Tales from today's commute....

[Scotchlovingcylist]

This mornings commute home ended up being 3 miles longer in search of the perfect off road commute and was more frustrating with the early morning dog walkers/earphone runners and alot slower.
Still enjoyable though, managed shorts this morning too, getting warmer!

 

[fossyant]

Back to work after two weeks off. Three days commuting into the office this week. Saw my first two goslings ths evening (separate parts of the canal commute).

Long day though - set off at 7:30am, didn't get home until 7:45pm !

 

[I like Skol]

Saw my first two goslings ths evening (separate parts of the canal commute).

Long day though - set off at 7:30am, didn't get home until 7:45pm !

Give it another week or two and the towpath will be over run with little yellow suicide missiles!

Might try the canal commute one day this week, although it makes for an even longer day. Already set off around 5.25am and get home at 7.50!

 

[simongt]

Biked a 12 mile round trip to get a prescription for one of our cats. 🐱 And why not - ? Decent ride, reasonably sunny and stopped on the way back for a coffee and cake at a very good caff on a local industrial estate.

 

[fossyant]

No goslings this morning, obviously having a lie in.

Had a bit of a chat with another commuter near Etihad Stadium. He'd gone down the steep section of canal path on foot near the Lock Keepers cottage on Alan Turing Way. I'd nipped past it taking the long route, but still beat him back down the lock. I said 'this way is quicker'. He said he'd been doing that route for 2 years and not tried the longer path. Means you don't have to get off the bike.

We continued into the centre, but encountered a lot of headphone wearing walkers, couldn't hear our bells. Grr.

 

[I like Skol]

No goslings this morning, obviously having a lie in.

Had a bit of a chat with another commuter near Etihad Stadium. He'd gone down the steep section of canal path on foot near the Lock Keepers cottage on Alan Turing Way. I'd nipped past it taking the long route, but still beat him back down the lock. I said 'this way is quicker'. He said he'd been doing that route for 2 years and not tried the longer path. Means you don't have to get off the bike.

We continued into the centre, but encountered a lot of headphone wearing walkers, couldn't hear our bells. Grr.

You mean you don't ride the helter skelter? I would

 

[Arjimlad]

Lovely morning to ride to work in the sunshine!

I had to bale out of a cycle paint lane though, when a van driver ahead of me was veering about all over the road & failing to keep up with traffic. Of course he was engrossed in his handheld mobile phone when I drew level with the driver's side window. Reported for correction.

 

[HarryTheDog]

Senior moment this morning, unlocked the door, put bike and bag on the drive, then shut the front door. AAAGH! I have locked myself out with the keys on the inside, in the lock means I cant even open it with the missus's spare. Oh well a expensive date with the locksmith planned for the evening.
Ride in was chilly got to see many new goslings and ducklings on the way in.
Caught up with the old boy MTB group just before thier usual stop at the Dobbs Weir cafe. They apologised for holding me up but it was only 400yds so just tootled along behind them.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Most of my ride is on shared use paths and I tend to ping people as I approach so I don't make them jump. We also get a lot of people people riding clapped out three speed bikes here with all kinds of implements hanging off them and the most inefficient riding styles imaginable.

I pinged such a cyclist today as I approached and as I passed he gave me a big thumbs up and called, "That's a good bell"...

 

[HarryTheDog]

3 incidents on the way home.
First one pleasant, a guy my age was swinging a double handed axe chopping wood on the canal path. I slowed and waited till he saw me, he stopped and apoligised, I said careful with that axe Eugene, he smiled and replied Pink Floyd and gave me a thumbs up.
2nd not so pleasant. In West Ham saw a guy approaching a zebra crossing I slowed so he could cross, he got halfway across and I went behind him. He rounded on me and went absolutely mad, shouting and screaming, I thought he was going to chase me up the road.
3rd again not so pleasant, wheeling my bike up West Ham station platform, now my bike is probably one of the easiest bikes to see being Acid Pink, but this guy coming the other way, despite being a whole platform to miss me with , walked straight into it. He shouted in my face and called me a naughty word. I told him next time to bring his guide dog.
Got home locksmith turned up 5 minutes later. Looked at my lock and said oh dear its a high security lock, I told him the key was still in the inside and I had a spare in my hand ( got it from the missus) he smiled, banged the door ten times or so and the dam key dropped out. Cost me 124 quid. Apparently he had to drill out every lock so far today and I was the lucky one. 124 quid for 1 minutes work, nice earner I'd say.

 

[Jenkins]

I managed to snap the quick link on the chain on the homward commute today. Somehow I misjudged the gap to the left of one of the speed humps and caught the edge with the right hand pedal which put a shock through the drivetrain and snapped the link. It took a few minutes to fit the spare link I carry (at one point I wondered if it was for a 10 speed chain, not the 11 speed I was using) as the plates would just not engage, but eventually everything was back to normal and a new spare link & disposable gloves are now in the saddlebag to replace the bits used.

 

[Thorn Sherpa]

At least you know for next time if there is one with the lock 🙊

3 incidents on the way home.
First one pleasant, a guy my age was swinging a double handed axe chopping wood on the canal path. I slowed and waited till he saw me, he stopped and apoligised, I said careful with that axe Eugene, he smiled and replied Pink Floyd and gave me a thumbs up.
2nd not so pleasant. In West Ham saw a guy approaching a zebra crossing I slowed so he could cross, he got halfway across and I went behind him. He rounded on me and went absolutely mad, shouting and screaming, I thought he was going to chase me up the road.
3rd again not so pleasant, wheeling my bike up West Ham station platform, now my bike is probably one of the easiest bikes to see being Acid Pink, but this guy coming the other way, despite being a whole platform to miss me with , walked straight into it. He shouted in my face and called me a naughty word. I told him next time to bring his guide dog.
Got home locksmith turned up 5 minutes later. Looked at my lock and said oh dear its a high security lock, I told him the key was still in the inside and I had a spare in my hand ( got it from the missus) he smiled, banged the door ten times or so and the dam key dropped out. Cost me 124 quid. Apparently he had to drill out every lock so far today and I was the lucky one. 124 quid for 1 minutes work, nice earner I'd say.

 

[GeekDadZoid]

My commutes have been quite samey for the last few weeks. But I convinced my friend who I normally ride in on a Friday with, to give it a go on his own another day in the week. He normally drives to my house, but I worked out a reasonable route for him cutting his drive down by 10 miles each way and the cycle by 4km.

So Friday I arranged to meet him at the start of the cycle route with him so we could iron out any issues. So a 15km ride over to Sale from Stockport, then we rode the Bridgwater Canal to Stretford and then along Talbot Road / Stretford Road all the way to the university to grab a coffee at Takk before heading into the office.

His solo trip home went well too.

 

[Scotchlovingcylist]

Doubled the commute tonight to 10 miles and did some urban exploring.

Passed the Siemens turbine factory, photo doesn't do justice to the size of these rotor blades.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Doubled the commute tonight to 10 miles and did some urban exploring.

Passed the Siemens turbine factory, photo doesn't do justice to the size of these rotor blades.

View attachment 642711

They are seriously massive. These are just a few of the many in the Black Forest, bear in mind those are pine trees around the base, and that's a collection of several farms in the valley in front of them. The nacelles must be the size of a bus; they appear to have two sets oif windows but I don't know how big they are.

Although this isn't my commute (thank goodness) I'm pretty sure these are the wind turbines I can see from my commute in the Rhine Valley which is 20 kilometres away.