Caterham

A and I went to Caterham today (A is thinking of buying one).  I got to have a test drive which was fantastic.  Also got to sit in the R500 that was on Top Gear (photo).  More photos linked in title...

Network Rail Helicopter

Here I am trying to work in my home office and for the last 20 mins there has been LOTS of noise from outside.  It seems Network Rail are inspecting the line.  Nice helicopter though :)

Microsoft Tag

I made a tag - for this site - so if you scan it with your 'Microsoft Tag' enabled phone it'll take you... well, here! :)

Ivinghoe Beacon

J and I went to Ivinghoe Beacon for a bit of a discovery ride.  I grew up riding in this area so was fairly familiar but could not quite remember everything.  We started by riding up to the Beacon and then across the ridge, we swooped down, crossed our original path and then rode to Ashridge and back.  Along the way we diverted to ride down and up one of the biggest crevasses in the area.  A lot of fun - but very muddy.

Photos linked in the title - and even a little video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITIm6iLilSE

HTC TD2 - WinMo6.5 Upgrade

HTC finally released their WinMo 6.5 upgrade for the Touch Diamond 2.  It took about 10 minutes to flash and a further 10 to install and setup.  Improvements are numerous and the speed of the phone remains about the same as before.  Facebook integration is good and the inclusion of several standard programs (voice recorder, remote desktop, google maps, etc) is welcome.  Overall a very worthy upgrade!

Win7 Party

We had the Win7 party last night - well, we had a couple of cocktails and then went to the pub for the quiz - but you get the idea...

In order to impress my friends I invented a cocktail especially for the occasion - the BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) - I thought it fitting.

We came 2nd in the pub quiz, too many Hans Christensen Anderson questions...

IFRA 2009

This is where I've been all week - at Tera's IFRA stand.  It is good this year with plenty of places to sit to save your feet :)  Last night was good - a lock in party for all the exhibitors - although the band was questionable!

Windows 7 Party Kit Arrives

The Windows 7 Party Kit arrived from the States today.  It includes bags, playing cards, a puzzle, a table stand, a poster, some napkins, instructions and a free version of Win7 Ultimate signed by Steve Ballmer himself :)

Helitech

Every two years the world's biggest helicopter exhibition comes to the UK.  J and I went to Helitech at Duxford today and saw some very nice (expensive) machines.  Best bit was a short display by an Army Apache.  After the exhibition we wondered around the museum which was free of charge.

Insomnia Bedgebury

We did it - 12 hours of night trace around Bedgebury's single tracks.  It was exhausting.  The team covered around 180miles (YES!) between the four of us.  I did around 50 and stayed up the entire 12 hours to do so.  Most of Sunday was pain :)

Highlights include A having to get his chain and rear gears replaced half way through (thankfully the on-site bike shop was open 24hrs), J falling off so may times I lost count, K in the way she turned her tent into an extension of our house (double duvets, pillows, inflatable mattress, etc etc) and the staff running the coffee-shop (also open 24hrs) who we caught sleeping around 04:30.

In the end we raised over £1,000 for charity at http://original.justgiving.com/knebworthnights.
More photos linked in title.

Bike - rear shock bearings...

The bike was back in the shop today for one last operation before the night race tomorrow.  This time it was full on open-heart surgery to replace worn shock bearings at the centre of the rear suspension setup.  It took somewhat longer than expected (1 hr vs 5 mins) due to the tightness of the shock in the frame.  Nevertheless, the guys at Marshalls got it all done and it feels all the better for it.  Fingers crossed this is the last set of bearings I'll need to replace for the near future - in 3 weeks I've had the bottom bracket, rear hub and rear suspension go :(

MRP XCG Bashguard

Went out yesterday for a ride to get J's new Trek setup.  My new maxle is working well - but there was another noise.  The bike shop confirmed it is the bottom bracket bearings :(  So, it is booked in getting those replaced before the weekend.  Whilst they are there I've also ordered a MRP XCG Triple Bashguard.  This simple, yet effective device hangs just below the large ring, keeping it safe from trees/rocks.

50MB/s

Virgin installed their 50MB/s service today - equally nice was the 1.5MB/s uplink :)

Only problem now is getting my Axis 207W to talk to the new Netgear WNR2000 using WPA2...

Marin Maxle Conversion

I've just dropped the bike at the store to have this fitted - a maxle conversion kit to stiffen up the rear.  The forged dropouts look awesome, so much so I had to get the matching lock-on grip kit :)
Hopefully I'll get it back Fri.
UPDATE: Had to get a Hope conversion kit for the rear hub too, should be here today....

Peacefest

Had a great weekend - we went to S&S's on Sat night for their first (hopefully now annual) 'Peacefest'.  They have a two-part back garden.  The lower field is perfect for camping (about 8 of us set up tents) and the main garden ideal for a stage area, using their walled patio.  We set up a PA, several guitars, keyboards and mics.  Spent the evening entertaining and being entertained.  Bringing guitar-hero and the XBox proved a wise move :)

White Kitchen

We finished painting the doors and cupboards white this weekend - makes a nice change from the blue they used to be :)

Extension - Building Regs

We got the building reg plans through from out architect.  Seems like all is in order - now we have to submit them, pay some money and wait for approval.  At least we can start shopping around for quotes now.

Guitars Re-Strung

I restrung my guitars this weekend, also took the oppertunity to de-funk them and lemon-wax the fret-boards.  New strings play sooo nicely - I always wonder why I leave it so long each time.  I also played around a lot with the Kelly's action to get it lower.

50MB Broadband

There have been some price cuts on the top end Broadband services today. As such I've upgraded to the 50MB/s tier. It actually saved me £3 as I pay £5 a month for cloud storage which is included free with this top-end service. Install date is next Thu :)

Jackson King V Demmelition Signature Model

Ever since Sonisphere, when I got to jam on the Jackson stage, there has been something missing in my life. Well, now I might be able to fill that gap. I found a local store who can get me one of these to look at this weekend. It is a signature series from Machine Head's Phil Demmel - comes with some astounding hardware and a flight case. It's a neck-through model (like my Kelly KE2) and has all the usual: shark inlays,Floyd Rose, ebony fret board and EMG active pickups. Will see how it plays tomorrow...

UPDATE: Hmmm, had a play but was not as impressed as I remember. Turns out this one was a very early model, and did not even have the hard case. Am thinking about it...

Win7 x64 BSOD - aswTdi.SYS

Oh dear - out of the blue (excuse the pun) I got this - seems some sort of Avast AV issue. Let's hope this is nto a sign of things to come and that they fix the issue quickly. To be fair though, this is the first and only one I have seen.

Dissertation Finished :)

I couldn't sleep, so instead of watching rubbish TV in bed I decided to work on my dissertation. Ended up completing it - WOOHOO! It is 123 pages (including appendices) and the official word count (excluding the bumf) is 15,158, which is pretty close to the 15k guideline. All I have to do now is print two copies and bind them and then submit them along with one electronic copy. I have to say - I am SO glad it is over, but I don't feel I can celebrate until it is handed in.

Kitchen Goes White

In preparation for the extension we wanted to overhaul the kitchen. First thing was to change the colour of the doors and woodwork. It was blue - and is now in the process of turning white. This turns out to be a lot of work! We spray-painted the doors and have been brush painting the rest of it. This would be a lot easier if the gloss paint did not require 16 hours to dry after each coat.... that's my lunch-break for the next few days sorted then!

Padstow Weekend

K and I made a impulse decision and drove to Padstow this weekend to see Grandma. We had a great time - drank champagne, walked around the town, visited an art show, listened to a Jazz concert and even managed a pint in the Red Lion and some of Mr. Stein's fish n' chips (we even managed to find room to eat-in this time). Only problem was having to leave...

Dell E6400

My new laptop came yesterday and today has been spent installing all the various bits and pieces needed on it for work. You forget quite how much you have until you have to set it all up again!