Kings X are very good. Never heard Kensington, what do they do?

Eating: Home-made spag bol
Drinking: Coffee, first load of beans through my new grinder
Listening: Levellers and Nick Burbridge – Dirty Davey.

I use an NC10 for work. Upgraded memory on it (3gb) and running Windows 7 and it's absolutely great. Not sure what the differences between the models are, but I like the one I've got.

Manakin – 'Gun' (Bahraini rock music) when I'm out and about I'm not cool or retarded, but my Nokia's standard ringtones are all crap.

My works mobile has Joseph Arthur's 'In The Night' as the ringtone. This occasionally surprises clients, but one did ask me what it was and has apparently subsequently bought the album.

Dropped a couple of pound (or just under a kilo) – my first loss in 3 weeks.

Must have been the fact I actually did some exercise this week. Shock horror, who'da thunk? ;)

5'10, just under 14 stone. I'm not fat, but I would, ideally, like to be a stone at least lighter. Hence why I've joined the Fat Club.

Full size image HERE

I don't know, to be honest. It depends what gets more viewers.

I used to enjoy watching the downhill stuff on C4 of a morning, but the way it was shot always made it look so slow. I know it probably wasn't, but it looked it.

Yes these folk are fit, but they are not world class athletes,

Dunc – this was a World Championship event, therefore by definition, these ARE world class athletes!

I can see your point, but I think you're missing something. What you're missing is the endurance element – these guys (and a few of them are good friends of mine) aren't going to win any 100m medals. But that's because they're in a completely different sport. Would you call a top-level Ironman triathlete "not world class" ? Or a top-flight orienteer? Marathon kayaker? Mountain biker? Because that's the background a lot of top Adventure Racers come from. I'm not saying it's impossible, but I've yet to see anyone from a track athletics background do well in AR. Like my old PE teacher would say "fit for what?" Just because AR doesn't attract the media attention that, say, BMX did in the Olympics, doesn't make it any less of a world class sport.

I'd also defy most people to (just taking a selection of the people in that vid) out-bike Mike Kloser, out-navigate Chris Forne, out-think Tom Gibbs, out-paddle Wayne Oxenham. And that's fresh, after 4 days of minimal sleep, most people aren't even standing, never mind still running. Even the guys at the back, including the team I was reporting for, are capable of pushing themselves for 5 days on about 6hrs sleep. There's not many 'average joes' who are happy to do that regularly.

Oh – and to add a comment about fees – goddammit I always forget something – it depends on the race.

The next 'big' races in the UK for this season are the Hebridean Challenge and Open Adventure's Adidas Terrex AR[/url]

The former is a 750km race, 5 days of running, road and mountain biking, sea kayaking and swimming with set overnight stops, running the full length of the Outer Hebrides (Barra to the Butt of Lewis) and costs £350pp

The latter is a brand new race for this season, 4-day expedition race (continuous, no set stops) and costs £338pp. Judging by Open Adventure's track record (Open 5s, 12 and 24) it should be an awesome race.

That might seem expensive, but for that length of race, both of those are crackingly good value. I'm hoping to race at the Terrex, and have raced the Heb twice previously.

Some interesting points, but hey, let me stick in my 2 pennerth.

The ARWC in Portugal was an interesting race. More interesting than most, to be honest, in that the format encouraged thinking rather than just being first over the line. Not a slight on Nike, Orion etc, but, like a lot of others, they didn't get their heads round the format until late in the race. They were trying to push for all the CPs because the race director had said 'the best team will get them all' which, it turned out, was wrong. It didn't push that angle too much in the programme, but Helly Hansen won because they out-thought their opposition, which is as much part of a competitive expedition as strength and speed..

How do I know? Watch the film again, you might spot me in the background of it… no, not that one… that one…just there. One of the ones with the cameras and the notepads. :D

Back to the OP's question – what is the point? – I don't know. I DO know that I enjoy Adventure Races a damn sight more than I do XC/Enduro ones. At least in AR you have to think, you have to navigate, and you have something to keep your brain going. You have a team around you, so there's always a bit of banter. You break up the monotony of grinding out the miles on foot or bike with the adrenaline shot of an abseil, a canyoning stage, a swim in a lake. You trek, bike and kayak your way through some amazing landscapes that, otherwise, you'd never get off your arse to go and see because they're too remote. You get the sleepmonsters – sleep-deprived hallucinations of things both entertainingly weird and frighteningly normal (my best was garden gnomes on all the rocks over the Devil's Staircase) – and giggle along with your team when you realise. You fall over the line sodden, bedraggled and absolutely shot, and within 24hrs you're planning the next one. You look at short races as "Ach, it's only 6hrs" and long races as "it's only 5 days", because you've pushed yourself past where you thought it was so many times, you've totally lost sight of where your limit is.

Well, that's how it is for me, anyway. Can't speak for anyone else…

Received a few, never sent any. The classic was a "You're a fantastic kisser…" from someone I didn't even know. A mate had given her my number instead of his own.

Same this week as last – steady at 13st 12lbs

Not been exercising much because of work and the weather though, hoping the loss'll ramp up when I start actually doing something.

Aside from not losing weight yet, I'm feeling less tired for having made some significant changes to me diet. Well, one at least – more fruit, less pizza…

Too late to join in? Just weighed myself out of curiosity and realised I'm 5'10" and 14 stone 1 lb… Should really be about 12 stone.

(or in Metric – 177.5cm, just under 90kg…)

I do both, sadly :oops:

We'll be looking at the Coe next week, a week's tour of the Scottish rivers going on.

Shame there's **** all water in most of them at the moment, and what there is is frozen!

The top one is a drop called 'Back Door Man', the first proper drop on the Coe. If you're driving over that way, have a look at it, it's just past the junction off the main road to the Clachaig. It's a grade 5, on the basis that the line is pretty nasty to stay on, and there's a big pile of rocks at the bottom to get pinned amongst if you're off line. I holed a boat running that a few years back, not funny in retrospect since the rock in question punched a dinner-plate size hole in the boat, just under my seat. 8O

The didjeridu players I'm not quite as sure about…

Think I got all of them right… now just to sit and wait for the announcement – Tuesday was it?

Hey up. I had the same quandary a couple of years back. Bought an EX8 and thought the ride was superb – the full-floater and ABP did seem to make the ride feel very different and really nice… BUT…

After a few rides at Dalby, a couple of short adventure races and a lot of bimbling round my local trails, I decided to swap for a Top Fuel 8 – kindly assisted by someone on here.

Basically to me, the extra inch of travel didn't seem to be helping my descending any, but the extra pound or two in weight did hinder me on the climbs. The lighter bike seems a lot better on the ups and I still keep up with friends on longer travel bikes on the downs.

The new Top Fuel, with the ABP and Full-float should ride superbly, if my experiences of the older bike and the EX are anything to go by. And the EX isn't exactly a heavyweight, but it was an important consideration for me.

Hope any of that helps!

Pyro

I used to end up with horrendous shaving rash and masses of ingrown hairs.

Switched to using a cutthroat – not a stropped one, one that takes half of one of those double-sided blades in a sliding cartridge.

That helped, but as described by others, rushing tended to result in me looking like I'd had my face pushed into a mincer (the butcher's variety, not the other type.)

Then I solved the problem altogether and grew a beard.

The Angel's still there, very much so.

Another tip would be taxi up to Headingley, thai food at either Jino's or Sukhothai, then drinkies in Arcadia. It's a fantastic wee watering hole.

Project Manager for a not-for-profit woodlands initiative.

I don't even get a seat, just a berth in the hold.

Got a Fenix or a LED-converted mini maglite that live in my pack with a LockBlock for emergencies, but with my AyUps I've never needed to use them…

Skunk Anansie – Weak is a classic.

Back to the poodle-permed days of yore: Thunder – Love Walked In

An unfortunate choice perhaps, but a favourite of mine.

Congrats to your daughter. I remember the look on my Dad's face when he came to one of my gradings (Chojinkai, 1st Kyu Brown belt when I packed up). He couldn't believe his little PITA of a son had acquired enough discipline to pass a belt.

Thinking back, my old man being proud of me was something that definitely stuck with me.

Like Druidh says, one that fits.

I find Bell helmets are the right shape for me but Giro aren't. Choose one that's comfy. I've been using a Bell Sweep for a couple of years and love it, and will probably get a Volt when I replace it.

Used Maxxis Detonator 1.25s for commuting for quite a while and I like 'em

Meantime Chocolate ale. :D

Shortly to be followed by cod and chips.

A rare Cumbrian Banana Pine while racing a long-distance MTB event up the pennines. This was found in some woods just down from the Tan Hill. Funny, they tasted just like normal bananas, and damn was I glad of 'em…

4th on the Alpkit – I've a Pipedream 600 and love it.

Also have a Marmot Hydrogen, but I have to say the AK bag gets used more.

Cheers for that – yeah, I don't fancy having to drill them, so I'm after a pair of new bolts anyway.

It's definitely the interface, if I turn the bike over and press the pedals with my hands I fan feel the movement that accompanies the creak (just been playing since I posted originally).

CaptainFlashheart: the fact that you associate the decaying re-animated corpses of the undead with a lady's special love flower, says far more about your sex life than I care to know

He doesn't, that's an old Red Dwarf ('Polymorph' IIRC} gag… :D

I can highly recommend the Alpkit Pipedream bags – I've the PD600, which is bigger than you're looking for, but they're reasonably priced and fantastic quality.

Have a look at the Pipedream 400

http://www.notdoppler.com

Because (as XKCD put it) the highest budget, flashiest graphics, latest console, megabucks game will never, ever be more entertaining that a bunch of little Flash games…

I’ve been playing ‘Spewer’…

PS: Good luck!

Have you served in the bars of any other football club whose team is doing badly, the bars have been closed and the police/ground security weren’t doing their job properly?

I’ve worked Elland Road, St James Park, Old Trafford, City of Manc stadium and Stadium of Light, plus a number of rugby grounds, including Headingley Stadium and Kingston Park, during a variety of wins and losses for all of the home teams. Elland road is the only one I’ve worked where anything had to be closed, although I’m told the Milwall fans played a big part in that as well, but all the same. The rugby grounds, even with mixed seating, I never heard a cross word, never mind seeing a punch thrown. I don’t think aggro amongst fans is a team-specific thing, I think it’s a sport specific thing. People still hold a grudge against a team from 30+ years ago, and players get away, relatively speaking, with intimidating refs (see Keane, Drogba), spitting at crowds and in extreme cases, assaulting fans (Cantona). Why is it that things like that only happen in football?

And in all my time I have never, not once seen the bars closed at Elland Road nor fighting in the Revie Stand.

Just that once. I refused to work any football ground after that – it was only a temp job and for the money I made, they weren’t worth the hassle I (occasionally) had to put up with.

Torrie Wilson – former WWE wrestlerist

And to keep it even, my old housemate’s favourite male wrestlerist – Chris Jericho

But my comments were directed at unexplainable specific hatred towards Leeds because we are ‘dirty’.

I don’t follow any football team enough to comment on whether the Leeds team play ‘dirty’, but having stood behind the Elland Road North Stand bar during a great number of games, I would certainly say a number of the Leeds fans do.

My specific example would be a Leeds-Milwall match where the police closed the (unshuttered) bars, yet us staff were expected to stay on station. Try explaining to the Leeds faithful at half time when they’re 1-nil down that you won’t serve them any more beer. With nothing large and solid to stand behind, and all the Police elsewhere dealing with the fights happening in the stands. I can honestly say, of all the exciting things I’ve done in various places around the world, I’ve never been quite as scared for my own wellbeing as I was there.

Worked the other way for me. I got dumped two weeks before my finals, having been with someone for 4 years. In a sense, it worked out quite well because my first instinct was to put my head down and work like hell for the exams – the end of a relationship wasn’t going to mean the end of my career prospects.

Like others have said – there’s never a good time.

Paddling (?) the Carron, January 2nd 2009.

(Added: Hmmm. Picasa uploader/resizer is not great…)

Canyoning section, Raid Bimbache Extrem 2008. It’s a happy pic because it was my first international job as a photojournalist-type-person (well, writer who takes a few pictures) last year and they’ve asked me to go back for this year’s race which starts on Saturday.

Fell race last night I got depressed DURING the event.

That’s just because I’m unfit.