Coneheads
Superbad

I have an early 90’s 19″ Diamondback mtb frame which looks like titanium (a lot of people think it is) but is made of something called True Temper Lite (steel skinny tubes). When I built it up again 5 years ago, the basic frame weighed 1.7kg which I thought was pretty impressive for an old steel frame. I still use it most days to ride to work and have yet to bend or damage it despite lots of abuse. Don’t really hear about True Temper now, a shame as it’s been great.

we have one via work run by a company called westfield health, costs £6 a month basic. Still see GP first but have used various (private) bods recommended by his surgery for certain injuries, good if you want it done quickly. Send the claim form off with receipts and they pay by BACS really quickly, no quibbling (best to have GP’s ok to name him on form and the bod must be qualified in whatever they are delivering). I have certainly got my moneys worth in the 2 years I have had it. There are limits on what you can claim based on cover, I only have basic but as an example this was still good for £150 worth of (6) chiro sessions for a knackered back,which worked wonders. I kind of resented having to go down this route for obvious reasons, probably same as you, but it has been okay really. Hope this helps

It’s a big stick-on one with a long lead, I ran the lead around the window edge and wedged it in a map holder above my van window, didn’t stick it on screen in case I ever change van. Took a few minutes to set up and find and store DAB stations (RTFM etc) but reception fine where I am. Buttons a bit small for my fat fingers but very pleased with it overall.

I just put a JVC DAB head unit in my van, this one for £80 delivered http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JVC-KD-DB52-Car-CD-DAB-Digital-Radio-MP3-Player-USB-iPhone-Aerial-Refurbished-/350901849547?pt=UK_In_Car_Technology&hash=item51b3614dcb came with aerial, said refurbished but looked brand new to me, has remote and aux in plus USB for ipod etc. Easy to fit and sounds great, but I did also upgrade the crappy standard 4″ speakers to Vibe ones for £30, huge difference. Had to do it for 6 music and a lot less fiddly with wires everywhere I had previously with a pure highway plug in thing.

I couldn’t imagine staying in one site for 2 weeks either, prefer to move about and try others every few days. Hate overnight ferries too, always look for the shortest crossing, love driving in France unlike here. We have accommodation available cheap, 20mins from Poole and 45mins from Pompey ports if anyone ever needs an overnighter, anyone who’s been to the Big Bike Bash should know it

Have used Canvas holidays for last 3 years staying in Brittany & Vendee in mobile homes and wooden lodge, always wait till 2 weeks or less to go and get good deals. Always best to ring them rather than on-line booking as they can sort ferries via other ports & they will be open to offers if short notice – managed to get 6 of us in our van with 10 nights away all in with return ferry for a grand, on-line price was double that. Scottish tele staff are really friendly and site staff great too. Go for a bigger mobile home, the 2 beds are too claustrophobic despite saying they are 6 berth, wouldn’t use the tents, Stayed in lodges a couple of times, look nice but get bloody hot and very noisy floors.
Kids really like Domaines des Ormes near Dol, I like St.Cast. Le Ranolien has some good photo-shopping on the promo pics, the pool etc is much smaller than it looks, great rocky scenery there though. Fast ferry via Cherbourg good. Look for a list of Vides Greniers near where you are staying – these are car boot sales with decent stuff cheap and not full of scratters and tat you get here. Wish I had a bigger van, could have brought loads more back. Already looking forward to next summer over there for longer & will use canvas holidays again.Hope this helps.

my son done his after celebrating a-level results last August (involved beer and taking a short cut over a wall), fell 25ft, lucky to be alive, completely smashed heel bone to pieces. In hospital for a while, op with lots of re-building, laid up, crutches etc. Now getting around to weight bearing and learning to walk and ride again (on spinning thing). Consultant says he should be okay by Jan, but he is young and fit, still swells up though if he is up o it too long. Ask WCA on here about ankles if you want to get depressed.
cheers

hoping I don’t get called back to work after beer o’clock. Strange place to hang your handbag by the way dear, see you weds night….

1980’s Technics separates & speakers with a dab radio plugged into the aux input for 6 music. All from local tip for £3 about 5 years ago, a perfect shed stereo

sorry meant to say it’s not a VW t4 or t5, it’s a Toyota with a D4D 102 engine, I contacted a few of the places mentionned above and they say they don’t do Jap engines, bah, just waiting for Pendle to reply.
Oddly Toyota do do 120 and 144 versions of the same engine so I wonder how they do it.

Ok cheers all, you have confirmed what I suspected, am always a bit suspicious if something sounds to good to be true, and the iffy looking feedback which often looks rather too positive and gushing. Proper re-map it is. Any places recommended in Bournemouth / Soton area to do it?

meant to say this year not last year, next year posh loos/showers

last year’s BBB made £13K profit, many thanks to all who came and suported it – the money is going into a new boathouse by the lake with loos and showers. The trustees of UK Youth have okayed getting it done, starting in the New Year, open 4 months later in theory….
cheers

Sad song
I loved all the VU stuff and some Lou Reed albums like Berlin, New York and got the chance to see VU in London in about 92 but was really disappointed with Lou Reed’s affected singing. I thought John Cale was cool though & Mo Tucker standing up playing a drum. What Goes on my fav.
Feel bad now as in recent years I thought he was a knob

Toyota Hilux, go for the HL3 2.5 crew cab, will do all and not break down

In the 80’s I used to see a Porsche in Windsor with TUR13O and another car with SAM130 which we thought odd and offensive. There was also PPD 1 on a car which caused great amusement as there was someone who used to draw male bits all over town known as the Phantom Pr***k Drawer, not quite Banksy. Sadly I had XLV750R on my Honda motorbike as that what it was. A local plumber has PO0 2 BOG.

Thanks all off here for coming and supporting the charity, got another few days tidying up and working out the figures – will post when we know. Great bunch of volunteers make it happen, seeing the sea of green t-shirts going bonkers to that all girl covers band was a real highlight,
cheers

Ticket sales stopped now, sorry sold out

The price; for comparison, the Forestry Commission campsite up the road is charging £120 + for a family of 4 to camp over the bank holiday weekend, without the supporting charity bit, events, real ale and music.
Tickets are getting close to the limit now so be quick anyone who wants one, likely to close in the next day or so. The course the guys have laid out looks fantastic. Lots of prizes, beer and goodies arriving now too.

The question on fires – sorry no ground fires, off the ground BBQ’s possible – see FAQs on BBB website.
Car parking – ditto see FAQs, but we have got a big extra field to use now, was up there today, great views and plenty of space but we do try and limit people driving around the site once here.
Locals question – again on FAQs, plenty are coming and have bought tickets, some staying over, some going home and coming back whenever, same great value price whatever your choice – but just to stress you will need a ticket/wristband to be on site and take part in anything or just to watch.
cheers

Straw bales booked, Ringwood and Tanglefoot beer to add to above, bands we know about – Gareth Icke, The Provokers, Second Ashborn, James Bartholomew, Danny Fontaine and the Horns of Fury, Endea plus might be others

I’ll be there but then I always am.
Advice for newbies – read the FAQS page on BBB website before you come.
We have a bike shop on site now in partnership with Gone Biking Mad

There’s a proper bike shop at Avon Tyrrell now for hiring stuff, sales, servicing, repairs etc – ’Gone Biking Mad’, cheers

The hubs are really nice red Hopes but the rims were worn out (used with v brakes) so I did send off for rims at a good price. I kept the stainless spokes and red ally nipples (all came out fine) so not sure if they are okay to use again, look fine to me. Maybe I’ll have a go at re-lacing myself and see how it goes, what could possibly go wrong….

Learn to do it yourself

I’d really like to, can change spokes and true wheels no problem, need to find someone good down south to teach, probably better than by book/you tube. Mind you £20-30 a wheel doesn’t seem too bad

The Early Riser Festival is no longer happening so all the more reason to get tickets for the BBB at the end of August, cheers

Not a rumour, there is another cycling festival at the begining of August at Avon Tyrrell with bands, road rides off site, stuff on site etc. Called the Early Riser if you google it. Should be good too & a good booking for the venue but the BBB is pretty unique as we know and 100% of profit goes back in to the charity. I wouldn’t say pick one or the other, or why not do both, I am.

On another note, I hope everyone is following and supporting our charity’s UK Youth road team in the Tour series on ITV4…Trying to persuade them to come to BBB and see how good they are off road after a few sherberts

or email me because I work at the venue and try to stop WCA off-loading it; bigbikebash at ukyouth dot org

Thanks all, I’ll try the straight bars as a tube at the PO and see how it goes, if not (and for riser bars) I’ll try My Hermes. Even the staff in my local PO feel really awkward about what they have done with their pricing structure

Previous official photographer Mariann can’t be there this year sadly due to having babies, so another needed. This is some stuff from last year: http://www.mayafiddlerphotography.com/bbb

I’m guessing it involves a Chinook

It’s 6 years old, £160 fully comp with the legal cover, so more than if a UK XR400, but I can live with that I guess and lesson learnt to think a bit more about insurance before buying stuff there and then

Sorted, just got recommended bikesure through adrian flux, covered it no problem fully comp at an ok price, happy now

Yep I called them. Annoyingly a UK XR400R (basically the same bike) is as you say coming out at £66 a year fully comp, the catch all third party price for this £250…

Thanks – they were one of the ones who could only do third party only at a v.high price, cheers though

Update; 3 months later not a dickie bird, can I sleep easy at night etc

You can’t kid a kidder

Chinook, my guess

I’m a bit confused on the speed limit thing – I have a Toyota Hiace 120 D4D for family/bike transport etc. V5 has it as a 6 seater window van which it is (used to be disabled bus). Does that mean I also need to obey commercial van speed limits, or car ones, not been done yet but don’t want to be.
It’s not good on diesel mpg btw but I do tend to thrash anything and made cheaper with (free) 50% veg oil mix. Still prefer it to previous VW T4 though. Have 3 VW T5’s at work which are nice to drive but lots of trim falls off or breaks inside

thanks, just managed to source a complete NOS Dia Compe one for £30 delivered, phew