According to eBay:

“In general, the seller is obliged to pay for the return postage & packaging unless they have specifically provided, within their returns policy, that they require the buyer to pay for it.”

In this case, perhaps just ask for £13 plus £8 (?) …

every town centre in the country would be in flames every weekend. Last years riots would look like a country fete.

It’s an absolute fact that setting fire to some stuff, smashing up other stuff and stealing the stuff that’s left is guaranteed to resolve every single social issue.

It’s always the first thing I think of doing when I’m cross about something anyway.

Surely we all still remember the sweeping social changes following last years riots?

It’s like a kind of paradise living in England now.

Ride like you’re invisible (i.e. assume nobody has seen you).

Hearing is under-rated. Don’t impede your senses by wearing headphones. It’s not just about looking out for what’s happening ahead of you.

Chain Reaction have SRAM PC951’s for £13.99 each

Anyone think now might be a good time to but shares in RBS?

Now might be a good time to buy shares in several of the banks.

Some of their share prices are so low there’s only really one way to go in the long run. Although it’s certainly a long-term investment.

Ditto binners.

It’s a system that’s worked perfectly well since the beginning of time. Or at least since public conveniences were invented.

Only a berk would complain about a parent taking their 3-year-old into the loo’s.

There’s absolutely no need for special parent/child-specific facilities.

The real problem here is lack of cycling infrastructure.

No, the real problem here is lack of awareness & consideration of other road users.

Cycling Infrastructure is the least worst way of dealing with it.

Motorist Says : “You should be riding on the cycle path”
Transalation : “I’m too stupid/lazy/inconsiderate to make allowances for slower road users”

Motorist Says : “You should be wearing a hi-viz jacket”
Translation : “I’m too stupid to pay proper attention to what’s right in front of me when I’m driving”

Arm-wrestling

I was going to post something relevant but I really don’t know where to start.

Too many examples to choose from.

I wouldn’t be happy with it either TBH

Ditto.

Totally unnecessary.
I’m suprised anyone thinks this is normal and/or acceptable.

If you must, do it at home for goodness’ sake.

go back to your doctor, ask to see another doctor or ask for a 2nd opinion

Ditto this. Hopefully you’ll be examined by a more experienced/better doctor.

Friend of mine had loads of trouble with hip pain and was repeatedly fobbed off by the doctors at his local practice who couldn’t find anything wrong.

Eventually, basically by demanding it, got referred to another doctor/specialist who fairly quickly diagnosed the issue (more experienced or just more professional, who knows) …

If you cut down booze it will help even more

Mate of mine goes tee-total for Jan/Feb every year & is pretty much guaranteed to lose 1.5-2 stone in weight.

This is with no change to his exercise routine or diet.

He wasn’t a big drinker as such, just a couple of glasses of wine with meals most nights I think, maybe a few beers at the weekend.

It’s winter, and cold/snowy weather is ‘news’?

Good grief, I live in a really stupid country.

road tax

What be this?

I think some of you are just professional glass half full-ers

You mean glass half empty-ers?

And we are, after all, British!
If complaining was an Olympic event, we’d wipe the floor.

I’d go with option 2. if it were me

However, I’d get the Float’s rather than the TALAS’s *

The travel of the Float’s can be reduced internally in 10mm increments, so for the UK could be adjusted, but you’ve still got the option of more travel if you decide you need it.

All this is assuming you’re happy living with a heavier 36mm fork rather than the lighter 32’s.

Personally the weight wouldn’t bother me, being a 90kg rider plus camelbak with spares/tools + water + snacks … half a pound extra on the forks is neither here nor there

(* EDIT: actually, what I’d really do is get 36 VAN’s as I prefer coil to air, and just live with 160mm travel wherever I went)

I get the feeling if they could charge you to stand at the side of the road and make it as difficult as possible they would.

Well, that’s pretty much what’s happening for the sailing on the sth coast …

Isn’t the the physical space between the gears different on a 7 and 8 speed which is why 7 speed chains are wider than 8 speed and on

I asked a similar question once and was told chainwidth and tooth width were not the issue.

I was asking whether a 7 or 8 speed setup would last longer due to there being more metal involved.

The space between the sprockets is the crux if you’re trying to mix and match 7/8/9 speed shifters/cassettes.

EDIT: just read trailrat’s post. I did not know that. Every day’s a schoolday…

I’m not particularly loyal to any brand.

For a lot of purchases it comes down to what’s available at the best price at the time.

My main criteria is that it’s a brand I’ve heard of and has a generally good reputation, or at least the item I’m buying has a good reputation even if the brand overall isn’t fantastic.

The indexing or whatever you call it will be out of sync. I think. Different amount of cable pulled by the shifter for 7 vs 8 speeds.

Have you ever managed a project and been allowed to go over the budget more than 3 times over?

With something like the Olympic’s, once you’ve started you can’t just stop if it starts costing too much – “sorry, Olympics cancelled due to insufficient funds” – the implications would probably be just as costly.

Perhaps this is why initial costs have been proven to fall massively short – the construction companies know that the job needs completing by a very specific deadline, almost whatever the cost, so will bid as they see fit then just ask for more money later. (Too cynical?).

Take the brakes, saddle, bar, stem & tyres from my old build

If I were you …

If you’re absolutely decided on a 5 frame, why not transplant the wheels & drivetrain too?

These can be upgraded at a later date – maybe wait for deals to come up that you can take advantage of.

For now, buy the frame, forks & reverb.

If we could just find a way of channelling all the moaning and misery and turn it into something positive and useful …

I remember the enthusiasm around the Euro 96 football tournament. The Commonwealth Games in Manchester was well supported. The UK consistently shows huge support for numerous sports & sporting events.

Too many people seem to be writing the Games off as a failure before they’ve even started.

I suspect if the UK was hosting the football World Cup there’d be a different mentality…

The original cost of the swimming pool was supposed to be £60 million. Which, for a hole full of water, already sounded a bit steep.The present cost stands at £242 million. The costs have gone up threefold on pretty much everything. How is this ‘on budget’?

Simple – they just revise the budget 🙂

It’s then still ‘on-budget’, despite being more expensive than originally thought.

But as we all know, what with the recession and what-not, everything’s got more expensive.

headcam and youtube seems to be the accepted way to vent these days?

😆

This is 100% guaranteed to make all motorists admit the error of their ways and become changed people.

It is well known that motorists spend their evenings religiously watching youtube videos, specifically to improve their driving.

That’s a fact.

Oh yes it is.

I’d suggest fitting a Chin-up/Pull-up Bar at the very least.

Combined with press-ups (I do elevated, with press-up bars), chin-ups & pull-ups are a simple way of building upper-body strength without the need for loads of equipment. And they complement climbing/cycling very well I find.

I’ve had several pairs of SealSkinz over the years – to get around the water ingress from the top of the sock I made a rubber ‘flashing’ from a pair of domestic gloves; just cut off the fingers at the narrowest wrist section, slip it on over the sock & bob’s-your-uncle no more water soaking down inside the sock.

I’ll probably end up with SealSkinz agains, but my OP was just to see if there’s any comparable alternative. It appears not.

I believe a lot of these bins have been removed – something to do with them increasingly being stolen/emptied by unscrupulous types for their own profit somehow …

football fans view football as a sport

I thought football fans viewed football as actually being about life and death, considering the volume of guff that’s spouted about football in this country, and grown men crying when ‘their’ team loses.

You mean, people actually actively monitor STW?

Usually it’s “PSA there’s something or other on the telly tonight”

Obviously highly critical time-sensitive stuff …

Journalism isn’t what it once was. Nowadays it seems to mainly involve posting YouTube videos.

search for “life of an elite cyclist” on youtube, uploaded by velominati

is that the one?

EDIT: there’s also a sequal by MEHgMan

cars for me !

That’s a very, very short story …

in that case:

team hoyt.

Excellent call – completely overlooked these two guys.

lots of funny gear selection, hesitating with lane changes and pulling out in front of someone at a roundabout.

Sounds like she needs more experience/confidence with the basics, rather than anything advanced.

(although I’ve never done an advanced driving course – maybe they address these things) …

The French killed all of theirs off, but still get plenty of visitors to Versailles.

Absolutely true. No-one ever goes to France, Germany, Russia, Italy, China, the Czech Republic, Greece, Portugal, Egypt or Turkey on holiday because they disposed of their royals.

Precisely. Just think how many more visitors they’d all be getting if they still had some Royals/Monarchy… very short-sighted decision, killing them all off …

Surely Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards has got to feature on this list.

(And to a much much lesser extent, Eric ‘The Eel’ Moussambani)

you have to look at the big picture

Can’t we just continue doing what makes Britain great, and not look beyond the end of our own noses?

It’s just that if we start appreciating there’s a bigger picture, and that we’re part of a wider world, we’d have a lot less to moan and complain about.

Has anyone ever done a cost benefit analysis on the Royals?

I’ve read various things that claim the Royal’s generate wealth for the UK. Tourism is the obvious thing. There’s probably other factors.

it would shut a few people up.

Excellent optimism. Seriously misplaced though. 😀

Vitamin C isn’t the saviour of cold sufferers that it’s pedalled as. Zinc is suposedly more effective.

From my experience the fundamental thing is getting proper rest and allowing your body to fully recouperate.

It takes longer than you think for your body to completely recover from a bad cold – beyond just when you ‘feel’ better.