Are cyclists “extremely selfish” for not pulling over for drivers? Or do motorists have a “responsibility to drive with care for others”? Clip of lorry driver ranting about “spread-out” cyclists holding up traffic divides opinion + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
“It is like buying a self-writing pencil for your toddler to learn to write”: the self-balancing bike for kids
woom Wow bike (Credit: woom)
Wow, the pre-balance bike for kids from 9 months to 36 months old, is said to be “the only self-balancing bike”.
According to woom: “The self-centring handlebars are ideal for kids who can’t safely manage steering and balancing at the same time just yet”.
However, not everyone is convinced. As Fixit comments, “It is like buying a self-writing pencil for your toddler to learn to write”.
woom recommends that the Wow can be combined with the use of an actual balance bike from around 24 months, which makes its £160 price tag feel even harder to justify.
Slartibartfast called the bike an “Expensive way of putting stabilisers on with presumably the same issue, in that they don’t learn to balance early.
“My son was on a balance bike basically as soon as he could walk, at around 11 months. Riding pedals at 2. Seems like an unnecessary stage when kids who would use this could just use a balance bike, but perhaps I’m missing something obvious.”
As Chetmancini said on X: “If you want your kids to ride a bike early, do NOT use training wheels. My kids are effectively scooting at 1 (teaches motion, steering), push bike age 2 (balance), and pedals at 3 (power, braking).
“woom bikes are amazing though there are other brands that have the low centre of gravity that helps in rapid learning.”
SRAM wins legal challenge to suspend “harmful” gear restriction trial – but UCI hits back by claiming “riders’ safety does not appear to be a shared objective”
Court rejected appeal for French ultra-endurance cyclist imprisoned in Russia to be released ahead of trial
Ultra-endurance cyclist Sofiane Sehili’s appeal to be released and to be able to wait for trial outside of jail has been rejected by the courts.
In an Instagram post shared by Sehili’s partner, she said, “Please don’t take that as a negative sign. It would have been great to have Sofiane out, but this is still normal procedure for Russia.”
“The investigation is officially finished and we are just waiting for a date for the final hearing.”
On October 1st, his partner announced that his detention was extended for another month.
He was first arrested by Russian border guards on September 2nd on suspicion of illegally crossing the border from China into Russia, in the final days of his challenge to break the world record for the fastest crossing of Eurasia by bike.
Ineos Grenadiers announce the signing of Kévin Vauquelin
Kevin Vauquelin wins stage two, 2024 Tour de France (Credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Kévin Vauquelin will join Ineos Grenadiers on a three-year deal from 2026.
He finished 7th in this year’s Tour, and if the cheers are anything to go by, he is currently one of the most loved French riders.
He said, “I never could have imagined it. On some stages, my ears were ringing from hearing my name so much. I even saw my face on a hot air balloon!
“At the Tour, everything is amplified, and I tried to live it to the fullest while staying true to myself. It makes me proud and motivates me a lot. Thanks to everyone for this support, from the bottom of my heart.”
Since turning professional in 2022, the 24-year-old has achieved overall wins at Etoile de Bessèges and the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var; second at this year’s Tour de Suisse; and two runner-up finishes at La Flèche Wallonne.
He joins the team from Arkéa-B&B Hotels and said they “will always be important to me. It’s the team where I turned pro, where they trusted me and gave me responsibility. I was able to thrive and learn my job in a calm environment.”
He is now “really excited to discover a new environment, new teammates, new equipment and a new way of working with the staff group. For me, it’s the logical next step in my career to continue my progression and explore new horizons.”
Sir Dave Brailsford, team principal of Ineos Grenadiers, said: “I’ve been excited to watch Kevin’s progress over the past couple of seasons. Not only is he a punchy rider who knows how to win, at this year’s Tour I was impressed to see him add a new dimension to his racing. He races with intelligence and ambition – qualities that fit perfectly with the Grenadiers.
“We believe his best years are ahead of him and we’re excited to help him realise his potential.”
A “smile-inducing” bike for commuting, café hopping and light gravel adventures
> Pashley’s new Skyline mini velo aims to put a smile on your face (and fit in your hallway)
50,000 people in Finland have signed a petition in support of employer-provided bike scheme
Finnish President Alexander Stubb riding a bike
The Finnish government proposed in the spring framework session to remove the employer bike benefit starting from 2026, yle reports.
This decision has unsurprisingly led to widespread criticisms. More than 50,000 people have signed a petition in support of it.
This petition was delivered to the Minister of Employment Matiar marttinenat on Tuesday.
Introduced in 2021, this scheme has encouraged over 100,000 people in Finland to buy new bikes. It gives a tax-free bicycle benefit of 1,200 euros a year.
Tero Valtonen, CEO of bike retailer Helkama Velox said: “The debate surrounding the removal of the tax benefit has been a severe blow to the sector in Finland. Some bike retailers have already gone bankrupt, and the industry has faced many co-determination negotiations.”
The government has proposed retaining the bicycle benefit for existing contracts, but industry representatives say the plan remains problematic.
The petition was backed by the Finnish Cyclists’ Federation, the Fashion and Sports Commerce association, bike retailers and employee benefits companies.
Former Israel-Premier Tech rider Derek Gee facing €30 million damages claim after terminating contract with team on “safety and personal belief” grounds
Man holds up Tube by refusing to take his bike off the train
Despite repeated requests from staff, the man refused to remove his bike from the train at Bond Street Station, reports The Standard.
In the video, a commuter is heard arguing with the man, “You know no one goes home if you don’t get off, you can cycle home, bro. You have a bike, cycle.”
Over the station’s speaker system, an announcement was made to the passengers: “This is a customer announcement, the train will not be moving until the person with the bike has got off the train.
“You are holding up all the passengers on this train. Please remove your bike from the train.”
Guy Brewer “had the same thing happen on a Jubilee line train at Canning Town a while back,” he commented on X.
FPLtaxi also commented, “Amazing how selfish some people can be. Just get yer bike off the train.”
TirnAOge questioned: “How did he get his bike past the ticket barriers – and TFL staff – in the first place?
A man get all passengers and TFL staff arguing to get him and his bike off the train so their train can move 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/ukSS0L1M8c
— UB1UB2 West London (Southall) (@UB1UB2) October 9, 2025
Folded bikes are allowed on all Tube lines at any time. However, non-folding bikes are banned during peak hours (between 7.30am and 9.30am, and 4pm to 7pm, Monday to Friday).
There are further restrictions on sections of the Jubilee, Metropolitan, Northern, and Piccadilly lines.
DealClincher x Sigma Sports takeover: save 38% on Vittoria's most durable road tyres, £2,000 off the Specialized Aethos Expert, Assos chamois cream down to just £15 + loads more
“Sky chucked me under a bus… It’ll come out”: Bradley Wiggins says doping accusations enabled team to “protect someone else”
The debate over the lorry driver ranting about "spread out" cyclists continues...
Benonwine has taken the opportunity to start a poll on X.
Who is in the wrong the cyclists or the truck driver?
— Benonwine (@benonwine) October 10, 2025
Currently, 85.2% of the 1,402 voters believe that the cyclists are in the wrong.
Yet many of the comments disagree.
Nitroman said: “I was a truck driver for 20 odd years, and the cyclist has the right away as he’s still making momentum and close to the nearside. Hate to say it, but he’s doing no wrong.
“The truck driver has to wait until he can safely overtake.”
HenryTarquin said: “Both. The cyclist should take those inlets and let the truck pass. But otherwise they should freely and without inhibition use the road to which they’re as entitled as anyone else. The truck can’t overtake? The truck is too wide. Drive a narrower vehicle”
Commenting on the live blog, GMBasix said: “We do have to be balanced and considerate… we don’t have to pull in just when a person behind wants to get past and expects us to jump out of his way; but we should try to find the best ways of working considerately with other road users.
“Equally, we shouldn’t get frustrated with slower road users in front. It;’s not a ’60mph’ road; it’s a road on which the maximum is 60 and for which several circumstances will determine that it is not safe to do that.”
Bensynnock said: “I often stop to let vehicles pass on single track roads, and sometimes on roads like this if I’m approaching a hill or when I reach the top of one.
“But, I do it on my terms. I would need a safe place to pull into and I would need to be at a slow enough speed that I wouldn’t be wasting too much effort.
“On a standard two-lane road I am usually of the opinion that the road is wide enough to overtake safely and drivers should wait until it is safe to do so. If oncoming traffic means that is an extended period of time then their problem is with that traffic, which is nothing to do with me. If the road is particularly bendy then I might take pity on the driver and pull over.”
Should the cyclists have been closer together? “Even if they have set out to ride together, they are separate vehicles/users,” as GMBasix commented.
“The cyclists are spread out and that makes it difficult to pass. That is because they are riding independently – they are not a single body.”
Bikepool agrees, “There’s an assumption that the cyclists are together. Could be individuals who have never met each other before. Taking the same logic to drivers I never understood why they drive in huge convoys, they should all car share.”
Video of lorry driver ranting about "spread out" cyclists leads to the inevitable...
They complain when drivers don’t show consideration, yet have little or no consideration for other road users.
Should cyclists pull over for vehicles? pic.twitter.com/h0DGj2CRQ4
— Benonwine (@benonwine) October 9, 2025
In the video originally posted to TikTok by lorry driver bigriggray, he tries to overtake several cyclists spread apart on a country road. “They are so spread out, it makes it nearly impossible for me to overtake,” he said.
“I get it, you are out on a leisurely ride. If you closed the gap a bit, I would be able to get past you.”
The video, of course has been met with conflicting opinions from commenters.
On X, MildredButton_ said: ” I get that it’s courteous to pull over or ride close to the curb if there’s a queue building up, but if you had to stop every time a car overtakes, there’d be no point in cycling.”
Dodge commented on TikTok, “I was on a lovely country road, excellent weather and visibility, National speed limit, but I had the same issue stuck behind a lorry.
Itslivc1 agrees, “I don’t recall trucks ever pulling in to get out of my way when they’re doing 40 on a 60 country road and holding me up.”
“Not his responsibility to pull over. Your responsibility to drive with care for others. You do not HAVE to overtake all three,” said Myopiaiskillingme.
However, Grahamallen1880 is on the side of the truck driver. “Cyclists, extremely selfish. They think they own the road.”
_boondoggle agrees, “They must be immune to embarrassment; I’d be mortified holding someone up for that long.”
In the video, it took the lorry driver “a total of 12 minutes to get past four cyclists” (so he claims).
Help us to bring you the best cycling content
If you’ve enjoyed this article, then please consider subscribing to road.cc from as little as £2.49. Our mission is to bring you all the news that’s relevant to you as a cyclist, independent reviews, impartial buying advice and more. Your subscription will help us to do more.
42 Comments
Read more...
Read more...
Read more...
Latest Comments
Well, that didn't last long. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/environmental-improvement-plan-2025/environmental-improvement-plan-eip-2025
Any risk assessment is a balance of risk. If closing path means cyclist takes the road, the reduction in one causes a massive increase in the other, harm on the road is much more severe so therefore needs eliminating first. We are however such a motor normative society it's difficult for them to see that. (Also : √-1 : I'm not sure why I'm replying to you because you're imaginary. I might finally have popped!)
Traffic control of the polluting vehicles is the only sensible solution.
@GMBasix amazing isn't it. Driving is full of these little mysteries isn't it. Like how you can not be done for dangerous driving when clearly your driving was dangerous because someone was hurt or killed. Or when you use the defence that you are an incompetent driver who didn't see someone for hundreds of metres to prove that your driving wasn't unsafe.
Nice one Jo. I was looking at that challenge on the website recently, and I might have a crack next late Spring. Looks fun!
But at least they've extended the coverage for today, the Ventoux stage. Yes, extended by all of 15 minutes!!!
The fact it inflates in moving air like a parafoil tells us that it is, in fact, some kind of parafoil.
“I’m sure I’m not the first to say that if the traffic seldom moves faster than 20 you don’t need a mandatory 20 limit. Unless, of course, you want to get lots of lovely income from speeding fines.” [Petrol sniffer] Schödinger's Motor Vehicles: seldom exceed 20mph but invoke lots of fines for doing so.
@mdavidford The Commer was a van whose only aspiration in life was to reach 20mph.
Sometimes you don't need the science bit to know something isn't right. A casual glance and you can just tell - it doesn't pass the unfortunately named sniff test. And I was just about to go out and not buy one.
42 thoughts on “Are cyclists “extremely selfish” for not pulling over for drivers? Or do motorists have a “responsibility to drive with care for others”? Clip of lorry driver ranting about “spread-out” cyclists holding up traffic divides opinion + more on the live blog”
“If they just closed the gap
“If they just closed the gap a bit, I could overtake… into the bend… with cars coming round it at 60mph… and force them to brake to avoid colliding with me – like this one…”
Truck drivers 🤦♀️
It’s also possible that these
It’s also possible that these cyclists are all riding as individuals, rather than as a group. Asking them to ‘close the gap a bit’ is like asking why drivers who are in a car on their own don’t just car-share with each other.
The cyclists are spread out
The cyclists are spread out and that makes it difficult to pass. That is because they are riding independently – they are not a single body. Even if they have set out to ride together, they are separate vehicles/users.
Some of those situations do seem unreasonable, though. If I was cycling at pace, gateways, indentations and the like are not safe options; but for the pace they seem to be at, they would lose very little by pulling in for a moment. And where there are larger laybys or even the mouth of a junction (if there are no vehicles coming) it would be possible to turn in to turn back out again once the HGV or queue has passed.
In most cases, though, 12 minutes’ delay sounds like a lot, but it isn’t. If we are driving, we will face other delays at different times without getting pent up about it. It all adds up for a driver on a tacho, though.
We do have to be balanced and considerate… we don’t have to pull in just when a person behind wants to get past and expects us to jump out of his way; but we should try to find the best ways of working considerately with other road users.
Equally, we shouldn’t get frustrated with slower road users in front. It;’s not a ’60mph’ road; it’s a road on which the maximum is 60 and for which several circumstances will determine that it is not safe to do that.
“If only I didn’t have to
“If only I didn’t have to share the public highway with other members of the public”
I think those are just 4
I think those are just 4 blokes riding bikes who just happen to be on the same road. Besides, he had no problems overtaking the first one and passed up multiple opportunities to overtake the others to make his silly little infantile point.
Disagree, I thought he showed
Disagree, I thought he showed good judgement – even though there were long stretches with no oncoming traffic where he could in fact have passed them, I don’t think he passed an opportunity where he could know when pulling out that he could safely complete the overtake.
Because he was filming it to
Because he was filming it to upload onto social media so obviously he had to behave. “Off camera”, quite possibly, it would have been a different scenario.
Do you know how long the
Do you know how long the truck was? The driver did, perhaps that is why he declined the seemingly obvious opportunities to overtake. Just maybe they were not overtaking opportunities at all, given the length and width of the truck and his inability to accellerate rapidly; oh and his knowledge of the vehicle’s limitations.
There’s an assumption that
There’s an assumption that the cyclists are together. Could be individuals who have never met each other before. Taking the same logic to drivers I never understood why they drive in huge convoys, they should all car share.
Truck driver: to be fair, as
Truck driver: to be fair, as much as he complained about it, he did at least wait until it was safe to go.
Benonwine, 47: dating profile
Benonwine, 47: dating profile – Somewhere between a Union Jack and a YouTube rant 💬 “Freedom of speech is my love language. Cyclists, not so much.”
About Me: I’m just a regular bloke who thinks Greta needs a hobby, the Hijab is a fashion faux pas, and cyclists should ride single file or get off the road entirely. I enjoy long marches on nationalist beaches, candlelit retweets of Marine Le Pen speeches, and whispering sweet nothings about cultural decline while stuck behind a peloton in me bus, adorned with majestic curtains.
Turn-ons: J.K. Rowling’s Twitter feed; Charlie Kirk’s podcast voice; Flags. So many flags; Lorry drivers who “just want to get past”
Turn-offs: Climate activism; Multiculturalism; Lycra-clad roadblocks pretending to be traffic; People who clean up after Glastonbury.
Looking For: Someone who shares my passion for controversial polls, spicy takes, and the occasional “Islam out of Europe” tweet. Must love curtains in cars, Brexit, and not being woke. Bonus points if you think cyclists are a public menace and believe roads were made for horsepower, not pedal power.
Fun Fact: I once got 50K likes for saying “Who agrees?”—while stuck behind four cyclists for twelve minutes. I timed it. (And I love curtains!).
Other turn ons : Stephen Y-L.
Other turn ons : Stephen Y-L.
Totally irrelevant, fun to
Totally irrelevant, fun to read though.
irreverent
irreverent but based on fact – check his X acct!
alongside his photos of him in uniform selecting wines for Phillip Schofield, are posts on Reform UK, Tommy Robinson, immigration, Enoch Powell, Islam, Muslims, BHM, the list goes on.
nice (not) to see him featured here though
The geezer was sacked due to
The geezer was sacked due to his ultra right wing rants om Twitter.
I often stop to let vehicles
I often stop to let vehicles pass on single track roads, and sometimes on roads like this if I’m approaching a hill or when I reach the top of one.
But, I do it on my terms. I would need a safe place to pull into and I would need to be at a slow enough speed that I wouldn’t be wasting too much effort.
On a standard two lane road I am usually of the opinion that the road is wide enough to overtake safely and drivers should wait until it is safe to do so. If oncoming traffic means that is an extended period of time then their problem is with that traffic, which is nothing to do with me. If the road is particularly bendy then I might take pity on the driver and pull over.
One thing that really pisses me off is when they bell their horn and then buzz past me. I want to thump people who do that.
How the person is driving
How the person is driving behind me usually determines how I respond. Drive up my arse and/or use your horn, I aren’t moving over….stay back and be patient I will always pull over when safe. Courtesy works both ways.
Same deal with Trump and the
Same deal with Trump and the Nobel committee. If he understood Norwegian culture and Jante’s law he might act differently.
As a professional driver, how
As a professional driver, how many times is it acceptable for you to take both hands off the wheel whilst operating your vehicle before it is considered careless or dangerous driving? I have seen HGV drivers watching films on a laptop in the past and understand at least one was done for pulling on the pork sausage whilst watching porn. Surely acting as a film producer/commentator is up there and falls below the expectation of a driver at the point of qualifying.
Re cyclists apparently
Re cyclists apparently holding up the lorry driver…
1) How was that clip taken?
Using a headcam/go pro or phone?
Should the police investigate?
2) While I personally, would have stopped in a safe place to allow the driver to pass as I could be holding up other drivers too on a long winding road like this, which is not usually the case in built up areas as delays to motorists are usually caused by other motorists…
I wonder what the speed difference was when the driver was past the cyclists.
I can’t imagine a lorry driver going at a much higher speed on that road anyway.
Given at various points in
Given at various points in the video you can see both his hands, it does seem that he must have been using some kind of headcam.
So in some ways that’s a mark in his favour for not filming holding a phone (unlike many of the ranty videos submitted by drivers). Although as Samtheeagle points out, taking both hands off the wheel is not ideal, and also hard to imagine that there was no element of distraction as a result of making the video.
“Tesla investigated over self
“Tesla investigated over self-driving cars on wrong side of road
Tesla is being investigated by the US government after reports the firm’s self-driving cars had broken traffic laws, including driving on the wrong side of the road and not stopping for red lights.”
Whilst this is in the US, and the car ended up on the correct side of the road (the left)…
The results of this investigation should be interesting.
And another reason I’m not concerned that governments will allow fully autonomous cars to be sold to the public anytime soon.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg02rdxxz7o
Great driving by the bloke in
Great driving by the bloke in the lorry, piss poor from the cyclists.
If you think ‘driving’ with
If you think ‘driving’ with both hands off the wheel, while narrating a video, and overtaking into the path of an oncoming vehicle, forcing it to pull over and stop constitutes ‘great driving’, I advise you to hand in your licence immediately.
To be fair I didn’t watch all
To be fair I didn’t watch all the video, but talking and speaking aren’t difficult skills to do at the same time. The cycling was shit though. Lorry driver, in the bits I watched showed good patience (more than mine I got bored), the first cyclist at least could have safely and easily let him past.
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Speak for yourself (in two voices at once, if it floats your boat).
A ‘great driver’ wouldn’t be adding any unnecessary distractions, regardless.
But is under no obligation to do so, so there’s nothing ‘shit’ about not doing it.
mdavidford wrote:
Must be great fun being passenger in your car!
“So what did you think of Traitors last night”
“Shh, I’m driving – no distractions please!!”
Rumour has it that not only
Rumour has it that not only will mdavidford not let passengers throw turtle shells at other road users or drop banana skins – they are even barred from doing dope and nos balloons or switching the display to show porn channels. Talk about boring!
Anyone who tries to talk to
Anyone who tries to talk to me about Traitors is going to get shut down regardless of what I’m doing at the time.
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Nuff said. Just another tedious troll.
Who is in the wrong the
Who is in the wrong the cyclists or the truck driver? Neither the cyclists nor the drivers. In the wrong are authorities that allow trucks, lorries and RVs as wide as country lanes to have access to these secondary roads. Think again.
I’m sure if they’d been
I’m sure if they’d been riding two abreast in a pack of four then he’d have been posting a video praising their thoughtfulness and consideration
12 mins! pah, that’s nothing.
12 mins! pah, that’s nothing. I was stuck for half an hour behind an HGV the other day!
(actually, I would dispute the 12 mins – the earliest time shown on the dash is 11:29 and the latest 11:36 – so 7 mins)
The truck driver is the
The truck driver is the problem. As others have pointed out, they’ll quite happily trundle along at 30 in a 60 with no care for the line of traffic behind, so clearly holding up the flow of vehicles is not a justifiable complaint.
Assuming the cyclists were all part of the same group they didn’t help themselves by stringing out in a broken up line like that. They didn’t need to pull over at all but riding two abreast would have helped everyone (well, until the pensioners who believe that the safest place for a bike is the gutter so they can squeeze past against oncoming traffic arrive…)
I am yet to see a lorry
I am yet to see a lorry driver who chooses to “trundle along” 30 in a 60 speed limit. If they go so slowly it’s because the trailer is fully loaded and the road goes uphill. Lorry drivers are always in a hurry to make deliveries, aren’t they.
The truck driver is the
The truck driver is the problem. As others have pointed out, they’ll quite happily trundle along at 30 in a 60 with no care for the line of traffic behind, so clearly holding up the flow of vehicles is not a justifiable complaint.
Assuming the cyclists were all part of the same group they didn’t help themselves by stringing out in a broken up line like that. They didn’t need to pull over at all but riding two abreast would have helped everyone (well, until the pensioners who believe that the safest place for a bike is the gutter so they can squeeze past against oncoming traffic arrive…)
Have you had much experience
Have you had much experience of driving artics? What about 23tonners? 17 tonners? Even 7.5tonners?
If you had, you’d understand why there is a tiered speed limit system on our crappy A roads.
If you had, you might have a better understanding of how much space a 45ft trailer needs to turn – and how quickly that space disappears.
Unlike the majority of car and van drivers, the majority of HGV drivers actually drive to the conditions that the road imparts to *their* vehicle.
If you don’t like it, wait until there’s a safe space, and over take it.
If I was cycling on a road
If I was cycling on a road like that, with a mile to go and a lorry behind me, I would pull over at a safe point and let him pass.
It is no problem to stop for 15 sec and it is better than having a lorry up your backside wondering if the driver will be tempted to overtake.
Despite his moaning the truck
Despite his moaning the truck driver was very responsible and didn’t endanger other road users (at least not in his little video) As others have pointed out – the cyclists were moving and had priority, not because they are cyclists but because they were in front. If the lorry was in front it would have priority. And if anyone has driven an alpine pass and got ‘stuck’ behind a lorry you will know how bloody annoying that is. And the lorry keeps keeps on trundling along – it does not give way to the kilometres of traffic behind it.
And the lorry driver keeps
And the lorry driver keeps keeps on trundling along – they do not give way to the kilometres of traffic behind.
Lorry driver video @1.23: “I
Lorry driver video @1.23: “I’m the professional driver” he says, whilst waving both his hands off the steering wheel as he is passed by an oncoming car.
OUTRAGE AS WAITROSE SUSPENDS
Ben’s X acct is a megaphone for far-right views,
OUTRAGE AS WAITROSE SUSPENDS WINE EXPERT OVER CONSERVATIVE VIEWS.
nice to see him here! thanks road.cc (I would have pulled over, when safe)