Drooper

Blowing a gale today, so I won't be venturing out. I'll be emailing Skinny Tyres this week to find out if they could co-ordinate a group run for Team P&B, and how much this might cost. I'll explain my thinking on this a bit later (can't be arsed with long posts from the phone). This is simply an option for us to consider, mind. Any other ideas are, as always, most welcome. I also need to get the PM system for communication up and running. Finally, I'll make some tentative enquiries about getting jerseys printed up with costings.

I went out, too. 20 miles at most, and was blowing out my arse on the ascent home

I reckon the notion of high street 'sales' is now a bit disingenuous. As you say, shop around online and can find better deals at any time throughout the year. You lose the hands-on element, but I can live with that. I'm awaiting delivery of a pair of Specialized shoes and a Charge saddle - both with very decent discounts, and I got exactly what I was after. It is a bit of a pity that the High St stores are taking a real hit from online retailing, but it is the reality now.

Good spot RB - that saves me wrapping up any more pressies for a while!

Wiggins to win yellow would be superb. No need for a preference.... let's have both!

GO CAV!!!! ETA: A stunning result when you look at the share of the vote - 1 Cavendish 169,152 (49.47%) 2 Clarke 42,188 (12.34) 3 Farah 29,780 (8.71)

Cycled into work this morning. Took the road bike because it was easiest to extricate from the shed. The ride in was uneventful, and quite enjoyable despite the smirry rain. Sometimes it's a case of forcing yourself to get out there, but I'm always glad (and a wee bit smug) when I do.

Sod the turbo trainer, I hear there are guys on here who can source you some kickin' roids! Yeeeeeeeeehaaaaaa!!!

As long as you enjoyed yourself I've bitten the bullet and brought the turbo trainer up from my mother-in-law's. It hasn't been used since my father-in-law passed away over 3 years ago, but looks in decent enough nick. I've stuck an old QR skewer on it and will give it a try during the week. It looks hellishly dull, but better than nothing as the local roads about here are still pretty dodgy.

Amen to that. It is much harder to motivate yourself to get out during the winter, but the shorter daylight hours limit the scope and make it too easy not to bother. My intention has been to continue commuting on the bike in all but the very worst winter weather, but the knee injury and abysmal weather of late has scuppered that. It will be great to get out for a right good run at the weekend or early evening again, just for the bloody enjoyment of it.

I took the road bike out today for a short spin. First time out since I took a spill and buggered my knee the best part of 6 weeks ago. I had no intention of trying anything too ambitious as the main object of the exercise was to....well, get a bit of exercise and fresh air, but mainly to see how the knee held up. I was due to attend a physio appointment for an assessment of the knee on Friday but work scuppered that. I was suffering from cabin fever and decided to throw caution to the wind and take the bike out anyway. Surprisingly enough, the knee held up pretty well, even on the monstrous hill on the return leg home. I can't say the same about my fitness level, though. 15 miles (if that), and I was blowing out my arse and actually wheezing like an octogenarian who smokes 60 a day at one point. FFS, that was a bit demoralising, but that feeling is outweighed by the pleasure of just getting back out there. The bike didn't miss a beat, right enough. I'm really missing my routine rides on the road bike but this wee spin has ensured that there is no danger of me falling out of love with my new found passion. Time to build some momentum for Team P&B! I'll set up a block PM list this week and start to gather a few ideas for the New Year. We would welcome any more interest from anyone looking to join in. This is very much a case of the more the merrier

I know the feeling mate. This is my 5th week without taking the bike out following my spill and knee injury. I've got a physio appointment on Friday as this isn't clearing up too well. That said, I would have went out for a trial ride if the weather hadn't been so hellish. I'm now suffering from severe withdrawals, and the pounds are sneaking back on

That'll be a pair I'd imagine. TT might mean they are time trial specific. Not sure if this would be an issue if they are, but, at a guess, they could be superlight and possibly less durable? I have the HD version, ZX possibly? Fantastic tyres, IMO. You can pick them up for around £30 each online. Well worth the extra few quid over most others.

Schwalbe Ultremos - the mutt's nuts

This will always be a tough one. The roads in Renfrewshire and Inverclyde were woeful at times, and I noticed this was picked up in several reviews of the Glasgow 100. The problem is that there aren't many decent organised rides to choose from in Scotland. There are literally hundreds dahn saff, but for some reason we've been a bit slow on the uptake. The Etape Caledonia looks like a great ride but was sold out months ago, much to my frustration, as I'd hoped to sign up for it, and will definitely do so in 2013. The Pedal for Scotland looks okay, but is later in the year. An alternative is to approach an organisation like Skinny Tyres, and see if they schedule some longish routes. I thought of dropping them an email to see what they offer in terms of single day rides. If anyone has suggestions in terms of rides that we could look into, please post them. It might be worth doing this pretty soon, as the best rides can become fully subscribed quite quickly. Another I'd looked at last year was a 100 mile route that crosses the border in a loop, and meets another ride that starts in England and crosses into Scotland. IIRC, the Scottish route starts in North Berwick or thereabouts. Does anyone have any other suggestions or general ideas?

About 20 years ago, having graduated with a useless social science degree (or the Dusty Bin award as I preferred to refer to it as ), I resigned myself to having to do a bit of voluntary work in order to stand any chance of getting a job so I could feel good about contributing to society in a selfless manner. Alzheimer Scotland had a day centre in Riccartsbar Avenue in Paisley at the time, so I thought I'd give that a go a couple of days a week. On my first morning, after being introduced to some of the staff, it was suggested that I go out in the bus to collect the clients from around Paisley and surrounding areas. As we collected folks with varying degrees of dementia, I was settling into it, and becoming less freaked out. Some of the folk were still functioning at a reasonable level, and I managed to strike up a bit of chat now and again. In Foxbar, we collected a wee woman called Mary. Mary seemed a cheery enough type and opted to sit at the front of the bus with the driver, the support escort, and me. She was a bit of a blether, and I switched off after a while. Back at the centre, we had a tea break mid-morning and I sat with the others in the staff room. The centre manager asked how I'd found the bus run that morning. Fine, I replied, it was interesting to note the different levels of dementia that the folks had, and how some still managed to communicate pretty well. Wee Mary, for example, the bold Drooper continued, she was able to blether away quite the thing, though you could tell that she wasn't that well and struggled a bit at times. The room went a bit quiet, and the manager spoke first.... Mary's the cook.

Moderate undulations I believe....

On possible rides, I've been looking at the Action Medical Research, Trossachs Ton on 17th June: http://www.action.org.uk/trossachs_ton There are two options - a 100 mile route, and an alternative 100Km route. The routes start together and split some way in, so even if a few members of the group prefer to opt for one over the other, we'd all be riding a fair bit of the route together. AMR is a charity specifically aimed at raising funds for kids medical research etc. What I have noticed this year, however, is that there is an option to enter without committing to raise the minimum sponsorship of £30. This increases the entry fee from £28 to £50 right enough, but allows for people to either raise money for another cause (the £50 entry includes a donation to AMR in any event) or not to look for sponsorship at all. My thoughts are that if we are forming Team P&B for the ride - and hopefully a few more besides - then it would be worthwhile trying to raise a few quid, and this was how I presented the idea to Div. I'm easy as to how and for what cause we might be looking to raise money. The Trossachs Ton might sound a bit heavy duty, but after I finished the Glasgow 100 mile route this year, I got talking to a guy who had entered the Trossachs ride and found the Glasgow 100 route a good bit tougher. I managed to complete the Glasgow 100 without too much difficulty and I'm hardly Marco Pantani, so I'm sure with a bit of preparation and training we could complete one of the two routes on offer. As MonkeyBlair suggested earlier in the thread, I'll start PMing on this soon, but I'm keen to rope in as many folk as might be up for it, so I'm keeping this on the open boards for now. I'd invite any thoughts as to the Trossachs Ton, any other ride options, and other suggestions and thoughts on a more general level that you might have. Cheers Drew

Bump! Div has got back to and is more than happy for us to get together under the P&B banner. In fact, he has very kindly offered to throw in a hundred quid for post-ride 'refreshments' after we complete our sportive ride next year! A great gesture on the part of the gaffer I've read the posts from Unleash the Nade and The Master above, and can appreciate where both are coming from. I've swithered about joining a club, but I'm unlikely to in the final analysis, as I like to do things on my own terms. I can certainly see the benefits of group riding - camaraderie, safety, motivation, pushing yourself etc. - but I've never been one for joining in with anything too regimented. My personal thoughts were that we were looking to get together on a purely social basis, and the idea of Team P&B grew from a post made earlier in the thread. I see it more as a wee tag for an occasional get-together, as opposed to a club as such. I don't envisage there being any competitive element, and, for me, the very purpose of getting together is to ensure that everyone enjoys the experience and isn't excluded due to age, ability, fitness, or riding skills. As UtN says, we need to plan a route, but I don't think we need to worry too much about club riding etiquette. If we aren't looking to challenge Cav and Wiggins for a place in Team GB, then I reckon we won't need to worry about wiping each other out on the road. TBH, I'm not overly keen on tagging along on an established club ride. Again, this is my personal position. Indeed, I see the whole notion of Team P&B as a bit of a carry on, albeit one with consideration to safety very much in there. For me, it would be enough to initially meet up at a relatively central location having agreed a route of, say 40 - 50 miles. We take it easy on relatively quiet roads, and get a sense of how we function as a group. It is accepted that we're all novices and won't be trying to come out on top. Ultimately, we could aim to sign up for a sportive event later in the year, and get together having had a couple of preliminary rides for fun. We could then look at sponsorship under the Team P&B banner, and take it from there. Again, and this is very much my own thoughts for further discussion, I'm for keeping this nice and simple. I fancy getting a Team P&B jersey made up and will be looking into that, but beyond that, let's not over-complicate things. What UtN is saying makes sense, though. We need to think of safety as a paramount concern, and I'm happy to take some pointers from him on this.

Aye, me too. My late father-in-law's turbo is hanging in the shed, but i can't muster up any enthusiasm for using it. Thursday will be the day I get back on the bike....3 weeks after my spill. The knee is still smarting a bit at times, but I'm scunnered with not getting out, so I'l be riding to work. Incidentally, I've not heard back from Div regarding the use of the P&B name and logo for our cycling club. Not sure what the issue is there as he's been about on here and over on B&WA. I can hardly imagine that he'll have a problem with it, though, so the next plan is to look at a central meeting point for our first ride in the Spring. My suggestion would be that we opt for the most central location for the first meet (Stirling seems a popular option in terms of being as central as anywhere, but it would be good to hear what others think), then cast the net a bit further - possibly to take in the favourite routes of some members. If we can aim to meet 4 times over the year, including a sportive ride, that wouldn't seem too ambitious. I'm happy to travel, and can provide a lift for others in my general area if we can organise a carrier etc. I'll bump the club idea a few more times then get a PM communication option up and running. Anyone else who fancies joining us can opt in as and when.

I'd agree with this. Think of it as the equivalent of an oil and filter change on the car, as opposed to simply checking the brakes and tyre pressures etc. I reckon £65 for this level of service seems pretty reasonable.

Your loss, swot!

Good to see you signing up bud! My sair knee will be but a distant memory when we are racking up that 100 in our Team P&B ride next year! Is 100 yards a bit ambitious at this stage?

But you'll be about for a Team P&B ride or two surely? Get your name down!

Good thinking that man - will sort it out once we get a few more names.