Bingo cards ready…’cyclists don’t pay boat tax’; Stay calm…Strava’s back; Dreaded unclipping fail; Ganna tempted by Hour Record; Millionth cyclist; New Chain Reaction site splits opinion; Bike lane chat; GBDURO; National champs + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
We've all been there...the dreaded unclipping fail
After five years of using them, I finally had my clipless pedals moment! 😂 #Cycling #Clipless pic.twitter.com/U3t4KBYDYf
— Streetcam London (@streetcamlondon) October 10, 2021
Anyone NOT had one of these embarrassing tumbles? It’s a rite of passage for most cyclists. I still wake up in cold sweats about mine: the zebra crossing, the slow motion fall, the concerned commuters asking if I was alright, the hopeless explanation that my cleat was too worn to easily unclip. No injuries, just dented pride.
It’s happened to most of us, although few have the bravery to revel in their misfortune by uploading the footage to social media.
The advice from those on Twitter is pretty much what we’d recommend: pick yourself up, dust yourself down, hope there aren’t any scratches/damage if fell you to the drive side, and get back out there.
If anything, the amazing thing here is it took five years to happen…at least the minivan driver checked the cyclist was okay. Although recalling my experience, you just wish everyone would move on and pretend nothing happened.
Remember when Michael Owen was accused of going down too easily when he forgot to unclip? Definite yellow card for diving.
Get your unclipping fails in the comments…
Weekend round-up: Nairo Quintana dressed as a chameleon on Colombian Masked Singer, Parkrun controversy, Google Maps' new 'lite navigation' for cyclists
On the site this weekend we had the bizarre video of Nairo Quintana performing a Rhythmn of the Night remix while dressed as a chameleon. The performance on the Colmbian version of Masked Singer was pre-recorded and broadcast just hours after Quintana had finished 11th at Il Lombardia, a race won by Tadej Pogačar.
In doing so, Pog became the first rider since Eddy Merckx to win two Monuments and the Tour de France in one year. Merckx was 24 when he first achieved that prestigious hat-trick, Pogačar has just turned 23…
Elsewhere in the racing world, there were no surprises on the final stage of the Women’s Tour as Demi Vollering held on to her race lead into Felixstowe. World champion Elisa Balsamo picked up her first win in the rainbow bands, denying Lorena Wiebes a third consecutive stage win.
The other big stories of the weekend on site…Parkrun was accused of “normalising violent driving” by asking if participants could keep up with car travelling at 93mph…and Google Maps unveiled a new ‘lite navigation’ system specifically for cyclists.
"If it’s down, it’s far worse than Facebook, Instagram or WhatsApp. You’re messing with my life, Strava": The cycling world panics as Strava goes down
Shit got real. Strava is down. pic.twitter.com/jHNnSofdAg
— Simon Warren (@100Climbs) October 10, 2021
Last Monday was, sort of, refreshing. Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp going down meant we all just sat there like social media had never been a thing. Maybe you read a book, spoke to your family or actually watched the Netflix series you normally have on in the background while scrolling your phone.
Admittedly, working for a cycling website which posts stories on said social media platforms, made things slightly less blissful, but anyway — you get the point.
Yesterday, however, was not alright! Strava down? Nope. What was the point in getting out of bed for a ride if nobody knows? Have I cracked the top 6,000 on that segment? As expected, the cycling world reacted reasonably and rationally to this minor inconvenience…
Does it even count if it’s not on Strava ? #StravaDown https://t.co/I3KGJqmuUw
— Karen & Caleb P (@calebscrew) October 10, 2021
Some took the credit for breaking the app with their mega watts…others cursed the luck of Strava going down on Chicago Marathon and Royal Parks Half Marathon day. Still, we all know our Sunday cafe run is more important than both of those…
I can deal with WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook being down…
But Strava being down??! pic.twitter.com/TthA3bIs6g
— James Billington (@bilge1979) October 10, 2021
I still have the emails saying i lost my koms, so my evening is still ruined
— admigo 🏳️🌈 (@adamdlaw) October 10, 2021
When you get back from a long bike ride and #strava is down pic.twitter.com/pnez1JrU2j
— Mike Barrett (@langcatmike) October 10, 2021
It all seems to be back up and running again now. The last time the app had a major fail was May 6. Does that mean we’re due our next in another 158 days? Take a rest day on March 16th…
Why cyclists might not use bike lanes
Why people on cycles might not use a cycle lane: an irregular series.
Getting up to speed takes loads of energy.
Riding on the road, a cyclist has right of way over side roads. If a cycle lane’s design requires cyclists to give way frequently, it’s rubbish.📷 @ollywomump pic.twitter.com/yI3HJP64RH
— Jon Owen (@anotherJon) October 9, 2021
Jon Owen used Google Maps to demonstrate the problem with so many cycle lane routes…
We’re about 75 metres into our trip, and here’s our first junction. We want to go straight on, but there’s no scope for that: instead, we must take a back street off to the right.
The crossing’s a Zebra, so folks on cycles must dismount to cross. < Brakes on >
(5/x) pic.twitter.com/HQhXcOLLIW— Jon Owen (@anotherJon) October 9, 2021
Brace yourselves: this could be the best bit.
At Kendal Cricket Club, despite the textiles, I’m going to suggest that there’s a hint that side road traffic should give way to users of the shared space.
Maybe.
(12/n) pic.twitter.com/cNkG8sTyHa
— Jon Owen (@anotherJon) October 9, 2021
Lots of braking, stop starting, giving way. That all sounds familiar.
GBDURO during a pandemic — 2,000km off-road from Land's End to John O'Groats
We’ve been sent this vid highlighting the struggles of completing the GBDURO, a 2,000km off-road ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats. Normally all the headlines go to the winner and the elite riders who smash out the distance in around seven days. Anisa Aubin completed it in a still incredibly impressive 12 and was one of just five riders to finish. Needless to say the challenge is tougher for those at the back of the race, slogging on day after day once everyone else has finished.
Zwift to ‘host’ 2022 UCI Esports World Championships in February
Elite cyclists who missed out on real life worlds medals in 2021 can hope their Zwift avatar will get them off to a flying start next year, as the UCI Esports World Champs is set to take place on 26th February.
The UCI confirmed that Zwift will (virtually) host the championships once more, moving from Watopia to a course on its New York map this time around. This takes riders and viewers “100 years into the future with elevated glass roads that take riders high into the iconic Manhattan skyline”, on a two-lap, 54.9km ride with 944m of elevation*.
Qualifying starts in November, and all hopefuls must use a Zwift-supported smart trainer or smart bike with accuracy equal to or better than +/-2% – more details can be found here, and the main even in February will be hosted on Zwift’s YouTube channel.
Zwift also staged the inaugural event in December 2020 – the men’s race was actually won by professional rower Jason Osborne, while Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio of SD Worx won the women’s event.
* We’ll get in there before someone in the comments mentions it that yes, we’re fully aware that it is actually no kilometres and no metres of elevation…
BMC launches virtual showroom
If you’re dead keen on BMC bikes — or more likely just want to have a nosey around a fancy bike shop — you can now browse around the Swiss company’s flagship store from the comfort of your own home.
“As it has become difficult to connect in person, BMC looked at ways we could still welcome those real riders in,” explains Luisa Plasczymonka, Customer Experience Manager at BMC.
This VR tool allows users to walk around the showroom, interact with the latest range of products and even go into some of the meeting rooms for some reason.
Have a virtual look around here.
"I could have made a better logo on Paint": New Chain Reaction website splits opinion
If you’ve been looking for some convenient supplies online over the weekend then you might have noticed Chain Reaction Cycles has a new website design. And, par for the course in the social media age, the reaction has been positive…
A quick scan at the most liked comments under this Insta post…”Looks kinda budget”…”Cool, but prefer the original”…”Old logo was well established and instantly recognisable and loved it. +1 for not a fan of the new look”.
Joe Besant reckoned he’d have done a better job on Paint, while Josh Jenner couldn’t have cared less about the logo and just wanted to know when stuff won’t be sold out…tough crowd.
Anyone a fan of Chain Reaction’s new colours?
Ekoi to use Tocsen crash sensors in its helmets
French helmet manufacturer Ekoi has signed a deal with Tocsen which will see Ekoi’s helmets incorporate crash detection technology which alerts selected contacts in the event of an incident. Ekoi says that “in the event of a cyclist falling and losing consciousness, the Tocsen crash detection sensor alerts the emergency numbers and the community that has downloaded the Tocsen App.
It can be purchased as a spare part that you can stick to your helmet or, as in the case of the new Ekoi helmets, it is already integrated. The crash-detection tech is already in use in Uvex and Alpina helmets and Specialized has a similar technology with its Angi device.
Get the champagne out...millionth cyclist to cross Blackfriars Bridge this year
I’m aware of how ridiculously lucky I am: family, work, health. That being said, finding myself the millionth person to cycle over Blackfriars Bridge on the cycle superhighway this morning is the greatest moment of my life. #blessed pic.twitter.com/S3f4kbrGui
— Stuart Bowden (@sbx100) October 11, 2021
But I thought all bike lanes are empty?
Filippo Ganna tempted by Hour Record attempt after promising test results
Filippo Ganna spoke to Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport at the Trento Festival of Sport and had some interesting things to say about the Hour Record. Asked if he has considered taking on Victor Campanaerts’ record, the 25-year-old, who recently defended his world TT crown, said he will decide in the new year but had already conducted a half hour test where he’d beaten the Belgian’s pace.
“I’ll think about it in January, next summer. I tried in Montichiari after a period of altitude after the Giro, but it only lasted 30 minutes, and it was really tiring. I understand that everything must be planned well, it is something that requires an incredible effort. We will see in the future, we will talk about it later. Let’s hope one day to uncork a good bottle of rosé to celebrate.”
The Ineos Grenadiers rider also credited Elia Viviani with inspiring him to succeed on the track…
“He paved the way for us, he helped people rediscover the pleasure of watching on TV, thrilling us with the Rio gold that has changed many things. He showed us that we could grow and do something important. The track has something special. When you understand it, you won’t give it up.”
Talking of Ineos and Viviani, the Italian is rumoured to be rejoining the team for next season. The 32-year-old left the team, then under the Sky banner, in 2017 to join Deceuninck-Quick-Step, but has been unable to replicate his previous form in the past two seasons at Cofidis. One to keep an eye on.
Full live coverage of British National Championships on GCN+, Eurosport Player and YouTube (+ highlights on ITV4)
The pro road cycling calendar is almost finished for another year. I say almost because there is the small matter of deciding who gets to wear the British national champs’ jerseys in 2022. That’s being decided this week in Lincoln. The time trials are on Thursday, circuit races on Friday, before the main event of the road races on Sunday.
Both the men’s and women’s road races will have full live coverage through GCN+, Eurosport Player and British Cycling’s YouTube channel (UK-only), plus a full highlights programme on ITV4 at 7pm on Tuesday 19 October. Thursday’s time trials aren’t being broadcast live, but there will be a highlights programme on ITV4 at 7pm on Monday 18 October.
The circuit races have live coverage through GCN+, Eurosport Player and British Cycling’s YouTube channel (UK-only), plus a full highlights programme on ITV4 at 7pm on Monday 18 October.
Wait until they see the cars parked in the cycle lane behind him...
a guy cycling and smoking and checking his phone simultaneously #londonidiot pic.twitter.com/WzlHErh7VQ
— gwrhater (@gwrhater) October 10, 2021
Hill climb season: Most knackered rider + road tax banter
The pro road racers may be winding down, but here in the UK the hill climbing season is coming to the boil. Team Kirkley Cycles hosted its first event this weekend and handed out the unique prize of ‘most knackered rider’. It doesn’t matter how fast you go, just as long as you leave yourself in a ditch trying not to be sick then you’re in with a chance.
I should at this point give props to Matty Smith for winning the event outright by one tenth of a second…but it was Mick Chappel who turned himself inside out for the most knackered rider award. As you can see from the picture above, it was well-earned.
Someone spotted this amusing graffiti too…
Don’t forget the boat tax…
Bingo cards ready...cyclists don't pay boat tax
When I asked cllrs about the towpath (also a public footpath), they would only suggest I volunteer and do it myself. The new stone is very welcome, but as a busy and vital path, the best alternative to the hostile B6101 Strines Rd, it deserves better. This isn’t fair investment! pic.twitter.com/DHQyGjuVWa
— Peaks & Puddles 🚲 (@peaksandpuddles) October 11, 2021
Here’s a new one for you. Add ‘cyclists don’t pay boat tax’ to road tax, red light jumping, helmet wearing, reflective clothing, not using bike lanes, ‘think they’re in the Tour de France’, riding two abreast and all the rest of the anti-cycling comments that have found their way onto our bingo cards.
One unhappy boater took issue with those pesky cyclists complaining about poor investment on towpaths. Said ‘narrowboater’ snapped back: “Where would you suggest the Canal & River Trust finds the money after fixing lock gates, breaches, swing bridges etc? Boaters pay around £1,000 a year to use the canals. How much do you contribute as a whinging cyclist?”
The problem here, a few people pointed out, is that as the path is a public footpath it would have been paid for through council tax, not the £1,000 per year boaters send off to the Canal & River Trust.
Still, cyclists paying boat tax will keep us chuckling for a while…
The entire point of the tweet was that the local council should’ve stepped up to improve this as vital right of way, but thanks for your unnecessary abuse. 👍 https://t.co/Bfai7I28mw
— Peaks & Puddles 🚲 (@peaksandpuddles) October 11, 2021
CYcLisTs dOn’T pAy bOaT tAx! https://t.co/ntO6FyXeQ3
— Bad Cycling Excuses (@cyclexcuse) October 11, 2021
11 October 2021, 07:59
11 October 2021, 07:59
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Latest Comments
@Sheen wheels I have a version of the R8100 and you definitively need ceramic for the socket Oh no, you don't! Ceramic sockets pretty rare and, as far as I know, only with ceramic and not metal 'ball' (femoral head)
@mitsky Its another one of those things that makes no sense isn't it. Someone was saying in another thread that we need a harder driving test. I don't think we do. Everyone who has passed in the last 20 years has done a test that is more than happy to fail you for behaviour that 90% of drivers exhibit every time they get behind the wheel. The test is fine. The fact that getting your license seems to be considered some weird proof that you will continue to drive safely is the issue. The fact that when you prove that you cannot drive safely its not immediately revoked is the issue.
@Rendel Harris The issue with GPS chips, as everyone who has one of those black boxes will attest to, is that they are crap. They interpret heavy braking as poor driving rather than someone else forcing it. They see rapid acceleration where there is none. All we need is a much higher chance of people being caught and punished for their everyday shit driving. I'm sure as a cyclist that every single time you go out on your bike you will have a dozen or more times when you think "that would have been a nasty accident if someone was coming the other direction". Eventually, when bad behaviour suffers no consequences it becomes completely normalised. Then we struggle to treat it as anything but a normal, unavoidable accident when that bad behaviour does incur consequences.
Drivers regularly pull out in front of me and cause me to slam on the brakes or avoid them. Very often they have seen me and just assume I'm not going very fast or they assume I will slow down/stop (which I do). Too many drivers don't look for cyclists, hate giving way to them or expect the cyclist to be moving slowly and just pull out.
@Rendel Harris By the time someone is looking at prison time its too late. As has been proven time and time again, the severity of punishment is a poor deterrent to bad behaviour if people don't think its going to happen to them or they don't think they will be caught. Now I do think that there should be far more severe and immediate punishments for bad driving when drivers are caught but this would need to be coupled with a massive push to actually act on information/proof of bad driving. As anyone that submits footage to the police knows, its a crapshoot and certain police forces are anti-cyclist. This would try to essentially put people off misbehaving whilst driving before they cause an accident rather than getting the tired old excuse of "it was a single dangerous incident, they definitely don't do this all the time and their luck finally ran out". Perhaps it should go even further and if you have a history of speeding and you hurt someone speeding, that is looked upon in a very dim light.
Can we talk about “Washing up liquid contains a lot of salt – not a great idea to use a corrosive substance on a bicycle”? This is an urban myth. I have washed all of our many bikes using Fairy liquid or Ecover for decades. I’ve never found any evidence of corrosion, paint, laquer or decal wear, or any sign of anything. I regularly service forks and bearings, swapping a lot of gear, and everything has always been fine. Here’s far too much info below - long story short, Fairy liquid in 5L of hot water has a borderline-homeopathic amount of salt, it’s fine to use on a bike. ============ The honest answer is that neither Fairy nor Ecover publicly disclose the actual sodium chloride concentration in the consumer products I could find. The safety data sheets list hazardous ingredients above reporting thresholds, but sodium chloride is not reported for either product. However, we can put some realistic bounds on it. Fairy Original The SDS lists: Sodium laureth sulfate: 20-30% Lauramine oxide: 5-10% Alcohol: 1-5% No sodium chloride is declared. 15 In detergent formulations, sodium chloride is commonly used as a viscosity modifier (thickener) and is typically present at around 0.5-3%, sometimes lower. The absence of declaration suggests it is either not present or present at a low concentration that does not require reporting. This range is an informed formulation estimate, not a value stated by Fairy. Ecover The Ecover ingredient information lists: Sodium lauryl sulfate Lauryl glucoside Cocamidopropyl betaine Alcohol Lactic acid Sodium octyl sulphate Again, no sodium chloride is listed. Ecover's formulations tend to rely more heavily on plant-derived surfactants and may use little or no salt for thickening, but I could not find a published concentration. 63 What does this mean for bike washing? Let's assume a worst-case 3% salt content in Fairy. If you add: 10 mL Fairy to a 5-litre bucket Then salt introduced would be approximately: 10 mL × 3% ≈ 0.3 g salt Distributed through 5 L water ≈ 60 mg/L salt For comparison: Typical seawater: ~35,000 mg/L Lightly salted winter road spray: often hundreds to thousands of mg/L The wash bucket above: ~60 mg/L So even under a pessimistic assumption, the salt concentration is hundreds to thousands of times lower than the salt exposure your bike gets from winter roads. From a corrosion perspective, the quantity of salt introduced by washing-up liquid is essentially negligible compared with: Riding on salted roads Coastal spray Leaving winter grime on the bike Therefore my practical conclusion remains: ✅ Fairy or Ecover in a wash bucket is extremely unlikely to contribute any measurable corrosion risk. ✅ The important thing is rinsing and drying afterwards. ✅ Winter road salt is the real enemy, not washing-up liquid.
Another example of a driver's actions that would have been a straight fail in a driving test but is barely likely to lead to a disqualification... I'm wondering if having a driving licence is like a "Get out of jail free" card...
Yes indeed. I have a version of the R8100 and you definitively need ceramic for the socket.
@perce I'm not sure I agree with that. I think thats just confirming that he is take fully responsibility and recognises that the cyclist could have done nothing to mitigate it.
If we don't fight it now, we'll all end up forced to wear baggy shorts!
52 thoughts on “Bingo cards ready…’cyclists don’t pay boat tax’; Stay calm…Strava’s back; Dreaded unclipping fail; Ganna tempted by Hour Record; Millionth cyclist; New Chain Reaction site splits opinion; Bike lane chat; GBDURO; National champs + more on the live blog”
Ah the ‘I’m learning to ride
Ah the ‘I’m learning to ride with cleats’ unscheduled sit-down. Mine happened as I arrived home on my first cleated ride. I’d successfully ridden 20 miles or so, unclipping carefully before each junction etc. Rolled up outside my house. Totally forgot I was using cleats while thinking about a nice cuppa to celebrate not falling off, stopped and…fell over.
Two stories for me. The
Two stories for me. The typical one when I unclipped to put my foot down on the right and fell left.
The other might not be a typical one though. My overshoe was slightly worn and ripped on the bottom. The flap of material caught between the clip and the mechanism and wedged the shoe into the peddle. After the inevitable fail on my first stop, I had to mount the bike with my foot still attached. I carefully got home unclipping on my less natural side. Once home I had to undo the shoe whilst I was on the bike, (remember it had an overshoe on as well) and then sock clad, had to wrench the shoe off using both hands and elbow grease.
First ride in cleats, brand
First ride in cleats, brand new road bike. Just a 3 mile loop round the block. Still lived at home. Returned, stood at top of drive, unclipped left foot, put left down, looking well chuffed with my new steed and quite smug that I was some kind of cycling god and had mastered cleats so fast. Then, put right foot down, still clipped in, forced bike underneath me & fell over it and landed in a heap, My Mum was looking out of the window & couldn’t stop laughing for 20 minutes.
It’s probably tempting fate,
It’s probably tempting fate, but I’ve never actually fallen due not unclipping. A couple of times while I was learning, I started to fall, but managed to wrench my foot free in time. More recently, I lost one bolt from my right foot’s SPD (i.e. 2-bolt fixing) whilst riding, but noticed that it felt strange with too much float so eventually stopped and discovered the issue. I was only able to remove the shoe by getting my foot out first and then twisting the shoe round until it forced the cleat free from the pedal. I was lucky it was my right foot which I very rarely unclip during a ride.
Cleat story:
Cleat story:
Big Ben, red light, rush hour, tourists.
I need say no more.
Light went green, car in
Light went green, car in front started moving, clipped in as I started only for the car in front to stop within a metre as they weren’t intending to trun right at the lights but to make for the parking space opposite. Not clear why moving 1m forward helped, or why they couldn’t do that when the lights were red. But I had trouble stopping an unclipping immediately after starting and endup up lying in the road in the middle of Henley.
I use flat pedals
I use flat pedals
I foolishly clipped in on a
I foolishly clipped in on a driveway with a hedge at the side. When I got to the road, I found I had to stop unexpectedly and promptly fell over.
I like Sir Chris Hoy’s though. Had to stop when filtering and decided that he didn’t need to unclip but would lean his arm against the hedge and fell right into the hedge !
Never, and now ride flats.
Never, and now ride flats. Closest I ever came was wearing SPDs where one of the grub screws had fallen out, which means you can’t rotate out of them. Fortunately MR cleats so just pulled up hard and got a toe down just in time. Have also got stuck on the trainer at home where I had to remove the shoe to unclip it.
Strava died immediately after
Strava died immediately after me uploading my ride, and immediately before me attempting to review my (predictably unimpressive) stats
I’ve had two clipping fails.
I’ve had two clipping fails. The first one was simply just down to being new to clipless pedals and was a fairly innocuous fall.
The second one however, on a sportive, having been clipped in for nearly 30 miles without stopping at all, pulled into the feed station, completely forgot I was clipped in, and fell on top of the big pile of bikes that I had pulled up next to, in front of about 50 or so people who had also just stopped at that feed station!
Maybe I’m just feeling grumpy
Maybe I’m just feeling grumpy as it’s a Monday morning, but are we really complaining those cycle paths are that bad ? one that passes a field with a gate, or one that’s shared space and yes annoying as it is, pedestrians can wander where they like on it still.
Doesn’t sound as though you
Doesn’t sound as though you looked at the 20 other items submitted for consideration.
Well no it’s not sold on the
Well no it’s not sold on the live blog here as a 20 items for your consideration, its sold as why cyclists might not use bike lanes, and I’m just not seeing in the examples quoted that they are outstandingly bad bike lane designs.
The much missed Warrington cycle facility of the month has a backlog of nearly 20 years of examples worse than anything in those 20 tweets.
As per harrogatespa –
As per harrogatespa – whether “the cumulative effect a route that is direct, safe, comfortable and attractive” meets the required objective.
I think the point is that
I think the point is that individually, no aspect of the cycle route is “that bad”, but cumulatively it all adds up to a frustratingly slow, tiring and arguably dangerous bike ride, in comparison to the adjacent road (which has priority over all side roads, driveways etc.)
Awavey wrote:
Trouble with it is, unless properly standardised (with standards that have actually been demonstrated to work in improving convenience for riders, and protecting against the actions of drivers) It’s annoying every facking time.
Awavey wrote:
Just compare it to the “specialised car infrastructure” next to it – does it look as safe or convenient now? (And remember that even things like crossings and traffic lights are also vehicle infrastructure as without vehicles they’re not needed). Apart from very old-style level crossings I don’t think I’ve seen a “motorists dismount” requirement.
Compare it to a road with no
Compare it to a road with no cycling infra provision at all & where you are forced to ride on that road & it feels like vehicles are driving at you for daring to be in their way, does it look safer & more convenient now ?
Because the majority of roads, even in towns, are still like that and dont come with any segregated infra at all, whilst the examples highlighted here arent ever going to win the Dutch cyclist award for perfect bike lanes, they’re still a step above what most people get to experience and its far more likely to be the total lack of infra that prevents people taking up cycling than having a bike lane which isnt wholly perfect.
Awavey wrote:
But now you will get abuse for riding in the road, or you can use a cycle lane where you have to slow down every 100m like this
https://www.google.com/maps/@50.8476723,-0.9963192,3a,75y,271.38h,78.15t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sDD3N3tk6IZxAydiOn2NJVg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
So it’s the choice between convenient (cruising at a steady speed) and safe (staying away from drivers who are sure you should be using the cycle lane no matter how inconvenitent it is. Just give the cycle lane priority over individual driveways. Really the cycle lane should have priority over side roads to. Could you imagine a dual carriageway where lanes 2 and 3 had priority over side roads, but lane 1 had to give way to let people out?
Perfectly acceptable infrastructure for bikes though.
Awavey wrote:
Rather than moaning about it not being “perfect” my beef is that we’re still wasting effort and money on “not good enough”. It isn’t the case that “anything is better than what we’ve got”. That’s because we have a population split – a tiny fraction of people (probably most of road.cc) who will cycle regardless, and most people who cycle very rarely if at all. For me there’s a minimum threshold of “quality” below which building stuff isn’t a good investment for either group.
The pictures show this clearly. The first couple look OK (good for the UK) but by the 3rd one we see the cyclepath suddenly stops. Like half a road, a cycle path that suddenly stops some distance from any connection is not so useful.
Will this stop you and me cycling? No, we’ll just say “sod it” and use the road. So no great benefit for us.
Will this encourage many people who don’t cycle currently? In fairness it’s difficult to say without seeing the whole scheme. Remember though – where it’s more convenient to drive than walk/cycle most people drive (and those who can’t get a lift or take the bus).
The bit about the “textiles” e.g. the last picture. These are actually great – we’re thinking about the blind / partially sighted! …until you see that they’re in the middle of a footpath. (Think – if exiting this side-road would you pull onto the nearest carriageway and block all the cars going straight on while waiting for a space on the far lane?) We’ve lumped together the blind with the cyclists and it’s on them to mind the turning vehicles. That’s because wherever cars want to go it’s at everyone else’s inconvenience. Of course there are places where it’s sensible to assign priority to motor vehicles but as this scheme shows we do it everywhere in the UK.
For that side-road – look up the better way to do it. Several countries manage to do this now. (It irritates me that Edinburgh wasted money on a cargo-cult versions of this).
Is the cumulative effect a
Is the cumulative effect a route that is direct, safe, comfortable and attractive? No? Then that’s why we are complaining, really.
It’s crap, it doesn’t serve people who already cycle, and won’t tempt anyone new to get about town by bike.
Awavey wrote:
So every cyclists using this must slow down and check for someone emerging from the field or coming from behind them and turning into the field, so that the one driver a day using the field doesn’t have to give way to cyclists? Should the same priority apply to the road, should we use roundabouts for every field entrance or business access? No, so why do it to cyclists? Just another reason why cyclists will choose to use the road instead of the ‘perfectly good’ cycle lane next to it. Perfectly good for drivers as it gets those nuisance cyclists out of the way.
A slight Devils Advocate, but
A slight Devils Advocate, but the vehicle turning in or coming out will need to stop and block the cycle lane to open / close the gate. So in that one, is that why they have put the Give-ways in? (and yes, I know that isn’t a good enough reason or explain them in places like this.)
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
Why? Why couldn’t they stop in the road while they open the gate?
Which is my point in brackets
Which is my point in brackets….
Fair enough then – wasn’t
Fair enough then – wasn’t very clear on that bit – it sounded like you meant that the original example made sense, but the one you’d linked to didn’t.
AlsoSomniloquism wrote:
1) thats fine provided it is empty when they pull in and stop, or stop to lock the gate. but with the give way lines painted as they are the cyclist must now give way to a vehicle emerging from the field behind the hedge making no effort to check for cyclists first.
2) if the hedge was direclty next to the road they would do that in the road so they still could.
Most gates into fields round
Most gates into fields round here open into the fields, otherwise it would block the NSL roads.
That cycle path: Nice if you
That cycle path: Nice if you’re taking the kids for a ride and want to keep them off the road, rubbish for maintaining a decent average over a decent distance ie commuting, recreational riding, training etc
finally, someone gets it
finally, someone gets it 🙂
I disagree, it isn’t in any
I disagree, it isn’t in any way “nice” for taking the kids for a ride. It is a safer option than riding with the motorised traffic but it is still crap infrastructure and never should have been implimented as such. The minimum that could be done to make it better is to remove all the give ways to vehicles exiting fields, shops etc and do the obvious thing, which is to give priority to the most vulnerable road users.
Seems like the bin lorries in
Seems like the bin lorries in Edinburgh are very anti-cyclist. Granted it is only one side of the story.
Pity there’re no further
Pity there’re no further details. Never had issues myself and it does seem strange for a bin lorry driver to see red when almost the whole day’s about driving slowly. But strange behaviour on the roads isn’t unknown.
Or maybe it was a niche joyrider?
Re: Unclipping Fails
Re: Unclipping Fails
It’s never happened to me. (Well, it’s not on Youtube so it didn’t happen. Right?)
I watched stage 5 highlights
I watched stage 5 highlights of the women’s tour. I despaired where at 2 different places a marshall was required to warn the riders of the line of parked cars on the route.
I was then expecting someone to reverse off their drive into the peloton !
Good job they didn’t have a
Good job they didn’t have a stage 6 then. Well I’m sure that must have been the case as I don’t see any coverage on here of the final stage and overall winner.
Fwiw its hidden in the
Fwiw its hidden in the section about Quintana appearing on the masked singer.
Anyone else struggling to
Anyone else struggling to enter the Saris Comp – no matter what I do I can’t find the entry form? Tried PC and phone, logged in, logged out….
Yes, and ‘can’t see the entry
Yes, and ‘can’t see the entry form? Click here’ just seems to refresh the page.
Seems to be fixed now ??
Seems to be fixed now ??
Last time I did the failing
Last time I did the failing to unclip thing was because my cleat had come lose so didn’t twist when I twisted my foot. I had some difficulty getting my shoe off the pedal even after I’d fallen over.
Edit – actually, that was last but one time. Last time was on the way to Leeds Castle last year, but that then got overshadowed by my elderly father slipping over at the crazy golf and slicing his ear on the drawbridge of the model Leeds Castle that formed part of the course.
I had the same thing, loose
I had the same thing, loose screw on the cleat, slow unintentional dismount to the consternation of the watching pedestrian. I had to take my foot out of the shoe and walk home, fortunately only a couple of hundred metres, and then had to work out how to get the shoe off the pedal.
Ironically it happened again
Ironically it happened again on the way home today! The loose cleat, that is, not a fall. It wasn’t clipping in very well, so I stopped, actually thinking maybe I’d got a small stone or similar stuck, and it turned out the bolts were loose. Different shoes, so it must be me, not the shoes, to blame!
I make very, very sure those
I make very, very sure those bolts are tight before I leave now!
Years ago, I found myself
Years ago, I found myself riding with a group of cyclists who were stronger than me, and tagged along on their ride (which was longer than I was planning on). At some point we had to stop at a traffic signal. I was exhausted, of course. I successfully unclipped and put a foot down, but then fell over the other way.
Only my pride was injured.
Smoking Cycle Guy seems to
Smoking Cycle Guy seems to have stopped and turned his engine off. Isn’t he allowed to check his phone under those circumstances?
Also I think that the “cycle lane” starts just after the blue car so I am not sure that they are in the cycle lane. If you look carefuly you can see a broken line moving towards the curb. Probably one of those filter lanes you get before lights.
Cycled up to the ‘Golfball’
Cycled up to the ‘Golfball’ on the Penines in a howling, face on, gale. Stopped at the top, unclipped my left pedal, then slipped over on the right. I’m now clipped in, my left foot jammed under the wheel and the teeth of my chainring stuck in my Achilles tendon. Couldn’t move either foot. Stung a bit. Still got the scars.
The canal and river trust got
The canal and river trust got ~ 52M from DEFRA in 19/20 and part of the money is to meet a target of maintaining towpaths to a standard of 60% in conditions A – C.
So I think it is fair to say taxpayers contribute to the upkeep of towpaths.
Stuart Bowden, I salute you,
Stuart Bowden, I salute you, you are my hero, mainly for noticing and taking the picture, but mega, in more ways than one…
Is one of both of the people
Is one or both of the people living in Plucksbridge Road, a councillor?
Those of us long enough in the tooth will remember when the Canal & River Trust brought in a licence system for cyclists to use the towpaths. I think the idea just died a death, especially when a protest ride was organised on the Kennet and Avon canal, and they dropped the requirement for the day of the ride.
I think I still have the
I think I still have the signed card in it’s little plastic holder in my bag.