Well said. A strong man who fought a number of challenges in recent years.

I’ve had a similar situation where I’d thought I’d lost one but a couple of hours later it came back from where it had been hiding….
Couldn’t feel, couldn’t see it!

And another one… :oops:
My mrs has slept in ear plugs for years now.
No-one else ever complained about my snoring (from ex-GF’s through to mates) but it’s an issue for her.
It was worse before I shook off a few extra kilos
The ‘off-the-shelf’ ear plugs generally fix the issue but if I have a cold or blocked nose I am sometimes banished to the spare room (which actually has a nicer bed) :)

There is as always (usually) someone faster….

There will be some slow & tubby veteran (like me) who objects :-)

If you’re bothered by who beats you, where is the ‘fun’?

Welcome to the 40 club old timer :)

Take pleasure in having a convenient excuse available every time you are beaten by ‘young folks’…

Adverts do pop-up but it’s not too intrusive. If you are just downloading to watch later it’s not an issue of course.

(I did about 3 dutch lessons when I first moved but hated it as the majority of students were forced to be there due to immigration rules & had no desire or intention to learn it. Fortunately that was some time ago. Only problem I now have is teaching the kids English)

Expat shield works well enough to watch the iPlayer stuff OK. The adverts can be a bit annoying but it’s free so can’t complain…

What channels have you got on freesat Cranberry?
generally I am pretty content with Flemish TV when I am at home but I travel a lot, and then the downloads from iPlayer are marvellous :)

(ps How is the Dutch coming along both?)

aha – thanks Rich

that looks pretty promising.
It mentions on the website available for both android tablet & iPad so that’s even better.

BMW K1200R – awesome engine even if the bike is a bit of tank
ZX9R that I should get rid of really but never get around to it.

Mrs Marge has a lovely white & grey Ducati Monster as her legs are too short for much else :)

use an old chain to make a whip that is attached to something solid. Mine is attached to the work bench.

Perhaps the super bright Mercedes brake lamps are to counteract the fashion for fitting black windows in the rear of cars….

A great idea that totally negates the value of high level brake lamps.

ER6 (or similar) is a good choice…

I’m commuting on a K1200R which is less good but makes me smile. :)

Are German car tyres DOT approved for UK use? Will your insurer want to know?

German tyre standards are just the same as UK…

There is no dedicated marking for either the UK or Germany.

Most of this is crap, 2nd hand tyres are shipped in lorries to the UK as the laws over there are different due to having autobahns. If you puncture a tyre, even as you leave the forecourt in Germany you have to replace both sides for new.

Hence they have a massive surplus of near new tyres. Couple that with the requirement to run winter tyres on your vehicle then there are a lot of good ones survive.

Where did you hear / read this idea?

standard 18″ size for a Mondeo is 235/40R18
(very hard ride)

coming down to 16 it’s 215/55R16 or 17″ it’s 235/45R17

I had zero tickets in the UK (12 years driving cars & motorbikes). Since I left I’ve had >15 (lost count). Had them here in Belgium (plenty), Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, Netherlands…. :oops:

The costs are quite low, and without a points system (no totting up ban) it’s worth the risk. I have to drive lots around Europe for my work (mostly DL) & to be honest I generally just go with the flow (fast flow). Poor excuse perhaps.

my colleague has a Passat CC (we drive all over Europe in our cars for work) and it is really quiet, surely thanks to the sleek shape.

real life economy is quite excellent too.

I’ve ridden a few sportives on my MTB before I bought a road bike. I just fitted Schwalbe Kojaks onto the existing rims.

The only issue is gearing as Doh1Nut mentioned. This is only worsened by the fitting of the skinny tyres.
With 26″ wheels & 44×11 you soon run out of gears particularly when sitting with a big group.

How are you thinking of travelling?

Gent is really nice & there is also a decent sized ice rink (linked by little train now).
Bruges is also pleasant with an ice rink. Lots of hotels, B&B’s around too as it is a common tourist destination.
Brussels Xmas market was OK last year but not the most pleasant of areas generally & certainly less child friendly.
Aachen I’ve never been to but I’ve also heard it’s a good one. Koln is certainly good.

c) why is it peeling off in layers, I’ve never seen a tyre do that before

It is because the rubber that contacts the road is getting very hot due to running under constant stress.

Please keep us updated on what uniroyal say…

I will have to disagree…. ;-)

The damage on the outer shoulder is not pure abrasion related looking at the photo. It looks to me like overheating has caused the rubber to become dry & brittle. Toe out will cause the most distress on the outer shoulder as the tyre shoulder / buttress area is in compression rather than tension.

The tread area damage is pure misalignment.

I’ve just ordered my new car & have chosen without…
Current one has it & don’t really have any complaints though.

Reversing at night can indeed be worse (I use combination of interior & door mirrors when reversing) & it’s a little bit gloomier inside.
It was good when the kids were small though as it certainly reduced the sun penetration.

Considering then that the tyres are very recently manufactured, it only strengthens my belief that it has come from the misaligned running….

What did the garage say about the tyre damage?

That damage is certainly possible from poor wheel alignment and they’ve definitely got warm….
The crown area damage is quite typical from tracking issues. The damage to the shoulder looks quite severe though I suggest has come from them getting rather warm from running constantly misaligned, causing the rubber to harden & crack.

How old are the tyres? (from the DOT code)

I had to google that too…
Seems he really is called Henry…

(my excuse is I don’t live in the UK)

I’m sure I heard chris boardman recommend 28psi on the olympic coverage the mtn bike race!

I thought I heard him say 5 bar during the ladies race yesterday….
Uninformed??

did they remove Bradleys chainrings???

It says in the flemish press he was sent straight home rather unsurprisingly….

I had a V50 2.0 diesel for 180k km (company car) & I really liked it.
Liked it enough to actually buy a C30 for my OH so I guess that says I was sufficiently happy :)

Up until 8 weeks ago I was working on component development with Volvo, and they certainly make a good car. Right up there with Audi/VW in terms of quality. I guess the new V40 is not in your radar for a purchase. (this is a lovely car)

As a expat I had a similar experience but without the speeding issue ;-)

If I understand your story correctly you renewed an expired British licence and did not change to a Danish licence at that time.

Here in Belgium you are entitled as an EU citizen to use any valid driving licence from within the EU, but if it expires then you must replace with a licence local to your official place of residence

If Evans is a wheel sucker then what the hell does that make Wiggo? He just stays in touch as long as he can & recovers the difference in the time trial.
I would love to see Wiggins win though, and I hope he can do it in style like Evans last year.

I very much look forward to the tour & it’s a sad loss for all interested spectators if Andy S doesn’t ride. His dismal TT ability forces to him to push in the mountains.

Without Schleck or Bertie I can’t help but feel it risks becoming a bit of a non-event…. They have clearly been the very elite of the climbers in recent years.

The aquarium is indeed a good one.
Plenty of tourist trips via boat out of La Rochelle too.

I got propostioned by a pervy old man in the public toilets in La Rochelle harbour (by the kids fair)…..

There are some nice bits of old town in La Rochelle…

Not sure how much the toll bridge is across to Ile de Re these days but I recall being a little surprised last time I went (though it wasn’t extortionate). Certainly worth the money though.

I find my XO gripshifters great (better for me than Shimano) & would certainly like to try the 10spd version. There’s a company in Germany that mods current model to 10spd which tempted me but finally I plumped for the exceedingly good value XT groupset from bike-discount….
Clearly I’m easily swayed :-)

http://www.wyedeanrally.com/entry.pdf

A couple of 6R4’s out & some WRC but mainly Lancer EVOs & Subarus.

Skyde…..
good quality French manufacturer, certainly have a v-brake fork

Brussels is best choice

Where are you heading to for accomodation? Oudenaarde or Brugge?

Train to Oudenaarde is via Gent..

Are you expecting a solid lock out?
I have a set of these also and the expresssion lock-out doesn’t really describe how it feels.
It is certainly stiffer when locked out but nothing like a DT Swiss lockout that feel like a rigid fork.

I’ve heard of worse situations.
This is business & these silly trips can make the difference.
How many business decisions are made on trust, reputation & relationship rather than a spreadsheet?
My boss flew to Tokyo for a 30 minute meeting end last year…..

My eldest (also 7)has a Haro race BMX and it is soooo much lighter.
This makes a huge difference. It’s simple enought to change the gearing on these if the single gear is too high.
He’s got a Cube mountainbike too, but even though this has gears the weight almost neutralises their benefit.
Maybe look for a 2nd hand race bmx?

I often utilise my credit card bill as evidence but all companies have different rules of course.
My previous company just said “don’t take the pi$$” and paid for everything on a credit card.

My colleagues based in Germany have to go through a horrible process with expenses and receipts must be absolutely correct. For hotel bills your exact corporate adress must be mentioned.