Tony Harrison

Thanks : ) Thanks also! I was pretty pleased with that shot in particular actually.

I tried turning the wheel out to the side a bit when doing an endo to make it easier to get my foot on it. In the end though it just took about 6 million tries, and like learning backhops you just build up the number of scuffs until you can do 5 or 6, then you nail it and can do loads.

North vs south, Canon vs Nikon, Chelsea vs Arsenal. It's just insecurity, people want validation that they're on the right side of whichever fence is important to them.

Mad skills, but I wouldn't go outside dressed like that if you paid me.

I'd recommend a long lens if you can get hold of one. I'm going to Morzine next month and whilst I probably won't shoot much either (I will be too busy riding too) the lens I'll use most will be a 70-200.

Images cross-posted from the Photography Thread. These are from my recent trip to Kashmir, to ride a Royal Enfield Bullet in the Himalayas. It was absolutely crazy, some of the best and worst roads I've ever ridden, once or twice reaching 5,500m in altitude. Bike ran really well actually, hardly any problems. My friend's bikes seemed a little less reliable, some assorted carb/spark plug problems, plus various bits of frame and rack snapping off. Fully recommend it if you're competent on mixed terrain - there were some parts like 60s ISDT sections, sand dunes, snow, ice, water crossings, you name it! Bike hire for two weeks was about £200, gas was really cheap too.

Here's a rough cut from my recent bike trip to Kashmir. At some point there'll be some words to go with it but right now I don't have the time or motivation to finish it all off. All pictures taken using my D3, which seemed to deal with high altitude, sub-zero temperatures, sand, rain and snow far better than I did. Not completely done yet with processing, plus I keep seeing more dust spots (downside of changing lenses in a sandstorm!), but they'll do for now...

It bothers me how publishing companies routinely have the people that create their content over a barrel, that is when they're not just stealing the content off the web. I've lost money in other industries with companies going bust before paying me, and given the way the print world is going I simply wouldn't work on those terms. I'd be wanting travel expenses in advance, and payment within 60 days of the publishing deadline. I understand how shit it is being freelance though, because if you turn the work down then there'll always be someone else who'll snap it up on the magazine's terms. Another classic is 'oh we can't pay you until the client pays us' etc (not so relevant here). Why do these companies have cashflow problems? Why is it always us, the small man at the end of the chain, that should pick up the slack?

Such beautiful cars the Capris, your one especially.

Yoghurt can help. Drinking water afterwards often makes it worse.

Thanks, that's really useful info. I'm fairly new to carb stuff - in the past I've ridden plenty of two-stroke trials bikes (older Spanish ones) but never had issues like this. Running lean could well be it - this might explain why it happens when I open the throttle up. I think tonight I'm going to get the engine builder to ride it again. He did try it before but didn't find a problem, but at that point I hadn't worked out the conditions in which it misbehaves.

It's amazing how much better you can feel after drinking oral rehydration solution, available from your local pharmacy. When you lose electrolytes and fluids it can make you feel like death, and fixing that can make a world of difference.

I have some engine trouble, not sure what's wrong. Bike is fine up to 4000 rpm, starts first kick every time. But then if you give it a blast on the throttle, up towards 5000 rpm, it suddenly loses power and seems to bog down. Then it'll pop and bang a bit, through the carb aswell. When I drop the revs I can stop it from stalling and it'll ride fine again, as long as only below 4000. Yesterday, a week since last use, it would not start. As I suspected when I took the plug out it was black, so I'm thinking it's running too rich. Cleaned the plug, got it to start, but I'm not happy about it. Taking the bike back to the engine builder so he can have a play with it. Anyone else got any ideas? Carb is brand new, so I'm inclined to think it's setup rather than malfunction. Or could it be electrics, not providing a good enough spark?

Me too!

Well I thought that when I first started the project, because originally I wanted to do everything myself, and I spent a load of money on tools (which I have used). Then I realised that I'd only be doing it so that I could say I'd done the work - it's not like I needed to prove anything to myself. I first rebuilt a motorbike engine (with help) aged 10, and since then I've had bikes apart in the desert, in the Himalayas, in the jungle. Next month I'm scheduled to be riding a battered old Royal Enfield over the highest altitude pass in the world, and unlike Ewan McGregor I won't have a support van, so it'll be fix it myself or walk. So pulling an engine apart and getting covered in grease in an apartment block carpark, surrounded by mosquitoes, just for a bragging right... hmm, not so much fun. As it came together though I realised how satisfying it was - I'd had an image in my head of what I wanted, which had of course never been seen by the (four) people who at different times worked on it. And yet despite only having to get the tools out myself a dozen or so times, the sheer amount of effort I put into finding the parts in a country with no eBay and few English-speakers, going to get them, having them damaged by so-called mechanics, replacing them, directing the work that others did do... I feel like I've earned it. It's taken this long without me doing most of the actual labour. Nothing happens fast here. I'm actually right now weighing up buying another bike, and this time I'll be doing it more hands-on, on my balcony, simply because trusting/waiting for other people often proves more trouble than it's worth.

Finally getting somewhere. Quite a lot to do before I could call it 'finished' - really I'd like to clean the redundant tabs/fixings off the frame and powdercoat it, and also re-wire the whole bike. Needs some carb fine-tuning too, but generally I'm pleased with how it's going...

I know exactly how you feel. In October last year I bought a motorbike as a project, and it's only just nearing completion. I waited two months to sort out some registration documents, I had someone working on new wheels for a month before saying oh actually I don't have time to finish what you wanted (turned out he'd not really done much for several weeks, although it was a big help what he did do). I had things not arrive in the post, engine work take weeks longer than planned. Right now I have a few more bits to get, but it has been worth the wait.

That was actually pretty damn good...

Thing is, takes virtually nothing these days for the sensitive British public to declare something racist, and then look no further for themselves at the real policies.

Sorry if a re-post, another episode is online...

Or hating on women, apparently...

Dorms can really suck. If you're on your own then they can be a great way to meet people, but getting a good nights sleep is often out of the question. Had so many experiences in hostels, and met so many different types of people. The Asian travellers are often the most curious - some of them are just plain odd and they don't seem to want to socialise, and hide in their beds with laptops. Most annoying are the big groups of drunk people who come back at 4am and put the light on and shout about the night they just had. These days I avoid them, but I know Australia is expensive for accommodation. As for the job hunting, stick at it. Some things I feel just aren't meant to be easy, but do pay off in the end.

Get the definitive answer from them, yes. I flew Emirates with a BMX in the DK bag last month with no issue from Kuala Lumpur to London. The 26kg bag was just treated as normal (oversize) baggage.

I flew BA and they took my bike bag as normal baggage at no extra charge - check airline baggage rules before booking. Infact if you have a mod you could check out the (not cheap) BMX bike bags - I have the DK Golf bag and it's awesome. Also Odyssey just brought one out.

I've flown lots of times with a BMX. Emirates might give you 30kg on those flights even in economy class, and they'll treat your bike as baggage if it's properly packed. I've taken my BMX in a proper bike bag but also in a cardboard bike box. Either way you can stuff the bag/box with clothes and other junk. I've never had any damage, but then a BMX is perhaps a little more durable than a trials bike. I'd say it's unlikely it'll get broken, at least no more likely than posting it. Make sure you secure everything, pad it out. Don't zip-tie metal directly to metal - put bits of foam or old towel between parts, ensure nothing rattles or moves. Downside of sending by post is that you might get customs charges etc - I'm no expert on that but when I had a bike flown from the US to Asia they made me pay duties on it. If you're going to Australia then yes, definitely clean it, they can be funny over there about that.