I have always loved the look of Kona hardtails, generally they get the proportions just right.

The full suss range however always manage to look like tesco specials.

Been riding for a long time now, for me the key was to commit to it.

When I first started riding I treated it like a weekend hobby, I rode at weekends only and spent more time hanging around the dealers in full Astars kit posing about like a knob than actually learning the craft of riding.

Then my circumstances changed and I started to commute to work on it daily, it was it this point I realised I was a really crap rider. I dug in took some advanced training and started racking up the miles. My GSXR was binned and replaced by the first of many VFRs. I got faster, smoother and more confident as the miles piled on.

You will love it, but you have to commit to it, think of it as a constant learning process.

One point that no-one else seems to have mentioned is that compared to driving a modern car its a tiring pastime; both mentally and physically, so don’t expect to be taking on epic distances immediately.

I was in the same position up until a few days ago, I went with the Galaxy s3, in comparison the iPhone feels like a Fisher-Price ‘My First Cellphone’

On the upside it won’t want to have a conversation afterwards.

paulmgreen – Member

Alex Pollizzi

+1

I also love the sound and feel of old medium format cameras, I have a Bronica SQA that I hang on to solely for the feel of it.

Randomly started listening to the Jesus and Mary Chain again recently

I never ride in a group when the weather is bad, I can’t stand hearing the moaning of others about conditions, cold etc, sucks the will to continue right out of me.

But I do like to ride on my own in the wet, rightly or wrongly I put myself in the mindset that every ride makes me a little stronger, and if others have stayed in the house because of the weather, then I have made a little gain.

Cheers for the feedback guys, seems like its worth a punt.

Chris, might take you up on that offer and buy the harm from you, will let you know.

I am with you on this, would love to go, but her indoors won’t have it. may have to make a solo trip

+1 for Tori Amos, she is the only artist that has held my interest since I was a teenager.

like you I am a qualified first aider and I would not like to be unable to help someone due to a lack of kit.

I’m mildly trolling, but a qualified first aider would likely be able to find/make/bodge whatever would be required to provide essential first aid from the general paraphenalia of riding (tubes, pumps, jackets, jerseys etc).

Agree with the sentiment, but who wants their £60 shirt cut up if it can be avoided?

I have a female colleague who starts most sentences with ” I am not being orrible, but” and then proceeds to insult everyone from the MD down.

Drives me insane.

Always carry a reasonable sized kit; like you I am a qualified first aider and I would not like to be unable to help someone due to a lack of kit.

Using this one, no problems, nicely made compared to the £5 ones

Topeak

Worst film? Life of Pi is close, really wanted the tiger to rip his face off.

Betty Blue (37* le matin) my all time favourite.

First time I saw it I was about 19, I get round to watching it at least once a year.

Dyson AM04 HOT.

Toasty.

Tomthumb.

Who makes that pump?

Want.

Avoid Life of Pi like the plague, I just wanted the tiger to eat him so I could go home, which is odd, because I enjoyed the book.

I watch a lot of films so my short list is basically stuff i cant get hold of:

Wind – Francis Ford Coppola produced movie about America’s cup racing.

Until the end of the World – Wim Wenders sci-fi weirdness, took years to film, died a death as it was 3 hours plus in the cinema (Wenders wanted the edit to be longer)

Never really liked cycling fims until I watched Ride the Divide recently; my sort of riding, I dream of doing a long distance ride like that.

I also love a film called What it takes not strickly a cycling film – its about Ironman racing, but it inspires me to ride none the less.

+1 on the D80 recommendation. Only one I would definitively say no to is the Canon 1000D – its made of cheese and feels like it.

Thanks.

I am bored, but not bored enough to bite on this one.

Just for my information, can you tell me whats wrong with the word ‘Gotten’

I recieved the same, I will be telling them to sod off in March when they start calling me to renew the contract. They say costs have increased? How come Tesco and others can offer signifcantly better deals on 02’s network that 02 can?

The price of mobile tariffs has gotten ridiculous in the past few years.

Agree with you on Fopp, its really the only Music/Film store i can be bothered with.

Bricks and Mortar retail is doomed as a whole I think.

Banging my head in the fridge door as I type. Apologies.

Have a look at Otterbox cases, I had my old iphone 3gs in one and it survived many knocks and spills, phone was still perfect after two years of use. Mind you, it turns the phone into a big lump.

When I was a young man I treated people and particularly girls like disposable assets, constantly cheating, dumping and generally using people without regard for the consequences. Then the tables got turned, I met someone who i thought was wonderful who turned the tables and did it to me.

Penny dropped, I am pretty ashamed of myself for how I acted back then.

Nukeproof – I have been through a very similar experience in the last year, similar syptoms and test results, and I have ending up on a daily drug to control stomach acid. But the real cause of my problems turned out to be caused by health anxiety, there were two things that helped me beat it. firstly i saw a councillor who talked me through things and taught me ways to relax. And secondly and possibly just as importantly, Stop looking on the internet for answers – the more you read the more possibilties you come up with – self diagnosis is not helpful. I found this difficult, I have a scientific mind and find it hard not to analyse and search for answers, but trust me, it is not helping you.

Trust what your doctors are telling you, and next time you see him ask if there is a counciling service available.

I genuinely hope you get through this, I have been where you are and its tough, but be strong.

You can buy the green Shimano grease no probs http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=24446

You have genuinely just made my day! Purchase made!

Shimano also come with the uberGreen grease, which has magic properties.

Rightly or wrongly I have the belief that this grease is the greatest grease ever, probably because you can’t buy it anywhere. I know this is not rational, but I am sticking with it. I also know I am not alone in the view.

Agree with you on the preload comment however, I learned this the hard way.

I am with anotherstan on this, does not matter which brand/level I buy, I still get through 2 a year. I stick with the Deore ones these days. Shimano also come with the uberGreen grease, which has magic properties.

Very very little, I like the odd glass of a premium cider, but thats it. I don’t like what it does to me; two or three drinks will seriously cloud my judgement, 5 or 6 gives me full on tourette’s.

Made a lot of bad calls when I was younger and drinking most weekends, can do without that these days.

I still shoot film on occassion, however everyone moving to digital means that really top end film cameras are now available for peanuts; I have a Nikon F5 that I paid £250 for, would have been about £1500 new.

I have my eyes out for old school Contax equipment, I believe that sooner or later it’s value will rocket, bought a few bits and peices already.

I have tried this with an Alfa GTV seat, I gave up in the end as I could not get the weight distribution right. I also found that it was not actually that comfortable; you really need to sit a lot more upright in an office chair than you do in the car, so the seat itself was not ideal.

However I kept the seat itself and I am planning to build it into a fixed wooden base with some arms so it can be used as a recliner.

So lets all be honest, how many of the thread contributors actually work at Dyson?

Worth every penny, miles cheaper than running central heating in my house. And really quick to heat a room. You will recoup,the purchase price fairly sharpish, mine paid for itself in about 9 months.

“welcome to Scotland”

That is all.

atlaz – I am not suggesting anyone is lying in the report (which I will admit I have only read extracts from). But it is a report written from one side, with one purpose, its not designed to be a reasoned argument its designed to convince you of his guilt, much like going to court and only listening to the prosecution arguments.

It could be that Lance could stand up hand on heart and tell us everything is as stated – but in reality a prosecution lawyer will gloss over positives in order to make a stronger case. So I stand by my belief that the truth is somewhere inbetween.

We need to hear the real story now, not the USDA hatchet job and not Lance’s continuing claims of innocence, my feeling is that the truth is somewhere in between.

I have been a Lance fanboy for years, but now have to admit I was wrong in proclaiming his innocence to everyone I met.

I still believe his tour wins should stand, but only because all of his closest competitors were also doping, perhaps they should have call it modified class racing or something.

Lance would get back a little of the respect he has lost if he manned up and told us the truth.