Category: Words

This is pretty neat although not as flexible as it could be in terms of being able to customise it to fit into websites. I’ve added it to the sidebar in the racing section of the website. If you still haven’t dug deep to sponsor us, please feel free to do so now.

There’s lots of stuff on you tube including a few biking videos. This one is particularly interesting if you stick it out to the end, because in all honesty the beginning is quite dull.

This one’s for Jed and Tyrrell. A bunch of guys down at the rifle range with a .577 T-Rex rifle, which it seems has quite a kick. Watch these people make fools of themselves trying to shoot it. Remember even Commandos need to pick their LZs carefully. Sarge! We’re pinned down and we can’t move!

For the followers of world politics, remember George W Bush was accepted into Yale University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1968. Here’s a video montage of the president of the most powerful country in the world in action.

Finally Travis Pastrana is one crazy mo’fo. That’s a double back flip off a kicker on his second run on a motocross bike. Skills to pay the bills for sure.

Met up with Neil and Lardy again this morning an Neil’s mate Dave who lives just down the road from me was out for a ride too. Out of Marple and over to the Goyt Valley for a five hour ride in the hills with well over 1,100m of climbing.

It was a great day out with clear blue skies and a chilly start disappeared as we warmed up. After a hearty lunch outside the Beehive Inn, we headed up and over to Whaley Bridge and then motorwayed it along the canal back to Marple.

Unfortunately for Dave, he was riding a bit close behind me and wasn’t really on the ball. Head down an focused he clipped a branch on the towpath and went for a brief and cold swim in the canal. Brrrr. Time to up it a couple of gears and get home quick.

Today was the first proper ride of the year. The daily commute into work just doesn’t cut it as a proper ride. It’s just a fairly monotonous and dull route into work that is only made more interesting by the attempts of motorists to add another kill marking to the wing of their car. This weeks special was an elderly chinese woman driving a Skoda saloon whose inability to hold her line on a round about almost but me into the Armco.

The plan was to meet up with Tyrrell and ride the river run out past Reddish Vale and then to stop of at the Jodhpur Café for a brew and a bacon and mushroom sandwich before riding home. It was decided that 10am was a fair time to meet so, this morning I left home about 9.30am and span over to our meeting spot near Jackson’s Boat on the banks of the Mersey.

After waiting for half an hour it was clear that some fate had befallen my riding partner and today was going to be a solo run. The river run is to the uninitiated a fairly uninteresting route. Over the last five or six years improvement by the local councils have only served to eliminate any of the interesting bits of singletrack by making them into ‘proper’ trails or by passing them altogether and them falling into disrepair. It’s an undeniably flat for the majority of it’s length, although there are a few little rises over spurs in the river valley if you venture up and off the rivers double levees.

It was on today’s ride over one of these small rises that I managed to run over a dog. Not some little terrier, but a full on sheepdog. The owners were it seems just about to launch a tennis ball for it and in anticipation the canine was belting it full tilt down the trail looking behind it to identify the moment of launch. Unfortunately the hurtling hound found itself to be wedged under the front wheel of the singlespeed seconds later and was obviously completely startled by the whole thing. A brief chat with the owners followed in which we joked about the whole thing after checking out the dog was okay. It certainly seemed to have learned its lesson as on the way back it cowered behind the walkers as I went past.

Shortly after this there is a break in the riverbank where there is a concrete structure that houses an automated hydraulic sluice gate. This is opened during bank full conditions to flood a designated area of wasteland and golf courses to prevent flooding down stream. During the summer this is generally dry and dusty and you can whiz down it through the bottom and with enough speed going in you can generally pop a bit of air off the top on the way out.

After scoping it out from above, I anticipated that it might be a bit wet and in the past it has generally been a bit sketchy after rain so I went in reasonably quick, but not at a warp factor that would be launching me skyward on exit. Big mistake. The floor of the channel was covered in well over a foot of alluvial mud and as my front wheel rapidly disappeared into the mire I began to panic, for as the hub went under I knew what was coming next. Air time, but of the unwanted kind. Over the bars and smack down into the mud. Boy did that stuff smell. Euurrgh.

So I carried on and went as far as Ye Olde Woolpack in Stockport. It seems Smith Knight Fay have relocated their Stockport Dealership, so caked in mud and armed with the Indy Fab I went over to scout it out. Sure enough they had the new S3 in stock, a pretty mean looking black thing. All it needed was the bucket seats…
Having received some funny looks from the staff I took the hint and headed home. The rear tyre had picked up a puncture, but it was slow enough just to have generated that slight bobbing sensation you get as the tyre starts to soften and then squirm around the corners. Given the amount of drift debris on the river banks the puncture wasn’t really unexpected, but feeling cold by this point I decided that I would just pump it up and change it at home later.

After crossing the Cheadle Road and passing the health club, there is a small section of woodland. A ribbon of singletrack runs through this parallel to the more recent pushchair buggy trail and in my mind it’s a must. There are a few fallen trees along it that you have to duck under, one of which is particularly low and a real limbo job. I’d failed to clean it on the way out and was determined to give it ago on the way back.

Check the speed. Check the angle of approach to get maximum headroom. Off the saddle crouched down to one side of the bike as low as I can go. Entry. We’re through…Yay…Whhhoooaaa….WTF?….Oooommmph. Down like a sack of spuds. That’ll be mistake number too then. Seems the backpack caught on the tree and flipped me off the back of the bike and hit me down flat on my back like some wrestling move. Damn I really should learn. Trees don’t move.

Went and played “Big Screen Bingo” on Tuesday night at the Trafford Centre’s Odeon. It was a pilot for a system setup by Blue Dog Inc. I must admit that I wasn’t too enthusiastic about the suggestion to go, but in retrospect it tunred out to be a great night out and fairly good entertainment. In honesty I have to say scooping £100 in prizes including the only full house of the night was an added bonus and may have gone some way to the ‘that was good’ view on things. I’d definitely go again.

Is there a reason that people choose to ride to work in the middle of winter? Today one word describes tonights commute home in the cold wet rain and grime: Grim. Still there’s always the possibility that tomorrow will be better and it is training isn’t it?

The George Bush & Son design is available in a fetching women’s t-shirt design and most appropriate kitchen/workshop apron from the Hemp Trading Company down in Bristol, along with other modern classics like Smoke Bush, Not Afghan. I like their Statue of Terror design too.

It’s a New Year and whilst I am looking forward to what is ahead at the moment things are far from rosy in the rothar.com headquarters. Here’s a cool fly through of a large part of the Valais region in Switzerland from You Tube. Talking of which I am not sure Bono and the boys would above of the George W Bush take on the classic Sunday Bloody Sunday. Speaking of which, this was posted by Nick at the other place. Nice.

I have decided that Cateye Stadiums are evil. This decision is based on the ability of the ballast to really scratch the hell out of expensive paintwork. Fortunately rothar.com stickers are the right shade of black and size to cover up light user ineptitude. It’s also partly based on the fact that they’re so bright. Any Scotchlite fabric ahead of you lights up like a Christams tree. I guess that means they can see you coming?

All considered however commuting is ace. I must admit I have become a bit of a centre line rider. Having danced with death on too many occassions riding in the gutter I now feel it’s better to ride the centre line to over take traffic and avoid being killed by people travelling in the same direction as you or turning left across you (trying to squeeze you out). the only thing to watch out for is on coming traffic. The stadium (not aimed at them) seems to let them know I’m inbound. The only problem with this technique are the loons trying to do u turns without signalling.

here. There are more pictures here too.

From: Tyrrell
Subject: These are great !!!!!!!

MIKE Hallett on Sky Sports discussing snooker during a match where Steve Davis kept missing easy pots “Stephen Hendry jumps on Steve Davis’s misses every chance he gets.”

MICHAEL Buerk watching Phillipa Forrester cuddle up to a male astronomer for warmth during BBC1’s UKeclipse coverage remarked: “They seem cold out there, they’re rubbing each other and he’s only come in his shorts.”

STEVE Ryder covering the USMasters: “Ballesteros felt much better today after a 69.”

Ken Brown commentating on golfer Nick Faldo and his caddie Fanny Sunneson lining-up shots at the Scottish Open: “Some weeks Nick likes to use Fanny, other weeks he prefers to do it by himself.”

JACK Burnicle was talking about Colin Edward’s tyre choice on World Superbike racing: “Colin had a hard on in practice earlier, and I bet he wished he had a hard on now.”

WINNING Post’s Stewart Machin commentating on jockey Tony McCoy’s formidable lead: “Tony has a quick look between his legs and likes what he sees.”

ROSS King discussing relays with champion runner Phil Redmond: “Well Phil, tell us about your amazing third leg.”

DURING the 1989 British Masters golf tournament, the commentator observed:”Notices are appearing at courses telling golfers not to lick their balls on the green.”

CLAIR Frisby talking about a jumbo hot dog on Look North said: “There’s nothing like a big hot sausage inside you on a cold night like this.”

JAMES Allen interviewing Ralf Schumacher at a Grand Prix, asked: “What does it feel like being rammed up the backside by Barrichello?”

THE new stand at Doncasterrace course took Brough Scott’s breath away…”My word,” he said. “Look at that magnificent erection.”

WILLIE Carson was telling Claire Balding how jockeys prepare for a big race when he said: “They usually have four or five dreams a night about coming from different positions.”

USPGA Commentator – “One of the reasons Arnie (Arnold Palmer) is playing so well is that, before each tee shot, his wife takes out his balls and kisses them…. Oh my god! What have I just said?”

David Coleman at the Montreal Olympics – “And there goes Juantorena down the back straight, opening his legs and showing his class.”

Metro Radio – “Julian Dicks is everywhere. It’s like they’ve got eleven Dicks on the field.”

Harry Carpenter at the Oxford-Cambridge boat race 1977 – “Ah, isn’t that nice. The wife of the Cambridge President is kissing the Cox of the Oxfordcrew.”

Ted Walsh- Horse Racing Commentator – “This is really a lovely horse. I once rode her mother.”

New ZealandRugbyCommentator – “Andrew Mehrtens loves it when Daryl Gibson comes inside of him.”

Pat Glenn- Weightlifting commentator – “And this is Gregoriava from Bulgaria. I saw her snatch this morning and it was amazing!”

(non sports) Chris Tarrant discussing the first Who wants to be a Millionaire winner Judith Keppel on This Morning: “She was practising fastest finger first by herself in bed last night.”

I think because it’s Christmas and the Ski Season is here I have been thinking about some one I met once who was a real character. One of those people you only meet once, but always remember. John Wilhelmsson (aka Swedish John) was a close friend of my mate  Chris Thorne. He was tragically killed in late February 2006. He was an extremely talented skier and photographer. Check out his memorial website to remember some of his great work. Chris Patient sums him up:

I first met John in Zermatt in the early 90s. I was impressed by his fast and fearless skiing. He could throw progressive manoeuvres with very little air and he would seek out the sickest cliff drops. As a skier, he was ahead of his time. Furthermore, his skiing buddy was a snowboarder, which for me – a confirmed ‘old schooler’ – seemed to open my mind a little.

John Wilhelmsson soon became my top ski model. He was my first front cover, and he was always full of ideas and new energy. Together, we had many memorable powder days (exploring Zermatt’s off-piste and shooting photos) in the early days before fat skis came in.          One day, John told me he was going to jump a huge ice cliff whether or not I photographed it. I was worried about the jump especially when I saw how flat the landing was. But John was undeterred. I shall never forget seeing him hurtling through over 18 metres of space and landing on his back. I never did get the photo published, and John sustained internal injury as a result. I think he calmed down after that.

Today, John continues to show a skier’s enthusiasm and a sense for the unusual now that he has joined the ranks as a lense man. For me, he is not only a briliant photographer, but a friend and confidante and a continued source of inspiration.