tractionman

sounds pretty spooky to me 😲 I'm not great in the dark, on my own. it's something I'm working on as I like night riding ... today I've fitted a rack to my mongoose mtb, I got the bike for sixty odd quid off Gumtree, and the rack was half price in Halfords, I'm gearing up for a solo overnighter so I've got to overcome the fear of the dark thing!

a balmy Feb afternoon trundle home along the lough shore after work...

something like this? https://www.sportsdirect.com/lezyne-lite-drive-1000xl-front-light---1000-lumen-933452#colcode=93345203

might be of interest: https://clarkrailworks.com/collections/new-arrivals/products/djh-oo-k8-cr

it's behind a paywall but this popped up on my phone, a Times article, on Pete Waterman and the enduring popularity of model railways... https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/model-railways-saved-me-this-cant-be-the-end-qqvlxc7pf

yes the 28s do seem to shift quickly, as do any BR Blue TOPs 33s, shows where the demand lies!

worth keeping an eye on the S/H Heljan CoBos that appear here: https://clarkrailworks.com/collections/Heljan/?sort_by=created-descending

I drive always now with my rear view mirror 'dipped'--both daytime and nightime--so I can ignore the tailgater and especially their annoying LED DRLs that burn out my retinas... I used to quite like driving but not anymore, too many idiots out there and stupid SUVs with drivers who don't know the size of their vehicle and insist on driving down the middle of the road :-(

sorry, correct link now 😔

bit more of a positive spin in this BBC piece https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-67999111

yep same here, I'm a tad younger at 56 :-) but having accrued a loft full of stock over the past 20 years (I was a returnee in 2005), my wife rightly says most of it will probably never make it onto the track (when I ever get round to finishing the layout, that is), so buying more model stuff now is just not a goer, especially with other (more boring and mundane) demands on finances ever growing! cheers, Keith

I don't see it listed with the latest at Rails on Dapol arrivals for Feb/March: https://railsofsheffield.com/collections/Dapol-oo-gauge-expected-february-march

my rule of thumb when it comes to standing water is not to drive into anything that goes above the depth of the car tyre, sometimes hard to judge this of course, unless someone else is already in the drink... the other day in Coventry I was forced to break my 'rule' as I was in a long line of traffic, and only on rounding a corner did I see why, as the vehicles in front of me were heading slowly (thankfully) through a flood, it wasn't too deep (c.5"?) and it would have been very tricky to have turned my car back if I had changed my mind as I was sandwiched in the advancing, slow-moving line of cars! I was more annoyed at the speed some spooners were doing coming the other way towards us, through the water, causing a wave/surge. I have just had the Passat brake tested for the MOT and all is well fortunately, though fingers crossed it passes next week (here in NI we have govt run MOT test centres).

for me this has been the best holiday viewing

anyone been out and about on their bikes for a festive ride? I managed a short spin yesterday along the coastal path (Belfast Lough) with a brisk backwind: the weather was much better out today but the planned bike ride with my son was thwarted by his new Vitus being too big for the Passat roofbars, so pending some readjustment we did a walk instead in the Belfast Hills, and recced it for a future ride:

well here's a nice example at a good price https://clarkrailworks.com/collections/Heljan/products/Heljan-oo-6603910-lner-black-class-01-tango-2-8-0-3965-loco-and-stepped-tender

Featuring today at Hattons advent day offers: https://www.hattons.co.uk/newsdetail?id=1480

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-67625334 🙄

anyone after 37001, https://www.themodelcentre.com/acc230437001-accurascale-oo-gauge-class-37-37001-br-blue-early-1970s-split-headcode 1 left!

Thanks @Mark Forrest I do like the look of the Vitus and we have a Chain Reaction store nearby I can visit and inspect, as you say the company's situation sounds a bit grim (I follow on Singletrack forum) alas--I have spent the past year dithering on (a) what MTB to get and (b) do I really need an MTB (hence the Mongoose purchase off Gumtree for £65 but now seemingly permanently 'borrowed' by my son...!). The Mongoose puts a smile on my face riding it off-road so (b) is answered affirmative, not so clear cut with (a) at the mo! cheers, Keith

This was a short potter around my local patch on the Mongoose on Sunday in the rain and autumn leaf fall. It's a rare use of the Mongoose as my son keeps running off with it! So I am weighing up doing a Cycle2Work scheme for getting myself a new MTB, but cannot decide whether to get a Trek Marlin (5?) or a Vitus 29er... any thoughts?! Both are around the £500 mark,

looks great, glides along very elegantly :-)

absolutely agree, James May and Pete Waterman made a great double act, really complementary, wouldn't they make a brilliant pairing for their own series?

big reduction at TMC on 35-200 Bachmann OO Gauge LNER V2 4791 LNER Lined Green (Original) now £137.98 https://www.themodelcentre.com/35-200