Confident Queally

What did George say? I missed that

An excellent ride oldgit but his detractors all seemed to have missed it today.

I missed the start but he was making the point that when you have Cecil and Frankel you don't need to bother making contacts or need outside rides. I don't really think that is still the case so much later as he is still quite well used and by good trainers.

Barney Curley was happy to use him when the money was down, but what he would know?

Sparrow: It's such a nice day that even our most dedicated punters have ventured out.

I'm stuck inside as our lift is out of order but have phoned our out of hours management company and an engineer is on his way. Third time it has happened in recent months always at a seemingly bad time, Good Friday, a late Friday afternoon and now the Sunday of a Holiday weekend. Each time they attended promptly and it has been a simple fault.

2 winner all year long, then 2 in 2 rides.

It was impressive and entertaining to watch

oldgit, a bad time for you but a very good time for the engineer on at least double time for working holidays!

I'll give him the credit although the horse is a course specialist.
I can't remember it's name now but I once went to the last two days of their three day meeting and only had 'one winner' It was the same horse winning twice the last race on  the Wednesday and the first on the Thursday. Each time at double figure prices. It may have been called Bob something.

The engineer would have been getting paid for sitting around if I had not called them.
Story on our lift it was replaced in March 2007 and was going to take four weeks so we booked flights to Australia for five weeks. They started  three days early so we had to carry our cases down four flights. When we got back there was still a not in use sign on it. I could give you any odds and you would not guess why. The pit was not deep enough for the new lift. it took them fourteen weeks to sort it out.
We have been fortunate with the one on our side of the building as any problems have been minor. The other wing had theirs out for over ten weeks as it turned out that there are only eight of this make in the country and no longer made and any special parts have to be made in Japan.

Sounds like a nightmare oldgit, but the cricket is good if you are a fan.

Well he's not turned up yet.
As a Scot I honestly don't understand cricket :-) First time I went to London when I was 17 I went to Lords. It was the Gentlemen Vs the Players with all the then best players like Compton and Hutton. I left at lunchtime. Even the real fans said it was boring. Only other time I ever went to a match was in 1955 when my cousin was playing for the War Office at Raynes Park. The tea was quite good.
There was once test around that time that featured Alec Bedser taking about all the Aussie wickets and we were all glued to the commentary at work.
One Sunday in NZ in 2006 we were stuck in our hotel during a hurricane  and watched I think a one day match with Scotland that was entertaining.

So much crap on here about queally he is a fine jockey if the top trainer in the world didn’t think so he would not have trusted him on Frankel but maybe you guys are better judges than him.

Quite right, if the horse is good enough the huge majority of professional jockeys will get them home.

In so many of his recent races he has been in a good position looking like a winner but losing out. Horse or jockey I never could decide.

sparrow:
Not good for us in the end as he didn't show as evidently we are only covered from Monday to Friday and not for holidays so we are now stuck until tomorrow due to our penny pinching management.

oldgit, you and your neighbours need to get together and threaten them with non payment or some other action.

Out of the 52 flats 37 of us have a share in the freehold so as well as wanting fast action it comes at a very high cost. Our directors though do tend to be very careful with our money and we do get half decent dividends every two years from the money paid by the leaseholders and from garage rentals etc.
What we need is for a few more people to buy their share of the freehold or extend their leases. Three bought their leases a couple of years ago and that was a earner for us. We are renting out the garages too cheaply at £240 a quarter.
I was surprised when called back and told that someone was coming out yesterday but assumed that she was right.
The first failure this year was on the Spring Holiday Monday and it was next morning before the engineer came out. Different of course if someone is stuck in it.

Out of the 52 flats 37 of us have a share in the freehold so as well as wanting fast action it comes at a very high cost. Our directors though do tend to be very careful with our money and we do get half decent dividends every two years from the money paid by the leaseholders and from garage rentals etc.
What we need is for a few more people to buy their share of the freehold or extend their leases. Three bought their leases a couple of years ago and that was a earner for us. We are renting out the garages too cheaply at £240 a quarter.
I was surprised when called back and told that someone was coming out yesterday but assumed that she was right.
The first failure this year was on the Spring Holiday Monday and it was next morning before the engineer came out. Different of course if someone is stuck in it.

The property market is way too complicated in my view with so many fingers in the pie. To me if you purchase a property it should be yours and yours alone with none of these leaseholders having rights over the land it is built upon.

the more recent leasehold properties are much more of a rip off than the older ones. Trouble is people want to buy and seem to miss how much it will cost them over time.

sparrow:
Our problem is going to take some time to resolve. Timescale so far

Hi A.W.

The matter was reported to the out of hours team on Sunday at 14.44pm.

Here is the out of hours record of subsequent action taken that day-


Action taken: Rang Schindler 0800335566 they will attend - ref 49229831 Updated site

15.34 (COC) Called Schindler 0800335566 for an update - They advised that this job is next on engineers list.

17.33 (CR)  Called Schindler 0800335566, ref 49229831 for an update, they advised that there is no ETA as of yet but the engineer will attend.

19:12 (CS) Called Schindler 0800335566 for an update- They advised that the engineer is currently on site.

20:06 (DM) Called Schindler 0800 335566 for an update - he advised the engineer has booked to re attend on Tuesday with a technician and the lift has been left out of service. Wasn't able to complete a repair OOH.

Leaving open in case of further calls until Tuesday.

Monday
26/08

04.40 (MK) No further calls from site

Closing Ticket and reporting it back to the main office

We picked up in the main office yesterday and chased the report following technician visit. The quotation was received at the end of the day yesterday. Now awaiting client instructions. Unfortunately a major repair is required and we will have a better idea of timescales involved when an order is placed at which point notices can be arranged for site with likely timescales.


Hi A.B.
Thanks for this - impressive follow ups. 3 things come out of that. 1/ my understanding was the out of hours number was only for in-flat emergencies; if that is all encompassing, all the better. 2/ I think the weak point is proven to be communication to the reporter of it or a director, by the out of hours company or  Schindler - perhaps that needs to be addressed?
3/ I was under the impression our contract with Schindler was workdays only - how would they have come out on Sunday or come to that a bank holiday?

To Me
Bad news I'm afraid, the drive unit needs replacing. It costs over £7k as well and I don't at this stage have an estimate for when it will be done. Interestingly it says reason for failure is improper use. I'm trying to get to the bottom of that.
Regards
A.W.
Hi A.W.
              Very bad news, I’m now a prisoner as my knee takes all it’s time to cope with a short staircase far less four floors and 88 steps. My knee problems all started when this lift was being installed and it took 14 weeks. I hope it does not take as long as the repair you had on the East Wing. I hope the drive motor is a standard part.
Out of Hours said on Sunday that Schindler would probably contact me when they came but didn’t so obviously got entry to the building and down to the lift room all right. I thought that they must have been as the indicator had shown ‘0’ and it later went out.
How does one improperly use a lift ? The builders have not been using it and I’ve not noticed kids joy riding in it recently. Apart from resident ones there are several who come for weekends and holidays. Several times over recent weeks I’ve commented that I have felt the lift make a slight noise and sometimes jerk.
Weeks shopping now ordered from Ocado.:-)

A sorry sate of affairs for you oldgit and worse still no estimate as to when it it will be attended to.
Perhaps you might consider a move to somewhere more accessible.

*state of affairs

Thought about that as we are surrounded by hotels but then cut off from E-Mail as I keep that off my phone then you need to take clothes and do laundry and collect your post and not have the food you would cook at home. There is a holiday let on the ground floor but it won't be available much at this time of year.   Actually two hookers set up a temporary brothel there once. Someone reported them to the caretaker (we no longer have one another supposed economy measure) and he kicked them out)

I was thinking a move on a more permanent basis to a ground floor flat elsewhere.

Oldgit1 25 Aug 19 17:24 Joined: 04 Oct 02 | Topic/replies: 3,149 | Blogger: Oldgit1's blog
Well he's not turned up yet.
As a Scot I honestly don't understand cricket :-) First time I went to London when I was 17 I went to Lords. It was the Gentlemen Vs the Players with all the then best players like Compton and Hutton. I left at lunchtime. Even the real fans said it was boring. Only other time I ever went to a match was in 1955 when my cousin was playing for the War Office at Raynes Park. The tea was quite good.
There was once test around that time that featured Alec Bedser taking about all the Aussie wickets and we were all glued to the commentary at work.
One Sunday in NZ in 2006 we were stuck in our hotel during a hurricane  and watched I think a one day match with Scotland that was entertaining.

What a lucky chap you were to see some of the all time greats of the game in Compton, Hutton and Bedser!
Used to like the old charity matches usually Variety club v MCC or similar, loved watching Denis Compton and possibly Richie Benaud(mid 60s i expect) playing as they were miked up, Compton would be bowling and he'd say what ball he was going to bowl be it a leg break, an off spinner, a chinaman on a googlie, Benaud batting would say what ball he was anticipating judged by Comptons run up, great entertainment and a good laugh!

Incidentally Queally has a couple of decent rides at Ffos Las today and is 2 winners from last 3 rides, sorry to interupt, hope you get the lift sorted oldgit!

I followed queallys career from when he was apprentice to Pat Flynn in Waterford. He became champion apprentice and seemed destined for the top. He rode a lot of winners.

There was some dispute between them over his apprenticeship papers iirc. I was delighted for him when he got the Frankel gig. There were some great touches with Barney as well.

A top jockey and good lad imo.

sparrow.
" I was thinking a move on a more permanent basis to a ground floor flat elsewhere "
Don't get a view then. If we moved at my age I would rent rather than buy.
Flats are hassle nowadays with the cost of scaffolding doubling the cost of any repairs.  We had a big repair to the 26 flat block we lived in in Edinburgh. Scaffolding cost £144K and repairs £150K. There were one or two people killed by falling masonary in Edinburgh and the Council did a city wide survey and forced occupants into repairs that got out of hand due to Council employees corruption with contractors. My neighbours son was one who was jailed. Years later people are still fighting against their charges. We were about the first to fight our corner and got about half our money back.
Panorama wanted to do a programme on it and one of the top producers was put in touch with me as ours was evidently the worst increase from the original estimate but would not go ahead as he said the Council would sue him. There were some programmes done on it later when more facts emerged and it all came into the open.

The housing market in the UK is an absolute disgrace when you take all these things into account. So many greedy people queuing up to rip people off in so many different ways. I'm relieved my little house is freehold and nobody else to pay other than normal maintenance.

I spent less on a three bedroom house in Surrey in 28 years than I've spent in  13 years here and another £5K payment towards next years phase two refurbishment. Plus the costs in the quarterly services charge to repair funds. We've had our share towards a new lift, a new boiler, a previous botched refurbishment fire and safety upgrades, a new fire alarm system. leaking pond twice repaired and the bridge over it replaced badly and to be done again. The fire alarm system again needs to be replaced to new specifications. Not just here every building is constantly having scaffolding put up. We have taken the opportunity of the scaffolding being up to replace our double glazing. Double glazers tell me that double glazed windows only have a life span of about 15 years. The old Crittal windows in the flat we bought for my mother in 1960 were still there way over forty years later.

Double Glazing 15 years? I inherited mine 20 years ago and expect many more years also. Your experience of this property seems to be the ultimate nightmare oldgit.

We once went to a double glazing factory in Edinburgh. He showed us his windows being made. He asked in we intended to remain in that house long term. If you are not he said we have this other type that are very cheap but will only last about five years.
This building was built as a hotel as a hotel around 1960 and later converted into flats when it had Crittal windows fitted. After that it was up to individuals if they had new windows fitted. Several in the East Wing fitted by one company have given long term problems.
I tend to get answers like the double glazing one from various tradesmen on other things. We got flooded in Edinburgh and when replacing the kitchen units the fitter who had installed the previous ones commented that we were lucky that they had lasted so well. Central heating we had installed there of French make baffled later plumbers including British Gas after the original one went out of business and non standard parts impossible to get. 
And just look at the problems with washing machines, tumble driers and cars.
still retribution to Whirlpool today with the blaze at their factory.
Even many horses don't last long:-)

sparrow: One of our absentee owners was Albert Finney. He bought a flat for his PA to live in when she retired. He used to phone her every Sunday and come to see her when he was going to Goodwood. She learnt to punt from him and was still trotting down to Ladbrokes to put on her daily Placepot every day on her way to lunch into her late 90's. Great excitement one day when she won over three Grand. It's still called the Albert Finney flat by some long term residents.

Albert Finney was a great actor and who can forget Saturday Night and Sunday Morning.

sparrow :
Freedom at last as the lift back in operation this afternoon after twelve days. Also the scaffolding down on our side of the building so we have daylight again.

Good news oldgit and no more running up those stairs
Have posted something to you on the other thread about birthdays and Meld.

Stairs ? I've not been out for twelve days. I was at physio a couple of days previous and that even made my knee worse.

Another shortie unplaced....mind you I'm not a Margeson fan either, seems to get some odd runs.