tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24946439668488105592024-03-12T17:21:37.558-07:00Shem's blog!Bikes Kites Beer Food Design Surf Wales and more...shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.comBlogger86125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-20366085003761697222014-05-07T22:18:00.003-07:002014-05-07T23:11:11.559-07:00Dyfi Enduro 2014 photos and video Yet another epic year of the <a href="http://www.howies.co.uk/" target="_blank">Howies</a> <a href="http://www.summitcycles.co.uk/enduro/" target="_blank">Dyfi enduro</a> mountain bike event which is now more of a festival than a cycle event. Now running for about 14 years, give or take a year. The <a href="http://machcomedyfest.co.uk/" target="_blank">Machynlleth comedy festival</a> is also held over the same bank holiday weekend, giving the whole town a festival feel.<br />
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Yet again the valley was blessed with good weather for the event, thousands of people and lots of fun things to do.<br />
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The enduro itself had over a thousand riders this year and the course was as hardcore as ever with killer climbs, and as usual some seriously technical steep down hills. (we'd expect no less.)<br />
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For the first time in 6 or is it 7 years I didn't ride, but took to the hills to enjoy the vibes and get some photos and footage of the riders; before returning to the excellent 'Twisted Crank' party tent and dancing the night away with a couple or three ;-) fine ales.<br />
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Here's a link to some photos, and a little video made up of one of the more technical sections.<br />
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<a href="http://s1074.photobucket.com/user/shemllewelyn/library/Dyfi%20enduro%202014" target="_blank">Dyfi enduro photos 2014</a>, (World cup, Caban Coch, Dickos) I havn't had time to edit the pictures but if you spot yourself, feel free to download and tweak them yourself.<br />
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Last but not least here a short video of some footage from the Caban Coch section, (the one before the world cup), its a great techy trail and lets those that have never ridden the Dyfi see just how technical a ride it is...<br />
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-11306853494247570312014-05-07T03:13:00.001-07:002014-05-07T03:17:33.187-07:00A blog about blogging...<br />
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When I started blog writing many moons ago, blogging wasn’t as main stream as it is now, and I wrote for fun more than for purpose. As I started developing my own <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/12267582106/">businesses </a>and then products, I wrote more for publicity and marketing purposes and that gave me more reason to actually think about how I structured posts and optimised them. My main goal here was that my posts actually reached people and got read, and then that people would follow a link back to my website or the extra traffic would help my website rank higher in search engine posts. As well as writing my own blogs I also managed blogs and optimised websites for other companies, which allowed me time to experiment and analyse what worked and what didn’t.<br />
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When my wages relied on people knowing about what I did, I made a point of ensuring that all my posts where well structured and I followed a course of action on both the content and later promoting the post, but recently I’ve got lazy and just written posts with the hope that people would find them and take a read. Of course, I know this isn’t the case, so on my last blog post I decided to follow my old rules and spent a bit more time on the post to see if it would boost its views.<br />
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There’s no hard and fast rules on how to write a good blog post or how to boost its views, but here’s what I do:<br />
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Firstly, I’ll break this up into two sections or areas to consider: the content of the blog and its external optimising. This may overlap at times.<br />
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<b>Content</b></h3>
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A blog post’s popularity will be based around good content. If people are bored after the first paragraph, they probably won’t read on. You need to hook your audience. Write about subjects you know and understand; and try to add a personal touch, that someone else hasn’t already done. If people enjoy your post they will more than likely subscribe to your post and become a regular reader and hopefully share amongst their own social media platforms.<br />
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<b>Make it visual</b><br />
Why write about something if a video or image can do a better job? Integrate multi media into your text to produce a well rounded piece.<br />
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<b>Use key words</b><br />
Don’t force them in, people and search bots will spot this instantly. Make sure your writing flows and use variants of key words to ensure all possibilities are covered by search engines. For example if I was writing about kite surfing, I’d try to vary between ‘kitesurf’, ‘kite surf’, ‘kite surfing’ and so on.<br />
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<b>Break up big articles</b><br />
If your blog requires over 750 words, I’d consider breaking it up into a series of posts. There are a few reasons for this. People tend to want a quick fix from blog posts, write 3000 words and chances are people won’t read the whole post, miss the point and probably not return. Secondly if you ‘leave them hanging’ there’s a good chance you will acquire a return visitor, not just for this post but for others a swell.Finally, more visits = more hits and this in the long run will help your website ranking.<br />
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<b>Optimising</b></h3>
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<b>Tags and labels</b><br />
Choose your tags carefully. Don’t just throw in obvious tags; try to consider the key words in Questions that people might ask- that your blog might help answer<br />
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<b>Meta titles</b><br />
If your blog title doesn’t relate to your article, make sure your meta title, (the description below your title), does. Once again this allows both readers and search engines to have a clear idea what you are writing about. This should also be evident in the URl, so if your blog platform doesn’t automatically add your title to the URl, for example ‘www.blog.com/post 123456’, change it yourself to something more like this www.blog.com/newpost <br />
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<b>Add links</b><br />
Remember to add links within your posts. External links are great to direct people back to a website or another interesting article. Internal links back to your own posts will help increase the volume of traffic and followers. Remember to make sure that the hyperlink is a key word for the proposed link and not just a ‘see here…’ Search engines will pick up on these words and use them to help score your page.<br />
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<b>Get it seen</b><br />
Use social media to your advantage; <a href="https://twitter.com/shemKSW">Twitter,</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CambrianCoastSportive">Facebook</a>, G+ and all the others are great ways to promote your posts. Make sure you don’t ‘Spam’ your link in unwanted places or it could have an adverse affect if people report you for being a nuisance.<br />
Use hash tags # to label on social media platforms and make it easy for interested users to find you.<br />
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So did following my own guidelines result in a greater number of people reading my experiment post? Yes it did, here are the results…<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB5XuK7XW-626NXy3Xc5rFfZArtNju3XOjpV4eiYExGQ5usT1T6ZF2c-QUlv2tequMDwy7NHt4E4hWI-PT-mH42TgakJEdCHGZxD-7jfUab1jZmH17k3cBX8Ws5MgAJtlHmcZQxMRcZ6o/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-07+at+11.08.19.png"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB5XuK7XW-626NXy3Xc5rFfZArtNju3XOjpV4eiYExGQ5usT1T6ZF2c-QUlv2tequMDwy7NHt4E4hWI-PT-mH42TgakJEdCHGZxD-7jfUab1jZmH17k3cBX8Ws5MgAJtlHmcZQxMRcZ6o/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-07+at+11.08.19.png" /></a><br />
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As can be seen, the number of readers greatly improves for the last blog post, ‘<a href="http://shemovate.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/the-problem-with-cycle-paths-and-why.html">the problem with cycle paths</a>’. What isn’t shown is that the majority of these hits where gained within 36 hours of posting. <br />
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With a fear of not practising what I preach and writing posts that are too long, I shall leave you to go and write your own posts …<br />
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<!-- Blogger automated replacement: "https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-lVcRYd3PaOw%2FU2oGIln429I%2FAAAAAAAAAjc%2FCkhQOAXQ2dQ%2Fs1600%2FScreen%2BShot%2B2014-05-07%2Bat%2B11.08.19.png&container=blogger&gadget=a&rewriteMime=image%2F*" with "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB5XuK7XW-626NXy3Xc5rFfZArtNju3XOjpV4eiYExGQ5usT1T6ZF2c-QUlv2tequMDwy7NHt4E4hWI-PT-mH42TgakJEdCHGZxD-7jfUab1jZmH17k3cBX8Ws5MgAJtlHmcZQxMRcZ6o/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-07+at+11.08.19.png" -->shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-55707433298395998152014-03-03T13:09:00.000-08:002014-03-03T13:21:27.765-08:00The problem with cycle paths and why they havn’t been designed for cyclists!<div class="MsoNormal">
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There’s no doubt that cycle paths are slowly increasing in
numbers across the UK. The increase in the number of paths isn’t as constant as
I’d personally like to see, and it always leaves me feeling frustrated when a
new section of road is built without a cycle path, or even a narrow lane for
cyclists, along side the main highway. Surely it has to be more cost efficient
to add one to any on-going infrastructure developments, instead of what appears
to be the norm of building them independently?<o:p></o:p></div>
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There is however a big problem with the cycle paths we have,
and the problem is that they havn’t been designed with cyclists in mind!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Having added a road bike to my fleet of mountain bikes recently,
I was shocked when I first put my peddle to the path.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Cycle paths are a ‘nudge’, they aim to get more bums on
saddles, and there are many positive reasons to get more people cycling. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->More people traveling by bicycle means less
people in cars. This saves the individual money and helps lower the country’s
carbon emissions. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->If people participate in regular active travel
then they will more than likely become healthier individuals, both physically
and mentally. As well as living healthier lives, this will also save the NHS
financially. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Cycle paths also help to promote tourism and allow
family’s to enjoy active times together in a safe environment. (I wouldn’t want
to take my 8 year old cycling along the twisty roads of West Wales.)<o:p></o:p></div>
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The Welsh government strategically set out to do just this
as stated in its <a href="http://www.physicalactivityandnutritionwales.org.uk/Documents/740/Walking%20and%20Cycling%20Action%20Plan.pdf" target="_blank">Action plan for cycling and walking 2009-2013.</a> With focus on wellbeing,
health and fitness and tourism all being led from cycle paths and designated trails,
of critical importance in this document was the need to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">‘Change Behaviour’ <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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So, why don’t cycle paths appeal to cyclists, or am I on my
own with this opinion?<o:p></o:p></div>
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No, I’m not, ask any keen road rider and they’ll give you
the same answer. Cycle paths are not for serious cyclists, and the UK has an
ever growing number of serious cyclists. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I asked other cyclists on twitter what their thoughts where
on the matter and here a re a few of the replies I received, (anonymously) <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><a href="https://twitter.com/shemKSW"><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #66c1c1; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">@</span><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #009999; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">shemKSW</span></a><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Narrow, dogs, walkers, dark, vegetation growth...etc.
Never use them’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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‘<a href="https://twitter.com/shemKSW"><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #66c1c1; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">@</span><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #009999; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">shemKSW</span></a><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> as a paramedic scraping you off the road along side the
cycle path is rather painful for both you & me’.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘Lorry parked across Festival Way </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23cyclepath&src=hash"><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #66c1c1; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">#</span><b><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #009999; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">cyclepath</span></b></a><span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> in Bristol docks this morning. Driver nowhere in sight’ </span><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: #F5F8FA; color: #292f33; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span>and so on…</div>
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Just one example on a section of Cycle path near Machynlleth. A parked car, loose gravel and traffic light signage are just some of the obstacles and thats before you have to cross the road to continue the path, on one of the busiest bridges in Wales! </div>
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Yes cycle paths are generally raised from road levels, and
sometimes even have a hedge to block you form the road and make things even
safer for cycling with children, but they still don’t appeal. The main reason
they don’t appeal is because they do appeal to lots of other users and don’t
provide the same benefits that riding on the road does. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Surface is a major problem. Many cycle paths are surfaced
with the cheapest form of tarmac possible, you only need to look at a 19mm wide
racer tyre pumped up to over 100psi to realise that this rough surface is not
going to feel good for the bike rider! Further more, gravel that becomes loose
is a hazard for cyclists, especially for, you guessed it for keen road riders
that can maintain speeds of around 20mph or more.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Debris is a major problem. Any rubbish thrown out of cars
will generally land on cycle paths, this means dodging not only loose gravel
but other obstacles as well. <o:p></o:p></div>
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One of the major off puts is thorns and branches. When roads
get hedges cut, its common to see a road sweeper following along clearing up
all the Debris that could give car drivers a puncture. Cycle paths do not have
this privilege, and most cycle paths I’ve used are covered in tyre wrecking
potential. If there’s one thing cyclist’s hate, its punctures. During many a
ride I’ve exited a cycle path within seconds from fear of ‘copping’ a puncture.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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As well as the above there are all the other reasons not to
use a cycle path if you’re a cyclist. These include; other cyclists, yes we’re
all bike riders, but when your trying to beat a personal best or simply
maintain a steady pace, the last thing you want is to be slowed down by
children or leisure riders or which brings me onto my next off put, walkers. Of
course I want people to get out and walk, but why call it a cycle path if it’s designed
for people to walk on as well?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Finally my pet hate, people using them as a car parks. Yes
you can fit a car on one, yes there’s not any ‘No Parking’ signs, but does that
mean its right to park your car there? Car drivers are more than happy to point
out that a cyclist is using the road when there is a cycle path readily
available, as cyclists we are however entitled to use a road and just because
there is a cycle path, doesn’t mean you have to use it; in-fact if there’s a
car parked on the cycle path, its very hard to use it, in the same way that its
hard to use it, when there’s walkers, other cyclists, thorns, loose chippings
and various debris to dodge. So, what needs to be done to make cycle paths
attractive to cyclists?<o:p></o:p></div>
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In my opinion it would actually be pretty easy to get more
cyclists to use cycle paths, you need to look at what cyclists want, not just
give them what some one that’s never ridden a bike or spoken to cyclists thinks
they want. <o:p></o:p></div>
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My suggestions would be : <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Smooth tarmac, it feels good when your on a
bike, cyclists would flock to it! (build it and they will come principle)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>Designated lanes rather than a free for all
path, a large amount of European roads have a cycle lane on each side of the
road to ensure cyclists don’t collide. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>Keep them clean! Roads get swept and kept clear,
couldn’t cycle paths be?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span>A code of conduct, we have a highway code, wouldn’t
a cycle path code make sense? This could inform all users, including walkers,
roller bladders, cyclists, car parkers? What and what not to do. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Enough ranting! Over all I’m happy that cycle paths are
slowly on the increase, the people designing them do however, need to start
considering their end users needs if they want them to be fully accepted and
used. <o:p></o:p></div>
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If you have any comments I’d love to hear them, please drop
me a line here or tweet me on my handle @shemKSW<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thanks<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br /></div>
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shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-7894217203186995702013-11-26T23:07:00.000-08:002013-11-26T23:07:24.069-08:00PhotographyIm no pro snapper, but Im out and about, generally around Snowdonia on a daily basis and if the weathers nice theres never a shortage of scenery to capture. heres a few recent images...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKg5xgjF3UhRqhxEZj3EOD1k5JgLBuaBpW2tqDxFMr3eB1SJrtPFHOKqSnbPWVpXGsLBQTUv5GQtBigsmUU3v5QQw4sUk9H2w-7biOe9Q6eYDQqyIk4WJrHvK-VJ4_ffvuSnN9kHLkMg/s1600/Aberdyfi-sunset.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKg5xgjF3UhRqhxEZj3EOD1k5JgLBuaBpW2tqDxFMr3eB1SJrtPFHOKqSnbPWVpXGsLBQTUv5GQtBigsmUU3v5QQw4sUk9H2w-7biOe9Q6eYDQqyIk4WJrHvK-VJ4_ffvuSnN9kHLkMg/s320/Aberdyfi-sunset.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
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This was Aberdyfi on the morning of the Cambrian Coast Sportive, around 6am</div>
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One of my favourite spots, LLyn Cwellyn looking south</div>
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Trawsfynydd sunrise</div>
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Llyn Mair, near Maentwrog. </div>
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A murmer of Starlings above the Dyfi Valley near the 'Star' in pub!</div>
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Tal y Llyn lake, it must be one of the most photographed lakes in Wales?</div>
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My favourite Welsh mountain, Tarren Hendre, looking West towards Aberdyfi and Borth</div>
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Hope you like...</div>
<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-29816500792263202132013-06-20T13:00:00.002-07:002013-06-25T07:13:58.792-07:00Pizza, mountain bikes and building your own clay ovenIf theres two things I feel passionately about its Pizza and bikes. Ideally not at the same time, but theres nothing like a good pizza to refuel after a solid ride, or to just chat over legendary days on the trail with other biking buddies.<br />
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Yesterday was a day of epic proportions for both of these two key ingredients!<br />
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After a day sat at the desk, I put out a last minute message on the Dyfi mtb facebook page and managed to gather 3 buddies for an after work ride. The sun was out, the trails where dusty and with it being Machynlleth's epic Cli-Machx, smiles per miles were guaranteed! :-D<br />
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The view from 'flap jack corner' at the start of the major down hill section was exceptional. We're so used to looking down at Corris in the rain, or more realistically just cloud; that having a view like this and the summit of Cadair Idris across from us was a real treat.</div>
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Its days like this that really make me wonder why I dont live somewhere warmer and drier!</div>
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So after an epic session up the mountain and the usual bike based banter, I headed home and decided that tonight would be the night to test run the new home made clay pizza oven.</div>
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<b>The Pizza oven!</b></div>
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As a major fan of all things Pizza I've always made my own from scratch, but have always been frustrated by conventional ovens not being hot enough to cook a 'real pizza!' A couple of years ago, whilst watching River Cottage, my food hero Hugh, featured a series where he made a pizza oven using clay and sand and very little else; Id planned on doing exactly this...for about 2 years now, when all of a sudden about a week ago I thought, "today is the day!"</div>
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I happened to be spending a day with my niece, (Misha). She's always up for something wacky and fun, so I knew she'd be keen to help her favourite uncle out for this mission!</div>
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<b>The build</b></div>
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So, heres how it goes...</div>
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I started off by levelling the land at the spot I wanted the oven, and laid six 9" blocks on their side. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhYFCRVZRrod0Uh-0AD5T1LM6W6_qcXAwUxZHJx5BUKi39CRBr0jljayvv4TFUXaG5WCdjvx0DXiNlFkkrZ-qiPrfE4QDLmsQlzsy_Ngd_-VIfRkN6OyPVYkMy0_oF7xrRlz6QQCmWdfI/s1600/photo+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhYFCRVZRrod0Uh-0AD5T1LM6W6_qcXAwUxZHJx5BUKi39CRBr0jljayvv4TFUXaG5WCdjvx0DXiNlFkkrZ-qiPrfE4QDLmsQlzsy_Ngd_-VIfRkN6OyPVYkMy0_oF7xrRlz6QQCmWdfI/s320/photo+(2).JPG" width="240" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz-ULYXLdu3_QeqifosDeFyMFjxvFNaaPtmRrnFHaVU0tujXywYPZ3OBwG3QsgRqMNuG6G5TV_ZIokLE-DlVfk7LqTRC22DWSNPjerbvi6G-WovU-VzhF0-ZNzodqisxzdMS-p9fvoOcY/s1600/photo+(3).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz-ULYXLdu3_QeqifosDeFyMFjxvFNaaPtmRrnFHaVU0tujXywYPZ3OBwG3QsgRqMNuG6G5TV_ZIokLE-DlVfk7LqTRC22DWSNPjerbvi6G-WovU-VzhF0-ZNzodqisxzdMS-p9fvoOcY/s320/photo+(3).JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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On top of the concrete blocks I then laid eight heat blocks, recycled from a storage heater. At this point I should mention that my budget for building my dream pizza oven was exactly diddly, zero, squat! Call it what you want £0, Nothing. </div>
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Next up, I needed sand and clay. I had a friend that wanted some sharp sand clearing from his garden, so off we went to fetch the sand. This was the easy task, next up was the clay. I knew of a especially clay based river bank not far from our home, so it was off down the river with bags and a little shovel to fetch the clay. Digging from down in a river and filling bags of clay isn't the easiest task, but it was sunny and I had good company, and we got our clay. :-D</div>
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So, next up, you need to create a mould of the shape you want your oven to be. Sharp sand is easy to shape especially when its wet, and we soon had our form ready for covering. Remember this form will be the internal measurements of your oven, so ensure the size is right for your needs. I was aiming to be able to cook one 9" pizza at a time, or possibly a slightly elongated pizza. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4uB2wdDSyJz9-tFaTwIpjVe-mh6HM7KTeRLBHQs96tRDpseo7KECyPKfZo4Ycl-fo5dqUUhSBpI_lzP2VdaN-pwZYPl4wUF3A3Dct-zdHTqHGkxzbaLQfEUBeyrks3vpM4NhMf4X4Kjo/s1600/photo+(4).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4uB2wdDSyJz9-tFaTwIpjVe-mh6HM7KTeRLBHQs96tRDpseo7KECyPKfZo4Ycl-fo5dqUUhSBpI_lzP2VdaN-pwZYPl4wUF3A3Dct-zdHTqHGkxzbaLQfEUBeyrks3vpM4NhMf4X4Kjo/s320/photo+(4).JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Once shaped you will need to cover the sand in a few sheets of wet newspaper, to a) help stop any movement and b) to help hollow out the shell once dried. </div>
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<b>The fun part</b></div>
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You now need to mix the clay with the sand, I used a 50-50 ratio for this. We did this by getting a plastic sheet on the floor, adding both components and then treading it in with our bare feet. This is great fun for all the family, kids love it, so do adults :D and it really cant go wrong. Keep mixing until you have a nice doughy clay mixture. I used river clay which was already more than wet enough. If you have drier clay you will need ot add water to the mix here as well. Another optional is to add chopped hay to the composite mixture you now have to help bond and insulate the mix. I didn't bother with this, but if I build another I probably will. </div>
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With our mix now ready we set to adding approximately four inches of clay around the sand mould. Ensuring that all your hand fulls of sand are well joined was essential and once we had the whole oven covered, we then used wet hands to further obtain a smooth finish, by simply rubbing in a circular motion. </div>
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<b>Cut the door </b> You'll now need to cut in a door. There are a couple of considerations here. Obviously you need the door to be wide enough to fit in your desired pizza, and secondly the height of the door affects the draw and chimney function of the oven. A good guide to the height of the door is 60% of the total height of the inside of the oven. </div>
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I chose to add a pattern to the outside of the oven, as you can see here...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx9lx1vXkINHzXrI66gNz6gahf86s4iITOBtyyVc2YAHv18FiQfIBLEKyG7HlkHKTQkDOWG41cxt78vgqx_rshSoodOntmK8pjOsGBRakWee2lqkBIyGYFNmtkra_cupRk-ASPxiFfhtw/s1600/oven+swirls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx9lx1vXkINHzXrI66gNz6gahf86s4iITOBtyyVc2YAHv18FiQfIBLEKyG7HlkHKTQkDOWG41cxt78vgqx_rshSoodOntmK8pjOsGBRakWee2lqkBIyGYFNmtkra_cupRk-ASPxiFfhtw/s320/oven+swirls.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Retrospectively I wish I hadn't added patterns, purely because I'm told most clay ovens, this one included, will crack and need filling in places. I'd hoped to save the door when I pulled it out, but this wasn't possible. </div>
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<b>Patience! </b>With your oven now made, you now need to do nothing, for a good few days! All I wanted to do was hollow it out and get cooking, but you really do need to step away, cover it if it rains and just let it settle. I left it 4 days before hollowing out the sand, very slowly, ensuring the clay had dried just enough to support itself. Once hollow I allowed it to air dry for another couple of days before slowly starting to light very small fires to begin the true drying process. </div>
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Back now to ending my epic bike ride up the Dyfi forest and having that after ride hunger that only a quality pizza and ideally a refreshing real ale or premium continental Larger can satisfy. I'd cut some well dried ash into suitably sized kindling and logs earlier that day, and 10 days after initially building the oven its first real fire was lit! I kept adding logs and stoking it up and about 90 mins in decided the pile of now red hot embers where hot enough to start cooking. I split the pile of glowing embers down the middle and pushed them equaly left and right to each side allowing a snug space in the centre of the oven for the pizza's to sit. </div>
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Here it is in action</div>
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As it was the first session I wanted the heat blocks to clean up a bit in the heat, so I used a pottery oven dish to cook the pizzas on, (next time they'll be directly on the bricks). </div>
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Within a minute I realised just how quickly the pizza's would be cooking, I quickly commandeered the kids to start making pizza's while I checked on progress and ran pizza's to and from the kitchen. Cooking time was around 2.5-3 minutes each and I'm guessing the oven heat was around 275-300 degrees. </div>
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I wont go into the perfect base, the light and crispy perfectly cooked dough or feeding a few of my neighbours before driving a pizza 4 miles to my niece that spent the day helping me make the oven. But it was a success, perfect pizza cooked in a home made clay oven built purely from left overs and natural resources. I probably shouldn't have eaten three whole pizza's to myself, but I was excited and they kept on cooking and getting better and better, so I just couldn't resist. </div>
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Next time I fire it up, (which will be soon), Ill take some video footage of stages and probably a few more photos of pizza's with slightly more exciting ingredients than just cheese and tomato, but really if you've ever thought of doing this or just love real stone baked pizza's go out, get some free or very cheap materials and make your own clay oven. You wont regret it! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgndxiP-UUmjmfQf8AXYkDBbAPS9WeojUbxLAv53SSp_G7nmJLNavDbJ57mqahHN_Qj2UW2l6c8SORKg0ybnVvIHRaP74Xx_97G-SRJuu3_1b_1-ktlaVXqZiapM6o9eC6Xymb5ULJ5g/s1600/pizza.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgndxiP-UUmjmfQf8AXYkDBbAPS9WeojUbxLAv53SSp_G7nmJLNavDbJ57mqahHN_Qj2UW2l6c8SORKg0ybnVvIHRaP74Xx_97G-SRJuu3_1b_1-ktlaVXqZiapM6o9eC6Xymb5ULJ5g/s320/pizza.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Shem ap Geraint is a leading authority in all things Pizza and has researched this area for over 2 decades. ;-) Thanks for reading x </div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-28924488552176352632013-06-19T04:23:00.001-07:002013-06-19T04:23:44.468-07:00Its all change<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So! Ive blatantly neglected my own blog for a few months due
to various situations that have demanded more time and effort that my already
busy life would allow. This currently sees me in my first ‘employed’ role in
thirteen years, after being self employed, free lance and any other name
associated to basically managing myself professionally and financially! It didn’t
take this change in career and lifestyle lightly though; Id scoured websites
and papers, eagerly ‘hunting’ out the right position to make the change worth
while. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Typically…at the point that I thought, NNAAA Ill stick to
what Im doing, and start a couple of new projects I had planned, a great
position became available at an exciting new centre based in Bangor University.
I shan’t hide the fact that I find Bangor University a exciting and dynamic
centre to be around at this point!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, with
bated breath I hear you ask “what is Shem doing that is so interesting?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let me Nudge you here! Im working as part of a
multidisciplinary team associated with Bangor University and funded partially
by the Welsh European funding office… The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.behaviourscience.org/" target="_blank">Wales Centre for Behaviour Change.</a> </b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So where
does my past experience in Business development and design
connect with Psychology I hear you ask? <o:p></o:p></div>
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My time studying product design and working with clients in
this area had led me down a path of consumer psychology, multidisciplinary
teams and digital marketing. All of which play a part in looking at the way end
users can be effected by the way they see, touch and perceive a product, be it
a ‘touchy feely’ product, a system, service or any other variety of product;
and here I am now working in a multidisciplinary team at the WCBC. <o:p></o:p></div>
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For more info of my work here and current projects, please
see my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://newidea-shem.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Behaviour change blog </a></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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So what of the biking, kiting and surfing? That’s right…I
quit all things outdoor, never look at a skate board any more and certainly
would consider any sport that could result in a fracture of flesh wound…<o:p></o:p></div>
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…and if you believe that, you clearly havn’t ready any of my
previous blogs!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Yes its summer time and the surf ‘aint doing much, but the
hills and trails are dusty and dry and the mountain biking here n West Wales is
as good as ever. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I shant rant on about perfect single track or rock face drop
offs that flow like a river; instead, heres a video of some recent session...<o:p></o:p></div>
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GoPro, a word that I used to connect with recording fun
times…now it reminds me of loosing my beloved HD HERO2, during my first
kitesurf sesh of the year. But every cloud has s silver lining, and the loss of
my HD 2, just reinforces the fact that it was probably time to upgrade to the
newer and more powerful HD3 Black edition, and loosing my old one will act as a
Nudge in the right direction. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I havnt gone ahead with the upgrade yet, but with pay day a
couple of weeks away, a new toy will be arriving at the Giant Shem oversized
toy box very soon! <o:p></o:p></div>
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I started writing this post 2 weeks ago, but got dragged
away form it. I think I had a plan of where to go next, but its completely
passed me by, so I shall instead stop right here. <o:p></o:p></div>
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shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-34299404930928419612013-03-16T08:29:00.003-07:002013-03-16T08:29:44.931-07:00promotional filmsStill struggling to blog here regularly due to other commitments, but here's a recent video I made for the <a href="http://www.gardencarpentry.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">decking business...</a><br />
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Hope you enjoyshem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-29845483793465773012013-02-11T03:01:00.003-08:002013-02-11T03:04:18.779-08:00Other blogsAgain, a lack of blog posts here due to my work on other blogs, both my own and other blogs I manage.<br />
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I've updated my own <a href="http://www.gardencarpentry.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Timber decking in Wales</a> blog, its had a new look and Ive started optimised it for search engines. Some thing I havnt done for over a year, so it needed an update to keep it in sync with googles new 'SEO tactics!<br />
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I've also been catching up with the <a href="http://www.icesi.org/10-week-gap-snowboard-instructor-course.asp" target="_blank">Ski Instructor</a> blog I run for the guys at ICE snow sports.<br />
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Of course its not all work, I've sold my road motor bike, a Bandit 1200cc and bought a Honda XR400 off roader again, that got a quick off road test on Saturday, as you can see below<br />
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...and of course I've been mountain biking. Its back to snow, rain and low temperatures at the moment but last weekend gave us glorious sun shine and perfect conditions to get out for a longer ride and make a day of it, by crossing the happy valley drovers roads for some natural technical riding...<br />
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So on a work front its back to the office! I have a video to produce for a local Ground source heating firm to demonstrate one of their installations form start to finish, its an interesting site so will make for a hopefully captivating watch!<br />
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-79012086668795193562012-12-07T04:53:00.003-08:002012-12-07T04:59:36.720-08:00Dyfi Winter Warmer enduro 2013Here it is folks. The much anticipated sign up page for the 2013 Dyfi Winter Warmer, mountain bike Enduro event.<br />
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A spin off form the May Howies Dyfi Enduro, the Winter Warmer uses the same forest and terrain as the spring event, but uses a lap format instead of the full 60km summer route.<br />
The full routes totals around 30 miles, but due to the multiple lap route you can drop out at the 10 or 20 mile options. This makes it ideal as a warm up enduro, a first time enduro for those not sure about committing to the full distance, or for if like me a couple of years ago, you accidentally end up in the pub until 4 am the night before and your hang over kicks in half way through the first lap!<br />
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Don't be fooled by the distance tough, its the Dyfi forest after all, and the riding will be challenging but great fun, with you guessed it a few good sized climbs. As with all the Dyfi mountain bike events, the main emphasis is on fun and testing yourself, but I'm sure the seasoned racers such as <a href="http://locoracing.co.uk/blog/author/huw-thomas" target="_blank">Huw Thomas</a> and Matt Page will probably show up, if you fancy testing yourself against the best!<br />
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Here's a link to the sign up page...<a href="https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/events/details/84955/Dyfi-Winter-Warm-Up" target="_blank">Winter warmer enduro</a><br />
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Here's my GoPro footage form last years Dyfi Winter Warmer </div>
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...and a link to my <a href="http://www.shemovate.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/dyfi-winter-warmer-enduro.html" target="_blank">Winter warmer enduro</a> review of last year. </div>
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So if you fancy a fun day out with a few hundred other mountain bikers of like minded persuasion, here it is. The perfect start to the New Year :-D See you there. </div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-64988953142097025942012-10-28T08:05:00.002-07:002012-11-28T15:57:26.196-08:00Beer blogging!I know I normally write about bikes, surfing, kiting and other activities, but its no surprise that Im a fan of beer! Real ale and strong Europeans especially!<br />
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SO myself and a mate have been saving up a few rare and exotics ales recently, and finally decided that we had enough to justify opening them...and making a little evening of it at that!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJdpCHWNuOiin5PsMsew6Aa3xfTa10OmkK2HSbUJ_XbKwF5zTC7RFkImVgDTsYhyi0Hn-NWOZIe1YEbnbXseLwzjZcYIRuas8kww9jkKn5zaOFfAogfLc6zc2oq0QuxoI25GpjECRswI/s1600/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+104.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihJdpCHWNuOiin5PsMsew6Aa3xfTa10OmkK2HSbUJ_XbKwF5zTC7RFkImVgDTsYhyi0Hn-NWOZIe1YEbnbXseLwzjZcYIRuas8kww9jkKn5zaOFfAogfLc6zc2oq0QuxoI25GpjECRswI/s320/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+104.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>So here is the main line up...<br />
Ranging in strength from 5% to a massive 15% YES! You read right a 15% beer, this was the motely-crue of beverages we battled through.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NRn1RpMelAgoJ1iudt8lAgdHc0FSCdSMfLPZvr-x84GZjPtSJogpzA2vfZtLMYarksDQieEc0B9AEDZjfuVmsCpxcHSKsYHmh39u4VzQF-Z_GkYZpa-kW1oMPPgs3rT965Njshkv0OQ/s1600/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NRn1RpMelAgoJ1iudt8lAgdHc0FSCdSMfLPZvr-x84GZjPtSJogpzA2vfZtLMYarksDQieEc0B9AEDZjfuVmsCpxcHSKsYHmh39u4VzQF-Z_GkYZpa-kW1oMPPgs3rT965Njshkv0OQ/s320/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+106.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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KILL YOUR DARLINGS 5%, this Vienna style ale wouldnt be my usual tipple, with its orangey taste its too sweet for my liking, but was a greatly refreshing and tasty surprise. certainly not one to drink 5 or 6 pints of, but a great ale to have with a meal, or on a summers day, sat in a beer garden.<br />
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BREWDOG-HARDCORE IPA 9.2%- This is no special brew copy. Although it comes in at a solid 9.2%, its a full of flavour fizzy style real ale, thats bursting with hops. It almost tastes as if your drinking hope flowers neat out of the bottle. Ive bought this quite regularly, and its a cracking brew. A few of these will chill out the most stressful of days. If you havnt tried it, you should, or even one of brewdogs lighter ales. I really think this is the future of ale drinking, cold fizzy and full of flavour!<br />
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So beer no3, after a half a pint of Peroni to cleanse the pallet! Here it was, the much awaited...<br />
BREWDOG, PARADOX JURA 15%!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyseWU_fHZ36hi3lGDdkNLm2OruojpX61O1QLP67Sf-H-hsDSYOEJHOCPhTfckBCA1prJ_elZ-jaRdxqcficSl4gOsMIgI3-nG44rfGatjmm_ny9TbZADaEovWIQ3JfYfzRFGDP2PpjMQ/s1600/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyseWU_fHZ36hi3lGDdkNLm2OruojpX61O1QLP67Sf-H-hsDSYOEJHOCPhTfckBCA1prJ_elZ-jaRdxqcficSl4gOsMIgI3-nG44rfGatjmm_ny9TbZADaEovWIQ3JfYfzRFGDP2PpjMQ/s320/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+100.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Brew dog, love their novelty ales and also make a approx 30% and 40% beers. Prices arent cheap at around £15 a bottle for this one and the 30 and 40 percenters cost thirty and forty pounds respectively. These clearly arent designed for drinking by the pint!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anyway, as it states on the bottle, this is a Stout brewed in Whiskey barrels, and it pretty obvious when you taste it. I can only describe the flavour as smokey, so imagine drinking a stout with a smoked cheese and whiskey flavour and thats as near to its taste as I can get. Weve all heard the saying "It'll put hairs on your chest", but this will put hairs on your tongue! Certainly reaches parts other beers cant, but not one to be added to my shopping trolley again!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The finale...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">PUY D'ENFER 8.5%</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGsnCwLw6upUxMgyaHGVd8t0smVDsw9tn8Hhw2LVVJlaOxmWVGFkn5dI0Smkr75Ic-rEJKDIDi3AIyxgzItMRS3rocC7_Qynk6dplZV3HBFk-_nusNDprx06ymVdA2He1cRn1Y-Ws12pg/s1600/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGsnCwLw6upUxMgyaHGVd8t0smVDsw9tn8Hhw2LVVJlaOxmWVGFkn5dI0Smkr75Ic-rEJKDIDi3AIyxgzItMRS3rocC7_Qynk6dplZV3HBFk-_nusNDprx06ymVdA2He1cRn1Y-Ws12pg/s320/Iphone+up+to+Nov+2012+102.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Im not sure of the full translation, but Enfer certainly means hell, so I nicknamed this Hell beer. :) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This award winning French beer, is certainly up there with the strong ones, but its taste doesnt lead you to believe that. It's certainly full of flavour, but its clever brewing has left it smooth and easily drinkable...maybe to drinkable considering its potent strength! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It was certainly the winner for me out of the above four ales, and one Ill buy again...if I can find it! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">All in all a fun evening of beer tasting, Id like to say educating, but I think that would be pushing things a little far :P </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-28958809788946592012-10-22T10:03:00.001-07:002012-10-22T10:03:14.375-07:00Making the most of sunny daysIt may be nearly November, and the temperature, at night especially has dropped considerably, but we've had some great weather; and it'd be rude not to make the most of it!<br />
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Weve also had some great surf as well, everything form huge 10 foot beach break to perfect peeling point break. So Ive been liberating a few hours during the day and getting myself wet.<br />
As per usual the GoPro has been coming along to document the fun.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim4oac-jO72MkBl5s-OZy-dFx6Ebs1gM7uzLTOb6Gv0e7exFySfVTuVVgoPT-ZnbQi_pVVUqsUQagiU14M9EdYD8KWjooFN7_4giJ2newVE8EYmhB-suG5ZLtDKZ86x1QxpK-MNwP2_9A/s1600/gwril2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim4oac-jO72MkBl5s-OZy-dFx6Ebs1gM7uzLTOb6Gv0e7exFySfVTuVVgoPT-ZnbQi_pVVUqsUQagiU14M9EdYD8KWjooFN7_4giJ2newVE8EYmhB-suG5ZLtDKZ86x1QxpK-MNwP2_9A/s320/gwril2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Heres one from my first session using the GoPro surf mount on the nose of the board, taken at a session at a really sheltered reef break near Aberdyfi. </div>
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The VW T25 got itself a night out as well recently. The forecast for both weather and surf looked good, so we nipped down to Tywyn and spent the night parked up on the sea front. After a gorgeous sunset and an evening in the van having fun we woke up to small clean surf, that continued to build through the day. Sol had some great waves as well, but was shocked by the change of temperature, as his last surf was in France in August!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS_QMoM6IjU3fUmpJ__7bBfmp4xVc_ZUY4SZcBGI-TQ7TSW29S9n5J9a4FqYc__2KdXALK7N4Uy8dc3uJ1QgZh346vhRveSGX-gyEVuRHGLuWea1Z5WXCiLk6zT0d6sGTnLcWPyE_A8s/s1600/vw+at+night.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS_QMoM6IjU3fUmpJ__7bBfmp4xVc_ZUY4SZcBGI-TQ7TSW29S9n5J9a4FqYc__2KdXALK7N4Uy8dc3uJ1QgZh346vhRveSGX-gyEVuRHGLuWea1Z5WXCiLk6zT0d6sGTnLcWPyE_A8s/s320/vw+at+night.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Free Camping at its best!</div>
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The view from the v-dub was just as good in the morning as well</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCFhOWpGnZBbaheLwb4Jgwj7L1XE7p10B6HXiHhOH8BESpQ2ljpFqWG1r56nm6EyJCIx_YCntUCwMlsgeMI-3_NzOSin9CnfeXCV4q29kU5kwXHZKWArV1h-uo64YvTnzh_f3wAqvE-w/s1600/surf+roof.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCFhOWpGnZBbaheLwb4Jgwj7L1XE7p10B6HXiHhOH8BESpQ2ljpFqWG1r56nm6EyJCIx_YCntUCwMlsgeMI-3_NzOSin9CnfeXCV4q29kU5kwXHZKWArV1h-uo64YvTnzh_f3wAqvE-w/s320/surf+roof.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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The day wasnt over after the beach tho, we headed straight to the skate park for Sol to work on his ever increasing bag of skate board tricks, and then capped the day off with a walk to the bearded lake. </div>
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All in an awesome weekend!</div>
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Heres a little footage of the surf from the weekend</div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-76766035460129287842012-09-30T08:21:00.001-07:002012-10-07T07:07:04.795-07:00Star kites Taina review, (independant)So, Ive kindly had a Starkites Taina 9 meter to play with over the last couple of weeks. Weighing in at 88 kilos, given a pie or two Im no light weight and my usual day to day kite is an 11 meter Caution Mayhem, so a 9 wouldnt be my daily choice, but Im always up for a change and through working with kites for over 10 years now Ive flown a lot of kites and always enjoying trying new ones.<br />
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<b>First impressions</b><br />
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So, the initial package set up looks great. The well designed bag is ample in size, and easy to get the kite out of and more importantly back into. I have a huge dislike for bags that are to small to easily get a kite back into after a session without extracting every last piece of air from the bladders, so a good start! The bag is nicely styled and could easily be mistaken or a quality ruck sack.<br />
Open the bag and your greeted by a good quality sail cloth, still nice and crisp, even though Id been told this particular kite has had a good amount of use.<br />
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Im a big fan of keeping things simple and not over complicating matters, and the bar set up is just this. Simple twin control straps for depower and trimming the kite, which work easily, both in light wind and under pressure in stronger winds. Theres a large amount of throw on the bar, and those with shorter arms will certainly want to adjust the trim if they dont want to spend the whole session getting their arms stretched. The throw incidentally, works brilliantly in fully depowering the kite, but Ill speak more about this later.<br />
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<b>Set up</b><br />
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The kite flies on four lines, and has a really simple bridle system. Once more, this is right down my street, keeping the simple is best principle alive! The rear lines attach directly to short leaders and the front lines attach to the minimal pulley system.<br />
The kite pumps up quickly through the non return inflation valve, and deflates equally well via the deflate valve. The one pump system is solid, and inflates the kites three struts with no bother or need to twist tubes. The only factor I did have with the one pump system was that the shut off valves kept popping back open when trying to shut them off to lock the air into each chamber individually. This took a few attempts to get right and it would be very easy to not realise that the clamps hadnt been shut off properly.<br />
The main depower activator on the bar is a solid plastic push away device. I worked well in tests, and was simple to re load and re launch. I personally preffer a textile mechanism, as Ive had sand jam units like this on other kites, but on my own tests here, this model worked well. Definitely worth giving your bar and especially this area a good wash down after sessions to ensure any sand is removed.<br />
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<b>Flying</b><br />
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Launching<br />
Self launching was pretty easy. My current kites are set up with a side line re ride system for safety, and the star kites use a centre line re ride. This means that you cant self launch using my preferred (leash around the foot strap, board covered in sand method), without attaching the leash directly to the chicken loop itself. This works well though, and launching is simple.<br />
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Self landing is simple. The push out on the bar de-powers the kite pretty close to 100%, maybe even a full 100%, I tested this in a solid and gusty 25 knots and it sat out of power with ease. (see video later).<br />
The safety of landing the kite and de-powering it will fill any new kite surfers with masses of confidence!<br />
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UP in the air, the 9 meter Taina looks deceptively small, in my opinion for a 9 meter kite. Probably due to its lowish aspect ration compared to my Mayhems. Get it flying though and its power is far from small kite!<br />
On my first session on the water, I knew I'd be pushing the kites low wind ability. With an agreed wind strength of 10-12 knots, (3 of us at the beach, the other 2 decided it wasnt worth even blowing up big kites), I set off into the flat water of Ynys las estuary on my crazy fly 132 x 41 twin tip, and after a couple of serious dives was up and riding. I really was shocked at the low wind grunt the kite produced, and wished now that Id set up the kite with the faster turn option on the kite itself to help produce a bit more power via quicker turning ability. After a longish down wind run, I amazed myself more by managing to carefully pilot my way back upwind, (much to the amazement of the two guys sat on the beach watching). So this was a 13.5 stone rider just about staying up wind on a standard twin tip in 10-12 knots. Pretty impressive.<br />
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<b>Next session</b><br />
Having tested the kites bottom end I now wanted to test it nearer the top of its capabilities. Sunday the 30th of September and weve got 20 knots gusting to 25 knots. Id normally not start to use my 9 meter Mayhem to 25 knots, unless I was using a surf board, but it would be ample for a solid sesh anyway.<br />
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On the water, the kite is stable and solid, the long throw on the bar coped well with the big gusts, but I did find the throw a little bit to much on standard setting, so de-powered a little to take a bit of this out.<br />
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With the kite being a lower aspect to what Im used to flying, I dint expect anything special from jumps, but on cranking my first well powered one in, I was pleasantly surprised and saw myself looking down from a good 25-30 foot within seconds. The other factor that stands out is how floaty it is on the way down. A lot of smaller kites can really drop you compared to bigger models, but this kept me hovering nicely, before a quick pull on my front hand had me landing smoothly. Jumping using this kite is so simple and really fun. It will get new or progressing kite surfers reaching heights they've only dreamed about within a couple of sessions,and the back up of the kites great de-power will furthermore fuel their confidence when doing so.<br />
For wake style tricks the kite has heaps of pop and again is super stable. One hand can easily control the kite, and they seem to sit at 45% with little effort.<br />
I did find the dumpier shape, slightly effected how far into the wind I could fly and sail, but it really wasnt a problem.<br />
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All in, a really good little kite with a great wind range. Jumps are big floaty and simple, and the kites stability is one of its big plus points. Build quality looks good, especially as the one I flew was a well used kite. The right areas are reinforced well, without being so heavy that it affects flying, with excess weight. I didnt get a chance to use the kite in surf, which is a real shame, as I think it would excel here. Its an ideal kite for people learning to progress quickly, learn new tricks or just have a plain easy kite to keep them powered. Personally I prefer a slightly higher aspect kite, and expect the <a href="http://starkites.com/kites/arawak/" target="_blank">Arawak </a>model would probably be more my kinda kite. As already mentioned though, this is a smaller kite than Id normally use and a larger model could be a different kettle of fish.<br />
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I may have forgotten stuff here, as I prepare Sunday dinner in between typing, so please ask if theres any relevant areas of this kite your interested in.<br />
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Ill upload a video to go with this very soon. (and a few screen grabs from the GoPro)<br />
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For more info on Starkites, <a href="http://starkites.com/" target="_blank">click here...</a><br />
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-74661312034438845242012-09-03T04:14:00.001-07:002012-09-03T04:14:20.659-07:00Back to work!Back form our epic French summer, and really need to add heaps to our travel blog...but it will have to wait while I get caught up with work!<br />
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Ive been doing more and more marketing work, so Im experimenting with adding links and feeds to you tube videos using 3rd party servers and software. SO here goes!<br />
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Lets see if this worksshem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-55258526172465222782012-07-29T12:45:00.000-07:002012-07-29T12:48:56.695-07:00Moving on...oh no were not!So I should be sat in a beach side camp site in Lacanau right now...but poor old Bessie the T25 had a little issue last night on the way home from an epic kite surf sesh at La palmyre. Teh clutch peddle has stopped working! I managed to get us home..just about, changing gear occasionally without the clutch, and praying that lights would turn to green in time to prevent stalling! The RAC are coming out tomorrow to see what needs to be done, so its xed fingers here that shes back on the road very soon.<br />
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Its not all bad though and it gives us some extra time with my parents.<br />
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I was gutted to find out yesterday that kite surfing has been banned on all of Royans beaches, so its no more kitesurfing on the door step form the folks's gaff. Just as well theyve sold it! On finding out I couldnt make the most of Royan's beaches I headed up the coast 20 mins to my so far fave French kitesurf spot, la Palmyre. Its a massive lagoon, probably about 3 square miles, and at high tide is all about a foot deep. heaps of others kite surfers but theres plenty of room. The wind was a solid 17-18 knots so I headed out powered up on the 14 meter Caution Mayhem for an epic afternoon of kitesurfing in Board shorts!<br />
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The rest of oour time if you hadnt guessed has been spent eating French food, especially these crevettes which I cooked up with chilli and garlic oil yesterday and taking the kids to the beach. Sols skim boarding is coming on leaps and bounds, and Dharma is clocking up some serious miles on her bike</div>
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Wanting a change from the beach, we visited <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talmont-sur-Gironde" target="_blank">Talmont</a> today, which is the village next to Barzan plage where were staying. Its a beautiful village with an amazing church,( not that I'm really into churches). </div>
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So, heres hoping that next time I write will be from back in the van, parked up somewhere similar to this, next to a beach and taking a break form driving in the shade! </div>
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Hope your all enjoying summer x </div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-67474718512613133342012-07-26T01:36:00.001-07:002012-07-26T01:36:01.912-07:00One week down!So we've been here a week already. Shocking how quickly time goes, but at the same time we've had some great fun!<br />
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A few shots I took from inside the shore break, just before it all unloads up the beach!</div>
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I finally got myself some surf yesterday, and obviously took the GoPro with me to get some footage. It was classic powerful close out hitting the beach French surf. Not great, but made all the better to be out there wearing boardies and getting a tan at the same time. Cote Sauvage is a great area, with long sandy beaches and plenty of trees to shelter under if you need to get out of the sun. </div>
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Sol has been loving his skim board, and is getting out daily. he must have had a five hour session yesterday, and pretty much collapsed and slept the second we got in off the beach in the evening. </div>
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here he is...</div>
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Faye and Dharma have been loving the beach and sea as well. Dharma has really enjoyed playing about in the smaller surf and Faye has been taking regular cool down brakes, but isn't letting it effect her tanning time ;) </div>
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Bodhi has been chilling out and keeping out of the heat a bit at my Parents house. With daily temps usually topping around the high 30's walks are strictly first thing or late evening. Theres plenty of choice of cliff tops or beaches and we've also managed a couple of mountain bike sessions to keep him up to pace!</div>
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Taliesin and Bodhi enjoying a cool evening walk</div>
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Were all a bit beached out today, especially the kids. SO were having a lazy day relaxing at the folks and will probably take a dip in the sea this afternoon to chill out a bit. </div>
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The plan was...to cross over to Lacanau area this weekend, but the wind is due to go onshore which will wreck the surf, so to maximise water sport conditions I'm planning on staying her for a few extra days to hopefully kite surf at St Georges de didonne.</div>
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I'm still extensively researching 9% plus European lagers, its a tough job but some one has to do it, a sample of the best ones will be coming back to Wales with me, so people of Pennal prepare yourselves for a surprise :D </div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-73034800476657079882012-07-22T09:18:00.003-07:002012-07-22T09:18:53.901-07:00In France!So, after 700 miles of driving, a 8 hour ferry and a some serious prep, were finally chilling out in France. The weather is absolutely perfect, and all is good :-)<br />
The final 2 days of preparation were manic, packing, getting the van ready and other various bits, like money, insurance, etc, etc ,etc.<br />
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By the time wed driven 300 miles to Portsmouth the van was clearly ready for a stop! I was pleased to see the next morning after sleeping at the port, that wed used hardly any water or oil so far and the engine was sounding great after a rest.<br />
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We jumped on a earlier ferry than planned an did the day crossing, to Caen. This was spent in the following order:<br />
* Cooked breakfast<br />
* Pint<br />
* Sleep<br />
* Cinema<br />
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A view looking out from Talmot, the village next to my parents home. </div>
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The 8 hours flew by, Bodhi coped well in the van down in the hull, helped along by his new bone, and before we knew it we were travelling down through France.<br />
We spent the first night camping at a small and very pretty village called Veigne just south of Toures, and then as soon as we were up the next day continued down to My parents in Barzan plage, near Royan, and the first fixed stop of the trip at my parents house. Made even better as we havnt seen them for 3 months since they moved out here.<br />
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The T25, (now named Bessie, by Faye and the kids), Parked up at St George, near Royan</div>
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The t25 really did us proud on the way down. faye wasnt well due to a bout of man flue! So I navigated and drove the whole way. I spent a lotg of time drafting lorries to save on fuel and cut down wind noise. Thsi worked really well, and we maintained a steady 60mph most of the way down. Although shell happily sit at 70mph, I didnt want to push things, so we plodded along, and even had the heaters on a lot of the way with the windows open, just to help keep the engine cool.<br />
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SO....Were hearin Royan for a while, mainly chilling out, walking the dog/s, cycling the local cliff path and of course doing three of my favourite French things.. eating, drinking and sun bathing!<br />
No kitesurf or surf action yet...there has been wind, but usually not until the sea breeze kicks in around 5pm, by which Ive normally started getting stuck into 9% European ales! This will change, and theres some things I just have to get out of my system :-D ha ha.<br />
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One of the local farm crops here is Sun flowers. The miles and miles of fields are awesome to drive by</div>
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Its my Birthday tomorrow, and it looks like the only place locally with good wind will be La Palmare, which is one of my favourite French kite spots, so Ill be heading up there to get some blue juice if the forecast does what it says. <br />
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-23272437744455390912012-07-12T11:10:00.001-07:002012-07-12T11:10:07.745-07:00Getting the van readyWeve owned our F reg 1989 VW t25 camper van for about 4 months now. Weve done a lot of overnight and weekend trips locally in it and everything is pretty much set up as it is.<br />
Ive spent many an evening removing any rust, treating the metal and rebuilding up the body work, and it seems to have all paid off. Its all smooth and sealed now, it is in need of a spray job, but thatll have to wait until we get back and start saving again!<br />
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Ive added a bolt on 3 bike rack to the rear of the van, as were all keen cyclists, (this will be for 3 bikes and Dharma's 4th little bike, which Im going to magically balance on the others...I hope!<br />
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Its been to the garage for new brake pads, a bearing adjustment and a new fan belt, the oil is fresh and she seems ready to go!<br />
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The only thing thats been giving me stress is were to store or carry surf boards! As a surfer of about 20 years, thered be no point in owning a camper van if I didnt surf boards on it to take to beachy destinations. This particular camper has an especially high top, which slopes, so a conventional rack cant be used. SO..once again it means I have to retro fit or make a rack to fit it. Ive played with canoe J bars on the side, but I wasnt happy with the extra width and wind resistance, so its back to the top!<br />
Im planning on getting this done on Saturday so when its all done, or so I hope Ill add some photos of what Ive done to carry my 9foot surf board on top of the van!<br />
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Weve stripped out the cupboards and relocated everything in a manner that will hopefully suit a month long trip and 4 people living in the relatively small space.<br />
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Other than that, all I need to do is get a water container and pack it ready to go! Im limited to 2 x kites in one bag, so itll be the 11 and 14 meter cautions and one kite board. </div>
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Dharma insisting she shows off her own bedroom window. </div>
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Mission find sun and surf is now only 6 days away!</div>
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If you want to follow me on twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/shemKSW" target="_blank">I'm here</a> </div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-39651411902717676812012-07-10T10:46:00.001-07:002012-07-11T06:21:17.457-07:00Catch up time...and Euro travels!I havnt posted for a good few weeks, as Ive been pretty much all blogged out!<br />
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Ive got a new part time post, running social media and co-ordicating online marketing for a Ski instructor school based in Valdisere. SO my own blogs loss has been another blogs gain. Its going well and I really enjoy it, but Ive slacked off on my own work. Heres a link to the company Im optimising for...
<a href="http://www.icesi.org/blog_more.asp?page=1&newsID=178">Find out more</a><br />
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SO! This is where I'm at!<br />
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Ive been working hard on various projects, and as the kids and the Wife are all going to be off work as of next Wednesday, we've decided to take most of the summer off and go touring France in our 1989 VW t25 camper van. Not some peoples idea of fun, but its certainly ours.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUj1ERCu58Lp7Ez9RZOumfwzOVbFitGFrppaLMSSDMuLS9vv61PKl9cwxynpHcXGq9KFNziPkWJqpFvs0axWo0-YeRqiRrwN3MD_OD7DV9h8asdBFycqdfyJqX3-kBa3XEnWuY6eUQMu0/s1600/camper-now-camper-soon.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUj1ERCu58Lp7Ez9RZOumfwzOVbFitGFrppaLMSSDMuLS9vv61PKl9cwxynpHcXGq9KFNziPkWJqpFvs0axWo0-YeRqiRrwN3MD_OD7DV9h8asdBFycqdfyJqX3-kBa3XEnWuY6eUQMu0/s320/camper-now-camper-soon.gif" width="226" /></a></div>
Well be keeping ourselves a blog diary of events and what we get up to on here, so if your interested please follow us. Ill probably link it all through Twitter on @shemKSW<br />
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Obviously Ill be taking the GOPro, so Im hoping therell be lots of footage of all sorts finding its way on to here. Ill be carrying on with marketing work, so Ill be online a couple of days a week to upload fun stuff and keep the blog going.<br />
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Have a fun summer :D<br />
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-85032681419219481012012-06-11T02:05:00.003-07:002012-06-11T02:05:52.361-07:00A wet weekend!Where do I start?<br />
Weekend of 9/10th June 2012. Weve just come back from a dry weeks holiday in Scotland, during which back home Wales got a week of battering from rain and wind.<br />
On our first day back, we realise just how wet its been; the drains arent coping and rivers are all bank high. The next day, things are worse. Our village, Pennal has suffered its worst flooding in over 20 years, and the local pub and our good friends house have 2-3 foot of water inside them, as well as a selection of other houses set near the river in the village.<br />
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Saturday is spent knee deep in water, clearing the pub and home next door, then hosing them back down and starting other clearing such as ripping out carpets and other furnitre. Glyn the local land lord puts on 2 barrels of ale, and every one has a few beers and mucks in. Community spirit was high, and amazingly people even commented on enjoying the day, that real spirit for you!<br />
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Heres a picture of the quarry on the day, taken by Martyn Dickinson, that had cycled up to take a closer look!<br />
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Sunday morning and a sunny start to the day, all must be good! Oh no, theres 2 helicopters flying around the village mountain, police in 4x4 vehicles and so on. Having an enduro motor bike I shoot up the mountain to see whats happening, and it turns out the old village quarry/damn has had a land slide, filled up with water and has 6million gallons of water suspended above the water...to top it off theres a split in the supporting wall! NOT GOOD!<br />
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To cut it short, were all evacuated, (I hang around wanting to watch), Village turns into a media circus of tv crews and has more security services than the Queens jubilee had!<br />
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By 7pm, a local contractor has done a 10 hour digger shift and the pressure is eased..and we all get to go home, phew, what a weekend.<br />
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Heres a few links!<br />
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<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-18387520" target="_blank">bbc news report</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4365137/Cracked-dam-sparks-evacuation-in-Pennal-village-in-Wales.html" target="_blank">Sun news, with quote by me, altho not what I said!</a><br />
<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-13092310194554813212012-05-15T14:45:00.003-07:002012-05-15T14:45:49.199-07:00Go Pro stills and blogging news<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I hadnt tested the GoPro camera attached to the board yet, so had a fun session in the lagoons at Aberdyfi today. Heres one of my favourite still images.<br />
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On a different news, Ive just landed a new post, running along side my own work, working in marketing and spending a lot of time as a blog'er. It should be a really interesting post, so really looking forward to getting started.shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-85848593408190158882012-05-13T14:43:00.004-07:002014-03-03T13:22:29.793-08:00Dyfi enduro video, over 2000 views..so far!Spent a bit of time editing up my Dyfi enduro footage, and it seems to have paid off. The editor of 'Single track magazine' took a liking to it as well and published it on their massively popular website.<br />
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Here it is<br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUe2F-_ofb8">Click here to watch the dyfi enduro 2012 video</a>shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-20392497589315156832012-05-07T09:17:00.004-07:002012-08-01T13:46:05.169-07:00Dyfi Enduro 2012 ReviewSo the Howies Dyfi enduro was with us yet again, (11th year of the event running), this years 800 places sold out in an hour, which shows just how popular the event has become!<br />
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I hadnt ridden my bike for nearly 2 weeks, which was quite unheard of for me, so I was feeling a tad worried about having not trained enough. I had put in some good miles all year though, so was comfortable doing the distance, but not in an especially good time.<br />
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Having a full suspension and a hard tail 29er bike to choose from I was undecided, especially given the terrain of the down hill sections, but I decided to take the 29er, hoping that what I lost on down hill speed compared to the full sus, Id gain on up hill sections, which there were plenty of!<br />
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Three home made- walnut and fig flap jacks, a bowl of porridge and a bottle of powerade later and we were off! As with most years, the whole of Machynlleth had come out to see off the eight hundred or so riders.<br />
The first and dreaded 2 mile fire road climb went well an I managed to gain back a lot of the spaces I'd lost by starting right at the back of the pack; this all came to a halt however when the riders started queuing at the first bottle neck; a steep and loose descent, know locally as the 'elephant'. Ive never seen so many people crash in such a short amount of time, but the descent split up the riders and after this everything flowed really well.<br />
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Queuing! </div>
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The next major climb, up the field section was a killer as ever, and really pushed the legs as far as possible. Luckily it was dry which made things easier, and I was glad to have energy gels at hand to give myself a much needed boost at the start of this section.<br />
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The field section runs for about 2 miles and pretty much looks like this most of the way, gruelling! </div>
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From here on the ride runs a 'up a hill down a hill' kinda feel, with mile or so long fire road climbs and loose rocky slate filled down hills that are without a doubt as off piste as any riding gets. The course was full of all the usual Dyfi enduro treats, which this year included, a harpist, cheer leaders, starwars re-enactment, council stop Go sign's and more. </div>
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For once I found the dreaded 5 kilometre climb up to the feed station pretty easy, I'd ridden at a pace I was happy with rather than totally destroying myself, so had plenty of energy left, and was still buzzing form the epic 'world cup' down hill section as well, which probably helped. Of course the thought of sausage rolls at the top was a boost for moral, and I scoffed a load down as soon as I got there :-D </div>
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From the feed station onwards was the Home loop as far as I was concerned. Heading towards the finish line rather than away from it is always a bonus on this kind of ride, and the down hill sections ahead where awesome. The start of the Goshawk section is steep, rocky, loose and has a stream running down it, every thing I look for in a down hill section, squeezed into one epic descent. The climb which switch-backs from it however is much the same, and saw ant like rows of us pushing up it, and riding occasional sections. </div>
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A typical rocky down hill section</div>
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From here it was more single track and fire road climb before the dreaded last climb; where cramp started to show its face, but I managed to hold it off! A quick slip on my saddle saw me sit on one of the two parts of my male anatomy; that I won't name, but the pain from this was greater than the pain from my now aching legs. This served to take the pain away from legs and gave me a boost in a masochistic kind of way, to get up the last hill. </div>
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Riding down 'Dicko's' the last 3 section down hill was as ever a delight, made even better by a real ale waiting at the bottom before the final sprint along the road to the finish line...one handed and sipping a beer. </div>
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I crossed the line, somewhere under four hours which I was really pleased with, and from what I was told in 170th position. I didnt make the punishment loop of an extra up and down that the top 200 riders do, so realistically I was somewhere in approx the first 250, a result I was more than happy with. Official Results to follow later in the week. Of course, the Dyfi Enduro isnt a race ;-), more a personal achievement and for me, something to keep me motivated for training throughout the year, what also makes it unique is the amount of fun and support along the way to keep riders motivated and get you up that next hill! </div>
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After a brisk 5ish mile road ride back into town, it was straight to the Cafe Seren bar and onto the real ale, before a quick freshen up and then an evening in the tent listening to some seriously funky tunes and catching up with everyone's unique and fun ride stories...did I mention the Plumb and chilli 6% real ale? </div>
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Yet another great Howies Dyfi Enduro, with perfect weather great company and even better trails, bring on 2013...and hopefully a place in the top 200. </div>
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Heres some one elses GPS route tracker, thanks Dave Reed--</div>
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<a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175522230">http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175522230</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUe2F-_ofb8" target="_blank">View my Dyfi Enduro video here ...</a></div>
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<br />shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-37872943037085123922012-04-18T00:43:00.001-07:002012-04-18T00:46:16.781-07:00Gopro and photoshop combinedBy setting the gopro on half second time lapse photo mode and setting it up on a sand bank, I was pretty sure Id capture everything I did in front of it. 400 frames later, heres a few sequence shots of a bog standard jump. Layerd up using photoshop. <br />
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Gives a great pendulum swing effect, or so I think anyway! <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKqcjocUGehGnDk9lTBnsir4Cc6V1f_e1b3hRyaF9s7kza-1_444vsO6D6G7i6F6SqOR49wLG2giMBTZEgJuIjcEEJwqTc6UII6JBhxH78R-HJCs2BjtnL1NE_9QmIW90fUmhWUb2Zv4/s640/blogger-image-367369288.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKqcjocUGehGnDk9lTBnsir4Cc6V1f_e1b3hRyaF9s7kza-1_444vsO6D6G7i6F6SqOR49wLG2giMBTZEgJuIjcEEJwqTc6UII6JBhxH78R-HJCs2BjtnL1NE_9QmIW90fUmhWUb2Zv4/s640/blogger-image-367369288.jpg" /></a></div>shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-8586764782145391902012-04-13T15:20:00.000-07:002012-04-13T15:20:37.188-07:00Blog power!Amazing how powerful blogging is! A fire engine crashed tonight, across from my house. Being a tad nosey I pop to see whats happened, as the air ambulance has landed, etc and I see that the local Aberdyfi fire engine is on its side!<br />
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So I take a piccy on my I phone and post to twitter. Next thing I now BBC, ITV and others are on the phone wanting to use the picture for news headlines this evening and on their websites! Hey presto, my name splashed all over national news channels and web sites! Thats blog power :-D<br />
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<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-17709246">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-17709246</a> <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Blogging is marketing!</div>shem ap Gerainthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17625570747313215886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2494643966848810559.post-83001241421069137522012-04-10T14:23:00.000-07:002012-04-10T14:23:17.152-07:00Bro tv programme for S4CI was asked a few months back if Id like to do a slot for the Welsh tv programme Bro, which was this year featuring people that live and work off the Welsh Coast.<br />
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Clearly I'm camera shy ;) but I couldn't turn down the opportunity to promote the kite school and my Life ring rocket on the television could I. (and of course I love the TV bit really)<br />
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So here's the link, if you don't want to watch it all Fast forward to 8 minutes<br />
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<a href="http://www.s4c.co.uk/clic/e_level2.shtml?series_id=503714696">http://www.s4c.co.uk/clic/e_level2.shtml?series_id=503714696</a> <br />
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