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I've just lost two disks worth of outlines for articles. At least I have a backup. In trusty pen and paper form. And as for the behaviour of this old laptop...

But what has this to do with biking? On those disks were some spreadsheet analysis of an internet debate among cyclists about the best brakes. 2000 riders categorised by country and riding style. I was going to do my Peter Snow impression with lots of facts, figures, and possibly a wacky graphic or two. But you are spared.

Instead you get the broad outline results. Which prove that we in Britain have a unique perspective on biking. The only other unique country is Finland. Something to do with the ice. Here come the results.

If you're a downhiller in anywhere but Britain your choice of brake is probably a V-brake. Cost wins over power for half of all downhillers. In second place come the performance addicts with discs. Then hydraulic brakes get a healthy showing.

For every other rider type - cross country racer, weekend warrior - the V brake wins even more convincingly. Hydraulics get a good second place. Discs are a blip on a par with those retro heads who insist on well set up cantis. Too expensive they all moan.

The British see things differently.

In Britain 90% of downhilling correspondents have or would like to have discs. Non disc hydraulics don't even show.

For all the other Brits discs come in head on with V's for first place. For serious riders there's a common thread runs through the justification for discs. V's may be cheap to buy, but they cost to keep running. discs are a lot of initial outlay. Then they run cheap. Something to do with the weather. Unlike countries with a proper winter we ride all year round. Wearing stuff out like fun. And in summer it still rains. So stuff still wears out.

There's a common thread in other debates. Stuff doesn't last long in this country. Which is why the stuff we make is often the best in the world. But we would say that. And we do. Americans naturally favour their own products. But the number of "I've never tried Blah's forks but I hear they're quite good" statements is revealing. The Americans don't get to try a wide range of stuff from the rest of the world. With the exception of the Germans we probably have the the widest choice of stuff to hang on our bikes. So our views are often the most balanced.

But back to British stuff. I once heard someone complain that our stuff was "too Formula 1". Is that really a complaint? How many sports are there where you or I could buy better equipment than the pros, limited as they are by sponsorship commitments? And aren't all the best Formula 1 teams and designers British? So if our parts are "Formula 1" doesn't that imply they're the best in the world? Just look at the development effort that goes into something like the latest Pace forks. They worry about the long-term life of products in a way that is alien to some companies. Who else would specify marine quality anti-corrosion coatings? Which other countries would need to? Not many for their home-market. Look at the worldwide acclaim for the Marin suspension designs of British Formula 1 designer Jon Whyte. Bikes that work in any terrain, for any riding style, and don't need nursemaiding.

Never mind testing on the global race circus. We'd see a big improvement in a lot of stuff if it was tested on the British race circuit. Or even just under British riders.