bikes and things

Good to see Nat in London this week after he popped down from Brissol for a course. Drinks, pizza, more drinks and a nice coffee and chat the next morning.

Here he is modelling the work Brompton in East Dulwich. Models own clothing.

The good people at With Associates get interviewed by Cycle Love

Brilliant in every way.

Image © Cycle Love.

Just back from a wedding in Northern Ireland this weekend. Fantastic weather for it and plenty of Instagram shots taken, a few of which are below.

And then back to Cambridge to see Snoopy before going back to work tomorrow.

Fairly productive morning so far working on some posters for The Chequers.

Back at work and missing my bike already. The come down after a cycling holiday is always hard to take so here’s a few photos of some of the amazing scenery from last week.

Full ride report to follow.

The annual riding trip is fast approaching for 2012. It’s something that has taken many forms over the years since its first inception in 2004. It started as a regular trip to Les Arcs in France and has since been trips around the UK and occasionally skipped a year but thankfully it’s still going strong for 2012.

The only two original members are myself and my good friend Gavin. Gav made the first trip happen by driving us all the way to France on his own with four bikes on the roof – due to me not being able to drive. Things were a bit different back then in terms of skills as well as bikes.

And I had much less hair.

After that trip I was kind of addicted to riding. Others have joined and departed the group since, but in recent years there’s been a fairly steady crew of people who are keen to get their kicks on some trails for one week of a year and forget about all the other shit that’s going on. Those people started as people I’ve known online such as Vaughan, Matt and Graham and now are considered solid friends after spending many a trip riding somewhere decent.

This year it’s all about the UK and reconnecting with the trails that are overlooked by that trip to France with all its amazing ski lifts and sunshine. It’s about riding what’s on your doorstep (relatively) and making the most of whats there and earning the descents. So the five of us are doing a UK road trip with two vans and mixing it up in terms of trail centres and natural stuff. Personally I can’t bloody wait to get away from a desk and back in the saddle and ride some great singletrack as well as the usual banter. Sometimes the chatting is just as good as the riding.

I’ve been thinking of the value of photography as an important family record. Having grown up with pictures of myself and sister, as well as the wider family all around, it’s clear that these memories are informed by those framed photos and dusty albums in the shelf next to the TV. I’ve started to try and get better at printing these out and keeping my own records of things that take place in my life – I’m a bit behind at the moment but hoping to catch up.

At a recent family funeral my mum brought along a bunch of photos which reminded me of how important these physical objects are to me. I’m pictured in one but had not seen the other and was really moved by both of them. Take pictures, print them, own them, cherish them and hand them on – they record such amazing moments in life.

Nice to spend some time with Emma today in town with a bit of a wander around and a coffee then to see the Dark Knight at the IMAX. Few pics as always which found their way to Flickr. Nice to have a pint and some food at an old favourite place on The Cut.

A quiet drink with Emma in East Dulwich on Sat – no such thing really. Ended up in the draft house talking to randoms and then making it home late followed by a raging hangover the next day. Still, we had a good time and I managed to get a few pics.

Such a great little video and so much better than some dry picture and bit of text on a website.

Which also gives me an excuse to show my other favourite member of staff at DeMatos Ryan..