I’ve just finished veganuary where I discovered a load of great new foods and I’m now working my way through all the leftover Christmas chocolates which have just sat there taunting me for a month 😃

I’ve signed up for the Strave plan now and it looks really good and pretty manageable so I’ll see how that goes – cheers for the offer though Nobeer!

Cheers lunge, already a premium member but I had no idea that was a feature – just signed up for the 5k training plan so I’ll see how I get on with that
6 week training plan starts on Monday 8th so I’ll make sure to get out for a max effort 5k sometime this week so I’ve got a decent starting block to compare it against

Can anyone recommend a free or cheap-ish source for training plans please?

I’ve never followed a training plan before as I was just running for enjoyment and have never done any races. Recently been pretty unmotivated (was pretty burnt out after the 100 days of exercise challenge so took a few weeks to chill out and never really managed to get back on the bandwagon – I think I only ran 3 or 4 times in January) and I’m hoping that a bit of accountability from a training plan might help.

I usually prefer hill running but can’t really get to the hills with the lockdown rules just now so I think I’d like to focus on improving my 5k time.

I’ve got one, seems to work pretty well
I’ve never had to use the tyre plug (touch wood!) but the chain tool is good

It’s a tight fit, I tried but couldn’t fit a valve core tool, but there would be space for a fiver. Not sure about a fiver and a note though, it’s a really tight fit!

I was on a similar search a few months ago and decided for that sort of budget it’s difficult to look past an mx5 or Clio 172/182 (or an MR2 but I’ve never really been keen on them, not sure why!)(and maybe a really really cheap R56 mini)

Ended up going for a clio 182 which was a bit over budget but I absolutely love it!

If you end up choosing what car you want, have a look on car specific/owners club Facebook pages, there’s way more listed there than on gumtree and autotrader etc

I’ve had issues with moisture in the car this winter as well. I think just a combination of a 15 year old car, no AC and not driving it very often. Thankfully drive it often enough that mould doesn’t seem to be an issue but there has been times when the seats feel damp and there’s water droplets on the windscreen, rather than just condensation

I’ve pretty much solved it to a manageable level (no more damp seats!) by using one of the microwavable moisture trap bags, which needs dried out in the microwave every week or two, and also keeping a roll of kitchen paper in the car. Any time I get in and there’s moisture of the windows, I’ll use the kitchen paper to wipe the worst of it off and then bin the paper – previously I just blasted the fans or used one of those demister sponges which takes the moisture off the windscreen but, without AC, it doesn’t really leave the car and so condensates as soon as the interior cools down again

How does airflow work in a building like that? Is it a constant battle between letting fresh air in and letting all that hard earned heat out?
I guess you can use extractor fans and dehumidifiers but it’s never going to be as “fresh” as leaving a few windows open

I’ve been doing veganuary as well – the main thing I’m missing isn’t the food as such, it’s just the freedom to eat whatever I want. I’m the only one in the house that’s trying it so it’s been difficult when I’m in the mood for a snack and there’s nothing but fruit and veg and then a load of milk chocolate and crisps etc that I can’t eat!
There’s loads of naturally vegan/vegan alternative snacks and meals in the shops now though so a bit of forward planning and well stocked cupboards has seen me through the month!

I feel like a flexible diet, where you actively limit your meat and dairy intake and allow yourself the odd treat/slip up (in the same way that a weight loss diet would allow an occasional dessert or cheat meal), is far easier from an enjoyment and willpower perspective rather than labelling yourself as a 100% strict vegi/vegan/pesci. It’s not great from an ethical and animal welfare point of view but it’s a reduction at least and it still brings most of the benefits from the health and environment side of things too

Cheers for the replies everyone, it sounds pretty much how I pictured it – think I’ll need to start saving up the pennies for a future holiday!

Thanks for the shout on James May’s programme @Caher, I’ll give it a watch

@poly that’s a fair point about the Scandinavian countries. I’ve worked with a few Norwegians recently and they’re all brilliant people, always fancied visiting Denmark as well… the worlds too big and I don’t get enough holidays!

On a bit of a tangent, do independent audio book retailers exist? Something like the audiobook version of bandcamp
I currently use the Apple Books app on iPhone which works great but I’m keen to use something a little bit less “mega corp”-esque

I’ve not missed a day yet and still enjoying the “challenge” aspect of it but motivation is getting increasingly lower and lower and starting to view it as more of a chore than anything else. Although I am glad I’m sticking to it, working from home means I’d barely leave the house most days otherwise!
About to drag myself for a local night ride. Scottish lockdown rules means I’m not allowed to leave my area which I actually really enjoyed in the first lockdown, exploring a lot of new paths etc. Not quite the same sticking to local paths in the mud, cold and dark though!
Trying to look on the positives, looking forward to getting back to Inners and Dunkeld and being much fitter than I would’ve otherwise been

Thanks for the replies everyone

@russianbob, that’s a shame but i guess it was always going to be more of a bonus than a requirement so all is not lost! I’ll have a look for USB to Magsafe adapter cables

@DickBarton, it’s got capacity to charge an iphone 10 times apparently so hopefully enough to squeeze a few hours out of a laptop?

@cheddarchallenged, I’m really not sure about any of this, I just saw listed on the page there was the option to charge MacBooks with a USB A to C cable. Sorry, what’s PD? A defined wattage that the laptop must be charged at?

I had a grade 3 year last year.
I made sure to eat lots of protein and veg – figured it’s good for muscle growth so must be good for ligament growth 😃

I spent a couple of weeks with an NHS physio who wanted to gradually reintroduce movement and strength to the area — 3 weeks in and I was still only doing some stretches and 10 press ups against a wall each day. I went to see a private physio who took a totally different approach – they had me doing about an hour of exercises a day and said i wouldn’t be able to over train/ do additional damage to the muscle without being in pain which seemed to work out pretty well
I got myself one of these for going back on the bike as well, maybe it was just a bit of placebo but I definitely felt more secure wearing it: https://www.24mx.co.uk/motocross-gear/motocross-protection_c15/other-protection_c167/evs-sb04-shoulder-brace_pid-PM-0014865?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0bjGpJGF7QIVieF3Ch1FSAcCEAQYCCABEgLbEfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Get well soon!

I’ve wondered the same thing as well. It could be such a neat solution but the DVO mudguard is so bad!
I’ve currently got a mudhugger ziptied on but I had wondered about buying one of the Fox or RRP bolt on mudguards and either 3D printing or cutting and drilling some hard plastic to make some sort of transition plate to use it with my Diamond

Kind of feared that might have been an answer, just seems a waste having to buy two things that are so similar but slightly different! But right tool for the job and all that I guess

Cheers everyone, apparently my google-ing wasn’t very effective and there’s plenty of options! I’ll have a look in your suggestions

Pedals in Edinburgh made a post about ebay forks a couple months ago
I’m not sure if they’ve made the video they mentioned but the photos alone shows the quality control might be a bit questionable 😬

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8b3fy9njAp/?igshid=2lq7qntcd5jh

I think one of the most frustrating parts is that I would love to go out and go back to living my normal life with the same disregard as bojo and Cummings have been showing, safe in the knowledge that the rules are actually guidelines and very much open to interpretation/bending/twisting/smashing to pieces
But this would very much be a “cutting my nose off despite my face” moment and definitely not a safe or wise idea

There’s definitely been an increase in people in the country side, which is nice
And for the most part they’ve all been cheery and friendly, which is also very nice
But there’s also been an increase in litter being left lying around and gates being left open, which is not so nice… kind of to be expected though I guess

I ended up using an old, unused avid bleed syringe! Took a while putting in 20ml at a time but got there in the end

Although the planetx link looks decent, cheaper than a lot of the syringes on eBay as well!

It’s hard to deny that the services and customer service that amazon provide are brilliant and really good value… everything comes at a cost I guess, whether that’s monetary/convenience etc or morals/conscience-esque
Think I’ll just stick with eBay for the time being

Yep that’s my problem just now
Trying to buy a small plastic beaker to measure suspension fluid and a big syringe to put tubeless sealent in through the valve core – I’m sure the hardware shop in town would have them both in usual circumstances

I know what you mean hols2, it does seem a bit of a losing battle but I find him especially slimy. Think it’s cause he’s the richest man in the world and yet there seems to be a new story in the news every day about his cost cutting and workforce violations

OP is a fool. There is absolutely nothing about Les Gets that is lacklustre.
He is obviously a squid that can’t whip jumps or shlarp corners.

Thanks for the replys guys

@tjagain
Yeah I definitely want to spend some time around Ullapool as well, interested to hear more about the mad road at Lochinver as well?

@whitestone

By estate tracks do you mean tarmacced roads? Or proper back country landy tracks? Worried about biting off more than i can chew with my fwd hatchback!

Yeah we noticed the same when driving on Skye last year, some points you’d barely move due to queues and other points it would be plain sailing
*disclaimer* I’ve nothing against the east! Just heard its slightly anticlimatic with nothing much to see after doing the west and northern coast of the NC500