Does anyone have a clear idea (?) when the last issue (December 2010) will be here?
Delayed again I assume. It will be time for Feb/March issue soon.
John.

I refer the gentleman to the answer I gave some weeks ago:

[www.velovision.com]

Hoping to send it to print later this week.

(BTW, your posting and this reply may well disappear at any moment, when Simon imports the latest forum postings from the old site, as per the note on the front page...)

--
Peter Eland - Velo Vision publisher

peter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I refer the gentleman to the answer I gave some
> weeks ago:
>
>
>
> Hoping to send it to print later this week.
>
> (BTW, your posting and this reply may well
> disappear at any moment, when Simon imports the
> latest forum postings from the old site, as per
> the note on the front page...)
>
> --
> Peter Eland - Velo Vision publisher

Peter
Thank you-however it is still late and later than expected.
I think that two late issues in one Year is not good and that some 'catching' up with subscribers should be in order. Excuses aside it is a commercial enterprise and some of us still hold doubts and possibly grudges as you should be aware.
Happy New Year.
John.

I think you may be being a tad unfair there John - VV has been going for ten years now, with late issues being very rare beasts indeed. And since the VV staff is pretty small, one of them being ill is a big hole in the production schedule.

As to the previous problems to which you refer, those were never, as far as I'm aware, in Peter's control, so continuing to hold them against him after such a long period seems to be a bit pointless really.

As a long term VV advertiser and friend of Peter's , I'm clearly not impartial here, but I think ten years is long enough for both Peter and the magazine to have proved themselves.

Carol Hague

John,

I agree it is not good and apologies. Nobody would like to catch up and return to schedule more than me.

If any reader is dissatisfied or does not have confidence in the magazine I am happy to immediately refund any unsent issues in full. Just drop me a note.

In case any newer readers are wondering about the 'grudges and doubts', presumably John is referring to this from over ten years ago:

[www.velovision.com]

Any 'grudge' must be with the former directors of that company, not with me. I lost a lot more in unpaid wages than any subscriber did in missing magazines, but it's long since been water under the bridge as far as I'm concerned.

Peter

Peter.
No offence has been intended. However as a commercial enterprise you have your subscribers to think of. Excuses of illness may be OK for some, but a late issue again is a late issue.
As to previous magazines which folded leaving many people out of pocket, is as you say 10 Years ago and to be fair not your fault at all..........
I have been very happy with the Velovision magazine for 10 Years and, although I unsubscribed for a while due to external worries, do in fact have every single isssue.
I can only again reiterate, a late issue is a late issue-again!
John.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 19/01/2011 05:34AM by john28july.

Sorry John but Pete does try his best to produce the magazine on time, putting a lot of effort into every issue.

Seeing as Pete is the main driving force behind the mag, when someone gets sick even for a few days it can have a knock on effect to the way they work. Hence why the magazine is late.

I do as his Girlfriend try and support him in anyway I can. However I don't have the technical know-how to help write any of the articles.

It is really unfair to suggest that you don't trust his publication after your experience with Open Road, when VeloVision has been producing good quality magazines for ten years.

Please be patient, things will get back on track soon.

Kind regards

Debz

I would not want Pete to get too laid-back (!!) but I am just happy when my VV arrives !!
And I am grateful that Pete picked up the torch when Open Road folded (I subscribed to BCQ, then VV from Issue 1).
Simon

I have also been a subscriber with VV for most of the last 10 years, and I greatly enjoy the magazine. With such a small team occasional hiccups are unavoidable. The quality of the magazine (which I think is amazing given the smallness of the team!) more than makes up for it for me. Just think how good it will be when this issue does arrive!
And don't think I'm an eternal optimist - I'm firmly in the camp of the grumpy old men ;-) But I feel Peter deserves a bit of support.

A late issue is a late issue but delayed gratification has its own rewards.....

VV is a great mag and Peter has my trust and support, he's earned my encouragement and admiration for a job done well!

Oddball

'I'm drinking wine and eating cheese, and catching some rays, you know.'

oddball Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A late issue is a late issue but delayed
> gratification has its own rewards.....
>
> VV is a great mag and Peter has my trust and
> support, he's earned my encouragement and
> admiration for a job done well!
>
> Oddball
>
> 'I'm drinking wine and eating cheese, and catching
> some rays, you know.'

Oddball,
I went to the Cimema on Boxing Day the very first showing of Kelly Heroes, much to the dismay of family! I should have been 'enjoying' festivities with them.......(?).Great film, still great today. I have all available Clint Eastwood films on DVD so a 'lifetime' fan. Watched Rawhide as a child.
Keep to comments coming. I need something to read until the latest late Velovision turns up.
By the way as a customer, it matters not how small or large the production team is. If a business is to really flourish it must cover all eventualities, which clearly not just once, has not been done! Peter take note. Ten years is long enough for a business to put in place required fall backs.
John........

I'm sorry but some things do delay magazines. I'm still catching up on Private Eye issues delayed by the bad weather.
Peter was ill and for all it is a commercial concern we need to recognise that while not a one man band operation the VV staff would be pushed to field a quartet.

"I thought of that while riding my bike." --Albert Einstein, on the Theory of Relativity

2007 ICE QNT
2008 Hase Kettwiesel AL27
2011 Catrike Trail.
1951 Engine in need of partial rebuild.

Had a look at Peters staff
There only him and Sue that have oet to withe the magazine
so john28july could tell us what Peter could do to make sure the magazine comes out on time?

Seamus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Had a look at Peters staff
> There only him and Sue that have oet to withe the
> magazine
> so john28july could tell us what Peter could do to
> make sure the magazine comes out on time?

Hello
Simple really. Get more staff! Charge more (hardly possible). I still think a commercial enterprise fails if it does not fulfil it's obligations to supply goods at a time stated. Sorry, but is not my fault that two issues have been late in 12 Month period.It is not for customers to sympathise with a business as to the number of staff it has available. The price per issue is expensive however one looks at it! If the business cannot maintain it's schedule it will surely fail. That Velovision is still in business after 10 years is marvelous. But this is now 2011 and an austere self serving punile Conservative led 'government' has arrived. Velovision along with other niche publications are going to have a very hard time. I am afraid my subscription due to financial restraint will most likely be one that Velovision loses I am sorry to say. In some ways if the last (err current) issue had actually arrived, I may very well have managed to renew. As it is, two late issues in one subscription period, plus severe as in single retirement income (ill health at 60) has really made me think seriously about this. Food on my table and life is more important that Velovision lateness. As in Peter's case I have only myself to think of, and to me a magazine which does not arrive on time and has to some extent had a good run but is now running a little short of ideas will suffer. I was for many years a subscriber to a publication called 'Cycling World', no longer due to late issues and of late not much content. Sorry Peter.I will at this point wish you well, but you should not leave schedules so late as to cause yourself this type of problem. Nobody cares about my life/my problems so why should customers of a commercial money making production have to make excuses for yours?
John.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 22/01/2011 03:35PM by john28july.

> The price per issue is expensive however one looks at it! If the business cannot maintain it's schedule it will surely fail.

I can not see that: as long as *enough* customers stay with the business to cover the production costs then the business will succeed.
(I am pretty sure that Microsoft never made a deadline for a new version of it's OS, but it has not harmed them !)

> Nobody cares about my life/my problems so why should customers of a commercial money making production have to make excuses for yours?

I, and many others, are understanding of the problems a small businesses. (If the magazine was late due to Pete lazing on his luxury yacht paid for by my subs the, yes, I would be pissed off and complain, but...)
(Someone once said it is easy to make a small fortune in the cycling business: you just need to start with a large fortune !)

John does have a point - employing another full time staff member has been on my 'wish list' for a number of years largely for the reason he identifies - resilience. Also creative renewal...

However being 'commercial' is not a magic formula for endless funds and resources. I've tried many things - most recently starting Electric Bike - to build the business to the level where it can afford an extra full time salary and associated costs. As it is, it makes me and the other staff modest livings, pays all of its bills on time and makes enough money to be sustainable. I'm not dissatisfied with that, especially in the current economic climate.

And Electric Bike is looking promising, fingers crossed...

I could perhaps have made the magazine more 'commercial' over the years. Ditch the recumbents, put lots of puff piece reviews in it and attract loads of mainstream advertisers. Then I'd have been able to employ lots of lovely staff and it might be coming out monthly like clockwork. But it wouldn't be Velo Vision... and I think many people support Velo Vision precisely because it is authentically enthusiast-driven and not too commercial.

Anyway, as you say, this is not your concern. While I'm always sad to lose a reader it is, as John said, entirely a matter for the reader as to whether they wish to subscribe or not. If you think it's worth it to you, subscribe; if not, don't.

We always have turnover of readers - interests and circumstances change, as no doubt do people's perception of the magazine. Overall, though, numbers are holding up fine and messages from renewing readers etc do seem to show that people are still appreciating the magazine - one reason why I keep on doing it.

"As in Peter's case I have only myself to think of"

You are mistaken in my case. I have obligations constantly on my mind to my staff, to readers, to advertisers, to suppliers, to the tax authorities, and in my personal life. And in a wider sense to the environment and society. I intend to continue to satisfy those obligations to the best of my ability.

VV40 is off to print on Monday so I'd best get on with it.

--
Peter Eland - Velo Vision publisher

Sorry, but is not my fault that two issues have been late in 12 Month period.
No, its Peters fault.

I used to read Cycle World but the newer version is crapper than the old version when it comes out.

ill health at 60?

what was it? Mine ill heath at 49 following 2 Strokes. That why my command of english and typing so rough.
Food on the table is better than rearing a magazine,
I raed Velovision because I grr bad brainagain. what it was like before life i had the strokes.

how's your life?

Whilst I would admit my own frustrations that a copy of VV isn't dropping through my letterbox every 3 months like clockwork, I have to point out that the same reasons that cause that are partly an effect of what the magazine is - a very specialised publication that is unlike anything else in world of cycling publications.

Comparing VV to more commercial publications is a bit like comparing a bespoke framebuilder with the likes of Specialized or Giant. The framebuilder will give you what you want, but you might have to wait to get it. The bigger bike companies go for a "one size fits all" approach.

I invariably read VV cover to cover, several times, and keep it for future reference. I can't say that of Cycling Plus or, sadly, of the CTC's magazine (it was much better when it was Cycletouring!) For that I am prepared to accept a degree of variability in appearance, and I suspect most readers are too.

On the other hand, I can think of other small publications that become too much a projection of their editor's preoccupations. I think Peter has done very well to largely avoid this (despite his name appearing at the end of many articles!) but more staff and writers would make the magazine more robust and resilient.

john28july Wrote:

> By the way as a customer, it matters not how small
> or large the production team is. If a business is
> to really flourish it must cover all
> eventualities, which clearly not just once, has
> not been done! Peter take note. Ten years is long
> enough for a business to put in place required
> fall backs.

Does "curmudgeonly" begin to describe this? FFS!

I for one don't want to see VV go 'mass market' there are enough 'cycling magazines' on the shelves for bling addicts and TdeF wannabes to read. VV has its feet on the ground, unless you are riding a trike, and offers a unique view of pedal power well worth the subscription and irreplaceable If that means that I wait if Peter or Arch are ill, so be it, so far I've had three late issues in the last 8 years. Rather that than useless journalism purporting to be written by cyclists.

I'm with you Peter.

"I thought of that while riding my bike." --Albert Einstein, on the Theory of Relativity

2007 ICE QNT
2008 Hase Kettwiesel AL27
2011 Catrike Trail.
1951 Engine in need of partial rebuild.

Seamus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sorry, but is not my fault that two issues have
> been late in 12 Month period.
> No, its Peters fault.
>
> I used to read Cycle World but the newer version
> is crapper than the old version when it comes
> out.
>
> ill health at 60?
>
> what was it? Mine ill heath at 49 following 2
> Strokes. That why my command of english and typing
> so rough.
> Food on the table is better than rearing a
> magazine,
> I raed Velovision because I grr bad brainagain.
> what it was like before life i had the strokes.
>
> how's your life?

Seamus
ill health at 60?
>
> what was it?

What is it you ask?
COPD plus Asthma so severe I cannot walk across a room without sitting down and taking inhalers. I can no longer cycle. I have Spinal Stenosis also.
I am ill believe it.
Anyhow points all now made and indeed Peter has responded accordingly which is what he should do. It matters not how many nimbys there are it is still a subscribers choice as a 'customer is always right' .....
John.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 22/01/2011 03:34PM by john28july.

I'll continue to give Velo Vision my support.

What Peter and his small team are creating is a 'non-disposable' library of articles that get read and re-read.

Fact is VV is also a great promotional tool that covers everything the other mags seem to ignore.

David
www.laid-back-bikes.co.uk

You are ill. Have a look at the web. Very ill.

When I came of hospital I expected to die shortly cos thats what the doctors and nusre said but I'm alaive. Shouldnt say this cos God'll get me.

You should get, "A to B," cost it's cheap.

Peter.
Would get a box and put short pieces of cycling guff, article of cycling stuff and 2 pages long with piccies, enough to fill a magazine and leave somewhere.

If you sick your assisant editor could have it and publish it.

Box, space and your computer.

VV is the only cycle magazine I continue to subscribe to. C+ was my last but it had the 'same old same old' content month after month. While I might wish VV were on time it makes no real difference to my enjoyment. As long as I get the issues I paid for I'm happy. The added bonus is the ability to read and comment with other similarly minded people. Great mag, excellent forum.

Now, what would add to my pleasure would be less ice and more dry warm roads so I could get out on my bike!

Cheers

John

Well John is right that it is his choice to make. Personally I cannot see that you can hold all commercial enterprises to the same expectations across all areas. You expect different things from small companies than from large companies.

My worry, if anything, would be the Electric Bike magazine and any competition for common resources that might take.

But so long as the magazine articles are not outdated by the delay, I'm happy with waiting for an excellent magazine, rather than have an average magazine delivered on time.

I'm not going to worry about the occasional late magazine as long as I get 4 interesting magazines a year. It's not like the non-appearance of a magazine is going to stop you riding in the meantime.

Bike Culture Quaterly came out 2 months after it should have done.

Flu, er, 2 weeks.

Christmas, er, almost a month.

Great!
I've forgotten what this was trying to prove. Bad brain.

I came across these cheap good lights

[www.rosebikes.co.uk]

Peter, you have my support. I will continue to subscribe come what may as I really appreciate the "difference" that VV brings to the cycling world.

Thanks everyone!

At the printers now:

[www.velovision.com]



Been a bit bold with the cover :-) but I think it'll look fantastic in print.