Phrixus » General

Blast from the past

Phrixus — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 17:22:25 +0000

Here is a shot from 2004 with Aidy on his GSX-R and Dave on his Ducati! Remember the photos at the reservoir boys?

Learners update

Phrixus — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:15:41 +0000

After 11 months I finally took my test and am pleased to report that I passed! A week earlier, Leigh also passed his test meaning that 3 out of 4 ridearound.netians are ready to ride! Dave will soon be joining us on the roads but he will be wearing the red L jackets for a while!

More details on all this to follow!

Roadtrip One

Phrixus — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:09:16 +0000

With winter looming, the Ridearound team are starting to do some armchair planning. Early next year, we will take to the roads for the first team adventure. This is going to cover the planning!

Half way there!

Phrixus — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 08:20:05 +0000

After what feels like a couple of months – but is in fact 8 months – I have just passed my theory test. This was initially booked a few weeks ago and I had nearly forgotten about it untill I had a reminder SMS from Google. Now I can honestly say that with absolutely no revision or practice since Dave and I installed the software back in January… it is possible to pass the test on car experience alone!

Brake system

Phrixus — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:25:01 +0000

The front discs on my car were badly worn. They were rusted badly and had large ridges around the outside. To ensure that the car was as safe as possible – and that I had the latest braking point as possible on the track – I ordered new set.

Grant’s car has racing pads, Goodridge braided hoses and Dot 5.1 fluid. The performance I noticed in his car last year at Le Mans was superb; the lack of brake fade gave a lot of confidence when heading for the bends. Though I have ordered standard pads, I felt a set of Goodridge hoses and Dot 5.1 brake fluid might give me a boost. They have been fitted and the system flushed and bled with the new fluid.

So far driving on the roads, I have noticed very little difference, though it is perhaps a little smoother. I very much hope that next week at Le Mans there are no surprises. Here is a ‘fingers crossed’ for consistent braking!

This time – maybe!

Phrixus — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:20:22 +0000

My big fruity plans to dive into fitness training again have been slightly diluted - back to water in fact - by my inability to actually do something. This is not to say that I go home and watch TV all evening after work. In fact, quite the opposite, I have been really busy with travel, home improvements and other commitments that fight for my attention. To be honest though, I cannot figure out why I find it so difficult to take 30 minutes and go for a run or a bike ride.

With some time off work next week, I am planning to try and get out running or cycling. This is in addition to continuing the “100 Push up challenge“. I found some great ideas and buckets of inspiration on this post at Zen Habits. It provides a lot of detail and is well worth reading. With any luck, just a few outings will help me build the activity time into my schedule. Of course, I may be busy and forget!

Hot crisps

Phrixus — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 13:56:46 +0000

These crisps are supposed to be hot! I couldn’t tell! This is a test post from my iPhone!

M3 Technical Specifications

Phrixus — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:24:51 +0000

As a record for ourselves and anyone else that might be interested, we have a page detailing the E46 M3 technical specs. We will update this page as and when we receive suitable information. If you would like to add anything, leave a comment here or use the contact form!

BMW M Advert

Phrixus — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 08:41:55 +0000

This is an authentic BMW M division advert.

New shed – Vimeo test

Phrixus — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 11:18:23 +0000

There is a new shed in our garden to replcae the old one that fell apart. Keeping with tradition I created a timelapse of the build on my Canon EOS 20D. To test out the video quality from Vimeo, I have uploaded it here and embedded it below. I think that it looks good, especially considering that I uploaded a compressed video to start with.

EDIT: Updated video to HD version, you might need to let it stream a bit.