15 albums

2 Sep

scandal 29er on-one

The rules: Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen albums you’ve heard that will always stick with you. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes.
Let me know your 15, because I’m interested in seeing what albums my friends choose.

Remember, list records in no particular order:
1.surfa rosa – the pixes
2.seamonsters – the wedding present
3.c86 – various artists (free with the nme)
4.takk… – sigur ros
5.beaucoup fish – underworld
6.mwng – super furry animals
7.in the flat field – bauhaus
8.the frenz experiment – the fall
9.hup – the wonder stuff
10.b-52’s – b-52’s
11.based on a true story – fat freddy’s drop
12.disintegration – the cure
13.beachcomber’s windowsill – stornaway
14.hatful of hollow – the smiths
15.gish – smashing pumpkins

it’s easy to write down 15
but then hard not to study it and change them all…

edit: no radiohead, bob dylan, iron maiden, stone roses etc etc

thanks to Dan for the idea.

La Squadra sportive part 2!

31 Aug

We have teamed up with the organisers of Blenheim Palace sportive to bring you the 2nd La Squadra sportive.

Dear Squadristi!

We know how much you all enjoyed the Nonna’s sportive on the 20th June especially as so many family members were able to support the riders arriving at the finish and give everyone a great cheer!  It was i know a real accomplishment for many of the cycling novices to have done 100km!
Well as the sportive season is slowing coming to end we have found a cracker of a sportive to end the season!!  It’s not too far away and the best bit you can bring the whole family to enjoy the day.
The event is the Blenheim Palace Sportive.

where the odd and the mediocre wait…

25 Aug

Over the next few weeks i’ll be racing in three more open time trials. One 10 mile event, one 25 and a fifty!
Despite having competed for a few years now, I still struggle to put my finger on exactly what the appeal is. They hurt, they can be dangerous and competing can cost lots of money. And time trialling is not exactly adrenaline fuelled!
Yet, up and down Britain, almost every day of the year, people are putting themselves through the pain just to try and beat… themselves.
Y’see unless you’re at elite level and winning events, the only real satisfaction in time trialling is beating your personal best and for most people that only tends to happen for a few years while you’re new to the sport. Once you have been racing for a while though, the P.Bs dry up and you’ll plateau.
The usual solution is to begin ‘buying time’. A new bike, deep section wheels etc. For a few hundred quid you can get back that feeling of success by beating your own best time.

And that’s the odd thing.
23 minutes and eighteen seconds is a completely arbitary time period for everyone in the world apart from me. For me it is the time I achieved once in a ten mile time trial and on recent evidence, a time I’ll never achieve again.

But despite not getting any younger, thinner or having disposable income for a disc wheel,  I keep going back. Just in the hope that one day I’ll re-live the old days and beat 23′18″. A time that some of my fellow riders will never achieve and that others would be very disappointed with…
hq
Race HQ – like village halls and race HQs up and down the land. I can’t imagine that the French or Italian equivalents are quite the same. (more…)

Blackpool – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

23 Aug

The Good

Big thanks to Martin and all the guys at Rapha.  Had a great 60 mile ride with the Rapha guys.  Stopped for lunch after about 40 miles and got back into Blackpool at 4pm.  Great bunch of people.  A top start to the day.

Then Watched Dean Downing win the elite nocturne race from the Rapha
enclosure while consuming nice cold bottles of organic larger.

The Bad

After the racing finished the five of us strolled into the underbelly
of the Blackpool nightlife.  There’s no fancy dress shops any more in
Blackpool.  There just not needed.  Either that or we just happened to
be in Blackpool the same weekend as the scary monsters annual ball.
We all came to the conclusion that the nightlife must be some form of
secret government medical experiment.

The Ugly

Nick 'wheres my car' Cotton

So slightly worse for wear after getting swept up into a binge
drinking frenzy and compounded by a full english breakfast we
dismantled the bikes and made our way to the car.  Cars been nicked.
Nice.  It turns out that in Blackpool people take your car but you
call a number and they bring it back for £275.  What really summed up
the chaos that is Blackpool was the guy who towed away Nicks car was a
child actor in Brookside.  You can’t make this stuff up!

All in 24 hours!

La Squadra Offer of Italian Bling!

22 Aug

its an exclusive range of Italian made, Andrea Taffi designed Pissei clothing. Andrea Tafi, the legendary Italian classic rider, had wins at Paris – Roubaix, Tour Of Flanders and Giro Di Lombardia and many more

As someone who i know well, I introduced  (4 weeks ago) Andrea Tafi to Dave at Planet X  and agreed to promote his 3 clothng lines of : Roubaix, Limited Edition, and Flandre. The quality of these garments is incredible; designed in Italy using the best quality Italian fabrics and manufactured in Tuscany by Pissei, the stock has only just arrived at Planet X and as a special introductory offer to La Squadra a special 20% off the retail price for one week only.

Visit www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk

Enter RELAY20 at checkout to get your 20% discount.

Hope you like it…i bought the Flandre top and bottom looks absolutely amazing….never really had matching kit…so italian so Bling Bling!!

Blackpool Nocturne

20 Aug

Sheffield legend Malcolm Elliot will be riding in this weekends Blackpool Nocturne.

A few La Squadra members will be there to cheer him on.  We will get a sneaky 60 mile ride in courtesy of Rapha.  Starts at 10am and has a lunch stop.  Just how we like it.  Back for a shower and then get down and soak up the atmosphere before the race starts in the evening.

After the race, who knows what the bright lights hold.  Our very own phoenix nights probably.

The Event

The Blackpool Nocturne will take place on Saturday 21st August 2010 around a spectacular circuit that starts and finishes adjacent Blackpool Tower on the promenade.

The highlight of the programme will be the Elite Criterium where we hope to host some of the top riders from the Tour who will take on some of the UK’s best pro cyclists.

Other races will include the Cycling Weekly Support Race, Youth Race and Folding Bike Race. The start / finish area will also be packed with attractions and entertainment including the Rollapaluza roller racing on the main stage.

Read more here

http://www.nocturneseries.com/blackpool/index.php

CLAREMONT SPORTIVE FOR CHARITY 17th October 2010

19 Aug

Tony Barret from The Claremont Hospital in Sheffield has asked me to put this up on the blog.  £25 entry and all to charity!

The 2010 Tour De France as well as other pro tour and UK professional events featured riders that have been assessed or treated at the Claremont.  We are in good hands!

CLAREMONT SUNDAY RIDE 17TH OCTOBER 2010.

The Claremont will hold the inaugural “Claremont Sunday Ride” on the 17th October 2010, with 3  rides planned in 2011.

This non competitive sportive type ride of 90km duration will start and finish at the hospital following a route through Derbyshire.

Numbers will be limited to 100 only, with participation costing £25, all monies will be donated to Cavendish Cancer Care based in Sheffield.

The following is included in the participation fee.

  • Ample free parking at start
  • Sign in from 08.00
  • Juice, hot drinks and croissant breakfast
  • Ride start 09.00
  • Route card
  • Small groups riding at pace of slowest rider.
  • Special guest riders anticipated
  • Mid ride feed stop
  • Broom wagon
  • Pasta meal at finish
  • Goodie bag

E-mail Nicola Manton at nicolamanton@claremont-hospital.com for an entry form or further details.

Closing date for entries 3rd October 2010.

The Claremont Hospital located on the South West Edge of Sheffield supports the healthcare needs of both professional, sports and recreational cyclists through its specialist cycling sports medicine centre.



Tuscany bike weekend 30/9 and watch the famous L”Eroica Event-

18 Aug

Fancy a taste of Tuscany?  5 night cycling break with a chance to watch one of the most unique cycling events in the world!

We are holding rooms at Casa di Nonna (room for 8..4 doubles & 1 twin)…prices/itinerary to be confirmed…

Ryan Air Thursday 30/9 —-16.25/19.40

Tuesday 4/10 —–18.20/19.40  is £52 return!………i can organise bike hire via Gusto Cycling via home page

Need to know who is interested in going? …plan to cycle to Viareggio,Lucca, Pisa, Montecatini Terme, Pistoiese mountains and southern chianti region..i would need 8 people to make this happen.

What is L’Eroica.

This end of season event has a unique atmosphere thanks to the sections of Tuscan dirt roads and because most of the riders use vintage bikes and wear old style wool clothing..check out the pictures

The route winds through stunning Tuscan countryside near Siena and the sections on the white roads or farm tracks takes you back to what it must have been like racing in the 40’s and 50’s. Going Vintage is a great way to saviour the camaraderie of cycling

The charm of this event remains unchanged and every year it sees the participation of numerous people from all over the world.

Last year 2,400 riders took part with over 70 from the UK. What matters for L ‘Eroica is the love for cycling and the rediscovery of roads that haven’t been violated by time and asphalt…to see the pictures of the event which i attended last year via Gusto Cycling facebook..

YOGA for La Squadristi

16 Aug

Introduction to Ashtanga Yoga with Pete Gill

Date: Thursday 9th September at The Chimney House.

We need ideally about 10+ people to make this happen.  If your interested just say so.  That way we can get an idea of numbers.

Ashtanga Yoga is a system of yoga transmitted to the modern world by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois (1915-2009). This method of yoga involves synchronizing the breath with a progressive series of postures—a process producing intense internal heat and a profuse, purifying sweat that detoxifies muscles and organs. The result is improved circulation, a light and strong body, and a calm mind.


Are we all MAMILS?

16 Aug

MIDDLE AGED MEN IN LYCRA = MAMILS!!!

Some of these guys look at bit young for us but the picture tells its own story.  Glad I had my Sunday roast before I dug this photo out.

Any way great article on the BBC news website referring to mid life crisis guys taking up cycling.

Flashy sports cars are out, now no mid-life crisis is complete without a souped-up road bike. Why?

Every weekend, across the nation’s rolling countryside, watch out for the Mamils: middle-aged men in lycra.

And ladies, if you have a man at home taking an unusual interest in how you shave your legs, you may have a Mamil in the making too.

Research conducted by the retail analyst Mintel suggests there has been a surge in the number of middle-aged men choosing to get on two wheels. (more…)

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