Forgot to say, if its dry and you’re wrapped up, walk along the river to Treptower Park which is the Soviet War Memorial and has an epic 100ft statue at the far end. I like history!.

The Stasi Museum is absolutely, utterly, brilliantly barkingly mad yet fascinating. Loads of stuff from the old DDR days including all the stuff the secret police used to spy on people. Some of the rooms have been left as they were which is amzing too. Its not too far from the centre, if its ok walk down Karl-Marx Allee which has some brilliant architecture.

To be honest, as horrifying as it is, you would be missing out if you didnt visit the concentration camp at Sachsenhausen. Get the train to Oranienburg and its about 15 minutes walk. Dont bother with the tour, just wander round and get lost in your thoughts, its very moving. The Holocaust memorial just off Brandenburg Gate is quite incredible too. If you are still up for more, the Topography of Terror is a fascinating museum too.

The East Side Gallery is worth a visit too. Have a wander round Tiergarten, to be honest I can just wander round Mitte and that area in the East all day drinking coffee and stuff.

There are some good cheap restaurants on Oranienstrasse, mostly pizza and italian but ok. Currywurst is good, get amongst it.

I’ll be honest, Mauerpark was lost on me. It was a good day so we just sat and had lunch in the park but all the stuff on sale was tat you would find at any market.

Stasi museum
Sachsenhausen[/url]

As others have said, a £2k bike is more than suitable but any more than that really does open up a whole world of satisfaction! Assuming that he wants an off the peg bike and isnt interested in custom builds (buying separates) and also assuming that he wants comfort over out and out performance, I’d point him in the direction of the Cervelo R3 which is a superb bike, i have a previous model the RS and its just sublime. Designed to be comfy over long distances without sacrificing too much in terms of aerodymanics, the higher head tube does pitch the body slightly more upright than other models but thats becoming increasingly common these days as sportives etc grow and grow in popularity. I love it, it encourages fast cornering, has very big burly chainstays and spaghetti thin seat stays, a comfortable ride that helps transfer all the power to the back wheel.

This model is from JE James and has good spec for £3k. Cervelo predominatly sell framesets only so the frames really are some of the best on the market, you can gauge the quality of the frame by comparing the cost of the frameset, and then the built up bikes, to the other brands. Wheels will always be the weakest point on an off the peg bike but if he is insistent on spending the full £4K, a pair of Reynolds Assualts or something similar will keep him happy.

If he is ok with buying unseen, the likes of Canyon and Rose offer superb value for money but I dont know too much about their higher end models other than the Canyon Ultimate CF SLX has been ridden on pro tour stage races by the likes of Katusha and now Movistar so has got to be pretty good!. A friend has one and loves it for all the reasons I love the RS.

Also worth a look, BMC GranFondo, Trek Madone and Giant TCR ranges are all very good bikes and will have something to suit most budgets.

Tilt – Partial Birth

Streetlight Manifesto – Watch it crash

Dropkick Murphys – Bar room Hero
Minor Threat – Good guys dont wear white

Shelter – Here we go again

NOFX – Franco-Unamerican

One thing I notice from all the videos of angry cyclists on youtube is the lack of “livesaver” checks, the look over the right shoulder when changing direction. In that Ikea truck video, I would be looking over my shoulder before I pull out to overtake the parked cars, in fact I’m always checking just in case something is coming up behind me. Strikes me as odd that all these people in the videos dont do this but then get really arsey when cars overtake or cut them up. Could all be avoided with some anticipation and awareness.

As for general road riding skills/behaviour, club runs have fallen out of fashion and most people seem to learn abour roadcraft from sportives where there is safety in numbers and the roads can be fairly quiet. Then they get out on to busier roads and are a danger to themselves…

I’d cancel the reservation at San Carlo personally. Terrible place, surly waiters, the food no better than Bella Pasta. Try Bordeaux Quay, Hotel du Vin or Graze instead.

what he said, its a nice looking bike but the whole point of an electric bike, in my opinion, is to get the less mobile folk back on a bike and outdoors. I can imagine the reception you would get if you were to turn up to your local fixie hipster hangout on this…

The £5 “Wed’ze” Decathalon ones are fantastic value for money, pretty good at being breathable and very good at being toasty.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/simple-warm-base-layer-id_8185607.html

Mine weighs 27.4 lbs

Frame: Cotic BFe – Medium
Forks: Rockshox Revelation 150mm RLT
Wheels: Hope Pro2 on Mavic EN521s, DT Swiss spokes, Larsen TT tyres
Groupset: XT 2×10
Bars, Stem, Seatpost: Easton Haven
Saddle: Charge Spoon
Grips: Lizard Skin Lock-ons
BB/Headset: Hope
Pedals: Shimano M520

New wheels might be a good start, I’ll weigh them tomorrow and see what they are. The Haven stuff is fantastic quality and pretty light. I should have bought a Soul too but got bored saving up the extra £200 and bought the BFe when I had £300!!

my father sold all his vinyl a few years back, he had a lot of motown and prog rock and there was very little worth anything. Only a few special editions were worth taking to a dealer, the rest wasnt worth anything as it was the format of choice back then so there is still a lot around of the popular stuff. Dont get your hopes up simply because its vinyl

Have a quick look at a map before you read this so the road names make some sense!

Walking round the harbourside is nice if the weather is ok, as others have said, get to the Arnofini bar/arts venue, cross the bridge to the M Shed (well worth a visit), past the old cranes and then basically keep the water on your right….

however, its worth a wander round Clifton too for the indy shops et al, lunch in the Avon Gorge hotel is nice if its dry too as it has a big patio overlooking the river/bridge. So follow the loop as above but once outof the boatbuilders yard, carry on walking with the pumphouse pub on your right and stay on the main road, follow it round to the right then turn left up a steep hill called Ambra Vale, keep walking up, up a bit more and you will eventually reach Regent Street, turn left and you are in Clifton village.

From Clifton, the number 8 or 9 bus is your friend which will take you right back into the centre or all the way to temple meads. I’d walk it myself from the top of Whiteladies Road all the way down Park Street back to the centre.

The Watershed does good food and beers although it can be busy. Its on the waterfront unsurprisingly. Boston Tea Party have two cafes, one on Whiteladies, one on Park Street, their raspberry and chocolate flapjack is awesome!

have fun!

Which services? if its Michael Wood (north of Bristol), there are some good easy riding around North Nibley.

http://singletrackworld.com/trailguide/files/2008/12/cotswolds-easy-route.pdf

There might even be some cheeky trails in Michael Wood itself but I’ve never been there.

Most Campag stuff is made in Romania these days which always makes me smile given every one assumes the fancy name means it was lovingly crafted from long haired brunettes in sleepy hollows on the foothills of Monte Rosa…. as others have said, the lower end stuff isnt that good and is quite clunky shifting. Generally, it was around before Shimano and the purists prefer it but in reality you are comparing like for like and the only real change is asthetics.

SRAM all the way for me though, double tap is simple and effective, Apex is way better than anything else for the same price and Force is the bargain of the century, performs better than Ultegra or Chorus and looks superb. It also weighs a good deal less than the equivilents too.

yeah, as I was typing that I was racking my brains as to when he was at Astana! I think there is a line between the past and the present though, there are those riding now who were part of the bad old days but whom I would almost be certain are now riding clean. It is possible to do something illegal and rehabilitate….

The hand-wringers just annoy me though, either watch it and take it at face value or dont watch it. Just dont watch it then start the whole “i want to believe they are clean but i cant” whine. You dont find F1 forums littered with this nonsense at the end of every race “i want to believe that red bull arent using special secret fuel additives but i cant” etc etc….

CH was not riding on an Armstrong team pre 2009 and Horner is very experienced, spent most of his career riding for Continenal teams. His Palmares isnt littered with big wins but then neither are most GT riders! Horner is an experienced guy and is tactailly astute. He barely rides post May, Tour of Utah, Tour of California, season done… so was always coming it to this race fresh. Rodriguez has done something like 70k competitive kms this year finishing in the top 5 in each GT and somehow stays under the finger pointer’s radar and Nibali is riding for Astana for heavens sake, Katie Price is cleaner than that team!

testing seemed to work well on the Giro with two Vini Fantini riders being kicked out so I think its reasonable to assume that anyone using PEDs will get caught….

I ride a fair bit at night, you just need good lights and some hi-vis on the road, once you lose street lights its incredible just how dark some country lanes can be if the hedges are high.

Riding late through the city centre of Bristol is quite good fun, its fairly quiet from 2230 onwards and blasting through the suburbs and the centre without traffic is great fun.

Wildlife is stupid too, it will stand there in front of you whilst you approach at 30kmh whilst it tries to work out what you are..

assume you have a saddlebag for tools and tube and your jersey has three pockets, central pocket for rain cape, left pocket for gels and bars, right pocket for gels and bars. there are shops on the route to buy more food and drink (dont forget the touristy places like honister slate mine etc) and a few petrol stations on route too.

None that I can remember but we didnt explore that far out of the city. It looked like it was very fixie-centric and there are a few fixie shop/cafes opposite the East Side Gallery on the south side of the Spree, there is a velodrome in Berlin too but I dont know if they do public sessions though I’d be surprised if they didnt. None of which I acknowledge answers your question!…

Croatia is stunning and the beaches are amazing, the islands are nice but quiet even in the peak of summer. Hidden Croatia are very good and should have some good hotels in Cavtat or Korcula and there are some beach activities too if you are feeling active. If you stay in Dubrovnik, use the passenger ferry, the Jadrolina line, as its way cheaper than the tourist boats to get to the islands and there is a supermarket next to the ferry terminal to get a picnic for the day!

Nice is a pleasant place to while away a week too, Beaulieu sur mer is less busy, its the next beach to the east and you can do Monaco and Cannes on the train and they are both less than an hour away from Nice, ok, its not totally faff-free but the beaches and the coffee and pastries are more than worth it.

Chun Li FTW

Tongue in cheek, I referred to them as “MAMIL tax” on another forum and people who had paid for it got uppitty but in all seriousness, I dont see it as any different from a proper suit fitting, sure you can go to Moss Bros and buy something that fits well enough to not amke you look like a fool or you go to a tailor and get it done properly. The fundamental difference is wearing a badly fitted suit will not give you back ache, neck ache, knee problems, hip pains etc etc…

Soon the average cyclist with money to burn and no more shiny things to purchase will learn about Vo2 tests, the professional bike fitting session will seem very ordinary in comaprison…. ;)

Antidisestablishmentarianism – when used by smug morons who have spent weeks practicising how to say it so they drop it in to conversations whenever they can but cant explain what it means when asked…

I was going to say this place but its fairly busy in September, stayed here twice with mrs bristolpablo, once for our honeymooon and again on our 5th anniversary. Its a great place to get away and very peaceful, one night we saw the milky way such is the lack of light pollution.

http://www.classic.co.uk/holiday-cottage/desc-1727.html

its not cheap but its a fantastic place and the location is great for Sennen and Praa Sands isnt too far away. Hopefully the free weeks tie in with your availbility…

I still cant remember which is over and understeer!

If you crash into the ditch front first its understeer
if you crash into the ditch rear first its oversteer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGSnLGgeai8
Penny Mallory was no slouch behind the wheel but even she cant help but be impressed, McRae’s car control was just sublime.

Boardman were a bit odd with years and over lapped, its a 2010/2011 bike. For some reason their new bikes came out around Spring/Summer but for road bikes that makes perfect sense!.

To be honest, You wont find many better bikes for the money he’s asking and you would probably get it for around £500. They are great bikes, I had a 2008/2009 Road Team and the frame was fantastic, really stiff but comfortable and the complete bike was around 19 lbs, for a alu frame running Fulrcum 7 wheels, thats not too bad. I really regret selling it to be honest.

Sram Force is a very reliable, light and positive shifting groupset and better than Shimano 105, probably on a par with Shimano Ultegra in my opinion, my Boardman had Ultegra and I prefer the Sram Force I am running on my new road bike. Aksiums are entry level aftermarket wheels but are a nice upgrade as is the carbon post.

chiefgrooveguru – Member

Clearly a Dino, not a real Ferrari…

must
not
bite

Good thread, has bulked up my amazon wishlist!…

my entry would probably be a Joseph Connolly, probably SOS, Summer things or winter nights…

Assuming you mean mechanical dura ace and regular 20 speed Red, I’d go with Red. I run Force and its really good shifting, its hard to describe, its kind of clunky but also smooth, put it this way, when its set up well, there is zero chance of ever being in doubt that it shifts. Double tap is much nicer to use and you can get through the cassette in two long seeps of the shifter. Its also about 200gs lighter if i remember correctly.

As for framesets, sticking with the aero theme, I had a good look at the Giant Propel today at the London tri show and it was stunning, the v-brakes wont be too all tastes however. Others to consider are the Cervelo S2 and the Argon 18, the Ridley Noah and the Specialised Venge.

My old man had a Chimera for a while, sold it for a Boxster because the TVR was a bit too lairy for him, when you were pushing on a bit you could feel the car move around and there was always that “is this the moment the back end swops places with the front” feeling…

I loved it though my reactions are better than his being 30 years younger, the driving experience was pretty full on and the engine was pretty much bombproof but made a great noise. Just an old Rover 4L V8 on fuel injection, probably about 285 bhp. If you can accept that things will go wrong with it, then go for it. If you cant and want something more reliable then an S2000 Honda or a Boxster might be better.

All Campagnolo wheels are constructed to meet the highest standards of resistance and durability.
If you weigh over 109 kg/240 lbs we advise you not to use this product. Non compliance with this warning can damage the product irreversibly. If you weigh 82 kg/180 lbs or more, you must be especially vigilant and have your bicycle inspected more frequently (than someone weighing less than 82 kg/180 lbs).
Check with your mechanic to discuss whether the wheels you selected are suitable for your use, and to determine the frequency of inspections. Using tires with a larger diameter and a frame that respects the standards will help to increase the lifetime of the wheels.

I’m about 82kgs and ride on Campag Zondas, they have been fine to date and roads around Bristol and South Glos are nothing like smooth… you just need to be a bit careful and not hammer straight into things like kerb lips and avoid potholes as you would with any wheel.

If you are concerned, I’d look at something with a regular spoke pattern and 32 holes though a badly built wheel with 32 holes is still going to be liable to buckle or break a spoke.

Try http://www.kkckartshop.co.uk or http://www.kartnuts.co.uk

Sadly I think Lance could have won it clean, maybe not seven times but at least twice, there were a few years when the competition was pretty weak and he had an exceptionally strong team but I guess we’ll never know. Same as Millar who could have won the worlds TT clean such was his form and ability the drugs werent much use outside a grand tour.

We should never forget the likes of Christophe Bassons, there were parts of the peloton who were clean back then and I’m honestly sure that all the major teams are clean now, Sky, BMC, Garmin, OPQS and Cannondale. As we saw in the Giro though, the likes of Vini Fantni will always arouse suspicion such is potential value to be gained.

Rather than click on the Britain First link and give them exposure and internet traffic, click on the hope not hate website and read their analysis of the people and policies behind Britain First
http://www.hopenothate.org.uk/hate-groups/bf/

Surprised no one has mentioned http://www.hilarystone.com yet! Personally I think a lot of it is over priced but I’m not up on old roadie history and I’m sure there is some negotiation room there.

Not quite Bolton but there is a tapas restaurant called Ambiente in Worsley which is excellent… for my sins I used to stay at the Novotel a lot with work so it became a regular part of our trips oop norf…

Try the Navy.

We have HMS Scott and Echo, both Ocean survey vessels which whilst not directly related to Marine Biology, do a lot of bathymetric type stuff. The Navy get involved in all sorts of aquatic-based things including mapping the areas hit by the tsunami and modelling subsequent effects on marine life.

OC on HMS Biter is a Marine Biologist…
http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/The-Fleet/Ships/Patrol-and-Minehunters/P2000-Class/HMS-Biter

http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/The-Fleet/Ships/Patrol-and-Minehunters/Ice-Patrol-and-Survey-Ships

I’d look north of Bristol personally, Olveston, Tockington, Winterbourne, Charfield, Thornbury, that sort of area. Good schools and enough shops and things to never have to worry about going near the city centre. There is plenty of countryside within walking distance, loads of bus routes south into the city.

Bedminster and Southville are horrific places, Bedminster because its full of chav scum from Hartcliffe looking for stuff to steal and people with no teeth arguing with sign posts. Southville because tehy all have a chip on their shoulder that they cant afford a place on the other side of the river and pretend that they actually prefer it there and not Hotwells or Clifton!….

Just really don’t get the whole romance/history blah blah blah of it. I will watch the odd stage for the scenery but that’s about it.

I can recommend Jean Bobet’s book “Tomorrow we ride”… ;)

More Cyclists get caught because more cyclists get tested, its not rocket science.

http://www.usada.org/sport-testing-numbers-2013

When Rugby and Football start testing the players properly, imposing upon them the same conditions as cyclists, its going to expose a lot of people and cause embarrassment. However, because of the vast sums of money involved and the damage it will do to the sport, it will never happen.

The link above includes all tests executed by USADA. That includes those tests initiated, or planned as part of USADA’s U.S. Olympic, Paralympic and Pan American movements testing program as well as those tests completed by USADA at the request of other sport and antidoping federations, events, and organizations.

So, lets take a quintessentially US sport like Ice Hockey, one where you could make huge performance gains from doping or PEDs and there are just 22 out of competition tests and NO tests in competition….

As I said, cyclists get caught because they are tested.

As for le tour, its the best three weeks sport of the year…

Vision T30s are good wheels for the money and with Michelin Pro Race/Endurance 4s at £25 each from Ribble at the moment, they would be a great set up for the “summer”!….

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vision-team-30-clincher-wheelset/