The Phat Tog

I haven't been able to find anything confirming the hotel beds number but the problem with Liverpool or Manchester airports relative to the Isle of Man, is the Irish Sea! It needs to be Ronaldsway if it can handle the appropriate air traffic. There is a requirement for the host to provide 10,000 square metres of hard standing for the service park. I suspect this would mean either behind the grandstand or at Jurby. Does either place have that space available? What I did find out is that the Irish bid for a WRC round seems to be well under way, subject to the Irish government fronting something like 15 million euros to support the bid. The reason the UK doesn't have a round anymore is that the Welsh (where the event had been based since 2000 if I'm not mistaken) wouldn't allocate that kind of money any more. There is a tentative bid from Scotland that is in the early stages but the WRC seems to limited to 14 rounds and the thinking is tha if the Irish bid succeeds, then the UK doesn't need one. So, to stand a chance of hosting a WRC round, the Manx govt would have to put up around £15 million as well as meeting the other criteria, and assuming neither Ireland or Scotland succeed in their bids. By the way, this outlay gets you 3 years - it's not a permanent fixture. There is a European championship but there's a Welsh bid being formed for that I believe, so there will be competition even for the next level down. I've been away from rallying for a bit so I don't know if there are any potential openings within the British championship.

My neck of the woods hosted WRC rounds between 1996-98. At the time part of the criteria for a potential host was to have a certain number of hotel bed space available. I can't recall the number but 4500 comes to mind. Can the Island fulfil that these days? Also, the potential venue had to be within a given distance of an international airport - I think around 50 miles. Again, going from memory. Birmingham airport did the job for my area, so presumably the need to handle heavy jets rather than just medium haul aircraft might be an issue. Can you get an A380 into Ronaldsway? I'd love to see a WRC round on the Island but I think it may come up short on the required infrastructure. Another potential issue is getting a high volume of spectators into the stages for viewing. Going to need a lot of parking space or a very efficient shuttle service. My info is obviously not recent, so the criteria may have changed. If anyone would like to investigate then feel free - I've got too much to do before the TT!

There's roughly a 10% chance that you'll get a minor reaction. My brother and I had our jabs within a day of eachother and after 24 hours we both had a couple of days of what you might call 'covid lite'. It's not that big of a deal and certainly no reason not to have the jab. We're both classified as 'extremely clinically vulnerable'. The 5G chip is barely noticeable by the way...

You do seem to have a long-winded system over there. In my bit of the West Country I, as a recipient don't have to anything. The doctor's surgeries seem to be doing all the leg work. 4 weeks ago today I received a call from the practice nurse at my docs asking if I could present myself for my jab the following morning at 9.30. I turned up at the venue (for want of a better word) where 6 cubicles were set up. I checked in, joined a socially distanced queue and then shown to a cubicle for my jab. Waited the obligatory 15 minutes as I was driving and headed home. Simple and effective. All I have to do now is wait for another call to report for my 2nd jab and turn up when told to.

Possibly not. I was at a club race meeting on the 20th, so no professionals, and the grids were full. I suspect they would have been even better were it not necessary to allow for spacing in the paddock.

The RSPB distribution map suggests that they favour the south of the Island. Across the UK & IOM there are around 43,000 breeding territories but I think these are probably not well populated. I'm partial to a bit of bird photography (makes the bikes seem easier...) and I've not seen one on the Island yet. They are in the Cotswolds where I put myself about quite a bit and while its teeming with red-legged partridges, I've not managed to photograph one. It is correct that the RSPB have their status as 'red' which means the decline in their numbers gives great cause for concern. So, shoot them for fun? I would invite the gentleman concerned to kiss both sides of my arse. Killing something for food is one thing. Killing them for pleasure is something else again. Somebody mentioned Wild Boars. There's a ton of them in the Forest of Dean and I had a very close encounter early one morning when i was looking for Goshawks. Very amiable critters unless they have young and you have a dog. They like to dig up verges & grassy patches so any residents near wooded areas would have their gardens totalled in no time. Perhaps they could complain to an MHK

Thank you for asking. I have a headache...could be something to do with the glass or several I had last night. Wait - this wouldn't have happened if we hadn't left the EU, so it must be the fault of Brexit. Damn...

My specialist subject Give some thought to the Royal India in Athol St, Peel. Fell in love with this place at the TT after far too many years of dismal curries on the Island. They do the usual favourites but there are also a broad selection of South Indian dishes. I've developed a craving for Lamb Kaduku Khoottaan, Chicket Theeyal and Lamb Cafrial. These tend to have very subtle flavours but I'm sure they have some that will whack you round the chops if you want. It's a small 'mom & pop' place so probably worth booking rather than turn up on spec. The only thing wrong as far as I'm concerned is I have to wait until the end of May before I can go there again. Round where I live we have a number of very good Indian restaurants and this stands up against any of them.

John Elliott, who is a UK manufacturer in the washing machine and dehumidifier business has this to say about the EU: “I think the problem with the EU is it is not a very good organisation – they add nothing but cost and bureaucracy." EU in a nutshell. Nail firmly hit on head.

Grieve was happy to stand for election on a party manifesto that promised to deliver on the result of the referendum. He was been relentless in trying to get a second referendum (an establishment, not a 'peoples' vote) - the result of which has been predetermined. I believe his mother is French (or part French?), he regularly appears on French broadcast media and holds the Legion D'Honneur. Begs the question of where priorities lie... Oily = Olly Robbins. Senior pro EU civil serpent who has been a major player in the disastrous negotiations.

I thought the same but then realised that it wasn't Adolf she resembled but the recently late Bruno Ganz rendering of him in the excellent 'Downfall'.

I am his family - there's just me, him and the dog left now. You are in no position to have a go at anyone over insults - you dish out plenty yourself and if you're going to do that, don't be surprised if someone throws one or two your way from time to time. Of course you would have no way of knowing what happened but perhaps before leaping in with the ridicule you might have taken a moment to think if there may be another reason for someone no longer posting. I've got quite enough real world problems to deal with right now to bother myself with this any further.

PK called me out. I explained my reason for no longer contributing to this thread and would have hoped that it could be accepted and then left alone. Obviously not.

Using my brother's situation to point score... I suppose nobody should be surprised by that.

I just dropped in to see if this is still going round in circles and saw this post. I've been absent because less than 6 months after my twin brother and I buried my father, I accompanied my brother to hospital, where, on Christmas Eve, he was told he has terminal cancer. I'm sure even an ocean going prick like you might see that this more important than butting heads with a handful of butt hurt Guardian worshippers.