Bill Hicks + Billy Conolly in the hairy days, unbeatable.

Would pay to watch them both beat the living cr@p out of Michael McIntyre

Get someone to give you an uplift onto the Sierra Lujar (too far to ride from Calahonda). I asked a workmate who´s from the area, he reckons its the got the best riding.
From there you´ll see the full Sierra Nevada in the distance.

I was in Marbella a few years back, didn´t like it much, Malaga was a lot better.

Going to enjoy some locally brewed Bottles today.
Delicious stuff but just available in the Basque country for now
Limited Run Barleywine

Would love some Stone Brewing Co. beers but nobody sells or ships em here :(

I´ll be heading down to the Canaries with the bike in Feb. Great time to grab a cheap holiday in the sun.

Erdinger is lovely,great transition from lager to wheat beers, soft and not overpowering taste.

Try Weihenstephan if you can get it, really nice wheat beer.

I avoid Hoegarden since it´s now part of an evil corporation trying to dominate the beer world (Inbev).

Would love to see a proper head-to-head between the Bos Deville and Marzocchi 55 Evo RC3 Ti with the same frame.

I need a new fork this year.

You can only get so far with books and tapes, eventually you need to be fully immersed in the language to really be able to learn, ie. travel to Spain/Miami ;)

I picked up Spanish after a few years living here, the first year was really tough. I avoided seeking out ex-pats because I knew that would make me lazy.

Going to tackle a new one this year, the local barman says he´ll only pour me a beer if I ask for it in Basque.
Basque word for beer = garagardo
Spanish word for beer = san miguel

If you are with family it’s a good place to be if your kids like the water. there are other better places to base yourself if you want a weeks worth of stunning, varied biking.

where?

Bought an LG NB3520A Soundbar and wireless Sub.
Our room size is medium sized and it sounds great.
Cost just over 200€ so it´s in your price range.

Full surround would probably be better but I love not having cables everywhere. Added bonus with the LG is that it has no prob with USB (lots do) and it can also play music via Bluetooth.

Nice first post. Have a good xmas.

This was me getting over a fear of really steep stuff during the BasqueMTB/Great Rock skills week.
It took me two attempts but it totally made my day.
Cheers to Ed & Doug.

Hmm, Kraftwerk at Sonar, it´s just a few hours away from me.
Very tempted, there´s some good biking spots not far from there too.

I saw them in Madrid last time round.
Not much left of the original line up anymore but who cares.

You missed out, next time bring a bike.

Here´s some pics from Gran Canaria:
http://javitobike.blogspot.com.es/search/label/canarias

and a vid:

This: http://www.g-vine.com/
and these: http://www.gintime.com/features/fentimans-tonic/

Slice of lime.

If you want to use it as a side dish then make a simple romescu style dip.

Roast the celeriac with some aubergine,red peppers,one clove of garlic and a few tomatoes. Fry up some hazelnuts or pinenuts.
Peel the peppers when they´re done and blitz the lot in a food processor with some olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste.

Spank Spikes here too, still going strong after a year of serious abuse.

OK, just bear in mind that the conversion process will be limited by the quality of the equipment you use.

BTW, soulseek returned a match for your Beckett album, Lossless Flac with Album Covers, it took 4 seconds.
Several regular MP3 bitrates aswell.

As you own the originals you are allowed backups for your own use.
Is your vinyl so rare that you couldn´t find a decent quality download of it online?

Soulseek (slsknet.org) is great for obscure/out of print music that you won´t find in itunes or any official download sites.

Leave the skin on, bit of salt n pepper, fry it skin side up first then flip it over to finish.
In another pan fry some sliced garlic and a small chopped chilli, pour this over the fish and serve with some fresh green salad.

Yes but im on my 2nd box alread

same here

If you pass through the Basque country give me a bell, will sort out a couple of trails,beers and great food.

Just going by the pics, those lines look well rideable. If anything they´re probably a bit too wide.
I can´t say as I´ve noticed much damage.

A decent TV connected to a PC running XMBC software is so much better than anything else on the market.

There is a bit of a learning curve with XMBC and it does work better with a MS compatible remote but imho it´s really worthwhile.

http://xbmc.org/download/

Get the Aeon interface, it looks great once set up.
http://xbmc.org/skins/aeon/

davidisaacs is right, Spain is a big place, the north and Pyrenees are probably not a good idea for a pre-booked holiday in January.

As for the south, well. I´m thinking about contacting http://www.bikingandalucia.com myself for early 2013…

Spain can be wet and messy in January. Last year I went to Tenerife in February, beautiful dry, sunny weather and dusty trails.

WTB Pure V, never need to try another saddle, sorted now.
I tried the Rocket V and it was good but the Pure V wins hands down,

nvm

EACH?

Single days ride without accomodation and includes a 1 hour transfer.
Its cheaper if you get a package.

Another recommendation for Lavatrax, they´ll rent you a proper bike.
I got a Marin Wolf Ridge when I was there, stuck my own pedals on and it was lovely. The trails are spectacular.

Piceswise, flights are cheap.
Accomodation is about 45€ per night in a decent villa with breakfast.
Guiding 50€ per day
Bike Hire 30/45€ per day
Food is cheap, so is the beer and wine.
We rented a car for 100€ for 7 days.

There´s a massive difference between the north and south of the island. All the best trails are in the north but the nicest weather is south. Hence, we stayed in El Medano fishing village on the southern coast and used the rental car to get about.

keep it simple, Advisor

If you don´t mind using a computer and speakers/headphones, why not just buy a midi controller keyboard. Cheaper than pianos.

Akai do some nice semi weighted ones, as do Novation.
There´s lots of free software pianos to make them sound good.

Nice review, it includes everything you´d need to know. Sounds like a great holiday. Post needs pics…

Father Dougal McGuire: I don’t believe in organized religion.

If you don´t mind the extra weight it´s fine.
It was easier to set up than a front derailleur and rings.
Practically bomb-proof and easy to maintain.

It will work with a sram x9 front shifter too (maybe X7, havent tried).
I won´t be going back to chainrings, if I ever change, it will be for a Pinion.

I´ve run the icetech rotors (180mm) for a year with no probs. Didn´t buy finned pads when the first ones wore out, they´re just a gimmick imho.

I find 180 just about enough for the riding I do (big bumpy mtns).
I would consider maybe going for 203mm on the front, if only just to compare.
For riding in the UK 180 front and 180/160 rear would be fine.
203mm if you like a bit of DH.

Nice work, it´s good to see a real riding vids as opposed to the heli +redbull fuelled egotrips.

I´ll be there for a week in November. Already booked a hotel and I noticed all the prices during the Oktoberfest were much higher.

Just wondering if it would be worthwhile renting a bike and going for a spin someplace no too far/short train journey from the center.
Anyone ?

The image of him dropping from the capsule will stay with me forever. Amazing!

Absolutely, I watched it with the missus and when he jumped we grabbed each other. It may have looked easy but there were so many different ways this guy could have died.

Cheers lad!

I have asked Avalanche Downhill Racing if they can offer adaptor + cart for 55 serie. If they do, then a cheap 55 and Avy cart seems good option.

Didn´t think of that, let us know how it works out.

The Bos forks get great reviews on performance but servicing them seems to be an issue.

Here´s a review of the MZ 55 RC3 Ti

Marzocchi 55 Ti RC3 Suspension Forks: Short Term