Monday - threatening Haloumi with a vinaigrette

[sungod]

Spring means windy weather here too. Drat.

Usual assortment of endless jobs round here, plus plenty of bike fettling to try and find the most comfortable setup in the absence of a decent local bike fitter. Been doing a lot of tweak -> ride -> adjust tweak -> ride some more -> measure and take notes. Interesting exercise, and surprises me how much I am noticing even tiny changes in things.

i went through a couple of bike fits, but changing saddle/whatever tended to mess things up

in the end i did it myself using a few of the steve hogg articles, worked very well for me, especially the 'balance point' approach to set-back - mostly did it with the bike clamped in a trainer and level

https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/
https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/05/addendum-to-seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be-2/
https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/05/seat-set-back-for-road-bikes/

 

[briantrumpet]

I dissagree. My Porker will be MOT exempt in the not so distant future but not tax exempt.
So therefore, revenue is more important than safety?
I think all cars should need an MOT - they could test them on a simplistic non-emission basis and just do the mechanical/illumination/wipers, tyres and rubbers tests - especially brakes. Classic car headlights are terrible and often need upgrading and wiring differently such as what I did on mine.

Just because (generally) classic cars are well kept, it doesn't mean they are roadworthy. A lot of them are mothballed in the winter and only come out in good weather so things deteriorate. Drum brakes are generally shyte.
As time goes on, more performance cars of old - which are still quick by modern standards, will be in circulation without an MOT. A 944 turbo is a good example of that. For the average classic car owner, testing brakes properly on a machine is inaccessible. You do not know how efficient they are by simply driving down the road and putting your foot on the pedal.
So I would not mind going through the MOT every year but I resent paying road tax yet there's no MOT stipulation.

A friend of mine who loves old cars and hates regulation equally thinks it's mad that old cars, which are more likely to be mechanically dodgy, are exempt, both here and in France. (His pride & joy is a Hudson Terraplane from 1934).

 

[TLW1]

I disagree too (but not to the extent that I'd add an extra s).
I shudder to think that my old Scimitar which had chassis rot so bad that the fibreglass bodywork was the most structurally significant part of it could have been put in a garage and run around MoT free next year.

Graham walker would have sorted it

 

[Gwylan]

Being caught in possession of unlicensed halloumi in parts of Yorkshire remains an offence

 

[Wheelspinner]

i went through a couple of bike fits, but changing saddle/whatever tended to mess things up

in the end i did it myself using a few of the steve hogg articles, worked very well for me, especially the 'balance point' approach to set-back - mostly did it with the bike clamped in a trainer and level

https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/
https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/05/addendum-to-seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be-2/
https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/05/seat-set-back-for-road-bikes/

Yes have read through some of his stuff, and Neill Stanbury videos as well. One of the issues I have is my rubbish core strength, and dodgy lower back Which makes that balance exercise kinda awkward. 😬

Plus I routinely swap between three roadies, which all have different setups. I should standardise on a few things like crank length and pedal spindle size to at least eliminate some of the variables, but where’s the fun in that??

 

[Pinno718]

Yes have read through some of his stuff, and Neill Stanbury videos as well. One of the issues I have is my rubbish core strength, and dodgy lower back Which makes that balance exercise kinda awkward. 😬

Plus I routinely swap between three roadies, which all have different setups. I should standardise on a few things like crank length and pedal spindle size to at least eliminate some of the variables, but where’s the fun in that??

I used to do core stability exercises in blocks over winter but found it much better to do a 'maintenance' routine where I do core stability exercises all year round,
I also found that the intensity of the blocks would leave me vulnerable and I had to watch when I went pedalling, so dialling it down to a couple of days a week where I use an ab roller and a bar (leg raises) and not a lot else and not at a high intensity (like the plank), I have slowly built up better core stability and now, the bike set up is not so critical whereas before, I would be ultra cautious about any changes - these changes were usually just maintenance requirements not bike set up. You know - 'i'd like to try that saddle but...' The lower back and neck pain got so bad during and after cycling, I thought I might have to give up. However, I then met my friend (which was fortuitous - my former physio whilst in hospital) sat a a café during a catch up as I hadn't seen him for a few years and he remembered my neck injury and immediately after I mentioned bike set up issues. said that he had noticed my posture as soon as he saw me.
So I set about improving my posture and I also added posture related stretching to my post ride stretch routine and that has been yet another step change in comfort. Sometimes, I just have a notion to do some posture related stretching. I have also managed to reduce saddle tilt. I now pay attention to everyday stuff - driving, moving, walking, sitting, working so I am consciously correcting the lordosis, my head position. etc I went the whole of 2024 without any major back issues and that's a first since 2009.