I’ve just bought the entire Dirty Harry 5 film box set, the new remastered ones with all the extras, on Bluray, for less than £15 from Amazon. Can’t wait for it to arrive!!

Also got the soundtrack on CD, it’s so creepy, must be one of the classic soundtracks.

I also went to find some of the locations when I went to SF 2 years ago.

I am a fan, if I haven’t implied it enough already!!

A few years of wheelchair use taught me a lot about self-appointed social judges in general, so just smile at them as you would a cute puppy.

That says it all. I really think people on here need to have a word with themselves if they think their opinion on style matters.

I would agree that starting to ride down any route at 5pm is a bit of a waste of time due to the amount of people on the mountain.
We did it last autumn and started pushing up from the gate at the end of the Tarmac road at 4.50 (slightly cheeky I know!). We met a lot of people walking down and it wasn’t school holiday period and was mid week. So riding down at 5pm would involve stopping a lot for walkers – bit pointless really.
My mate and I aren’t particularly fit so took us a while to get to the top PLUS we had a serious mechanical on Telegraph which took a long time to fix and we were still eating chips in Llanberis in the light at the end of the day.

Thanks very much AA but I think a dog means its a non-starter for us. Very kind offer though. Going to ring a couple of places now.

We always get some smirks and giggles thrown at us when we do the National Retrobike rides. Especially last year in Surrey by a couple of fancy modern full suss bike guys. They didn’t like it when I was urging them to go faster down the trails – I let them go first to be polite but even after waiting a while I caught up with them easily on my fully rigid V/brake 94 Kilauea.

Never judge a rider at all, but if you really want to, judge the riding not the bike!

anagallis_arvensis – Member
When you doing it and are you housetrained?
POSTED 1 HOUR AGO # REPORT-POST

Next Thursday night and we are house trained, yes! (My wife and I!)

I am assuming that Hora has moved in next door? Well?

Sounds like a pro job of what I’ve always done which is fill in the scratch with clear nail varnish or Araldite then sand back using fine wet and dry until flush. Has worked fine for years for me, I’d give it a go!

I used this method – http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/water-bottle-fittings

Worked a treat!!

I recently bought a B-twin bike (from decathlon) 2nd hand off eBay for £11. I spent £40 making it new again (RRP for it was £120 – 20″ model with 5 gears) and was well impressed with it. Simple, reasonably light and good components. I would buy one for my kids, if I had any, for the full price.

My wife’s road bike as mentioned above.

And her MTB on the right.

My wife is 4’11” and has a 27″ inside leg. She rides a XS Specialized Vita and a 12.5″ GT MTB. I think it is possible you need to check that inside leg measurement again to be sure. Anyway I would recommend Specialized for very small bikes for women as they are the only company that does them well at a reasonable price AND imports them into the UK! I did look at a Scott for my wife and a couple of other brands but the UK importers said they didn’t bring the very small ones over.

As far as “traditional” bikes go, I think you will struggle. Things like Pashleys sell in very small numbers compared to the big companies and it may not be worth them making very small sizes unless it’s kids stuff.

Good luck anyway.

Problem with fitting skinny slicks is that while it might be faster, there is an increased chance of pinch punctures unless pumped up quite hard and then they are uncomfortable.
I would want a decent volume of tyre still and maybe a bit of tread so they aren’t limited to Tarmac and can cope with cycle paths or parks or towpaths. So I would look at a Schwalbe Marathon touring tyre maybe? Or what about some Halo Twin Rails? I’ve got some skinwall ones and they look great, are tough enough to off road a bit and roll well too. Lots of other tyres in the 2″ range depending on budget.
For a kid I wouldn’t want to go with the super light/slick/skinny tyres.

There is something about a skinny tubed retro road bike with slammed quill stem, hand sprayed fancy paint and proper wheels that is just SO right.

After riding one for a short while you realise why they are so sought after.

Do a basic stress relieve of the spokes – grab pairs of spokes with your hands (easier with thick gloves on if you want) and squeeze them together. You might hear an odd ping or the same noise you’ve been hearing. A bit of grease might do the trick as above.

Also check that the inner tube valve lock but is done up tight (or removed completely!).

You could undo the QR on the brake and take a careful trip round the block to ensure that isn’t the issue – could be poorly tensioned wheel causing it to rub on brakes but the description of the noise doesn’t sound like it.

Last post is good advice and is what I do and I drive a lot for work too.

The order is important to stick to too, as otherwise you end up compensating for one bit being wrong by making another bit even worse!

Additionally I have a bad neck problem and the physio said to me to basically do the above BUT when it comes to the mirror place it in a position that to see out of the rear mirror properly you HAVE to sit with your back/neck/head in the right position. Stops me from slumping in the seat. Took a while to get used to but it works wonders now.

I love watching the TDF as well as my wife and I think the coverage is really good. The highlight shows are very well made and generally well commentated and pack all the good stuff in. However I’ve tried watching coverage of other races and I am not sure if it’s the commentators or the editing or production but they just seem a bit dull. Need to keep trying and finding the more interesting race coverage really.

Same here! If any ever drafted behind me I’d be chuffed to bits!

Doesn’t slow the lead rider down, what’s the harm?

I had a ceed pre-lease car before I got my Astra and I liked it. Lots of well thought out storage, great stereo, put together very well indeed. I didn’t get a choice in my works car but if if have had one I would have been quite happy. The Diesel engine seemed a bit weedy and the handling isn’t as good as a Focus (but what is?) but as a useful comfy car to be in all day (if needed) then it seemed like a winner. I drove it for about 2 months.

It’s a gentle warning to say “buy elsewhere…..” 😉

I can’t help thinking that the cladding will be a huge faff, cost a lot of money and may end up looking a bit naff unless you can do a proper pro job. If invest the effort into sorting out the stair wood as it is. Why not sand it back to bare wood and varnish/oil it? Pretty easy.

Is it that site at the bottom of Telegraph road near Llanberis?

The problem when buying any spare parts for racks is that they aren’t much less than the price of a new rack!

If it’s only light loads you’re putting on it one stay will be ok.

I wouldn’t use them myself. That isn’t a big mileage so worth pursuing a little bit as I don’t think that should have happened after that many miles. They could just say no and I don’t think you’d have a leg to stand on but it’s worth asking.

Hora, up here you don’t need much in the way of puncture protection. We don’t get all the bits of thorns etc that you get more of further south. I’ve never had a flat on the road bike riding round West Yorks and I don’t know any other rider who has had any issues either.
However there are some pretty crappy roads so a slighter bigger tyre can help. I bought some of the STW standard Conti Gator Skins and I didn’t think they were very grippy at all especially in the wet. I went back to Rubino Pro tyres which have been around a while but are still great tyres – lots of great reviews online for them. They seems to roll very nicely and grip very well.
After having a few tyres I think that the quality ones tend to be pretty good at reducing the likelihood of punctures. Cheap ones can be as light but maybe where the money goes in the more expensive ones is some protection while stil being light and fast. I’ve ridden mine on gravel paths and off-road at times with no issues.

Another question. Why do the forum smart Alec’s think that if something has been discussed once IT MUST NOT BE DISCUSSED AGAIN?

Get over yourselves.

Because I live on the TDF route I’m seeing loads of roadies out recently and they tend to at least give you a nod, even when I’m on my MTB. I love all the newbies that are out, big saddle packs, matching Lycra, questionable positions on the bikes – always get a smile (with maybe a grimace if they are climbing!) and maybe a wave. Looks like they are enjoying being out on the bike in the nice weather and I hope I will see them again! I really think the TDF fever round here is doing a world of good. Long may it continue.

Great video, pity the music is awful.

Unfortunately, for the passengers and their families, even if they managed to limit the search area to a few square miles then if there is no signal coming from the plane now it’s never going to be found due to the depth of the ocean. I really hope they do find it but it looks very unlikely.

I wonder how many of you that have had problems were using shimano brakes with the finned pads? I’m going to have a stab and say that without the extra heat dissipation of the finned pads the rotors exceed their design heat range.

How on earth are fins on a pad going to cool a disc down?

My shifters from CRC came in the proper box.

I emailed CRC and said there wasn’t any and them sent me some FOC.

So basically rarer and better looking than a STWers Audi A4 Estate “poverty spec with S-line kit on”. :rollseyes:

I am 37 and learning to swim (mega phobia about it). I was hoping to go into the big pool but you guys have out me off. Everyone is polite in the tiny learner pool.

Car speedos are a lot more accurate than people think nowadays. I did a check of a 50mph average speed limit motorway on my GPS and it was only 1mph out at the most.

95% I get tailgated, sometimes very dangerously, when I do 30mph. So I slow down a bit, that always cheers them up. 😉

Get a half round file and wrap fine grade emery cloth over the end of it, use that to gently remove any surface rust. Worked on all my bikes I have restored.

Virgin has the fastest service and I’ve never had an issue with customer service – came out to replace our STB on bank holiday Monday with 24h notice.
I pay about £60-65 a month but I get a 1tb TiVo box, about a billion HD channels (XL pack), phone and broadband at 50mb (their basic BB now! They have asked me if I want to go to 150mb!!). I think that’s a great deal. Never get less that 45mb speed, it’s fantastic.

Try the tyres and grip tape first, it’s worth a try.

I eventually got some FSA k-wing bars which are wonderful as the carbon construction allows a weird shape that fits my knackered neck and arms really well. There is some damping of vibrations which is nice but I wouldn’t say they are worth the £250 they cost just because of that, they just happened to solve my particular problem at the same time.

In my experience unless it’s pretty top quality routing plywood is a nightmare as it just splinters and chips. If it’s just big standard plywood from one of the big DIY sheds don’t expect a nice sharp even look!

Plus a mountain biker- you ARE going to accidently score the car plastics. Even if its only three times in two years. The worry/thought at back of your mind. Some lease companies have strict handback conditions in the T&Cs as they are protecting their invested residual.

My works lease car went back after 4 years of ownership by me from new with no, none, zero marks on the interior. And actually no marks on the exterior either bar 1 5mm dent. If you damage the car your just being careless. My car had many many muddy bikes in it, travelled 80k miles and went off road on many occasions for work. If you are careful and look after a car you should be able to give it back or sell it in extremely good condition. However most people don’t give a monkeys and treat their cars like crap, despite them costing tens of thousands of pounds.