Only 2 of my current 7 bikes were bought new; one was frame only, the other was complete bike. All the others are 2nd hand although, of them, 2 were bought as complete bikes. So, that makes it about 14% off the peg but about 43% bought as complete bikes.

All of them have been tweaked to suit me and my idiosyncrasies though ;-)

“I can see alot of people riding less and less in the months to come due to bills, prices, job losses…”

I’d have thought the opposite. If you already have the kit, to ride need cost nothing, absolutely zilch. A lot of people may actually ride their bike more.

“Mountain biking is a minority sport and for whatever reason seems to attract a high proportion of reasonably comfortably off professionals, probably mostly in the 25-45 age group.”

Possibly because it is accessible and can offer an adrenaline rush with minimal risk.

Don’t have many memories of ’91 being really bad. Early 80s was worse, seem to remember 10/12ft drifts. That was when I bought my first Land Rover, haven’t been without one since. Now, ’63… that was a bad’un.

It’s terrible isn’t it, I know just what you mean. I sometimes decide to go for a ride then spend so long trying to decide which bike to ride that the moment has passed and I end up catching a few minutes of tv instead…

;-)

Mmm, it’s hard to assess someone’s class when you see them sat on a MTB.

IMO, someone’s ‘class’ is often your own perception of them based on your own preconceptions of wealth. I’ll wager that there are a lot of really good riders out there on sub £500 bikes who aspire to nothing more; equally, I’ll wager that there are an awful lot of riders out there on somewhat more expensive kit and debts up to their armpits.

I’d wager that there are very few off-spring of the aristocracy mixing it with you at Chicksands. Now, to me, a “posh twunt” might be that member of the aristocracy. At the same time, some chav from the inner city estate may see me as a ‘posh twunt” ;-)

Nothing wrong with pressure-treated timber for raised beds. The days of arsenic and other nasties in pressure treatment have passed (now being illegal) and modern treatments are more friendly. Treatment isn’t as effective though!

Having said that, best avoid ‘reclaimed’ sleepers (mostly imported these days) or any salvaged wood that may have been treated in the bad old days if you want to grow good organic produce.

Perhaps you should just try the little blue pill if, after 20 years, you’re have a little, ahem… difficulty getting that “same reaction“?!? :-)

Sounds like poor sealant used in the making of the s/units.

Pursue the FENSA option. If the units can be replaced under an insurance-backed scheme ensure that whoever replaces the s/units is paid direct rather than you pay and claim. Most glass companies / glaziers can supply and replace s/units; the only possible problem is when seals / gaskets are damaged / easily damaged and replacements are not available (often the case with old aluminium frames).

Another thing to note is that whilst most double glazing companies offer 10 year warranties, the small print often excludes the sealed units (especially if they buy them in) which commonly only have a 12 month warranty.

“does anybody know why the spacer bars have bent?“

Unusual one IME but possibly because the ‘packers’ under the glass sealed-units are too narrow and are only supporting the spacer bar and not the actual glass. This could have the effect of allowing the spacer bar to push up. Is it only the bottom spacer bars that have moved?

If I want something quick and convenient, a large cheese omelette (preferably with chips). Could explain why I’m one of the poorer performers in the STW Fat Club ;-)

What are you trying to achieve?

If a triple (with granny ring) is too hard for you, a double set up is going to be higher geared again. Unless you are thinking along the lines of a MTB granny/middle only set up in which case you will probably have to change the front mech to one with a chain guide more appropriate to the smaller chainrings.

“62 per cent have never cycled the wrong way up a one-way street?”

I bet a large percentage of those aren’t in towns / cities where you might commonly find a one-way street. For example, I would need to travel a very long way to find a one-way street that I might need to cycle along :-)

Might be worth adding an ‘age group’ question to your survey? A large number of cyclists are below driver training age and, other than ‘National Standard / Cycling Proficiency’ (which mostly takes place at junior school, rarely involves venturing out of the playground and includes no real theory), they have no real sense of how to behave properly and legally on the highway until they reach driving age and receive driver training. Or is this the age group you might be suggesting aiming training at? Having said that, the CTC offer National Standard training to people other than those of school age.

Conti GP 4 season 700×28 here (I lied on another post the other day when I said 700×32;-)) on pot-holed country lanes and gravel cycle paths. Touch wood, 1 puncture in last 12 months (approx. 1000 miles).

Can’t beat taking things to extremes on here :-)

The steel Deore rings on a bike of mine have probably lasted longer than any other chainrings I’ve got (Middleburn, RaceFace, Forge). May be a bit heavier but I’d need to look in the mirror before worrying about that too much!

Thing is, people make choices not just by price (or indeed value). I mean, how many ‘supermarket special’ MTBs could you get for the price of your beast of choice?

Will 50 or so £69 specials last longer than say, oooh, an IF ti deluxe? Mmm, thinking about it, probably not; so, as you were then ;-)

My understanding is that a quote is an agreed price for specified goods and will normally be limited to a given timescale.

An estimate gives an idea of likely cost, which may change.

In retail outlets, an item can be withdrawn from sale by the business, so they are not legally obliged to sell if they have priced something wrong.

Once an item has been paid for, the contract is complete and the goods must be supplied.

He, he. Show off? Yeah ;-) Tried city life many years ago which was great at the time but I’m happy to be a country bumpkin rolling along at a slower pace of life these days :-)

Sheldon, I’ll have to catch up on news / chat soon!

Sue, with a commute like that I don’t think I’d want to end up at work!

ski, when the long-tailed tits come to our ‘feeding station’ they seem to come in a group of 9 or 10! No eagles here, just sparrow hawks and plenty of buzzards. Bird feeders are well sheltered though and attract mostly blue tits, great tits, marsh tits, nuthatches, and a pair of lesser-spotted woodpeckers. Sparrows, robin, and blackbirds join the mice feeding on the ground!

You say the leak is in the loft and that the builder has been working downstairs.

Did the builder do any plumbing work in the loft? If not, then the leak may not actually be anything to do with the work he has been doing.

Worth pushing your insurance people, especially if the leak isn’t a direct consequence of the building work.

If it is a direct consequence of the building work then, given your (& your wife’s) relationship with the builder (& his wife) then it looks like you’ll need to sit down and negotiate!

Beware, water damage is not always visible and obvious. Get it properly checked.

First off, sorry to hear of your loss :-(

Take your mum in to to someone who knows how all these things work, either CAB or appropriate government dept offices.

Council tax would be reducable for single person occupancy. Credit card may have to be paid off from his estate. There may be reduced tax payable on reduced income. All sorts of variables. Depends on her age as well.

Probably the last thing she or you want to be worrying about at the moment but keeping the mind busy at a time like this can be a big help too.

The thing is, alternative styles are subscribed to by various people. The fact that you don’t subscribe to a particular style does not mean that it is any less relevant or desirable; it just means that it is different to your chosen style.

Charge have chosen a marketing policy that they believe will work for them. They’ve probably looked beyond just aiming for the minority group within cycling that may be called Mountainbikers; perhaps some of us on here need to recognise that people use bikes for more than just mountainbiking.

It doesn’t really matter what bikes people ride or what they wear. Does it…?

BBKing & Friends 80th B’day was last one I bought.
Gilmour live in Gdansk (xmas pressie).
Seasick Steve (given to me by a mate).

Nope.

[he needs to loose some weight ~ he’s bent his seat tube ;-0]

Wye Valley around Monmouth today. Sun in the sky, seriously wet under wheel.

True, disregard my first thoughts! I normally wear a base and a windproof and my skin can be cold to the touch as well. I too carry excess ballast around my middle (",)

Guess it’s just sweat doing what it’s meant to do – cooling the skin surface to dissipate body heat.

Possibly too many layers on your belly causing you to sweat more and the sweat is then chilling against your body rather than wicking away. 2 bibs, 2 jerseys, and a jacket – that’s a hell of a journey for the sweat ;-)

I have / have had Litespeed, Dean, & IF hardtails. I also have / have had Orange & Kona steel hardtails. They all ride differently! Just being Ti or just being Steel is only part of it.

Ti has great longevity but how many people really actually hang on to and ride one bike for years and years; IME even when people say that this is their ‘bike for life’ it’s only really until they find they want to move on to something they perceive as better, higher spec’d, more up to date geometry, etc..

Crazy thing is, those two plates (2 BE & NOT 2B) as a pair are probably worth more than the cars they are on!

Made me smile!

We all conform in the end, it’s da rules innit ;-)

“ …and I fail to see why should have come to that conclusion.

Because you make very few, if any, concessions! [Although you cover your debating ideals in a later post] ;~)

“ Although I have to say that I’m pretty stunned how uninformed some people are about the plight of the Palestinians.

Still, I guess that’s one of the reasons why the Israelis get away with what they get away with, wouldn’t you say ?“

Yes, I would tend to agree with you there but would also argue that the sentiment applies both ways.

Unfortunately my knowledge of the history is not as good as it could be but I try to see beyond the propaganda spouted on all sides. For example, it riles me that on British television news I see a reporter stood just outside Gaza proclaiming that the media are prevented from reporting from inside Gaza and then I watch 10 minutes of television footage from inside Gaza. How has that been made available then? It certainly hasn’t come via the Israelis because It would seem that a camera inside Gaza is a magnet for someone to come running up to it with a dead or injured child in their arms or a crowd of older people pleading to the camera. I don’t see film of militants firing rockets and mortars or military leaders making statements. I can therefore only assume that the footage coming out of Gaza is propaganda; footage designed to shock the world and encourage the watching public to hate Israel and sympathise with Gaza. Of course, Israel are playing the same game by only releasing footage designed to encourage support for their own actions.
Whatever is written on the subject or shown in the media always has a hidden agenda because you can’t criticise one side without appearing to support the other.

Interesting to read DrJ’s reponse to my comment about refugee camp status. The first paragraphs of his response are of course propaganda judging by the words used and the emotion in it. However, the last paragraph referring to the first hand experience of the expulsion of Arabs from Majdl, now that I do take on board. It’s real and gives a real insight into what has gone on before without being clouded by a hidden agenda.

I travelled through the area 30 or so years ago, crossing the Suez from Egypt into Israel (Sinai was at the time within Israel on the map) and up the coast past Gaza City and Ashquelon. My vague memories are that I had to use my (pidgen) French to converse rather than English which at the time surprised me because I related French speaking to Arabs and English speaking to Israelis. Such was my innocence and lack of understanding of what had gone on in the region; I was just a travelling hippy crossing from North Africa and making my way towards India! My interest in the current situation is merely based on the fact that I passed through the area all those years ago. Hopefully it will be resolved without too much further bloodshed. Both the Israeli and the Hamas leaderships have innocent blood on their hands whichever way you look at it.

“Do you think that Hamas decided to start firing rockets just for grins?“

I don’t think any of it is done for ‘grins’? (Daft thing to suggest really, DrJ).

“Gaza is a big refugee camp, full of people driven out of their homes, and bombed on a daily basis year after year.“

But it’s not really, is it. Although Gaza may contain a number of refugee camps, there are also structured towns and cities there. To say Gaza is bombed on a daily basis year after year is simply not true.

“ Hamas are the democratically elected representatives of the Palestinian people. At what point do you accept that they have a right to defend themselves?“

Is firing rockets indiscriminately over the border actually defending themselves? Against what?

“Or is it their fate to just lie down and let the Israelis walk over them however they want?“

It certainly shouldn’t be and this is where the Palestinians do need the support of the wider world. Unfortunately, it appears to me that the only excuse that Israel has to start and continue this military action is because of the rocket attacks. It may seem simplistic to say stop the rocket attacks and you stop the battle but by stopping the rocket attacks it does take away Israel’s only justification for the current action. Whilst there is a huge outcry against the Israeli bullies at the moment, in a lot of peoples eyes the military action is justifiable because of the Hamas rocket attacks. Take away the rocket attacks and you remove that justification. Internationally, Israel would loose what public support it has for their current military action immediately and could not justify any further action.

Huge international pressure should then be placed on Israel to allow borders to be opened and policed by a multi-national force. Of course, you then return to the problem of trust. Given what has been happening in recent years, can Israel trust Hamas to use the open borders solely for legitimate purposes.

Hamas need to stop the rocket attacks. Israel need to let the Palestinians live and trade freely.

But, Hamas aren’t going to recognise Israel and Israel aren’t going to trust Hamas so, what is the answer?

I cannot support the taking of life (or the threat to life) by either side in this conflict (or indeed in any conflict) and in this particular conflict there is so much propaganda behind even reports by learned persons that without first hand experience of the situation it is impossible to be 100% certain of forming any opinion. It is probably fair to say that some peoples politics and beliefs are so entrenched that they are unable to concede any point at all.

Couple of questions:

ernie_lynch ~ do you support Hamas (and their Iranian backers) to the extent that you agree that the Israeli state should be obliterated and Israelis wiped from the face of the earth? Not meaning to pick on you but you do seem to be one of the more vociferous supporters of Hamas and you seem to give the impression that you believe you are better informed than anyone speaking against you.

Also, have Israel blockaded the Gaza boundary with Egypt such that “…nothing can go in or come out.“?
I ask this because I do not know the answer and I haven’t seen reference to this particular boundary (except reference to a network of tunnels).

“Sent an e-mail to marsdenman to join, but haven’t heard anything. Am I supposed to?“

No, but you are on the list posted by marsdenman [although you probably know that by now!]

“Are we supposed to have sent another weigh-in yesterday? (9th as per OP)“

Yes, I believe so. I have ;-)

If your knees feel the cold, cover them; if they don’t, then wear shorts if you want!

Football and rugby players seem to manage OK wearing shorts through the winter. Having said that, I know a lot of old football and rugby players with knackered knees.

Me, I’m nesh – I cover my knees when the temperature drops below about 12’C.

Steelfreak – yeah, that was one of Matt’s too. Matt will confirm but I think the continuation of that counted as 2 of his trails?

a_a, sheep are regularly lost in the area (and carcasses have been inspected for ‘gnaw’ marks but I’ve not heard of any confirmed cat involvement). Interestingly there was a spate of pet dogs that went missing in an area where there was an alleged sighting a few years back. But again, it’s only assumption and dogs do go missing.

I agree mattsccm; neither I nor any of my mates have seen any sign and I’ve always been cynical of reported sightings over the years especially as there has never been any real physical evidence. Having said that, this particular evidence wasn’t going to be released into the public domain until it was asked for under legal circumstances.

Now, wolves… that would give the regular letter writers in the local press something to get excited about! ;~)

That’s the one grahamh.

“Just cause you work for the forestry comission doing deer surveys, doesnt mean you are an expert in id’ing big cats through thermal imaging, just as likely to have been a feral dog.”

I’ll bow to your greater experience a_a but round this area we’re easily excited ;~)

Seen several now over the last couple of years. They originate from dumped farm-bred boar crossed with domestic pig so are not really afraid of humans. They are confident but will generally avoid human contact so, like mattsccm says, will normally walk away and avoid people.
They’re mainly nocturnal and the FC are trying to heft them away from towns and villages to prevent conflict.

But…

Has anyone seen reports in the press today saying that the FC have confirmed that there have been recorded sightings of a big cat. These press reports stem from a Western Daily Press reporter asking for the information under the Freedom of Information Act!
Chatting to a FC ranger today he told me that there have been two recorded sightings by FC staff in the last 5 years. These sightings were apparantly through night sights by experienced staff out doing deer counting surveys and the like. They workers are familiar with the fauna of the area and are experienced in the use of the sighting equipment so there is no doubt amongst FC staff that the sightings were accurate.

Have to say though that in my 50 odd years wandering the Dean I have never seen a big cat. Various deer, boar, badgers, foxes, mink, rodents & even an otter. I think I’ve seen a polecat but never seen a big cat :~(

“psling, are you actually challenging the statement that Israel assassinates Palestinian politicians ? ! ! !“

No, but in this particular instance I don’t believe he is in exile because of fear of assasination by Israel (which I am sure you are probably aware of). I was merely suggesting that you were being a bit disingenuous with your answer ;~)

I do respect your views on the subject though, you appear to be well informed and I would not begrudge anyone having a strong viewpoint (either way). The saddest thing is that the Palestinians and the Israelis cannot put down their weapons and resolve their differing viewpoints.

Some of the most acrimonious court cases in this country are boundary disputes so how on earth ‘ownership’ of land which both parties claim to be theirs in the strong belief that they are right can be resolved at the level of the Palestine / Israel dispute I just don’t know. Despite various treaties in recent history, who can honestly say whose claim is right; the only way forward is for both parties to agree a new treaty and abide by it. This hasn’t happened yet so don’t hold your breath…

Whose land is it? Not who is the oppressed and who is the oppresser but whose land is it really?

“when it thaws out its going to be Yuk“

Was thinking that myself on Friday while fighting my way across frozen ground on a rigid bike; its going to be seriously muddy when it thaws. Might even have to dig out the old MudMads :~(