I love my Litespeed. It’s a Tuscany from 2004 and it’s brill! I use it throughout the winter and Just rebrush the frame to have it looking like new again. Bought the frame off here a while ago.

Really like that, it’s brill. A little project like that would make such a good gift.

Gift for the missus

Here is one of mine:

I really appreciate all the posts. Lots of great help – thank you.

What a load of tosh. How can you make comparisons between the bikes you ride and the instruments you play.

I mainly ride a Litespeed road bike & play the tuba.

I rebrushed my titanium Litespeed frame with a Scothbrite pad, it came up as good as new.

Sorry to hear about your loss Rich. Scumbags.

I am in Notts & will keep my eye out.

Back to the future.

Marty McFly cranking up his amps. Impressed a wanna be rock guitarist anyway!

The bandage comes off on Wednesday. Not sure when I can ride again, hopefully soon as I commute to work

I didn’t do the bandage myself, went to A&E because my skin blistered. In & out in an hour which was very impressive for a Sat night.

I was roasting duck breasts in an open proof frying pan. I took the duck out to rest & forgot the pan was hot & picked it up. So stupid. To top it all off, I overbooked the duck!

I bought some Revs off here a couple of weeks ago. When they arrived through the post, they had leaked oil– not much oil, just enough to coat the stanctions and cause me concern. I contacted the seller who told me that they had always worked flawlessly so I took his word & fitted them.

I have since used them without any problems at all – there has been no oil leak in every day use so I assume they just leaked a bit whilst upside down in transit.

I have a NEX-5 with 2 lenses – the zoom & the 16mm pancake.

I am really happy with the camera & i dont think the controls are too fiddly. I use it a great deal becasue of it’s small size and am pleased with results.

My main critisism of the camera is the lack of a viewfinder. Sometimes (especially in bright light) it can be difficult to view the screen and ensure that the subject is in focus.

Smoked haddock Chowder. mmmm.

When I was a student in Leeds, one night after the Otley Run (a local pub crawl) I stupidly rode round to my missus’ house. Going uphill, very slowly, I rode into the back of a parked car & knocked my two front teeth out. Very silly indeed.

I have a large print of this image in my bathroom.

You could also try here: http://www.danbarham.com/

Wow, what a trip. I bet you had the time of your life. I’m going to California next August for my honeymoon & hope to squeeze in a bit of riding (as much as I can get away with anyway).

I have a NEX-5. I bought it with both the zoom and pancake lenses and I am very happy with it. The main reason I am so happy is that I use it so often. It’s small size is certainly a big advantage over others (and the main reason I didn’t go for a DLSR).

I am not a brilliant photographer and wanted a good camera for biking & every day use and have had decent results.

The only drawback of the camera that I have come across so far is the lack of a viewfinder. It can sometimes be difficult, especially in bright light, to be certain that your subject, and not something else in the picture, is in focus – especially when using the pancake lens with a narrow depth of field. An additional viewfinder can be bought but it is an extra £150 or so.

The camera really stands out when taking shots in low light, the larger format sensor really helps.

The NEX-5 also shoots full HD video and is very, very good. The sound on video is ok too.

Hope this helps.

CM – thank you

**** Southern Yeti, anybody would think I was asking for a logo.

Can anybody help with this?

Sorry to hear about your Monday. Mine was also pretty shit.

Going back to work after a fortnight holiday in France & Italy was never going to be easy but my missus found out yesterday that she is being made redundant – which is especially rubbish as we have booked a skiing trip over christmas & are saving for our wedding next year.

To top it all off, the missus did not lock our front door yesterday & my new camera & laptop were nicked.

Today is going alright so far!

I bought a Sony NEX-5 a couple of weeks ago and am very happy with it. I toyed with the idea of a DSLR but thes size put me off – I just didn't think I would take it biking with me.

I am not a brilliant photographer, I'm just playing really. I wanted more than a compact camera could offer but not the bulk of an SLR & the Sony is fine for me.

I bought a Ribble Sportive from Ribble on the Cycle Scheme last year. Ordered it in July 09 & at the time of ordering, asked if it was in stock as I needed it for a trip to the Alps in August – was told yes. I received the bike in September 09 after considerable chasing.

I was measured on a jig in the Ribble shop and advised that a small (49) frame would suit me (I am 5'8''). I wasn't sure and they did not have one I could test but I went with their advice. The frame was too small (top tube too short) so I sold it on here in May and transferred all the components onto a Litespeed frame (also bought off here).

The frame itself was great & the quality was brill for £1k. I will not buy from Ribble again however.

My advice would be to make sure that Ribble have stock before ordering. If you can, get it in writing and get some commitment from them.

– Taking a flight in a hot air balloon over the peak district (weather permitting) or lying in bed eating bacon
– Quick blast on the road bike
– BBQ & footy for a mate's 30th
– Viewing a wedding venue in Nottingham

Some great ideas so far. I agree that I need to make the most of the big screen. I like the idea of the new Star Trek film, I missed it at the cinema and deep down, I am a bit of a trekkie (ideally I would go for the Wrath of Khan but I have to think of my crowd).

Great tip Mr Ed Hornby, I had never heard of C'etait un Rendezvous but I have looked it up and bought it & think it will be a great way to finish.

Just one more then…. Leon? Aliens? Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid? Napoleon Dynamite? The list is endless!

I signed up a couple of months ago, I opted for the 75km distance. I think I can change to the 100 km at a later date if I decide to MTFU.

This is the thread from a couple of months ago:

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/riding-in-turkey-anyone-done-it

I have done a fair bit of fundraising for Macmillan.

Most of the funds I have raised have been from venue collections. I wrote to a number of supermarkets and other venues to ask permission to collect for a day/weekend. I got hold of collection buckets, leaflets, stickers etc from my local Macmillan Fundraiser and I would sit on a turbo trainer/rollers whilst others collected. Luckily I had a good team of friends & family to help on the days.

On average I raised around £800 – £1k per day. The most in a day came from a garden centre collection on the day the Santa's Grotto opened. I think we raised about £1,500.

Sorry, I could not help myself….

IPA evaporates without leaving any sort of residue therefore does not contaminate the internals. I don't think acetone would evaporate completely.

Brilliant! Many thanks again, I have a lot to learn!

Another quick question – is there a way I can get the formuna to ignore zero values?

Splendid – thank you!

Chapel Style

You have the glory of the Langdales to explore and the Wainwright Inn, one of the finest watering holes in the land.

Mrs Spacecadett bought me a Mobi for Christmas as she was fed up of me messing up the car & cleaning my bike in the bath (I also live in a flat).

I have the standard 15 litre model, it's brill! I have never found the need for the additional battery pack and its water capacity is enough for 2 bikes.

A mate has a Dirtworker and I don't think it is as good (but mine is newer).

I like the social side of cycling in a large group on the road. Its loads easier to do big miles in a group on the road but when it comes to mountain biking, I prefer to cycle on my own or in smaller numbers.

Road – Yes
Mountain – No

Have a look at the Macmillan Afan Monster. 85 or 100 km offroad enduro in September. I am signed up and can't wait!

http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Fundraising/Inyourarea/Wales/South_West_Wales/Local_events/MacmillanAfanMonster.aspx

it's a bit of a way from Scotland but well worth the trip.

Hi Rob,

I had this and it took a while to sort out. My problems started in November 2008 – the slightest bit of exercise caused acute knee pain. Once I found a good physio and started stretches & exercises it was about 4 months until I could exercise without pain. I have been fine since.

Chin up old boy, persist with it and you will be back riding before you know it and won't miss all the good weather.

I don't know much about projectors but my family run an AV company based in Preston – not too far from you. Give them a call on 0845 22 55 039.
The website is: http://www.NWAV.co.uk

Hope this helps.