skifreak

Since the doors to the main stand are now closed preventing access from the North Stand to the toilets and concourse with catering, a really worthwhile modest improvement would be to put a canopy over the area between the West Terrace and the toilet blocks / catering portacabin, creating in effect an undercover concourse as the main stand has for queuing / waiting in.

An inch of rain came down in a few hours in Inverness - that is pretty intense rainfall. Somewhere in the region of 220,000 litres of water dumped on the pitch. However the fact remains the problem is one of the most weather resistant pitches in the land was ruined by installation of under soil heating required by a one size fits all rule with no regards of circumstances or consequences.

It was a full on Monsoon for a time - rain woke me up a couple of times, around 6ish it was insane, the noise the rain was making bouncing off the roof was something else. Turned to snow for a while on the hills though so time to get the skis out and head to the hills instead! Undersoil heating installation has surely caused far more postponements than it's prevented???

10,000 people travelled on mountain roads to Scotland's Ski Areas on Sunday from all parts of Scotland and beyond. Should the ski areas have stayed closed to stop these folk travelling for their own safety and to prevent any possible incidents that the emergency services have to deal with?

Do delivery trucks need to be delivering 42inch plasma screens to the retail park and do thousands need to be browising electrical stores and fashion stores at the said retail parks. It's putting lives at risk on icy roads with the country covered in snow, I can't believe this is allowed to continue risking further over-stretching the emergency services.

The A9 is open all the way South with no significant problems, bit of snow around Speyside but no wind and Drumochter is pretty much black on the traffic Scotland cams.

Please do NOT attribute statements to <sources> which you have not confirmed directly to have come from that source! On the evidence you have, you can say no more than "my mate has texted me claiming that McGhee has been sacked." Please restrict yourself to the evidence you have and do NOT attribute unconfirmed statements to responsible media organisations. By the way... was this the same mate who texted you the other week with information which also led you to cause untold confusion? Not as if <sources> don't speculate and pass off hints and maybes or gossip!

A9 looks better at the Slochd this morning than it did last night when I came over it!! However it was taking two ploughs line of stern to clear the drifts at Moy, wind has picked up further in Inverness and I gather that's where the real problems are this morning and as the frontal system starts to slide South so will the stronger winds in all probability adding to problems around Strathspey down towards Drumochter.

I assume the decision was taken purely on Saturday and not on the basis of the proposed alternative date of Tuesday 12th? The forecast for Saturday (afternoon tie) is unbroken sunshine and a flat clam. The current best projection for Tuesday night is a risk of flurries and Strong SE winds. From the point of view of fans in the stadium watching, Saturday is looking far more favourable. That said, the skiing is a bit to epic to miss this weekend, so a mid-week game suits me this time! :029: :022:

To early to really comment on the new catering set up, but staff travelling up from Edinburgh could have it's own issues. However I've thought for a while a better way might be to franchise some of the outlets individually. This way more will always be open and there would be some variety and a bit of competition might improve the offerings and speed of service?

Probably no, because the odds are if you fix a 2 or 3 week winter break, the weather problems will land either side of it (Sods law and all that). The advantage winter football has over summer football is that the final run in to the end of season happens as the weather should be improving if not at its best, with Summer Football the season run in would be late autumn or early winter which could cause more problems than it solves. There might be a case for a spring break - a couple of weeks with no fixtures scheduled that would allow a buffer to recover from any potential fixture backlog?

A rover 400.

Oh My God! Interesting isn't it that the people who seem to whinge most volubly about this decision to popstpone are not the ones who would actually have to contend with the consequences of any problem which might arise as a result of it being given the go ahead. On the other hand, bitching from the sidelines is SO atypical of CTOL.... isn't it?????? If you've ever had to man closed snowgates you'd want road closures to be minimal too! Anyway, people don't "need" flat screen TV's today, but I bet plenty are bought in Inverness today! People don't need to go skiing, or to the cinema or out to eat, but many will. No one who thinks I'm wrong has suggested where the line be drawn, some just chucked abuse this way. By the end of this month there may need to be a serious look at how this area deals with and responds to wintry weather - life can't stop for a month or more at a time because of a bit of snow!

The road from Glenmore to CairnGorm is periodically closed during snow fall both ways to allow the ploughs a clear run at it. People still have to drive to Glenmore irrespective of how good or not the the final couple of miles are. A 100 or so staff a day also have to travel up the road from various parts of Strathspey. In terms of whether or not the RC team should risk travelling to Inverness, how many wont travel to work on Monday? What if as some of the forecast models suggest this cold spell persists another week at least, will/should schools go back? What happens to those who can't get to work because their young kids aren't in school... It's maybe just as well this spell came through a holiday period?

Yes and I would be very clear that the clubs responsibility did not extent beyond the boundry of the TCS and the clubs ground and that it would be entirely up to individuals whether to travel or not. Also I'd think that more people are being put out by postponement, than it going ahead tomorrow? The other thing to consider is that if this weather does indeed continue in a similar vain for the first half of Jan or even beyond, the precedent is now set, is that football off until the thaw?

Or just perhaps it may be that people need food from Tesco to survive whilst football...........? :002: So where do you draw the line? Cinemas, Eden Court, Non food retail? Fair point,problem is, if the police advise not to travel unless essential, people have their own definition of "essential" If a football club is advised thier access is unsafe a person will be accountable for deciding not to take that advice and therefore become liable from any resulting problems.Would you be prepared to take the reponsibility in this day and age? These warnings if taken literally though would seriously impact on livelihoods for the majority of the population. The Ski Areas ignore the "only travel if absolutely essential" advice frequently or they wouldn't be in business and hundreds of ski area staff and perhaps into the thousands of staff in total including other local businesses wouldn't have work in the winter and early spring. It is a concern to me that the Ski Areas will be targeted by this sort of thing one day because they are encouraging mass and concentrated travel on some of the most difficult and exposed roads in the country. There can be 3500 on a busy day at CairnGorm and 5000+ on a mega day at Glenshee.

Or just perhaps it may be that people need food from Tesco to survive whilst football...........? :002: So where do you draw the line? Cinemas, Eden Court, Non food retail? The balance of probabilities from medium range forecasts is that this general weather pattern will persist for at least the next two weeks (the duration of medium range computer forecast model runs).

What nonsense. People have spent money and time to get here for the Hogmanay Party last night and the football tomorrow. The pitch almost certainly can got playable and that should be the deciding factor, wind or temperature are not going to be issues. As for snow cover on roads and pavements, that should be an individuals decision as to whether they go out in such conditions or not. Northern Police need a collective kick up the arse after the last 24 hours. Like the Murphys....hes not bitter! :002: Oh the irony of that being posted by you!

Like Northern Constabulary you need to get a grip, otherwise it's "Scotland: Closed for Winter". With the A9 being shut for large parts of yesterday it nearly was the Highlands shut for winter . Seriously though you cant expect people to travel hundreds of miles in dangerous conditions merely to see a game of football :music03: The A9 was NOT shut for large parts of yesterday. It was shut periodically at Drumossie Brae so the ploughs could get a clear run up the hill. I dont see the Police shutting down Tesco Extra or the Retail Park and people travel long distances to these, could it be because they have more financial might?

People need to get a grip, otherwise it's "Scotland: Closed for Winter". These fans don't have to travel, just because a game is on you don't have to go to it, it's their decision whether they wish to travel, but those that do want to go tomorrow now don't have that option. Many people have now wasted money thanks to the police.

What nonsense. People have spent money and time to get here for the Hogmanay Party last night and the football tomorrow. The pitch almost certainly can got playable and that should be the deciding factor, wind or temperature are not going to be issues. As for snow cover on roads and pavements, that should be an individuals decision as to whether they go out in such conditions or not. Northern Police need a collective kick up the arse after the last 24 hours.

Why did the club not at least question the Police? AFAIK they cant actually stop the game going ahead, only 'advise' and their advising for an easy life like the with the farcical cancellation of last nights Highland Hogmanay party in the Northern Meeting park. About time someone had the guts to stand up to the police for we do not live in a police state.

Rain is now falling in Perth, not heavy though at the moment.

A dry morning, but the leading edge of a frontal system will bring the first hint of rain by early afternoon, with heavier and more persistent rain looking likely to set in during the game. With a bit of luck the weather system might get held up on the M8!

Oh look we have an internet hardman!