# What are you other hobbies?



## Distorted Vision (8 Sep 2022)

Do you have time or can you afford any other hobbies apart from cycling?

My main hobby is hi-fi and has drained my wallet over the years. You can see my systems here:

https://forums.whathifi.com/threads/my-hi-fis.117582/

Apart from that mine are: photography, astronomy, detailing, watch & perfume collecting.

I seem to be only interested in expensive pursuits!


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## Juan Kog (8 Sep 2022)

How close are your neighbours, do they still talk to you.


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## Oldhippy (8 Sep 2022)

Cycling is not a hobby for me it is transport. Hobbies camping, history, writing and slowly learning how to take a good photo mainly.


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## Distorted Vision (8 Sep 2022)

Juan Kog said:


> How close are your neighbours, do they still talk to you.



We have good double glazing!


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## vickster (8 Sep 2022)

There's a hobbies sub forum if interested in what others are interested in 
https://www.cyclechat.net/forums/hobbies-interests.191/


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## Distorted Vision (8 Sep 2022)

vickster said:


> There's a hobbies sub forum if interested in what others are interested in
> https://www.cyclechat.net/forums/hobbies-interests.191/



Oops I missed that!


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## vickster (8 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> Oops I missed that!



So it seems  and you can search for things like hi-fi too with the search function
eg https://www.cyclechat.net/search/212369/?q=hi-fi&o=relevance


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## Distorted Vision (8 Sep 2022)

I forgot to mention wet shaving. That one usually gets a funny response.


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## Reynard (8 Sep 2022)

The cat fancy, painting & drawing, writing, preserve making, collecting motor racing memorabilia and maintaining a motor racing archive.


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## glasgowcyclist (8 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> I forgot to mention wet shaving.



Just your own or … no, never mind.


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## cyberknight (8 Sep 2022)

weight circuit 3 times a week , thats about it ,I was really into martial arts but shift work put paid to that followed by injuries ( accidents not training related ) meant i had to give it up.
Mrs ck has health problems linked to her cancer treatment plus shes had 2 minor stokes, mini ck 1 has chronic kidney disease, autism and gender dysphoria too.Mini ck 2 is "normal "
so i dont get much free time or free cash for other hobbies ,


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## Slick (8 Sep 2022)

Will be boring to most, but I have the usual working class hobbies like playing golf and watching football.

Most of my cycling is a lonesome pursuit, although some of my best rides have been with others and I do like the odd sportive as a challenge every now and again, but golf is a cracking past time for meeting some really nice people and there is a huge social element for most who enjoy the sport. Football is just an historical thing that I picked up from my old man and still enjoy following my team, although brings as much angst as pleasure, which is probably not a bad ratio compared with others.


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## glasgowcyclist (8 Sep 2022)

Baking breads mostly. I used to do a lot of photography but all my kit is now gathering dust. I should probably sell it.


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## si_c (8 Sep 2022)

Aside from cycling, I play a lot of computer games (PC mainly) for which I have a reasonable setup and I dabble in headphones due to Mrs C objecting to HiFi and also having been limited in available funds I found that headphones are better than a full setup. I do have a hifi but nothing quite like the OP.


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## Ripple (8 Sep 2022)

Photography. On and off it.
That's what I call "The best ones"  not really, some taken with simple pocket camera, some with my first DSLR, some simply look funny.
https://goo.gl/photos/XGGwNQYinSpmGafn9


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## Cycleops (8 Sep 2022)

Golf, strangling small animals and self abuse.
Apart from that I also enjoy a bit model railroading.


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## Sharky (8 Sep 2022)

In the summer, it's TT's (time trials)
In the winter, it's also TT's (table tennis)


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## Alex321 (8 Sep 2022)

Apart from cycling, I do Morris dancing (normally every Thursday plus occasional other days when we are booked for something), I am an active member of the Sealed Knot (English civil war re-enactments), and I have a woodturning lathe which I use regularly.

With what spare time I have left, I read (mainly sci_fi and fantasy), and I play Clash of Clans on my phone & tablet.


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## Jameshow (8 Sep 2022)

Ripple said:


> Photography. On and off it.
> That's what I call "The best ones"  not really, some taken with simple pocket camera, some with my first DSLR, some simply look funny.
> https://goo.gl/photos/XGGwNQYinSpmGafn9



Lovely photos!


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## Reynard (8 Sep 2022)

Yep, some lovely macro stuff @Ripple


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## winjim (8 Sep 2022)

Techno


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## Andy in Germany (8 Sep 2022)

glasgowcyclist said:


> Just your own or … no, never mind.



Trust you.


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## Andy in Germany (8 Sep 2022)

I seem to have a thing about creating stuff. Model railways, Table top games, writing, painting... I'd love to start leather working and jewellery making but that's a bit daunting and I need to sleep.


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## shep (8 Sep 2022)

Football (watching not playing) oldish Vw camper, classic Motorcycles and an old Lambretta.


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## Cycleops (8 Sep 2022)

Alex321 said:


> Apart from cycling, I do Morris dancing (normally every Thursday plus occasional other days when we are booked for something)


Good to hear that it's still being kept alive. Love to watch. Quite keen on folk music and used to go regularly to Cecil Sharp House on Saturday nights. What is your side called?


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## slowmotion (8 Sep 2022)

Designing electronic circuits for fairly useless gadgets.


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## Salad Dodger (8 Sep 2022)

Guitar and ukulele playing. (I play bass guitar in a folk band, and ukulele in a uke band, plus I play guitar and sing solo on a few local folk nights).
Walking 
Keeping the bird feeder stocked


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## Big John (8 Sep 2022)

I also play the guitar but never had the guts to play publicly. I play along to stuff on YouTube and pretend the cheering at the end is for my exquisite performance 😂. I also play for the grandkids but they don't do a lot of cheering ☹️


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## wiggydiggy (8 Sep 2022)

I think my hibby, other than cycling, is buying old tat from charity shops.

This is a VHS organiser, I only have 6 VHSs but I think it looks quite good.


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## FishFright (8 Sep 2022)

winjim said:


> Techno



I'm now too slow for techno so its funky house and disco.


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## Alex321 (8 Sep 2022)

Cycleops said:


> Good to hear that it's still being kept alive. Love to watch. Quite keen on folk music and used to go regularly to Cecil Sharp House on Saturday nights. What is your side called?



Sweyn's ey Morris - based in Swansea.

Here is a video of us dancing at the Tredegar House folk festival in May this year (I'm in the middle on the side nearest the camera).

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqx03f2xCW4


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## Badger_Boom (9 Sep 2022)

FishFright said:


> I'm now too slow for techno so its funky house and disco.


I dabble with ambient to avoid upsetting the neighbours, Mrs BB and the dog. I’ve also got too many (cheap) guitars for someone who only knows about five complete songs after about 30 years of noodling.

I spend the rest of my spare time as an Army Reservist because being allowed to shoot holes in stuff is cathartic.


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## Reynard (9 Sep 2022)

Badger_Boom said:


> I spend the rest of my spare time as an Army Reservist because being allowed to shoot holes in stuff is cathartic.



A bit like smacking someone over the head with a sabre, I'd imagine... 

Fencing is a hobby that I miss (it was more than a hobby at one point), but sadly the nearest club is just too far away to make it worthwhile travelling to sessions.


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## stephec (9 Sep 2022)

I've a collection of young trees and shrubs that will eventually become bonsai, a telescope that will now get more use as the nights darken, a big pile of plastic model kits (mainly aircraft), and a banjo ukulele that I've not touched for a couple of years. 

Running would probably be my main hobby now.


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## Hover Fly (9 Sep 2022)

Cycleops said:


> Golf, *strangling small animals and self abuse*.
> Apart from that I also enjoy a bit model railroading.


Is strangling a small animal not pretty much the same as self abuse?


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## Profpointy (9 Sep 2022)

Cycleops said:


> Golf, strangling small animals and self abuse.
> Apart from that I also enjoy a bit model railroading.



That's well dodgy - golf's a rubbish game


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## Sharky (9 Sep 2022)

Profpointy said:


> That's well dodgy - golf's a rubbish game



I feel sorry for golfs - grown men hitting their balls with metal sticks.


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## HarryTheDog (9 Sep 2022)

My other Hobby is Latin Ballroom dancing which I took up nearly 5 years ago with my partner. At 60 I increasingly realise its something I should have taken up at 16. Its a massive subject really, It causes joy and frustration in equal measures.


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## byegad (9 Sep 2022)

Erm!
Railway modelling, Bird Watching, Photography, RC Cars, both Rock Crawling and Bashing. 
Having been retired for 16 years I often wonder how I ever found time to earn a living.


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## Cycleops (9 Sep 2022)

Profpointy said:


> That's well dodgy - golf's a rubbish game


At last, somebody who remembers the old Monty Python sketch. Can’t remember exactly what it was about but some sort of TV games show where the contestants hobbies were trotted out. I think the commentators retort was ‘ think he got marked down on the hobbies, golf is not very popular here’.


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## Oldhippy (9 Sep 2022)

Cycleops said:


> At last, somebody who remembers the old Monty Python sketch. Can’t remember exactly what it was about but some sort of TV games show where the contestants hobbies were trotted out. I think the commentators retort was ‘ think he got marked down on the hobbies, golf is not very popular here’.



I think the Avon and District river wideners club was a team name in that or something similar.


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## Cycleops (9 Sep 2022)

It was the Avon and district catholic river wideners society.


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## Oldhippy (9 Sep 2022)

Cycleops said:


> It was the Avon and district catholic river wideners society.



That's the one.


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## Profpointy (9 Sep 2022)

For me it's caving and scuba diving (albeit not done the latter for a year or two and my tanks are now out of test). Apart from that I read, perhaps study even - mostly astronomy / physics, history, and engineering.


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## FishFright (9 Sep 2022)

Profpointy said:


> For me it's caving and scuba diving (albeit not done the latter for a year or two and my tanks are now out of test). Apart from that I read, perhaps study even - mostly astronomy / physics, history, and engineering.



I used to do quite a bit of caving in the early 90's. Great fun !

If your know Darfar* Pot in the Manifold Valley, I was one of the team that found the upper entrance. Other than that it was mostly sporting trips. One of the guys I caved with became a cave diver of some renown , shudder !

*Choose your own spelling for this one.


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## Profpointy (9 Sep 2022)

FishFright said:


> I used to do quite a bit of caving in the early 90's. Great fun !
> 
> If your know Darfar* Pot in the Manifold Valley, I was one of the team that found the upper entrance. Other than that it was mostly sporting trips. One of the guys I caved with became a cave diver of some renown , shudder !
> 
> *Choose your own spelling for this one.



I don't think I know that one, and haven't caved in the Dales for a few years but have visited most of the classics. I'm not overly fond of ropework to be honest !


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## FishFright (9 Sep 2022)

Profpointy said:


> I don't think I know that one, and haven't caved in the Dales for a few years but have visited most of the classics. I'm not overly fond of ropework to be honest !



Its included in the Derbyshire area even though it's in Staffordshire. I did very little in Yorkshire caving areas.


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## Profpointy (9 Sep 2022)

FishFright said:


> Its included in the Derbyshire area even though it's in Staffordshire. I did very little in Yorkshire caving areas.



Ah yes, I realised after typing that I'd got muddled up. Only done P8, Peak and a couple of others in Derbyshire. Most of my caving has been in South Wales plus a semi annual European trip most years, though not for a while


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## Alex321 (9 Sep 2022)

Profpointy said:


> Ah yes, I realised after typing that I'd got muddled up. Only done P8, Peak and a couple of others in Derbyshire. Most of my caving has been in South Wales plus a semi annual European trip most years, though not for a while



I used to go caving in South Wales when I was in university (Swansea). And one of our Morris dancers is still a caver, a member of the Chelsea Caving society even though he lives in Swansea, and also a member of the South Wales Cave Rescue team.


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## Distorted Vision (9 Sep 2022)

winjim said:


> Techno


I'm into trance and progressive trance. I have about 600 records, decks and a mixer. I rarely buy records any more. But I do still get on the decks for a mix every now and again.


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## DCBassman (10 Sep 2022)

As someone who's sort of retired (I have a very small business doing portable appliance testing, and if they can fix my back, I'll certainly try and be a gigging musician again), I mess with computers and read a fair bit.


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## Reynard (10 Sep 2022)

I should add, that as a corollary of collecting motor racing memorabilia and maintaining an archive, I've also become reasonably proficient in restoring photographs. It's actually rather addictive in a strange sort of way.


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## Distorted Vision (10 Sep 2022)

If I hadn't just bought my new Colnago, I could have bought this for the amp in my hifi:

https://www.futureshop.co.uk/quantum-science-audio-silver-extreme-level-uk-13a-fuse

I can just imagine Vickster spitting out her tea when she opens that link.


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## BoldonLad (10 Sep 2022)

Big John said:


> I also play the guitar but never had the guts to play publicly. I play along to stuff on YouTube and pretend the cheering at the end is for my exquisite performance 😂. I also play for *the grandkids but they don't do a lot of cheering* ☹️



Stop their pocket money, until they learn to cheer


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## Reynard (10 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> If I hadn't just bought my new Colnago, I could have bought this for the amp in my hifi:
> 
> https://www.futureshop.co.uk/quantum-science-audio-silver-extreme-level-uk-13a-fuse
> 
> I can just imagine Vickster spitting out her tea when she opens that link.



*GULP*


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## DCBassman (10 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> If I hadn't just bought my new Colnago, I could have bought this for the amp in my hifi:


Oh hell no. Unless your hifi amp is pulling well north of 500W, there's not even the possibility of that making a difference. My Markbass bass amp was rated at 500W RMS output flat out. That sort of thing does require a decent mains lead, but that's all. This hifi overkill is sheerest twaddle, not backed up by any physics whatever.


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## Distorted Vision (10 Sep 2022)

I was joking!


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## DCBassman (10 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> I was joking!


I know, I know, but this kind of snake oil makes me very grumpy!


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## ColinJ (10 Sep 2022)

Reynard said:


> I should add, that as a corollary of collecting motor racing memorabilia and maintaining an archive, I've also become reasonably proficient in restoring photographs. It's actually rather addictive in a strange sort of way.


I was going through boxes of papers after my dad died and I found a very tatty old picture of him when he was working in bomb disposal during WWII, around the time that he met my mum. The picture was folded, torn and covered in white paint. I took it home with me, scanned it, then I set about restoring it. After the restoration, I had a new print made and framed it. I took the picture down on my next visit to my mum and presented it to her. She was _really_ touched...







Unfortunately, I no longer have the original picture. Some of the restoration was simply a case of disguising the damage. In the case of the circular plate on the central bomb (just above head height) the damage was so severe that it pretty much had to be painted in.


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## Reynard (10 Sep 2022)

DCBassman said:


> I know, I know, but this kind of snake oil makes me very grumpy!



Well, you know what gets said about fools and money...

I'd get a top-of-the-range DSLR and some decent glass for that.


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## Distorted Vision (10 Sep 2022)

DCBassman said:


> I know, I know, but this kind of snake oil makes me very grumpy!



I was trying to get a reaction from Vickster.


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## Reynard (10 Sep 2022)

ColinJ said:


> I was going through boxes of papers after my dad died and I found a very tatty old picture of him when he was working in bomb disposal during WWII, around the time that he met my mum. The picture was folded, torn and covered in white paint. I took it home with me, scanned it, then I set about restoring it. After the restoration, I had a new print made and framed it. I took the picture down on my next visit to my mum and presented it to her. She was _really_ touched...
> 
> View attachment 660581
> 
> ...



How fabby is that? 

Yes, sometimes you quite literally *are* painting one pixel at a time, but it is SO worthwhile when you end up with a decent print. My current project is giving me headaches though.

I recently acquired a photo for my archive that was a copy of the original print. The person who copied it for me didn't take the original from its frame and used a camera with flash to boot. So I'm having to deal with all sorts of reflections, blow-outs and colour casts. To add insult to injury, the original print is on that textured photo paper that was so fashionable in the late 70s and early 80s, so there's light scatter as well.

I've got it to the stage where it now makes a passable print, but I'm still having real issues. Worth persisting with it though, as it pushes back the earliest image in my archive by some two and a half years. And as a collector, that's worth every bit of that pain.


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## Reynard (10 Sep 2022)

I should add, that without a scanner, making a reprint of a print (or an enlargement of a print) is something of a dark art. Precisely to avoid the problems I've listed above.


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## mustang1 (10 Sep 2022)

I used to enjoy tinkering with computers then someone told me to do what i love (work with computers). It was at that time that I realised I would hate to be a professional TdF rider because of all the crap that goes along with simply riding your bike. Similarly, there is a lot of stuff you have to deal with in the computer field and its not just computers.

I gave up my job earlier this year and my love of computers has regrown so I will count that as my hobby.

I would love to read more but between mucking around with computers and riding, I listen to audio books instead. They are far more convenient and one can listen at night, in a car, while doing housework, etc etc. I listen to comedy, history, fiction (whodunit, law, adventure), autobiographies and a few other categories.

I used to have a few other hobbies but I prefer talking about the present and near future rather than the past which I use more as a learning platform.

Edit: typo


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## Darius_Jedburgh (11 Sep 2022)

Reynard said:


> I should add, that without a scanner, making a reprint of a print (or an enlargement of a print) is something of a dark art. Precisely to avoid the problems I've listed above.


For reasons that are too obscure to go into I once had a semi official( that means unpaid) job as a photo restorer for St Asaph Cathedral. 
My contact died and the photos dried up. A pity really because I became quite good with Photoshop.


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## Reynard (11 Sep 2022)

Darius_Jedburgh said:


> For reasons that are too obscure to go into I once had a semi official( that means unpaid) job as a photo restorer for St Asaph Cathedral.
> My contact died and the photos dried up. A pity really because I became quite good with Photoshop.



That's a shame. Because it's very satisfying to do, isn't it?


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## Darius_Jedburgh (11 Sep 2022)

Reynard said:


> That's a shame. Because it's very satisfying to do, isn't it?


Yes. A great sense of achievement when finished. 
Lack of use means that I've forgotten a lot of the tricks I knew.


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## FishFright (11 Sep 2022)

Darius_Jedburgh said:


> For reasons that are too obscure to go into I once had a semi official( that means unpaid) job as a photo restorer for St Asaph Cathedral.
> My contact died and the photos dried up. A pity really because I became quite good with Photoshop.



You might enjoy the work of Babel Colour who uses modern software and methods to restore and enhance century old autochromes







https://twitter.com/StuartHumphryes


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## ColinJ (12 Sep 2022)

Impressive!

I just ran my dad's old photo through an online colouriser. The results are obviously nowhere near as good but it is interesting to see the difference...


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## figbat (12 Sep 2022)

The only other things I would call a hobby are photography and horse riding, although I haven’t really spent time doing either for ages.

I studied photography ’O’-level and worked in a camera shop (remember those?!) for years. I have a half-decent selection of DSLRs, lenses, accessories etc and a few images of the many thousand I have taken I am proud of. I had a picture printed on the front page of the Chichester Chronicle once. I also have a precious film SLR which hasn’t been out in years plus a darkroom setup in boxes in the loft.

Horses - I learnt as a kid and was regularly riding until I left home for university. I came back to it mid-20s and managed to win a national show jumping championship. Then life took over but I’m still close to horses - my parents have owned horses all the time - the most successful was one that I was first to ride; he went as far as 3* eventing (Blenheim Horse Trials) with a professional rider. My wife learnt to ride and both kids have a weekly lesson - we ride as a family on occasion, most recently on a trek on Exmoor.


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## biking_fox (12 Sep 2022)

FishFright said:


> I used to do quite a bit of caving in the early 90's. Great fun !
> 
> If your know Darfar* Pot in the Manifold Valley, I was one of the team that found the upper entrance. Other than that it was mostly sporting trips. One of the guys I caved with became a cave diver of some renown , shudder !
> 
> *Choose your own spelling for this one.



Another caver here, although I probably spend more time climbing which I do as 'training'. Cycling is very much a transport option for me although I do enjoy a long ride too. (Stories of the 60s cavers biking over the fells with all their kit to do a proper hard trip and then biking home again show just how soft I am in comparison).

Given how niche caving is, this is quite a high turnout! I've not been in Darfar but know of it.

Also reading, cooking, gardening


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## Distorted Vision (12 Sep 2022)

ColinJ said:


> Impressive!
> 
> I just ran my dad's old photo through an online colouriser. The results are obviously nowhere near as good but it is interesting to see the difference...
> 
> View attachment 660809



Which website did you use? I want to try it on photos of my father when he was officer in the army.


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## fossyant (12 Sep 2022)

DCBassman said:


> Oh hell no. Unless your hifi amp is pulling well north of 500W, there's not even the possibility of that making a difference. My Markbass bass amp was rated at 500W RMS output flat out. That sort of thing does require a decent mains lead, but that's all. This hifi overkill is sheerest twaddle, not backed up by any physics whatever.



You'd be lucky to afford to run a fancy amp now !


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## Darius_Jedburgh (12 Sep 2022)

biking_fox said:


> Another caver here,


Not caving as such, but I've done quite a bit of exploration in old disused mine workings in Lakes and N. Wales.
Believe it or not there is a man made dam high in the hills above Coniston. A big dam with an awful lot of water in it. There is a big hole that was blocked some 100+ years ago to create the dam. Blocked with tree trunks that still exist and are in remarkably good condition. Maggie Thatcher was down to visit Coniston at the height of the Irish problems, and the IRA conceived a plan to blow the dam and flood the valley.
No idea how they managed it - we had a lot of trouble getting there - but they managed to get half a dozen Calor Gas bottles filed with explosive up to the back of the dam. The bomb never went off for reasons that haven't been made public. 
That is some serious mine exploration work, lots of single rope technique needed.


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## vickster (12 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> If I hadn't just bought my new Colnago, I could have bought this for the amp in my hifi:
> 
> https://www.futureshop.co.uk/quantum-science-audio-silver-extreme-level-uk-13a-fuse
> 
> I can just imagine Vickster spitting out her tea when she opens that link.



Wtaf has it got to do with me? 🤷‍♀️ It’s your money to spend on whatever you want 

I don’t even know what the point of that thing is


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## Bonefish Blues (12 Sep 2022)

Me, fish, Ezzard, Great Inagua 😊


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## ColinJ (12 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> Which website did you use? I want to try it on photos of my father when he was officer in the army.


*Img2Go*. It was the first free one that I found.


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## Jody (12 Sep 2022)

The current fixations are:

Japanese Maples - in general but soon to be trying my hand at bonsai
PC gaming (sim racing VR or VR in general)
DJing - A recent delve back in given that I got rid of my decks back in the late 90's


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## fossyant (12 Sep 2022)

Current hobby is finding out what the heck is using all the power in the house !


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## Baldy (12 Sep 2022)

I'm really into mountains and wilderness so backpacking, hill walking, skiing, kayaking as well as bikepacking. Apart from these photography and I'm starting to try video making.


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## jowwy (12 Sep 2022)

fossyant said:


> Current hobby is finding out what the heck is using all the power in the house !



hot tub and sons gaming PC and the love of leaving things switched on lol


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## fossyant (12 Sep 2022)

jowwy said:


> hot tub and sons gaming PC and the love of leaving things switched on lol



Aye. Daughter's gaming set up is 1.6w on standby, son's 4w. Leaving power monitors on them for a couple of weeks now. Hot tub has been powered down !


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## jowwy (12 Sep 2022)

fossyant said:


> Aye. Daughter's gaming set up is 1.6w on standby, son's 4w. Leaving power monitors on them for a couple of weeks now. *Hot tub has been powered down !*



i may allow ours to powered back up, when the solar gets fitted....but havent told her yet lol


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## Distorted Vision (12 Sep 2022)

vickster said:


> Wtaf has it got to do with me? 🤷‍♀️ It’s your money to spend on whatever you want
> 
> I don’t even know what the point of that thing is



It's just a fuse albeit with a ludicrous price tag. It's an extreme example how ridiculous hi-fi can be. 
Imagine the look on the face of someone if it blew the day they fitted.

Do you really think I was serious about buying it?


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## Gunk (12 Sep 2022)

I don’t have much time for other interests, work full time with a pretty demanding job and have two older teenagers, when I do have some time to myself, as well as building and riding bikes, I always been mad on motorcycles and ride as much as I can. In the past I’ve also restored a couple of 90’s sportsbikes.


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## vickster (12 Sep 2022)

Distorted Vision said:


> It's just a fuse albeit with a ludicrous price tag. It's an extreme example how ridiculous hi-fi can be.
> Imagine the look on the face of someone if it blew the day they fitted.
> 
> Do you really think I was serious about buying it?



I don’t understand why you felt the need to tag me 🤷‍♀️


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## ShawnBikes (13 Oct 2022)

I do a lot of day hiking and some overnight backpacking. I usually hike every weekend. I enjoy hikes with bluffs and rock formations. I also chase waterfalls and enjoy scenic overlooks and creeks. I rockhound, too. That's collecting rocks. 

I also love snakes, even venomous ones. I don't like to handle them but I love watching them.

I've just got into kayaking. I've never been the best swimmer so I never tried it. I know how to swim. Just never done it. I really enjoy kayaking and I make sure I wear a PFD every time I do it.

I love website management and marketing stuff. I like blogging, forums, SEO, link building, and all that geeky stuff, LOL.

I also love writing. I write for my own blogs and freelance write. I write about 10,000 to 30,000 words each day usually.

All these hobbies keep me pretty busy. I try to get some bike riding in between them!


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## Reynard (13 Oct 2022)

ShawnBikes said:


> I also love writing. I write for my own blogs and freelance write. I write about 10,000 to 30,000 words each day usually.



Goodness me, you must really be banging away at the keyboard to generate that much in a day... 

My typical daily output is between 300-500 words a day, but I *do* polish and edit as I go.


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## ShawnBikes (13 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> Goodness me, you must really be banging away at the keyboard to generate that much in a day...
> 
> My typical daily output is between 300-500 words a day, but I *do* polish and edit as I go.



Polishing for me is Grammarly Premium. I can usually edit my writing pretty quick with that but I do try to also read it out loud to ensure that I use a personal voice in the tone. That's mainly how I write.

I like to write. I have a few of my own blogs and I want to stay far ahead, so I write a lot of articles for them. And then I have a few clients that want articles on a consistent basis of 3,000 or more words at a time. As long as they keep paying, I'll keep writing, haha.


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## Reynard (13 Oct 2022)

ShawnBikes said:


> Polishing for me is Grammarly Premium. I can usually edit my writing pretty quick with that but I do try to also read it out loud to ensure that I use a personal voice in the tone. That's mainly how I write.



Which is, as with many such things, only as good as the person who has written the algorithms... They're not infallible, ergo I much prefer to do things the old-fashioned way. Maybe I'm a Luddite, but that's how I was taught. 



ShawnBikes said:


> I like to write. I have a few of my own blogs and I want to stay far ahead, so I write a lot of articles for them. And then I have a few clients that want articles on a consistent basis of 3,000 or more words at a time. As long as they keep paying, I'll keep writing, haha.



Quality over quantity for me, I'm afraid.  I've written a PhD dissertation and multiple academic papers, done a stint as a motor racing journalist, had poetry published, written fan fiction and am now currently working on a novel.


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## ShawnBikes (14 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> Which is, as with many such things, only as good as the person who has written the algorithms... They're not infallible, ergo I much prefer to do things the old-fashioned way. Maybe I'm a Luddite, but that's how I was taught.
> 
> 
> 
> Quality over quantity for me, I'm afraid.  I've written a PhD dissertation and multiple academic papers, done a stint as a motor racing journalist, had poetry published, written fan fiction and am now currently working on a novel.



I totally get that.

I do try to remember that human editing is better than "bot" editing.

They have AI now that will write the article for you. I don't like that at all!


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## DCBassman (14 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> Quality over quantity for me, I'm afraid.  I've written a PhD dissertation and multiple academic papers, done a stint as a motor racing journalist, had poetry published, written fan fiction and am now currently working on a novel.


Blimey, by most standards, that's a reasonable quantity! What flavour of novel?


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## Reynard (14 Oct 2022)

ShawnBikes said:


> I totally get that.
> 
> I do try to remember that human editing is better than "bot" editing.
> 
> They have AI now that will write the article for you. I don't like that at all!



AI writing articles... Oooer... 

Which reminds... Have you ever seen the Star Trek TNG episode where Data recites his poetry? There's also a couple of the books where Data's erm, literary creations form part of the story - "Gulliver's Fugitives" and "Eyes of the Beholder" IIRC...

The books (for ST ones) are actually rather good and thought-provoking.

As far as editing is concerned, there's a real satisfaction in finding the right word or phrase to illustrate a concept, isn't there? It's weirdly addictive in a way...


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## Reynard (14 Oct 2022)

DCBassman said:


> Blimey, by most standards, that's a reasonable quantity! What flavour of novel?



Time travel meets motor racing. Could only be me that comes up with a concept this daft, I guess...


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## Jody (14 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> Time travel meets motor racing. Could only be me that comes up with a concept this daft, I guess...



4 way shootout. Senna, HAM, Schui and VER all having one race in each of the others title winning cars. 

Or all the greats on one grid


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## Andy in Germany (14 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> Time travel meets motor racing. Could only be me that comes up with a concept this daft, I guess...



Do strange things happen when they reach 88.8 mph?


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## Reynard (14 Oct 2022)

Jody said:


> 4 way shootout. Senna, HAM, Schui and VER all having one race in each of the others title winning cars.
> 
> Or all the greats on one grid



But you have to throw Lauda , Piquet and Hunt into this mix surely in order to get the full clash of personalities.  Oh, hold on, sounds a lot like the old Grand Prix Masters series...


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## Reynard (14 Oct 2022)

Andy in Germany said:


> Do strange things happen when they reach 88.8 mph?



Not in this case


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## Jody (14 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> But you have to throw Lauda , Piquet and Hunt into this mix surely in order to get the full clash of personalities.  Oh, hold on, sounds a lot like the old Grand Prix Masters series...



Clash of the Titans


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## ShawnBikes (15 Oct 2022)

Reynard said:


> As far as editing is concerned, there's a real satisfaction in finding the right word or phrase to illustrate a concept, isn't there? It's weirdly addictive in a way...



I've been trying to double down on my editing skills. In fact, I try to get it Right The First Time if I can help it. I feel like Grammarly is helping me but writing still needs that human touch.

I used to be bad at grammar. I slack on forums and text messaging but try to get a little bit more serious with my writing, since most of the time, it results in a payment


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## Reynard (15 Oct 2022)

ShawnBikes said:


> I've been trying to double down on my editing skills. In fact, I try to get it Right The First Time if I can help it. I feel like Grammarly is helping me but writing still needs that human touch.
> 
> I used to be bad at grammar. I slack on forums and text messaging but try to get a little bit more serious with my writing, since most of the time, it results in a payment



Guess I was very fortunate in having excellent English teachers in prep school, and we were pulled up on grammar and spelling in other subjects too. I guess that sort of thing stays with you... 

Also, English is only my third language, btw.


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