If we hadn’t already booked to go away that week I’d be tempted myself (we’re in Devon though).

If you don’t have any joy here, register with Guardian House Exchange, then search for suitable properties and make the offer. You’ll have no problems finding a swap IME. We’ve swapped our place a couple of times with no hassle.

http://www.guardianhomeexchange.co.uk/

Ok, I get the point, my point really was that I can’t see the fascination with bb7’s on bikes that will never do an adventure race the likes of td, when they are more faff and dearer than deore’s!

I picked up my BB7s new for about £60 the pair, including levers, on ebay… that was from a UK seller too. I wish I’d bought two sets now.

Set up properly (full cable routing) they work better than my Deore hydros, are lighter, and they’re really not much of a faff to maintain. In fact they’re easier to adjust than hydros. I like.

Didn’t they have a new album out last year?

Ah, that’ll be why BBCR6 woke me up with Screamager at 7:15 today.

Me too!!

Saw them for the first time at the Feile festival in Tipperary- must have been around ’92 I guess… the same year Primal Scream headlined playing the whole of Screamadelica.

They’d just released Pleasure Death… cue a hurling stadium full of drunken Irish folk chanting “I’m bitter, I’m twisted, James Joyce is XXXXXXX my sister…” At the top of their voices. They were awesome. Fyfe’s drumming in particular was incredible…

Saw them several times over the next couple of years including one particularly memorable triple-header with Silverfish and Gallon Drunk in Bristol when I almost bust my nose doing a stage dive!

Ah..heady days… :-)

@scuzz Actually thinking about it, the server room does already have a supplementary ventilation system with fan inlets at floor level to bring in air from outside. There are corresponding fan outlets at ceiling height to extract the hot air which at the moment just vent to cowls set in the roof.

Well I never professed to be an expert which is why I’m asking for heat recovery advice on a mountain biking forum :-)

@Wilsonthecat – thanks for the offer – the current cooling system is a Daikin Inverter if that helps.

Extract air? Where is the inlet air to replace it going to come from?

It’s vented. Our server room is secure, but not airtight!

could you not just open the door to the server room and use a fan to push/pull the warm air out?

Security issues – also wrong part of the building – the server room opens into the new part of the building. The heat is required in the older part and on the upper floor.

of just literally have an extractor fan in the server room wall you switch on in cold weather to pull air from server room to the other one?

That’s along the lines of what I’m thinking but not sure of the heat loss in what would be around 5M of ducting to get it where we need it.

Lived in the Netherlands for 3 years in a small town called Vlaardingen just North of Rotterdam. I worked in Den Haag and we used to visit Leiden a lot as my wife had some work colleagues there. It’s a nice place – compact but still reasonably cosmpopolitan and easy to get pretty much anywhere else in Holland from there within an hour or so.

City / town life in Holland is fantastic.. loads of nice places to eat and drink, public transport and (utility) cycling facilities are fab, as are sports, leisure and cultural facilities in general. Most of the people are friendly, the schools are good and I believe there are quite a few international ones in Leiden and Den Haag.

We really enjoyed our time there but on the downside, it’s very densely populated with little in the way of “real” countryside around the main population centres – there is some nice parkland though and some more interesting terrain to the East and South East of the country and the islands in the North are worth a trip in the spring or summer. Beaches and dunes are quite nice in the summer but are very exposed to the wind.

On the downside, the weather can be even grimmer than here in the winter – be prepared for weeks of grey skies, icy wind and drizzle – the weather seems even more oppressive due to the flat landscape and it can get you down after a while if you’e not careful.

A warning – particularly as an outsider, the level of pointless bureaucracy and downright incompetence in any big organisation you have to deal with (banks, local authorities, tax etc) is almost beyond belief. Another surprise was that even in the bigger, more multicultural cities, the Dutch aren’t always as accepting of minorities as you might expect – Moroccans and Turkish folk in particular get a bad deal and quite a few acquaintances of ours – even well educated, seemingly sensible ones had no qualms about expressing some fairly overt racist views which didn’t really fit in with the tolerant image… it’s actually a far more divided society than you might imagine but I guess that’s true of most countries when you dig under the skin. We’re certainly far from perfect in those respects.

As I say we really enjoyed our time there and had some great experiences but it’s not somewhere we ever intended remaining long term.

+1 for a Surly for versatility.

I’ve got a Karate Monkey (shares geo with the Ogre) and a 1×1 (shares geo with the Troll!).

The KM is fun to ride both on and off road with the right tyres.

An Ogre or KM with a spare set of wheels with slicks (Big Apples are a hoot) would cover both hybrid and MTB bases and a few more.

FWIW I’ve had a seat-tube mounted child seat on both without any problems. The KM has a curved tube but provided it’s mounted above the bend it’s fine.

I picked up my KM off the classifieds here for £600 complete.

Any of these of interest?

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=Q28&year=2014

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=R24&year=2014

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=R95&year=2014

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=S220&year=2014

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=Z41&year=2014

http://www.helpfulholidays.com/property.asp?ref=R71&year=2014

Have stayed in the last one myself. It’s very nice – they’ll provide a cot for your youngest and the 4 year old would have their own room. No real outside space but both the beach and the Mount Edgcumbe estate are within a couple of mins walk. Couple of pubs also nearby and you can even get a ferry across to the Barbican in Plymouth

Just reported it on fillthathole.org

I wasn’t considering putting in a claim – was just happy to walk away from it and wouldn’t want anyone else to get hurt, but after adding up the damage I may consider it – new pair of jeans, damaged Howies jacket, bent brake lever, knackered saddle etc it’s going to be a couple of hundred pounds worth all in.

Sprocketjockey, how do you find the Fleegles?

They’re really good. Nice and wide, comfy and with a reasonable sweep. Loads of control offroad. Only reason I’m considering a change is that I seem to be doing more mixed lane / byway riding over the winter as everywhere is so wet and I like the idea of having different hand positions on drops. They’ll be going back on in the summer though.

I run Marys on my other bike (Surly 1×1 – I’m a bit of a fanboy) and love them also but I’d prefer them to be slightly wider.

I was thinking of bodging something with one of those hi-rise trials stems. I’ve got Fleegles on it at the moment which have been great but wanting some different hand positions for the longer, mixed tarmac and trail rides.

Nice bike.

Love my KM.

Being a little “ludditeish” about such matters but how straight forward is it getting the rear wheel in and out with the mech in place?

I just hook the chain over the side of the dropout and pull the wheel back. Not much more faff than a bike with vertical dropouts I reckon.

As above, the tinkering can get a bit obsessive. Mine’s been through a few incarnations, the next of which is likely to involve some Midge bars.

I use Draytek routers for all our home based staff. They’re reliable, easy to configure and support LAN to LAN VPNs. Mainly 2710ns.

That said if the issue is range then swapping out the router may not neccesarily help – as above your problem may be better addressed by using a combo of powerline adaptors (home plugs) and a WiFi extender / repeater. We’ve set up just that sort of solution for some of our staff who live in rambling old farmhouses with very poor signal penetration. You really shouldn’t need to be running external ethernet cables unless your electrical wiring is quirky.

Ebuyer had a killer deal on powerline adaptors last week – these were going for £6.99 a pop. Still a decent price:

http://www.ebuyer.com/500310-trendnet-powerline-200-av-nano-adapter-tpl-308e

We also loved our Little Life Cross Country. Really comfy for me and the little one even for all day hikes and as above bags of room for kit.

When I get my self together am looking to sell ours as our boy has outgrown it now. It’s in good nick, just needs a bit of a clean up. Email me if of interest.

:-)

Rather than doing anything rash. What about initially looking to do something in addition to the day job to build some new skills? Volunteering or community-based or charity work etc

I was in a similar position a couple of years ago (mainly desk-bound IT work) but now also have a parallel job after becoming a retained firefighter at 40.

Got quite an eclectic CV as a result. Can code SQL and do business analysis but also qualified to work at height and wear breathing apparatus. Not sure I’ll ever find a way of combining those particular skill sets but it certainly keeps things varied.

Cheers guys. I don’t neccessarily want to drop anyone in the cack as I believe the driver was genuinely unaware. But by the same token I don’t fancy shelling out of my own pocket to put it right. If I can’t manhandle it back into shape the Fiamma rack is going to cost a fair bit.

my mum cross, mainly.

I am curious whether all Surlys are actually that good or just hype and image.

Oh yeah…Surly is all about image:

If you take their cut and paste / self-consciously fanzine marketing message with a pinch of salt and unless you actually aspire to be like the bloke in the picture above, I think Surly are actually one of the least hyped brands out there.

Their logos fall off just from looking at a hosepipe so they’re about as stealthy a choice as you can buy.

As above they just do great, durable, versatile, no-nonsense bikes. One of the reason why they’re a lot of folk’s go-to choice for long distance touring. I’m guessing that if you’re riding to Ulan Bator then the last thing on your mind is image.

Own an 1×1 and a KM and very happy with both of them. I love the fact that both bikes ride really well but wouldn’t look out of place if I rode into a wormhole and emerged in 1926.

Can anyone play?

I was thinking of heading out Saturday afternoon for a quick loop. Possibly from Bennets Cross over to Hound Tor way or maybe Hunter’s Tor / Lustleigh.

Ah…thought that was the case. Worth a punt.

The only bit I’ve found so far is a short section dropping down along the stream towards Sandeman bridge.

On the map there are a few trails marked around the South of the forest around Assycombe Hill which I’ll try and take a look at next time I’m up there.

Still quite like it up there – I particularly love the view down the valley from Teignhead Farm.. a fine bivi spot I reckon.

small bump for Friday afternoon lurkers.

Isn’t that what people used to call a Hybrid? :wink:

Cotic RoadRats are great fun and surprisingly good off road despite the name. Top tube on the X may not lend itself to flat bars.

Pompetamime would also be a good base.

Surly Cross Check / Stragglers also very good and will work with flats but may not meet your lightweight criteria

Genesis Day One also an option?

It’s probably an astute move on Howies part, targeting over weight, out of shape middle aged wanna-be skaters etc.

…ahh. My people. :-)

@BigDummy …. now that is cool. A Big Dummy would round off my Surly collection nicely (I run a 1×1 and KM at the moment), but sadly I don’t think the funds will stretch. How well did it cope with the hills?

Jambo – inflatable board also a good call. I was looking at the Waterman ones which seem to get pretty good reviews. Quite like the look of this:

http://www.c4waterman.com/2012/boards/isups/iblowfish/

I find Howies jackets have a very strange cut, designed for pot bellied men with pigeon chests….

Hmm… perhaps try a different size then?!

Finisterre Etobicoke is very good… unfortunately you just missed a 48 hour flash sale when they were £60 off.

Men's Jackets

I’ve got one of these – also recommended really snug and also works on the bike for very cold commutes:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/howies-whistler-lightweight-insulated-jacket/

<EDIT – Post removed. Just realised got beaten to it! TWICE… IGMC>

Was just reading the Met chief’s comments. Not entirely helpful are they?… apparently the only reason people ride in London is because they can’t afford the congestion charge. WTF.

My son just wants something predictable he can neck in two minutes to head for the playground.

Mine’s the same. He only wants half a sandwich. Gets upset if he has a full sandwich (ie two slices of bread). And if I cut it in two he refuses to eat it…have tried pasta, wraps, salad, houmous etc. It all came back uneaten even though he’ll happily eat all that at home.

Apart from that he has some fruit generally grapes and satsuma (unpeeled), a cereal bar and a yoghurt and some raisins. Sometimes a bit of home-made cake as a treat if he’s eaten his lunch from the previous day.

I had 4 at one point… :oops:

Just the Surly 1×1 at the moment. Previously also had a drop bar SS Cotic RoadRat which I traded shortly after moving to Dartmoor for a geared Karate Monkey.

Am currently considering switching the Karate Monkey to single speed for the winter though so go figure!

I’ve got an itch to build up a cheap fixie too.

We lived in Seal just outside Sevenoaks for a bit. Nice area but it’s a bit up itself and whilst the surroundings are very nice, we found the town itself to be a bit soulless. Very expensive to buy – hence why we moved a bit further out. Good commuting location though (30 mins to Charing Cross) and a good base for riding. Parts of Tunbridge Wells are lovely but the traffic can be a complete ‘mare.

Maidstone and Tonbridge both have good areas and have good facilities but like anywhere you need to choose your area carefully. If you want rural, some of the villages along the North Downs Way and around Canterbury, Ashford and beyond are very pretty and are just about commutable as are a few places along the coast.

It’s a big county and very varied – good luck in your search.

I’ve wanted a Mog since seeing one like this converted to a camper and being driver by 2 mad German blokes through Wadi Rum when we were in Jordan:

I’d love it if we got one of the updated versions to play with:

I lived in Kent for 10 years before moving to Devon a couple of years ago.

<waves at Stayhigh>

It’s not known as a riding mecca but I think it’s seriously underrated as an area for riding – as above there is heaps of really nice wooded singletrack if you’ve a mind to look and are good with an OS map. Bits of it are also surprisingly hilly. Some of it is as good as the much better known Surrey Hills but with none of the crowds you get there. I’d frequently ride for several hours without seeing anyone apart from a few horse riders and dog walkers.

I lived in West Malling between Maidstone and Sevenoaks and could do several loops from the door – up to the North Downs Way and either Holly Hill or Blue Bell Hill / Detling in one direction or out towards Mereworth Woods, Plaxtol and the Greensand ridge in the other direction where there is also a good concentration of trails (including a couple of surprisingly good downhills around Ightam Mote and Oldbury Hill).

It’s also on a mainline into London (St Pancras or Victoria) which is also handy for accessing some of the other trails further along the North Downs and down towards Canterbury way. For us it was a great compromise between being relatively affordable, having access to the countryside and coast and still being able to work in London.

This book is a bit old but is a useful pointer if you can get hold of it – in fact I have a copy of it which I no longer require which I’d be happy to post to you: http://www.aboveandbeyond.co.uk/.ernest-press-mountain-bike-guide-kent_9780948153341.htm.

One thing you do need to be aware of is that bits can get very muddy in the Winter. I always found the trails around the Greensand to be better in those sorts of conditions as it’s sandstone which drains a bit quicker than the prevalent chalk. There’s also Bedgebury for a trail centre fix.

Not interested in skinny cyclocross tyres like the Mud X

Why out of interest? Mud tyres generally have a narrower profile for good reason to cut through the slop although I wouldn’t describe Mud X as skinny – if anything they’ve got more volume than other 2″ tyres I’ve used and work really well on most stuff here on Dartmoor:

http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/bontrager-29er-mud-team-issue-29×2-tyre-id74400.html

+1 for an insulated gilet.

Works well as an extra layer for stops but also good for extra insulation under a wind / waterproof outer layer. Weigh next to nothing too.

Finisterre stuff is superb, if pricy – worth getting on their mailing list for offers. I’ve got one of their first generation Bise gilets and probably wear it more than any other item of clothing I own. Really versatile bit of kit.

http://www.finisterreuk.com/shop/mens/clothing/mens-outerwear/bise-midnight.html

We took our bikes on a weekend to Wells Next the Sea a little while back and had a lovely pootle along the coast and marshes around there. Quite a bit of the coast path is byway or bridleway and although the riding isn’t challenging it’s good fun if you don’t mind mixing up the lanes and bridleways.

From Wells there is some nice riding along the coastal woods to Holkham Gap on the Peddar Way. We did some riding on the beach there and then we went up through the Holkham Estate and then along the old Roman Road before striking off towards Burnham for lunch. We came back to Wells on an inland loop via North Creake, Gallows Hill and then down Market Lane. If you take a look at an OS map of the area (or Bing Maps in OS Mode) the routes are all pretty obvious – some of it is on Sustrans Route 1.

We used to love going to The Grenadier in Wilton Row. Quite central (near to Hyde Park Corner) but a bit tricky to find. Very quaint and traditional, nice selection of beers and do an outstanding Bloody Mary. Food is traditional British stuff but generally pretty good. Well worth a visit.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g186338-d258348-Reviews-The_Grenadier-London_England.html

Or as suggested above the Portrait Gallery is also a really good option if you can bag a window seat.