The Retirement Thread

[PaulSB]

Crikey. The downhill skiing just seems to get faster and faster over the years. Pretty scary!

I watched the ski jumping. As far as I could make out most of the competitors violated their equipment that and if your BMI is too low you need shorter skis......................I think. I was to be honest baffled.

 

[ColinJ]

At this point we'd climbed to an elevation of +/- 1000 feet. Top of the climb is 1550 above sea level, the higher we went the mist and low cloud got denser and wetter. Fortunately this is a closed road leading to a TV transmitter station - no traffic.

The only place I can think of like that near you is Winter Hill?

I had never noticed on the OS map that there is a road up there, but obviously those big transmitters need to be built and maintained so there have to be access roads.

I was trying to work out what road you were talking about. I found one which looks promising on Street View only to find this halfway up where the SV coverage finishes...

Which makes it seem like you were a bit naughty going up there...

But then I found this video, made 11 years after the SV car did the climb...



There were lots of people up there including motorists and cyclists. And look at the sign then...

It looks like the sign had been covered with white plastic, which had then got partly ripped off by the wind? Have access rights changed up there?

The last 200 ft of ascent didn't look possible. At 1,350 ft I could have sworn that Simon Warren was almost at the summit, but sure enough, the road kept grinding up. I suppose that is what huge objects like that mast do - they are still quite a long way off but look closer because of their size.

The OS map has the top at 456 m, which is 'only' 1,496 ft but Simon's GPS also gave a figure of around 1,550 ft. I would rather trust OS than the GPS though. GPS altitude is usually out by up to 2-3% in my experience.

I too would be VERY careful descending that road! Adult pedestrians wandering about with children and dogs, probably sheep, some cars, other cyclists, potentially horse riders, potholes, gravel, cattle grids...

All in all though... I might cycle over some time to ride up it!

PS I found warnings online of the dangers of being at the top of Winter Hill in winter! Icicles potentially falling down on you from support cables hundreds of feet above your head!

 

[oldwheels]

The least of our worries for those needing a pension in Scotland

Cannot see what the problem is unless you favour the we hate the SNP bunch. Let's not get political.

 

[PaulSB]

The only place I can think of like that near you is Winter Hill?

I had never noticed on the OS map that there is a road up there, but obviously those big transmitters need to be built and maintained so there have to be access roads.

I was trying to work out what road you were talking about. I found one which looks promising on Street View only to find this halfway up where the SV coverage finishes...

View attachment 630084

Which makes it seem like you were a bit naughty going up there...

But then I found this video, made 11 years after the SV car did the climb...



There were lots of people up there including motorists and cyclists. And look at the sign then...
View attachment 630085

It looks like the sign had been covered with white plastic, which had then got partly ripped off by the wind? Have access rights changed up there?

The last 200 ft of ascent didn't look possible. At 1,350 ft I could have sworn that Simon Warren was almost at the summit, but sure enough, the road kept grinding up. I suppose that is what huge objects like that mast do - they are still quite a long way off but look closer because of their size.

The OS map has the top at 456 m, which is 'only' 1,496 ft but Simon's GPS also gave a figure of around 1,550 ft. I would rather trust OS than the GPS though. GPS altitude is usually out by up to 2-3% in my experience.

I too would be VERY careful descending that road! Adult pedestrians wandering about with children and dogs, probably sheep, some cars, other cyclists, potentially horse riders, potholes, gravel, cattle grids...

All in all though... I might cycle over some time to ride up it!

PS I found warnings online of the dangers of being at the top of Winter Hill in winter! Icicles potentially falling down on you from support cables hundreds of feet above your head!

There used to be signs about vehicular and cycle access. I've no idea if there still are but there are bridleways and trails which cross the road and these are open to cycles. The road has been resurfaced and is gated in 3 or 4 places but it's only the bottom gate which gets locked. No cars. The climb used to be a popular segment but that's impossible now. Descending used to be a bit iffy but these days the only real hazard is the almost permanent cross wind.

You're correct the trig point is 456m. We always use GPS as we rarely use maps! 1550 it is 😀

Simon Warren stopped well before the summit and I can understand why - he didn't get to the fence!! I was interested he took in Foxholes as the reason we use this climb, bottom of Foxholes to Winter Hill summit, is it's the closest we get locally to a Lakeland climb. This is 2.7 miles with plenty of 9-12% plus a few short bits of 20+% while Hardknott is 2.0 miles. For sustained effort it's excellent training.

 

[BoldonLad]

The least of our worries for those needing a pension in Scotland

Is the age for State Pension different in Scotland?, I thought it was UK (and NI) wide?

 

[classic33]

There used to be signs about vehicular and cycle access. I've no idea if there still are but there are bridleways and trails which cross the road and these are open to cycles. The road has been resurfaced and is gated in 3 or 4 places but it's only the bottom gate which gets locked. No cars. The climb used to be a popular segment but that's impossible now. Descending used to be a bit iffy but these days the only real hazard is the almost permanent cross wind.

You're correct the trig point is 456m. We always use GPS as we rarely use maps! 1550 it is 😀

Simon Warren stopped well before the summit and I can understand why - he didn't get to the fence!! I was interested he took in Foxholes as the reason we use this climb, bottom of Foxholes to Winter Hill summit, is it's the closest we get locally to a Lakeland climb. This is 2.7 miles with plenty of 9-12% plus a few short bits of 20+% while Hardknott is 2.0 miles. For sustained effort it's excellent training.

You'll have to get back out there and get the missing four feet!

 

[PaulSB]

You'll have to get back out there and get the missing four feet!

Hopefully Thursday......

 

[classic33]

Hopefully Thursday......

Might have moved by then.

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

Is the age for State Pension different in Scotland?, I thought it was UK (and NI) wide?

I refer to the ongoing stooshie around who will pay for Scotland’s pensions if the Yes side win.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

We've had a good evening down the club, plenty of chit chat, laughs and jokes, it also was a profitable one, I won the flyer and we came out 40 quid up, so it works out as a free night.

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

Saw our dentist on telly tonight, being interviewed about curling on Reporting Scotland. Apparently he is president of Curl Edinburgh. This was the first time Mrs F has ‘seen’ him for over 2 years as his practice have still to resume the provision of checkups. I have seen him more recently for an extraction

 

[ColinJ]

Oh, that caught me out... I had got it into my head that Reacher series #1 was in 10 parts but it turned out to be only 8 so the end tonight came as a shock.

I enjoyed it and will watch series #2 if/when it becomes available free with Amazon Prime.

Spoiler: Reacher may be tough...

But even the toughest, hugest guy doesn't just brush off being smacked repeatedly in the face and arms with a crowbar!

Some of you will know what being really hurt feels like... You don't just shrug it off! I got stabbed in the face when I was a child and the pain instantly disabled me. I couldn't do anything to defend myself after that. Fortunately, it was at school and a teacher jumped in and pulled the little psycho assailant away from me.

 

[Mo1959]

Morning. Next door let their dogs out at 5.20 and allowed them to bark so I just got up.

Milder but breezy out.

Got Wordle in 4 this morning.

 

[PaulSB]

Good day. It's still pitch black so I don't know.

What a disastrous start to the day! Failed on Wordle. I was 30/30. Changed my starter word because of an article in the Guardian claiming the new one was a goodie......pah!

Anyway. Today is Tuesday. Yes folks that's right it is. Heading out to collect granddaughter in an hour or so and then the day will be filled with doing granddad type stuff.

Tuesdays are good days.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Good morning folks, wordle in 5 this morning, I'm not sure what we're doing today, our friend who usually visits Tuesday has the decorators in and may not be here, I think my Good Lady wants to go shopping if she doesn't came round.