Search found 56 matches

by Eton Rifle
21 Dec 2018, 4:06pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Cycle friendly Wetherspoons
Replies: 472
Views: 46441

Re: Cycle friendly Wetherspoons

Cyril Haearn wrote:Plusminus, is it good business to express ones political views so strongly? I can imagine boycotting a business in such a situation

'He who has many enemies has many friends' might apply :?


Certainly works for me. I specifically avoid Wetherspoon's pubs to avoid contributing to the gammony idiot owner's coffers.
by Eton Rifle
18 Dec 2018, 8:11pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'
Replies: 21765
Views: 848418

Re: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'

Oldjohnw wrote:
Hello again, Dear oldjohnw, the points you cite me as having posted (post time 3-45), have never been stated by me, nor supported by me (Can I put an exclamation mark here?).


Mr Merseymouth - you claimed we were run or controlled from Europe. I asked in what way. I said certainly not in that list. So how?

You made the claim: you should back it up.


Don't hold your breath; this fantasy that the EU consists of a vast monolith of unelected beaurocrats making all the decisions is one of the most pernicious lies that Brexiters seem to have fallen for. The Economist explains it rather well here:

https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2017/07/14/does-it-make-sense-to-refer-to-eu-officials-as-unelected-bureaucrats

The reality is that the EU has less than 10% of the number of civil servants that the UK has - pretty efficient for an organisation covering 28 countries, 513 million people and a quarter of global GDP. Oh hang on, Brexiters don't do facts, do they?
by Eton Rifle
15 Nov 2018, 8:11pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'
Replies: 21765
Views: 848418

Re: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'

roubaixtuesday wrote:Raab and McVey have resigned, on the basis that the deal doesn't deliver the promised unicorns and ambrosia to the population.

McVey's letter is positively plaintive:

The proposals put before cabinet, which will soon be judged by the entire country, mean handing over around £39bn to the EU without anything in return. It will trap us in a customs union, despite you specifically promising the British people we would not be. It will bind the hands of not only this, but future governments in pursuing genuine free trade policies. We wouldn’t be taking back control, we would be handing over control to the EU and even to a third country for arbitration ...

We have gone from no deal is better than a bad deal, to any deal is better than no deal.


Brexit, meet reality.

The damage inflicted on our country by the absurd coalition of dilettantes, xenophobes and ideologues that took us here shows no sign of abating.


We really are through the looking glass now.

The irony is that the referendum outcome was largely driven by the lie that we are governed by EU rules that we have no part in making. Yet this shower of idiots have managed to 'negotiate' us into a position where we actually have to obey EU rules with no part in making them. You really couldn't make this stuff up.
by Eton Rifle
15 Nov 2018, 8:01pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'
Replies: 21765
Views: 848418

Re: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'

al_yrpal wrote:Getting control of our fisheries IS a big concern, not only for our fisherman who are all kicking up a hell of a stink at the moment supported by the vast majority of the public. If you disagree you should take a trip to Peterhead or Newlyn and spout your ludicrous unsubstantiated assertions on the quays and just see what sort of reception you get!

If the EU decide to put tarrifs on fish caught here and exported there, it is THEM who will be paying extra, not us. The alternative, no fish! Plenty of other customers out there… 27 vs 196, no contest.

Al


No it isn't. Fishing accounts for less 0.1% of GDP. It supports 15k jobs with a few more tens of thousands in the processing industry - many of them, ironically for Brexiters, held by immigrants. Fishing simply doesn't matter to any post-industrial economy, ours included.

On the other hand, Brexit will undoubtedly cause major damage to financial services, which accounts for 13% of GDP - literally 130 times more important than fishing and supports, either directly or indirectly, the entire economy of southern England.

Just another example of Brexiter economic illiteracy.
by Eton Rifle
21 Sep 2018, 10:50am
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'
Replies: 21765
Views: 848418

Re: ** The Brexit Thread ** - 'Brexit Means Brexit'

Lance Dopestrong wrote:
pete75 wrote:
Lance Dopestrong wrote:
Not me matey, or thirsty, or short of fuel or cash. Im prepped, and if it all goes smoothly then the preps wont be needed, but wont be wasted in the long term.


Yep but also lay in about 500 12 bore cartridges in case the underclass turn to violence , robbery, raping and looting. Hull Extreme BB a good bet. They'd drop a chav at 60 yards.


I do have a shotgun, but my licence doesn't allow quite that many cartridges...


Are you sure? Normally a shotgun licence allows unlimited ammunition. Restrictions only apply to section 1 ammo.
by Eton Rifle
11 Sep 2018, 10:26pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Interfering stranger lecturing my son about bike clothing
Replies: 252
Views: 10801

Re: Interfering stranger lecturing my son about bike clothing

irc wrote:Lecture? Like when I parked my bike at the pub sans helmet and on ordering my pint got a disapproving look from the barman along with a comment of "well, it's your funeral."

I couldn't be sure if it was the lack of helmet, having one pint before cycling, or the combination that would kill me and wasn't going to waste any of my time arguing about it.


To which I hope you replied "Blimey! Is your beer that bad?"

Theng you, I'm here all week...
by Eton Rifle
28 Jul 2018, 4:03pm
Forum: Cycle Camping sub-forum
Topic: "Best" panniers for cycle camping
Replies: 63
Views: 6079

Re: "Best" panniers for cycle camping

Tangled Metal wrote:Carradry version of Carradice might be a compromise?

I'm a fan of Ortliebs so can't help much but unlimited money it's arkel (lottery win permitting of course otherwise I can't justify £300+).


Just out of interest, I had a look at Arkel - they do look very nice - the classic bags especially but by God, are they heavy. A pair of T-42 Classics weighs 2.3kg against 1.68kg for a pair of Ortlieb Back Roller Plus.

I can understand the OP's frustration with 'bucket' designs but you kinda get used to keeping stuff you're likely to need during the day on top or in a bar bag. As others have noted, the drybag / stuff sack method of organisation works pretty well to keep things organised.
by Eton Rifle
28 Jul 2018, 3:02pm
Forum: Cycle Camping sub-forum
Topic: camping chair hunt
Replies: 103
Views: 20916

Re: camping chair hunt

I have three Helinox chairs, the most recent purchase being a Chair Zero, specifically for cycle touring. Really grateful for it on a recent tour in France. It is small and light, takes up very little room in a pannier, yet the seat is far enough from the ground to make it practical. So comfortable that I fell asleep in it one evening...
by Eton Rifle
12 Jun 2018, 8:30pm
Forum: Cycle Camping sub-forum
Topic: Loaded Camping Gear Weight
Replies: 92
Views: 7847

Re: Loaded Camping Gear Weight

ossie wrote:Someone mentioned the Helinox chair.

A brilliant bit of kit, just find room for it and at 850g it will transform your camping experience. My luxury item.


Helinox has quite a few different ones in its range now. I took the Zero on tour recently; it worked really well and weighs only 524g.
by Eton Rifle
15 May 2018, 7:48am
Forum: Cycle Camping sub-forum
Topic: Crockery
Replies: 19
Views: 1885

Re: Crockery

RobinS wrote:For longer tours we like to be "civilised", so as well as two stoves and multiple pans so we can cook real meals we each have a stainless steel mug, a combination plastic bowl/plate, and a round based non-falling-over-on-grass wine/beer plastic glass (we call them our weeble glasses), as well a knife fork and spoon each. It is much easier being well equipped as a couple though.


I know the ones you mean. I take one on tour as well. Whereas catering when backpacking is pretty minimalist (eat from the single cooking pot, titanium mug for drinks that can also go on the stove), I like to be a bit more civilised on tour. I have an X plate and bowl, which fold flat and have bases that can be used as chopping boards in a pinch. I also take a knife, fork and spoon in titanium. Weighs next to nothing.
by Eton Rifle
28 Apr 2018, 12:42pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Hybrid to Road bike and back?
Replies: 9
Views: 1278

Re: Hybrid to Road bike and back?

I have three bikes; a Dawes Galaxy tourer, a Vitus road bike and a Spesh Crosstrail hybrid. The hybrid is specifically for commuting as it has flat bars for better control, disc brakes that can stop on a sixpence, great visibility due an upright riding position and fatter tyres (38c) for the terrible roads we now have to put up with. It is light enough to get away swiftly at the lights and has sufficient gearing and hydraulic front shocks for mild off-road stuff at the weekend.

My commute is too short and stop / start to warrant clipping in on a road bike. Thing is, at the weekend, I tend to choose the hybrid for pootling about. There's something so 'rideable' about it. It's probably because I use it more frequently than my other bikes. Your commute is a lot longer than mine, so a hybrid would undoubtedly be less efficient, as you discovered before but there are advantages to a hybrid over a road bike in an urban setting. Have a test ride of a couple and see how you feel.
by Eton Rifle
10 Mar 2018, 9:27am
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: "Death by Dangerous Cycling" new offence?
Replies: 140
Views: 9543

Re: "Death by Dangerous Cycling" new offence?

kwackers wrote:
pete75 wrote:Certainly seems the case on this forum with many complaints about "light" sentences and calls for stiffer penalties.

How about 'fair' sentencing? Or consistent sentencing?

It's pretty simple really, if you think a dangerous cyclist that kills someone should be given a lenient sentence then there's no argument that the same shouldn't apply to a motorist.
It's a perfectly valid argument that having to live with having killed someone is punishment enough so these folk deserve pity and help rather than fines and prison sentences - they are after all 'normal' people that simply made a bad decision.

In a lot of respects cyclists get off pretty lightly anyway since it's almost impossible to stop someone cycling no matter how dangerous they are. And from what I remember pedestrian / cyclist collisions per mile are well above the average for pedestrian / motor vehicle so it's not like there's no case to answer.

Personally I'd rather these events didn't happen at all but that requires policing.


Well, of course they and for two very good reasons that have nothing to do with the relative carelessness of cyclists and drivers.

Firstly, cars travel considerably faster than bicycles. Secondly, there are vast tracts of the road network, like motorways and dual carriageways, where there are either no or very few cyclists or pedestrians for motorists to drive their vehicles into. This hugely skews the death rate per mile travelled downwards for motor vehicles.
by Eton Rifle
10 Mar 2018, 9:21am
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: "Death by Dangerous Cycling" new offence?
Replies: 140
Views: 9543

Re: "Death by Dangerous Cycling" new offence?

The utility cyclist wrote:This makes for extremely interesting and very important reading.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ety-review

STATS19 reported road casualty data reveals that between 2011 and 2016 there were a total of 2,491 collisions between cyclists and pedestrians that resulted in a pedestrian casualty. Of these, 20 resulted in a pedestrian fatality and 546 resulted in serious injury to the pedestrian.
"While acknowledging that the figures do not indicate whether there was fault on the part of the cyclist, the report concludes that this is “not an insignificant number.”

Is incorrect. The "not an insignificant number" refers to cyclist-pedestrian collision numbers with reference to the cyclist-motor vehicle collisions. This is in 15.4.

The report does apportion fault in cyclist-pedestriin collisions on page 26, footnote 30:

"For completeness, not all of these fatalities were attributed to cyclist error:“15/20 fatalities were assigned at least one contributory factor, with 6/20 assigning a factor to the pedestrian only, 5/20 assigning a factor to both the pedestrian and the cyclist, and 4/20 assigning a factor to the cyclist only.”


In other words, culpability for a pedestrian fatality in a cyclist-pedestrian collision lies exclusively with the cyclist in fewer than a quarter of instances. I wonder why that was buried in a footnote?

I also wonder what the corresponding figures are for motorised vehicle-cyclist collision fatalities and motorised vehicle-pedestrian collisions? Surely comparison with those statistics would enable the reader to judge whether cyclist-pedestrian collisions is 'not an insignificant number' but, mysteriously, the former two categories are not provided.
by Eton Rifle
7 Mar 2018, 7:53pm
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: A place to record lenient sentencing for motorvehicle....
Replies: 631
Views: 315375

Re: A place to record lenient sentencing for motorvehicle....

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/van-driver-knocked-down-dad-1306659

Another one in Bristol. This nutter not only hit a stationary bicycle from behind; he then fled the scene, driving over the bike and narrowly missing crushing a small child still secured in a child seat.

Sentence? 12-month community order and nine-month driving ban. You really couldn't make it up.
by Eton Rifle
6 Mar 2018, 5:41am
Forum: Campaigning & Public Policy
Topic: Driving an Aston Martin through the law
Replies: 34
Views: 3785

Re: Driving an Aston Martin through the law

Bonefishblues wrote:I am slightly puzzled as to how an Army Captain aged 26 on c£40-sub £50K pa can afford (to run) a £150K car.


Rich parents, old boy. Never mind, the shame of his being in the REME will forever be a stain on the family honour.