You seem to be doing quite well without it so far!!![/url]

Well at the age of 40 I have a girlfriend who says, and I quote, "I am very beautiful." The closest I have ever got before that was in 1999 when someone told me they loved my eyes, so yeah, I'll take that and liken myself to a vintage wine, 1970 vintage 😀

Gibraltar by night

Gibraltar by day!

You really cant say you have lived until you have seen these two videos 🙂

Have you done the loop around Ullswater?

Nice pics snowslave.

Judging by this STW group ride video, it seems that there can't be many people on here who haven't done the ride!

Snowslave

Are you talking about this crossing?

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IMG_0057[/url] by simon ralli[/url], on Flickr

I have to say the leafy and grassy descent down to this point through those small trees was cracking!

Gwyneth – sort of glad to hear it wasn't just me with all the offs, although Ed's and my major injuries were both caused by falling over our bikes when taking photos 😀

Great idea. I don't attempt these things as it always feels as if your front wheel is going to hit the wrong side of the other side (leg?) and then you're over the handlebars.

Here's the map. You start at Sedburgh and there is a bridleway up to the Calf

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IMG_0001[/url] by simon ralli[/url], on Flickr

Ed has done this before, and we didn't ride across the fields at the very top, we just stuck to the b road and rode to the pub and shop at Ravenstonedale. You then come back and we went up a road to gain the final elevation on the way back. There is just one tricky section where you feel like you lose the bridleway in a lot of overgrown heath, but it's not too bad. Pretty straight forward I think if you have the OS map.

Absolutely. We even had plenty of fun trying to do the two fords. I made it through the first one, then I asked Ed to take a photo as I did it a second time, and inevitably fell in.

I didn't care too much for all that stone chipping that has been laid down on the way up to the calf, but down the other side it's all natural again. A wee bit too technical for my skills, but great fun. And that flowing bridleway that comes back again on the return leg is awesome! More my kind of terrain.

This was am MBR route and I think they described it as best of the Lakes plus best of the Dales – you get two terrains for the price of one.

I am really feeling it this morning. I think Ed is meeting up with Pook and maybe Hora tomorrow and invited me, but I think I'll chill and maybe ride Drumlanrig instead as I can't be dealing with more climbing!

William – yeah, there was hardly any breeze at the top of the calf (around 680m?). It got a tad cloudy towards the end but nothing major.

Yeah – that little shop was a life saver. I had to buy three more bottles of water as I had got through 2l of water and a lucozade sport by the time we got there! Ed and I got round in a little over 7 hours, with a few falls but nothing major. I ended up losing my balance and going down the valley but hey ho, at least you are falling on to grass 🙂

Thats a third of his total wealth.

We do not know how much Blair is worth since he hides his finances behind many secret companies, or rather companies who are not required to submit accounts. All we know is how much his many houses are worth in the UK.

It is unlikely that buying the book will help troops. The advance was £4.6m, then add on another £1m for publicity. The publishers need to sell 500,000 copies at £25 each to break even, but then most copies are selling at half that (although that may not half the publisher's turnover.) I am not so sure the publishers will break even on the book.

Well I find it really weird that Hague would actively choose to share a room when he is a millionaire and it is also on expenses. The thought of me away on business having to share a room with a colleague is just horrific, but that is just me.

Given Hague's statement, this makes Guido Fawkes look like a right git. However, I guess Fawkes may be holding back on information, and he has tweeted to everyone to check his blog tomorrow. He was also reporting that many newspapers had dedicated a lot of resources to the story, but the editors had decided to hold off from publishing. He is also saying that stories that are coming out in one or two Sunday papers have already been spiked. An interesting story though.

Great photos! How is your hand? I take it fully healed now?

OK, sorry, so it's perfectly OK to hire a 25 year old who previously was a driver with no qualifications for the job as Foreign Office advisor, when there were far more qualified people available, and when Parliamentary rules state that only 2 advisors should be employed? That's fine then? 😀 Following that logic I should be Head of the European Parliament!

And are you really suggesting that someone as minted as Hague is would willingly share a room when all his other colleagues were put up in a cheaper hotel? Doesn't make sense!

I am taking my mind off it all by enjoying the Hague palava on Guido Faulkes.

For me I had the legs for the climb but it was more a lung buster! The problem is there is a really steep climb straight out of the car park when your legs are not warmed up. But the view from the very top of Minch Moor is amazing, and you would be crazy to miss the descent from there. But I am XC so can't comment on the DH. You'll have a great time I am sure as Inners is brilliant.

People on One Photo A Day swear by Blurb. I am in the process of using their software to make a photobook and it seems pretty good.

Forge (and Divagirl) – thanks but it took me a little while to find your descent!

That the finest brew I have ever made – took me 2 days and a little help from my friends 🙂

Oh, and if you want to see some Brazil pics, have a goosey through this lot in my One Photo Every Day 2010 collection which I have not mentioned in a while…[/url] 😆

Hurrah! There's only one thing worse than 'No Replies Since" and that is "No Replies Since" on a thread you start!

I was in Brazil writing up my dissertation, but am back here to finish my MSc. I'm organising a Mabie ride on 25th to celbrate/comiserate my loss to the Scottish Borders mountainbiking scene as I am emigrating to Brazil in October:
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/potential-stw-group-ride-kirriemabie-25th26th-sept

Yeah, I did use my self timer, but I am one of STW's most chilled riders and if it takes me 5 hours to get around Mabie, then so be it. That's my biking philosophy 😀

I was thinking Mabie red too – lots of flowy singletrack and the climbs are not that long really.

Mabie, but then given that absolutely no one has commented on my pics whereas threads about car tyre steel bearings get like 20 replies, I just dont know why I bother…. 🙁

Mad finish – what happened to Peat?? And what about that 16 year old lad showing up the seniors??

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August 29th[/url] by simon ralli[/url], on Flickr

Yep – it really does flow – I may well have to go next weekend. I have to say Mabie is my favourite Stane now that I have been shown all the natural stuff, but Kirroughtree rocks too. Did you go down McMoab or the mini shute?

Craig – excellent – I think this could well be more of a single big day out at Mabie due to me going down south on Sunday. I am going there tomorrow to take some photos of all the natural bits.

It's nice for me to have a final ride there as Mabie was where I first went "mountain biking" on my Falcoln Stealth clunking rigid hybrid5 years ago. 🙂

I used to be known as simonralli but when the website got hacked for some unknown reason I was under the impression I would need a new one so went for simonralli2. I don't know why I didn't go for simonralli1 and to be honest would like to ditch the 2 but hey ho.

I think it is that one on Dark Side of the Moon with the woman going oooh oh oh oooh oh ohhh oh oww owwww OWWWWWW! Can't remember the name.

And Shine on you Crazy Diamond.

If your mobile is on O2 you can register with their website and get 10 free texts a month, to any UK network.

Well another idea is maybe just do Mabie on the Saturday, but do the off piste stuff then rejoin. I have just got back after a 2 hour ride with Forge, and we barely touched the red at all. There's some gorgeous natural stuff in there! (This may have to be an option for me in case I have to drive to London on the Sunday for a job interview).

Ok – see you tomorrow! Maybe it will be just us two then but hey – more than just me is a STW group ride in my book 🙂

Well you park in Bovey Tracy for starters. Then head towards Haytor, then across Houndtor, then Manaton where there is a lot of great singletrack in the woods.

Here is are a couple of variations:

It doesn't get much better than this loop here:

Even I can ride it so your partner will be fine but there are lots of optional teccie bits too for you. The photos do not show all of the fab singletrack in the woods where I was having too much fun to photo. Maybe someobe will post a pic of the map for the route?

Ah Forge, an alternative would be do ride Kirroughtree on the Sunday. If we leave Mabie around 11 (in order to allow people to get there), would that be any good? You could always leave a bit early if need be.

May I be so bold as to bump as I don't want a farewell ride on my own!

I will probably give this a bump on Tuesday in case people have gone off for the weekend.

Ta!

Took a year out last year, aged 39 to do a masters degree in Holistic Science, in order to make the move from Internet Casino Manager into Sustainability and International Development. Its easy so long as you have the self belief.

That is an excellent video – really like the angle of the camera and that you have someone in front. Top work.

I liked the music too.

Dumfries is sunny! 8)