Riders on the storm at the Dutch Headwind Championships; Cycling and NFTs – what’s the point?; Cycling and disability: does cycling present itself as a ‘uniquely virtuous activity’?; The Great Gravel Debate + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Matt Stephens joins the NFT craze… and Cycling Twitter isn’t happy
Matt Stephens may have been commentating on the Tour of Valencia for GCN over the weekend, but it wasn’t just his astute observations about sprint finishes and – bizarrely – beekeeping that have caused a stir on Twitter.
On Saturday, the former pro turned broadcaster announced (in a very PR, copy-and-paste kind of way) that he was joining a “new, exciting project” – Bike Club, “the first blockchain based cycling club”.
Loving my new avatar designed by @rich_mitch 🤩 It’s part of a new, exciting project; @bikeclubnft which is the the first blockchain based cycling club. There’s some cool plans afoot and I’ll be chatting at 17.30 GMT on their @discord so join me! Invite 👉🏼 https://t.co/SesLSNMbRC pic.twitter.com/1gB06kzd3b
— Matt Stephens (@RealStephens) February 5, 2022
Okay, Matt, we’ll bite. So what’s Bike Club? Well, Bike Club is a project co-founded at the end of last year by the cycling artist Rich Mitch (real name Richard Mitchelson) which allows members to claim one of 10,000 unique avatars in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that he has designed, serving as proof of membership. Bike Club claims it is “the first-ever blockchain-based cycling club and NFT project built for the global cycling community.”
Ah, NFTs. I’ve heard of them (though I can’t admit that I fully understand them – does anyone?). From what I gather, and bear with me if you’re taking notes at the back, you can purchase an NFT of an avatar of yourself from Bike Club, designed by Rich Mitch.
That NFT doesn’t actually exist in the real world, but a digital proof of ownership (which proves, however many times somebody right clicks your image, that you’re the true owner of it) is stored in a big internet safe known as the Blockchain, which requires so much energy that it costs a considerable chunk of the Amazon rainforest to run. So far, so good?
NFTs have been heavily criticised in recent months, with some claiming that they form part of financial scams, exploit art creators, and help destroy the planet.
It’s all a bit strange at the moment, made even stranger by the number of celebrities and sportspeople rushing to endorse this new digital craze. Last month, Chelsea’s former captain-leader-legend John Terry announced that he had become an ambassador (or ‘head coach’) for the Ape Kids Club FC, a football-based NFT project marketed at children. And try watching this Jimmy Fallon segment on NFTs with Paris Hilton without dying of second-hand cringe.
Bike Club isn’t the first NFT-based cycling scheme, however. In November 2021 Wout van Aert sold three of his biggest wins as NFTs, while an NFT image of a Colnago bicycle sold for a staggering $8,600 earlier in the year.
Oh, and if that wasn’t enough – the most trustworthy cyclist of all time, Big Tex himself, has jumped aboard the NFT train (I wonder if it’s more nuclear powered than his old US Postal train?).
In Bike Club’s defence, there do seem to be some tangible – or should that be fungible? – benefits associated with membership, including the promise of exclusive previews of new products from partner brands or the chance to ride with pros. The group also claims that a portion of the proceeds will go to cycling charities.
Nevertheless, Stephens’ announcement ensured that the former British national champion came in for some flak on Twitter, with many criticising the environmental impact of NFTs and the lack of transparency surrounding them.
Cycling writer Simon Warren tweeted that the project was “catastrophic for the environment”, while another user said that NFTs were “terrible for the environment at worst, and a scam at best”.
Not happy that this creates as much carbon as driving a large car 500 miles. I hope very few of these are created.
Literally nothing we need.#ClimateCrisis #environment
— Donwahn (@donnyb473) February 6, 2022
You forgot the #ad, Matt.
— Benji Naesen (@BenjiNaesen) February 5, 2022
Speaking of LA, does this meme win the internet for today?
I mean, we’ve been here before, right? pic.twitter.com/7JQMolqfFL
— How The Race Was Won® (@Cyclocosm) February 7, 2022
Rich Mitch, who has illustrated covers for cycling magazines like Rouleur, defended the project from some of the accusations, writing: “I can guarantee you this isn’t a scam”.
He also addressed the environmental cost of NFTs and how this could potentially be rectified in the future:
Well Benji, (nice to chat to you btw) I can’t guarantee that, as I don’t work for Etherium 😁 I guess I’m kinda hoping, like really hoping. And we’re looking at other coins with better green credentials and lower gas fees all the time. It’s what we talk about a lot before we mint
— Rich Mitch (@rich_mitch) February 5, 2022
So what do you think? Are NFTs the future of cycling fandom or merely the latest in a long line of online snake oil? Or are you still not fully sure what on earth we’re on about?
Riders on the Storm
Het was een van de zwaarste edities tot nu toe. Wind, regen, zand, alles werd tegen de deelnemers aangegooid met snelheden tot 90 km/u. Fietspetje af voor iedereen die de Kering heeft getrotseerd op een fiets zonder versnelling maar met hoog stuur 🙌💪⚡️🌨💨🚴🏼 #nktegenwindfietsen pic.twitter.com/corir7Zy9d
— NK Tegenwindfietsen (@NKTegenwind) February 6, 2022
Forget Valenciana, forget Bessèges, and definitely forget the Saudi Tour – the real racing this weekend was to be found on a nine-kilometre dam by the North Sea.
The Dutch Headwind Cycling Championship is an annual time trial event which takes place on the Oosterscheldekering barrier during stormy weather.
Participants have to ride the time trial on a high bar, single speed bike provided by the organisers. As extremely windy conditions – of Wind Force 7 or higher – are necessary to stage the event, the race has no fixed date on the calendar. Riders have to be prepared at any time to race and are warned by the organisers three days before a storm is due.
This year, the 200 entrants faced one of the hardest editions to date – with wind speeds of up to 57mph, along with rain and sand thrown in for good measure.
Jurjun van der Velde won the men’s event, covering the 8.5 kilometre course in 20 minutes 23 seconds, while Lisa Scheenaard, an Olympic medallist in the double sculls, won the women’s race with a time of 22 minutes 53 seconds.
Not sure what the UCI’s extreme weather protocol makes of the whole thing…
The Dutch National Headwind Championship combines two of the nation’s greatest annoyances: cycling and weather. #FunFact There is not a single Dutch person on the planet who has not used either or both of these things as an excuse for being late. https://t.co/ceRIgSE84L
— Richard de Nooy (@RicharddeNooy) February 6, 2022
Dutch Headwind Championship today. Nutters. https://t.co/KcV6U8SfkD
— Ned Boulting (@nedboulting) February 6, 2022
Sanremo, bikes, and music – the perfect combination?
Fancy a ride? 🚲✨ pic.twitter.com/Zd1yOI4rou
— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) February 6, 2022
For cycling followers, Sanremo is synonymous with La Primavera, La Classicissima, the place where the first monument winner of the season is crowned.
But for fans of Eurovision, the Ligurian coastal town is the home of the Festival di Sanremo, the longest-running annual TV music competition in the world.
This year, one act decided to combine the city’s two most famous exports by wheeling diamond BMX bikes on to the stage for their performance.
Anyone who was hoping that the bikes were a tribute to cycling’s longest classic (like Queen’s Bicycle Race was inspired by the Tour de France) will be disappointed to hear that Mahmood, a former Eurovision entrant for Italy and one half of the winning duo at this year’s festival, admitted that the bikes “have no meaning at all” and that he’s just “a bit loony”.
Ah well, perhaps we’ll be treated to an homage to the sport’s oldest classic, Milano-Torino, when BMX bandits Mahmood and Blanco represent Italy during May’s Eurovision Song Contest in Turin. Maybe Graham Norton will put in a word…
Fancy racing with the pros (virtually at least)?
If you’re one of those riders who enjoys consistently telling the club run that you could hang on during a pro race, then you’re in luck.
Elite is bringing out a new monthly race series on Zwift called the Elite Pro Series, giving amateur riders the unique opportunity to line up on the same start line as professional cyclists.
Movistar and Équipe Cycliste Groupama-FDJ pros are confirmed for the first round, as well as riders from the men’s and women’s Movistar eTeam.
Courses will vary from month to month so everyone gets a chance to race on a course that suits their strengths.
Kicking off on 17 February at 6.30pm GMT, the first event will be held on the Magnificent 8 course, in Zwift’s main map, Watopia.
The length of the course is 28.6km (17.8 miles) and has minimal elevation gain (131m, 430 ft) – it’s one of the flatter routes, with the only climb being the reverse Hilly KOM. So suitable for those who have, shall we say, neglected the turbo trainer over the winter…
The six pros that are competing are: Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar Team), Alicia González (Movistar Team), Tobias Ludvigsson (Groupama-FDJ), Lewis Askey (Groupama-FDJ), Vidar Mehl (Movistar eTeam) and Steph Clutterbuck (Movistar eTeam).
If you think you can hang with the pros, you can register on Zwift’s website.
To be honest, I’m still banging on about the time I rode up the Oude Kwaremont with Johan Museeuw on RGT…
‘Why don’t cyclists use bike lanes?’ No. 435
For some reason, cyclists aren’t using the new protected bike lane. pic.twitter.com/4179YUxZCD
— Peter Flax (@Pflax1) February 6, 2022
Does cycling present itself as a ‘uniquely virtuous activity’?
An interesting debate started on Twitter yesterday concerning the language we as cyclists use to promote our favourite activity, mode of transport, sport, or hobby, especially when it comes to disability.
The debate began when disabled activist Charli Clement tweeted a photo of a sign in the Library of Birmingham which instructed visitors to “burn calories, not electricity” by using the stairs:
tw // calories
This is so grim from @LibraryofBham. Disabled people shouldn’t feel ashamed for needing to use a lift that uses electricity, and many others will be triggered by talk of calories and exercise. There’s no need for this in a public library. pic.twitter.com/lqGdgmxGxk
— Charli Clement (@charliclement_) February 5, 2022
One Twitter user, who we featured on the blog last week, questioned whether there was anything wrong with the sign, saying: “It seems like the same argument as saying that we shouldn’t encourage people to ride bikes because not everyone is able to ride a bike.
“Also, if people who don’t need it don’t use it, the people who DO need it won’t have to wait so long for it to arrive.”
Judy’s reply prompted further discussion – led by Scottish historian and disability campaigner Dr Michael Riordan – on how cycling, as an activity, promotes and presents itself:
Which doesn’t mean I am anti-cycling (I’m not), or that we should try to make cycling accessible to more disabled people (we should), but claims cycling is a virtuous activity can exclude many from the virtuous elite, so cycling promotion needs to be more careful with language
— Dr. Michael B. Riordan (@michael_riordan) February 6, 2022
Protected cycle lanes are actually about providing options for people who don’t currently cycle (because they feel it’s unsafe). Children, elderly, etc are in those groups. It’s not about fit people getting anywhere faster.
— Sarah Harbour (@LwtEmmaBird) February 6, 2022
for many elderly/disabled people cycling not going to be viable form of transport (mode use stats show this). Disabled folk weren’t inc’d in cycle-first strategies like London’s. Believe in good infrastructure, but presenting cycling as virtuous risks alienating those who can’t
— Dr. Michael B. Riordan (@michael_riordan) February 6, 2022
I want a walk/roll first policy.
That’s nearly everyone.
Cyclists are next on the list. Not first.
— dee harvey (@deeharvey) February 6, 2022
What do you think? Should we be more careful with the language we use to promote cycling? And is it true that we should we try to avoid presenting cycling and cyclists as part of an exclusive and “virtuous elite”?
The Great Gravel Debate
It’s that time of the year again, folks!
Remco Evenepoel’s late implosion on Friday’s stage of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, and subsequent criticism of the race organisers for including a particular rough section of gravel road in the final kilometres of the stage, has provoked another of cycling’s endlessly enduring pub debates: Do gravels/cobbles/wet descents/extreme weather/ridiculously steep climbs [delete as appropriate] belong in road racing?
After losing the yellow jersey to Aleksandr Vlasov, Remco claimed that the gravel section, which saw Alejandro Valverde puncture while in the lead group, was “getting close to mountain biking” and that the race “was hard enough already”.
“Sometimes in the teams and in the bunch, there is frustration that we go on such small roads that are, I’m not going to say dangerous, but you cannot win something with it, but you can lose it. You can have a flat tyre so it’s always a risk,” the Belgian prodigy said.
Remco’s views were backed up UAE Team Emirate’s Matteo Trentin, who told Cyclingnews that gravel and cobbled sections shouldn’t be included in stage races and instead should be limited to their genre-specific classics, such as Strade Bianche and Paris-Roubaix respectively.
“I am not keen to see gravel in a stage race. I think we are going too far, to a spectacle we don’t need,” said Trentin.
“Maybe [Friday] was not mountain-biking, but for sure it was gravel racing. If you want to find gravel racing there are circuits for that.
“Strade Bianche is Strade Bianche, it’s a race that was born and developed that way. It’s also special because of the Tuscany roads which are not the same as all the other gravel roads you can find in Italy. Rather than try to replicate that, maybe it’s better to find something that is special to this race.
“It’s hard enough as it is and we saw in the past that a lot of GC contenders lost a lot in the cobbled sections. But there is a reason why there are Grand Tour riders and there are Classics riders. You cannot mix the two things.”
The debate inevitably spilled over to social media, where everyone’s favourite DS Johan Bruyneel weighed in, arguing that “road cycling is not a circus”:
Tour de France 1936 —-> Vuelta Valencia 2022… Come on, people! Road cycling is not a circus. AND TO ALL PRO-CYCLISTS: you are not a circus animal, so don’t allow anyone to treat you like one… Stuff like this makes no sense. I’m sure that those in the know will agree. pic.twitter.com/M3Fa0Z65pZ
— Johan Bruyneel (@JohanBruyneel) February 5, 2022
Not agree. There was already a very steep good road next to the gravel. The winner would be the same. And the section was sand and stones, not a stade bianchi section. And it does not belong in a first season stage race, there was no danger but it had no value also.
— Yves Lampaert (@yveslampaert) February 5, 2022
I don’t think it’s the end of the world if some stage races use some ‘gravel’ sectors, as long as they are rideable for road bikes though. Just don’t overuse them and transform your race into a lottery circus. And remember: MTB, gravel, cyclocross racing exist too. Separately.
— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) February 6, 2022
A 10% climb in gravel road is not dangerous. Unmarked road furniture is exposed barrier feet are, technical and/or downhill sprint finishes are, excess of motorbikes is.
Do not fall into the trap of thinking that what happened yesterday is what needs to change. https://t.co/qTo3u8mFzj
— Rúben Silva (@EchelonsHub) February 5, 2022
What do you think? Does gravel belong in professional road racing? Or should we be more concerned about other elements of race safety? Let us know!
That's one way to shut the door...
Haven’t seen anything as blatantly punishable as this all season. What’s Van Alphen done to her to warrant this treatment I wonder? https://t.co/fT23DbU59i
— Katy M (@writebikerepeat) February 5, 2022
Clobbered by a football? Stick a cycle helmet on in case it happens again…
Here’s a tale from the weekend from road.cc’s own Simon MacMichael:
My mate Col got smacked in the ear by a wayward practice shot by one of the subs at half-time @DulwichHamletFC yesterday, he was a bit out of it for a few minutes.
Bit later on, he got his cycle helmet out of his bag and stuck it on, much to the amusement of The Rabble 🤣 pic.twitter.com/htlfjhnT9a— Simon MacMichael (@simonmacmichael) February 6, 2022
What this tweet doesn’t mention in just how fast the ball was travelling … curling and dipping, but missing the goal (which I presume was the intended target) and smacking my friend squarely on the right ear.
It was like a sucker punch and it’s fair to say he didn’t quite know where he was for a couple of minutes, and someone went and found a couple of paramedics who checked him over and made sure everything was okay.
A few minutes later, he said, “Hang on… ” and started rummaging around in his bag, pulled out his cycle helmet and stuck it on, which probably got the biggest cheer of the second half from the home crowd on an afternoon that ended in a 3-1 defeat.
As it turned out, lightning – or in this case, the football – didn’t strike twice and the helmet was not put to test.
"Don't these drivers know about the changes to the Highway Code?"
Constant beeping too! I just overheard these two lovely chaps saying “don’t these drivers know about the changes to the Highway Code?” QUITE chaps! They are up for the evening from Plymouth and just asked if all of London is like this. 😥😥😥 2/3 pic.twitter.com/pzfQybV4iX
— Carla Francome (@carlafrancome) February 5, 2022
Bike Club founder responds to criticism of NFT project – “We’re going to surprise a lot of people (in a very, very good way)”
Following this morning’s blog entry, one of the founders of the NFT and Blockchain-based Bike Club, Tyler Benedict, got in touch with road.cc to defend the project.
Benedict, who also founded the cycling tech blog Bikerumor, said that despite the criticisms directed at the project on social media, the launch of Bike Club is “a good thing for the cycling community”.
“There are a lot of NFT scams out there, for sure,” Tyler told road.cc.
“You don’t need to take my word for it, or Rich’s, or anyone else’s, but the four founders have put our real names and identities behind Bike Club, along with our combined 60+ years in the industry, so our reputations are on the line.
“This isn’t something we take lightly, nor is the responsibility to deliver on the promises we’re making.
“We believe we’re building something truly special here. I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people (in a very, very good way).”
Tyler and artist Rich Mitch will appear on an upcoming episode of the road.cc Podcast to discuss their plans for Bike Club, both fungible and non-fungible. So keep an eye on the blockchain for that…
Does price really matter?
A microcosm of every SILCA product review ever: Stunning, Beautiful Workmanship, Clever Details, Class Leading Technology, Industry Leading Warranty, Exceeds Performance Claims BUT OMG $20 MORE THAN THIS OTHER PLASTIC THING FROM CHINA! 😉
— SILCA (@SILCAvelo) February 7, 2022
Silca, the bike accessory manufacturer, wrote this rather testy response to our review of its new titanium bottle cage.
Does Silca have a point? Should the price of a product be taken into consideration in reviews?
Disabled cyclist accuses Stockport Council of trying to “worm its way out” of making sure that all cycling and walking routes are accessible
A researcher at the University of Salford who specialises in inclusive active travel has criticised Stockport Council’s plans for new cycling infrastructure which she claims will restrict access for disabled cyclists.
Harrie Larrington-Spencer told the Manchester Evening News that the council’s active travel plans, which include installing chicanes, bollards and barriers to combat anti-social behaviour on some cycle routes, don’t “meet the legal access requirements”.
The 31-year-old, who has reduced function in her left arm and hand after being hit by a car five years ago says that disabled people who use non-standard cycles and larger scooters will find it particularly difficult to negotiate the barriers.
“The very basic bare minimum the council should be doing, they don’t reach that, which morally is pretty disgusting. There’s a minimum and the council is trying to worm their way out of it,” she said.
“You are limiting who can access these routes, which is terrible.”
Harrie claimed that the council has misunderstood the Equality Act, by making arguments about ‘balancing’ the needs of disabled people with tackling anti-social behaviour.
In a recent meeting, Dean Fitzpatrick told Stockport Council: “I think in the way we have got unsafe, selfish, speeding, erratic car drivers, we also have the same with cyclists and we also have the same with people on scooters.”
“As councillors, our job is to try and balance everything for the whole community.”
But Larrington-Spencer says the issue is “not about balance. Disabled people have the right to access these spaces. You should be able to use the same walking and cycling routes that non-disabled people can use.
“Anti-social behaviour is a separate issue that they should be tackling. I have never seen police on these routes before. If they want to tackle anti-social behaviour, that’s what they should be doing.
“At Nelstrop Road, they have removed the barriers and put in lights and improved the surface so I can connect to Fallowfield loop to Heaton Chapel and I can go into the Active Neighbourhood area as well,” she said.
“That’s a nice example of an inclusive cycle route by removing barriers. So they know what they need to do and how to do it – which possibly makes decisions like this even more frustrating.”
7 February 2022, 10:32
7 February 2022, 10:32
7 February 2022, 10:32
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Latest Comments
Right. And you're supposed to do what, exactly, when you spot someone driving straight at you?
It's not really even taxpayers money. Calling it that is part of the continued attempt by the right to frame public finances in the same way as personal finances in order to persuade people to support spending cuts.
We can probably also predict the UCI taking a nice chunk of change to put their logo on kit so it can be used in the peloton.
I'm going to defend Steve slightly here. I disagreed with him on the larger front lights, where in a given "programme" you an still cycle through high/medium/low/flashing modes, which is plenty to cover most use cases, without needing to change into a different programme. But with these small lights, each "programme" only consists of a single constant level and single flashing level. And with only six options in total, cycling through all of them wouldn't seem too onerous. I certainly find with my TraceR, if I'm riding by myself I'll typically use Programme 1 (the brightest option), but if I'm riding with other other people , I want to drop the power down to a lower level, which does mean changing programme. Given my usual cycling club meeting point is ~20 minutes from home, this means starting in P1, changing to P3 when I get to the meeting point, then changing back to P1 for the ride home. Again, you do get used to it and it's not the end of the world, but it ends up being more faff than just cycling through a few more options, as you would with pretty much any other light. I'm also going to agree that the button can be a bit hard to find, especially with gloves. I don't think it would be a problem for a front light where you can see what you're doing, but trying to press the button on a seatpost-mounted TraceR whilst riding can be tricky! All that said, my TraceR, like my Sirius, is still going strong after several years. I have various other lights knocking around, but the TraceR is still the one I reach for first.
I did not want to click in so I'm assuming that Lancaster Police are more interested in catching the person who sprayed the dog faeces than the person who didn't clear it up. Spraying it makes it easier to spot so that someone else doesn't tread in it, helps authorities identify it so that they can clear it up, and maybe, just maybe, the perpetrator will see it and feel a tiny bit ashamed. Shame on you Lancaster Police, but then that is what others here have been saying for a long time.
Sadly yes, the UCI does need to apply some thought before this all gets to the peleton. It can't be caught banning rider protection, but we can definitely predict: - Some riders seeing airbags as a reason to take risks that they previously would have avoided. - Rules around what happens to a rider when their airbag actually deploys (rather than the dodgy head impact roadside checks we currently see, it would allow a clean 'your out rule' - but teams are never going to like that, especially in multiday races (probably part of why the head impact accelerometers used in other sports haven't appeared in cycle helmets)). - Teams using them as a method to also sneak in aerodynamic advantages. Without some rules it will turn into an all out design war with rider cooling and actual effectiveness of the airbags taking a rear seat). - Cost. Arguments about what happens when some of a race have airbags but not all. Does it need to be mandated as all or none, and if so, at what level of racing?
Note that Deda measures handlebars outside to outside. So you need to deduct 2cm to obtain the center to center width for each listed size.
Well in a sense, it ended up being their own money they wasted, and presumably they are a tax payer, so maybe the software knew what it was doing to start with.
Victims, not witnesses, have the right to know.
Apologies for the misplaced apostrophe in taxpayers', voice recognition software does its thing once again. PLEASE can we have the edit function back?
51 thoughts on “Riders on the storm at the Dutch Headwind Championships; Cycling and NFTs – what’s the point?; Cycling and disability: does cycling present itself as a ‘uniquely virtuous activity’?; The Great Gravel Debate + more on the live blog”
Firstly, NFTs and crypto
Firstly, NFTs and crypto-currencies are an abomination and pretty much just a fancy pyramid scheme that burns the world (though the ideas behind blockchain are very clever, the proof-of-work as implemented is a disaster).
Secondly, BristolPost are running this article: Bristol cyclist says he has reported more than 300 bad drivers and ‘will report more’
(I’m not sure how hard he’s pedalling if he’s been cycling to work for more than 17 years)
Yep, the current
Yep, the current implementation of proof is also why it’s burning so much mostly non renewable energy. A big publicly viewable distributed database – blockchain – is cool and has some useful applications, such as proof of ownership of real goods eg expensive bike frames.
For digital art? Nah.
nosferatu1001 wrote:
I dispute that NFTs are even useful for expensive bike frames. Why does proof of ownership need to be distributed when most other forms of official ownership (e.g. houses, cars) are centralised?
hawkinspeter wrote:
part,u because of that centralisation. Blockchain are worldwide and accessible, centrally defined ownership registries such as LR aren’t.
theyre also instantly verifiable, can be more agile etc.
nosferatu1001 wrote:
I’m not convinced that “ownership of a bike frame” is something that needs to agile, distributed etc. The frame is made by a single entity (i.e. the manufacturer), so they are instantly a sane choice to keep a registry of what frames they’ve made and who they were sold to. Alternatively, we could just continue to use https://www.bikeregister.com/ which can be used entirely for free when the police do their bike workshop things.
Blockchain is an overhyped
Blockchain is an overhyped term and almost as meaningless as AI. Attached is required reading for all techies considering dabbling with it. TL;DR 99% of the time a database suffice for your needs. Cryptocurriences and NFT’s are just scams piled on the original scam.
I feel like that last link,
I feel like that last link, before it goes to ‘You may have a useful use case’, should have an extra question: ‘Are you absolutely postively sure?’, which directs you back round to answer all the questions again. I can think of any number of projects where the stakeholders would probably have answered ‘yes’ to all of those, and they really didn’t need a blockchain solution – they just needed to think about the answers a bit harder.
“James has decided to take
“James has decided to take matters into his own hands and has begun actively recording his encounters and attempting to prosecute them”
I assume this is just standard poor reporting.
Or is he also an adept solicitor/barrister?
hirsute wrote:
It’s the Post, so by definition poor reporting.
“For someone to report that
“For someone to report that many bad drivers, the only thing I can assume is that he is actively goading drivers so he can capture and report them. I suspect he rides deliberately slowly and obstructively to do so. “
Alarmingly this is repeated throughout the thread.
Other than pointing people to numerous drivers dashcam videos of poor driving, I’m not sure how else to counter such a daft claim.
hirsute wrote:
Yep, and the usual whataboutery of “I wonder if he also reports bad cyclists too. But of course he nor the police would know who they are as they don’t have reg plates nor in all likelihood any insurance. “
Not to mention “17 years of spending more time reporting drivers rather than paying FULL ATTENTION TO HIS RIDING , says more about the GOOD DRIVERS AVOIDING THIS FOOL while he’s riding without full care.” because apparently “His ATTENTION IS ON WHATEVER HE’S FILMING .”
I really despair reading the comments…. however, it does seem to be one particularly vocal person who has a penchant for shouting in all of their comments.
TriTaxMan wrote:
Never read comments on BristolPost – they’re just abysmal
Almost 300 abysmal comments.
Almost 300 abysmal comments. Mostly pure ignorance and invented scenarios.
hirsute wrote:
300 reports over 3 years is only 2 per week. If he cycles to work and back every day I’m surprised it’s not higher.
You dont understand – he is
You dont understand – he is looking for trouble and he needs views on his tictaktoe.
(it is rare for me to have a trip with no close pass and they have to have another aggravating factor for me to even bother with a submission to essex police).
I reckon I get one or two a
I reckon I get one or two a week, where if I didn’t brake, swerve or take some other avoiding action then it’s a destroyed bicycle and at the very least a trip to hospital.
And perhaps five a day of iffy to very iffy behaviour, from a shake of the head despair to shouting to yelling expletives.
And that is not even counting phone use.
ktache wrote:
Interesting, I cycle about 7000 miles a year, I wouldn’t say my evasive action count is this high. And I have noticed that my driving style is more defensive than my cycling style (as I am more reluctant to lose momentum when cycling)
I wonder if
Maybe it’s the second one if your riding is predominantly urban.
Weirdly, China has banned
Weirdly, China has banned crypto currency, but still allows trading NFT’s. They’re basically the same thing. They have little value other than what people are willing to pay for them.
HoarseMann wrote:
id say there’s some key differences. For one, a crypto currency is literally that – a fungible (one BT is the same as another BT) denomination ascribed s certain value that can be e-changed for goods and services. An NFT on the other hand is non-fungible, and so is more akin to a work of art – it’s value in theory lies in it being unique.
a centrally planned economy would usually care more about the former than the latter
Yep, you’re not going to be
Yep, you’re not going to be using NFT’s for routine purchases. Bitcoin for a can of coke. Bored Ape for a consignment of coke?! Maybe they’re not as bothered about the latter?
hawkinspeter wrote:
I read that earlier, started reading the comments and had to go get some fresh air. People, eh?
Is that peak twitterage to
Is that peak twitterage to post a tweet (that produces CO2, a tiny fraction maybe in isolation, but Twitter is estimated to produce 10 metric tons CO2 per day) to complain about the CO2 impact of some other digital use of the internet.
Awavey wrote:
There’s a world of difference between a tweet and NFT/blockchain mining. Also, Twitter may choose to use renewable energy (I don’t know if they do), whereas crypto-mining tends to go for the cheapest possible electricity cost and is estimated to use only 39% renewables.
Anyhow, here’s a nice graph
Hence why I specifically said
Hence why I specifically said it maybe a tiny fraction in isolation, but the overall impact of a platform like Twitter is much much greater and anyone using that platform to emote about CO2 usage, needs to recognise they are still very much part of that problem however tiny it maybe.
Awavey wrote:
The CO2 per tweet must be unbelievably tiny, so I daresay that a few million or even billion tweets is not going to come anywhere close to crypto-mining.
It’s like criticising someone for speaking out about pollution because talking does involve higher CO2 usage for the individual.
Edit: found this: https://www.fastcompany.com/1620676/how-much-energy-does-tweet-consume
That’s 100 joules per tweet which would be equivalent to running a 10W bulb for 10 seconds.
How much CO2 do we think was
How much CO2 do we think was generated by the thread that must no longer be named?
mdavidford wrote:
That’s not important – it’s the principle!
Anyway it’s probably “these new-fangled things will ruin everything” but I wonder if our computer and network tech are exactly what will ease us gently over the edge. Like switching from pipe-smoking to e-cigarettes – but ones which definitely do have consequences. We find ever more possible uses for computing. The barriers to use are lowered and the responsibility is diffused. For each “use” the energy required is often tiny and they’re electric-powered (so we can say “renewable energy”!) While these things don’t obviously belch smoke or leak oil they all eventually rely on the destructive and grubby businesses of generating useful power and extracting stuff from the ground / oceans. And when – at an increasing rate – we feel they need replacing…
mdavidford wrote:
I’d rather know if that thread identifies as he/she/they or something else.
(No subject)
And that’s 12 years out of
And that’s 12 years out of date – likely improvements in technology have reduced it quite a lot in the meantime. On the flip side there are now 10 times as many tweets being sent each day, so…
mdavidford wrote:
Yep, a lot of companies are now shifting over to running on ARM chips as they have more performance per watt. Obviously computers are a horror-show in terms of natural resources and energy consumption, but they enable us to do some amazing things (such as collating pictures of squirrels).
hawkinspeter wrote:
I was looking for a response
I was looking for a response picture, but instead happened across this gem: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/01/opinion/sunday/squirrel-power.html
There have been very few squirrel specialists throughout history. The most accomplished was Vagn Flyger, a University of Maryland biologist who trapped squirrels with a mixture of peanut butter and Valium and then affixed them with radio transmitters; his major contribution to squirrel science was mapping the so-called Great Squirrel Migration of 1968 across the Eastern Seaboard. (Mr. Flyger also liked to eat squirrels.) Mr. Koprowski started studying squirrels as a biology student in Ohio because he needed to study some sort of wild animal and he didn’t own a car.
Quote:
The last thing I remember is someone offering me one of their home-made chicken satay skewers.
‘Why don’t cyclists use bike
‘Why don’t cyclists use bike lanes?’ No. 435
Had exactly the same in South Glos, where I used to live. Rather than put in a dropped kerb, the council put in a tarmac ramp, exactly where a cyclist would ride, and being black, extremely hard to spot. They took it away again when I pointed out that there is no way that it could have passed as safe, and if any cyclist hit it and suffered damage, they could be sued for potentially millions.
You honestly have to wonder at the intelligence of the people both planning these and putting them in.
eburtthebike wrote:
They should employ the services of some various groups to give their opinion – maybe a cyclist, a wheelchair user, a blind person and someone pushing a pram.
Another “sleeper cell” ?
Another “sleeper cell” ?
hirsute wrote:
Shhhhh! They may be listening. We’ll distribute the various costumes at our next meeting.
Arent those ramps temporary
Arent those ramps temporary though ? (I mean technically they are because the first hard frost will easily detach it from the road and then block the drain with the debris)
But usually they appear when theres work being done on a pavement thats blocking access and you have to walk around it and it’s for pushchairs and wheel chairs. If it’s been left, it’s been left by mistake imo.
Awavey wrote:
I’m sure that it would be comforting to find out that it was only temporary when you wake up in hospital with serious injuries.
“What do you think? Should we
“What do you think? Should we be more careful with the language we use to promote cycling? And should we try to avoid presenting cycling and cyclists as part of an exclusive and “virtuous elite”?”
Utter tosh. The person who thinks this has probably taken a single comment/tweet/whatever, taken it OUT OF CONTEXT then added a dose of their inbuilt bigotry against cyclists and just run with it. This is social media don’t forget, this is what happens.
So much misinformation or misunderstanding (some very much deliberate) in that thread, all the recent HC changes for example put pedestrians before cyclists, and all the cycling orgs were at pains to say that, and have done for years (Boardman will always mention pedestrians before cyclists in every comment he makes about active transport.
Completely disagree – the use
Completely disagree – the use of “virtuous” sets my teeth on edge. It brings with a hint of implied superiority and seems to be soley deployed to make people be able to brag about something.
Claiming some kind of virtue pretty much disqualifies you from having it IMO.
Secret_squirrel wrote:
yeah I agree, maybe I worded my comment wrong, I was having a go at the tweet author as I feel they have an axe to grind towards cyclists as opposed to a reasonable point about inclusion and well, being reasonable about things. Of course we all want disabled people to easily get around, cycle lanes around the world don’t stop that, and help cut traffic so they can
Yes but you have missed the
Yes but you have missed the point. It’s not cyclists who claim they are virtuous, it’s the cyclist-bashing Tweeter who is using the phrase ‘virtuous elite’ to bash cyclists.
HarrogateSpa wrote:
Exactly. I’ve never heard a cyclist describe themselves as virtuous, or green warriors or any other of the words the petrolheads use to paint us as arrogant, holier than thou paragons of virtue; it’s the petrolheads feeling guilty.
We are the Paladins of the
We are the Paladins of the Peloton!
I’d never thought that telling people to choose cycling over motoring (with the implicit, ‘if you can’) was saying that cycling was particularly virtuous, or was being discriminatory against the people who can’t.
(Now, calling out the people who can but who choose not to… That’s a different thing).
A couple of weeks ago,
A couple of weeks ago, AlsoSomniloquism jacked it in in disgust. Now a certain poster hasn’t been around for a while. Are the 2 connected ?
hirsute wrote:
I suspect that “certain poster” is serving a ban for his racist remarks about drivers in London not understanding the traffic laws because of our high immigrant population. At least I hope he is, if he isn’t he should be.
The old canard, that to be
The old canard, that to be ecological you’d have to be rich, physically able and what not, in short, that when you argue for change, you’re a privilegded do-gooder, discriminating against poorer people and minorities.
In reality it’s totally the other way round, to be truly ecological, society would also and first have to change in all the other ways that it is actually discriminatory. Nothing is more discriminatory than the current consumerist lifestyle, entirely based on wealth and taking over more and more of society each day (since in the neoliberal capitalist model everything has to become a tradeable commodity).
marmotte27 wrote:
Sounds like communism to me
Sounds like a model different
Sounds like a model different to the one thrashing the planet.