COFFEE FOR 16 PLEASE!

 https://www.mapmyride.com/workout/8889234777

A lovely Coffee ride today with 16 of the CTC guys.

Some snaps?

Llanelli coastal path

Looking back to North Gower

The Ashburnham hotel

North Gower - beautiful weather 

CTC'ers in action 

AUSSIE GONNA AUSSIE

 

Chapeau (cork rimmed, of course) Australian frankness

From Facebook:-

This Australian's reply to Trump's rant about “NATO not being there for America” is perfect.

"Mate. You run a country with 600,000 homeless people sleeping on the street tonight. A country where 40% of adults can't cover a $400 emergency without borrowing money. A country where insulin costs more than a car payment and people are rationing it to survive. A country where medical debt is the number 1 cause of bankruptcy. A country where women are dying in hospital car parks because doctors are too scared of abortion laws to treat a miscarriage.

You lock up more of your own citizens than any nation on earth. More than China. More than Russia. More than North Korea. The land of the free has 2 million people in cages, and a quarter of them haven't even been convicted of anything. They're just too poor to make bail.

Your life expectancy is going backwards. You're the only developed nation where that's happening. Your infant mortality rate is worse than Cuba's. Your kids do active shooter drills between maths and English while you sell the gunmaker's stock to your mates.

Your minimum wage hasn't moved in 15 years. You've got teachers working 2 jobs and veterans sleeping under bridges and you just spent a trillion dollars flattening a country that didn't attack you.

And you’ve got a convicted felon, adjudicating raping, paedophile protecting, porn star shagging insurrectionist running the biggest dumpster fire war campaign since the Taliban in Afghanistan thanked you very much for losing again.

And you're calling Greenland poorly run?

Greenland has universal healthcare. Free education. One of the lowest incarceration rates in the world. Nobody goes bankrupt there because they got sick. Nobody dies in a waiting room because their insurance said no.

'NATO wasn't there when we needed them." When exactly was that, champ? September 11? Because NATO invoked Article 5 for the first and only time in history FOR YOU. Soldiers from dozens of countries deployed, fought, bled, and died in Afghanistan FOR YOU. Australia wasn't even in NATO and we still showed up. For 20 years.

And you pulled out at 2am without telling anyone and left them to deal with the mess.

So maybe before you start calling other countries poorly run, have a look at your own backyard, you spray-tanned aluminium siding salesman. The only thing poorly run in this picture is your f----- mouth."

WEAPONS (2025) FILM REVIEW (SPOILERS)

 

Weapons IMDB 7.4

Nuts! Just Nuts! Starts whacky, gets whackier & whackier. A horror with comedy? Apparently Zach Cregger does that. I'm struggling to describe it. 

Did I enjoy it? Yup. Did I guess what was coming next? Nope. 

From Wiki:-

A child narrator explains that on a Wednesday night, seventeen children in Maybrook, Pennsylvania, ran out of their homes at 2:17 a.m. and vanished into the night. The missing were all students of Justine Gandy's third-grade class, from which only one child, Alex Lilly, remained. Justine is accused by the students' parents of being involved in their disappearance, and she is placed on administrative leave. One father, Archer Graff, is particularly suspicious of her.

Justine relapses into alcoholism and has a one-night stand with her married ex-boyfriend, police officer Paul Morgan. Concerned for Alex's welfare, Justine follows him home and discovers his house's windows covered with newspaper and his parents sitting motionless inside. When Justine falls asleep in her car while staking out the house, Alex's mother exits in a trance and cuts a lock of Justine's hair while she sleeps. Frustrated with the lack of leads, Archer starts his own investigation. After comparing his and another couple's video doorbell footage, Archer discovers the children's paths were directly converging on an unknown location. Both Archer and Justine become plagued by nightmares of the missing children, along with a mysterious elderly woman.

While on patrol, Paul prevents James, a homeless drug addict, from committing a burglary and pricks himself on a needle in James's pocket while frisking him. Paul punches James, then releases him after realizing his patrol car's camera recorded the assault. James burgles Alex's house, discovering the missing children in the basement, seemingly catatonic. While heading to the police station to claim the reward money, he is noticed by Paul, who chases him into the woods, thinking James was there to report the assault. James briefly encounters the mysterious woman before Paul catches him. James tells him of the children's whereabouts, and Paul brings James to Alex's house to investigate. Paul leaves a handcuffed James in the car, and after several hours, he bursts from the house and drags James inside.

Principal Marcus Miller is persuaded by Justine to conduct a wellness check on Alex. Before he can schedule it, the mysterious woman arrives at his office and introduces herself as Alex's Aunt Gladys, claiming she is helping to care for Alex's ill parents. 

Not gonna say more

Marks 8/10

SCROTES ON ILLEGAL PUSHBIKES

2 youths wearing balaclavas on an e-bike in the Swansea Enterprise park llansamlet today spotted my bike, then followed me around, made threatening gestures & eventually kicked my bike on a roundabout. Not sure what their game is? Just being scrotes or something more sinister? Please comment if you know what this is all about. 

I've reported the incident to South Wales's finest.

I must admit to being slightly shaken, as you never know what stuff like this can lead to. Google helpfully says :-

Across the UK and globally, police and communities are seeing a major rise in what is often dubbed the "balaclava boys" phenomenon. Here is a breakdown of why these groups target riders and how they operate:

1. Provocation and "The Game"

For many of these youths, targeting other road users is treated like a game or a form of entertainment. They frequently target cars, cyclists, pedestrians, and other motorcyclists specifically to elicit a reaction.

• The Escalation: Once a victim reacts—whether by shouting back, speeding up, or trying to evade them—it often intensifies their behaviour. Kicking at vehicles or wing mirrors is a common tactic they use during these high-adrenaline "cat-and-mouse" chases.

2. Social Media Clout

A significant driver behind this aggression is the pursuit of online attention. Youths frequently film their interactions to post on platforms like TikTok or Instagram. Experts note that algorithms heavily reward outrageous, lawless, or abusive content with clicks and likes, which actively reinforces and encourages this dangerous behaviour in the real world.

3. The Power and Anonymity of Modern E-Bikes

The riders use hoods and balaclavas to remain completely anonymous, confident that they cannot be easily identified by dash-cams or witnesses. Furthermore, many of the "e-bikes" used in these incidents are actually illegal, modified, or high-powered electric motorcycles (such as Sur-Ron bikes). These bikes:

• Are near-silent, allowing them to ambush or sneak up on victims.

• Have incredible acceleration and agility, allowing them to easily keep pace with motorbikes in traffic or quickly escape onto pavements, footpaths, and parks where cars and standard motorcycles cannot follow.

4. Attempted Theft or Robbery

While some encounters are purely anti-social, there is a distinct possibility they were scouting your motorbike for theft or attempting to force you off it. Swerving at riders, kicking at bikes, or surrounding victims are known tactics used by thieves to disorient a rider, cause a crash, and steal the vehicle.

The last one was worrying me.

GOODBYE RJ

 

So goodbye R J Mitte

You brought bravery to the screen

You shone a light on Cerebral Palsy 

And showed us dignity 

You burned brightly 

And raged against the dying of the light

You broke good

BBC News - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmn045en7d88o

RJ Mitte: Breaking Bad actor dies aged 34 - BBC News

FAME FOR MUMBLES!

 

Google's image of the day, Mumbles Pier! Gosh! Of all the gin joints in all the world...

CWRW'R WYTHNOS TRIGAIN CHWECH

 

VINTAGE CLAUDE

 

My first bike. Circa 1976, was a Claude Butler, similar to the above. I couldn't stretch to a Holdsworth, so saved up my pennies from my odd jobs @ Dad's shop, and bought one of these from the hardcore cycle shop at the end of our road. I remember pawing over brochures for weeks before deciding on which model. IIRC, it cost about £180. It had Reynolds 531 double butted tubing, Campagnolo gears, probably weinmann side pull brakes, a Campag 2/5 chanset(?) and pedals with cages & leather QR straps. I thought I was the bees knees. 

I stupidly sold it when I got to uni, to buy my first Motorcycle. See this post. 

Later on, in about 1981, living in Manchester, I bought a Raleigh Record Ace with a huge frame, cos it was cheap, & they couldn't sell it. I cycled this huge beast all the way to Crete (with a little help from railways & ferries :-))

I remember breaking spokes regularly, as I was a little plump, & the gear I loaded onto the bike included a tent, a cooker, all my clothes & a garlic press. This wasn't a problem, as every little French village had a bike mechanic. The gauge on the spokes varied so much by the time I got to Greece, that they resembled a harp more than bike wheels.

I recall the odd greeny gold paintjob fondly.

LEG STRETCH

A little leg stretch for Saturday to Gowerton. Unfortunately the bike path is now closed for 12 weeks - hopefully it will be worth the disruption. 

So we tootled (?) to The Secret for coffee & Welsh cakes instead. We may have to buy another bike for Kim....

Another notch on the bedpost, as I conquered West Cross lane unaided at the end of the run. 

CRUMBLIEPASS

Off to Shrewsbury today, on the Heart of Wales line. Thanks to Welsh gov.Uk for giving us over 60's free bus & train travel (t&c's apply) which paid for our away team jaunt.

Poo to the 07:40 start

On the way - 4 hours travel time

11:40

Welcome to Shrewsbury 

Some interesting architecture, Tudor, timber framed, & Georgian 

The grave of Ebenezer Scrooge 

(Well, the 1984 film version)

St. Chad's - the only Church "in the round" I've ever been in. 

The journey was spectacular - Mid Wales is stunning any time of the year. We even traversed 2 viaducts on the way. Shrewsbury was a revelation, too. We had only scratched the surfaced in the past, & there is so much more to see. So I'm looking forward to Kim getting her free bus pass, then we can go for a sneaky weekend with a free train ride. 

GIANT STEPS

 

Welcome to the stable, my boy! 

n-1 bikes

PROOF OF CONCEPT

 

Bollix again from Strava. It really does not like my phone. WTF is the above nonsense? The actual route was almost:-

Actually did a Home - West Cross Inn - Blackpill - Home run to test the Revolt. Passed with flying colours. Gears as smooth as a babies bottom, brakes good & not as harsh as I'd imagined for disk brakes, ride - middlin, not as soft as the Kona, but better than the leccy Giant. Quite acceptable. I'll put my gel saddle from the Allez on it, & add the SPD's from same, & all will be good in the hood. 

TAPAS NO GIN

We had a fantastic Birthday celebration @ Gin & Tapas, Newton Road, Mumbles, last weekend. Generously paid for by (ex) Dr. Mattie & his good lady; an excellent time was had by all. 

After struggling somewhat to choose an eatery of sufficient quality, and at a sufficiently reasonable price tag, Mel suggested the above. What a good choice that turned out to be! Even though we were 30 mins early, they welcomed us in, and gave us a great table in the bay window. The joint was jumpin, full to the brim of happy eaters. It was lovely to see the Forwood family installed, as Madlen & I share October 2nd for our Cumpleaños.

The choice was extensive, with even a German theme for Octoberfest! (Bratwurst for the brats amongst us). The other Tapas were delicious, and well portioned for the hungry Swansea crowd. They even had Kronenbourg 1664 Blanche on tap to the delight of the good doctor. At the end of the meal, they presented the Birthday Boy with a voicher for £20! I thought this was a brilliant marketing device, until 2 days later, I found it was from Mel, Ali & Jude - a point they had forgot to mention! Needless to say, the company was outstanding, wit and repartee flowing like wine.

I don't think we will be strangers to this great venue. 

PALESTINIAN RESILIENCE

Following on from my post, It's amazing how resilient the Palestinians are. If you look closely at the above photo, spotted on my way through town the other day, you will see the extent they are going to, to avoid being attacked by the Israeli Army. Blown up (no pun intended) section below:-

AND THE WHEELS ON THE BUS

More roundy roundy stuff, including the induction of Mrs H into the 28 mile along club. A very proud Me watched her spin, spin, spin! 

We had a lovely ride with the Matties, all the way to Neath, where they put on a Fayre for us! Which was nice. The weather was incredible for 3rd October, and made for a very special day out. We even had Pasteles de Nata, and a quick stop in BeerRiff! 

And it was on Strava, so it happened.

Much more successful than today's attempt @ Strava on my phone, which produced this :-

It's a pity that I'm a poor retired pubic servant, & can't afford a garmin.

The ride was fun, tho, from Dyfnant to Pwll & back, breaking fast @ the Pafiliwn Cafe. Pity about the drizzle.

Can ye ride tandem?

CWRW'R WYTHNOS TRIGAIN PUMP

LIMERICKS

Or Luimneach?

 

MORE RUM

 Latest news from A RUM DO:-

Ranulph Fiennes’s stepson says he is in contact with police about explorer’s wellbeing:-

The Guarniad.

A LIFE WELL TRAVELLED?

On the occasion of my 66th Birthday, my thoughts turned to how far I've come. Physically, not metaphorically.

On the surface of this planet, I have visited (or spent a little time, not just passed through) the following places:-

UK - I'd say most of Wales, most of England, most of Scotland (only a few of the Islands), none of Northern Ireland.

FRANCE - Paris, Papeete, Bora-Bora, Lille, Cannes, Antibes, Frejus, Macon, Annecy, Flaine, Les deux Alpes, Val d'isere, Tignes, Sarlat-la-Caneda, Vannes, Chamonix, St Tropez, Frejus, Toulouse, Albi, Bordeaux, Royan, Bergerac, La Rochelle, Cognac, Vannes, Lorient, Quimper, Rennes, Avranches, Bayeux, Liseaux, Mont St. Michel, D-Day beaches, Le Havre, Honfleur, Rouen, Le Touquet, Limoges, Calais, Arras, Cambrai, Amiens, Orleans, Cavalaire-sur-mer, Valenciennes. 

SPAIN - Madrid, Cadiz, Bilbao, Barcelona, Pamplona, Calpe, Valencia, Gandia, Denia, Benidorm, Alicante, Alcoi, Granada, Cordoba, Murcia, Malaga, Marbella, Seville, Jerez de la Frontera, Plama & most of Mallorca, Mahon & most of Minorca.

PORTUGAL - Lisbon, Porto, Cascais, Lagos, Albufeira, Algarve. 

ITALY - Rome, Bolzano, Trieste, Lecce, Brindisi, Otranto, Florence, Pisa, Sienna, Lucca, San Giminiano, Naples, Sorrento, Amalfi, Venice, Verona, Lake Garda, Genoa, Elba. 

GREECE - Athens, Crete, Rhodes, Corfu, Lemnos, Santorini, Paros, Mykonos, Ios, Naxos, Delos, Palairos, Lefkada.

TURKIYE - Bodrum, Marmaris, Kusadasi, Istanbul, Izmir, Didim, Denizli, Pamukkale, Fetiye, Kas. 

AUSTRAILIA - Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Victoria, Coffs Harbour, Magnetic Island, Townsville, Mt. Isa, Darwin, Alice Springs, Ayres Rock, Kakadu, Coober pedy, port Macquarie Newcastle, Swansea, Cardiff (yes, really).

NEW ZEALAND - Auckland, Rotorua, Wellington Christchurch,Whakarewarewa (great name, eh?)*

TRUMPTON - New York, Brooklyn, Tampa, kissimmee, Orlando, Cape Canaveral, LA, San Francisco, Route 66, Route 101. 

EIRE - Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Killarney, Dingle, Limerick, Galway, Portumna.

BELGIUM - Bruges, Ghent, Tournai.

CANADA - Vancouver, Victoria, Squamish.

SLOVENIA - Ljubljana, Bled.

CROATIA - Dubrovnik, Split.

NEPAL - Katmandu, Pokhara.

CUBA - Havana, Viñales.

INDONESIA - Bali

INDIA - New Delhi

SWITZERLAND - Verbier

POLAND - Krakow

HUNGARY - Budapest

THAILAND - Bangkok

ICELAND - Reykjavik 

NETHERLANDS - Amsterdam

CZECHIA - Prague

AUSTRIA - Salzberg

SINGAPORE 

& I've probably missed some. Phew!

However, there are so many places left! South America, Africa, South east Asia, China, Eastern Europe, (post bellum ;-) Scandinavia.

So, onwards! AFRICA & Marakkesh next!

Distance travelled I hear you ask? Well.....

BY WAY OF THE ROTATION OF THE EARTH 

24901 x 66 = 1,643,466 plus one circumnavigation 24901 = 1,668,367 miles

BY OUR ORBIT AROUND THE SUN

584 million x 66 = 38,544 million miles

AS PART OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM

Around the Milky Way Center

• Distance: About 3.9 billion miles (6.3 billion km) per year. = 257.4 billion miles

Relative to the Cosmic Microwave Background

• Distance: About 7.2 billion miles (11.6 billion km) per year. = 475.2 billion miles

TOTAL

732.6 billion miles or 0.1246 of a light year (plus change)

No wonder I feel tired!

* Whakarewarewa is a shortened version of the full 37-letter name, Te Whakarewarewatanga O Te Ope Taua A Wahiao - "the gathering place for the war parties of Wāhiao" or "the uprising of the army of Wāhiao" in the Māori language