Cheers druidh, the compatibility issue wins the day – they’re off the list!

You sure that the relay only takes 13.5mA? This makes it a 1000 ohm coil, which is V unusual – they’re normally around the 40-60ohms, drawing 2-400mA.

Should still not drain the battery though.

Try a few days of charging the battery overnight and see if that gives a few weeks running, or get a new battery, as yours does sound knackered

Had a small victory on the way to work the other (frosty) morning. Rode past a car that was stopped at a T junction whose driver couldn’t see through the tiny scraping he had made on the windscreen. He followed me to the next stop sign, at which I stopped in front of him, turned round, got him to open his passenger window and said “shall we just wait a while until you can see through that windscreen?”. Then I waited in front of him for a good few minutes until his windscreen had cleared enough for him to see through. Don’t think he or the drivers waiting behind him were too happy, but hey, better that than him wiping me or someone else out.

Right, I will enter the Cristalp. Just need to find some decent hills to train on.
Now, decent hills within 50 miles of Warwick……nope!
Looks like a few weekends away to the Lakes or Wales to get some proper hills in – what’s not to like about that plan?

Just need to sell the idea of a couple of long weekends away in Switzerland seeing her sister to the OH. Shouldn’t be too hard!

Probably not much wrong, but check that the cooling fans aren’t running all the time (or at high vehicle speed). They could be overcooling the engine. \Or that the thermostat is not stuck open (look at the o rings and installation of the thermostat housing – check that there is no way coolant can bypass the t/stat.

When did the problem first start? Was it when the weather got colder?
What car is it? Does the heater work OK?

Most cars will bias the coolant temp gauge around “normal”, and the actual temp reading is not the number displayed on the gauge. you’ll know if it’s too hot, or too cold, but just because it says 80deg doesn’t mean it is 80deg.

The other issue could be lack of coolant (air lock or something). If the coolant sensor is in air rather than coolant, it can read cooler than the engine actually is. Take out the coolant sensor, and make sure the coolant system is bled properly and try it all again.

gunny – locking your bike to a radiator – you know whatever scumbag makes off with your bike will just saw through the radiator pipes – so not only will you lose your bike, but your house will be flooded as well. Lock it to something that doesn’t matter (or is impossible) to saw through.

I often think what would happen if I caught someone nicking my bikes – I would love to think that the chainsaw/axe/hammer would come in handy, but I doubt anyone would stand still while I got the equipment ready. And, not being a hard bloke I’d no doubt come off worse, so I’d probably be more likely to shout and scream a lot instead. Having said that, the chances of catching anyone in the act is quite small, given that I am at work all day and asleep at night.

People’s hunger for crap news involving celebrity sex shocker means tabloids will be around a lot longer than they deserve. Not bought one myself in over 20 years, my belief is that they give journos a bad name.

Interior lights on or off?

On = join in
Off = just look
Flashing = bring your mates

Pics?

What advice do you want? Lots of views have been offered, some of which may reflect your own, but if you are expecting more, more of what exactly?

I find it really sad that people are branded a pervert for, what would appear to be, rumour and gossip. Just imagine you were on the receiving end of such rumour – how would this make you feel? Innocent until proven guilty etc etc.

If you have concerns, talk to your son. You can’t talk to the 18 year old – he’s done nothing wrong (yet?).

Yes, I am a dad, my kids are 18,20,22 – they hang around with all ages from 15 – 30. I would hate to have the tabloid paranoia that everyone who talks to a youngster is a potential paedo – it’s this that makes blokes (and women) ignore crying kids in the supermarket.

The surveyor may not have messed up, unless he missed signs of cracking or movement becauase the lintel wasn’t up to the job. If there wasn’t any cracking or movement, then it’s probably been OK for 100 years, so it was good enough.

Unfortunately now you’ve messed with it, it becomes part of the cost of the job you’re doing.

Just my 2p worth – not qualified but have renovated an old house that has had many similar issues. Acro props are your friend!

That’s nothing. Years ago I sold my pride and joy kitcar, for which I had used silicon brake fluid so it didn’t damage the paintwork if spilt (quite expensive back then). The guy that bought it phoned me up a few months afterwards, asking what brake fluid I had used. I told him “silicon brake fluid, why?”. His answer was “it doesn’t taste like normal brake fluid”! WTF, you’re not meant to drink it you plonk…..

got a 90mm SC Wing stem and it looks indecently small/weak. Haven’t bust it in 3 rides (one 10 hour, one 12 hour). I went oversize with bars and stem to offset some of the flex that would have occurred with a 25.4mm setup

he is a student … They are clearly given everything they own and therefore have no concept of value or responsibility

Not all of them. Some buy their own things. Perhaps that’s a route to take?

First: make him ring round insurers himself
Second: make him get a job and save up for a car

MikeT – I was referring to the Insurance company mindset, not my own.

I like to do the traffic light grand prix thing, so sit there revving the engine if a boy racer turns up next to me, but then as the traffic lights turn, pull off as slowly as I possibly can, watching the boy racer have an anti climax. Keeps me amused, but only works with someone (wife/kids) in the passenger seat.
Also tell the kids (22, 20 and 18) to stand up when we’re going up a hill to make the car lighter.

+1 for shopping trollies.

I also like to ride my bike around a lot, bit like I did when I was 12

aged 44 and 11 months

Part of his problem with naming parents on the policy is that his mum had a rather high value claim a couple of years ago. I on the other hand, have a clean record :-) . I think part of his problem also is that he is a student, and if there is a group of people who you would target as high risk, it is them. They are clearly given everything they own and therefore have no concept of value or responsibility – I guess this is true. He leaves college in June next year, so his car ownership may have to wait until he gets a proper job.

In the meantime I will be phoning round a few insurers rather than using online comparisions – seems the only way to get them to help me get some decent quotes.

Motorbike idea is being considered, but, as every caring parent does, I struggle with the idea that he’ll be more likely to hurt himself (or someone else hurt him) on one of those, but I do believe that motorbike riders make better drivers so it is that quandary we’re both struggling with as parents. Daughter on the other hand is looking at what she can sell to get a motorbike.

When he has been driving for a year, (with no claims) the cost drops to £1400 from £3000, so that is worth considering. At the moment there’s a car available and it’s a shame not to take advantage of it, just blimmin expensive.

I am surprised there isn’t more than 20% of kids driving uninsured when the premiums are this much

He doesn’t NEED a car at 18, just would make life a lot easier. We live in a very rural area with no buses etc, and currently he borrows parents cars when he is home. Getting to and from college each week is a pain as we have to go and fetch him. Plus, the more he drives, the more experience he gets, so (hopefully) the better he gets.

But none of this is worth more than £1200 a year to me/him (that’s the limit we have set) – certainly isn’t worth £3000 a year.

He certainly doesn’t need a car £2700 worth. I might be swapping the car usage around a bit in the household (I get 2 cars through work, which wife and daughter use – one of them can use the Panda and son can use a work car (this is fully legit before anyone assumes it isn’t). I get to use my bike for work, as usual!

Still £2751 with the Coop and a Smartbox gizmo. Insurethebox next.

Thanks for the help. Might be cheaper for him to move house!

I think the OP needs a sense of perspective in their life. Is this minor annoyance really worth bellyaching about?

Have you damaged the hose so it is expanding when you pull the lever (rather than being rigid and “holding the pressure in”)?

When you banged something, did you bash the caliper or the lever?

If the lever, sounds like you have a master cylinder problem (pushrod??)

As a last resort try swapping lever or caliper with the rear and see which one the problem follows (involves much bleeding and is a pain in the bum).

Worn dropouts can only be down to the skewer nuts moving. Do you do the skewer up then close it, or close the skewer and then do it up?

The biggest difference you’ll probably see is that you’ll be £150 lighter.

Cheapest on one of the moneysupermarket type sites was £3146 for my (just passed) 17 year old son driving a £2k Fiat Panda 1.1L. Quotes went up to over £7k.
With 1 years experience it came down to £1400.

No wonder there are so many uninsured drivers.

Willy Sander – a bloke I used to deal with from the US. Always brought a tear to my eye!

I just think that in 5-10 years time, the batteries are obsolete as the industry has moved to the new LiPiFi battery that weighs 10g for 100A/hr, the shifters obsolete, the derailleurs obsolete (solenoids are so last year), so the system becomes archaic.

Old wiring connections, submerged in mud and puddles, become unreliable, wires get snagged, etc.

Bluetooth would be fun – imagine the carnage in the peloton if you could hack into other teams shifters!

I guess for top racers who get new bikes every year, it could make sense, but for those of us who make things last, is it worth it?

Have done the last 2 K100’s, enjoyed the first one, not sure about the second, but it is a fantastic event/achievement. Most of the event is a mental challenge, I think you need to be fairly fit, but as most of the challenge is in your head, the fitter you are, the easier your head will think it is.

Believe you can do it, and you will.

Just been on the “One Show” that if you raise a dispute then they cannot come after you until the dispute is resolved. If you tell them that you know this, then the debt could get wiped off.

Also, ask for the transcripts of any phone calls – they always record these for “training” purposes

I have 2 bikes- a 2002 Stumpjumper FSR – great bike for long fast comfy rides. 100mm travel front and 90mm rear, copes with anything. Or a 2002 Stumpjumper hardtail (ebay find). Light, fast and comfy for the first 4 hours, then it takes a while to extract the saddle from my backside. Did 12 hours at D2D on it though.

Go for it – fantastic way to see the country you normally miss from the motorway. Did it with a mate 5 or 6 years ago, and a brilliant way of getting very very fit (about 100 miles per day for 10 days).

Stayed in B&Bs and Youth Hostels (and home for 1 night and a rellys for another, and it didn’t cost much at all (around £2-300 all in). Really helped that we could fly from Wick to Birmingham for £5 (with air miles) and no extra charge for bikes (we shipped a bike box with fresh clothes to the Wick B&B).

Would do it again in a flash, just need an understanding other half and a spare couple of weeks holiday, neither of which are very forthcoming.

Highlights – Glencoe (beautiful), and the roads leading to it from Inverrary, night out in Fort Bill (heather beer – yumm), the descent from Kirkstone Pass (50mph – reckless on a road bike with panniers!).

Lowlights – Chorley, Wick B&B, the main A road into Scotland (A82?), where the strip between white line and grass verge got narrower and narrower, so we scrambled down the bank to a farm track)

Same happened to me at Thetford on Saturday night – knackered my rear wheel – oh deer!

Cheers all, I might go for a 2nd hand set as that is a little cheaper than a crash replacement rear wheel. I’ll have a go at straightening the old wheel as I’ve nothing to lose, and see how that goes.

Can’t someone have a moan about the deer? Blimmin wrecked my wheel it did. Wrecklessly crossing and getting so close it hit me – if it had the patience to wait we would both have been fine, but no, it had to just run out. Who can I sue?

Saw a small herd of deer in the early hours as well – tried to reason with them that one of them owed me for a new wheel but they just ran away – it’s not right when animals don’t face up to their actions.

With around 2-300 people on the course at any one time, a few are going to get upset, but the vast, vast majority are OK and may even enjoy it (at least until 3am when it got a bit miserable). If you’re an organiser or a competitor, please don’t get disheartened by any moaning, as these complaints are very few and far between considering the number of competitors and laps completed.

To those small number of people who do complain, you will be encouraging the organisers to use double width fire roads instead of twisty singletrack, as this removes risk from their event (and hence their liability). Suck it up, things happen.

I thought it was going to be a bit damp, but the rain never stopped and only seemed to get heavier – just like last year and 4 years ago.

I got taken out by a deer near the 3 mile point on the first lap – someone shouted “deer”, and the next thing I knew one had run into the back of my bike, so my rear wheel looks like a pringle (Roval Control SL if anyone has a spare they want to get rid of). I walked with it for a mile, then had the brainwave of trying to straighten it – after 10 mins of bodging (standing on the rim between 2 tussocks of grass), it was straight enough to continue. I was doing OK until then. Stopped at 7.15 with nothing left in my legs, and was coming 4th Solo then, so am pretty chuffed that I should get top 10.

Gee – hope your arm/shoulder heal quickly, at least you can still ride!

Shop Assistants – saw them cover Ace of Spades in Brum in about 87 – brilliant looking and not bad music either

One advantage of contributing to the parts cost is that the new parts will be covered by a 1 or 2 year parts warranty. If Audi replace the parts free of charge (or under the original warranty), then the warranty period stops at the end of the original warranty – so you get no further cover.

what sort of riding do you do? That might give you the answer….

If lots of flat stuff, ditch the granny
If lots of hills, keep the triple, especially if you like going fast down.

How fast do you usually ride? Do you spin or push a big gear?

If you change your setup, you’ll probably need to change how you ride/pedal

If you’re a homeowner, you may have liability insurance – speak to them.

If not, speak to the CTC – they have a good advice network for cyclists hit by cars.

Or write to the insurers of the Warrior, and give them your version of accounts, refuting any blame and raising the possibility of a counter claim for damages. Get your letter spell checked first though!

Kid was probably going for a crap in the cycle lane, so really, you should have ridden through it then moaned on tinternet about crap on the trails.

You did good – you missed the child and your lack of words probably made more of a point than an educational discussion with the dad