Freelance Engineering Geologist. Went freelance 4 years ago after moving to France. My sole client to date is my former employer…. Last 24 months have seen me supervising drilling 800m deep inclined holes for a prospective gold mine in Mauritania and supervising poxy shallow holes for oil pipelines across Georgia and Azerbaijan. Also do home office based geotechnical design (foundations, earthworks, slope stabilisation) etc.

Looks like I’ve niched into international work given my hands on experience, which is great, but also rubbish as away from home a lot without seeing the little monsters. Overseas day rates are quite good though…

Thanks for all your replies.

I don’t understand what you mean by joke.

Peter Poddy: I could be interested. Would you accept a deposit?

I’m a bit skint at the moment as I’m building a building for my bikes and the bricklayer is having a laugh.

<This thread was brought to you courtesy of Bored in the sticks of Azerbaijan.>

I’ve been in Azerbaijan on and off for the last 12 months, as well as previous trips.

My first thoughts off Baku were similar to yours Footflaps, but go round the corner and it all changes. I’m now mostly working out in the sticks on sites rather than working form an apartment in Baku.

I know what you mean about company policies killing fun… Our client is BP as we’re doing drilling investigations for oil pipeline replacements and I need to fill in about 30 forms before I’ve even left my accommadation…

Also being subject to the anti-corruption bill doesn’t really sit squarley with life out here….!

Have fun!
I might wave to you across the Caspian when I get back to Baku.

PS: If anyone gets the chance to go to Georgia, in particular Tbilisi, go!

Chouette Juan.

I’ve seen one in a shop in Grenoble, not that model, but the quality esp. the finishing looked great.

Hmmmmm… might have to look into this..

What are the cyclepaths like in Sweeden?
That was the attraction of Denmark for us.

Lister, what a great idea and viewpoint. Good to read amongst all the strong feelings over not much really on this thread.

Two wheels, it’s all good.

Nah, you want a geotechnical engineer. <Waves>.

discs get bent.

neninja: can you forward us a thicker mounting o-ring and a new style battery strap, assuming it’s now like a ski velcro strap. Also, you were going to send us a head strap or something (mrs mugsy knows exactly what it was), only we never got it.

I understand you’ve done us a bit of a deal, and as we’re in France too we’d be happy to pay for postage etc.

Cheers! Looking forward to getting home from Azerbaijan in 3 weeks ish time to ride!

Try 18 bikes in Hope? Not tooo far if they have one..depends how badly you need it I guess.

OC rider, are you based near the Pilat?
We had our wedding reception there. Never made it back since.
We now live 3km form St Etienne…de st Geoirs, i.e. where Grenoble Isére airport is.

Trying not to feel too smug here after living in the most beautiful country in the world for 4 years as of tomorrow. However, I now find that my expectations of car drivers has probably changed and find the drivers not so great as many people rave about, sure it’s not at the level of having Mc Donald’s wrappers thrown at you by passing cars or having someone stop and punch our club secretary as we ride past on a club run, but in deepest rural away from the tourist hotspots France, the crazies do exist.

We went family touring in Denmark this summer*. Now that was a real eye opener, even with 2 kids under 5, with the eldest being on his own bike usually attached via a follow me tandem we felt like royalty the way the cars treated us. In Copenhagen we didn’t spend much time visiting museums etc as we didn’t want to stop riding our bikes it felt that good and relaxed and easy.

*2 days before we went I thought I would need a 20T sprocket. Unfortunately Charlie couldn’t get it to me (one thing against France: The bike monger is across the channel!). He suggested we came and toured in the UK instead so I could pick it up :lol:. In the end 32:18 was perfect with panniers, camping kit and Pia in her trailer.

Great stuff Mr. Crazy Legs.

Looking forward to hearing tales of epic daring do from the others. Esp. as I’ve been planning since Spring to enter as a first timer next year.

Planet x carbon cyclocross frame* with a white industries eccentric hub?

*I thought it was called a dirty disco?

Some great things here. Some great memories for me and lots of things that I must do with our two. We went cycle touring for 3 weeks in Denmark this summer. Mini mugsy (4 1/2) on his Cnoc attached to a follow me tandem behind Mrs Mugsy’s road rat (don’t do this at home kids esp with camping gear…)Micro mugsy (2 and a bit) behind me in her trailer. I think Etienne (mini) will remember lots of things about it: primitive campsites on the beach, 1st camp fire, 1st real go at mountain biking on his own etc etc.

Dam I’m getting all emotional now as I’m not even 1 week into a 5 week stint working overseas without them.

Hands up in the air!

I’m in the club too. Bought an Uncle John. Find I do less and less mountain biking over the last five or so years as raod has taken over. We now live in an area where not so much technical mountain biking as rural hilly france can be a bit like that: just lots of tracks with lots of rounded cobbles and forests.

Had my first cyclocross ride on it last week and couldn’t stop smiling for the 50km that I did. Plan is to do the 3 peaks next year as a goal.

I’ve got a slim topeak (I think or maybe blackxxyxx?)one: streamline silver. What is great about it is that the handle folds out into a’t’ find it really useful like that. So much so that it’s what we take when we go touring mugsy family stylie (Béné and myself, etienne on his cnoc with follow me tandem and Pia in her trailer).

d’oh ok he said ‘speed difference’. Now I look pedantic AND stupid…

4mm :lol:

Just tile the floor!

Tick. Happens to me. Mrs Mugsy alluded to it in her review after neninja kindly lent her a set (that we then bought) for 24 heures VTT du luberon.

Doesn’t happen to Mrs Mugsy. I think mounting on the flat part of the bars would help. My bars are particuarly high rise and my stem bulky so there’s not enough flat section of bars to mount on. I also wonder how it would sit with an oversize bar due to the ‘bulge’

New UJ has à chainstay bridge but no rear canti hanger.

It’s a Pastey Howler ti. Mrs Mugsy has recently increased the travel on the rebas to 120mm.

Just got back from a 3 week cycle tour in Denmark.
Was expecting Carlsberg and Tuborg. But WOW was I wrong. Some of the best ales (ipa and dark) that I have ever tasted

Why ‘tubeless’ rather than tubular? Lots of choice of cross tubs and road tubs.

Molgrips,

I could ask my mil if she is available if you want ;)

Thanks all.

The cyclepaths are the main reason we’re going. Having toured with the two children in northern Brittany last year and Croatia the year before that with just the one child back then.

This year however Mini Mugsy will be on his bike and follow-me attachement as required rather than in the trailer so we’re after traffic free routes.

Looking forward to it.

Legoland is on the list. Oh yes! Thinking of doing more round the islands than up along the west.

Sorry… I’m not around here too much now: I’ve discovered chat roulette.. :lol:

pffft.

I’ve had enough. I’m off to buy a wii and a mirror……. :wink:

Trying not to bite :roll:…too many people being a bit too serious and missing the banter element..anyway

The thing that really got me was the fact she left a 4 1/2 year old at home whilst she went out for a walk and didn’t tell me. I had no idea for about 1/2 hour and anything could have happened, esp as we have a large house and land. I only found out becuase I decided to go to the kitchen.

That’s not a ‘must be grateful’ issue, nor a ‘I chose to have kids best get on with it’ issue.

Well, Mrs Mugsy and I have done a bit of killing and feel much better; Lot less flies in the house too. :wink:

I posted here for some light relief, not to be reminded that a dog is not just for Christmas….

I normally work from home (or since the last year or so overseas), when normally during the day I am alone, except at present due to lack of childcare and it being the school holidays, however today has been the 1st time I have tried to work for several weeks rather than playing with the kids. Tomorrow off to work from Mrs Mugsy’s office.

Mrs Mugsy also wants to kill her……
PITA also ‘dropped’ a bottle of olive oil on my foot that ‘jumped’ out of the cupboard…

Ah. I am blind sorry! What is prob worth looking at then is parc naturel Livradois Forez.
I have a guide in front of me for puy de dôme, Haute-Loire. Guide deals with a tour of 232.5km on 5-7 days and 11 other routes of 2-5 days. Nice area, but can’t say much more about it as not really my stomping ground unlike the Vercors.

Cheers to Pook’s grandad.

Mine left us about 13 years ago. Only family member that I really connected with. I missed his death and funeral. And I still get really emotional about it….

Anyway, here’s to Grandad’s!

Some, maybe not all models of the new style berlingo.
Ours which is essentially the xtr model has 3 independent rear seats all quickly removeable. Also sliding doors makes it easy easier putting kids in and out.

But if you are like many people you won’t listen because it’s a ‘noddy shaped car thing’!

Jura or the Vercors maybe?

For the Jura have a look at the GTJ website.

Goes through our nearest biggish town (i.e where the supermarket is) at about 140km, right by Grenoble airport.

Will pop down in a bit, but won’t be as entertaining as the Glandon yesterday…

Sigh..living in France is soo hard!

Dosh. Funky kind of rubber