So you were on the section before it gets really steep. Thats why Boney looks comfortable still. I know where you mean. (last bit where you can drive a car to)

On the Saturday I sheltered on the back wheel of a couple of young ladies between Ten Bosse & Geraardsbergen. They were holding a pretty decent tempo >30kph too so it was a great place to wheel suck.

That's a great photo aP. Just milisconds before he dropped the gloom bomb on Flanders…. :cry:

How far up the hill are you? On the Tv it was hard to see who was leading / accelerating as they only filmed do wn the hill.

edit:
refreshed the page & it's now legible…

Weather conditions were also sh*te on that day.
It was a very good win from David I thought.
He still looked a bit tired on Sunday though. Shame he couldn't make the jump across to Boney & Cancellara.

Yeah pretty much.
Refers to a very hard landing – typically landing on the peak of any jump in place of the downslope.

comes from landing on the 'crankcases' from the days of Scrambling (Moto-X)…

I ride a fair bit (6k pa or more) but last weekend I got very wet during a rainshower. For the first time ever on a bike I had some chaffing issues.
(Meat & 2 Veg area)
Don't fancy a repetition as I had the undercrackers sticking to the affected areas for the following 48hours which continued the discomfort.

I am note sure now whether to consider cream in the future or if this was a one off.
(it was also the first time I ridden for more than 5 hours on my Carbonio Flite in place of a SLR XC)

I stopped because I wanted to lose some weight initially & a mate was doing the same.
Then I found that I felt better generally, seemed more resistance to colds.
After a few months it seemed quite normal & I don't really miss it.

So Marge – can we pop round for coffee after the women's start on Sunday?
oh, we'll be riding cross bikes…

Where is the womens start (Ninove I guess?)
I'm about 40mins from there by car… (but 5 mins from the course)

cyclo-cross bikes? How are they on the cobbles?

Took my Scale out last night on the slicks to make sure everything was ok before Saturday. Felt dog slow at first & then turned so the wind was no longer in my face. Wooohoooo. Top gear is not high enough (44×12) with small diameter slicks on…

This morning the weather looks great. Wind has died down & sunny (though a bit fresh still). Let's hope it stays this way until tomorrow.

It was just 3 degrees this morning at 0800 & still damn windy.
Beautiful conditions for the RvV
Had planned to ride the 260 but after stacking my snowboard last month I haven't been putting the hours in. Don't fancy a slow painful drag up the hills in the last 100km so 150 will have to do.

More cobbles this year than previous years. If it's wet should be amusing. Don't get out of the seat on the Paterberg / Koppenberg…

Yep – live there so less of a do for me to take part.
I'll be on my Scale with slicks doing the 150km road.

trying to decide if I drive to Ninove to start there or go from home and start the loop from the middle…

ooh
are the spoked rims on a Tiger 955 fitted with tubes?
My Beemer is spoked but is tubeless…

Had a similar thing with a couple we barely knew but we found out from anoher friend that it was because they had booked a nice villa and the couple they were originally planning to share with had to cancel.

If they are offering you to share for free maybe your initial concern is right :)

Weather forecast for Belgium is not great to be honest.
Rather damp & windy….
But:
if you like that sort of thing it's a huge weekend for cycling over here.
There is also a MTB tour (up to 100km) as part of the tourist Tour of Flanders.
I'm riding the 150km road tour on my MTB with slicks.

My mates car was stolen from Leicester on mine. Stupidly 7 of us had travelled there in said car (Astra) & were now stuck. 6 of us were very drunk & typically stupid but 1 was rather upset about his car….

The conti kit is called the 'comfort' kit and injects a liquid sealant into the tyre via the inflation valve & inflates the tyre with the integrated 12v compressor.

Generally pretty good unless you have a big hole (or torn sidewall).

It is very common now to have cars equipped with these systems in place of a spare tyre but I have to admit even as a tyre engineer by profession I paid an extra €40 when I got my last car to have a real spare wheel (even if it is mini-spare) as well as the repair kit.

I don't think the tyre-weld cans inflate the tyre sufficiently from memory, and the speed you can continue driving is drastically reduced (40mph or so I think)…

The challenge is identifying you have a flat tyre before you have damaged it beyond repair. Harder than you might imagine especially if it is on the rear axle….
When pressure monitoring becomes a legal requirement that aspect will disappear.

I don't think many of the Belgians would be returning to Brugge via train.
Is there no way you can get a spot on the pendlebus going from Ninove to Brugge early on Saturday AM?

I'm probably going to ride the 150 on my MTB with slicks this year.

(and btw trains in Flanders are ran by NMBS by the way :-))

Interesting option but as an expat I leave you guys to decide who you want.
Doesn't seem right for me to stick my nose in :)
If I was thinking of coming back then fair enough but hopefully that will never happen (apart from vacations of course)

Amy McDonalds voice makes me feel really uncomfortable. Bit like finger nails on a blackboard feeling…..
It doesn't help that the music sounds like Levellers B sides. (old man vinyl reference).

Sweaty knackers?
:-)

I commute round the ring of a European capital city every day & the traffic is immense.

In that instance a noisier than standard exhaust helps improves safety quite a lot when filtering through the traffic.
I guess filtering between queuing cars is also considered undesirable by many so maybe a poor reason.

As it happens I have a CE marked Akrapovic on my bike with the original catalyst in place too so it's not me making the noise but there are enough bikes with noisy pipes for me to follow through the gaps.

Has anyone else noticed the trend for noisy truck exhausts by the way?
Those things cause some amazing vibrations when you pass them…

How the hell do you use a motor bike in Winter ice/snowy roads? Isn't it slippery or do get winter tyres etc?

Carefully….
I miss 2 or maybe 3 days per year due to road conditions.
I live in the countryside & the conditions on my street don't necessarily match those on the more used roads. (read gritted :))
This means it's a bit of a guesstimation how things will be once I've covered the 5km towards civilisation. I've misjudged it a couple of times & it's been damn scary I don't mind admitting. Not sure if my BMW tank is good or bad in such circumstances but don't fancy trying to pick it back up!

Earlier in the thread I didn't mention that I commuted on a ZX9R (& CBR600 / ZX7R / DR650) before the Beemer. The ZX9R is also very good but no heated grips / ABS. Also the seating position is less upright / high (= less good in heavy traffic). For the 2nd hand price of a low mileage ZX9R you could do a lot worse. (edit – it also does warp speed pretty damn well :wink: )

I know everyone jumped on the back of the guy who mentioned the 748 for commuting but there is an element of sense in his hopefully slightly tongue in cheek advice. Don't overlook the personal desirability of your choice. I could never bring myself to care about a Deauville or a ER500….. (sorry to those who do)

Full marks to commuting on a Husaberg. I tried it a few times on my old Husky 610SM including the lovely left hand side kick start. Stupid & impractical but amusing.

I commute 160km per day on a 1150GS…
It's now at 60k km and still running beatifully.

Heated grips, the cyclinders keep my feet / lower legs warm. ABS so hopefully no panic lock-ups when some SUV driver cuts me up.
Big fuel tank – 500+ km between fill ups.
Comfy seat.

Motorcycle enduro as already mentioned is shockingly physical, particularly the hare&hounds / GNCC type. Stopping only for fuel over a 3 / 4 hour race is tiring in every way.
Imagine riding downhill mountain bike for that duration….

Every part of your body is strained (almost) & receives some horrible shock loads. As well as the physics of trying to hang on, you're also controlling your throttle with the very same hand – this kills the forearms like nothing else. (expect perhaps the aforementioned wankathon?)

Motocross is also pretty brutal but doesn't last quite so long (just :-) 40 mins per race) hence it can be ridden in a more aggressive manner.

Don't get me wrong – I have competed in running & canoeing distance events & they are indeed tiring to the point of total exhaustion but offers nothing like the brutality of off-road motorcycling.

Damn
I used to work occasionally in Royal Oak & never knew about the brewery.

Shame about the hockey. A visit to the red wings is just great.

Stannard? What about the guy who won it – Bobbie Traksel? He was away for 110km & it's not like he didn't do his fair share of work when finally pulled in by Flens & Stannard.
That's not taking anything away from Stannards fantastic efforts by the way (I was cheering him on for 2 Sky wins in 2 days)

Sylvain Chavanel / Flecha / Boonen for classics

Cancellara for doing what he does so well.

Voight is a great tours fighter.

After the obvious (cleaning etc) I do something with the kids…
My good lady has been kind enough to look after the little blighters whilst I've been enjoying myself so I try to give her some space to do what she wants for a couple of hours…

It's difficult sometimes after a hard ride if your're knackered but it's just part of the deal I guess.

considering your price limit a Saab or Merc would seem to be good options.

I would love an old Escort but the prices are just too high for something that isn't built like a collander…

Maybe you can find a Beetle (sorry for that) or a Mini but again for 2k I think yóu would struggle

10% slip is the best way to stop any tyred vehicle, which ABS approximates (miniature slips and releases) and I don't think many riders could emulate. More than 10% slip and you're losing stopping power"

It's usually slightly less than 10% :wink: but the concept is absolutely correct.
ABS targets keeping the wheel slip just below the lock-up level hence the very best professional drivers can actually beat ABS by braking at a level between average ABS level & lock-up…

I've got XTR DC's on my Spark & think they're great. Quick flick of the little lever when I need a shorter gear & it's there in an instant.

I do have XTR rapdfires on my Scale & can't really faulty them either to be honest but I do find the DC a neater option.
Only downside is the Shadow type derraileur is not available in rapid rise & I think the cable routing is much better with the Shadow model

Just bought a set of the XT DC's from CRC too. At that price would be mad not to. I'll swap them for my old model XT DC's on one of my winterbikes.

(never broken a lever either but then I ride XC & not AM)

I ride a BMW 1150GSA with ABS & you wouldn't know it was ABS equipped…

I'm no crazy rider (old man :-)) but it gives me a sense of safety when I'm riding in the winter (I commute 160km per day all year round)

Was cold & slippy enough last week to get wheelslip in top gear on what visually appeared to be a dry road…

I try & aim for 26-28kph for a 2hr ride on a hardtail with Nobby Nics.
That's about 17mph or so.

I thought this thread might have been about the starting order f*ck up in both the biathlon pursuit races… Doh.

In a sport where mental stability & stress avoidance is key, I had to feel a bit sorry for the Canadian guy. He made a pretty good race otherwise.

Back on topic – Ice Dancing & subjective attribute evalution such as 'choreography'. Sport? no no no no no.

sorry if I am missing a post but did you eat all the scrambled eggs on toast or just taste & return them?

If you ate it all up & then didn't pay (regardless of how lacking in taste they were) then I think that's bit cheeky….

We carried our kids ok in the Puma. The sculpted rear seats helps locate the baby seats better if anything.
The buggy also just squeezed in the boot too.

We swapped it for another 3 door coupe, so life can't be so hard carrying kids around in such a vehicle (or we just like trouble)…

A Puma?

A Fiesta that has been pimped for hair dressers.

I remember renting a Fiesta on the Isle of Man to be used as the recce car for the Manx National. It was only 1.25 engine & got absolutely thrashed for the recce. Despite the weak as a kitten engine the chassis & gearbox was quite excellent. (brakes also gave up)

A Tigra cannot be compared with a Puma….

We've just sold our 1.7 and I'm sad to see it go.
It is a crazy car car to drive. Not very economical or comfortable but quick, rev happy & turn-in like nothing else on the road. A real go kart.

I used to compete at rallying & one of my mates who I was doing a rally with (as navi) borrowed the Puma for the pace note recce. He drives an EVO8 but was still happy to admit that he found the Puma hilarious to drive.

We had it for 5 years and hd no problems with it during that time (and I certainly gave it some some abuse)

I don't know about tow-bar but I've got a roof rack sitting the garage for one…

I just bought the same levers to go on some old LX calipers :)

Excellent price – haven't tried XT dual controls but I do like my XTR 970's….

man that's crazy fast.

15mph faster average speed than other tracks sounds a little like bad planning…

Poor fecker. Feel for his team-mates too. only 7 of them….

whippersnapper – Member
in a similar position here. My 17 year old Volvo 480 failed it's MOT today in quite a big way. Major issues brakes and emissions. If it is a few hundred quid I'd be tempted to get it done but man in garage says 480 turbos are so rare these days that sourcing parts is getting increasingly more difficult – so future problems will get more and more expensive. It's the car's rarity (anf the fact it has pop up lights) that makes me want to keep it so much though. What to do?

One of my favourite cars. How's the rust holding off? I had a non-turbo version picked up dirt cheap which I had hoped to bring back to life but in the end the rust won. :cry: