FNRttC Friday Night Ride to the Coast - Brighton 14th October 2011

[TimO]

... Perhaps we should try costumes... http://www.youtube.c...player_embedded

Costumes maybe, dance routines no.

 

[mmmmartin]

Perhaps we should try costumes...

reflective bras are what we all need.
just sayin' like.
tim - thanks for taking this.............

 

[User10571]

.......Perhaps we should try costumes... http://www.youtube.c...player_embedded...........

I'm sure I saw Arallsop doing something very similar albeit dressed in ninja black at the junction where Vicarage Lane crosses the A23 and becomes Victoria Road in Horley. The occasion being, I think, the second Martlets ride.

 

[dellzeqq]

Thoughts, suggestions ?

If somebody is leaving the ride then either
- they should be confident of making their way home, and text me when they arrive (as Sue, Andy and Justin did) or
- they should be accompanied, unless they are in company themselves

if someone is tired to the point of being a liability to themselves then the latter - they should be taken to a taxi office, to a railway station or all the way home. That's bashed in to rides leaders by the CTC. I've had people met by local CTC members en route and escorted home, people parked in Tourist Tony's and taken to Gatwick and small groups left at stations.

Most of our routes have early trains - if you bail at Rochester you don't have long to wait, and the same goes for both the 'old' and 'new' Southend routes (Billericay, Ingatestone, Rayleigh and Stanford-le-Hope come to mind). Brighton has super-early trains from Horley and Gatwick and early trains from Haywards Heath. Bognor has trains from Crawley (close to the Cabin Cafe) and Horsham (which we pass). I'll divert the entire ride to a station if necessary, and I carry cash for taxis - although the cab from Junction 31 needed a visit to the machine.......

 

[Christopher]

Looks like a great ride (I wasn't on it). But I have wanted to ask the FNRTTC crowd this: how do you deal with grumpiness caused by a sleepless night? I've only done three all-night rides ever and each time was in a foul mood by 6AM or so, which is completely unfair to all the lovely people who work so hard to make the rides possible.

 

[ianrauk]

Looks like a great ride (I wasn't on it). But I have wanted to ask the FNRTTC crowd this: how do you deal with grumpiness caused by a sleepless night? I've only done three all-night rides ever and each time was in a foul mood by 6AM or so, which is completely unfair to all the lovely people who work so hard to make the rides possible.

Grumpiness?... whilst riding a bike?.. sorry that doesn't make sense.

 

[TimO]

If somebody is leaving the ride then either
- they should be confident of making their way home, and text me when they arrive (as Sue, Andy and Justin did) or
- they should be accompanied, unless they are in company themselves

if someone is tired to the point of being a liability to themselves then the latter - they should be taken to a taxi office, to a railway station or all the way home. That's bashed in to rides leaders by the CTC. ...

Aha, fair enough. That does indeed make sense. Although in this instance Andrij was clearly compos mentis enough to make his own way home, but I couldn't work out how to direct him to East Croydon station, even though I only live a couple of miles from it. That was partly just being a bit dopey because it was early in the morning, and trying to work out how to get between two points which I've never had to get between before (or even close to). Looking at the maps, on reflection, I think an exact route would have been far too detailed to describe or then remember.

Obviously it worked, I imagine because the roads I sent him onto are fairly major roads (the A232 and then A23), so would have signage towards useful things like Croydon and Central London (and possibly Croydon Stations), but immediately after I'd sent him on his way, I was having second thoughts about whether I should have taken him there (I could have then either gone home, or in a fit of enthusiasm chased the ride back down!)

Looks like a great ride (I wasn't on it). But I have wanted to ask the FNRTTC crowd this: how do you deal with grumpiness caused by a sleepless night? I've only done three all-night rides ever and each time was in a foul mood by 6AM or so, which is completely unfair to all the lovely people who work so hard to make the rides possible.

At worst I think the only people I've ever had to deal with who may have been grumpy, have been of the silent variety. I'll tend to yabber on about nonsense to people who are having a hard time, because often they'll forget that it is hard work, and speed up. Either I'm sufficiently distracting their minds off of it, or they're trying to get away from me, but either way it works!

 

[User482]

In instances of grumpiness I personally just ride by myself for a bit.

Split personality?

 

[dellzeqq]

Aha, fair enough. That does indeed make sense. Although in this instance Andrij was clearly compos mentis enough to make his own way home, but I couldn't work out how to direct him to East Croydon station, even though I only live a couple of miles from it.

Andrij I don't worry about, although if he'd have called me I'd have suggested Gatwick if only because riding alone at night isn't my first choice (for others - I do it myself)

There is a lot going on that isn't obvious. I knew that Andy H had a (taxi) plan from Turners Hill and it just so happened that I knew that Sue was two miles from home. I knew that Justin would be ok. The things that bother me are the things I'm addressing. It's a simple system that needs to be applied.

 

[martint235]

In instances of grumpiness I personally just ride by myself for a bit.

+1. Just find a gap in the group and ride along alone until the joie de vivre of riding a bike returns (can take a while if it's cold and wet or if we're in Erith at 2am)

 

[GrumpyGregry]

On big rides, how about having waymarkers in pairs? If it's a long wait it can be nice to have someone to talk to / race back to the front with.

When the peleton set off on the cycle path from under the railway bridge at the end of Cavendish Road in Balham as we were waiting for Andrew's double trouble to be resolved I stood under the bridge at first.

Then a gentleman wandered up the path and stopped under the bridge on the opposite side to me, and just stood there glaring at me.

I felt very very lonely for a little while so went and stood on the junction where at least, if he turned out to be a mad axe murderer, my demise might be witnessed by others passing by. Like the young lady who walked past carrying a standard lamp. Or the occupants of the car being driven backwards down Fernlea Road.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I'm always grumpy, enough sleep or no, on bike or off it.

But I'm rarely more grumpy than when I ride down Common Lane in the company of numpties, perhaps still pished from the night before, in speeding cars at around 06:00 in the morning.

Underhill Lane rocks!

 

[TimO]

Andrij I don't worry about, although if he'd have called me I'd have suggested Gatwick if only because riding alone at night isn't my first choice (for others - I do it myself)

We were quite close to Wallington station, Gatwick wouldn't have been appropriate since that would have been over 15 miles away. East Croydon station was probably about 3 miles.

As it was, I think even cycling the entire way home (which is what he ended up doing) was quite possibly less than 15 miles (or only slightly further, depending on what route he used).

 

[Andrij]

If somebody is leaving the ride then either
- they should be confident of making their way home, and text me when they arrive (as Andrij, Sue, Andy and Justin did) or

FTFY

 

[mmmmartin]

Proplus caffiene pills are really useful. I usually have some in the Carradice. They banish tiredness most effectively. Good for long overnight audax rides and Long Distance Walkers Association events. Combined with Voltarol and Ibuprofen (which are more or less the same thing) you can put your body through some really bad experiences and they feel merely awful, rather than life-threateningly terrible.