Tales from today's commute....

[fossyant]

And I saw Fossy

Saw Potsy too - your orange guillet is quite distinctive !!

Wet again this morning. Please put your lights on, it's not exactly bright at 7:30am with hissing rain - to the lady cycling down Stockport road all in black with no lights - you weren't very visible in the hissing rain !!!

 

[ianrauk]

Perfect conditions for this mornings commute. Not too cold, very little wind and traffic was light.
Only thing that let it down was the bloody traffic lights. I seemed to catch every one on red.......21 miles @ 17.4mph avg though.. so pleased with that.

 

[PJ79LIZARD]

As for the balance of things to be restored from last nights great cycle back, had a crap cycle in this morn. Some student nob decided to step forward at a crowded bus stop and yell something at me catching me unawares. On a busy road and luckily didn't have a vehicle close to me. Will be riding past slower tomorrow!

 

[fimm]

Dug out a rear light in a hurry this morning as it seemed a bit dark. Got outside and realised it was raining. I suspect my hi-vis not-very-waterproof was probably more useful than the light which I think is a bit dodgy. Job for the weekend is to sort all the lights for the big bike out (I don't need them in the summer).

 

[Christopher]

Another awful rainy day in Lancashire. So depressed at the weather the commute took twice as long as usual as I just could not be bothered.

 

[potsy]

Soaked again this morning, not funny anymore
Agree about the lack of lights, cars too not just cyclists.

 

[fossyant]

Traffic is certainly back to very heavy in the mornings, big tail backs, some quick but cautious filtering down the outside and you've passed over 100 cars ! Even schools kids walking were quicker ! Got sunshine out now !

 

[lip03]

4am start today so had tights for the 1st time this year was chilly!! but on the plus side wes a real clear sky and saw an amazing shooting star!!

 

[ohnovino]

Fitted a new stem on the commuter yesterday (little longer, little lower). It felt great this morning, but I've got so little confidence in my fettling that I kept expecting the bars to come away in my hands. I think it was probably the slowest commute I've ever ridden!

 

[Peter Armstrong]

This... is it too close?


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLdx0xIc-qc&feature=plcp

 

[gambatte]

Back in the cage this morning and soon remembered why I like the bike. A section that takes 5 mins to walk, took 12 mins in the car. OK, over the rest of the journey as I'm predominantly on the m'way, but....
It was dawn when I set off, early enough that all cars I saw had their lights on.
I saw 3 bikes. A paper lad on the road, albeit on the wrong side of the road, riding into oncoming traffic, with no discernable brake components and two commuters, one a ninja. Not a light between the 3.
IMO as a cyclist, it's when you drive and have differnet closing speeds, you can really appreciate the difference between a ninja and a cyclist thats gone out of his way to make himself visible?

<edit> PA - yep, too close, looked like a squeaky bum moment?

 

[Miquel In De Rain]

It was a great ride home, no that’s not quite true. I was 8 minutes in to my ride when I punctured, annoying as it was barely a 100 yards from the spot where I’d punctured only a week or so ago, and the hole was less than 2 inches from the last repair. What made it amazing was, three people offered to help/provide tools within a minute of me stopping and flipping the bike upside down on the grass verge. A long legged roadie/ninja cyclist, called out as he rode past “you ok mate” (Imagine my shock as you have to realise I ride a mustang ATT bike, commonly called a WDS BSO). A few moments later a girl in a car stopped wound her window down and asked if I had everything I needed.

I was just putting a scab on the hole, when a guy came out of his house and said “You ok, need any tools?” I told him I was fine.

“You sure? I’m just over there if you need anything”

My faith in human kind has been restored.

My faith in human kind has been battered but I will get over it.Maybe.

This... is it too close?

Yes,that looks like crap.

 

[donnydave]

There's a woman in a nearly new red honda civic near Cambridge who's got some serious issues, two mornings this week she's passed very close and almost fell out of her seat waving at the shared ped/cycle path (bumpy, narrow, interrupted by junctions so don't use it,as is my choice).

I know she's trying to scare me off the road but I've been commuting every day for almost a year now so I try not to rise to this kind of thing any more as it never gains anything. I've remonstrated with other road users before and quoting the highway code gets them even more annoyed, so I just channel the rage to my legs. I'm a little concerned at how far she's willing to take it but if she does it again I think the safest action is just to report her.

On the way home I sailed past someone struggling head down on a "distressed" mtb look up and stare at me and mutter "for f's sake" and wobbled to a stop in despair. Coasting past whilst sitting up and having a drink probably didn't help.

Ooh another one, filtering round the outside of some unexpected walking pace traffic (pulling in with plenty of time/distance for oncoming vehicles, of course), woman coming the other way flashes her lights and shakes her head at me. I'm glad she's got my safety in mind, but that irked me more than some close passes.

Oh well, same time tomorrow....

Dave A

 

[SportMonkey]

Had something go straight through my brand new Schwalbe Luganos. They'll make it home tonight but they're ruined, 3mm gash through all the plys.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

Twas warm and sunny with a gusty wind from the south, and not a single thing to report otherwise. Perhaps I should set off for the office everyday at 11:00? (Opticians appointment)

Last night, it looked good, so I left at 16:30 and went the long way home, in the company of someone doing their first ever there and back commute by bike, and another colleague. The normal 50 mins became two-and-half-hours, the 20km just under 60km and a very tired noob rider (24 miles each way) was safely delivered to his hot bath.