I’ve recently (8 weeks ago)got a Kettler speed pro & it’s great.
Silent, exceedingly rigid & the ability to offer a brutal workout as easily as a relaxed stretch of the legs.

I had (have) a Tacx Suntori in the garage with my road bike on but it’s been barely used. Last winter I actually preferred to go out in the dark & wet (with help from my Troutlight) rather than train in the dry.

Now with the spinning bike I definitely choose to use this. To be fair one of the big differences is that the spinner is in the house instead of the garage. This is down to the size, perceived cleanliness & comparative silent running.

My lady also uses the spinning bike (to coincide with watching Eastenders :) ) so it’s very easy to change seating position.

Same problem here (3 & 5 yr olds).
0550 :(

If you are used to London then Brussels may actually be quite pleasant :)
6 months is not really moving anyway! That’s just a long business trip…

Going to work at (or linked to) the EU commission?

I work in Brussels but live about 70km west near Gent.

Brussels is pretty sh1tty in my honest opinion though it depends what your experience is. I’m not really a city dweller (more of largish town kinda guy). There are a huge amount of foreign nationals in the city so English is absolutely no restriction to living but may hamper your long term work prospects. Obviously learning one of the local languages isn’t so hard but you must realise that speaking languages is not considered a skill in Belgium – just normal. My lady speaks EN, NL, FR & DE all fluently. I have learnt NL (Flemish) which to be honest is not so hard though the accents can be a bit of kick in the balls at times.

Traffic jams are quite frankly an arse.

With regards cycling Belgium is just awesome. Lots of everything. There are stunning marathons every weekend in the Ardennes & more signposted tours than you can ever dream of.

That looks embarassing in comparison the World Champs course in Canada.

There were some fantastic sections on that course including a really challening rocky descent that saw some of the riders actually tackle it by foot.

I hope the course looks worse than it really is….

Nazareth….
yes really :)

I work for a Japanese company & I am told by Japanese colleagues that they believe MTV was invented there! (via Shimano)

Don’t really believe it but interesting to hear different ideas..

It’s a very good & fast car.
I work on Ford developments indirectly & think the 5dr ST (if you can live with the fuel economy) generally a great vehicle.
Plenty of torque, pleasant engine noise & a lovely driving position (the seats help)

oh yes. I know where you mean.
Was that the place that had a (sort of) indoor bowling alley?

Is there really going to be a forum ride in Warwick?
If it’s published sufficiently in advance, it sounds like a good excuse to bring the kids to see the Grandparents :)

Indeed someones going to have a huge amount of work but will be worth silly money when finished.

Whereabouts in Warwick is this place?
I’m a Leamingtonian btw (or should say was)

That’s **** lurvely….

I am in 2 minds about upgrading my R1150GSA but the price is a bit of turn-off.
I would only use it in exactly the same manner as my 1150 anyway so probably wouldn’t appreciate the difference.

I bought my 29er ZTR Crests from JRA & they are perfect so far (4 months old or so but plenty of km’s)…..
Good price too.

Sebastian does have some innate evilness I can’t describe though.

That’ll be my eldest then :)

This is actually the first day this week that I haven’t been in an airport lounge thank god.

I’m almost back to having my Frequent Flyer status from Lufthansa then I can return to the comfort of the business lounges.

Shame I only make trips inside Europe so I don’t get that many airmiles :(

I’ve not spectated on PR but I live very close to the ToF course so always see it. (though I prefer to watch it on TV)
As already mentioned it’s great to ride either the Sportief on the Saturday or at least of couple of the hills Paterberg, Koppenberg & De Muur before the event to appreciate the course in advance and then you can really get the feeling of the race.
Burning legs in Geraardsbergen :)

De Muur is nearly always the key location where the action is but it’s very busy & hard to get a good spot.

I was told the atmosphere of the PR has been castrated since this year due to the controls & the police presence.
It was getting a bit wild riding between the huge Jupiler fuelled crowds.

Staying in Gent is a really good choice for ToF as you’re close by the course but you can still have a really nice weekend there too.

Oh dear
Sometimes I feel a bit ashamed of being a Vlaanderen immigrant.
It’s perhaps even worse if you understand the lyrics. :(

More importantly did anyone else see the first round of the cyclo cross world cup yesterday…
Zdenek Stybar was the class of the field once more. He’s unbeaten so far this season. Sven Nijs looked just plain knackered. Too much mountainbiking this year I think.

I’m a midgets dick under 6’2 and ride the 18″ with a long seatpost.

It’s my first 29er so I chose to go small on the frame as I was concerned about the effect of the bigger wheels making it too tank-like.

Rides great at XC..

I have just ‘inherited’ a spinning bike. It feels so much nicer to ride than my turbo trainer. Not sure why (flywheel mass?) but I actually don’t mind riding it.
It’s also practically silent so it’s in the bedroom so I can watch TV too.
Even the Mrs is using it (whilst watching Eastenders :) )

For ‘stats’ I just use a €17 stopwatch / HR meter…

By the way – the Belgian Superprestige series starts this Sunday & will be shown live on the internet VT4[/url]

I am not sure if it accessible to the UK, in the same way I can’t view BBC i-player but if you can it’s the best of the best…
Niels Albert is back from injury to do battle with Nijs & Stybar.

I thought this was going to be another Contador thread :)

I’m spoilt for choice over here in Belgium for steak to be honest. ‘Progres’ in Gent is €12 for a delicious steak. Great cuts of meat cooked in a loving manner. Served with chips at their best.

When I worked in the US I was taken to a ‘special’ steak restaurant as my colleague wanted to show me how a steak was supposed to be… Very disappointing buttery experience.

There’s currently a legal case going on in the European courts about Lego.
Lego wishes to protect it’s design by registering it as a protected brand.

The court has decided that a form or shape cannot be considered a brand, only a name or logo hence Lego has lost.
They’ve gone for an appeal but seems unlikely to succeed.

I like the 29er for when it’s fast but like to jump back on to one of the 26ers when it’s narrow & twisty for the fun of it.
I’m not a small lad at 6’2″ but find the 26ers have that BMX chuckability I recall from my youth…
Variety is the spice of life? (or so I told the wifes’ sister) :lol:

You’ve taken a saddle from an antique & spilt orange paint on the frame?

I commute all year round my motorbike (here in Belgium). 45mile each way or so.
Last year was a bit slippier (snow) than usual but the temperatures weren’t so bad. (not below -10degC)

I use a BMW GS Adventure with ABS / heated grips etc & in combination with good kit & the warmth from the boxer cylinder heads it works a treat.

The slightly ironic situation is that when the weather is at its worst, the traffic becomes chaotic hence the bike makes even more sense.

My only ‘problem’ is that I live in the country & my road doesn’t get gritted or ploughed so that I have to estimate what the main road (about a mile away) will be like. I’m about 3miles from the highway and that is nearly always do-able thanks to all the trucks.
I’ve misjudged conditions a couple of times & been very scared but so far haven’t ended up on my arse.

I watched Die Another Day on Pro-sieben last night too & indeed it is one of the crapper Bond films. They’ve been showing quite a few recently.

Being dubbed in German doesn’t make it any better. Piers stick to being Thomas Crown or similar..

don't let yourself get carried away in the atmosphere at the beginning.
Far too easy to jump on someones back wheel & chase.
Do you ride with a pulse meter? It's a good way to control yourself or at least flag if you are starting to exceed a sensible level.

Re the sign: BC is British Coulmbia no? Slightly to the North of California if my atlas is up to date :wink:

It was a bloody awesome bike when it came out. I was riding a Ninja 900 at the time & the first time I rode my mates R1 (which he paid full whack RRP for – shocking) it was sooooo much faster.

I worked shifts many years ago :) and had the joy to finish at 2200 in the evening & could listen to them on the way home each day. What a great way to pass the time on the motorway.
After some promotion at work & their move to breakfast I was able to listen once more.
Always thought I was a bit odd for enjoying it as most folks I knew then thought it was tosh (I'm a midlander by the way)
Still have my treasured Shirehorses CD in the car. Franny Lee indeed….

Just for the record I also recall Chris Moyles being on before the breakfast show during my shiftworking days & he was actually good to listen to then. His arrogance seemed ironic at the time but as time passed by it became clear he really was a to$$er…

That's pretty mad.
My mum went on holiday with my gf at that time (seems strange in itself now) & told her she had previously been married / divorced which was a complete surprise to me. (& I haven't even mentioned to my ma ten years on)

I was hoping someone might say this before me but I've never read a novel… I feel quite ashamed by it & I have thought about trying it but never got that far.

I've read lots of technical books for uni & lots of manuals but never a novel. I'm very sorry :(

I use this hope adaptor to combine an XTR IS brake caliper with a Post-mount SID Race fork using a 180mm disk.

Works just fine, though I should paint it black because the bare metal finish stands out quite a bit…

Friend of mine had exactly the same issue on a pair of SID teams. Dealer tried to 'fix' by removing some metal from the skewer seat which I thought sounded horrific. Fortunately it didn't fix the problem so my mate got a new set under warranty.

A 'wire' tyre is one with a bead made from a inflexible metallic wire usually steel. The converse is a 'folding' bead that is made from a material such as Kevlar.

But on the positive side of things: "she dropped four dress sizes since the incident due to stress"

Works out cheaper than weight-watchers.

edit: beaten to that one already :(
Too slow by far.

We're going skiing too :)
Not the warmest time of the year but nice thing to look forward to after the hype of Xmas has passed by.

Brussels on a tuesday night. Hmmmm.
I hope for you that you're not at an airport hotel. That's where my office is & my god that's a depressing area.
At least if you're in town then you can do as you suggested. Usually quite busy every night due to mass of EC staff which also means English is the language of choice for most.
Will probably be raining too! (basically not very much good news -sorry)

I don't think the question should be has anyone test driven an Alfa but has anyone driven 50k miles in one….

I find them beautifully styled & great when new but longevity concerns particularly squeek & rattle resistance. Loved my 147 to look at but damn pleased it was a company car.

Did anyone else watch the XC?
It was shown live on tv here in Belgium so didn't have to pay for it.
Great course.