Theres a lot of snakes round here

stubs

I seem to have annoyed the snakebite puncture fairy. Last year I can only remember 1 snake bite puncture during a ride round the snakebite heaven known as the Lake District.

Now I have had 4 in the last 4 rides. My shed is being overtaken by inner tubes covered in puncture repair patches.

My riding technique hasnt changed still the same fat bloke hangs on and hopes to get to the bottom in one piece style. My tyres havent changed still Maxxis Ardent 2.25 front and Maxxis Larsen 2.0 on the back. My inner tubes are still the same Continental schraeder.

The only thing that is different to last year is the weather its bone dry and rocky everywhere even places where bikes could sink to there handlebars are hard and covered in ruts. So do I need to sacrifice a chav to the snakebite fairy or will it get back to normal when the weather gets wet and the trails get boggy and slippery again.

MarkLG

The dry ground means you're probably going a bit faster than normal, and the rock hard surface is pretty unforgiving when you hit something with a bit of an edge to it.
You could try putting a bit more air in your tyres, fit bigger tyres, fit thicker tubes or go tubeless.

asdfhjkl

stubs wrote:

The only thing that is different to last year is the weather its bone dry and rocky everywhere even places where bikes could sink to there handlebars are hard and covered in ruts. So do I need to sacrifice a chav to the snakebite fairy or will it get back to normal when the weather gets wet and the trails get boggy and slippery again.

It's been so dry here that I couldn't tell whether or not it was my imagination that the trails were getting rockier. Some trails are so dusty that they almost seem to be covered in sand. This isn't the west coast of Scotland summers I'm used to! :P

xtreem

This one stopped by to say Hi on the way up.
But it wasn't so friendly with the front tyre on the way down.

snotty badger

Snake bite in the front tyre?! :shock:

The puncture fairy paid me a visit too- not sure if it was a snake bite yet, I was only a minute away from the car so didn't bother fixing it by the trailside.

GHill

Use more pressure if you can. Otherwise it's tubeless time.

stubs

GHill wrote:

Use more pressure if you can. Otherwise it's tubeless time.

Going to try higher pressure in the rear whilst its dry and a thicker downhill innertube.

I tried tubeless and I never got on with especially when I was stuck miles from anywhere covered in bloody sealant trying to get the tyre bead off the rim so I could fit an inner tube to get me home :x

TheKrikkitWars

I've definately seen some of the welsh trails suffering from increasing wear and tear beyond that which would be considered normal due to the dry weather, there are whole sections at the Marin trail which are just rock and sand, where previously the rock was a supporting medium to help the trail keep it's shape.

xtreem

snotty badger wrote:

Snake bite in the front tyre?! :shock:

I was wearing an Adidas shirt, and with Adidas, "Impossible is nothing".

stubs

I dont believe it went for a spin up Rivington plodded up to the masts and then started down the track to Belmont half way down Pssssssssssssss

Bloody hell this is getting annoying its now 5 rides 5 snake bites. Got some thick heavy duty butyl tubes coming and if I pump my tyres up any harder I will bounce off the bike :x

TowerRider

stubs wrote:

I dont believe it went for a spin up Rivington plodded up to the masts and then started down the track to Belmont half way down Pssssssssssssss

Bloody hell this is getting annoying its now 5 rides 5 snake bites. Got some thick heavy duty butyl tubes coming and if I pump my tyres up any harder I will bounce off the bike :x

Got any of your routes (gpx or other format) around Rivington (darwen moors?) you would like to share?

stubs

Yes I can send you some routes they are nothing special Rivington for me and my mates tends to be somewhere to go for a quick blast if we havent the time or inclination to venture further into Wales, the Peak, the Pennines, the Dales or the Lakes. We dont usually go towards Darwen we just stick to Healey Nab, Winter Hill and round the woods and reservoirs.

If you want some routes PM me an email address and I will attach some gpx files the shortest route is about 7 miles the longest about 18 miles