[RafatheRed]

So today while cycling i came up behind 2 walkers in a lane.I was going 5 mph and from a resonable distance I politly said ‘bike coming past ladies’ .They moved out the way.however as i passed one lady said ‘you need a bell’ This seems to be the standard responce from walkers. I have also had this cycling in the forest on my mtb with walkers on cycle tracks

So do i need a bell?

Topic

[mtb_roadtripper]

I have a bell on the tourer

I have a bell on the tourer which I use in the city. Riding through a city on shared paths without a bell is just torturous. Most people in that situation are expecting and listening for a ding ding but you get the odd person annoyed at you for dinging. I dont think twice about it. 

On the roadie I have no bell and on the rare occasion the hub noise doesnt alert walkers, I either do a loud kissy noise or a “beep beep” try n keep it jovial. There are always occasions no amount of daft noises works and I just have to slow right down n squeeze past. 

I think if you ride even 20% of your riding in urban areas, a bell is important. 

[HoarseMann]

ouch, that’s a bit pricey – I

ouch, that’s a bit pricey – I think I’d take my chances crashing into a bear, they look quite fluffy and soft, probably not too bad a landing!

[ktache]

Bit spendy I will admit, but

Bit spendy I will admit, but this trick stem featured in fgf in singletrack last week.  Notice the built in trail bell.  And yours for only £260 .

[Achtervolger]

Amusingly, the link states

Amusingly, the link states that it is a legal requirement to have “a bell to let pedestrians and motorists know you are there”. So that’s where I’ve been going wrong all these years on my bike, and have suffered countless close passes as a result. I have no bell, ergo, motorists don’t know I’m there.

[Achtervolger]

I think with some people you

I think with some people you can’t win, they just don’t like cylists. I always used to call out something polite to let walkers out in the peak district know that I was approaching on my road bike, as fitting a bell on it just isn’t going to happen. Just recently though, I’ve actually started to call out “Ding Ding!” then when that’s got people’s attention, I politely ask if I can ride past. This seems to work quite well, although I still had a “don’t you have a bell?” from a chap on a bridleway recently.

[Captain Badger]

That’s really weird, cos I’ve

That’s really weird, cos I’ve found them to be highly effective. Ever since installing on my handlebars I can honestly say that I’ve not crashed into a bear once

[HoarseMann]

Well I gave the bear bell a

Well I gave the bear bell a shot – rubbish.

I can see it might work for a mountain bike, but on a road/town bike there’s just not enough motion to cause it to ring. I have to dangle it from the end of the handlebar and wiggle the bars to get a reasonable ring, which isn’t going to work.

So I replaced my broken bell on the town bike with the venerable Widek 80mm ding dong. It’s big, heavy and loud. Plus doesn’t sound too agressive.

In my internet travels, I came across this shop that had the widest selection of bells I’ve ever seen – most with a sound clip too.

https://hollandbikeshop.com/en-gb/bicycle-accessories/bicycle-bells/

[Spokesperson]

I have the quietest freewheel

I have the quietest freewheel imaginable – deliberately, as that rattlesnake sound is annoying – and it is absolutely lovely. But I do now have to make simpering “hello” or coughing noises coming up behind pedestrians or other cyclists. Not sure I’ve got room to fit a bell beside my Go-pro, Garmin, front light, phone mount etc…. solutions?

[jh2727]

don simon fbpe wrote:

You have failed to idendify why the use of horn serves any purpose. It tells me that you are there, but unless you are driving at a speed whereby you can stop easily, it is useless.

It isn’t completely useless, it advertises your presence to those who can’t see you – those who cannot see you approaching. Approaching a blind bend cautiously is good – but it is of limited use unless all parties are doing so.  Sounding your horn/ringing your bell should increase the chance of any other parties being cautious (though there is the danger is that you can get into the bad habit of using a bell in lieu of caution).

 

[hawkinspeter]

Maybe we’ve got confused
Maybe we’ve got confused terms here. I consider “inside” to be between the ped and the edge of the road and outside/offside would be between the ped and the middle of the road.

[jh2727]

The pedestrians were walking

The pedestrians were walking on the road – so presumably because there was no pavement.  Rule 2 of the highway code advises to generally walk on the right-hand side of the road where there is no pavement.  They had their back to him – therefore the correct side to pass is the ‘inside’.

[jh2727]

I would add to rule 63…

I would add to rule 63… “remember that as a cyclist, there is every chance that you’ll come off worst in any collision (not to mention the damage to your bike)”

[jh2727]

> I give it a ping when I’m a

> I give it a ping when I’m a fair way back so when they look round, if they do, they have plenty of time to decide what to do. You can’t tank past peds at full velocity.

Basically that… although I’d say ‘time to decide what to do’ should be ‘time to decide what to do and change their mind and do something different’, particularly if there is a more than one being (e.g. two people or one plus dog) – the more there are in the group the more chance that one or two of the group will change their mind at the last moment and do something different.

I find that generally, if there is enough (i.e. plenty of) space to pass safely without alerting whoever I am passing to my presence, then that is the best option.

The main time I find my bell useful, is coming around a blind bend – obviously coupled with a suitably low speed, mainly to alert anyone on the other side of the bend who might not be moderating their speed or looking where they are going.

[HoarseMann]

Interesting to know how you

Interesting to know how you get on with the bear bell. I’ve considered a Timber! bell, but not sure how well it would work on a road bike vs MTB.

[Tom_77]

I have a bell, rarely need it

I have a bell, rarely need it though. On country lanes almost all the pedestrians I see walk facing traffic, so they do see me coming. Tend to use the bell more on shared paths. Usually it’s best to ring the bell from a long way back, if you’re too close then they don’t have enough time to react. I also like to have both hands covering the brakes if I’m close to pedestrians.

I’ve ordered a bear bell, it’s designed for hikers who don’t want to surprise the wildlife. Not sure how well it will work on a bike, but it was only £4.

[Author]

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