Dunmere woods or Bodmin Moor.

Drac – I'm a Golf fan boy – had a mk2 and 3 Gti (16v) and a mk4 R32 – just seem to get tailgated by lots of TDI Golfs (and Audis).

Pixel – are you looking at thrifty engines? The C30 does come with a very "green" option but as you say, three might be a bit much.

I'd get a Golf over a Leon any day.

As for the 1 series – the rumours of BMWs in the snow is true – mine (a 3 series) is so bad in ANY snow or mud that I simply left it alone and used the other car three weeks this Winter. What makes then good on road makes them the World's worse off roaders – Winter tyres do help though. The 123d is very nice though and rather quick.

Civic diesels kill clutches – very known and common issue.

Back to racks – I just find the roof mounted rack soooo easy to fit. And the bike stays cleaner. Wouldn't like to try and put a heavy DH bike on the roof though!

Some bungalows aren't too bad…;-)

So hard to find that no burglars know where it is…

Pixel – go for the C30. Great looking, decent engines and very comfy. Leons are just low rent Golfs. I have hired two – both broke down.

They are good cars – Golfs are too common and driven by the angriest men in Britain – especially in 2.0TDI form.

Those that slag them off undoubtedly drive something they don't like or have lovingly chavved right up. I think every car slagging comment should be followed immediately by what car the slagger runs. 9/10 times it will be a Focus/Mondeo/Astra/insert any mainstream car owner.

Keith – that does not sound fun at all! I'd avoid getting to pi55ed before the speech or you might end up letting rip and ruin the whole day.

Weirdly, despite putting on a hell of a wedding, my FIL's speech was so terrible (he was very nervous and no one could hear him) that my dad ended up doing an impromptu speech to prop him up a bit. He's never lived it down…

I'd email these people: sales@roofracks.co.uk

I can't see anyone that lists a rack for a Scirroco. Best find out in advance! VW will royally stripe you. Get Thule aero bars with a Pro 591 carrier if you can.

How much do you like the groom to be? Could be a good time to get a few sly digs in…!

17. Two people I know with ADD reckon I also have it mildly though… ;-)

Gets my goat too – dog crap disappears fairly quickly. Plastic bags don't. We have taught our dog to crap at home (got loads of scrubland here – perfect to dog merde) or out of sight of people – some of the lengths she goes to to crap somewhere subtle are quite funny. If she does it in public (very rare) we pick scoop it and chuck it away properly.

amp – indeed they are good but right now, I'd rather keep upgrading my bike (and the frame once it dies) and end up with a really good machine rather than splashing out big money for a low spec machine.

Merlin builds are great and Boardman specs are amazing but I just don't feel they are the best frames available. Of course I do rather like the look of Merlins Ti frame…!

But wet boots (inside) are heavy boots. I love Sealskinz for MTBing but find proper walking socks with waterproof/breathable boots more comfy.

But why are parts so cheap? I reckon you can massively outspec a ready built bike at the moment using some sensible parts purchasing. Merlin in particular have some crazy low prices – £130 for my XT chainset (2010) and under £50 for my SRAM 990 cassette. They also do Elixir CRs for under £200! I got mine elsewhere but paid about the same.

Lyons – got some pics but will avoid posting them if I can help it…!

Basically kneel down with feet touching a wall (behind you). Put your hands in a diamond shape no more than 8 inches from your knees. Put your head "in" this diamond. Straighten your legs (you'll now be in an inverted "V" shape). Now push up from this position – very intense on your triceps. Not many can do them properly.

There's also "gecko" press ups and a few others.

If the text doesn't help, I will resort to pics.

Trying to do "planche" press ups but they are VERY hard. Getting there.

Can do around 150 press ups, 25 pull ups, etc, etc blah blah and weird gymnastic "stunts" using upper body strength (free standing handstand press ups, etc). All a bit pointless but kind of fun.

Errmmmm….

Sambob – when I say trail I mean pretty serious trail – deep mud, cliff paths, etc. 5th out of 120 on my last (11k EnduranceLife) one using them so I rate them. The X talons just aren't comfy on my feet and don't last very long.

Sky high mileage – I wouldn't pay more than £1500 for that. Not a bad idea but you can find better.

We used 1200 litres in three months (over £200 a month at the time) last Winter – we had a young baby and didn't want him to get cold! Much less this year. I think oil is currently 40p a litre(ish) – dropped a bit then went up again.

I really like oil – seems fairly efficient, heats up quickly and not as much of a rip off as gas.

Big and slightly draughty house here – five bed, bungalow, big rooms, Colt construction (think of a large scout hut with wooden tiles!) but it's double glazed and has roof insulation.

Been using HSBC for many years for business – generally rate them highly. Their internet banking is particularly good.

That's a good program – impressed.

I used to teach the circuits/exercise side of a kickboxing class and we used similar technique but that's more refined.

Be really careful with bad shoulders – mine used to dislocate all the time (30+ times) and press ups didn't help when it went – however after it healed a bit, they helped strengthen my rotator cuffs (the supporting muscles that keep your shoulder "in")

Should anyone be struggling, let me know – I've spent almost 20 years training like a nutter in the gym and at home so have become pretty good at press ups/pull ups/sit ups/etc.

If anyone here gets really good, I can show them a very evil press up variation. Very few people can do them.

Rusty – that is quite quick/low miles for it to all break but I now budget on a drivetrain per yearish.

Just replaced an utterly hammered chain, cassette, chainset (including BB) and cables after just over a year (my third drivtrain – last one was SLX chainset,SRAM 970 cassette, SRAM 971 chain, XTR cables – moved to XT chainset, 990, 991, same cables) and my three year old hub was shot to pieces (was M525, now Hope Pro 2) and my brakes were utterly wrecked (were Juicy 5s now Elixir CRs) – I'm not heavy (11.5 stone) and don't do any full on DHing or even big jumps – just 2-3000 miles a year of fairly hard XCing. It just wears out! Cheaper than a gym membership, much more fun and more exciting but yes – it is a lot of money. My bike has cost more to look after this year service wise than both our cars!!

Berghaus Explorer GTX leather – about £90, super light, totally waterproof and comfy.

Inov8s are brilliant for racing in but not sure about distance walking as I've only tried the shoes – I use their Mudclaws 330s for 10k trail races. Very little cushioning but they grip very well and weigh naff all.

Nearly went for one but preferred the Spesh Phenom SL (similar price and weight) – I found the feel of a Gobi a bit odd.

I'd third a Focus Estate – cheap to run, big enough inside, nice to drive. Try and get the TDCI engine over the TDI if possible – it's a fair but better.

It was the nearest wedding place to a beach…

Our veg growing attempts were a bit lame (my wife also had a baby) – just rhubarb, some herbs and apple trees and blackberry bushes left now!

Hard work though – about 0.75 acres of roughish grass to strim/mow and loads of other bits to keep under control. This weekends plan? To use the brushcutter to cut through the brambles to the woods beyond. About 50 yards of cutting needed. Scratched arms and much sweating coming up.

Some nice bikes here – veeery nice!

How about this then – while there seem to be many car enthusiasts on here, I won't mention mine again on here – ever.

Now am I "allowed" to comment on other cars or shall I impose a complete blanket car ban?

Because I'm equally, if not more, interested in cycling, surfing and all sorts of other stuff.

Hell I even like Radio 4 these days, such is my diversity of dullness.

I could eat a bowl of alphabetti spaghetti and sh*t a better argument than that!

:lol:

Similar here – bought 2.5 years old with 16k miles – not far off half the list price and barely run in. Got the spec I wanted too.

Did the same with the Jimny except is had 13k miles on it.

Bought the previous car brand new and the depreciation hit was pretty painful.

Steve – great pic!

Njee – am I being blind or is there no pic?!

That Sola is lovely! My dad has my old (97) Stumpy – steel, fully rigid, V braked and still fun to ride.

Admittedly not everything wore out – saddle, seatpost, bars and a few more bits but I left most upgrades until they really were needed. My old hub (M525 that came with the bike) was comically knackered!

I think to 99.9% of people, XTR is quite "silly."

I gave my 1997 fully rigid steel Stumpjumper to my dad – he absolutely loves it! My 1994 British Eagle Strike (!) is occasionally used to going to town (2 miles) and bike. If it gets nicked, we don't care. The panniers are worth more than the bike!

The other three bikes get used regularly.

njee – cheers. Did you use "normal" or kevlar ones?

Andy – shout if you need any Cornwall info be it MTBing or surfing. I live 20 mins from Spewquay.

And can you pack the Green oil and Crudguard I just ordered from CRC nicely please? Cheers!

I think Peugeot have lost the plot completely not just for styling.

Look at the Citroen C4/5 and 6 and the DS3 – really cool looking cars that also work well.

Now look at Pug – ermmm – a failed Ferrari copy with the 406 Coupe and that's about it. Not a single proper hot hatch, nothing innovative.

I love it when mainstream brands like Ford or Citroen come up with great cars but others just can't get it right.

Fiat make the 1.9CDTI unit used by Vx, Saab and Alfa – it's decent unit and more refined than the VAG groups 2.0TDI.

Mastilles – the engine was a very large factor in buying my car. And for anyone that buys an Alfa with the 3.2 litre V6.

Coffee – I preferred the handling of the old Focus – the ST170 was brilliant (apart from the engine!).

Chrissy – just seem a bit wrong putting a diesel in a car like that – same as in the TT too. Surely it understeered and wheelspun a lot when pushed? Does look good though but I reckon Citroen have stolen a big lead over pug with their latest offerings.

Tony – it depends slightly on how you sped it. I went for 17" wheels and ditched the Run Flats as soon as I could – this improved the ride very much. With big wheels and run flats they can be a bit crashy. Once that's sorted it's a very comfortable car – 3 hour drives are a breeze. I've got M Sport suspension on mine (it's an SE) which sharpens things up a bit but SE set up is fine and even comfier.

Also look at the Merc E350CDI and possibly the Audi A4 Avant 3.0TDI – but the Beemer is a fair bit pokier, quicker and better on fuel. Not much else that you can get that's similar (and non German).