Froome looms

Great to see Chris Froome take the lead in the TA, having taken a stage yesterday. He is the kind of aggressive rider that can set a stage race alight. Probably way to early for this to say anything about the Tour, but it  is great to see him in such combative mood this early in the year.

Sky are once again looking formidable, with Porte taking Paris- Nice, they have some serious strength in depth. But, personal wish. I would love to see an Ian Stannard or a Geraint Thomas show in one of the cobbled classics this year. If I made a pact with the Devil, I would sell a Wiggins Giro win for Thomas to take Paris-Roubaix. Probably makes me a bad person, but so be it.

Sprinting Just Got Interesting

In the Tirreno-Adriatico yesterday Mark Cavendish didn't win the stage. Ok, not the end of the world other than it was exactly the kind of finish (flat and straight) where he has been King of the world for the last four or five years. Nobody cheated, he wasn't disqualified, his lead out didn't let him down, he was just beaten fair and square by Sagan, only narrowly getting the edge on 'he only wins shit small races' Griepel.
The arrival at last years tour of Sagan effectively ruling out the chance of Cav taking a Green Jersey again, with his ability to sprint up hill, certainly livened things up. But now he has gone head to head with Cav where the Manxman has ruled supreme, and won. If the gap has also narrowed with Griepel then the finish of the flat stages in the Grand Tours could be very lively.
It would be easy to think hat this is bad news for Cav but I don't thinks so. His is the kind of man that comes ack fighting. Secondly great champions need great rivals. An ageing Petacchi and the misfiring Farrar were not going to cut it. Now he has some true rivals to battle. Bring it on.

Sh*T Places to Eat in Croydon

There are loads, and half of then are serving largely chicken based fare.  However that is rather like shoot fish in a barrel, so this bit is dedicated to eateries that disappoint. Places that really ought to do better.
For Breakfast coffee places my baseline is Cafe Nero. Decent solid kind of chain, not super special but generally decent coffee, ok food and cheery service. And of course numerous. So above or below the Nero Standard is my grading system. While I am keen to use small local traders they do have to be half decent.
First up for my grumpy side is Bar Ispani. Being a paperbacks throw from Waterstones in the Whitgift and doing a nice breakfast florentine mini omelette has often brought me there, but my last visit confirmed that it really needs to try harder. The coffee is a top dollar price with a basement taste, its generally expensive and though seemingly staffed by a small army there is a bored indifference in the way they go about their work. Sorry for disturbing your busy schedule of staring into space. Should be a treasure, isn't. Now so massively out gunned on the brunch stakes by Matthews Yard it is probably too late for this punter. Two notches below the Nero Standard I'm afraid.

Tooley Street

I have been to London Bridge hundreds of times over the years. Today, walking from there down Tooley Street and then over Tower Bridge I was struck by how much has changed in my lifetime. I first went up there with my Dad and Brother when I was about 10, maybe younger. Big treat to visit HMS Belfast. That was one of the big holiday treats when I was that age. Up there with a trip to see the Dinosaurs at theNatural History Museum.
I remember Tooley Street vividly, grey skies and black brick walls, the torn remains of yellow posters in a desolate empty road. People weren't flocking there at a weekend then. That was before the  regeneration around the river. Now it is all glass towers and marble. Even the old is made to look new. People hurrying past cafe's and shops, or sitting outside in the spring sunshine. So different.

Galicia - Nice Places To Eat in Croydon #2

While the Glamorgan is a bit of a new kid on the block I think it's is fair to say that the Galicia, that temple to Tapas is something of an institution. There was a time  when apart from a few decent Curry Houses, Galicia was the only Restuarant it was worth making a journey to Croydon for. There is more choice now but it still knocks most into a cocked hat, and frankly why anyone goes to the miserable La Tasca with Galicia so  close god alone knows.

I had a cracking drunken works do there, have been for nice weekday treats with my partner and treated friends. The red Rioja is a good workhorse of a wine covers the standards with some left field option too. Kidney in sherry - yum. jonest.

The place may not be quite at its peak. There is a feeling they are pushing bigger portions over quality right now. Understandable, an nothing disasterous But Just hope its not something that goes any further. The service is exuberant, though the banging of pots and pans along with the bawling of happy birthday is a cruel way of marking the start anyones new year.

Overall it is that it is somewhere nice to spend an evening that is different to anything else around. No disrespect to them but sometimes if the name wasn't written at the top of the menu it would be impossible to tell from the food whether you are in Il Ponte, Zizzi or Pizza Express. There is no threat of that at Galicia. 

The Glamorgan Nice Places to Eat in Croydon part 1

I continue to mourn the passing of Davy's wine vault that once lurked below M&S. Clearly not enough people were in on It to keep it alive in recessionary times. The combination of simple well made British/European dishes, a good wine list, friendly staff always worked for me. while the Restaurant Scene in South Croydon is strong I do miss this outpost in the West.
Which is a roundabout way of  saying i keep hoping a replacement will appear, and this is what took us to the Glamorgan. What used to be a pretty grim old boozer in Cherry Orchard Road has been transformed into a gastropub. We discovered this last Autumn during the Cherry Orchard
 Arts Festival. Lots of naive art and stripped wood give it a nice feel and the staff are enthusiastic, helpful and friendly, though sometimes not the most skilled or deft. But hey, if you get friendly and helpful one can easily forgive.
There is a Southern African slant offering up dishes like Bunny Chow (curry in a hollowed out loaf of bread) Kudu burgers and crocodile steaks. This sits alongside more traditional steaks and European Dishes.
On the evidence seen so far it is doing pretty well pulling in diners but seemed light on drinkers. This is shame as the bar looks a nice spot and they serve up a decent Guinness.
Not quite the new Davy's but a welcome addition.

Bradley Manning and the Vengeful State

Alan Rusbridger has tweeted that the treatment of Bradley Manning is like a boy torturing ants witha magnifying   glass.  It does seem that the Due Process' is being used to make it as painful and degrading process as possible. There is a spiteful nastiness about it. Like Guantanamo Bay the State seems unable to disguise its hunger for simple revenge.
Manning went into this a vulnerable person, and frankly should never have held the position he did. But he now stands as probably the loneliest and most despised man in America.
I a, not sure exactly what I am saying, maybe that mercy is a quality that seems to have been forgotten.