Sharkbait, where did you get it done?

Musically, Andy Kershaw was the most interesting for me. Really came across as a nice bloke with a very humane spirit. It was recorded before things went a bit pear shaped for him.

I know several rich people who have been kept poor by horses. But as a friend the major difficulty has been the smell that pervades everything. Cars, kit, sheds, everything gets infused with the musty odour of horse shite and dried stable. The feed even stinks. Everything is up a level from the balanced personality and lifestyle of us mountain bikers. And if its your own you can’t just put it away for a couple of days after you’ve fallen off, and you will! You have to go and feed it and then clear up the proceeds. Enjoy!

Alan & Lynne are friends who run a very nice place just out of Bourg d’Oisan. They are great people and frighteningly fit cyclists (on and off road) and skiers. They did the Marmotte in the dark! Its ideally situated for several different climbs and routes.

Not good with the linky thing but this is the address: http://www.bourgdoisansbandb.com

Le Velo Jaune Chambres d’ Hotes
Le Clapier
38520
Bourg d’Oisans

eBay is the answer. Met a guy on the train a couple of months ago who made a living trading scientific equipment. He was off to collect a microscope he had just bought for £3.5k. Was a thoroughly nice chap.

Yoghurt! Dessert? What you really need is a proper pudding like spotted dick and custard!

Humfff. It’s proof that Berkhamstead is a cultural dessert. Giving talentless scroungers is a waste of the licence payers fee and only slightly better than endless repeats of the Clitheroe Kid.

Was thinking bridges yunki, but stairs will do. Great photo!

Frank- plenty of bravado, surprisingly little self pity, mainly cause death seems to have been so brutal to some in the group.
All the women tactfully withdrew (something we never did) so that we could do the who would we stalk on Facebook if we were it literate enough.
Amazingly not a car crash yet.

Well! No old flames…….. Copious amounts of liquid and a very nice meal. I suppose we have met about 3 or 4 times each in that time. Some amazing similarities, some shared experience some spoky coincidences. Varying from ( and bearing in mind this is a group of 12) two deaths – at 49 and 58, offspring dieing, fortunes made and lost, fortunes made, relationships tried and tested, relationships tried and failed, health good and bad.
I’m really glad Mrs Wingnuts is coming tomorrow so all the who did you shag stuff is done and the quality of our characters is shining through.
Made me realise that our personalities probably are set at 17 years of age!
Been a top night and only two bottles of Glen Livet have been involved so far.
Tomorrow we visit the campus. And Mrs W arrives. Will I be sober and will they react well when they realise she is a v black Jamaican . I predict they will love her and say I’m a waste of space.

Agree with zippy and hora, but mine would have had to wait 20 years. Still its been worth it!

Thats the same for me. Mrs W is desperate to turn me into Fred Astair. Had a couple of lessons and I suspect sustained campaign in the next few weeks. May have to fall over something soon to develop an intermittent injury.

Mrs. W has had two. The first was a diesel One and pathetic. Ok mpg but lacked guts and didn’t do justice to the name. After a couple of years away from that she badgered me into releasing funds for another. This time we trotted off to BMW Mini and she picked out a couple…… based on colour. You have to understand that she will offer more than the asking price if it’s what she wants and I realised that I had to get her away quickly.
With her out of the way I returned to the showroom and preceded to negotiate. I felt violated when I came away with only £500 off the screen price of £16k! Anyway it was a 1600 diesel in cooper trim/tune. So once we get past the chocolate body with candy bonnet stripes and toffee leather seats with vanilla piping it’s a really nice car……. if you are the driver.
Good build quality, handling and economy. But if you have low profile wheels/tyres the ride is rough in the extreme as a passenger. BMW are servicing pillagers and will suggest that you buy a new car rather than inflate the tyres to the correct pressure.
So in summary. A nicely built car with little rear space that is good fun to drive. Middling running costs if you resist main dealer pressure and yes I’m happy we got it. Is it worth 3 times my Alfa 159 ….. no way.

Mrs wingnuts has had two, and they turned out to be completely different beasts. The first was a One with the original 1400 engine. It was a turgid affair and while I liked the handling the power output was non existent. The mpg was ok as I recall. After a break of two years she has got another. Its the 1.6 in Cooper trim/tune. Much more fun with a much more responsive engine/power output (but am sure a good petrol boy racer would see it off). Its got ultra low profile tyres which while making it fun to drive make it bloody uncomfortable as a passenger. 45mpg driven enthusiastically, 55 on a run. I’d have the Cooper with I was always the driver or I’d make sure it had normal wheels. Don’t go to BMW as they are servicing rip off artists.

Mrs W was shouting something similar at the screen last night! Keeping a safe distance from the tele by being in the kitchen I to have no idea why either. So those who contaminated their souls by watching it should explain …

I’ve got one (not this model though) and it’s bloody good. Only issue is the cost. By the time they get over here and the customs have got you and the vat etc it’s not a good choice. I’m looking at a UK import arrangement I’m so impressed.

Its interesting that Sean Yates (whatever you think of him) says nobody at sky/British cycling knows nothing about cycling. While that’s obviously not true about track and generally the grand tours I do think they lack nous at the one day events generally. Why do we try to control the race from the start? It plays into everybody else’s hands and we aren’t able to respond when it kicks off. It’s almost as though if we aren’t in absolute control we don’t know what to do.

Wafers!!!!!!!!!! The wife never knows they’ve been in the house. However are a real side ball.

Glad Wiggo showed strongly at the finish. Now for the road race. If a Brit is denied (and I don’t care who it is) I’d like to see Sparticus put them all to the sword.

Have been a Giro user for years. Normally Atmos. However I had to get another when I forgot to pack one on a trip. I bought an Endura Snype. Much more of what I think you’re after and I’m impressed with it. Good fit, good looks, and good value.

Some big decisions here! Does she know yet? How brave are you? I’d be getting a very very expensive metal detector and offering to solve youth unemployment by organising a mass lifelong search.
There is always a random chance though. I once lost a phone out of a moving car through the open window. When I found it run over in road the sim card was missing. Couldn’t search because of traffic at the time. Went back a day later and searched. Found it in grass verge. Good luck whatever you do!

Not wishing to detract from the wonderful car/victim based stuff above I’ll just add a note about why they do it. Nothing to do with envy or who drives the car itself. Its about these people not having any power or aspiration in their lives. They’d throw a stone at a window to get a sense of achievement or reaction, but keying is easier and less effort. Its a totally unconscious action in the main. Know thats hard to except but thats the way it is. Now rant on…

There is no hiding in the pro peleton. If you ride at the front, say in the first 20 where during the first couple of hours it is pretty steady you are still exposed to the wind and it would take its toll on mere mortals like us. If you ride at the back you may gain some advantage in terms of shelter, but it is more than made up for by the sprinting out of the corners. The pros go through a corner 20/30% faster than a good amateur and it is very nervous which eats up energy reserves. Like some above I’ve been quite quick in my past/youth and know I wouldn’t have lived with them. If you’re down to 7% or less body fat, can hold 25mph average for 4hrs in any terrain you would be lucky to last an hour on a real flat stage. The reality is that at the first bump and I do mean canal bridge we would be gone.

I thought that was it… East Midlands trains are dear.

Corrected profile and mailed you.

Decathlon Tarps by the barrow load here! Email to arrange if you want me to post you one. Me – MK you – where?

No idea myself but I can put you in touch with an old boy who does. He has a lot (vast amounts) of experience in restoring these machines. However he is absolutely no interwebby type experience so if you want a conversation mail me (in profile) and I’ll get him to contact you.

Rusty… Fags, mags is perfect radio and shouldn’t go to the box.

Not keen on the radio show but it might work better on the box in a pained David Brent sort of way.

Another satisfied Torm customer here

Do women ever have 40th birthdays? Mine has been 38 for years.

Basic and often smell of smoke as the French still seem to tolerate it anywhere, but always been accommodating when we’ve used them. Last one we did they gave us an extra room for the bikes…. free, and then a bottle of wine cause the manager had worked in Hartlepool for a couple of years. (Shocked cause I wasn’t aware of anyone working in Hartlepool) Think it might depend on whether you’re on a very popular route or not. We weren’t.

On the basis of “everyone should own an Alfa at sometime” I bought a 159 in February as a stop gap. It was a good price and seemed genuine. 2.4 diesel saloon. Cheap because it was due a cam belt change. So I’ve spent £1000 or so on servicing, belt, tyres etc at a local Alfa independent and that probably takes it to a faction over list but I’m content that its sound now.

And here it comes – I regret buying it. As I said it was a stop gap while looking for a new estate. I should have got a Sports wagon. I love it. Its the best looking thing in the car park and makes you want to drive. Relaxing and engaging to drive. It really does make you smile. Yes its thirsty when pushed and sometimes the warning lights come on at start up. Turn off and start again and there is nothing there. Happens once a fortnight at most.

I’m going to keep this until I find a replacement wagon which probably won’t be any more bike friendly than what I’ve got really. Or get another, but I’m in for Alfa action from now on.

Do it, its the way you will want to be treated when you get there. Never expect anything.

The godfather of my kids helped an old fella over ten years including odd cups of tea and occasional meals. Nothing major but he did help him move to sheltered accommodation when the time came. He lived with newspaper on the kitchen floor and in what seemed to be straightened circumstances. After he died he got a call from the solicitor who said that my mate was the main beneficiary in the will. The other turned out to my mates wife. They got £360k!

“you must of been speeding to stay with me……. so I’m making a citizens arrest!”

Got a friend riding it on his BMW at this very moment. Left here and will be in Bejing in a couple of weeks time.

If its for the spectators then some reggae to provide the carnival/festival vibe

When the kids were young there was always the “are we home yet?” question.
So we developed their recognition of landmarks and ended up with water towers being the key feature of knowing how far it was to go. The kids took ownership of them by giving them names. We still refer to them like this 20 years later .

Fisik also do a test thing with some dealers so you can try them out.

I’m a Fisik Arione fan. On all my road bikes now and done 120 miles continuos on it last summer on the Dunwich Dynamo. For comparison I use a Ghobi and Flite on the off road bikes.