the post

book reviews

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the washingmachinepodcast

trivia on your ipod. episode two now on the web, this time either as an m4a (ipod/itunes format) or straightforward mp3 for those with other players. only downside is the latter is double the file size - apple wins again:-)

available on apple's itunes store itunes.
episode one (8.1mb - this format might only work on apple ipods).
episode two ipod format (12mb)
episode two mp3 format (24mb)

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fame at last

the washingmachinepost, cycling plus website of the month december 2005

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here we go round the mulberry bush...

matt seaton's column in the guardian a couple of weeks ago bore witness to the perils and joys of cycling in city traffic. not something that i have ever had to contend with, nor something i am desperate to try out. matt, however, seems to rather enjoy the thrill of the chase; fighting past buses, taxis, traffic lights, pedestrians, fumes and all the features that go with traffic congestion. i'll admit, i can sort of see what he's on about, but i'd still rather it was he than i.

so i was able to feel smug and self righteous while reading this piece in the guardian. because traffic is not something that causes us islay cyclists much concern these days (or any other days for that matter). granted the ds and i almost had a spot of bother with a wayward herd of cows yesterday (they don't like you creeping up behind them unannounced). oh, and we do often have to wend our way through the isle of wight ferry all over the road (what's hot and steaming and comes out of cowes backwards?).

and on our less than clement pedal around loch gorm (did you know there's a girl in the bank over here that didn't know where the loch was?), we only met one car and a quad bike, so carefree we were almost all the way round.

but it does not do the bike skills or the concentration any good to figure that, because we live on a rather idyllic, relatively traffic free island, does not mean that all is sweetness and light (herds of cows and sheep notwithstanding).

while on my way to bruichladdich yesterday (sunday) to meet up with members of what we shall euphemistically refer to as the 'vc port wemyss sunday club', i figured i had seen one of our number cresting a hill just outside the village. then he wasn't there anymore, so i thought i had probably been mistaken. however, on nearing the outskirts of the village, i again found the aforesaid cyclist wheeling his bicycle in the opposite direction. seeing a loose chain, i asked if he had broken his chain, to which he replied 'no, i've broken my collarbone'.

and indeed, he had. quite badly as it turns out. while cycling to meet up with me, he had taken his eye off the ball so to speak, clouted a half empty bottle lying at the side of the road and suffered a face plant. hence - broken collar bone. so while matt seaton risks the daily perils of london traffic, we risk our own perils. fortunately for the islay cyclist, there is generally so little traffic on the roads (particularly on a sunday morning in december) that it is possible to have a crash, pick yourself up and walk (hopefully) away without a vehicle thundering over the brow of the hill while the victim is spreadeagled on the tarmac directly in its path. don't know that matt will have that luxury in london - sunday morning in december or not.

admittedly it's a bit naff that somebody saw fit to chuck a half-empty bottle at the roadside in the first place, but since there are such prats about (yes, even here), it behoves islay cyclists to keep at least one eye on the road at all times.

after yesterday's unfortunate tumble, the ds and i certainly did for the rest of the morning. the hapless chap is now recovering, and in good company, since nicole cooke apparently suffered the same injury at the weekend. can there be bottles at the side of manchester track?

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festive spirit

this coming sunday (18th december) we're having a 'mince pie ride' from somewhere to somewhere before retiring to the croft kitchen for coffee and mince pies. if you fancy joining in, e-mail for details.

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coming soon...

two books under review at the moment (i'm reading as fast as i can) are graeme fife's book 'tour de france, the history, the legend, the riders', updated from its 1999 edition to accommodate the subsequent american invasion. it's published by mainstream in edinburgh.

and just arrived in the post today 'viva la vuelta - the story of spain's great bike race' by lucy fallon and adrian bell. this latter volume promises to be an interestingly relevant read on three fronts, given that the big three tours have currently broken away from the uci and their pro tour, heras has just been divested of his record breaking fourth victory due to a positive epo test, and there is extensive mention of our (my) hero robert millar (and i believe a may have permission to reproduce on the post's robert millar pages). published by mousehold press. ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................

this website is named after graeme obree's championship winning 'old faithful' built using bits from a defunct washing machine

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as always, if you have any comments on this nonsense, please feel free to e-mail and thanks for reading.

this column appears, as regular as clockwork on this website every two weeks. (ok so i lied) sometimes there are bits added in between times, but it all adds to the excitement.

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