producing a two-piece solid aluminium version and have established that it is well within his capability and that of his workshop. Next stage will be establishing the most efficient way to mass produce with a prototype to follow to establish a rough idea of costing.
To make things work, as a rough starting point we estimate that we'd need an order of approximately 30-40 units, or 10 sets of 4. Obviously, more will need to be involved if people only want 2 for the front wheels.
So, questions are:
if we could manufacture solid aluminimum trispokes, would people be interested?
If so, would people be looking for 2, 4 or more hubs, and how much would be too much?
Are there any features that are important, such as keeping weight up/down?
Does anyone remember how much manhicks originally went for? They seem to go on ebay for around £20-30 + p&p.
Matt will be costing this up at his usual business rate. I'm not looking to add a percentage on top; I just want a supply of manhicks and from the way they sell on ebay second hand, I suspect others do too.
For those wondering why we are looking to do this, manhicks are heavy, but allow ABS-type brakes to compress directly on the rim of the hub without the need for disks. In addition, the added weight adds breaking power.
So... any interest folks?
Forgot to mention, what probably wouldn't be possible without quite a lot of work is to include the small indentations as used on the Primo Strikers as just about visible in the right hand image.
I notice however that the manhicks appear to be smooth as per the link below, so... has anyone had an issue with wheel slippage i.e. apply the brakes, hubs stop turning, wheels continue turning?
http://www.mountainboard.ru/2008/05/...t-1-pro-diski/
Naturally, I have asked for the hub sides to be smooth and logo free.
Need a name though. Dirty Hubs?
Friday, 27 July 2012
Pole Mounting an ATC Mini Camera
A quick and dirty hack for the ATC Mini Action Cam, but one that works it seems with a minimal amount of effort on my part. A bonus of using this method is that no serious alteration or damage to the original mountings is required - you can convert it back at any time!
I mentioned previously how the ATC Mini cam came as standard with a couple of mountings - a vented helmet mount and tripod mount? In using the section that attaches to the vented mount, much of the parts can be used with a few items found round the house in order to attach to a long pole. This can provide a good range of action shots purely by swinging the pole around whilst riding.
Next up, I've used an old golf club salvaged from the bins from a driving range we visited recently. The head of the club had already been removed and so with its relatively low weight and ergonomic handle, it makes a good pole to use here. It's a nice enough length - long enough to fit me into the 110-degree view of the camera, but not too long to drag along the floor or get caught up on stuff.
A U-shaped bracket will fit around the end of the golf club if I increase the club diameter a little - winding and unwinding sufficient electrical tape around the end gives sub-millimetre accuracy without having to construct anything with any precision.
This bracket will then fit onto the ATC Mini mounting with a couple of washers thrown in to bulk out the thickness a little. The benefit of using as much of the ATC Mini mounting as possible is maximum strength without compromising the accessibility of the button controls.
And there you have it, a pole-mounted ATC Mini action cam with variable shooting angles built entirely from parts that come with the camera and odd bits and pieces stored in the garage. I love my garage!
Pole Mounted ATC Mini Action Cam
I mentioned previously how the ATC Mini cam came as standard with a couple of mountings - a vented helmet mount and tripod mount? In using the section that attaches to the vented mount, much of the parts can be used with a few items found round the house in order to attach to a long pole. This can provide a good range of action shots purely by swinging the pole around whilst riding.
Next up, I've used an old golf club salvaged from the bins from a driving range we visited recently. The head of the club had already been removed and so with its relatively low weight and ergonomic handle, it makes a good pole to use here. It's a nice enough length - long enough to fit me into the 110-degree view of the camera, but not too long to drag along the floor or get caught up on stuff.
U-shaped Bracket
A U-shaped bracket will fit around the end of the golf club if I increase the club diameter a little - winding and unwinding sufficient electrical tape around the end gives sub-millimetre accuracy without having to construct anything with any precision.
This bracket will then fit onto the ATC Mini mounting with a couple of washers thrown in to bulk out the thickness a little. The benefit of using as much of the ATC Mini mounting as possible is maximum strength without compromising the accessibility of the button controls.
Bracket bulked up using washers
And there you have it, a pole-mounted ATC Mini action cam with variable shooting angles built entirely from parts that come with the camera and odd bits and pieces stored in the garage. I love my garage!
Quick test in the garage
Thursday, 26 July 2012
ATC Mini Action Camera: First Impressions
You may have read how I acquired a new helmet camera from Oregon Scientific? It's only fair that now that I've opened the box and had a little play I should share my thoughts.
In the box comes the camera itself, along with:
...and as a nice touch from Oregon Scientific, a surfboard mount. I don't own a surfboard, but I'd imaging using it to attach the camera to the mountainboard shouldn't be too much of an issue. I don't think this is part of the standard package however.
First impressions are good. The unit is chunky enough to reassure me that it's in place, without being too heavy and the three buttons - Power / Video mode / Camera mode are all large enough to be operated without too much trouble whilst wearing my thick Hillbilly gloves with self improved reinforced finger pads. The hard plastic outer shell feels robust but is covered by an additional soft rubber outer-shell and gut feeling tells me that it should bounce or at least take the odd knock or two without any issue. The literature also says that the camera is waterproof to a depth of 20 metres (60 feet). Whilst I'm curious about this, I'm in no rush to try this out so it's a good job that others have done so:
Suffice to say, the rear flap that opens to expose the battery and mini SD card appears to have a pretty good seal on it.
Charging up the unit is done like most small devices these days via USB with an LED flashing away on top to indicate battery status. The unit gives a good, loud reassuring 'beep' when turned on and recording started, so it's just a case of memorising button locations in order to use whilst on the move. When plugging in for the first time, my Windows 7 laptop recognised the unit without problem and allowed me to view the (currently empty) mini SD card as an external drive. Manual states that Windows XP / Vista / Windows 7 or Apple Mac OS X 10.6 or above should all be fine.
The unit comes without drivers or software, and so video playback will have to be done via your favourite video playing programme. I like VLC player, it just seems to play everything I throw at it. Changing the camera time and date can be done by creating a file on the mini SD card and is thoroughly explained via the manual. As yet, I don't think any other settings on the camera can be changed but then, in truth, the Contour had all sorts of settings and after an initial play, I ended up recording most things using the default settings.
The 8 Gig of memory included in the package is a great bonus, far bigger than the 2 Gig offered as standard by the Contour. I used to think that the 2 Gig option was fine as I found that the battery would be likely to run out far before the card was full. This was however before I bought a cigarette USB charger off ebay for a couple of quid in order to charge the battery overnight on a long away weekend. Once again, memory on the action camera would be the limiting factor but obviously more cards could be bought if necessary, or a single larger card up to 32 Gig. Flicking through the manual it quotes recoding time as being approximately15 minutes of video per 1 Gbyte, so a couple of hours worth in this case. Seeing as my total riding time at Whinlatter was around 16 minutes in length, this should give me more than enough video!
The video camera specs are reasonably high at 720p (1280 x 720 pixels) in 16:9 (widescreen) ratio at 30fps. Previously I'd recorded on the Contour at 720p in order to a) produce smaller file sizes that were only going to end up on Youtube anyway and b) take advantage of the 60fps to produce smoother footage. This was the norm until earlier this year when a camera firmware update switched the unit back to 30fps and I didn't spot the difference. Point being, 720p (1280 x 720 pixels) in 16:9 (widescreen) ratio at 30fps will probably do me fine.
The mount fixings feel a lot more sturdy that they look in the on-line literature and allow the camera to be fixed into place in 90-degree intervals - very handy as I intend to mount the camera on the side of my helmet. From this position, the mount itself can then rotate a full 360-degrees with a secondary adjustable angle pivot. From all this, it'd have to be a pretty unusual situation to not be able to get the required angle required.
The helmet strap mount would fit nicely onto my cycle helmet as the vents are in the right position but I had trouble attaching to either my piss-pot helmet or full face 661 so I'd probably do better with the Hardshell Helmet Mount sold separately.
A very welcome addition is the included tripod mount which will allow you to quickly attach to a tripod with standard screw thread which should mean that it is relatively easy to hook up to all sorts of camera mountings that are available or you have tucked away. In particular, I'd be keen to cobble together a pole mount sooner rather than later if only because of the cool shots of the rider available from this angle. I'll inevitably blog the results as and when this happens. Edit: I did and the results are here.
Finally, a nice option not seen on the Contour is the TV-out jack that allows you to quickly view recorded media without having to link the unit to a laptop. I'm pleasantly surprised that it isn't HDMI like most other things seem to be these days, but it works great on my big old tele.
Don't get me wrong, I would jump at the chance to get my old Contour HD back in my hands and out again recording and you really do get what you pay for. In the case of the Contour, you pay a lot and you get a lot of features (and I suspect a slightly better sensor - will investigate). However, in the case of the ATC Mini you get a solidly built camera that will do what it's been built to do with non of the extras, but with a significantly lower price tag - £120 including the 8 Gig card and with plenty of special offers if you shop around - for example, Oregon Scientific were offering 10% off last weekend to their twitter followers.
Next up will be a few examples of footage once I've been able to get some examples together at different times of the day and different mountings. Seeing as I tend to do most of my riding in the woods in the evenings, it'll be interesting to see how the camera operates in lower light conditions.
In the box comes the camera itself, along with:
- Battery
- 8 Gig Mini SD Card
- USB to mini USB cable
- TV-out jack cable
- Quick release mount
- Attachment to strap onto helmet via the vents
- Tripod attachment
- Manuals
...and as a nice touch from Oregon Scientific, a surfboard mount. I don't own a surfboard, but I'd imaging using it to attach the camera to the mountainboard shouldn't be too much of an issue. I don't think this is part of the standard package however.
Please note that I was hoping to avoid a direct comparison with the Contour 1080 HD at this stage, but seeing as it's the only other action camera that I've spent much time with, reference to it will be inevitable. Oh well.
ATC Mini - Chunky Buttons
First impressions are good. The unit is chunky enough to reassure me that it's in place, without being too heavy and the three buttons - Power / Video mode / Camera mode are all large enough to be operated without too much trouble whilst wearing my thick Hillbilly gloves with self improved reinforced finger pads. The hard plastic outer shell feels robust but is covered by an additional soft rubber outer-shell and gut feeling tells me that it should bounce or at least take the odd knock or two without any issue. The literature also says that the camera is waterproof to a depth of 20 metres (60 feet). Whilst I'm curious about this, I'm in no rush to try this out so it's a good job that others have done so:
Filling the stream (under water) - Dougal lick
Waterproof hatch to battery, mini SD card, USB port and TV-out Jack
Charging up the unit is done like most small devices these days via USB with an LED flashing away on top to indicate battery status. The unit gives a good, loud reassuring 'beep' when turned on and recording started, so it's just a case of memorising button locations in order to use whilst on the move. When plugging in for the first time, my Windows 7 laptop recognised the unit without problem and allowed me to view the (currently empty) mini SD card as an external drive. Manual states that Windows XP / Vista / Windows 7 or Apple Mac OS X 10.6 or above should all be fine.
The unit comes without drivers or software, and so video playback will have to be done via your favourite video playing programme. I like VLC player, it just seems to play everything I throw at it. Changing the camera time and date can be done by creating a file on the mini SD card and is thoroughly explained via the manual. As yet, I don't think any other settings on the camera can be changed but then, in truth, the Contour had all sorts of settings and after an initial play, I ended up recording most things using the default settings.
The 8 Gig of memory included in the package is a great bonus, far bigger than the 2 Gig offered as standard by the Contour. I used to think that the 2 Gig option was fine as I found that the battery would be likely to run out far before the card was full. This was however before I bought a cigarette USB charger off ebay for a couple of quid in order to charge the battery overnight on a long away weekend. Once again, memory on the action camera would be the limiting factor but obviously more cards could be bought if necessary, or a single larger card up to 32 Gig. Flicking through the manual it quotes recoding time as being approximately15 minutes of video per 1 Gbyte, so a couple of hours worth in this case. Seeing as my total riding time at Whinlatter was around 16 minutes in length, this should give me more than enough video!
USB car charger - handy for long weekends
The video camera specs are reasonably high at 720p (1280 x 720 pixels) in 16:9 (widescreen) ratio at 30fps. Previously I'd recorded on the Contour at 720p in order to a) produce smaller file sizes that were only going to end up on Youtube anyway and b) take advantage of the 60fps to produce smoother footage. This was the norm until earlier this year when a camera firmware update switched the unit back to 30fps and I didn't spot the difference. Point being, 720p (1280 x 720 pixels) in 16:9 (widescreen) ratio at 30fps will probably do me fine.
The mount fixings feel a lot more sturdy that they look in the on-line literature and allow the camera to be fixed into place in 90-degree intervals - very handy as I intend to mount the camera on the side of my helmet. From this position, the mount itself can then rotate a full 360-degrees with a secondary adjustable angle pivot. From all this, it'd have to be a pretty unusual situation to not be able to get the required angle required.
A very welcome addition is the included tripod mount which will allow you to quickly attach to a tripod with standard screw thread which should mean that it is relatively easy to hook up to all sorts of camera mountings that are available or you have tucked away. In particular, I'd be keen to cobble together a pole mount sooner rather than later if only because of the cool shots of the rider available from this angle. I'll inevitably blog the results as and when this happens. Edit: I did and the results are here.
Finally, a nice option not seen on the Contour is the TV-out jack that allows you to quickly view recorded media without having to link the unit to a laptop. I'm pleasantly surprised that it isn't HDMI like most other things seem to be these days, but it works great on my big old tele.
Don't get me wrong, I would jump at the chance to get my old Contour HD back in my hands and out again recording and you really do get what you pay for. In the case of the Contour, you pay a lot and you get a lot of features (and I suspect a slightly better sensor - will investigate). However, in the case of the ATC Mini you get a solidly built camera that will do what it's been built to do with non of the extras, but with a significantly lower price tag - £120 including the 8 Gig card and with plenty of special offers if you shop around - for example, Oregon Scientific were offering 10% off last weekend to their twitter followers.
Next up will be a few examples of footage once I've been able to get some examples together at different times of the day and different mountings. Seeing as I tend to do most of my riding in the woods in the evenings, it'll be interesting to see how the camera operates in lower light conditions.
Monday, 23 July 2012
Mystery Parcel Suprise!
*Edit - I clearly cannot spell Surprise.
Every morning for the past week or so, we've been woken up by our two-year-old son at very-early-o'clock. Ever since he learned to scale the baby gate across his door, he's made his way out and into our room, climbing on the bed, waving the TV remote in our faces and shouting, "Pig, Pig!". He's a big fan of Peppa Pig. No difference this morning as usual, but it was unusual to also have an early morning knock at the door from the postman....
Especially odd, as I've nothing on order right now apart from a Raspberry Pi, and that won't be with me for months yet. Let's have a look inside.
An Oregon Scientific ATC Mini Action Cam and Surf Mount!
The box says, "Records 720p HD", and "Waterproof up to 20m (60 feet)". That would have been useful given the weather we've had recently!
I'll not have time to look much further right now as I'm at work unfortunately with an ever increasing pile of stuff needed my attention, but I'll be out riding tonight as ever with the Mountainboard Derby guys and will get some footage with full write-up later this week!
For now though, I can 't thank the Oregon Scientific guys enough for doing this for me. It's much appreciated and I'll be sure to give it a good and thorough testing over the next few weeks. That's a thought - it'd be perfect for Dave and I might be able to cobble enough footage together to enter the ATJunkies Film festival.
Stay tuned, there's lots to look forward to!
Every morning for the past week or so, we've been woken up by our two-year-old son at very-early-o'clock. Ever since he learned to scale the baby gate across his door, he's made his way out and into our room, climbing on the bed, waving the TV remote in our faces and shouting, "Pig, Pig!". He's a big fan of Peppa Pig. No difference this morning as usual, but it was unusual to also have an early morning knock at the door from the postman....
"Hi Ade, Sorry to hear about your camera being stolen. Hope this gets you back filming."How mega-cool is this - Oregon Scientific read my blog! In a nutshell, for those that may have missed it, my car recently got broken into and they took my beloved Contour HD. A bit more of a delve and I find:
The box says, "Records 720p HD", and "Waterproof up to 20m (60 feet)". That would have been useful given the weather we've had recently!
I'll not have time to look much further right now as I'm at work unfortunately with an ever increasing pile of stuff needed my attention, but I'll be out riding tonight as ever with the Mountainboard Derby guys and will get some footage with full write-up later this week!
For now though, I can 't thank the Oregon Scientific guys enough for doing this for me. It's much appreciated and I'll be sure to give it a good and thorough testing over the next few weeks. That's a thought - it'd be perfect for Dave and I might be able to cobble enough footage together to enter the ATJunkies Film festival.
Stay tuned, there's lots to look forward to!
Friday, 29 June 2012
6 Weeks till 'Dave': Round 2, Saturday 18th August
Feeling sad that your favourite 4 wheeled mode
of transport isn't being represented at the Olympic Games? Try the
World Alternative Games Instead.
http://www.worldalternativegames.co.uk/events/mountain-boarding/
or as it's better known to the Mountainboarding Community:
Just over 6 weeks to go until Round 2 of the ATBA Downhill Series at Esgair Dafydd or 'Dave' is round once again. Very similar to last years event, and like Round 1 earlier this year up in Whinlatter, Lake District, we can expect to see high speed straights, technical cornering and incredibly close action as riders from across the UK compete to get down this tried-and-tested 1.4 mile, 9-cornered track in the fastest time.
Using the synchronised-watch system of clocking the riders in and out of the start and finish gates, riders get the opportunity to complete the course as many times as their stamina will allow with their fastest time being the one that counts. Take advantage of the on-site uplift to maximise your riding without compromising on the climbing and make the most of the empty track which will be closed to other vehicles on race day.
All of this can be yours for £10 if you are an annual ATBA members or £20 for Day Members i.e those without ATBA membership who want to join in the fun. Or get your membership now and save money all over the place!
Located near Llanwrtyd Wells, on the A483 in between Buith Wells and Llandovery
Want to join in the discussion prior to the event? The official ATBA Page has all the info and the official Facebook Page has all the discussion.
For those that haven't ridden a downhill event before or want to know a little more about the intricacies of riding 'Dave', read on!
Jay rides noSno and since last years event has upgraded to hydraulic brakes for improved speed control. He say that he is looking forward to bettering his time from last year on this challenging track, whilst making the most of the uplift and enjoying the friendly competition between riders.
Brennig is an innovator in mountainboarding development and creativity and constantly works on updates to his 'nompa' (Trampa/noSno mashup). You can read all about his adventures at the 'Where the party is' blog and he simply says that he is looking forward to "actually getting out and riding" and adds that "it's an awesome track".
Chris, author of the 'Freeride NW' blog has switched his Comp 26 from last year to a noSno and hopes to improve on previous times by straight-lining the long section before 'Rogers Corner' (Corner '2' on map) without fear of speed wobble. He too looks forward to catching up with loads of riders.
Jay says:
Brennig says:
Chris B says:
And Chris' point about not injuring yourself on the first run? It's happened at the last two events now to riders on the first practice run on the first corner so it's definitely worth a mention.
Some great responses above. All that I would add is to try and get a good nights sleep the night before. It can be a long day and is tiring, even with all of the vehicle up-lifts.
Dave has been described by many as 'the top where you try and limit the speed, followed by the rest where you try and maintain the speed'. This is because of the long, reasonably steep straights leading to the first tight couple of corners. However, brake too much at this point and it is difficult to regain speed on the lower, shallower half of the course. In particular, try to maintain speed on the last corner as it is a relatively long straight to the finish - easier said than done with reasonably large rocks on the apex of the corner!
http://www.worldalternativegames.co.uk/events/mountain-boarding/
or as it's better known to the Mountainboarding Community:
ATBA Downhill Round 2, Saturday 18th August 2012!
Just over 6 weeks to go until Round 2 of the ATBA Downhill Series at Esgair Dafydd or 'Dave' is round once again. Very similar to last years event, and like Round 1 earlier this year up in Whinlatter, Lake District, we can expect to see high speed straights, technical cornering and incredibly close action as riders from across the UK compete to get down this tried-and-tested 1.4 mile, 9-cornered track in the fastest time.
Using the synchronised-watch system of clocking the riders in and out of the start and finish gates, riders get the opportunity to complete the course as many times as their stamina will allow with their fastest time being the one that counts. Take advantage of the on-site uplift to maximise your riding without compromising on the climbing and make the most of the empty track which will be closed to other vehicles on race day.
All of this can be yours for £10 if you are an annual ATBA members or £20 for Day Members i.e those without ATBA membership who want to join in the fun. Or get your membership now and save money all over the place!
Located near Llanwrtyd Wells, on the A483 in between Buith Wells and Llandovery
Want to join in the discussion prior to the event? The official ATBA Page has all the info and the official Facebook Page has all the discussion.
For those that haven't ridden a downhill event before or want to know a little more about the intricacies of riding 'Dave', read on!
"What are you looking forward to at this years event?"
In all honesty, it's basically a dusty track miles from anywhere. Why do some of last years riders want to do it all again?Jay rides noSno and since last years event has upgraded to hydraulic brakes for improved speed control. He say that he is looking forward to bettering his time from last year on this challenging track, whilst making the most of the uplift and enjoying the friendly competition between riders.
Brennig is an innovator in mountainboarding development and creativity and constantly works on updates to his 'nompa' (Trampa/noSno mashup). You can read all about his adventures at the 'Where the party is' blog and he simply says that he is looking forward to "actually getting out and riding" and adds that "it's an awesome track".
Chris, author of the 'Freeride NW' blog has switched his Comp 26 from last year to a noSno and hopes to improve on previous times by straight-lining the long section before 'Rogers Corner' (Corner '2' on map) without fear of speed wobble. He too looks forward to catching up with loads of riders.
"What advice or Dave tips would you give to someone who hasn't ridden a downhill event or Dave before?"
It's a long way to go just to crash out on the first corner so we asked a few of last years riders to provide some hints and tips for the first timers. So without giving away all of Dave's secrets (we don't want everyone to beat us!), here are some of the responses.Jay says:
"pad up (of course), bring food and drink, have fun, and have some more fun"Worth restating to take all of the supplies that you think you may need - food, water, spare equipment. It's a long way from nowhere if you suddenly get the munchies or a flat tyre! But above all, have fun - we look forward to catching up with as many of you as possible on the day!
Brennig says:
Its a good point to make that whilst many people will be riding with brakes, many others ride without and the fastest times of last year were all done brake-less. It was an eye-opener last year to be overtaken on one of the practice runs by Steve Morris who was riding brake-less but who had far better cornering technique. At Dave, equipment may assist, but good riding technique is essential for a good time."Riding Brake-less? Practise your sliding and scrubbing, take it slow at first, you have all day to get a good time and you only need one. Pump up your tyres a little bit more every run and try lots of different lines. If you're going to crash the bushes are your friends.Riding with a brake? Bomb those straights and don't brake too often, after Rogers corner (corner '2' on map above) try not to use it at all. And don't forget to enjoy yourself."
Chris B says:
"Practice your cornering (especially heel sides)(Chris rides goofy). Other than speed tucking (which is beyond me anyway) it seems the biggest thing that affects your time is your ability to take corners at speed. Dave has about 9 of them; alternating heel side and toe sides.Speed tucking? Roger S writes a little about it here, giving plenty of food for thought and also some related interesting articles on Competition Strategy and Cornering. Point to note that even if you're not going for a full Brazilian speed tuck, that you will be holding a mountainboarding stance for approximately 3.5 to 6 minutes depending on track times. Multiply this time by 4 or even 5 times for the number of runs on the day and it soon becomes obvious why the day can be tiring. Spending a few minutes every day holding a pose may reap rewards on the day, or at the very least mean that your legs aren't like jelly after the first couple of runs.
There isn't much difference in time between brakes/brake-less at a high level, but for intermediates, brake boarders seem to have an easier time of things.
Don't try and blitz it early on; if you come off and injure yourself on a practice run or your 1st run its no fun."
And Chris' point about not injuring yourself on the first run? It's happened at the last two events now to riders on the first practice run on the first corner so it's definitely worth a mention.
Anything Else???
Some great responses above. All that I would add is to try and get a good nights sleep the night before. It can be a long day and is tiring, even with all of the vehicle up-lifts.
Dave has been described by many as 'the top where you try and limit the speed, followed by the rest where you try and maintain the speed'. This is because of the long, reasonably steep straights leading to the first tight couple of corners. However, brake too much at this point and it is difficult to regain speed on the lower, shallower half of the course. In particular, try to maintain speed on the last corner as it is a relatively long straight to the finish - easier said than done with reasonably large rocks on the apex of the corner!
Finally, for those that just want to sit back and watch some videos, a couple for you: The official 2011 promotional reel, followed by Travis' on board competition run.
Wednesday, 27 June 2012
Daredevils: Life on the Edge - Monday C4
Just a quick heads up about a documentary this Monday evening, Channel 4, featuring Danny MacAskill and a whole load of similar extremists.
From the description in the Radio Times:
From the description in the Radio Times:
"Stunt cyclist Danny MacAskill questions why people pursue extreme sports. Despite becoming famous through clips of his bike skills on the internet, he has suffered a series of injuries and is currently unable to perform. He speaks to fellow enthusiasts, scientists and psychologists to try to understand what leads people to take incredible risks."Whether it'll be as good as Concrete Circus remains to be seen but it is the same director - Mike Christie so fingers crossed on this one. I'll put a reminder out on twitter closer to the time and link to the 4OD links that will hopefully emerge following the programme.
Thursday, 21 June 2012
Support the ATBA - Boards for Beginners
From the recent ATBA Newsletter #29:
"One of the things that keeps beginners from getting into mountainboarding is the cost of buying a board. We want to do something about this, and we need your help to do it. Do your have any spare board parts just gathering dust? Donate them to the ATBA-UK and we'll build up boards and sell them cheap for beginners. We'll also include an info pack with the board with info about centres, basics techniques, and info about becoming part of the community. We think it'll really help get more people into mountainboarding but we can't do it without you. So, bring any old spare wheels, bindings, trucks and even decks to any of the ATBA-UK comps and we'll gladly take them off your hands."We've all got bits and pieces lying around the place - old egg shocks from when we were all a bit thinner round the waist, or skate trucks that became obsolete as the tracks got faster and the tricks got larger. Club all the bits together and we've probably got a good number of boards as well as the opportunity to make a bit of cash for the ATBA. This can go into promoting these events to make them even bigger and badder than ever before or go into any number of things that suck up money these days just to keep things running smoothly.
So, feeling charitable? Going to an event? Round 2's this week by the way!
Tuesday, 19 June 2012
It's back to the writing....
It's back to the writing unfortunately since late last night when I had my car broken into resulting in a few bits and pieces nicked, including my beloved Contour HD cam D:
Not only this, but also my SatNav. May it break down on them as frequently as it used to do so for me, and may it cause them to lose themselves every time they visit East Leeds. May they agonise when it resets everytime they cut the ignition. This is what you get when steeling a 3 year old, repeatedly repaired SatNav.
Not only this, but also my generic mp3 player. May they be sorely disappointed in the lack of banging garage and electro beats and instead endure my large selection of podcasts, mashups and Mr Scruff sessions. Good job I archive everything.
They did however leave my collection of CDs which obviously means that they have a poor taste in music, and my work notes, of which without them, I'd be way up the creek - my memory is terrible.
Most of these bits and pieces I can do without. My camera however was fantastic for documenting the odd session or two and it will be sorely missed, especially as all of my spare funds right now are going in the composite axle pot. Even more so, I was jammy enough to get mine at the especially low price that I did, so replacing is unlikely in the immediate future. Shame really as I was looking forward to getting some footage of 'Dave'.
So it's back to the writing. Not the worst thing ever, but with a picture equating a thousand words, a video worked wonders for taking the effort out of things sometimes. Take it or leave it, you'll just have to use your imagination once again....
Not only this, but also my SatNav. May it break down on them as frequently as it used to do so for me, and may it cause them to lose themselves every time they visit East Leeds. May they agonise when it resets everytime they cut the ignition. This is what you get when steeling a 3 year old, repeatedly repaired SatNav.
Not only this, but also my generic mp3 player. May they be sorely disappointed in the lack of banging garage and electro beats and instead endure my large selection of podcasts, mashups and Mr Scruff sessions. Good job I archive everything.
They did however leave my collection of CDs which obviously means that they have a poor taste in music, and my work notes, of which without them, I'd be way up the creek - my memory is terrible.
Most of these bits and pieces I can do without. My camera however was fantastic for documenting the odd session or two and it will be sorely missed, especially as all of my spare funds right now are going in the composite axle pot. Even more so, I was jammy enough to get mine at the especially low price that I did, so replacing is unlikely in the immediate future. Shame really as I was looking forward to getting some footage of 'Dave'.
So it's back to the writing. Not the worst thing ever, but with a picture equating a thousand words, a video worked wonders for taking the effort out of things sometimes. Take it or leave it, you'll just have to use your imagination once again....
Monday, 18 June 2012
Self Timing Systems
Here's the plan. I've bought one of these off ebay; they're only a couple of quid if you order from China and don't mind waiting a couple of weeks.
The LCD screen is on the large side, being approximately 65x40mm which should mean that I can read the numbers when the unit is strapped between my feet to the deck. The casing will be drilled so that a wire can extend up the brake cable and connect to a rugged push switch on the brake lever mounting. This will start-stop the timer with a push of the switch even when wearing gloves and should allow for a reasonably accurate indication of track run time.
Why? The intention for this system is to a) allow quicker personal feedback at some of the longer runs such as Dave and Whinlatter before the relative start and end times have been compared and official times calculated, and b) allow for some personal investigation on the effectiveness of various speed tucks. I appreciate that a whole load more information could be gathered by using GPS, but this should be a cheap and fast alternative i.e. not an issue if it falls off and breaks.
Yes, the system isn't foolproof to be used as a standard competition tool - I could easily pause the timer for a few seconds on the way down, and if this was the case, a series of relays that prevented a re-start unless the system is reset could be easily implemented. But this isn't the point. Unless I'm cheating myself, then the basic system as described above should do the job nicely for my own needs.
As an afterthought, my only concern is one of complexity especially on these race days when the person in front of you has set off and you have one minute to climb the ramp, strap yourself into the bindings, hold the brake lever in a position that won't get tangled up in the front trucks when setting off, start the helmet cam, ready the start-stop timing button and then pull yourself out of the starting gate without falling over. Perhaps I should just ditch the gadgets and remember to enjoy the ride instead.
Why? The intention for this system is to a) allow quicker personal feedback at some of the longer runs such as Dave and Whinlatter before the relative start and end times have been compared and official times calculated, and b) allow for some personal investigation on the effectiveness of various speed tucks. I appreciate that a whole load more information could be gathered by using GPS, but this should be a cheap and fast alternative i.e. not an issue if it falls off and breaks.
Yes, the system isn't foolproof to be used as a standard competition tool - I could easily pause the timer for a few seconds on the way down, and if this was the case, a series of relays that prevented a re-start unless the system is reset could be easily implemented. But this isn't the point. Unless I'm cheating myself, then the basic system as described above should do the job nicely for my own needs.
As an afterthought, my only concern is one of complexity especially on these race days when the person in front of you has set off and you have one minute to climb the ramp, strap yourself into the bindings, hold the brake lever in a position that won't get tangled up in the front trucks when setting off, start the helmet cam, ready the start-stop timing button and then pull yourself out of the starting gate without falling over. Perhaps I should just ditch the gadgets and remember to enjoy the ride instead.
Sunday, 17 June 2012
Who's with me? The Good Ride Guide!
This article originally appeared at the Mountainboard Derby blog. This is mainly because I posted it in the wrong blog. Hey ho!
Rogers UK Ride Guide is fantastic - an ever growing map showing all the popular riding locations, plus a whole load more and is a great start for those looking further afield for their thrills.
Following this line of thought, does anyone think it'd be a good idea to pull this information together to all this in a format familiar to anyone who has read one of the 'Good Beer' or 'Good Pub' guides over the years? Each location would have a short description with a series of icons to designate the type of riding. I'm thinking along the lines of Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Grass, Woodland, Firetrack, Freeride, Easy Access/Close Parking, Remote, Short/Medium/Long Trails, sort of thing.
Trails can be sorted by region with a corresponding map and possibly the option to rate or comment on trails with photos as appropriate. All this could form a standalone website, or section of website, or compiled into an e-book, though distributing the wealth could be tricky if there are loads of contributors!
So, any good ideas, get in touch, or perhaps I just need some good logos and a bit of time to work out the Midlands section. If nothing else, I just like the name 'The Good Ride Guide' and wanted to get first dibs on the copy write. Even if it's a daft idea, at least we still have the UK ride guide!
Here is some additional information for those few people that don't regularly read the 'Good Beer' or 'Good Pub' Guide.
This is how to use the 'Good Beer Guide':
...and this is is what a typical section looks like when viewed from a slight angle:
So far, there seems to bee good interest, even though I didn't do the obvious thing and google goodrideguide. (Un)fortunately, mountain bikers seem to have thought of this first, though it could be far worse - it could rate the ladies of the night on a sliding scale. Still, I think the project has potential so lets see what happens. Reckon we have more chance of producing a nice pamphlet that an actual e-book, but that could be fun too.
Rogers UK Ride Guide is fantastic - an ever growing map showing all the popular riding locations, plus a whole load more and is a great start for those looking further afield for their thrills.
Following this line of thought, does anyone think it'd be a good idea to pull this information together to all this in a format familiar to anyone who has read one of the 'Good Beer' or 'Good Pub' guides over the years? Each location would have a short description with a series of icons to designate the type of riding. I'm thinking along the lines of Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Grass, Woodland, Firetrack, Freeride, Easy Access/Close Parking, Remote, Short/Medium/Long Trails, sort of thing.
Trails can be sorted by region with a corresponding map and possibly the option to rate or comment on trails with photos as appropriate. All this could form a standalone website, or section of website, or compiled into an e-book, though distributing the wealth could be tricky if there are loads of contributors!
So, any good ideas, get in touch, or perhaps I just need some good logos and a bit of time to work out the Midlands section. If nothing else, I just like the name 'The Good Ride Guide' and wanted to get first dibs on the copy write. Even if it's a daft idea, at least we still have the UK ride guide!
Here is some additional information for those few people that don't regularly read the 'Good Beer' or 'Good Pub' Guide.
This is how to use the 'Good Beer Guide':
...and this is is what a typical section looks like when viewed from a slight angle:
So far, there seems to bee good interest, even though I didn't do the obvious thing and google goodrideguide. (Un)fortunately, mountain bikers seem to have thought of this first, though it could be far worse - it could rate the ladies of the night on a sliding scale. Still, I think the project has potential so lets see what happens. Reckon we have more chance of producing a nice pamphlet that an actual e-book, but that could be fun too.
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Next Monday Night Session: 14th May 2012
The next Mountainboard Derby Monday Night Session will be held on
Monday 14th May 2012 at our
usual spot on
Darley Park..
Matt and family are usually there from ~5-6pm till 8 with Ade there from 7.30pm(ish) till dark and beyond at our usual spot on Darley Park.
If you want to borrow any kit such as boards, helmets or pads or want to use the mini ramp, then give us a shout!
Discussions regarding this session can be found on the Mountainboard Derby Facebook page.
See you down there!
Matt and family are usually there from ~5-6pm till 8 with Ade there from 7.30pm(ish) till dark and beyond at our usual spot on Darley Park.
If you want to borrow any kit such as boards, helmets or pads or want to use the mini ramp, then give us a shout!
Discussions regarding this session can be found on the Mountainboard Derby Facebook page.
See you down there!
Tuesday, 8 May 2012
When TV gets things right: Freesports on 4
It's usually the case that terrestrial television covering niche or 'extreme' sports will inevitability turn out bad, whether it's shouty presenters, bad camera angles, crap music, presenters 'having a go', or 'action' that's just a bit boring. So it's nice to find a programme that tells things as it is and just lets the action get on with things.
So it is with the Channel 4 coverage of the 'Freeride World Tour' on on the occasional early Sunday morning with plenty of repeats throughout the week on 4music.
Freeride World Tour? From the official FAQ pages, "Forget placing slalom poles down the mountain. Forget building artificial jumps and hips and halfpipes and tabletops. Forget grooming the slopes even. Freeride contests are 100% natural, 100% clean. Indeed, the event is all about celebrating the god-given terrain features found on any mountainside in the most exciting and elemental format possible. There‘s a start gate at the summit and a finish gate at the bottom. That’s it. Best run down wins."
The snowboarders cover the first half of the show, followed by the skiers, interspersed with brief thoughts by some of the competitors between runs. What more do you need? Certainly not Chris Evens.
So would the format work for mountainboarding? I don't see why not - perhaps there is room for us on the telly, even if it is at 7am on a Sunday morning.
Latest episode can be found on the 4od page here:
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/freesports-on-4/4od
Keep track of when it's on next from the handy Radio Times pages:
http://www.radiotimes.com/programme/cfbr/freesports-on-4
...and more importantly, learn more about the competition itself on the official pages:
http://www.freerideworldtour.com/
So it is with the Channel 4 coverage of the 'Freeride World Tour' on on the occasional early Sunday morning with plenty of repeats throughout the week on 4music.
Freeride World Tour? From the official FAQ pages, "Forget placing slalom poles down the mountain. Forget building artificial jumps and hips and halfpipes and tabletops. Forget grooming the slopes even. Freeride contests are 100% natural, 100% clean. Indeed, the event is all about celebrating the god-given terrain features found on any mountainside in the most exciting and elemental format possible. There‘s a start gate at the summit and a finish gate at the bottom. That’s it. Best run down wins."
The snowboarders cover the first half of the show, followed by the skiers, interspersed with brief thoughts by some of the competitors between runs. What more do you need? Certainly not Chris Evens.
So would the format work for mountainboarding? I don't see why not - perhaps there is room for us on the telly, even if it is at 7am on a Sunday morning.
Latest episode can be found on the 4od page here:
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/freesports-on-4/4od
Keep track of when it's on next from the handy Radio Times pages:
http://www.radiotimes.com/programme/cfbr/freesports-on-4
...and more importantly, learn more about the competition itself on the official pages:
http://www.freerideworldtour.com/
Wednesday, 2 May 2012
Want to stiffen your soggy MBS deck?
Karl (may or may not be his real name)*, is local Derby rider who we met up with for the first time recently. He likes to freestyle and likes to go big and so really pushes the flex of his board to the limit. In doing so, over time the MBS deck naturally became a bit soggy and so used the following modification to stiffen things up.
The Trampa handle is apparently a bit of a bugger to fit to the MBS grab handle holes, but when fitted, stays in place nice and tight. The effect of doing this is that on landing, the deck is restrained from flexing upwards by the stiffness of the handle. Result: one stiffer deck that is also portable!
Disclaimer. Karl snapped his deck a couple of weeks a go. Not necessarily as a result of any modifications but we here at Dirt Box HQ accept no responsibility whatsoever. Thank you!
* - it is his real name.
The Trampa handle is apparently a bit of a bugger to fit to the MBS grab handle holes, but when fitted, stays in place nice and tight. The effect of doing this is that on landing, the deck is restrained from flexing upwards by the stiffness of the handle. Result: one stiffer deck that is also portable!
Disclaimer. Karl snapped his deck a couple of weeks a go. Not necessarily as a result of any modifications but we here at Dirt Box HQ accept no responsibility whatsoever. Thank you!
* - it is his real name.
Tuesday, 1 May 2012
Want to win a holiday?
How this one passed me by, I don't know.... Anyway, turns out that the overall winner in each of the categories in the 2012 ATBA series will win a snowboarding holiday courtesy of Pleisure! So if you're eligible for the Pro, Seniors, Ladies or Masters, there's all the more reason to fight for the finish, with the only stipulation that you have to compete in all three disciplines - boarder X, freestyle and downhill. A good reason as any to tweak those methods to the max and get freestyling, or boarder x-ing, or down-hilling...!
info via http://atbauk.wordpress.com/
info via http://atbauk.wordpress.com/
Whinlatter or Bust!...
...a short story where Phill and Ade travel for 5 and a half hours and sleep together in an incredibly cold tent in order to ride for a grand total of 16 minutes* in the far north of England
* Fortunately this was 16 minutes riding in the beautiful Whinlatter forest, for the first ATBA downhill competition to be held in England on a proper mountain.
Starting at the beginning though - Lessons learned from 'Dave 2011': a) travelling the night before and sleeping in the car or b) travelling there on the morning of the comp itself is not the best way to do things. With this in mind, Phill and I left Derby at 2.30pm on the Friday and headed north with my eldest son in the back seat. If I was going to have fun in the Lakes, the least I could do is drop him off at Granny and Granddads on the way to take the pressure off the missus back home. With him sorted, we could speed up the A6, through Stockport and get round Manchester before joining up with the M6 motorway. Best laid plans and all that.
Unfortunately, all the tourists seemed to have a similar idea with the consequences of this being that we hit Manchester bang on 5pm and resulting in our average speed dropping considerably. Perhaps I should have gone via Stoke on Trent... Hey ho, onwards and upwards to where the hills get hillier!
Arrived at the campsite at 7.30 and paid just £6.50 instead of the usual £7.50 by quoting 'mountainboarding' thanks to the tough negotiations made previously by Chris 6th Degree - nice one Chris!
Despite changeable and contrasting weather reports, the day was dry, the air clear and the local scenery fantastic. Plenty of riders had arrived earlier and there was loads of room for everyone plus everyone else due to arrive much later that evening.
With high efficiency we get the tent erected and make the decision to hit the pub rather than eat either Phills or my food rations. Probably a very good idea - Phill had a good stock of breakfast food and I had the usual rubbish - tinned rice pudding and baked beans. To my credit, I had remembered a tin opener and a spoon this time!
Going for an evening ride was considered and rejected - it was going to get dark soon; probably get far colder and we could conserve our energy for the next day. Besides, I wasn't entirely sure where the designated track was and given my current personal circumstances with small children back home, I wasn't going to pass on an opportunity to hit the pub.
4 pints later and we're back at the campsite. It's cold, but as it's a clear night, the night sky is amazing. Reports come in that Mark S has been pulled over by the police. Later on that night he arrives with Jenna in his bright, yellow van. "How fast were you going, then?", "65" moans Mark.
More is drunk. People mill around for a couple of hours looking at the various boards on display. Campfires are lit and the mood is good for a good ride in the morning.
Night-time. Frog-me*, its cold. (* - with a 2 year old in the house, self-censorship is almost automatic now. We have a lot of frogs, sheep and carp on a daily basis).
Next morning and everyone's up bright and early ready to roll! Perhaps everyone else was ready, I was cold and couldn't sleep. Also wondered why the free-roaming chickens seemed so interested in Eddie's tent?? This became evident much later during packing the tents when Eddie and his late night pavement pizza emerged as a result of dodgy food the night before. Unlucky one, Eddie :-(
After a fantastic slap-up breakfast cooked by Phill in the boot of my car (the flame kept going out when it was exposed), we were good to go and had the luxury of being able to follow the snake of cars heading up to the Whinlatter Visitor Centre. We headed out of the carpark and immediately turned left, exactly the opposite way to the way I would have guessed. Probably a good job I didn't try and find it the night before!
Was only a couple of miles or so to the Visitor Centre with it's £6.50 all day parking. I thought it might have been a bit cheaper up north... Hey ho, it's all supporting the local forestry commission and all that. Instructions come through: 10am we can start to register with riders meeting at 10.30.
From the visitor centre it was a nice, slightly downward slope into the woods so might as well get on and ride, approximately 300 metres. At this point, the track split in two with a path to the left going slightly uphill, and a path to the right going steeply down. Not wishing to climb back up if it's the wrong way, we all sit down and wait for further instructions. (not that we're lazy or anything....)
Registration took place with a slight hint of rain in the air and two biros. Everyone signs the disclaimer and promises not to sue anyone and we're given the choice of taking the van up to the top or walking the route. Having only watched the track on-line walking seemed like a good idea.
Heading up, the rain seemed to stop and the track looked the same as in the video, just a bit steeper. Walking with Travis, the only person nearby who had ridden the track previously, he kept repeating that the track was "much steeper" than he had remembered.
The track, a combination of firetrack, gravel path and soft woodland path of just over a mile in length turned out to be not closed off to the public as initially though, but was littered with warnings at every junction to keep the walkers and bikers over to the far side.
Further instructions were given at the top of the hill. Don't hit the walkers or the bikers, fastest time wins. Fair enough! Then it started snowing. Only at the top though, it was almost sunbathing weather at the bottom.
With everyone in one spot it was impressive to see the range of toys brought out to play with various options on what would be most effective. Boards included MBSs, noSnos, Trampas, rebranded MBSs, nompas. Brakes included MBS V5s, ABS, noSno and cable disk brakes, and of course crazy brakeless riders, and tyres included 8 inch, 9 inch, 10 inch and 12 inch as well as the odd large front, small rear wheel combos.
Following a practice run, general discussion seemed to concur that the track was pretty straight forward with not too much to worry about. In a nutshell, a long-ish straight, a reasonably tight left-hander followed by a reasonably sweeping right-hander followed by shorter straight section passing over another track before dropping sharply down a stoney gully. Through the woods with a tight left hander to finish with a large digger on the outside edge of the corner, just to focus the mind a bit.
3 more runs over the course of the day and that was me happy. With decent weather conditions, the track was running well and generally times were able to improve as the day went on. A quick riders meeting voted to chop off the last 10 metres of the track as it was quite boggy and a big advantage to those on larger tyres. This made a lot of sense and was implemented immediately.
The uplift worked well hauling all 30 riders plus boards plus marshals up in one go. This would have been perfect if a) I hadn't of felt travel sick after the first go and ended up walking each of the subsequent times and b) if Ben hadn't of ridden into the van during the practice run when the van had to stop suddenly. I'd forgotten just how travel sick I'd used to be when I used to be a passenger before I could drive and was fine until someone towards the back said 'imagine if someone was sick, and that caused everyone else to be sick'. Lets just say that my helmet came very close to becoming a little stinkier that day.
After a very satisfying days riding, it was a much faster drive back down to the Midlands in little under 3 1/2 hours. What a difference not driving through Manchester on a Friday rush hour makes!
So, big cheers to Roger for all the organising for making all of this a reality and for going smoothly on the day, to the marshals for keeping the bikers and walkers out of the way, to the timekeepers who provided us with regular updates on our progress and to everyone else who made it a great weekend!
With great efficiency, the full results were published a day or so later and can be found in full here:
http://atbauk.wordpress.com/2012/04/14/downhill-series-round-1-results/
Congratulations to JC on an astonishingly quick time on 9" tyres and no brakes.
More media can be found below with an excellent write up from Freeride NW here:
http://freeridenw.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/atba-downhill-series-1-write-up.html
* Fortunately this was 16 minutes riding in the beautiful Whinlatter forest, for the first ATBA downhill competition to be held in England on a proper mountain.
Starting at the beginning though - Lessons learned from 'Dave 2011': a) travelling the night before and sleeping in the car or b) travelling there on the morning of the comp itself is not the best way to do things. With this in mind, Phill and I left Derby at 2.30pm on the Friday and headed north with my eldest son in the back seat. If I was going to have fun in the Lakes, the least I could do is drop him off at Granny and Granddads on the way to take the pressure off the missus back home. With him sorted, we could speed up the A6, through Stockport and get round Manchester before joining up with the M6 motorway. Best laid plans and all that.
Unfortunately, all the tourists seemed to have a similar idea with the consequences of this being that we hit Manchester bang on 5pm and resulting in our average speed dropping considerably. Perhaps I should have gone via Stoke on Trent... Hey ho, onwards and upwards to where the hills get hillier!
Arrived at the campsite at 7.30 and paid just £6.50 instead of the usual £7.50 by quoting 'mountainboarding' thanks to the tough negotiations made previously by Chris 6th Degree - nice one Chris!
Despite changeable and contrasting weather reports, the day was dry, the air clear and the local scenery fantastic. Plenty of riders had arrived earlier and there was loads of room for everyone plus everyone else due to arrive much later that evening.
With high efficiency we get the tent erected and make the decision to hit the pub rather than eat either Phills or my food rations. Probably a very good idea - Phill had a good stock of breakfast food and I had the usual rubbish - tinned rice pudding and baked beans. To my credit, I had remembered a tin opener and a spoon this time!
Going for an evening ride was considered and rejected - it was going to get dark soon; probably get far colder and we could conserve our energy for the next day. Besides, I wasn't entirely sure where the designated track was and given my current personal circumstances with small children back home, I wasn't going to pass on an opportunity to hit the pub.
4 pints later and we're back at the campsite. It's cold, but as it's a clear night, the night sky is amazing. Reports come in that Mark S has been pulled over by the police. Later on that night he arrives with Jenna in his bright, yellow van. "How fast were you going, then?", "65" moans Mark.
More is drunk. People mill around for a couple of hours looking at the various boards on display. Campfires are lit and the mood is good for a good ride in the morning.
Night-time. Frog-me*, its cold. (* - with a 2 year old in the house, self-censorship is almost automatic now. We have a lot of frogs, sheep and carp on a daily basis).
Next morning and everyone's up bright and early ready to roll! Perhaps everyone else was ready, I was cold and couldn't sleep. Also wondered why the free-roaming chickens seemed so interested in Eddie's tent?? This became evident much later during packing the tents when Eddie and his late night pavement pizza emerged as a result of dodgy food the night before. Unlucky one, Eddie :-(
After a fantastic slap-up breakfast cooked by Phill in the boot of my car (the flame kept going out when it was exposed), we were good to go and had the luxury of being able to follow the snake of cars heading up to the Whinlatter Visitor Centre. We headed out of the carpark and immediately turned left, exactly the opposite way to the way I would have guessed. Probably a good job I didn't try and find it the night before!
Was only a couple of miles or so to the Visitor Centre with it's £6.50 all day parking. I thought it might have been a bit cheaper up north... Hey ho, it's all supporting the local forestry commission and all that. Instructions come through: 10am we can start to register with riders meeting at 10.30.
From the visitor centre it was a nice, slightly downward slope into the woods so might as well get on and ride, approximately 300 metres. At this point, the track split in two with a path to the left going slightly uphill, and a path to the right going steeply down. Not wishing to climb back up if it's the wrong way, we all sit down and wait for further instructions. (not that we're lazy or anything....)
Registration took place with a slight hint of rain in the air and two biros. Everyone signs the disclaimer and promises not to sue anyone and we're given the choice of taking the van up to the top or walking the route. Having only watched the track on-line walking seemed like a good idea.
Heading up, the rain seemed to stop and the track looked the same as in the video, just a bit steeper. Walking with Travis, the only person nearby who had ridden the track previously, he kept repeating that the track was "much steeper" than he had remembered.
The track, a combination of firetrack, gravel path and soft woodland path of just over a mile in length turned out to be not closed off to the public as initially though, but was littered with warnings at every junction to keep the walkers and bikers over to the far side.
Further instructions were given at the top of the hill. Don't hit the walkers or the bikers, fastest time wins. Fair enough! Then it started snowing. Only at the top though, it was almost sunbathing weather at the bottom.
With everyone in one spot it was impressive to see the range of toys brought out to play with various options on what would be most effective. Boards included MBSs, noSnos, Trampas, rebranded MBSs, nompas. Brakes included MBS V5s, ABS, noSno and cable disk brakes, and of course crazy brakeless riders, and tyres included 8 inch, 9 inch, 10 inch and 12 inch as well as the odd large front, small rear wheel combos.
Following a practice run, general discussion seemed to concur that the track was pretty straight forward with not too much to worry about. In a nutshell, a long-ish straight, a reasonably tight left-hander followed by a reasonably sweeping right-hander followed by shorter straight section passing over another track before dropping sharply down a stoney gully. Through the woods with a tight left hander to finish with a large digger on the outside edge of the corner, just to focus the mind a bit.
3 more runs over the course of the day and that was me happy. With decent weather conditions, the track was running well and generally times were able to improve as the day went on. A quick riders meeting voted to chop off the last 10 metres of the track as it was quite boggy and a big advantage to those on larger tyres. This made a lot of sense and was implemented immediately.
The uplift worked well hauling all 30 riders plus boards plus marshals up in one go. This would have been perfect if a) I hadn't of felt travel sick after the first go and ended up walking each of the subsequent times and b) if Ben hadn't of ridden into the van during the practice run when the van had to stop suddenly. I'd forgotten just how travel sick I'd used to be when I used to be a passenger before I could drive and was fine until someone towards the back said 'imagine if someone was sick, and that caused everyone else to be sick'. Lets just say that my helmet came very close to becoming a little stinkier that day.
After a very satisfying days riding, it was a much faster drive back down to the Midlands in little under 3 1/2 hours. What a difference not driving through Manchester on a Friday rush hour makes!
So, big cheers to Roger for all the organising for making all of this a reality and for going smoothly on the day, to the marshals for keeping the bikers and walkers out of the way, to the timekeepers who provided us with regular updates on our progress and to everyone else who made it a great weekend!
With great efficiency, the full results were published a day or so later and can be found in full here:
http://atbauk.wordpress.com/2012/04/14/downhill-series-round-1-results/
Congratulations to JC on an astonishingly quick time on 9" tyres and no brakes.
More media can be found below with an excellent write up from Freeride NW here:
http://freeridenw.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/atba-downhill-series-1-write-up.html
Wednesday, 4 April 2012
Mountainboard Derby: Freeride Session Review - 2nd April 2012
Further to my previous post here, and after a lot of discussion on facebook, the first of the Mountainboard Derby Monday Night Sessions took place!
Kicking off early in Darley Park, I got to the party late with Karl and Kirsty, Matt and family having been down since the afternoon. Phill got there approximately 10 minutes before I did but with the benefit of British Summer Time, I was able to get in a decent couple of hours boarding before it got really, really dark.
The mini ramp as supplied by Jay Langdell mixed things up a bit and as the sun set, relaxed riding interspersed with much chat meant that the evening flew by. For future use, Mat's supplying some football markers so that we have something to aim for rather than just the usual trees etc.
In the scheme of things, Darley Park seems like a good starting point and so far, people seem keen to do something on a regular basis. Maybe it wont always be Darley, and maybe people will prefer another night, but let's see how things go. All in all, it's shaping up to be a great summer!
PS, I've set-up a quick and dirty blog page so that people can see the general plan of action. Read all about it here: http://mountainboard-derby.blogspot.co.uk/
PPS, it was only when it got dark that I thought about taking some photos. Oh well, next time Gadget!
Kicking off early in Darley Park, I got to the party late with Karl and Kirsty, Matt and family having been down since the afternoon. Phill got there approximately 10 minutes before I did but with the benefit of British Summer Time, I was able to get in a decent couple of hours boarding before it got really, really dark.
The mini ramp as supplied by Jay Langdell mixed things up a bit and as the sun set, relaxed riding interspersed with much chat meant that the evening flew by. For future use, Mat's supplying some football markers so that we have something to aim for rather than just the usual trees etc.
In the scheme of things, Darley Park seems like a good starting point and so far, people seem keen to do something on a regular basis. Maybe it wont always be Darley, and maybe people will prefer another night, but let's see how things go. All in all, it's shaping up to be a great summer!
PS, I've set-up a quick and dirty blog page so that people can see the general plan of action. Read all about it here: http://mountainboard-derby.blogspot.co.uk/
PPS, it was only when it got dark that I thought about taking some photos. Oh well, next time Gadget!
Monday, 12 March 2012
Spring Time Tinkering
Christmas break was a great time to make a few changes and tinker a bit with stuff. Unfortunately, work load in the new year then went mental so whilst stuff has been taking place, having the time to document has been low. Anyhow, a summary of what I've been up to is below.
T3 Tyres
On recommendation from Mark S, these bad boys from ATBShop (with 10% off with ATBA membership) provide a flatter contact area with the ground with additional noggins round the edges. Upshot of this is supposedly better lateral grip with slightly slower acceleration. Having ridden in them most of this year, I can confirm that although they will still slide out when it's really, really muddy, they still provide control in poor conditions. I've been told that they lose their effectiveness if over inflated - this makes sense in that the more you pump, the less square edged they become as they try to match the doughnut shaped inner tube. How much to pump then I suppose depends on how many pies you've had recently. So, in summary, less fun on the golf course, but great fun kicking up leaves in the woods.
Burton Ratchets
..both look the business and (so far) work great! The big problem that I've had in the past with MBS, Trampa and the ones on noSno is either the ratchets failing to hold position, either though broken teeth, or worn ladder straps, or ratchets failing to disengage at the end of a run. So far, I'm very happy with these, with only slight bodging necessary to fit into place. All that was required was a new hole in the plastic binding for the notch on the ratchet to fit into. Added bonus that these seem very easy to remove, even with big gloves on.
Head Torch
Night riding has gone down very well this winter with riding once or twice a week most weeks with both Phill and brother Rob coming along for the ride. LED torches seem to be cheaper than ever and I picked up three '9-LED' torches for a fiver with batteries included. At this sort of price, they are almost disposable. Industrial strength Velcro from Homebase was relatively expensive at around a tenner for half a metres worth, but then you only need a little bit at a time. Bonus of doing this is the ability to replace one torch with another, should one fail, and the ability to change position slightly. This comes into effect quite regularly as a torch in the wrong position only manages to illuminate the inside of my helmet, leaving me blind to the outside world. As mentioned quite regularly on here, it's worth giving night riding a go if only because it means you can ride more. Don't worry if not though - British Summer Time is almost amongst us!
Bindings
My Rage noSno bindings are in reasonable condition, but the padding on the underside of the bindings were in a reasonably poor state. My biggest concern then was the metal parts of the underside catching on my snowboard boots and ripping them up a little. Maybe unfounded, but I do like my boots and would prefer not to have to replace them for a while, particularly as my feet should have stopped growing! Solution this time was to remove all traces of the foam underside and replace with a leather section of similar shape; glue into place (one with Evostick Impact, one with Araldite, see which works best long term), and leave to dry. In the morning, chop off the excess leather and away we go. So far, both seem to be doing reasonably well so my additional step of restitching round the edge I haven't bothered with, but we'll see on this - could be more effort than it's worth. No definitive difference so far between the glues.
So, where is this all leading? There are a whole load of ATBA events happing over the summer including Boarder X, Freestyle and Downhill. Added to this, hopefully the Mountainboard Derby Summertime sessions will become a reality, or at least an opportunity to ride on a regular basis in a more relaxed way. Add to this all the usual events and stuff that happens around the country that hopefully we'll be finding out a bit more about soon.
T3 Tyres
On recommendation from Mark S, these bad boys from ATBShop (with 10% off with ATBA membership) provide a flatter contact area with the ground with additional noggins round the edges. Upshot of this is supposedly better lateral grip with slightly slower acceleration. Having ridden in them most of this year, I can confirm that although they will still slide out when it's really, really muddy, they still provide control in poor conditions. I've been told that they lose their effectiveness if over inflated - this makes sense in that the more you pump, the less square edged they become as they try to match the doughnut shaped inner tube. How much to pump then I suppose depends on how many pies you've had recently. So, in summary, less fun on the golf course, but great fun kicking up leaves in the woods.
Burton Ratchets
..both look the business and (so far) work great! The big problem that I've had in the past with MBS, Trampa and the ones on noSno is either the ratchets failing to hold position, either though broken teeth, or worn ladder straps, or ratchets failing to disengage at the end of a run. So far, I'm very happy with these, with only slight bodging necessary to fit into place. All that was required was a new hole in the plastic binding for the notch on the ratchet to fit into. Added bonus that these seem very easy to remove, even with big gloves on.
Head Torch
My Rage noSno bindings are in reasonable condition, but the padding on the underside of the bindings were in a reasonably poor state. My biggest concern then was the metal parts of the underside catching on my snowboard boots and ripping them up a little. Maybe unfounded, but I do like my boots and would prefer not to have to replace them for a while, particularly as my feet should have stopped growing! Solution this time was to remove all traces of the foam underside and replace with a leather section of similar shape; glue into place (one with Evostick Impact, one with Araldite, see which works best long term), and leave to dry. In the morning, chop off the excess leather and away we go. So far, both seem to be doing reasonably well so my additional step of restitching round the edge I haven't bothered with, but we'll see on this - could be more effort than it's worth. No definitive difference so far between the glues.
So, where is this all leading? There are a whole load of ATBA events happing over the summer including Boarder X, Freestyle and Downhill. Added to this, hopefully the Mountainboard Derby Summertime sessions will become a reality, or at least an opportunity to ride on a regular basis in a more relaxed way. Add to this all the usual events and stuff that happens around the country that hopefully we'll be finding out a bit more about soon.
Monday, 20 February 2012
The Ultimate MBS Comp 16 Modification and Upgrade Guide
Welcome to the ultimate guide to modifying and upgrading your MBS Comp 16 board. Why choose the Comp 16 for this project? This modern day classic is relatively easy to get hold second hand for reasonably cheap costs (under £140 without too much difficulty), plus it uses parts fully compatible with both modern MBS parts and other major board manufacturers so is easy to update.
So whether you want to update your old deck, or want to customise something a little more individual, lets pick up that ebay bargain, or dust off that old board from the shed and lets get modding!
Deck
Like the replacement of an old bike frame, replacing an old deck may feel like you are effectively changing boards completely, but it is very possible that even a well used or poorly stored board will have a saggy deck but otherwise be in great condition. Since a new deck will provide either stiffness or added 'pop' as desired, you should see instant improvement if this major component is replaced. Since the holes for the bindings and trucks are the same for either MBS or Trampa components, then replacing the deck is as simple as removing the trucks and bindings and screwing on the replacement.
Dirt Box Deck suggestion: The 'Leon Robbins' MBS Pro 100.....
...Slightly longer, stiffer and lighter than the Comp 16. Reverse Composite Construction (RCC) with nice smooth underside with warped sides for smoother slides. Bonus feature of added standard 4-holes snowboard binding holes for added versatility as will be discussed later in this article. Becoming ever rarer, if you can obtain a 'Leon', chances are it should be cheaper than a 'Kirkman' but will you notice the ride difference?
Tyres
The grip on the MBS T1 tyres may be worn down low especially if the previous owner was a master scrubber or liked ride hard surfaces such as the road or skatepark. These days, there are plenty of alternatives depending on your riding style and most come in a range of colours to suite your colour scheme! T1's are still available though so for renewed grip, buy new for the added tread.
[Not to scale....]
Popular alternatives include:
- MBS T1: The original 8" tyre, but now available in Grey, Black, Blue or Red
- MBS T2: 9" Version of the T1, suitable for freeride by providing additional ground clearance
- MBS T3: 8" tyre provides more lateral side grip than the T1 for a slight trade off in acceleration. Available in Black, Red, Green or Yellow.
- Other manufacturers make mountainboard tyres including Primo, Scrub and Trampa. Check details for compatibility.
Hubs
If you're into your high pressure tyres as you're a speed demon or skatepark rider, then you may have found already that your Rockstar hubs have warped into 50-pence shapes rather than their original circles. If this is the case then a stronger hub may be appropriate such as the MBS Rockstar Pros - a metal equivalent. Relatively prices, these hubs also look the business coming in Black, Chrome and Gold variants.
[Rockstar baby!]
Alternatively, you may wish to change hubs quickly and without fuss, in which case the MBS Twistars may be of use? Completely plastic, these hubs are held together by the pressure of the tyres. Removing them is as simple as letting down the tyres and twisting the two sides to the hub - no tools required. Coming in Black, Yellow, Green and White and at relatively low cost, these hubs may break more frequently, but it wont cost you a huge amount to replace. Note though that these hubs are rated at a highest pressure of 50psi but they are very lightweight.
[Twistar baby!]
Ground Industries: Terraintula or Crossair....are another alternative. Don't know much about these but they certainly look the business.
Trucks
With Trampa using MBS compatible hole patterns, you've again the option of staying local or going native. MBS Matrix trucks too heavy? Then try the Matrix Lites. Or too plastic-y? Try the gorgeous but pricey Matrix Pros coming in Black, Silver and Gold.
[MBS Matrix Pro]
Trampa have their equivalent of course such as the Infinity or Vertigo set at a similar price to the MBS. Plenty of fine differences between the two makes, so if in doubt, hit the forums.
[Trampa Vertigo]
Bindings
[Sexy Trampa Ratchets!]
If the ratchets are a little worn, or the ladder straps in not great condition then your bindings may slip occasionally (not good whilst riding), or fail to disengage at the bottom of the hill leaving you with a board stuck to your feet. Perhaps the return spring has broken so that the ratchet hangs loose. Either way, replacing the ratchets is a simple job of removing one screw and replacing the unit, either a new one from MBS, a spangley one from Trampa, or perhaps go for snowboard tech with new ratchets from Burton. Whatever route you take, you may have to drill a new hole if the ratchet tab is in a new location, or if you feel safe to be held on by the screw, fold down the tab so that it lies flat with the binding.
If it is the binding themselves that are wearing through, then replacing the F3 bindings for the newer F4 equivalent may be an option, or Ground Industry Talons are available - known for their level of comfort affording by the high amount of padding. Like everything else, Trampa have their equivalent with options for various colour L-brackets. Alternatively again, if snowboard technology is your thing, then if you upgraded your deck in the earlier section to something like a Leon Robbins Pro 100 then the 4-holes are available to screw whole snowboard bindings to the deck, as long as you have the correct disks.
No cash right now? Solve that floppy deck by flipping those trucks! Want newish stuff? Keep an eye on ebay for either individual parts or whole cheap boards to salvage the good bits off. Want to get creative? Then get that spray can and paints and go wild. At least if your board does get stolen it'll be well easy to describe the distinguishing features to the police!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)