Drooper

Aye, I think this is something few of us had considered (I count myself in that number until having taken time to reflect further on the SPL proposals). I think there is a get-out clause for all parties, here, in that they could argue (perhaps with some perverted justification), that it wouldn't be fair or reasonable to change the rules and impose them on Rangers while their situation remains unresolved - in much the same way that you couldn't have someone up for a criminal charge only to introduce a new law with which to hammer them mid-trial.

Even at 8p in the £? They might be crippled if held against Celtic, but not in relation to the rest of us diddies.

There's a fatal flaw in this reasoning, IMO. I strongly suspect (and I'm basing this on having had a lengthy discussion with a very high ranking official at an SPL club), that, as I've suggested above, any increased penalties will be introduced after the Rangers situation has played itself out. They'll use the current scenario as a 'wake up call', but won't feel the need to hammer Rangers on the basis that they can't be seen to be changing the rules as this rumbles on. That could be regarded as unfair! No, this will be whitewashed, and held up as the tipping point whereby it was decided that tougher regulations would have to be in place. Rangers (or whatever they choose to call themselves) will slither back through the door before it closes.

I've not suggested that Rangers will emerge from this without so much as a scratch, hence my use of the term 'flesh wound'. Elsewhere, I've referred to a stint on the naughty step, and such like. They will take a hit, but it will be disproportionately small when held against the extent of their apparent wrong-doing over many, many years. I have a theory as to how this is going to pan out. The SPL will dress up their collective decision to allow a Newco Rangers (assuming liquidation does ultimately occur) straight back into the league as a reasonable position as Sky have them 'between a rock and a hard place', and it is a necessary concession in order to save our game. Meantime, they'll claim that this whole scenario has been a salutary lesson for everyone, and there is now a need to press ahead with their financial fair play proposals to safeguard against future occurences - after the fact from the Rangers scenario perspective (after all, they can't move the goalposts whilst this pans out....). Rangers will take a financial hit, but they will maintain their very significant fanbase, sponsorship deals, commercial revenue, substantial cut of the TV money etc...etc... They'll be back in Europe in jig time, and everything will be as before. For a CVA, read as a similar outcome.

Oh dear, I have a horrible feeling that my worst fears will yet be realised.

Cut out all the shite you normally eat during the week, and do some exercise that you can fit into your daily routine (cycle to work/uni; run at lunchtime; go for a swim pre/post work etc.). If you can resist the tempatation to eat sweeties, cakes and other shite like that, and not drink alcohol or consume sugar-laced soft drinks during the week, then you can let yourself go a bit at the weekend. I've been doing this for a couple of years (give or take the odd lapse), and have pretty much hovered around my 'ideal' weight. I'm also fitter than I've ever been since I was a young boy. Commuting by bike is my exercise of choice, with weekend and evening rides when I get a chance. I've signed up to various sportive events in order to have a goal and a bit of achievement to look forward to, and find my mental health has improved when I'm regularly exercising. It's all about self-discipline and restraint.

And the downside is?

High farce! I'm struggling to comprehend what is going on, now. The only certainty is liquidation. Bliss.

His sister will be good for one, surely?

Where's the Monkey Man?

Well, I managed to ride 75 miles on some of the worst road surfaces known to mankind on Sunday without a puncture. Took the bike out for the first time since the weekend to ride to work and made it as far as the next street and the back tyre blew as I hit glass scattered on the road. The tyre is fucking ruined - a half-inch slash across the contact surface. This is the tyre that had been bought two weeks ago to replace a tyre that was little more than three weeks old and had been shredded by broken shells on the road (see a few posts ago). FFS, I'm seriously pissed off about this. £60 or so worth of tyres gone in the space of little more than a month. I've bitten the bullet and ordered a set of cheap wheels to fit with bombproof 25mm Conti Gatorskins (I've a set in the loft) for commuting use, while my current wheels with race tyres will be reserved for weekend rides. I'll also need to invest in another 10 speed cassette. This biking business isn't cheap, and my missus will be lynching me if I spend much more

Sorry to hear about this, mate. I hope you're on the mend soon. The silver lining, if you're in a position to regard anything as that just now, is the support you received from the club guy. I hope the police take it seriously. I think I'm now persuaded to buy a helmet cam for my commute.

You genuinely couldn't make this up. The fact that some Rangers supporters actually believe that this will constitute a new dawn and a bright, prosperous future for their club is a level of collective delusion that hasn't been witnessed since the Puerto Rican 'miracle' of 1953 (there's a very deliberate irony in this refence BTW).

We'll hopefully be arranging future rides in other areas, so should be more accessible for you and others at some point. I thoroughly enjoyed the first Scottish Bike Show sportive event yesterday. I opted for the 65 mile route, as the 100 mile alternative would have been pushing it this early in the year. That said, it was a tough route. Pretty hilly in parts (including the Duke's Pass), with some tricky road surfaces, but much of the ride was on very quiet roads, and for every climb, there was a cracking descent. My chip time was 4 hrs 41 minutes, including a couple of stops to replenish my fluids and have a banana, so probably around 4 hrs 20 minutes cycling. I'm happy enough with that given how tough the ride was. I'll certainly repeat the route again, and it might be a decent shout for a future Team P&B ride. The weather was tremendous, and some of the scenery stunning. As for the event itself, it was very well organised, with almost 1000 people taking part by all accounts. A good atmosphere with friendly banter helped, too. What was particluarly good from my perspective was that I could cycle to the start from home, and then back home again afterwards. While this added another 10 miles to the total, it was great to not have to bother faffing about getting the bike on the car and finding somewhere to park. I'd certainly recomend that people give it a go next year.

If you lived on the West Coast, you would refer to them as midges

Snap! Same story for me. I wouldn't really struggle to chuck it altogether.

Absolutely - come on guys! On other matters, the 90 mile route round the Forth looks good, and could be ideal for our big Team P&B ride. I'd be up for that.

*sighs* Are they dead yet?

As dorlomin suggests, the slipping sounds like a worn chain, worn teeth on your chainrings (or rear cassette), or possibly both. A buggered bottom bracket wouldn't tend to be intermittent, I wouldn't have thought, and this would more likely result in wobbly or seized cranks than slipping. Squeeking could be a multitutde of things. Have you had a spill recently that might have bent a disc brake rotor even a touch? The squeek might be the disc rubbing off the pads in the caliper. With rim brakes, a fouled rim (oil or general road muck) can cause squeeking also, though a clean will usually sort this out. The disc bakes on my MTB have been squeeling so loudly of late that I don't like using the damn thing at all. I've tried all manner of things to sort this out with little success. Loose rotor bolts are often the culprit (though not in my case it would seem). If you are getting strange new noises, it is worth checking all your bolts are tight. It's worth doing this perdioically in any event, especially when MTB takes a lot of punishment. The last thing you need is something working loose when you're riding downhill at 30+ mph!

I hope to fuck this cunt self-harms, cause I've started doing just that after watching this. Words genuinely fail me.

That does look pretty good, and at a very decent price. I might consider investing in one of those.

If you roll up on the day, it's an extra 2 quid (assuming it is not fully subscribed which I would doubt). Might be worth it to wait and see what the weather looks like. Give me a shout if you fancy it.

As is my steed (black, white and red)! ETA: apologies - I always forget to multiquote.

In answer to your questions: 1) No, but too many near misses to count; 2) I've given this some thought. A half decent camera would probably set you back £100 or so, and I'm not sure if I can justify that, however tempting it is.