We're going Baz, on everything from my very fine road bike to Tom's tandem and my wife's very old Raleigh hybrid........which reminds me I only have three weeks to make it roadworthy.

Me and the wife too......

A thoroughly enjoyable weekend in London, doing the Freecycle around an 8 mile loop in the centre of town with 50,000 others on Saturday and then watching my eldest son complete the RideLondon100 yesterday in under 6 hours - a good hour faster then he expected. I applied, didn't get in and then wimped out when offered a charity place. I'm definitely applying for next year, when there will be 26,500 places. Applications open next Monday and close if and when they get 80,000.

Good grief!!!! I hope you're younger and fitter than me!! That's a big ride so early in the season, looks as though the weather will be excellent. Good luck.

I had a nice spin out yesterday afternoon. I made the mistake of not eating properly and ended up feeling rubbish. Once the sun went behind the cloud it was bitter cold. I'm not sure where to head for yet but I'll be out again today.

I've only one sportive in mind for this year, the Great Manchester Cycle 52 miles of closed roads through Manchester round the Etihad. Salford Quays, Old Trafford.. The best sportive I've ridden. Last year I managed 2 hours 45 minutes, 19th in age group and 625th overall (2600 entrants). I was really made up with that result, anything under 3 hours will do for this year!!

I'd love to do the Manchester ride but unfortunately it clashes with Glastonbury this year, which I'm already committed to.

I was down at the mother-in-law's just south of Bristol this weekend and had a fantastic ride from her house in a loop over the Mendips - 40 miles over the hills and back along the Strawberry line from Cheddar.

Going to Glasgow in a couple of weeks. I need two good restaurants and one good lunch place. Suggestions? Not the Ubiquitous Chip please

I've been plenty of times and have eaten in lots of different restaurants but rather like you and Belgium there's nowhere I would particularly recommend. They were all decent meals but nothing special. But if you do get a chance before or preferably after eating try the Ben Nevis pub at the western end of Argyle Street - excellent beer, a particularly fine selection of malt whiskies and live traditional music three nights a week.

Mind you i have eaten very well in Brussels but it was a while ago and I've no idea now where it was........

Going to Greens at Didsbury on Sunday has anybody been there? any good?

We stopped off there a few sundays ago for something quick to eat and it was excellent. I assume you know it's vegetarian?

There is an update in today's Evening Post. The inspectors have returned and Bukhara now has 3/5.

No, but if the strong rumours of the Stones headlining at Glastonbury in 2013 are true I'll be seeing them for nowt.

It is indeed a wonderful resource for us over here. I have been right round it three times since it fully opened in the Summer and I also regularly use bits of it. In particualt having a route from Penwortham across to Grimsargh that bypasses the whole of the city centre is wonderful, giving easy access to the whole of the Ribble valley and Bowland.

I'm afraid I am daft enough to have ridden down Bolton woods (and up it). I would agree that in certain weather conditions it would be suicidal but having the wodden barriers means whatever you do you can't do it fast anyway. I was reaal;y chuffed with myself when I got up it as I thought a combination of the steepness, the rough surface and the barriers would have made it beyond me.

To go off topic a bit I hope you managed to catch some of the Guild when you were out Paul. Some of the stuff over this weekend has been fantastic (at least that I have been able to get near given the huge crowds the good weather brought). The stalls at the food festival in Winckley Square sold out of two days worth of food by mid afternoon on Saturday and after re-stocking overnight, the same again on Sunday. Tonight I went to hear Nick Park talk and then enjoyed hearing the Sing The Docks project again. This coming weekend, which incorporates the closing finale of the NW London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is also not to be missed. The vast majority will be free.

Very good especially the feel good happy atmosphere.and much better than by car...At bit light if you go at 7.00 pm but it goes dark pretty quick and fully dark on your return journey from Bispham...

We used the excuse of a fish supper in Bispham to let it get a bit darker.

Only going off some posters I saw in Blackpool.

Hope you all enjoyed it though, weather appears to have held up for you.

It was indeed a beautiful evening for it. They said last year there were 15,000 there and there must have been at least as many tonight.

http://www.blackpool...the-Lights.html

Illuminations closed to road traffic tomorrow night from 7-10pm. Sounds like a brilliant idea to me. They are doing a trial run this year before the officially open, but if popular this could become a annual event.

It has been an annual event since 2006. I've never done it but am planning to go tomorrow night. At least it will make me buy the lights I've been planning to get for weeks now.

Why hasn't he failed a test before now then? He must have taken hundreds of them?

Out of interest O2G, do you believe he's guilty?

I can't profess to have enough knowledge of doping to know, but as I understand it there are substances which can be taken and which will be undetectable if you stop taking them in enough time before any potential test i.e. they will help build you up ready for an event or the season as a whole.

On his potential guilt, backing out of the case right now might be assumed to be an admission of guilt. No doubt he will spin it as being beneath him as he holds the US agency in contempt but you would have thought that putting at the very best a question mark against his whole racing record would be enough to want him to clear his name if he knows he's innocent.

Personally I have very little time for him. He has a reputation as a very single minded, ruthless individual who is happy to upset anyone who has a different view to his own. He has been able to trade on his story as a cancer survivor to provide a lot of goodwill, particularly on people who are not keen followers of cycling. I think he is much less liked amongst the cycling fraternity than the general population. In a nutshell I have grave suspicions.

Can anyone explain in simple terms this Lance Armstrong thing? As I understand it he hasn't failed a drugs test - I'm assuming at his peak he must have been on of the most frequently tested athletes on the planet - so what is the evidence against him?

Essentially the evidence is from former team mates who said that they saw him doping. That's made more complicated because at least two of them have been caught doping themselves previously

Well you can rule out any of the team down to start the Vuelta on Saturday as they overlap. That means Froome, Stannard, Swift, Uran, Porte, Flecha, Henao, Pate, and Zandio won't be there. I would not at all surprised to see both Wiggins and Cavendish in the Tour of Britain. It's a relatively short race in Sky's home market - it would make the race very high profile so would be excellent for Sky for marketing.

For anyone you doesnt feel they have club level fitness,Go Skyride is very active this time of year for casual social cyclist...Lots of short social rides on offer each sunday in Blackburn Preston Blackpool and Manchester areas for all abilities with tougher Ride strong options for those who want them.(Ride strong + is very tough)..Bolton area offers quite a lot at the moment...Bolton has its own town centre skyride in September..Blackpool offers the new Blackpool to fleetwood coastal cycle path ride and Ride the Illumination Lights for bikes only in the week prior to switch on..

Indeed. The Sky Ride in Preston was very enjoyable. I also came across a Sky Ride group of c20 on the Guild Wheel last Saturday.

This may be of interest.

http://prestonguild2...com/guild-wheel

It's a really nice ride, almost wholly traffic free and the great majority on a decent surface. There are a few short stretches of rougher track but even a serious road bike should be fine. The Wheel has been immensely popular since unofficially opening a few weeks ago. I have been round it three times now and the two times I did it on a weekend I must have seen 100-200 riders on the circuit. Not a place to ride if you want to test yourself as it's quite narrow, often with walkers sharing the space and you will see large groups with small kids. I particularly like the cycle sized cattle grids they have put on the section from Walton-le-Dale to Brockholes.

It's not quite finished yet but it's complete enough to get round easily. The official opening will be at 11.30 on Sunday 19th August in Avenham Park

Went there today. Spectacular building but unspectacular fare imo although wife and daughter thought it was good. My judgement may have been influenced by the size of the portions. In fact thinking more about it it definitely was.... it's what I call a cheese butty restaurant cos when you land home you need a cheese butt to fill up.

I went for lunch about 10 days ago and thought it was pretty decent. We had the £15pp sharing plate and there was more than enough for me and quality was good. Not outstanding but fair value for money. And the building is spectacular.

*English Welfare Friendly Veal kidneys. Bullsh1t! Veal is only welfare friendly if you are partial to eating babies.

*Fish & Chips - Battered deep fried line caught Haddock. Just what difference does it make whether the unfortunate haddock is caught on a static line, a rod and reel or the net of a trawler I can't imagine. More Bullsh1t.

Go on I'll bite. There is absolutely nothing wrong with eating welfare friendly veal. Also known as rose veal, it is from young bull calves from dairy herds who otherwise would be killed at birth as they have no commercial value. They are not force fed but fed naturally and killed at about 6-9 months, hence the pink or rose colour.

On the fish of course it makes no difference to the haddock how it dies but catching by line is a more sustainable method - only the haddock dies and not all the rest of the fish population caught in an industrial trawler net, including the mature haddock's immature children, which is leasdiung fast to there being no haddock at all on the menu in a few years. So the more line caught fish is consumed the more likely is there will be more to eat in the future.

As an aside it is wondrous logic to complain about veal on the menu because you don't approve of the process of production incorrectly in this case) but you don't give a damn about how the fish was caught.

I don't think there is any chance that Froome will try and take away Wiggins' win. From the outset the Sky team have been set up with the sole aim of getting Brad to Paris at least on the podium. Chris Froome is there as Plan B in case Brad didn't make it as happened last year.

Cav's role this year as been solely as a domestique (witness the pictures of him loaded up with drinks a few days ago). He was able to get a stage win early on but essentially did that himself with no team help. His focus is completely on the Olympic road race - the Tour has been his preparation. Assuming the leaderboard is still much the same next Sunday I expect Sky to run a race on the Champs D'Elysee to replicate the road race 6 days later, aiming to give Cav the stage win.

I think the interesting thing will be what happens next season. Chris now knows he is capable of winning a Grand Tour - will he stay with Sky as number 2 to Brad or be enticed away by another team? That would be tremendous from a fan's perspective, if he moves to a strong team who can support him like Sky have supported Brad. I suspect that Sky might be promising Chris the leader's role at the Vuelta. If Brad wins the Tour I can see him sitting out the Vuelta and maybe riding the Tour of Britain, allowing Chris a free run on the Vuelta.

Great images Tris - thanks.

I really, really enjoyed watching Voeckler win his stage, he always finds something to keep dragging himself up those mountains and his apparent enthusiasm and joy in what he does is great sport.

Yesterday was an excellent day for Wiggins and Froome, almost perfect I would say. Froome gained the time he needed, both took time from Evans who effectively blew up and, in a sense, Wiggins got something of a "rest" in the closing kilometres of a tough day's climbing.

Don't want to start counting chickens but I'm beginning to wonder about the Wiggins / Froome situation. Sky clearly set their year out to get Wiggins into a winning TDF position. I think people recognised Froome's ability but perhaps didn't count on him being second at this stage.

If Bradley is to win the TDF he needs Froome with him all the way, he probably won't make it without him. I'm just wondering about the last couple of days, will Sky instruct Froome to get the win for Wiggins at all costs? What happens if these two end up in an unassailable position with 10-12k to go?

Much as I want Wiggins to win I hope Sky let them battle for 1st and 2nd if both positions are safe. Froome shouldn't be denied his chance.

I do feel sorry for Cavendish who after a great ride in 2011 is hardly getting a mention.

Went to one of my old favourites last week, the Clog and Billycock.......It was poor.

Off to Jamies Kitchen in King Street Manchester tomorrow? Any views please? I have been to Jamies in Liverpool twice and it was disgusting, I will never go again (sounds bit like Ewood and the Venky idiots!) although I was recently in Jamies in Threadneedle Street in London and had a great meal - is it a franchise?

It might just be you were unlucky PB. I went to the Liverpool branch just after it opened and it was excellent.

A few years ago I read a book A Short History of Tractors in Ukranian, about the same time I became aware of but never read another called Salmon Fishing in the Yemen which I assumed was just another bizarre book title.

Last night my wife took me to the cinema and it actually is about Salmon Fishing in the Yemen!!! Really enjoyed this funny and moving film in which Ewan MacGregor gives what I felt was a fantastic character performance. British cinema at its best - sadly of course only about ten people interested enough to view it.

As usual with these things the book is far better than the film. I enjoyed the film but it's not a patch on the book, which is really about political power and only tangentially about salmon fishing or the Yemen.

.......and buy the very best bib shorts you can afford. The most important bit of cycling kit. All the other clothing, except possibly a really good water and wind proof, you get in Aldi. Dead cheap.

I have heard this mentioned by a few people but I'm not sure I understand why bib shorts are better than ordinary ones - can you explain?

..........because of 13 miles of closed Manchester roads, including the Mancunian Way, beautiful weather, 7000 like minded people and the sheer joy of the occassion.

This is the finest organised mass ride in the country, next year do it, if you ride a bike without question do it.

Thank you Manchester

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Paul - I assume you know already but there is a Sky Ride in Preston on the Sunday after next (17th). Not anything like the scale of the Manchester ride but still I believe some closed roads to ride on.

Anyone do the Great Manchester Cycle yesterday? Fantastic event.

Unfortunately not. I have been in Hay-on-Wye for the last 10 days, partly for the book festival but I also took my bike and have enjoyed some fantastic riding in the borders - I can highly recommend the area.

David, I see you are in Penwortham. If you haven't already, you might want to have a look at Broadgate Cycles in Kingsfold as well. They have expanded fairly recently and have a decent range of bikes.

I am 59 and also 15 stone (was 17 stone in January!) and I have improved significantly just by getting a decent bike and getting out more often. The loss of two stone has also made a noticeable difference although some of that was helped by the cycling. I have a Hewitt Cheviot tourer, so somewhat heavier than a £1K road bike will be and also lower geared but have upped my average riding speed from 10mph to 12-13mph. Should a tourer be a possibility for you and you can stretch to a little bit more budget then I cannot recommend Paul Hewitt too highly and he's only in Leyland. Even if you don't want one of his bikes his bike measurement service is £50 very well spent - he will find your perfect riding position. The service is free if you buy one of his bikes.