All that will happen, anyone who wants a holiday will go anyway, if you refuse them they’ll just go to a doctor who will be happy to sign them off for a couple of weeks due to ‘stress ‘ in the workplace and there’s nothing you can do about it.

If you own the business I’d say taking 9 weeks off yourself is irresponsible anyway.

rewski – Member
Good show, those divincis are a bit nice,

Nah they’re not they look ‘oribble, until like lots of things they improve after a few pints of Guiness..

Had a royal visit from STW today, wouldn’t go away even when I tried to chuck him off the stand…

It wasn’t quite as busy as yesterday, put that down to the media telling everyone to stop at home cos of the snow, we haven’t had a flake down here yet but like a mug I left early believing the forecast, it still hasn’t arrived. This country just doesn’t handle snow, it’s a bloody joke and it hasn’t even been that deep from what i can see on the news.. meejia standing in a couple of inches trying to dramatise it, we must seem like complete burkes to Continentals, honestly its embarrassing.

Well it was busy today, it is an excellent show, I hardly had time to spare to give the Jedi his second lesson in Guiness consumption, but I managed.

Today he learned the 2nd rule of the Guiness stand, when it’s your round, bugger off back to your stand..

Split the kipper! Can you imagine the furore if two kids were playing that these days… 😀

souldrummer – Member
Yeah did it in the Cubs and the Scouts. From memory it mainly involved gardening. Can’t say I exactly enjoyed it but people were pretty generous.

Love mcmoonter’s comments about loading everything into a truck and going off to camp. I remember the same; driving to camps hours away in the back of an old furniture removal lorry. Kids and kit in the back, leaders in the cab and no-one, including parents, seemed in the least bit bothered. Happy days!!

This..

We went to camp (and to and fro on the street) armed with 6inch sheath knives, short handled waist and felling axes, learned how to use them, picked up astronomy, first aid, tree & bird recognition, and a host of other stuff we thought we had no use for at the time, but hell kids today just don’t realise what they’re missing. The Scouts, long days of damming streams, wide games, building ariel runways, midnight hikes.. An excellent institution missing from society today.

Yes indeed and wow I haven’t seen one of those stickers in years, can’t say i remember having a card, I must have done, when did it cease? I know decimalisation happened in 1971 but it did carry on for a bit. I often wondered about going back and being a scout leader, but it carried such dubious connotations for blokes in these modern times that just didn’t seem to exist back then or maybe we were just naive.

Cleaned many a window, run errands, cleaned cars (not that there were so many of them thank the Lord) the weirdest I can remember this bloke and his wife had us counting all these pennants his canaries had won in competitions, and writing them all up in a book giving the places and dates – bizarre, I didn’t even know you could race Canaries or whatever they did with them to compete..

Most dysfunctional relationship I know of?

It’s between Westminster politicians of any persuasion, the civil service and those they would govern.

Drac – Moderator
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/the-demise-of-the-high-street

Oops sorry, I did scan the front page – my bad..

Er carry on, I’m reading both now – agree about councils and parking fees

Simwit – Member
igrf, will you have the 2013 Bandit 26’s there & will there be any show special deals?

Yes we’ll have 2013 bandits there, the Bandit Deville we threatened didn’t get built because the Forks only showed up yesterday and they’re up there building the stand right now – deals at the show – only on previous year stuff or by any dealers that happen to be working the stand.

We have the Carbon Covert there, and the Klunker, Plus the Covert and TransAm29. All the 2013 BOS forks arrived in time to ship there but as I said not in time to mount on a bike. We’ve also got the new Kali stuff which has upped a notch yet again (there will be deals on last years helmets off the stand, we’ll have some fun T shirts, some free shirts for TRogs (Transition Owner Group) and we will be permitting the supply by you of Guinness to us…

Anyone going up tomorrow?

Look out for a few of us on the Guiness Stand around 4…

Been a couple of times, food was great, tasted like food used to taste before modern processing techniques we now have.

Go to Havanna, check out the Museum of the revolution, see what those nice CIA types were up to.

I was concerned about water sports so spent a fair amount of time up at Varedero, the touristy area, it’s changed a lot already, but the first time remarkable in the lack of ramshackle poverty or coke billboards and the fun, laughter and music everywhere.

It’s imv an island where communism has succeeded as best it may in the face of a total capitalist blockade, there is a rumour doing the rounds in the city that they’re close to a cure for cancer, such is the level of their medical prowess.

Definitely a place that is going to change for the worse very shortly once the yanks decide they want back in which is likely once Castro finally checks out, so go now, before it’s too late.

They’re scooters!

I warned y’all, scooters have taken over the skate parks.

It’ll be the trail parks next.

The world is upside down, they should be dragged to the side of the trail and shot.

It’ll end in tears. 😉

joemarshall – Member
HDMI switches are a bit flaky in my experience, particularly ones that try to be clever. Problem is that they have to pretend to be one device, putting out one display format, whereas in reality they are taking input from 3 devices, all with different display formats. Absolute pain. We have some quite expensive ones, and they are still a pain in the arse.

Does your TV not have enough inputs that you can switch between inputs on that –

No, it’s only got one hdmi input, hence the switch, previously I had a two into one cable which you physically have to get up, walk behind the set and push a little button to change over, then I got one off the internet that just didn’t work, this one bought from a store, works but with added star effect, so I guess your ‘bit flaky’ description about sums it up.

Ah I wonder if this can solve a problem I seem to have created for myself having just fitted an hdmi switch so I can remotely switch between satellite, apple tv and the DVD thing the daughter keeps leaving on without leaving the sofa of joy.

Anyway ever since I installed it there are loads of little star trek like white specs flashing whenever the screen is dark, mildly irritating if not for the star trek like aura they depict.

So do I need to spend £24k on a cable or is it the switch thing itself?

Kryton57 – Member
Your chain rings and chain will be worn according to the chain line on your old bike.

Any variation to the chainline on a worn setup – such as moving it to a new bike – will increase the chance of chain suck as the wear angle isn’t the same.

Hence, replace your chain rings, and ideally your chain and cassette also.

This

Having said that, for the first time in three winters I’ve been getting chain suck with my Hammerschmidt set up, but it is exacerbated by the usual causes, mud and crap and running on small cogs at the back rather than changing up at the front.
This time of year, keeping the rear mech tensioned by being in the lower rear gears is always advisable, as well as cleaning the bloody chain which of course I don’t since I’m out on it every day before work and when I get back and it’s cold and dark both ends of the day so the bike only gets a clean once a week if it’s lucky.

ABS can’t help that much if they’re using crap summer tyres which most of them do, the reason the Continentals don’t have as much trouble as the Brits, they change to winter tyres every October, and in some countries like Germany it’s the law.

Would save thousands in lost hours and jams if the same were the case here.

Rubber_Buccaneer – Member
will you be squeezing into your wetsuit for the show igrf? That would be a contrast to all the fit girls in the boatshow.

My sylphlike figure can be found gracing a dry suit at this time of year and yes tomorrow I shall be in it. What I will do though is let you squeeze a pint of Guiness into my hand if you’re going.

What was that Rolling Stones Album cover with the pre-pubescent girl on the cover, can’t see that going down well these days..

Curious brew, the draft lager just come back, it’s made from used Champagne pressings as well as hops, locally very tasty.

yunki – Member
uncomfortable viewing, I don’t think any less of either of them though.. I think igrf has come out of this worst IMO

Name’s not Richard by any chance then yunki?

I only found this place after breaking a long habit of watching gay porn so thought I’d try the real thing.

yunki – Member
there have been unusually high levels of Oestrogen in the water system in some areas over the last year or two..

some fish have completely changed sex, but it seems to also be effecting cyclists

This, and it’s everywhere not just in the water system, hence little anomalies like the high content of scooter boys in skate parks, they’ll be in the trail parks next, mark my words.

But it still doesn’t explain why they’re tolerated on an alleged Mountain Bike Forum. 😉

Hmm, I thought the opposite I thought he (Krishnan) handle the dick quite well, he is such an egotistical prick, I’ve always hated him and his bloody awful movies. Inglorious Basterd about sums him up.

Unless you genuinely ride switch a lot, riding duck can damage your knee, the angulation when riding regular and at speed is just too much, personally I ride zero on my regular back leg so the option for switch is there (I’ve never been that good at switch but there are times you need to). Not sure what my front is about 12 at a guess, I did spend many years zero zero trying to be cool, but in the end you need some directional angulation if you want to cover a bit of ground at any speed so the experts used to tell me.

I always wanted to be a Spitfire Pilot in WW2, not that I’d have made it with the crap body and eyesight with which I’ve been gifted, but it was a dream nonetheless. Having said that I’m happt to have grown up in the fifties been coming into my teens when the good music broke, enjoyed the best period ever which was the early seventies with Roxy Music & Bowie, then Glam, then Punk, then new Wave, then new Romantic, it just went on new this and new that, even with the nineties and the snowboard era with Britpop, a shame all you lot have to deal with is David Bowie having a nervous breakdown and some X-Factor crap.

Music wise we had the best of it and civil liberty wise we were better off, if you’d told us in our revolutionary days that in the future we’d be living with the level of intrusion we have now, we’d never have believed it possible.

Market Research, I just wanted to try and understand the mindset of the weird and bearded.

It didn’t work.

It’s not on at the moment is it, I’m trapped dancing on ice, I’ve seen the one with the Giraffe fight, when’s the next one?

And yes, plus one, brilliant.

Well, I only said ‘Personally’ that’s me being cynical after years of running a business ‘properly’ paying my taxes declaring everything including cash and running a straight affair, only to watch the great and good, fiddle their expenses, give my tax to anyone who asks for it to do nothing, fight illegal wars with it, waste gazillions on IT, the NHS, keeping Richard Branson in profit, you name it they waste it.
So no if I were starting out now, I’d tell them nothing, work for cash, stay on the black, keep the cash offshore (if it became significant) and employ no-one.

Then clearly I’ve been at it to long.

Fundamental rule about being in business on your own, is to make money, so keep your overheads to a minimum, don’t get yourself tied into lease or letting agreements you can’t get out of with minimum (week or month) notice because if it doesn’t work out you get to be even more screwed.

As to a lock up, good idea to start with, would I tell anybody? Personally I’d say nothing don’t ask anybody just do it and act ignorant if you get called on it, which can only happen if some nosy neighbour dobs you in.

Alerting authorities to anything commercial always costs you more, which you do not need when you’re setting out, no business switches on and gets running straight from the get go. Take two years minimum to build anything reliable and things have a habit of changing direction according to your customer/client base.

Joe Walsh of course, Life’s been good.

There was a guy rocking a Supernova at the Brass Monkey, it’s had a bit of a rework his company Hartley laminates are building it.

That Farr 3.7 hasn’t got going here yet but Butler Boats have just announced they are going to build them.

I still think your best bet is a Blaze unless you can find a Laser EPS, which is my current favourite for sheer joy and ease.

You could try asking Here they’ll probably all suggest Solo or Streaker because they’re mostly brain dead or undead, but there are a few live ones that can tell you more about the Blaze and Supernova..

I can’t believe nobody has mentioned the Hangover.

Or Old School

Waynes World

Animal House

Dude where’s my car

Bad Teacher (Junkyard take note)

Ferris Bueller

Blues bros of course

Zoolander

Anger Management

Any film that makes you laugh is perfect.

sambob – Member
He’s interested in the RS100, but due to them not being very old, they’re still expensive. RS300 is also on the cards, much cheaper but maybe not quite as fun. Anyone sailed either of these, or could recommend an exciting non-trapeze single hander?

Tell him not to bother, unless he sails at a club where there are others, or they do windward leeward courses, they’re a bit of a flash in the pan, don’t go upwind worth a damn and the kite is difficult to carry round the cans. I had one for a while then got rid of it, interesting the guy i sold it to has also now sold it on.

I’m sailing a lovely little find at the moment, an EPS, not that many of them about and not a lot of ‘class racing and their handicap is probably a bit enthusiastic. So I’d say go for a Blaze, I had one of those for a while and regret selling it to buy the 100.

The 100 has other issues, bloody difficult to get back into if you do ever fall out if it’s windy because of the volume in the wings.

Nice shots boys and girls, a pleasure looking a them all, here’s a couple I took on the iphone today for the sheer joy of riding in sunshine for the first time in quite a while..

Roadies and their miles, ‘ Dude you rode a bike on the road’ who even cares?

“Nice bit of road was it?’ Tarmac well groomed?

FFS.

The sun finally came out, I’d abandoned the truck at my mates after a drunken party last night so decided to go back for it cross country to try and fix the hangover, a lovely day and excellent new year 1st ride.

This view back down the trail toward Saltwood Castle, nicer ridden down than up, but it’s part of one of my regular loops.

Gonna Party like it’s 1979!

Happy New Year y’all (including you sad spd’ers)

I will if it ever stops bloody raining (Not bother as per David Taylforth), we’re set for some Sun tomorrow but that’s not going to dry anything worthwhile out, so it’ll be gheying riding along the canal tow path again.

And so sayeth the Queen of Winterfold Hill…

saw your KOM today, bet you can’t wait for me to set you some real tasks, glad you’re obviously getting better, do you think your mangina will be well enough to go windsurfing soon?

Echinacea, zinc, vit c & d, loads of it, and a little bell and or something to bang on the floor with when I need my brow mopped, broom handle usually..

And cee beebies

Well I think you need to read the post before coming to judgement, the primary reason is the weather, the ‘popularity’ I don’t know which planet you’ve been on, but actually it’s been ‘popular’ since the last Olympic go round, there are hundreds of them, thousands in fact, a bit late to be doing it because it’s popular and it’s never been cool, not ever and never will be, despite the side burned ones best efforts, he’s just made it barely acceptable.

And expert? where’s that written? Why would an expert ask questions here? I don’t even like road bikes, never mind being an expert, however, the exercise they offer during periods like this that long rides are out is what I’m considering and not wishing to waste a red cent on what is neither worthwhile or fun is my goal.