The worst one yet? Sign warns cyclists “you are my targets”; Where are Winstanleys? Retailer not answering customers; No French sport until September; Cyclist told “go home” by pickup driver; 3T 3D-printing valves for dive masks + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Will the rain affect your riding plans?
After six months of solid rain, we’ve finally had a bucket load of sunshine this last month or so (ironically pretty much coinciding with when the lockdown began)… but it looks like the heavens are opening again, so will you stick to the turbo this week? Feel free to take part in our poll for no reason whatsoever.
Venice by boat-bike
From my kitchen #sustainable #transport #bike #cycling #venice #veneziapulita pic.twitter.com/Zt1mUDVQqk
— Venezia Pulita / Clean Venice (@VeneziaPulita) April 27, 2020
It’s been widely reported that the Venice canals are looking cleaner than ever and wildlife is even starting to return.
Bradley Wiggins hits the big 4-0
Happy birthday Sir Bradley Wiggins! 🎂
To celebrate @SirWiggo turning 40 years old, let’s take a look back at his comedy gold at last year’s Tour de France when he was on the back of a different kind of bike 🏍pic.twitter.com/MnKH5xUY9T
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) April 28, 2020
The 2012 Tour de France winner-turned charismatic motorbike commentator has turned 40. Eurosport have marked the ocassion with some of the best ‘Brad on a bike’ moments from last summer’s Tour de France.
More temporary cycle lanes popping up
I saw this while #walkingfromhome in West Ealing yesterday evening and have checked that it is what it seemed: the nearside lane repurposed so people can more distantly walk past the queue for Lidl that’s often there. Rough but ready; simple but effective for many. pic.twitter.com/q2kCLxQCL5
— John Dales 🌍 (@johnstreetdales) April 28, 2020
After we reported that a ‘keyworkers corridor’ has been created in Leicester, it appears more roads around the country are now being repurposed with less motor traffic on the roads.
Hackney Councillor Jon Burke blasted the government for “gaslighting” the public over temporary infrastructure, claiming that new guidance doesn’t give councils more power than before to implement safe cycling and walking space during the lockdown; however, Cycling UK’s Head of Campaigns Duncan Dollimore told road.cc:
“The new DfT guidance does make it easier for councils to satisfy the rules for advertising proposed traffic orders, which is sensible and we welcome, but it doesn’t give councils any other new powers.
“That doesn’t mean councils have an excuse to do nothing. As shown by Cycling UK’s guide for councils, there’s plenty they can do to create space now to make social distancing easier and relieve pressure on public transport for when lockdown is relaxed, either without any order or through an experimental traffic order made after seven days’ notice.
“Cycling UK would urge everyone who wants to see more space for social distancing, whether you’re walking, cycling or taking public transport to speak up now and get in touch with their council via our online tool.”
That online tool is here.
Lambeth Council spend £75,000 on emergency transport plans, including Cycleway upgrades and footpath widening
— Chris Boardman (@Chris_Boardman) April 27, 2020
Lambeth Council have published a paper detailing a whole host of measures to make active travel safer during the pandemic. Propositions include working with Transport for London to create temporary cycle lanes on key routes, widening of pavements at pinch points and making Roupell Street and Cornwall Road in the north of the borough access-only for motor vehicles,
Strategy manager Simon Phillips said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in profound changes to travel patterns and how people are using streets in Lambeth and beyond.
“This is likely to continue even after the current emergency period has passed. There is an immediate need to enable physical distancing in order to limit contagion and prevent a second surge, and this cannot always be safely accommodated within existing transport networks and infrastructure.”
All the recommendations have been approved, and full details can be seen on the Lambeth Council website.
London Cycle Campaign sign up 200 key workers on free membership package
We’ve hit a milestone with our free NHS and hospital worker membership scheme – 200 signed-up and supported within 19 days of launch. Thank you to everyone who has shared this with friends and family – here’s to 200 more! 🩺🚲🏥 https://t.co/rKoDM8wAbo Photo by @JKBartsHeart 📸 pic.twitter.com/05kFSvwi8R
— London_cycling (@london_cycling) April 28, 2020
LLC hit the milstone 19 days after launching the scheme, which allows any London key worker with an NHS or hospital ID to take advantage of the free public liability insurance and shop discounts that come with an LCC membership.
Dr Jonathan Kelly of Bart’s Hospital, who helped to organise the collaboration, commented: “The free LCC member’s insurance is clearly a big draw, but my colleagues are finding the LCC support network really helpful. Being new, or ‘returnees’ to cycling, LCC has been a great go-to place for information and general advice on subjects ranging from route-finding to maintenance. Some have connected with their local LCC groups and have found the local advice really helpful also.”
London-based key workers can sign up here.
Derbyshire lecturer was told to "go home" by a pick-up driver when delivering food by bike, and claims abuse has worsened during lockdown
As a further example of some members of the public wrongly attempting to enforce government advice (see yesterday’s blog), Dr Kate Wilkinson Cross told the BBC that she has experienced “much more abuse” on her local roads around Derbyshire’s Hope Valley during the lockdown:
“Since lockdown I’ve experienced much more abuse than I have ever had while cycling in the valley”, said the De Montfort University Law Lecturer.
Wilkinson Cross added that when she was out delivering food by bike with her partner, a pickup truck driver shouted abuse and told them to “go home”:
The lecturer said she and her partner cycled together to deliver food to a friend locally – and a driver in a pick-up truck shouted abuse telling them to ‘go home’.
“The ironic thing was he was less than 2m away from me when it happened.
“I feel vulnerable going cycling on my own. I’m well within my rights to do so, but I don’t want to have to respond to abuse like this.
“It’s making me think twice about where I cycle.”
New Tech Eye Candy - Brooks England release special edition black and copper C17 saddle
Looking for a new saddle for your urban bike? Well, Brooks England has just released a rather fancy special edition of their C17 saddle.
It features a black “vulcanised organic cotton and natural rubber top combined with copper anodised rivets and a copper anodised backplate.”
We know that the C17 works well. John reviewed it back in 2014 and while there’s nothing structurally different about this new release, the “unique premium details” bump the price up from £105 to £140.
A correction
Yep, drivers of these things aren’t actually truck drivers (not when they’re driving a pick-up anyway)… apologies for the error.
Tour de France 1987 TV intro, remade
I re-made the @Channel4 @LeTour intro from the 1980’s shot-for-shot this weekend. Takes me back to falling for my lifelong obsession as an 11 year old in 1987… @millarmind @cycling_podcast @PhilLiggett @itvcycling @friebos @nedboulting @mrendell @RealStephens #TourdeFrance pic.twitter.com/dqEAZcakcb
— 1st Element Triathlon (@HydrogenCoach) April 28, 2020
Enjoy this huge slice of epic nostalgia, because it’s probably the closest we’re going to get to Tour de France action this summer as things stand.
More bike brands switching production: Primal making face masks, and 3T helping Decathlon to make diving masks
Brilliant… Entrepreneurs are well placed to get us out of this… good judgement, spot and take opportunity and able to assess risks worth taking. https://t.co/Mu6ZJFOYIC
— Deborah Meaden (@DeborahMeaden) April 28, 2020
To help their businesses survive and keep staff in work, it’s been reported that numerous brands in the bike industry have switched production to making protective products during the pandemic.
Apparel brand Primal – who make the totally legendary road.cc Evo jersey – have ceased making custom team gear to manufacture Deborah Meaden-approved washable face masks.
Meanwhile, Italian bike brand 3T told Triathlete that they’ve started to produce valves for Decathlon diving masks (that are being requested by hospitals to turn in to ventilators) using a 3D printer. Their General Manager Rene Wiertz said: “In extraordinary circumstances, we need to do extraordinary things, and priority one is saving lives. It turned out we could produce valves for Decathlon diving masks, so we did. Now we stopped producing cranks and are making as many valves as we can in the 3D printer. I hope this helps to save lives.
“Other than a human tragedy, this is also an economic disaster. We keep shipping bikes because, in the end, we need to save jobs, too. We hope we can turn the page on this terrible situation as soon as possible.”
Check out off.road.cc’s round-up of other brands who have altered production here.
Winstanleys online store inundated with negative reviews over order delays
The Wigan-based retailer – which also has a shop on the outskirts of the city – has received a number of complaints on Google Reviews, Truspilot and in the comments section on their last Facebook post dated 12th July 2018 from customers who claim they haven’t received their orders, or any communication regarding the orders’ status.
Winstanleys have posted COVID-19 updates on their website, which says they are “open online and delivering” and currently dealing with a backlog of emails from the 18th-19th April; however many of the complaints are from customers who claim to have ordered long before these dates. They also say they have temporarily closed their phone lines, frustrating many customers who want to speak to staff, and are taking on extra staff to speed up responses.
As we reported last week, many bike retailers are experiencing unprecedented demand worldwide described as ‘Black Friday levels’ of sales, with many people turning to two wheels to get their daily exercise… a manager of a Giant store in Sydney went as far as to say bikes are “the new toilet paper”.
Are Winstanleys simply unable to keep up with the increased demand, or is something else going on? We’ve asked Winstanleys for a statement.
Breaking: French Prime Minister says no sporting events in the country until September, pushing proposed Tour de France start date back further
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announces no sporting events in the country until September, effectively meaning the French League season is cancelled.
— Dan Roan (@danroan) April 28, 2020
The already rearranged Tour de France will most likely have to be rerranged again, as Edouard Philippe has just announced that mass sporting events cant resume until September. That means the French football and rugby leagues are essentially cancelled, and it’s expected to mean the 107th edition of the Tour de France can’t now start on 29th August as we reported earlier this month.
Full story to follow.
£10 million pledged for active travel in Scotland
The Scottish Government are pumping the funds into new pop-up infrastructure to better enable physical distancing during the pandemic. They say this will be supported by a package of guidance and support to local authorities from Transport Scotland and Sustrans Scotland for improvements such as widened pavements and cycle lanes.
Lee Craigie – a former pro mountain biker and now the Active Nation Commissioner for Scotland, commented: “Access to safe, pleasant places to exercise is good for everyone’s physical and mental health but it has taken this crisis for towns and cities across the world to realise the urgency with which space for walking, running, cycling and wheeling is needed, and especially in our urban areas.
“It has never been more important that we look after our own health and the health of members of our society who have limited access to such spaces.
“I welcome wholeheartedly the Scottish Government’s new guidance and funding measures so that local authorities might more easily reallocate space in favour of people being active. When life resumes its usual pace, let’s not forget how good it feels to enjoy having more space to move freely.”
"You are my targets": another worrying sign spotted on Welsh border
To any journo hacks that think their cynical misreporting of cyclists, e.g. long lens photo trickery, has no harmful effect, think again. As long as it sells papers though, eh? pic.twitter.com/PwxfCvfEVm
— Matt ‘Scourge’ James Esq. (@jimbo2112) April 28, 2020
The sign was reportedly spotted in Newtown, Powys, with a reply claiming that it was reported to the police and the person(s) reponsible were spoken to for making a public order infringement.
The original tweet attributes blame to the alleged use of ‘foreshortening’ by press photographers, a technique using a telephoto lens that makes things appear closer together than they actually are – The Times and The Sun were amongst UK titles accused of using the technique in articles that claimed cyclists were ignoring lockdown rules.
28 April 2020, 08:56
The fine cost the courier a day's wages, according to the IWGB union
Deliveroo rider in York fined by ‘confrontational’ police officer who grabbed his bike (+ video)
Union says council had said ban on bikes would be raised during lockdown - something the council denies
28 April 2020, 08:56
In response to customer feedback, Ritchey have updated the popular Outback
Ritchey reveals updated Outback steel adventure frameset with increased tyre clearance, flat-mount discs and more mount options
Ritchey reacts to customer feedback to bring the Outback bang up to date
28 April 2020, 08:56
Full story on the new updates from France
Updated: Confusion over how plans to exit lockdown may affect Tour de France
Prime Minister Edouard Philippe reveals plan to ease country out of confinement
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In France, the closer the cyclist gets to the Mediterranean Sea, the weirder car drivers behave. Some of them being repeat road deliquents. Encounters with 13, 31, 34 and 84 may prove hairy. Drivers with plates showing 84 (Vaucluse) think light signalling is no longer necessary before making a turn or exiting a roundabout. Pity UAE Team came to the decision not to press charges.
@MaxiMinimalist We can fear such a ban to varying degrees. But I'd be surprised if it happens. Even if it does the police don't have the resource and time to deal with dangerous drivers. So I guess they will ignore it anway.
Sooner or later, there will be public calls for cycling ban on specific roads and / or at specific times of the day. The great divide that separates cyclists from drivers of motorized vehicles with 4-plus wheels isn't going to narrow anytime soon. In spite of the net-zero madness, there is zip political ambition to allocate massive funds to cycling, build proper infrastructure, elaborate a nationwide integrated cycling network, educate all road users. Why? Because motorists of all kinds are voters and taxpayers.
@Smoggysteve Right - as I say, though - that's a separate debate, that I'll leave to others.
AS I read this, I was wondering hao many other legal e-bikes may have been seized and crushed as a result of this bogus test? As I pointed out recently in a reply to a Facebook post that stated that e-bikes are limited to 25kph/15.5mph any bike, whether a pure pedal cycle or an e-bike, can exceed this speed if the rider can pedal hard enough, or when going downhill. The regulation just states that the motor must switch off at higher speeds. If the rider can achieve higher speeds unaided, that is legal. The test that the police used just demonstrated the maximum "speed" achieved by pedal power alone with no or little resistance can be much higher than the motor cut-off speed.
@ROOTminus1 Unfortunately, people will still do all they can to get past. the MGIFs can't help themselves and are a danger to everyone not only the cyclist.
It was going to weigh them up, but they were below the limit.
Clearly driver training and the driving test need to change to meet modern time poor driving conditions. I suggest the following need to be added to the practical test : 1) Undertaking on pavements. 2) Close passing cyclists or horses at 50mph.(It is clear from the comments on this website that cyclists do not appreciate how difficult a skill this is to master). 3) Threading between bollards to park on pavements near fast food outlets. 4) Steering with the knees while using a mobile phone and eating a burger or sushi, depending on the area. 5) Fighting with cyclists at roundabouts. For the advanced driving test the fighting will be with gangs of Hell's Angels or Mods. 6) Handbrake turns. 7) Driving at speed after all night parties. 8) Selecting the wrong gear and smashing into somebody's living room. The theory test could be shortened to make room for these practical additions. Maybe it could just be distilled down to learning crucial phrases like : "The cyclist came out of nowhere!" "I had the children in the car." "I had hunger knock and urgently needed an egg Mcmuffin." "I didn't see them." "I had been to a party and was wearing different shoes."
The headline states the article will "weigh up the pros and cons" but doesn't really provide any argument for keeping the limit. Or maybe it's to "weigh up the pros (of lowering the limit) and cons (of keeping the limit)"? Beyond having a different limit for either/or women's races/smaller riders, which I can see a strong argument for, I don't really see the point of just lowering the absolute limit. What will it achieve? We'll end up with aero bikes at the new limit but instead of costing £10-15k, it'll be £15-20k and we'll still hear more complaining about everything in the bike industry being so expensive. Sure, no one's forced to buy the TdF bike, but it does anchor the price ceiling, which will have an effect on every other model. There's a focus in the article on companies being able to make lightweight bikes again, or for pros to race on them. Well, they already exist for those that want them. And the pros? We might have a few years of bike choice, but we'll still end up with everyone using the aero bike at the new weight limit but with lots of expensive R&D and new materials that need to be paid for. Especially lightweight bikes don't have a right to exist. A 7kg bike from 20 years ago is the same weight as a 7kg bike today. I think what's more interesting is the suggestion of scaling the weight limit with rider weight. That feels fairer. But could it remove an advantage that a bigger sprinter might have over their colleagues, for example? We could end up with just the same style of rider across a whole race. It also feels like it doesnt make much sense to just map the men's limit onto the women's field. But then if it's an arbitrary limit, does that matter either?
FFS France always seemed like a safe place to ride a bike, outside Paris that is. Can't see the Department number in the photo - hire cars traditionally have been registered in Oise (60) and many still are, though not all. Does make you wonder if it was a Brit on holiday. Only road rage driver I've experienced in Spain was in a hire car, and that was relatively benign - brake check and windscreen wiper / fluid squirt.
23 thoughts on “The worst one yet? Sign warns cyclists “you are my targets”; Where are Winstanleys? Retailer not answering customers; No French sport until September; Cyclist told “go home” by pickup driver; 3T 3D-printing valves for dive masks + more on the live blog”
I even went back to wet lube
I even went back to wet lube last night.
I predict my ride this afternoon will be quieter..
There’s a joke in there
There’s a joke in there somewhere…
That temporary lane outside
That temporary lane outside Lidl to allow pedestrians to stay further from the queue is all well and good (though from the pictures it looks as though there’s actually plenty of room on the pavement for both) but it’s going to push cyclists right out into traffic, isn’t it?
The space they’ve blocked off
The space they’ve blocked off is usually on street parking and a bus stop so if anything this makes the road a bit safer. I cycle down it a bit, but to be honest in West Ealing the bigger problem is mostly predestrians wandering out into the road without any awareness of what is going on. The junction with Northfields Avenue about quarter of mile from there is lethal though and if anything’s it’s now worse because the traffic is so much faster.
With all due respect I think
With all due respect I think you’re mistaken – it can’t be a bus stop and parking in that space, and if it’s parking, why is there a yellow line down it? In fact I just looked it up on Streetview, because I am that sad, and there’s a clear “No Parking 8AM-6.30PM” sign on the lampost right outside Lidl, by the phone boxes. Think you must be thinking of another stretch, or maybe you only ride it early morning/later evening? That bit looks proper dangerous to me, as you can see from the right-hand picture that it clearly leaves just enough room for two cars to pass in opposite directions. At a minimum it needs a “Narrow lanes, do not overtake cyclists” sign, I’d say.
At the risk of the most
At the risk of the most pointless argument ever….
The red bit of road the photo is taken from is a bus stop. The space they’ve blocked off is usually reserved for loading only- so you are right that there is no parking, but loading isn’t parking.
It’s also a super busy bus route so you usually have to negotiate busses, cars, delivery vans and pedestrians.
i live half a mile from this shop- it’s good to see Ealing council do something to try and reduce risk in a crowded bit of town. It irritates me to see people automtically look to criticise a sensible decision without knowing the facts.
At the risk of further
At the risk of further annoying someone clearly determined to take offence, so when you said it’s on-street parking, it isn’t. It just seems odd to me for a cycling site to be showing pictures of a scheme which, whatever its merits, quite clearly cuts down the space for cyclists and pushes them further out into the centre of the road. It’s captioned “more temporary cycle lanes popping up” when it’s clearly nothing of a sort, not a cycle lane at all. Why can’t Lidl customers queue next to the storefronts, most of which are presumably closed, and passing pedestrians walk kerbside, it looks like there’s plenty of room there to maintain a 2m gap. However, if you want to get irritated, do be my guest.
Is it a boat-bike or bike
Is it a boat-bike or bike-boat?
Winstanleys has been
Winstanleys has been notorious for years. They’re one of those outfits that advertise everything as in stock at too good to be true prices. It seems hit or miss as to wether they actually order the product after taking money and refunds have to be chased. I’m guessing the problem is exacerbated by not being able to source the out of stock stuff from distributors at the mo.
Stuk wrote:
Well Winstanleys were ok when I ordered a bike from them some years ago. It came as ordered and was a really good deal, as it’d been hanging up in a window as a display item (it was a previous year’s model and therefore cut price).
I guess you were alright then
I guess you were alright then. I became aware of the mass of negative feedback some years ago when an “in stock” tyre I ordered never arrived. Lots of posts similar to those mentioned in the article involving much more expensive item than I ordered (and yes I wish i’d checked them out first). I did get a refund eventually.
Same with Tweeks. I’ve had a
Same with Tweeks. I’ve had a nightmare with them recently. They cancelled an ‘in stock’ order without explanation (after a week) then a few weeks later retook the payment (£100) without authorisation. Finally got an email after I posted a negative review but they didn’t have an explanation for the unauthorised payment. I’m avoiding them and advising others to avoid them for the foreseeable.
Not aimed at Primal at all,
Not aimed at Primal at all, but I’m worried by all the masks coming out the woodwork online… is there any sort of certification or standards needed, or is any cloth material over the face better than nothing?
Proper masks are for those in
Proper masks are for those in constant contact or threat. DIY masks are to stop you spreading the virus.
I’d certainly expect a lot risk compensation by the public if we are to wear them.
There are various pros and
There are various pros and cons to the wearing of masks.
I hope to finally start work in a couple of weeks, bit of covid work, and I will have to use the train as part of the commute, I fully expect to be ‘asked’ to wear a mask. I have a fresh filter for my Respro, and am prepared to make a few out of t-shirts too. Just for the train and station bit.
One of the cons, good masks with valves (like the Respro) could actually produce more aerosols than without. They accumulate a great deal of condensation, which almost sprays out of the valve.
And the moisture build up in a fabric home made mask could also do something similar. As I say pros and cons.
I think the confusion with
I think the confusion with masks is that they never say whether they are talking in terms of protecting the wearer, or protecting everyone else. And from what. So the arguments swirl back and forth at complete cross purposes.
My simple take in the present situation is that I should wear a mask to stop stuff coming [b]out [/b]of my mouth when I talk, drops of spit potentially containing virus. So it does not have to be a type-approved medical grade job. Just the sort of thing worn by food workers for the same reason.
If there is already an aerosol of virus in the air I breathe in it won’t stop that. But if everybody else wore one then there would be no such aerosol to begin with.
I take your point about the Respro valves blowing out an aerosol (do they do that?). I assume such a mask is designed to protect the wearer, not the others, but unless it can filter out aerosols coming in then can it even protect you?
Sriracha wrote:
You are on the right tracks, but the ‘non medical grade’ masks don’t stop all the stuff comming out of your mouth, just reduce it.
So it only reduces the chance of spreading the virus, not eliminate it completely.
I can confirm that the Primal
I can confirm that the Primal masks are not clinical masks, although they are guaranteed to stop at least 80% of all droplets going into the air. The masks include a slot for an additional filter, should you wish greater protection.
Its an interesting one hey, but I’d argue if they were clinical grade masks it would be better to provide the NHS with supplies. However they are not.
As mentioned, the idea of wearing facemasks is to reduce the risk of you contaminating other environments, not to stop environments contaminating you. If we all made efforts to not contaminate, then there would be nothing out there to contaminate you with. Or something like that.
I don’t really know why, but
I don’t really know why, but I’m thinking that the “threatening local” probably put the nasty sign up on their own property.
Now that would take a proper level of stupid…
He did apparently. Whole
He did apparently. Whole thing on facebook with a local club member filling in the details, including local plod saying 50 mile rides are fine for club riders
There are two little places
There are two little places called Felindre in Powys. One is south of Newtown on the B-road to Knighton. I’d guess this is the one that is referred to. Looking on Strava, the riders who’ve been that way recently are all local.
The other Felindre is a tiny hamlet on a quiet back lane near Berriew. You’d only usually go through there if you were doing the Tregynon loop from/to Newtown.
I keep wondering about all
I keep wondering about all these “Stay away if you ain’t local!” signs. Does the vigilante know – by sight – every single local in their village? How do they otherwise know that they are correctly enacting the Wrath of Gove on “tourists” and not incorrectly punishing genuine locals?
brooksby wrote:
..Of course, they’re all related…