Mixed feelings about this one. Its the village I grew up in so know the site and especially those woods incredibly well and would love to able to live someday so I took it a bit personally that he built something rather underwhelming on such a lovely site.

Also from a professional perspective have some slight questions about a raft foundation on what’s typically a fairly high plastic clay. The wifes an architect and she started rolling her eyes at the lack of drawings.

TPbiker, it does sound like it might not agree with you and maybe worth another consult? There’s so many options now so bound to be one that works.  Iv found after about 2 weeks its started to noticeably level me out and allow me to start actually trying to get to the bottom of the root case and deal with things better.  Iv been doing an online CBT program via work as well which I think has been useful, can you access anything like that?

Iv had a few beers since starting and bit found that to be to much of an issue. I was on Fluoxetine at university many years ago for a bit and I found that interacted really weirdly with drink so the sertraline is a bit of a relief.

Been on 50mg for about 3 weeks now so early days but never had tingles. I did have really disturbed sleep and a bit of insomnia for about the first 10 days but that seems to have died down a bit now.

Glorious gravel on the south downs…. hope you have the mud tires ready ha…..

It has the slight feel of the old Mountain Cycle San Andreas and similar frames. Hideous then and also hideous now….. although suspect this rides better!

I think we will be taking a pretty big hit from this. Luckily my teams exposure isn’t that bad anymore (this time last year would have been a very different story) but the wider company was still doing a decent amount of design work for them.

As others have said though, not the greatest to work with/for sometimes but it’s a crappy situation.

Iv just been signed up to do the Medio fondo so a mere 157km….. I definitely couldn’t do either the distance or the climbing right now so will need to get some training in!

From speaking to a few guys I know the big route is amazing but absolutely brutal, especially if the weather is remotely Welsh on you.

Corfe is just a bit magical especially when you see it from a distance through the gap in the ridge.  Honourable mention to my local castle Arundel which is also pretty damn cool and in really good condition as it’s still partially occupied.

It being tied up to road schemes isn’t perfect but its a lot easier to integrate a decent path into a new road that retrofit onto our existing roads.  When I lived in Perth (the hot version) I was really surprised how good the cycling infrastructure was as Australians seem to hate cyclists even more than we do + its blinking warm. BUT, pretty much any major road that gets built or any piece of major infrastructure at all has cycling provision built into it.  All of the freeways have some degree of traffic free bike path and the rail lines as well which are pretty handy.

That apple test… Like can people really properly ‘see’  the apple? That’s mind blowing to me really.  I think my inner monologue is pretty much yeah its an apple, trust me….. but nowt visual in the slightest.

The long term memory is weird.  I couldnt picture anything about where I grew up but I could write down a description and I can still find my way around the woods I grew up in pretty much without trying.

Its proper weird how the brain works. My other word mental trick which if its related to the Aphantasia I have no idea is that i’m a REALLY fast reader, like twice/three times faster than pretty much anyone I have ever met.  Was a issue at school especially when we did group or class reading and the teachers were convinced I wasn’t reading at all.

The clients binners mentions who wouldnt be able to visualise a new typeface. That would 100% be me. Unless I can actually see it in front of me it might as well just be guesswork.

I was equally baffled when I realised people could actually ‘see’ images in there minds. I’m on the far end of the spectrum for it and have pretty much no ability to visualise at all. I thought it was just a figure of speech.  It may be related but especially as an adult I don’t retain any memories of dreams etc (I assume I have them?).

Its caused me a few issues in my chosen field as being able to visualise stuff as a geologist is kinda handy. I just sketch stuff a lot.

Weirdly I do have an really really good sense of directions / spatial mapping but its all I guess instinctive? as I’m absolutely terrible at explaining a route.

I do have an active internal monologue though, so that’s something.

I had one as a child and absolutely loved it.  Filled it with a mix of mystery cornish rocks and the odd bag of rough tumble mix a shop in St Ives used to sell and had some pretty good results.  I am still (for my sins) a practicing geologist so it didnt put me off.

Serpentine is lovely stuff but it might not tumble that well as its pretty soft. Boring H&S hat on as well, it can rarely be a bit asbestiform so maybe a quick dad inspection prior to it all coming home  (I found a few VERY questionable samples from various fieldtrips when picking up my old rock collection from the parents)

If your ever in Sussex its really worth a visit and even better if you camp (the campsites really lovely).  We have been quite a few times (although trickier now as its a child free campsite) and its a magical magical place.  If you grew up in the countryside it kinda feels like that magical version of it that existed when you were small, full of rustling bushes and bugs and butterflies.  Also two pretty good pubs nearby and a fancy fancy farmshop now.

Iv had carbons (some x-lite things from Planet x) and the brother steels and other than the carbons looking cooler and being lighter found very little difference. Steel usually cheaper especially if you want bosses for cages etc.  I sat on the train this morning opposite a bloke with some Lauf forks and I’m now kinda curious. Looked a lot less odd in the flesh than I expected (not cheap mind!)

I have watched my parents house gradually sucumb to clutter over the years and recognise the same tendencies in myself. I’m a bit of a sucker for things but they and be fairly ruthless with them. If it’s not something I regularly think about (unless it’s specifically seasonal) then it goes. When we moved back from Oz it was really lovely as we had slimmed out lives right down to what we would pay to ship. It’s bloated since though :(

Iv got (well its on loan to a mate) a 20 year old Super Galaxy and there is a reason they are popular. Its just a really easy to live with, effective and really quite fun bike to ride.  The only thing that’s ever been replaced on mine other than consumables is the rear wheel and that’s mostly because I used to use it as a quasi gravel bike around the Chilterns long before that was a ‘thing’.  Older Scwhalbe Marathons are almost indestructible but also the heaviest deadest thing ever attached too a road bike.

Showed this thread to the wife who is an architect, south coast fancy residential now but background in larger commercial. She had pretty much used Revit exclusively since uni and it’s definitely gotten her jobs. When we moved here from Australia most of the recruiters asked her to take a Revit skill assesment before they would take her on.

That Salmon bothy looks amazing but I think is maybe a bit further north than ideal (driving up from the south coast!)

Stanton Sedona could be right up your street?

I’m pretty sure my college did coach trips to a selection of open days, so no parents!  I remember thinking how lovely Bristol looked in the sun, the downs must be a lovely place to relax etc…. Little did I realise that the truth was far far wetter and muddier and the Downs was actually closer to the trenches, but with more dogging and muggings.

Probably ride up the Trundle (hillfort thing behind town) with a beer and watch the sunset and then ride back the scenic route.  Usually a small crowd up there but its a gorgeous spot on a sunny evening.

Looks like the women have hit the big classic road gap now which is pretty awesome.  I reckon the canyon gap will be sorted for next year and pretty epic..  See if Brendan wants to flip it like his rampage canyon gap ha.

Stanton Sedona… I want one because it sounds like an absolute hoot and does probably only make sense as a n+1 bike.

I am slightly wondering if selling my BFe was a mistake. Didn’t think I needed two hardtails and the Scandal is arguably more suited to the riding I do…. but the BFe was bloody brilliant.

Tides…. just the moon right? and that opens a rabbit hole of 1 or 2 a day, why some places don’t have them and urgh. Turns out it’s quite complex.

Ride out past the fishing lakes onto the Manhood Peninsula last night and it seems the swifts have all turned up and were having a bug feast. Brilliant birds they are just screaming around the sky like absolute hooligans.

Saw first pair of swifts in Chichester yesterday amd heard a Cuckoo last weekend up near Lechlade (first one iv heard in years to be fair).

Looks like Evie Richards is out with concussion symptoms which is a massive shame.I suspect the obvious name missing being referred to might be Tom Pidcock.

And if you get tired of it…. can sell it to me in a few years when we move back ha.

High lift jacks look the part but can be bloody deadly as well. It’s a bit like the classic do a skills course comment on here but a basic 4wd drive course is a)good fun and b)good for confidence when you inevitably get bogged.

We had courses through work. I still got bogged….

If you do go for it. Buy a compressor and a really good digital gauge. Single most important thing for mucking about on sand tracks is getting it right down low (and back up for when you want to go to Coles!)

Brilliant things in the right environment. We typically used 100 series for work when I dug holes in the Pilbara. They are a bit basic on the road and have the turning radius of a small country.
How well do you know the guy selling this as it sounds like an absolute bargain….

My little one has just started nursery last week…. I’m now coughing up chunks from a bad b movie and lost my voice….

I’m quite keen on that XC dynamo wheelset.  If they do it in a 650 setup would look awfully nice on my Faran.

Theres some really really good hiking. I think I did something called the dragons back? also eat all of the food, it’s amazing. This admittedly was pre china crackdown so I’d imagine its changed a bit for the worse.

I tend to add fish sauce to taste towards the end instead of soy (that’s on the table to add if required)

I still have slight PTSD from a Kingley Vale ride where both wheels locked up with chalk goop.  I think I pushed to the bottom, had a cry and called the wife for a pickup….. it was genuinely dreadful.

Adding Milky way onto my mental map. Quite fancy a Petersfield back home to Chichester route via as much of the S Downs as I can and iv not been up that climb.  I might ride up on sat morning to check conditions but it will be hideous wont it :(