cyclists 2 a breast

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cyclists 2 a breast


[*]look well ahead for obstructions in the road, such as drains, pot-holes and parked vehicles so that you do not have to swerve suddenly to avoid them. Leave plenty of room when passing parked vehicles and watch out for doors being opened or pedestrians stepping into your path
[*] be aware of traffic coming up behind you
[/LIST]


That is it in most car drivers eyes your in the wrong sitting out from the gutter and going wide past parked cars... Yes i know your behind me i but i Got doored a good few years ago and it hurts.... so i leave a doors width clear when passing parked cars especially in town past parking bays where the stupid cycle lane funnels you right into the high risk area
 
Same here. I never forget cycling past a parked car as a teenager and the driver opened his door as I was level with his back wheel. I had a pannier full of tims of dog food as we were going on holiday that night. I hit the inside of his door, but as I had toe clips on I didn't go over the top. Instead I was left hanging over his door (which I bent well and truly). The dog food was heavy so probably helped to weigh the back end of the bike down.
My front wheel was like an oval and my frame (an expensive lightweight Reynolds aluminium Merlin) was bent at the cross bar and my front forks were in the chain wheel.
I had bruised ribs and various cuts.
The fat b*stard got out of the car and looked at this 14 year old draped over his car and said:
"Look what you've done to my door!"
This was well and truly before the days of no-win no fee lawyers. I did however get a new frame, forks and wheel out of him, but the bike was never as good as the one he wrecked.
The moral of that story, as a cyclist, if there is a driver sat in a parked car - give it a wide berth.
 
Same here. I never forget cycling past a parked car as a teenager and the driver opened his door as I was level with his back wheel. I had a pannier full of tims of dog food as we were going on holiday that night. I hit the inside of his door, but as I had toe clips on I didn't go over the top. Instead I was left hanging over his door (which I bent well and truly). The dog food was heavy so probably helped to weigh the back end of the bike down.
My front wheel was like an oval and my frame (an expensive lightweight Reynolds aluminium Merlin) was bent at the cross bar and my front forks were in the chain wheel.
I had bruised ribs and various cuts.
The fat b*stard got out of the car and looked at this 14 year old draped over his car and said:
"Look what you've done to my door!"
This was well and truly before the days of no-win no fee lawyers. I did however get a new frame, forks and wheel out of him, but the bike was never as good as the one he wrecked.
The moral of that story, as a cyclist, if there is a driver sat in a parked car - give it a wide berth.

All parked cars
Dont be looking at the parked cars
plenty of other stuff to watch
 
an expensive lightweight Reynolds aluminium Merlin
I hate to be a pedant here.....actually I don't hate it.....but if it was made with Reynolds tubes, wouldn't it be steel?

They still make steel for bikes now, as you probably know, and that material is still the choice for many long distance cyclists. In fact, not a million miles away from you is Will's Wheels in Heaton Chapel who make bikes out of steel, and fine machines they are still.
 
I hate to be a pedant here.....actually I don't hate it.....but if it was made with Reynolds tubes, wouldn't it be steel?

They still make steel for bikes now, as you probably know, and that material is still the choice for many long distance cyclists. In fact, not a million miles away from you is Will's Wheels in Heaton Chapel who make bikes out of steel, and fine machines they are still.
Yes!
Of course it's so long ago, but I should have remembered. It was Reynolds 531or 538 steel or something?
 
If you ever fancy reliving that aspect of your youth (note the spelling) visit Will's Wheels on Manchester Rd., just at its junction with the A6 near Chapel House garage.

They do some excellent bikes made out of Reynolds tube. One of my colleagues who lives close by and rides one almost every day to the airport thinks very highly of it.
 
Cyclists two abreast are easier to deal with than two in line. Let's say a cycle is 2ft wide, the cyclist is likely to wobble and swerve to avoid potholes and other road irregularities, (but these can be observed by the following driver), so the cycle needs 3ft for his wobble/swerve. Then we need a little extra margin for safety, so add another foot. That's 6 feet from the kerb. So as we overtake, our left mirror should be 6ft from the kerb, so we are using most of the opposite carriageway. Why not use it all as if we were overtaking a car?

A bicycle on its own, near the kerb will encourage cars to pass between the cycle and the oncoming traffic. Two abreast effectively become a car, so we have to overtake properly. Two in line are much more difficult to overtake as so much more distance is needed and we are starting from a low speed.

Four cycles in a line are almost impossible to overtake safely, but two pairs are like overtaking a large van. Much easier and quicker.

My pet hate with cyclists is a varying speed. If their speed is constant, I can plan and deal with it. If traffic prohibits me from overtaking, a constant speed is manageable. When their speed increases and decreases, this is so much more difficult to handle. The lycra brigade seem much more likely to vary their speed. A middle-aged lady in a village on her way to the post office, pedalling slowly but consistently is so much easier to follow and to overtake when space permits.

Fun can be had on roads with solid white lines. We can cross the white line to overtake a cyclist, only if they are doing 10mph or less. (Highway code rule: 129) A nice uphill slope is ideal. Cyclist pedalling his socks off, aware of the car behind just following gently, but doing 11-13 mph, working hard and very uncomfortable. If he just slows down below 10mph, I can overtake. If the view permits. Makes me smile every time.

Strangely, we are not permitted to cross the white line to pass pedestrians, unless they are a stationary obstruction. (Email exchange with Dept. of Transport a few years ago, apparently this was not thought of in the original legislation as it was expected that pedestrians would take to the verge.) To deal with joggers coming towards you, pull in tight to the verge and stop. Let them deal with you as a parked car. (Other traffic and circumstances permitting.)
 
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When a driver is granted a Blue Badge, he/she will find in the envelope a guide book for the use of the badge.

Unfortunately, the badge goes in the car and the rule book goes in the bin. disability methinks.

Last week's local paper, some woman moaning about a parking ticket whilst displaying a badge. Turned out the ticket was merely a warning as she'd parked in a taxi bay (or opposite). Interestingly, a week or two earlier, I had the misfortune of being chronically hindered by some inconsiderate B****rd with a blue badge parking on double yellows directly opposite the taxi rank - same person?
They feel the badge gives them the right to park where the heck they like, completely ignoring the badge rule book & highway code.
And I really do sympathise with people with disabilities - just not when they feel their disability entitles them to do what they like.

i failed my first driving test for not leaving a doors width when over taking, i know other who have too more recently. So you should be riding that far out too, but not 2 abreast.
My instructor gave me a b***ocking as every time I overtook a parked car I had a habit of removing an atom of paint as I passed :devil:

Off topic, I know but just killing time until my video uploads...

 
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Off topic, I know but just killing time until my video uploads...

Cycle paths aren't for serious riders! - YouTube

hes on a road bike... no way on earth would i ride one on a cycle path round here they change level bump up and down on / off curbs you have to "give way" at every junction

((however IF there are no road markings which in the eyes of the law if i rode across in front of you and you hit me as i crossed a minor ...... which is what runs past my house.... it could prove interesting....

At a crossroads where there are no ‘give way’ signs or road markings be very careful. No vehicle has priority, even if the sizes of the roads are different.

for a start cyclists riding at speed eg a road bike are encouraged to stay on the road as shared paths are a recipe for disaster

eg:

http://www.sustrans.org.uk/change-your-travel/get-cycling/cycling-code-conduct-shared-use-paths

http://road.cc/content/news/89666-a...petition-calls-speed-limits-bristol-bath-path



devils advocate is fun :devil:
 
Cyclists are vulnerable when competing with cars, there's only ever one winner. When given a safe haven to ride on, it is arrogance to choose the dangerous option and expect others to look after the cyclist's safety. We all have to share the road space, but deliberately causing other traffic inconvenience, whilst compromising your own safety, seems not the brightest decision.

...for a start cyclists riding at speed eg a road bike are encouraged to stay on the road as shared paths are a recipe for disaster

Look well ahead, plan, and change speed or position accordingly. Like when driving.

As very few people seem to walk any more, the shared paths are mostly empty. (around here anyway) The roads however are full of irate cars trying to get past cycles on the road next to empty cycle paths. And the cyclists wonder why they are treated with contempt.
 
Cyclists are vulnerable when competing with cars, there's only ever one winner. When given a safe haven to ride on, it is arrogance to choose the dangerous option and expect others to look after the cyclist's safety. We all have to share the road space, but deliberately causing other traffic inconvenience, whilst compromising your own safety, seems not the brightest decision.



Look well ahead, plan, and change speed or position accordingly. Like when driving.

As very few people seem to walk any more, the shared paths are mostly empty. (around here anyway) The roads however are full of irate cars trying to get past cycles on the road next to empty cycle paths. And the cyclists wonder why they are treated with contempt.
like this new road links to the A12 so is very busy at times, buy the Lycra lot about 40 of them use it for racing during evening rush hour, even though it was built with megga wide smooth shared paths on each side, ive never seen any one walk on the paths apart from match days as football stadium is at 1 end.
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I assume this is probably a clearway, but for other roads, drive ahead of the pack, then park neatly by the kerb. Once they've all gone by, do it again if you wish. Then run away.

yes its urban clearway, at each end is a roundabout and road splits to 2 lanes, all the bikes stay in left lane but go fully around the roundabout back the way they came, not one of them signal, if a car sounds their horn when they have to suddenly brake because bikes are cutting into their lane the cyclists just give a load of abuse.

where can you buy drawing pins with a 1.5mm pin? way below limit of car tread :devil:
 
........ And your likely to end up with a lycra clad splat on your boot lid....

Sounds quite tempting.

Had a jogger run into the back of the learner car one Sunday morning. Dull, raining, she'd got her head down, hood up, 'pods in her ears, jogging along the gutter, looking down at her feet. Saw us parked too late, couldn't stop. Two lovely hand prints on the back window, with smears as she collapsed, a bit winded. Sadly neither me nor my pupil could help as we were literally helpless ourselves, crying with laughter. Jogger slowly rose into view at rear, saw us both with tissues, trying to dry our eyes. She slowly recovered herself, got onto the footpath and slowly jogged by and away, never looking back. Took us a while to recover ourselves. Difficult to spot, these bright orange BSM cars.

Also saw a lycra cyclist pop into a skip, luckily onto a mattress flat on the top of it. (Is it compulsory to put a mattress into all skips?) Cyclist was racing downhill beside a car, shouting at the driver, so looking into the car, not looking where he was going. Too late saw skip, unable to stop. Just like a cartoon or comedy sketch, he hit the skip and somersaulted over the bars onto the mattress. I had to take the wheel as my learner was heading for the skip too, mesmerised by the events.
 
...roundabout... all the bikes stay in left lane but go fully around the roundabout back the way they came, not one of them signal

Highway code, rule 77: rules for cyclists
"If you decide to ride round keeping to the left-hand lane you should
* be aware that drivers may not easily see you
* take extra care when cycling across exits. You may need to signal right to show you are not leaving the roundabout. (Horses also go around the outside)
* watch out for vehicles crossing your path to leave or join the roundabout"

Highway code rule 187: using the road
"In all cases watch out for and give plenty of room to
* cyclists and horse riders who may stay in the left-hand lane and signal right if they intend to continue round the roundabout. Allow them to do so."


Difficult to win that one.

There is a roundabout in Newbury with a cycle lane around the outside. You cross the cycle lane on the way into the roundabout and again on the way out. The cycle lane has priority, as you are crossing their lane. It is just down the road from the test centre, so nearly all tests use it. In 9 years with learners, I've only seen two cyclists brave enough to use it. Most get off and walk. Perhaps we need more of these as it seems to work well for me.

where can you buy drawing pins with a 1.5mm pin? way below limit of car tread :devil:

I've checked Ebay and Amazon, can't find any.
 
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