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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Mountain biking in Canberra
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Mon, 10 October 2005 12:19
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I'm keen to check out the trails around Canberra.
Had a bit of a ride around Stromlo last weekend. It was pretty damn good! The downhilling was awesome! Easy to see the tracks too now that there are no trees.
Gonna check out Sparrow Hill this weekend.
I wanna check out Majura Pines too. I drive past it on the way to Sydney and I always see people there.
I've also heard of Isaacs and Tuggernong Pines but haven't heard that much about them.
Anyone ridden any of these tracks? What're your thoughts on them?
Unfortunately I'll have a bunch of n00bs trailing me so I won't be able to go to any of the more technical sections. Not until they get better at least.
Oh, and there are some good maps here:
http://www.corc.asn.au/events/venues.asp
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Tue, 11 October 2005 00:58
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Sparrow Hill: this place is the "new Stromlo" after the fires wiped out all the trails in Stromlo a lot of work went into developing Sparrow Hill. There are a number of marked loops at Sparrow Hill with the main long loop being approximately 22km of almost entirely singletrack. Most of the trails at Sparrow Hill are easily ridden by most levels of rider with enough fitness to ride for over an hour. Shorter loops of approximately 12km can also be taken out at Sparrow hill and new trails are always being added. This place is probably one of the best spots for XC riding in Canberra.
Kowen: The site of the 24 Hour Championships has several singletracks spread across a large area. The track used for the 24 hour is about 19km long and well worn in at the moment. However the trails at Kowen are not normally marked in any way and are often used by Motorbikes also. A good place for a longer ride and a bit of exploring. There is a DH track which is not too technical and plenty of cross country tracks which range from smooth and fast to rocky and technical.
Majura: The longest established MTB riding area in Canberra. The pine forested area is relatively small but the area contains a large number of singletracks with a variety of difficulty. A good place to ride if you want to ride a lot of tight singletrack. Probably a close second to Sparrow Hill, an excellent range of fun singletrack ranging from smooth and fast to tight and technical.
Tuggeranong Pines: this spot has developed a lot over the past 12 months mainly for club level DH racing. Most tracks are suited to riding down.
Stromlo: Plenty of firetrail riding and some singletrack on Mt Stromlo has been established for DH racing. Further development of this area will be occuring very soon.
Isaacs: Good rocky technical singletrack, you are usually either riding up (steeply) or down (steeply) in Isaacs, not many trails for just cruising along.
Hope that info helps.
If noobs are in tow, I would go Sparrow Hill, Majura and Stromlo. They should enjoy those places.
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Tue, 11 October 2005 01:14
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Dayem! I didn't expect such a detailed response! Thanks heaps dude!
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Location:
Carlingford, Sydney
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Tue, 11 October 2005 09:10
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Nark you need to ask shane about his weekend job 
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I supported Toymods
Location:
south of the big smoke
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 01:28
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ke382TG, great info there but hard to take ya seriously with that avatar
i want to get down to canberra soon for some riding, what bikes you fellas have? i have a avanti 05 avalanche, avanti came good with warranty after snapping my 2000 model frame
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Location:
Sydney, Shire
Registered:
April 2004
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 07:54
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there was a 24hr mountain bike race down canberra way last weekend..i know cause my work (shimano) put in a team..
one of our fat salesmen hit a tree 6mins in and had to goto hospital...he was still on the fire trail when he crashed.....hahhaha
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I supported Toymods
Location:
south of the big smoke
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 09:36
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who do u work for magic mitch?
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Location:
Sydney, Shire
Registered:
April 2004
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 09:38
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shimano bike components
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I supported Toymods
Location:
south of the big smoke
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 09:40
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that mean u can get super cheap xtr products for fello toymodders?
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Location:
Sydney, Shire
Registered:
April 2004
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 09:43
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haha oh i wish...i tried to get my mate some dura ace road wheels and there was dramas about that...the gods up stairs say that the stores we distribute to crack the shits if we sell wholesale...if i were into mountain biking (which im not) i could get some parts for "my bike" and sell them to u but they know im not interested in riding so out of luck im afriad....
do u have an shimano gear on ur bike(s)?
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Location:
Carlingford, Sydney
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 13:34
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i dont think u will find many bikes without the big S some place on it... they have the market share thats for sure
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Location:
Sydney
Registered:
September 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Wed, 12 October 2005 14:55
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Me and my cousin rode around that canberra river not sure what its called but it has a foot/bike path going all around and you ride past the governors house. We went around 15 times because we wanted to do 80ks in a day, we were 16/17 at the time had nothing better to do  .
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Location:
Campbelltown
Registered:
November 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 00:01
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You mean Lake Burley Griffin. 
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 00:06
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River...
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 00:19
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| Quote: |
there was a 24hr mountain bike race down canberra way last weekend..i know cause my work (shimano) put in a team..
one of our fat salesmen hit a tree 6mins in and had to goto hospital...he was still on the fire trail when he crashed.....hahhaha
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That might explain the DNF then and why the SRAM guys were making smart arse comments about SHIMANO after the race.
magicmitch, Shimano is the component sponsor for the Team I ride for, my XTR gear and 2006 model bike turns up in a week or so. I can't wait for the new stuff to turn up, it'll be like Christmas come early 
Lake Burley Griffin = teh stink pond in Summer
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 00:49
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Taking a cue from Josh... What is your weekend job?!
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 02:41
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What is your weekend job?!
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A job would insinuate that money is forthcoming and alas it is not, so I can not call anything I do on the weekend a job.
My sporting pursuits however are well supported
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Location:
Sydney, Shire
Registered:
April 2004
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 07:50
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That might explain the DNF then and why the SRAM guys were making smart arse comments about SHIMANO after the race.
magicmitch, Shimano is the component sponsor for the Team I ride for, my XTR gear and 2006 model bike turns up in a week or so. I can't wait for the new stuff to turn up, it'll be like Christmas come early
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oh the dude who stacked wasnt a good rider..i found out today he broke his arm..he had a shocking weekend...friday got a speeding ticket 30km over, saturday hit a tree bent his handle bars and broke his shifters and today i was told the raffle (some swish $2600 bike frame i think) was drawn on sunday and his name came out but wasnt there to collect it cause he was in hospital or something...
the guys didnt really take it too seriously i dont think....there was a 10 hr gap with no one on the track ,so the first guy in the morning had a lap time of 11hrs something...
what team do u ride for? i know of it..i know proberly every bike store in aus by now....
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Location:
Cabramatta, NSW
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Thu, 13 October 2005 11:38
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Went today to check Sparrow Hill. Awesome stuff!
Question though, is there a direction that I must take on the single track?
'Coz I was screaming through some of them which could be really bad if there was someone coming from the other direction.
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 00:27
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Went today to check Sparrow Hill. Awesome stuff!
Question though, is there a direction that I must take on the single track?
'Coz I was screaming through some of them which could be really bad if there was someone coming from the other direction.
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It is a cool spot for some riding that's for sure.
Only one track at Sparrow is marked as directional at this stage and it has a written warning at each end of it indicating which direction it should be ridden. Riding it in the wrong direction would not be fun anyway so I don't think many people would even consider it.
Generally the Sparrow Hill loop is ridden anti-clockwise (but does not have to be). Some of the new tracks and recent races have been running in a clockwise direction and on the opposite way to which they have previously been used.
Collisions between riders are few and far between, just stay relatively in control and be aware of your surroundings. The unwritten law (which is written somewhere) of the trail states that those travelling up hill have right of way, but generally most people are pretty courteous and who ever it is most convenient for pulls over.
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oh the dude who stacked wasnt a good rider..i found out today he broke his arm..he had a shocking weekend...friday got a speeding ticket 30km over, saturday hit a tree bent his handle bars and broke his shifters and today i was told the raffle (some swish $2600 bike frame i think) was drawn on sunday and his name came out but wasnt there to collect it cause he was in hospital or something...
the guys didnt really take it too seriously i dont think....there was a 10 hr gap with no one on the track ,so the first guy in the morning had a lap time of 11hrs something...
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Sounds like that guy had a terrible weekend, luckily for him his broken shifter shouldn't be a problem (working at Shimano and all).
About 5 people missed out on winning that frame due to not being there at the end. A young guy won it in the end so I thought that was good.
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what team do u ride for? i know of it..i know proberly every bike store in aus by now....
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You have PM.
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
April 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 02:35
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Hehe, Isaacs is my personal playground, my old's house backs onto the reserve and i've been riding up there since we moved in 89'.
Was better before they cleared a lot of the trees.
Used to have The Road Gap near mugga way, but too many people ate dirt and they pulled it down.
My new toy for up there
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 02:39
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Nice.
The Isaacs resident have complained about MTB's up on the hill over the years  So I don't like your chances of riding up on the ridge for long on that before some resident rings the police
I thought the road gap was back? Unless it was pulled down in the last couple of weeks?
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I supported Toymods
Location:
south of the big smoke
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 03:13
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here is my baby!
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
April 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 03:14
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Never had a probem on the MTB up there, rode past rangers heaps.
We've had letters though, not targeted ones, just a mass drop telling people to report bikes up there. so i'm sure i'll be dobbed in soon enough.
I'm not the only one up there either...
I'll check this arvo whether the road gap is still there, last time i checked the landing had turned into a little creek/gully :s
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
April 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 03:15
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yeah baby!! bet that pulls the skin of a few custards...
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Registered:
May 2002
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 03:19
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Never had a probem on the MTB up there
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I haven't either but I know that the MTB club had a few complaints (even though most people who ride up there don't have anything to do with any organisations). You know how Canberra is, people think if their property backs onto a reserve or bushland that they then automatically own said reserve/bushland.
Maybe your Mum will dob you in for the moto
Craigzee, she would wear through a few tyre I would imagine with that roller system?
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
April 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 03:23
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Mum would never do that!! my mum says I'm special
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
August 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 05:27
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Nice bike toycam, is it a 650? I'm about to buy one i think.
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
April 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Fri, 14 October 2005 07:45
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Nah, only a 250. Liked the 600's though, but got the 250 cos its cheaper to run, rego and insure. fast enough on dirt, but i'll probably get a zorst and rejet for few extra herbs
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Location:
Canberra
Registered:
August 2003
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Re: Mountain biking in Canberra
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Sun, 16 October 2005 22:37
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When i (eventually) get mine we will have to go for a ride somewhere 
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