Nuts, I've got to go to a wedding on the first. Not far from me though, I'll have to get down there. Another time.

Preston. Lots of office buidings. Not very exciting I'm afraid. Suns out today, so it looks less grim than usual.

20 – 30 mile loop in the Lakes at the weekends. Rest is all road miles as there are no off road trails on my doorstep. Beleive me, I've looked.

Greyhounds don't do well in strong sun because they have very thin fur and can get sunburnt. Don't think I'll be buying one for my hound though. Poor bugger in the picture doesn't look happy.

Fylde coast into Preston (may God have mercy on my soul) and back, about 22 miles round trip. Mixture of country roads and busy urban streets. I will admit that I'm not a fan of riding in fast moving heavy traffic anyway. I think the solution to my problem is putting dirt tyres on the bike, and dodging the spliff smoking chavs and endless piles of dog eggs on the canal path. At least they're easier to dodge.

EDIT : Just seen this on road.cc

http://road.cc/content/news/16770-round-world-adventurer-run-road-devon

Hope he gets well soon, and best of luck.

I'm not an angry cyclist, I used to be but found out it wasn't getting me anywhere. It's the bigger picture that's getting to me. It doesn't matter whether I'm in the city or the country, whether I'm going fast or slow, whether I'm doing a fast training ride or a slow pootle back from work, flat bar or drop bar, people don't seem to give a s**t. It's like they look at me from the comfort of their cars and go " oh christ, lets try and squeeze past this muppet as fast and close as possible to scare the cr@p out of him ". It's not me that's having near misses, I'm riding in a straight line on open road, it's the cars that are nearly missing me. It's like it's some sort of game for the inbreds, and as you can see, it's making me want to stop riding on the blacktop.

Sorry to vent my spleen. You are right, I shouldn't let it wind me up, I should take a deep breath and laught at the foolishness of others. I do have good days, but the bad ones seem to stick in my memory for longer. I remeber Victoria Pendleton complaining that she was sick of getting hassled in Manchester whilst trying to do training in the run up to the Olypics. Not just the amatuers that suffer I guess.

It is better than the alternative, which is staying in the gutter and having some absolute tool trying to squeeze past you on a blind bend, just because they feel you are in their way and holding them up.

That's how I used to ride, and it nearly got me killed on more than one occasion. I ride in the middle of the road when it is not safe for traffic to get past me, and then pull over to let them past when it is safe to do so. Prime example is a very tight S bend on my route. It's bloody dangerous as it is, if I do not claim my space and force people to wait behind me until it is safe to pass, they will force me off the road trying to squeeze through far too narrow a gap and not think twice about it.

Been there, done that.

If it annoys them, tough luck. It's my road as well, and I have the right not to get pushed off it by impatient drivers.

Thanks for the replies, glad it's not just me that's peed off.

I am going to look at changing routes to see if I can find anything that avoids the worst/busiest bits. I'm 6'1 and 13 st and don't flinch easily, but getting passed by wagons on A roads at 50 mph is getting really old. There is a canal path which is a bog in winter, but fine in summer. It's a longer route, but more miles won't kill me. What tyres for… :twisted:

I always wear a helmet, just feels wrong without one, plus plenty of high viz and light when needed.

Yes, a proper road skills training course might well be a good idea, I'll look into it.

It's just the attitude of some folk amazes me. It's like they think we don't matter. I could rant at great length and use some real choice words, but…. is anybody really going to listen.

Stuff like this doesn't really make me anymore assured that the situation is changing.

I'll be 33 next month, it'd be nice to make it to 34.

change your style a bit maybe.

What, like this ?

Might get more space on roundabouts :D

thomthumb , no I havn't, and you are right that I can't really say that I know what I'm doing if I havn't done a proper course, BUT, I ride defensively, claim my lane, wear high viz, look over my shoulder, keep my awareness high, etc. Ok, I havn't read cycle craft cover to cover, but regardless, it seems that somedays, the folks in cars really don't care.

This morning, I was coming up to a blind left hand corner, a car was approaching from the rear, with plenty of distance between me and the oncoming car, I pulled into the middle of the road (quiet country road) to claim my space. Instead of slowing down and waiting for, oh 10 seconds, the driver HAD to get past me, pull in sharply, brake rapidly and go round the corner far too quick still on the wrong side of the road. If they had waited for 10 seconds they could have got past me on the nice long, straight bit round the corner. WTF ???

A week ago, I got home drank an entire bottle of wine, and was ready to strip the commuter into bits and put it on classifieds. I'm only carrying on cause I'm doing Keilder (gulp) and need to put the miles in.

If your in Windermere, then Garburn and Kentmere are just down the road. Went over Garburn yesterday and it was very quiet, everybody heads into Bowness or Ambleside, but on top of Green Quarter Fell you almost feel like you have the place to yourself. You certainly meet more bikers than walkers. Head to Wheelbase and the lads in there will mark a route on an OS map for you, or you can buy one of their laminated maps for a couple of quid.

Slightly biased, but you can get in contact with my sister. She's London based but Hampshire/Surrey shouldn't be a problem. She's a good photographer, very professional and will do good rates as well. Website and contact details HERE

Went in Feb, and bloody loved it. Did two days with these guys. (Lovely people, good knowledge and a good price) I know you were after a local to show you around rather than a guiding company, BUT the maps are sketchy at best, there's nothing like OS maps, so if you don't have local knowledge, navigation might be a bit sketchy. For a day or twos guiding it might give you a bit of a bearing on the local trails and give you an idea of whats out there. I would not have found the best places without someone to show me.

I did discover though that there are no restrictions on where you can ride a bike apart from on motorways

Which is amazing, you can go anywhere, soooo much better than over here.

do be extra careful on the roads there cos no one indicates and they drive like nutters

No, really, they are frikkin nuts !! Watch out on the roads.

The only other thing that the guide said to me was, "don't have any big crashes", beacuse the medical facilities over there are cr@p. Really, don't break anything. Pads are recommended as it's nice and rocky, and watch out for the bloody spiky as **** plant life, got lots of thorns in me, but none in my tyres.

Photos HERE[/url] if you're interested.

The best thing was I didn't see another biker out there, the trails were almost deserted, it was ace. Very tempted to go back next Winter actually.

HTH

I remember reading the rules last year and it said no CX bikes, mountain bikes only. Trying to find a link, but not being very succesful.

Guess it's an insurance thing. Of course, it could have changed for this year.

No probs Andy. Did Parkamoor last weekend, very rocky but great fun. It was still raining though, think I must be cursed with that route. Watch out for the 4×4 and motocrossers. Met both coming up, whilst I was going down.

Been looking at Dunsop Bridge route as well, but waiting for the sun to come out. Maybe this summer I'll get a chance.

But chocolate milk tastes really good. I agree, if you break down the costs per serving, some of the SIS/High5 powders probably are cheaper, but I just can't face more energy type drinks after a long ride. The chocolate FGS is very addictive, and always hits the spot. I guess it's what works for you.

Doesn't need to be kept in the fridge either, although I find it nicer.

I bung one of these[/url] in the car for post ride snack, along with a tuna sandwich and a banana. Easy, convienient, tasty, not that expensive, and it works for me. Yazoo chocolate milk, or just a pint of semi skimmed works just as well.

Hey Andy, doing Kentmere on Sunday now it's dried out a bit. Give us a shout if you're interested. Be good to meet up again now the suns out.

Toby

So that's the bike security sorted then. He is going to be a big boy 8O

Lots of good advice given above, but would advise going to puppy classes as soon as he is old enough as well. It's good to get the opinion of a trainer who see lots of dogs on a regular basis, as they can see things that you sometimes miss and give good advice on how to sort them out.

Also, as he's going to be a strong dog as he gets bigger, Halti collars really work.

Just coming up to the bridge to go over the canal, and I notice there's a large plume of smoke pouring into the sky. The local scallies had nicked a boat from one of the moorings further down and it was blazing away like a good un underneath the bridge. Made sure the FB were on the way, and made a dash across.

Asthma inhaler. Everything else is a good idea, but not life or death.

EDIT : apart from a helmet.

I'll ask my sister as she has one of these. (Real photo btw, that is hers, no photoshop involved)

Her heart keep stopping…………………………….and then starting again. Completely randomly, longest flatline was over 15 seconds. She'd been flatlining constantly for several years before she got her new best friend. She should have died several times over. How the **** she's still alive is a mystery. All fixed now though, and she's doing the London marathon this year. :lol:

Spent the last decade being a techie in theater, film and tv studios, doing lighting, sound and bits of camera work as well. Have lots of great memories, and met some very interesting people along the way.

Best bits : Running a live show is always a buzz, no mistakes allowed, or else! Going to Stanley Kubricks house was a highlight, sadly just after he died, so didn't get to meet him.

Worst bits : It's really not glamourous, mostly it's just lots of hard work with long hours and crap pay. Still good fun though.

Yeah, had a feeling you might say that. Oh well, back in the car it is then.

OP, had a word with the wife with regards to schools. It's difficult to give any detailed advice without knowing exactly where you're looking at. You're looking at a big area, but I can point you in the right direction so you can do some more in depth research.

The first place to look is Ofsted as they will have all the reports on the schools that have been recently assessed. You should be able to filter down schools into more specific areas.

The next places to go are to Cumbria and Lancashire Councils respectively, as they will have listing of all the schools in the areas, which you can then cross reference with Ofsted. My wife's school is the first one on the list on Ofsted as it was done last week. It scored a 2, which is good. Anything at 2 or above (which is worse) I would question. I'm not a teacher myself, so I'm sure others in the profession would have more to say.

I guess that's some of the stuff you may have already done, but like I said, it's difficult to say good or bad when looking at such a big area.

The Lancashire Council page isn't playing ball, so I'll have to do it seperately.

http://www3.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/atoz/a_to_z/service.asp?u_id=1811&tab=1

HTH and good luck.

My current fav is 'you're a gutter sniffing shoe licker'. Or borrowed from Ren and Stimpy, a 'bloated sack of protoplasm'. 'Oxygen thief' comes in a close third.

Reese the Lurcher, doing what Lurchers do best.

Jasper the ..err.. lets call him a cross breed, on Fairfeild.

[hijack] 'Waves' to bjj.andy.w. Just down the road from you. Are there any good off road routes out from Garstang, there's nothing over here. [/hijack]

Garstang's nice btw. Expensive though.

We should probably all join a club, affiliate to CTC/IMBA and then we would maybe have some say in the stuff that bothers us(some anyway)

The constant mumpin and moanin on here about rights of way, bridleway access could be tackled with a bigger and better voice

I agree, and it is something that does concern me (right of way issues). I usually only go out riding with one other friend, and he's going to be busy with a new baby in the summer, so I may well end up joining a club. It gets a bit boring on your own after a while, and you'll probably end up doing some different routes.

Good news for Team Wheelbase

I suppose it all depends on where you ride. If you really don't need a full suss, then go for it (I've always liked the look of the Orange P7, and the Cotic Soul should also be on your list. Coves aren't bad either). BUT, no way would I go back to a hardtail, it way too rocky where I ride. Lots of people do, and I guess that's personal choice, but I used to feel like I'd been beaten up after 20 miles on the hardtail. Don't get that now on the full suss. Does where you ride demand that your ride something burlier, or can you get on just fine with a hardtail ?

All this is just an opinion of course, but I'll ask the question anyway.

LOL, if you've spent time in Fleetwood, you already know about the Fylde coast. I'll say no more. TBH, you can't go wrong with most places in the South Lakes. 95% of the South Lakes in really lovely. The other 5% is Barrow in Furness. Again, I'll say no more. I will ask the wife, about schools, but she's out working (parents evening), so it may not be until tomorrow night. I'll try not to forget.

he says it's genuinely very inbred and people there are pretty racist

Sound like most parts of North Lancs to me then. :twisted: It can get a bit like that round my way (Fylde coast) but I just avoid/ignore most of it. Like grum says, no worse than anywhere else really. I'm just trolling as I'm Cumbrian and it's much nicer up there.

Clitheroe is ok. Again not that local, but from what I've seen it's pretty nice. No idea about houses, schools, pubs etc, but lots of good riding to be had. Gisburn is just down the road, which can't be that bad.

My mate got one for Xmas. Very good actually. The quality is really quite impressive. I've tried to find some of the footage he's uploaded to Vimeo but can't find the link, I'll get back to you on that. Ok, so it's a point and shoot camera, but for for what it is, it's worth the money. I don't think £130 is that expensive considering you get HD. If you're looking for something to go in the Camelbak, I reckon you could do a lot worse. Don't know if anything similar is on the market, but having played with one, I'd say go for it.

Grew up in South Lakes so know the area well. As tragically1969 pointed out, Kendal is expensive, but it has the best amenities in the area. All the other villages you're looking at are very nice as well. How about Kirkby Lonsdale, a bit further out but worth considering. As far as I know most of the schools in the area are pretty good, but I'll ask the wife as she's a teacher and knows about these things. Great place to bring up kids though, lots of space and very safe (in the grand scheme of things). Lancaster is a good town, but it has good areas and bad areas (like everywhere), but others on here might offer more in depth advice as I don't go there that often.

Where are you going to be working, as travelling can sometimes be an issue, especially in tourist season. Any other questions, just ask. HTH.

I suppose it has the benefit of being a bridleway, if you're into that kind of thing.

:roll:

1. Garburn to Limefitt Park (faaaast)
2. Walna Scar (Drac, it has indeed had a lot of stuff washed out with the floods, much better now.)
3. BW from Lawson Park to Bank Ground in Grizedale. (Always puts a big grin on face)

Dave, where in Preston are you mate ?

Dont read this then.[/url] Everytime I read it, it makes me want to pack a bag, jump on the bike and go exploring.

Or watch this[/url] Only because it makes me jealous, as he actually got off his arse and did it, and I can't. (Well at the moment, maybe in the future…?)

@rse. Probably too small for me then (6ft2). Oh well, I'm sure it'll go to a good home.

Nice. Like that a lot. One day I will have a titanium frame. Unfortunately that day is a long way in the future :cry:

In the meantime, about that Trek 1.5. What size is the frame please ?

(apologies if you've put it on classifieds already, haven't got that far)