Dame Sarah Storey teaches safe passing; Cyclist’s viral reply to Elon Musk claiming traffic cannot be defeated; Perfect pro racing photos; Two wheels good: Snake Pass still cyclists’ paradise; Group riding (+Poll); Weekend action + more on the live blog

54 thoughts on “Dame Sarah Storey teaches safe passing; Cyclist’s viral reply to Elon Musk claiming traffic cannot be defeated; Perfect pro racing photos; Two wheels good: Snake Pass still cyclists’ paradise; Group riding (+Poll); Weekend action + more on the live blog”

1. It can only be assumed that

   It can only be assumed that Mr Musk has never been to Holland or Denmark.  Why are the utterances of people with the fairly minor talent of making money given such prominence?

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   • You’re familiar with this
     You’re familiar with this Twitter thing right ?

     And where would most the worlds media content come from these days if they didnt…

     Plus I’m fairly sure I’ve been stuck in traffic jams in Holland and Belgium, so theres that aspect too.

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   • This is one of the biggest

     This is one of the biggest gripes I have with Musk. He’s looking for ways of getting us off this planet and on to others, he’s digging tunnels for his cars to hide in, inventing chips to be embedded in humans brains and yet, if he created a Tesla bike, they’d sell in their millions and he’d be cutting traffic levels.

     He’s too busy being clever instead of using his common sense and seeing that he can positively affect things NOW.

     With the amount of brains at work in his companies I’m sure they could come up with something that actually does some good.

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     • No one is in the “business”
       No one is in the “business” of doing good, in the business of making profit, on the other hand…

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       • .

         .

         You have a job? You get a salary? (Or perhaps you do it for free).

         .

         How DARE you? Profiting personally from others.

         .

         Shocking!

         .

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         • Oh, you’re quite as original

           Oh, you’re quite as original as that other poster up there.

     • To be fair, I think that his

       To be fair, I think that his rocketry business is quite a bit “greener” than anything that’s gone before.  Methane powered engines rather than fossil fuels, stainless steel rather than lots of exotic materials, and boatloads of reusability – in an industry where most launch vehicles are single use, Musks company aims to fly both the first stage and now the second stage vehicles back to earth. Granted, space flight is a long way from being green, but SpaceX is as close to green as you get. 
        

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       • Richard D wrote:

         To be fair, I think that his rocketry business is quite a bit “greener” than anything that’s gone before.  Methane powered engines rather than fossil fuels, stainless steel rather than lots of exotic materials, and boatloads of reusability – in an industry where most launch vehicles are single use, Musks company aims to fly both the first stage and now the second stage vehicles back to earth. Granted, space flight is a long way from being green, but SpaceX is as close to green as you get. 

         — Richard D

         Thought I’d look up the approximate CO2 figures for a launch (i.e. not including construction) and it’s less than I thought – approximately equivalent to flying 341 people across the Atlantic: https://www.treehugger.com/spacex-launch-puts-out-much-co-flying-people-across-atlantic-4857958

         Looks like private jets are far more of a problem than space launches.

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         • I think helicopters are even

           I think helicopters are even worse, as they burn fuel to generate lift and forward motion, whereas with planes the lift comes from the forward motion.

           Either way, the problem with private aircraft compared to space flights is their relative ubiquity, and Musk, Branson et all want to make space flight commonplace  which is only going to make things worse.

         • SimoninSpalding wrote:

           I think helicopters are even worse, as they burn fuel to generate lift and forward motion, whereas with planes the lift comes from the forward motion.

           — SimoninSpalding

           I’m not entirely sure I agree with your logic – the lift isn’t “free” with the forward motion; instead the wings will be creating drag at the same time as lift and therefore an aeroplane’s engines will be working harder to provide the lift in addition to the forward motion. (A clear demonstration of this is the “Drag Reduction System” on F1 cars – tilt the wing so it’s not creating so much (downwards) lift and you get more speed). 

           That said, while the carbon emissions of helicopters seem to be less well studied than those of planes, the scant evidence I have found would seem to agree with the point overall (e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_efficiency_in_transport#Air_transport_means suggests 11.9 L of fuel per 100 passenger-km for a 12-person helicopter versus typically <5 L/100pkm for aircraft of various sizes).

         • Technically they both burn

           Technically they both burn fuel to generate lift and forward motion – unless the helicopter is stationary in which case all the energy is going into lift.

           But yes – helicopters are less efficient than planes (reasons being helicopters have compromises because the same structure has to provide lift and motive power and also can have lower lift-to-drag ratio).

           Also yes – lots of our “problems” come about because a particular technology succeeds so well that it becomes commonplace. Luxuries becoming necessities and all that.

         • chrisonatrike wrote:

           Technically they both burn fuel to generate lift and forward motion – unless the helicopter is stationary in which case all the energy is going into lift.

           — chrisonatrike

           What about if the aeroplane is stationery?

         • mdavidford wrote:

           Technically they both burn fuel to generate lift and forward motion – unless the helicopter is stationary in which case all the energy is going into lift.

           — mdavidford

           What about if the aeroplane is stationery?

           — chrisonatrike

           Creased me up!

         • hawkinspeter wrote:

           Looks like private jets are far more of a problem than space launches.

           — hawkinspeter

           Elon has one of them as well of course because video conferencing doesn’t work and his time is worth more than your climate.

2. You’ve got to hand it to
   You’ve got to hand it to those capitalists, they’re very good at what they do: exploiting human gullibility.
   First the make shitloads of money selling you stuff you didn’t need. Then they make shitloads of money selling you the pretended solution to the problems created by the stuff you didn’t need. And when time finally comes to clean up the whole mess, they’ll profit shitloads from that too. Unless we stop them now.

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   • There doesn’t seem to be much
     There doesn’t seem to be much traffic in North Korea so perhaps you’re on to something…

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     • How very original.
       How very original.

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       • ‘Capitalism sucks’ – sent
         ‘Capitalism sucks’ – sent from my iPhone.

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         • How very original – again.

           How very original – again.

         • If you want original replies
           If you want original replies you’ll really have to post original comments.

           Regurgitating anodyne nonsense that has been posted a million times before, by sixth form communists the world over, and then complaining about originality seems risible at best.

         • Rich_cb wrote:

           If you want original replies you’ll really have to post original comments. Regurgitating anodyne nonsense that has been posted a million times before, by sixth form communists the world over, and then complaining about originality seems risible at best.

           — Rich_cb

           I think you can get a band going with that strategy though?

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         • Is it too early in the day

           Is it too early in the day for songs from Team America?

         • It’s never too early!
           It’s never too early for that classic!

         • I love that trackball on the

           I love that trackball on the console, BTW.  Is it “nuclear red” or do you think they’re all playing Marble Madness?

         • chrisonatrike wrote:

           I love that trackball on the console, BTW.  Is it “nuclear red” or do you think they’re all playing Marble Madness?

           — chrisonatrike

           I love a good trackball. For some reason Japan seems to make the best models – I’m currently using a wireless Elecom left-handed one which works really well (despite me not being left-handed, though that’s how I use it). Back in the day, I remember Centipede in the arcades had a great trackball – really satisfying to spin it to move around quickly.

         • Wasn’t ‘Defender’ the classic

           Wasn’t ‘Defender’ the classic trackball game, IIRC?  The one that Matthew Broderick plays at the beginning of Wargames?

         • brooksby wrote:

           Wasn’t ‘Defender’ the classic trackball game, IIRC?  The one that Matthew Broderick plays at the beginning of Wargames?

           — brooksby

           Defender had an up-down joystick and buttons for thrust and reverse (and shooting). Defender was one of my favourites – I do like a good wireframe game (Tempest was another one and that featured a spinning dial to control it).

           After a quick search, it was Galaga featured in Wargames and that used a joystick.

         • Huh!  One of those early

           Huh!  One of those early eighties arcade games (shooting aliens/asteroids/etc) used a trackball, I was sure.  Ah well…

         • brooksby wrote:

           Huh!  One of those early eighties arcade games (shooting aliens/asteroids/etc) used a trackball, I was sure.  Ah well…

           — brooksby

           Maybe Missile Command?

           Here’s a good list: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_trackball_arcade_games

         • hawkinspeter wrote:

           Huh!  One of those early eighties arcade games (shooting aliens/asteroids/etc) used a trackball, I was sure.  Ah well…

           — hawkinspeter

           Maybe Missile Command?

           Here’s a good list: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_trackball_arcade_games

           — brooksby

           That looks like the most likely suspect 🙂

         • I seem to remember playing

           I seem to remember playing Elite on the BBC Micro (or Master?) with a trackball. I could be confusing this with memories of the futuristic experience of taking a “virtual walk” on a BBC Domesday project machine (some content now here) though. Pizza-sized laserdiscs!

         • chrisonatrike wrote:

           I seem to remember playing Elite on the BBC Micro (or Master?) with a trackball. I could be confusing this with memories of the futuristic experience of taking a “virtual walk” on a BBC Domesday project machine (some content now here) though. Pizza-sized laserdiscs!

           — chrisonatrike

           Was it something like this?

         • The cable looks familiar.  I

           The cable looks familiar.  I’m also pleased to see that we were more diverse in the past than people commonly think.  I’ve used one of these, for sure:

            

         • Ah – looks like a Logitech

           Ah – looks like a Logitech Marble. They’ve got taste…

         • Clearly not a marble, though.

           Clearly not a marble, though. It’s a giant aniseed ball.

           (Mmmm – giant aniseed ball…)

         • mdavidford wrote:

           Clearly not a marble, though. It’s a giant aniseed ball.

           (Mmmm – giant aniseed ball…)

           — mdavidford

           Reminds me of when I pranked a co-worker with a trackball – just swap the ball out for an identical looking plum.

         • Also: why is it so many North

           Also: why is it so many North Korean propaganda photos look like they’ve tried to recreate scenes from the A-Team / McGuyver and have built their weapons using only the equipment they found in a garage?

         • I think they’re going for the
           I think they’re going for the 1970s Bond Villain vibe and, in fairness to them, absolutely nailing it.

         • Rich_cb wrote:

           I think they’re going for the 1970s Bond Villain vibe and, in fairness to them, absolutely nailing it.

           — Rich_cb

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       • .

         .

         How very 6th-form ish 3rd-form ish.

         .

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         • .

           .

         • You’re quite right, even a

           You’re quite right, even a 3rd-former should know that. Which incidentally I did, even back when we didn’t have all that crystal clear evidence how they’re so comprehensively fucking up the planet.

         • marmotte27 wrote:

           You’re quite right, even a 3rd-former should know that. Which incidentally I did, even back when we didn’t have all that crystal clear evidence how they’re so comprehensively fucking up the planet.

           — marmotte27

           Y’know, I don’t think you can get better than G. K. Chesterton’s riposte (or was it Ian McCaskill?):

           The problem with this country, sir, is me

           — Michael Fish

           So you just have to get everyone else to sign up to that idea, then get enough folks pointed in the same direction away from Mr. Musk’s shiny toys and he’s out of business!  Simples!

           Having said that we’re currently having a “natural experiment” where a state – Putin’s government – takes on some multinationals as a part of his war (e.g. media platforms like Twitter / Facebook).  Let’s see how that goes.

           (I’m think we should all keep a wary eye on Mr. Musk. Given the size and financial / communicative power of large organisations there is likely to be tension between their power and the state.  It works both ways. China has got foreign multinationals to cooperate with it (warning – complex story) – so “it’s too early to say” whether they could be a liberalising force – and in the UK large concerns have very successfully bent the government to their agenda).

         • Flintshire Boy wrote:

           How very 6th-form ish 3rd-form ish.

           — Flintshire Boy

           You were home from school early today. Did you bunk off Maths again? Could have been English, judging by the standard of your posts.

   • marmotte27 wrote:

     You’ve got to hand it to those capitalists, they’re very good at what they do: exploiting human gullibility. First the make shitloads of money selling you stuff you didn’t need. Then they make shitloads of money selling you the pretended solution to the problems created by the stuff you didn’t need. And when time finally comes to clean up the whole mess, they’ll profit shitloads from that too. Unless we stop them now.

     — marmotte27

     It’s not just gullibility that they’re exploiting. Anywhere that there’s people without lots of money, a business will pop up to make as much money out of them as possible (e.g. payday loans, electricity key meters, tv screens for hire). It’s a sad state of affairs where we are now reliant on the whims of incredibly rich people to possibly stop parts of our planet from becoming inhospitable to people. All our governments seem to have been purchased and no longer work for us.

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     • hawkinspeter wrote:

       All our governments seem to have been purchased and no longer work for us.

       — hawkinspeter

       The scary thing is that that comment is when we’re being ‘glass half full’…

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3. I hope that somebody

   I hope that somebody forwarded that ‘barrier’ tweet on to the relevant local highways department… 

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4. All-female cycling group

   All-female cycling group recreate a 500-mile tour of the Highlands done by Scottish teens in 1936

   All-female cycling group recreate a 500-mile tour of the Highlands done by Scottish teens in 1936

   … back in the 1930s teenagers had to create their own adventures.

   Which is exactly what 17-year-old Lanarkshire lass Mary Harvie and her two sisters did in 1936 when they embarked on a 500-mile cycling tour of the Scottish Highlands.

   ‘Complete with haversack and camera, we start the climb of Ben More – 3,842ft. We added another stone to the cairn… and had a lovely view all around Loch Lomond, Ireland and the Trossachs,’ reads an extract from Mary’s diary, which was recently donated to Hostelling Scotland by her son, Harvie Paterson.

   To celebrate Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022, Hostelling Scotland (which turns 90 this year) called upon the Adventure Syndicate – a collective of women endurance riders who promote mental and physical wellbeing through their cycling challenges – to retrace the Harvie sisters’ original trip.

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5. St. Louis Lawmakers Refuse to

   St. Louis Lawmakers Refuse to Ban Legislating While Driving … While Driving

   https://usa.streetsblog.org/2022/03/04/st-louis-lawmakers-refuse-to-ban-legislating-while-driving-while-driving/

   St. Louis’s controversial decision to vote down a resolution that would have banned legislators from voting over Zoom while driving — a measure which one lawmaker debated while actively operating a car — is sparking a heated conversation about distracted driving, and how little America does to stop it.

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6. He’d used a car as a weapon

   He’d used a car as a weapon to deliberately injure a cyclist previously.

   https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/mar/07/man-found-guilty-of-after-dragging-victim-under-car-in-surrey

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   • Less than a year after he
     Less than a year after he used a car as weapon to seriously injure a cyclist, he used a car as a weapon to murder someone.

     Maybe, someday, there will be a realisation that when someone uses as a car as a weapon, the only thing that stops a murder is luck.

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   • Horrific crimes and failure

     Horrific crimes and failure to take appropriate measures to prevent repetition.  It’s time that drivers had to be proved mentally suitable to gain a licence.  They kill many more people than guns but face lesser rules.

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