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DerekJ

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Everything posted by DerekJ

  1. Thanks for the feedbacks... not what I wanted to hear but at least I've got a better idea of the problem.
  2. Always hard knowing how to judge this. I do need to come back before winter sets in in order to "winterise" the house otherwise I'd probably not bother if there was a lot of uncertainty. One option would be to buy or bring  a couple of big jerry cans over and try and fill them whilst in France, then keeping the car topped up. That way if a real problem occurred I'd at least have the ability to get back to Calais. I'd have to fill the car up from the cans and empty them before getting on the ferry. Not a very perfect solution but I suppose it would be workable.
  3. Since seeing this thread (I never knew anything about it before)  I've been trying to get a feel for what's happening here. We are planning to return to the Lot for the last 3 weeks or so of October and close down the house for the winter. A few years ago we got messed up by fuel shortages that resulted in us cutting short our visit and making a run for Calais whilst we had a full tank. From what I've read since seeing this thread the industrial action related to fuel distribution is all a bit vague with no very clear picture of what is happening/likely to happen. I also see that there have been some motorway blockages.  Any thoughts?
  4. [quote user="NormanH"]Leaving aside any question of doping in the sport etc, I have to say how extraordinary I find the prowess of these cyclists. I have been over a few sections of the route in a car and that exhausted me; [:-))] and the couple of times I have seen them pass in town they hurtle along narrow badly-surfaced streets at an incradible rate. [/quote] One of the toughest sports going. The performance of these guys is simply incredible. On the Grand Tours they aren't just riding a one day, but back to back days. Quite fantastic speeds both uphill and downhill. Plus, if at all possible they get up and carry on riding after quite horrendous crashes.  Tough, tough guys.
  5. I'm missing the punchline.
  6. [quote user="richard51"]Apparently Michael Gove has been rushed into hospital after being sprayed with salt.[/quote] Where did you read this?
  7. [quote user="woolybanana"]Thank you, Derak, hadn't realised that the organisers had gone back to the original format.[/quote] It all got a bit confusing wooly, I think it will come in next year, maybe. Horrible conditions today but Sky are now in the driving seat (no done deal though). Great ride by Geraint and Sky now have 4 riders in the top 10, that puts a lot of pressure on the other teams... plus Froome has now a useful lead over the other GC contenders. Bad new that Valverde and Izagirre are out. I don't like Valverde but he is always good value to set things alight.
  8. [quote user="woolybanana"]And Le Tour is underway, a bit different this year as the teams are one man smaller and there seem to be fewer time trials - an attempt to beat Chris Froome who is having a lousy season anyway. [/quote] No, the teams are the same size this year... 9 riders.
  9. [quote user="cajal"] If you click on This you should land on the homepage. On the homepage locate Watch TV Now ( between Home and FAQ on the right below the address bar). This takes you to a page of 48 national flags where you can select which country's TV you wish to view. You must also have Flashplayer enabled on your device. [/quote] Thanks, that looks very useful. I'm currently in the UK but will be in France for 5 weeks from next weekend and I want to be able to see the end of the Giro d'Italia cycle race...  I found coverage on RAI Sports and picture was good so hopefully it will work well in France.
  10. Any idea if there is a likely requirement when crossing Rouen from Calais (A28) heading across to the A/N154 (and vice versa).
  11. DerekJ

    Dog chasing cats

    If a dog can't be controlled it shoud be stopped from having unfettered public access.
  12. DerekJ

    Dog chasing cats

    More concerned about bloody dogs chasing me as a cyclist. Total pain.
  13. DerekJ

    Obesity

    Funnily enough I feel more nervous of driving in the Lot than cycling. Without digging up all the usual comments about French driving I do find their cavalier attitude to cutting across bends and also their tailgating pretty dangerous. However, I have only rarely experienced very close passes on the bike and generally they seem to accept they have to wait until a safe opportunity to pass presents itself. Part of this may be that traffic is so, so light there isn't the contention for space on the road. I always find it amazing that I can sometimes ride from our village to Cabrerets and then down to Conduche (about 12 miles) and not have a single car pass me. I've ridden a few sportives in the area as well (out of Figeac) and these have been so well managed and the atmosphere and cooperation of most drivers so good. But, like all things, we can only comment on our own experiences and I expect you will have had a different experience. I'm back in the Lot next weekend for a few weeks and hope to get a lot of riding in so hope I don't have reason to change my mind Oh, just a thought, most times when I have been cut up it has been by Belgian or Dutch registered cars... something you wouldn't expect from such cycling oriented nations.
  14. DerekJ

    Obesity

    That's not my experience of cycling in my bit of rural France (the Lot) which is an absolute joy to ride in especially compared to the UK.  In general I find drivers pretty polite and patient.
  15. And now they're going to build a wall. What a bit of gesture politics... total waste of time and not addressing the problem at all.
  16. Yes, on the boundary.  Fortunately shouldn't be any problem with our neighbours.
  17. On one side of our garden there is a wooden post/wire mesh fence between us and our neighbours. The posts are on our neighbours' side and the wire mesh our side. Some of the posts need replacing.  Our relationship with our neighbours is good and I'd be quite happy to split the cost of any replacement posts. Before I have a chat with them I'd just like to know who is "actually" responsible. In the UK with fencing the practice is for the finished side to face away from the party responsible for the fence. Based on that my assumption is that our neighbours are the ones actually responsible. No big deal and not an issue but I'd just like to know.
  18. [quote user="Jewell"] Hello, everyone. I've been surprised at how angry people are about this. Someone messed up a staffing rota, queues are queues. [/quote] Yes, amazing isn't it!  I'd just love to be stuck for up to 14 hours, I wouldn't be at all upset.
  19. And it's all this sort of crap that has helped the Brexit cause.
  20. And French fishermen are blockading Calais and, I believe, Cherbourg. France is a basket case really. Good job the scenery is nice otherwise I'd not bother.
  21. Mount Ventoux climb cut back 6 kms today because of the high winds and will finish at Chalet Reynard. A shame but I gather the winds have been so high above the tree line (Chalet Reynard) that it was considered too dangerous to do the usual finish at the very top. I will be interesting to see how (if) Froome and Quintana fight it out.
  22. Since I posted the link to the downloads Velorooms has been changing the download options (due, I think, to heavy traffic). If you are interested I'd suggest you go to the Velorooms page direct and see what links are there. http://velorooms.com/index.php?topic=2384.180
  23. You're very welcome Norman. As you can see, the Roadbook is one of the documents that form part of the material the teams work with. It's a lot more useful than the usual "public consumption" and commercial material that is published in advance of Le Tour and probably not known outside of keen cycling fans. Perhaps less generally useful but maybe interesting to some might be the Multilingual Rules and Regs.
  24. If any of you are planning to follow the T de F either just on tele or go see a stage then you may be interested in the official Roadbook. It gives loads of detail of all the stages, maps, elevation, team hotels, times along the route etc.  The French version has just become available (English version may follow). I'm thinking of cycling out to one of the climbs on Stage 6, 7th July and apart from the detailed route map (useful if planning to avoid road closures) there are the estimated arrival times all along the route...  anyway, some of you may be interested. http://velorooms.com/roadbooks/2016/Tour_de_France_2016_Livre_de_Route.pdf JUST A WORD OF WARNING.... I think the above site is getting overloaded with people trying to download so you may have to choose your moment.
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