Walk over the Millenium Bridge to the Tate Modern

Butlers Wharf, Design Museum then go to London Bridge and visit Borough Market (Thurs, Fri, Sat only) – the Market Porter for real ale, Monmouth Coffee for err good coffee. Neals Yard for cheeses. Massive food market selling amazing high quality food. Walk down Southbank and enjoy the Thames.

Portabello Road Market. Tube to Notting Hill Gate. Walk to Portabello Road. Antiques at the top, then food, then fashion, then junk 😉

Spitalfields Market (covered), Dray Walk (Trueman Brewery) – Liverpool St tube. Market stalls, clothing, bike shops (Cycle Surgery, Evans, Brick Lane Bikes), food stalls, Brick Lane curry houses.

Food
Busaba Eatai (Wardour St, Soho) good cheap Thai food
Brick Lane – good cheap curry. Also go to Brick Lane Bikes
Royal China (various but Queensway is best IMO) good cheapish dim sum
Gormet Burger Kitchen (GBK) various places – massive awesome burgers
Wagamama – various locations
Leon – healthy fast food – YUM 🙂

Whatever you do. Enjoy. Its a great city and not as big as it seems. Oh just buy an Oyster card!

If you look back, we've been through this before. The great depression of the 20s/30s, the 70s oil crisis, the Tech boom, and most current in the mind, the banking debacle. In each of the previous cases, after a period of correction, things have continued to trend upwards. People (certainly in the developed world) have got better off, the standard of living has improved. Chances are we'll see a period like this again…and again.

Saving for retirement is a long term activity. Over 40 years these things 'come out in the wash'. The problem is not investing, it is insufficient understanding of the risks involved. Now the most recent debacle was a lesson is dishonesty and greed. But this has also been driven by generations of people who only thought house prices and share prices went up. That's why people we sold (and bought) 100%+ mortagages. Because prices always went up right. Wrong. Well in the short term anyway. They didn't understand the risks. I wont go into the institions that didn't understand the risks either that's another story.

I digress. To your original point. The foundation of UK pension provision was built on exactly that. Those in work paid in to a big pot. This would be invested by the company (or government) and would pay a pension when they retired. As schemes have gone into deficit people have paid contributions which have effectively paid for anothers pension payment.

Btw, generally, the "oldies" haven't been workshy. In fact they have been contributing in the belief that they will receive the 'pensions promise' in years to come. The bigger concern is the 20 and 30 year olds who can't afford to buy property and can't/don't want to save for retirement.

Aren't the margins very small on beer? I remember reading somewhere that most of the pubs that are closing down are the ones that don't/can't serve food. That's where the mark up is?

sfb – I can understand your cynicism. Over the last god knows how many years, politicians have changed pensions legislation to try and solve the impending retiremenet timebomb. Sadly, these changes have failed to address the problems and all we have been left with is a vastly complex retirement benefits system. Perhaps the issues are too deep seated to ever be resolved and no sustained long term approach (a new political term, a new panacea) to doing so is not helping.

However, saving for the future when you no longer want/are able to work is essential. People should remember that pension contributions are tax deductible, so for every £1 contributed as much as 40p extra can be paid into the pensions pot. Often employers make voluntary contributions as well. If one takes a "we're all going to get ripped off" approach it is simply delays fixing the problem.

Btw, I wasn't aiming this at you directly. Just making a point 🙂

How can anyone give advice on this. He has at least two types of pension. Final Salary and a DC/Personal pension. He hasn't stated what they are invested in, when he wants to retire or how much he expects to retire on when that time comes. Without this an a hundred more bits of info how can you advise on what to do?

Samuri – I am (for my sins) in the Pensions industry. Whether that makes me better placed to help or not I don't know. However, I think you should seek professional advice. Pensions are a very (very) complex issue. There have been so many changes (in both private and public sector schemes) over the years that you could, without advice, makes some irreversible decisions that could significantly impact on your retirement income.

A professional adviser, of which there are many, will certainly have a no obligations discussion with you for free. They will be able to discuss your personal circumstances, attitude to risk, retirement age and time to RE, target retirement income etc. It may cost you a few £100s but it could save you a lot more.

Using someone elses advice or tips from the internet should probably be avoided. Even if it is meant in good will.

36.9 on Specialized Stumpjumper Carbon HT – I don't think you can just guess. What bike is it?

You should speak to Argos cycles in Bristol. Chances are that even with a CF frame there is a alu insert bonded in. I stripped the threads of my Alu BB (badly fitted BB cups – not by me)and they bonded in a piece of metal and recut the threads. Cost was £70 IIRC plus shipping each way. Very well done…you'd never know.

A buddy of mine rode it last year and enjoyed it. He wrote a review on his website. http://www.xcenduro.co.uk/racing/races/2009/wc_2009.asp

Oldgit – OK I see now. For that hands almost together look. My Easton EC90s are so bloody narrow (560mm) by the time you but grip shifts and brake levers on them I don't reckon there would be enough space.

Njee – still got that slightly used 30.9 NU seatpost?

Can you ride a CX bike at the BMBS? I have no intention of doing so…but just wondered?

My Chili Con Crosso is currently doing winter training bike duties anyway…24c tyres not cx ones.

Njee/Old Git – I'm intrigued now…I can't think what these flats looklike. Pistol style grip in the middle?

Whichever 24s you are doing there is a very strong possibility you'll be able to ride the course in advance. Bear in mind that generally the courses are not technical but do have some climbing in them.

Yes.

Have I missed something with the sponsor. Its Original Source again for 2010 isn't it?

No. It wont be cable. You have to connect the 'box' to your BT wireless box – you get a an adapter that routes it through the mains plug – and to the regular coax aerial. It requires a reasonably fast connection to work as OD is through the web. If your connection is slow the picture freezes and playback is stuttery.

Its freeview with a PVR. You need to have BT broadband too. It doesn't have any extra tv channels over freeview but you can get on demand tv – films, music, tv shows. Some you pay for (films) a lot you don't (tv shows etc).

You wont get Eurosport or Extreme. You will get Film4 but not Film4+1

Singlespeed Stu- I do actually which is a bit embaressing. On my Turner flux. And I fitted it…BUT you're right…Not sure why I thought there was a grease port. There should be 😉

You don't need to take the cranks off with a CK bottom bracket. There is small grease port and you just inject clean grease into it. Takes no time at all.

Its cancelled. Too much going on with the demo day and BMBS.

Does it matter?

Aracer – no worries, as and when you get a chance 🙂 Email address is in profile.

[thread hijack] sorry

Aracer. Do you still want to sell that Speedneedle saddle?

I road the South Downs way on them back in September without problem…there is a lot of flint around there though as I am sure you know. My experience is that you should run them at low pressures to allow the tyre to deform around objects. I think sometimes people run them at 40psi which is too hard. 25-30psi is how I run mine. Higher pressure does not mean more rolling resistence.

The Sidewalls are thin but RRs have been fine on my 355s and ZTR Race 7000 during the whole of 2009. I wouldn't recommend them for super rocky trails though.

If anything I would have thought the ring drive made them less susceptable to freezing – afterall they don't have pawls and springs to freeze open. I suspect even the best equipment has its limits.

The weight penalty on UST tyres is too large IMO. There is a bit of a art to non-ust tyres on Stans rims with just the yellow tape.

Two part valves make a huge difference as does a good high volume track pump. I put Kenda SB8s on my 355s recently pumping the track pump with one hand. I had spent some time moving the bead around a bit near the valve stem. If you can inflate 6" either side of the valve stem the whole things should go up pretty quick.

Preparation is the key I think.

As Nick says…CK hubs are not fit and forget. They do require regular maintenance and special tools. I still have a set – sitting in the spare room unloved – but I am not sure I would buy them again. Industry Nine maybe but not CK.

Stans No Tubes sealant. IMO the best of the available sealants. 40ml per wheel should see you right. Everything yoi need to know about running Tubeless is available on the JRA site http://www.justridingaling.co.uk …and Jon's a good bloke too.

Available at your LBS I suspect or at CRC or JRA. One bottle lasts ages.

Just check it once a month because over time it does gradually dry up.

Firstly, with a true UST set up you don't NEED to use sealant. The tyre and rim bead create an air tight seal. The downside of this is that if you get a puncture you have no way of sealing it. It does sound as though you are low on sealant and there is a small hole somewhere. Unlikely to be at the bead but possible.

To put more sealant in you would either need to take the valve core out (if you have two part valves) or dismount the tyre on one side and pour some sealant in.

You can use normal tyres IME but the channel that runs down the centre of the rim can make inflation a bit of a pain. Using draft excluder from B&Q in the channel can make things easier.

Simplistically its a matter of supply and demand.

Exchange rates are driven by institutional investment. If an economy is in decline it attracts less investment and the value of the currency depreciates.

In this case, a BoE statement painted a less than rosy picture of the UK economy and numbers in Australia were better than expected. Simplistically institutional investors would rather hold AUS$ than UK£.

Good work. Looks great! I think it would look even better with a pair of NU flat bars on it 😉

+1 for VC Graphix. I have them on various bikes and helmets.

I got mine from Biketart too and it came with a packet of popping candy 🙂

10 speed chain per chance? I'm pretty sure the SRAM 10 speed links only come as packs of 2 (4 pieces). They are one time use and not meant for splitting. They're £12 a pack on Wiggle too.

Obviously if it wasn't a 10 speed chain…

Yep. Exactly what Nick said. In the instructions that come with the ring it gives direction on how to file them down. Its not by much but prevents the chain catching on the mounting bolts.

Njee – slight hijack of thread but can you get a 30.9 white carbon NE seatpost? for my Spesh? Might want one with a white stem. Super bling 😉

I'm running an Extralite E-bones crankset. I use the 104BCD 30T extralite chainring and a 40T TA Specialities. The Extralite 30T ring is special in as much as the female part of the chainring bolt is built into the chainring. Its the only way you can get a 'small' 104BCD chainring.

The Extralite stuff is pretty expensive but was uberlight and faultless last year – €399 for the crank arms and BB and €49 for the 30T ring.

I also ran 42T/30T for a while and this worked pretty well on most courses.

Njee has it on his top fuel…he'll be along any moment 🙂

I ran 2×9 on my race bike during 2009 and will do so again in 2010. 40/30 with a 11/34 cassette. No gripshift for XX yet so I'm sticking with 9 speed.

Sorry 😉 About 10 people at WDMBC have the defroster (largely as a result of 25% club discount) and most, if not all, are happy with it as a winter boot. I've certainly heard no complaints.

The cheap 'make do' option would be to use an mtb overshoe.

I have the defrosters and initially was pretty unhappy with them. However, I now wear them with thin merino wool socks rather than the sealskins/thick socks I used before. I think the trick (and I am sure this is true of other winter shoes) is to allow some air into the boot. This is what keeps your feet warm. When my toes were packed in tight they were freezing. Worked really well on the 1ft+ of snow on the North Downs recently.

If its pouring with rain, the water runs down your legs and stays in the boots. They are absolutely hopeless than – but I also suspect most shoes would be too.