if we’d spent the £11 billion more wisely

With the adult population of UK circa 50 million my back-of-envelope calculations make that equivalent to 90 cans of Special Brew each. What an opportunity missed !

How will the Olympics, after all this taxpayers money spent, benefit someone in say Middlesborough, Salford or Glasgow?

Those clever Olympic people have already thought of that and their website explains how all the different regions will benefit. Take Wales for instance (link)

Our vision is to maximise the economic, sporting, cultural and social benefits of the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games for Wales, in a sustainable manner.
We will do this with full regard to opportunities for promoting equality, social inclusion, bilingualism and the profile of Wales in the world.

Followed by two pages of management-speak bollox, including this little gem

The objective in terms of legacy is not to re-invent the wheel or invest in large projects linked to the 2012 Games.

So nothing that actually costs any money then.

It’s not called the LONDON Olympics for nothing.

CX bikes the best invention in the last 10 years imo.

I think you’ll find that CX bikes have been round a LOT longer than 10 years !

If you’re starting on the red (i.e. from Abergorlech) you can add a shorter section of the black instead of going all the way down to the Bergwym car park then back up again – at the bottom of the black jump section, before the northshore bridge, turn right onto the disused fireroad which will bring you out at the culvert where you can pick up the black again.
This brings it down to about 35km altogether and includes the best bits of the black IMO.

that first climb on the Raven trail – evil!

When wet the Bluebell Wood climb becomes a mixture of superglue infused mud and Teflon coated rocks. Yuck.

Stick some tri bars on and you could have a decent TT machine there :D

Veeel ? product design wrote :

Thinking of bike bells in general, they are not much different from each other in terms of form. Yes, they can have different size, colour, graphic and slightly different shape but they always have a round form in order to make sound. However, our idea was to start with design and then adapt the functionality. The result was an aesthetic and good looking bike bell, amplifying the simplicity and purity of form.

Aargh, stop. It’s a bicycle bell, not a coffee machine.
Why not just get a Bell app for your *ing iPhone and use that ?

Anyone got a link explaining why L shaped cranks work?

They don’t. Elementary physics – the pedal and the bb axle are in exactly the same position to each other whatever the shape of the metal joining them.

What might happen though, is that we won’t be able to move without walking past a “DANGER” sign on every route/problem etc.

Signs at Tywyn beach :

Almost certainly good old fashioned 27 x 1¼

Add some of these, and you should be unbeatable

They worked for Ian Cammish, who was pretty fast (and still is)

In 2010 Micheal Hutchinson bettered him by 1 second on the V718 in Yorkshire

To put it in perspective, comp record is 17.57 !

[smug]
Ordered Wednesday evening, stuff turned up this morning
[/smug]

In a Canadian Subway I visited recently they were doing a promotion on BLT subs.
What bread did I want? White please.
What did I want in it? Bacon please.
What did I want with it? Er, lettuce and tomato please.
Apparently I could have had a BLT made with tuna, coleslaw and avocado if I wanted, it would still have been a BLT to them.
And don’t me started on ordering a coffee in Starbucks – more questions than the census form.

They’re still doing food in the temporary visitor centre up by the top car park (you’ve got to find it first though). Had some nice toasted tea cake there on Sunday.

I’ve got one of these Axminster LS5T Log Splitter[/url]. £198 and has worked faultlessly for over 2 years now (not cheap Chinese rubbish!)

Never ridden one of these fancy “old skool” looking steel frames, but they just look like they’ll be shit.

I have – a Merckx Columbus SLX – and I can assure you it was anything but shit.

Steel is real – and within your budget
Tell me this isn’t a thing of beauty (£1450 from J E James)

Thanks both. With a small screwdriver and a northern accent it was a doddle.

A plastic tyre lever does the job OK

Faster than Adam Jones
Taller than Shane Williams
Better looking then Mefin Davies

No, seriously he’s a real class act. And according to my wife, who sat next to him on a long train journey, ever such a nice young man.

Edit : just making it clear I’m talking about GN here, not GH.

Henson ? I seem to remember a rugby player of that name. I wonder what happened to him ?

Surprisingly, despite the title and the Oasis soundtrack, I rather enjoyed that.
“Keep it real, our Jamie. Just ‘ang off t’back” :-)

By the time they’ve finished driving round the UK the heater might have started working.

Thanks Andy. Almost affordable.
Weird pricing – the 2×10 40/28 is more expensive and the 2×10 44/30 is cheaper. And I’m after the 2×10 38/26.
Getting closer though.

I figure if they are ok to use on baby’s then they must be ok to wipe down my bike?

Remember, bike first, then baby. NOT the other way round :-)

Real men have BIG rings !

I had a great ride this morning, until I slipped on some ice in a breaking bump, crashed into a dog and smashed the eggs I was carrying.
And then I noticed my brake cable has worn away some of the paint on the head tube.
So I’m jacking it in – it’s snooker for me from now on.

I’m probably missing something stupidly obvious

You’re on the right track.
I am not an egg, I’m a free man :-)

This is why you should ware a helmet.

Bangs head against wall in despair (whilst not wearing helmet)
No, that’s why you shouldn’t go riding with d*ckheads with cameras.

Doesn’t take long for the big hitters to arrive does it ?

Slipped on some sheep s5it this morning. Fortunately I was wearing full kevlar body armour so I survived. More anecdotal evidence later.

Geordie humour at it best – it cracked me up.

She was seriously fast though.
Reminds me, got to go and cover my helmet with cling film …

Brilliant. Forgot how exciting track racing is.
I will spend tomorrow riding round extremely slowy whilst looking suspiciously over my right shoulder :-)

Makes you wonder, why on earth did they drop the individual pursuit from the Olympics? makes no sense.
Ben Swift going into the 1K …

Pursuit gold medal – yes
Haircut – err ?

Thanks Project. BBC2 everywhere except Wales which has *ing snooker.
Been a while since I’ve heard Hugh Porter getting that excited.

Where? Where? All I can find is canutes playing snooker.

No brakes, which are the thing I would want the most.

Yeh, the brakes are actually want I want to go for first. Then the 2×9 to 2×10 upgrade.
You’ve got to love STW – total strangers encouraging you to spend the equivalent of a small hospital on bike bling :D