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The Cycling Chat Thread

braindancer said:
Enjoy! Done the Dynamo many times but not this year.... travel back is just a bit too much faff now I don't live in London. Coach and then another train is quite painful. Hope to do it again some time though...
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It is a faff, last time we went on and stayed in suffolk somewhere. The club have organised a coach this time.
It's a great atmosphere though.
 
sleaterkinney said:
It is a faff, last time we went on and stayed in suffolk somewhere. The club have organised a coach this time.
It's a great atmosphere though.
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Last time I did it my brother and I thought it would be fun to start the ride in Coventry :D. We set off at 8 in the morning thinking that would give us plenty of time to get to London Fields - but it was a nasty headwind all day which really slowed us down so we cut a bit of a corner and joined the route at Epping at about 11. It was very quiet but we gradually caught up with more and more riders and by the time we got to Sudbury we had plenty of company.....

Not sure I'd repeat that strategy in a hurry - but would definitely like to do it again - always enjoyed it - even the first time I did it when I did it on my own after my mates bailed and my chain snapped 3 times!
 
I am going to attempt commuting next week to work... its 9 miles each way and I'll sometimes have a change of clothes/laptop to carry.

I am wondering if rucksack or panniers would be better? Currently have a pannier rack fitted on the bike, but never used it.
 
Agree re panniers.
Having said that: if you already have a suitable backpack, maybe use that for a bit first until you are happy with the commute.
If nothing else your less-sweaty back will know to appreciate it when you move to panniers
 
Had a proper near-death incident today - descending quite a big hill, get to the bottom and go through one of those traffic calming chicanes, a car coming the other way (which I was watching to make sure I had enough time to get through the chicane ahead of them - they would have had priority) suddenly turns right into a driveway across my path just metres in front, I braked hard and swerved, back wheel skidded and I nearly lost it and went over, fuck knows how I stayed upright and avoided hitting them. Must have been doing about 25 at that point. Like they just didn’t see me at all, possibly still completely oblivious to what happened. I sort of feel shit for not going back and having a proper go at them, really shook me up, but I was quite far past by the time I slowed and got out of the shock of it. One of those times I wish I had a camera, stupid inattentive fuckers.
 
Dogsauce said:
Had a proper near-death incident today - descending quite a big hill, get to the bottom and go through one of those traffic calming chicanes, a car coming the other way (which I was watching to make sure I had enough time to get through the chicane ahead of them - they would have had priority) suddenly turns right into a driveway across my path just metres in front, I braked hard and swerved, back wheel skidded and I nearly lost it and went over, fuck knows how I stayed upright and avoided hitting them. Must have been doing about 25 at that point. Like they just didn’t see me at all, possibly still completely oblivious to what happened. I sort of feel shit for not going back and having a proper go at them, really shook me up, but I was quite far past by the time I slowed and got out of the shock of it. One of those times I wish I had a camera, stupid inattentive fuckers.
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I came off my bike last Sunday as a result of a car. I was cycling along a narrow private road. Although it's narrow, it's wide enough for two cars can pass each other with care. I was rounding a bend which more or less turns 180° through the trees. I wasn't riding very fast - Strava reckons I was doing no more than 10mph - and was keeping close to the road edge as it's effectively a blind bend. Part way around the bend there's a car coming towards me which has cut off the apex of the bend so I didn't think there was enough space for me to carry on cycling without the risk of my handlebars catching on the car (or worse). I braked and headed for the narrow grass verge but forgot the local residents had put off-cuts of tree trunks on the verge to stop people driving on it so I braked harder to avoid them and locked up the rear wheel, lost control and came off.

I was OK but my shoulder still aches a bit from the fall. The driver did stop to ask if I was OK but, like you, I was too flustered to consider talking to him about his driving.

I've played the events over in my head a few times since then. Also, like you, I wondered if having a camera would have helped me review what happened. Was there really enough space for me to pass without risking hitting the car? Perhaps I could have kept the bike upright and negotiated the logs if I hadn't applied the brakes so hard?

But then I thought about it another way. If I'd been driving a car, he would most likely have hit it although he may have seen me sooner as the offside would have stuck out in the road more. If I'd been on a mobility scooter I couldn't have taken to the grass verge. If I'd been on a horse (there's a bridleway just off to one side of the bend) it could have spooked it. So, regardless of my inability to keep my bike upright, he should have kept closer to the kerb on his side of the road because he wouldn't have known what was round the blind bend.

I've only been back cycling two or three years after a 30 year hiatus and I'm wary of cycling on the roads as it is, so this has shaken me up a bit. I have been back out on the bike today but was even more cautious than I have been.
 
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Tbf that’s the Long Walk, much of the rest of the park is fine for cycling, but that bit is usually packed with peds, so a long, straight downhill run may have brought out the worst in some cyclists at times…
 
Bahnhof Strasse said:
Tbf that’s the Long Walk, much of the rest of the park is fine for cycling, but that bit is usually packed with peds, so a long, straight downhill run may have brought out the worst in some cyclists at times…
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Fair enough, I couldn’t see any of usual cycles routes, I cycled around there some years ago. Nr Windsor was busy with time trialists.
 
DJWrongspeed said:
The outlook isn't that great Covidwise but I guess if being outside is OK then a cycle trip ought to be more feasible. Doing the Eurovelo15 looked a possibility. (Plenty of 'facilities' along the way !)
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I've been meaning to post this but I set off in the EV15 on 16th July. I went backwards from sea to source because my mate lives in Rotterdam so I used it as a start point. From there there's a lot of industrial stuff on the EV15 and it's not always very interesting to look at but it's flat and gets your legs used to riding all day. It also takes advantage of the prevailing wind. I figured I'd be fit for the hills later after riding that far beforehand.

I didn't do the trek to see the spring but I made it up and over the Oberalppass. After that I've followed the EV6 through France and the Loire Valley then north on the Velo Francette before turning off onto the Paris - Mont St Michel route. I'm just near Mont St Michel today, tomorrow is my last day of cycling before I get the boat from St Malo on Sunday morning. Just over 3000km so far.

I've had an amazing time, beyond what I could've imagined.

Would definitely recommend it. Happy to answer any questions you might have.
 
I've just watched a Youtube video from Electroheads and the presenter (Eilis) showed where she learnt to ride a bike. It immediately brought back memories of me learning to ride a two-wheeler for the first time. I can't remember how old I was although I suspect I was around six or seven, maybe a little older, but I still have vivid memories of my dad taking me up to the village sports field. I remember him telling me the grass was soft so not to worry if I fell over and, the usual, 'don't worry, I've got you' so you won't fall over anyway.

It was here

Sports ground.png

I think I was learning on the outfield of the cricket pitch (visible above). I think most of the local kids learned to ride here too.

I did my cycling proficiency test at primary school and used to cycle to friends houses and to the tennis club - you can just make out the flood lights to the right of the clubhouse in the distance.

All of this was before I was secondary school age. This was all a very long time ago (late 1960s).

So, I was wondering if others had strong memories of learning to ride? Also, what's it like for kids these days? I can't imagine them cycling on their own at such a young age nowadays.
 
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Leafster said:
So, I was wondering if others had strong memories of learning to ride? Also, what's it like for kids these days? I can't imagine them cycling on their own at such a young age nowadays.
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Don’t really remember myself, but I do remember when my lad first managed it. He’d had a balance bike for a while, and seemed ready, so I took him down the park, all primed for a nice father/son bonding moment of me running behind holding him, a few bumps, all the usual stuff.

The clever little shit got on the bike, watched his older sister ride hers for about 30 seconds, then just fucked off at speed :eek: :facepalm: :mad: :D
 
Leafster I remember learning, I think I'd have been five or six and my dad held my saddle and ran around with me on the track around our house (we lived on a farm so this was a gravel car track with grass between the tyre tracks). I think a lot of kids these days have been using a balance bike for a while first and have got the balance sussed already by the time it comes to a proper bike so they're away much faster (and younger, my middle son was riding a pedal bike with no stabilisers at three).
 
weepiper said:
Leafster I remember learning, I think I'd have been five or six and my dad held my saddle and ran around with me on the track around our house (we lived on a farm so this was a gravel car track with grass between the tyre tracks). I think a lot of kids these days have been using a balance bike for a while first and have got the balance sussed already by the time it comes to a proper bike so they're away much faster (and younger, my middle son was riding a pedal bike with no stabilisers at three).
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I was talking to a neighbour about balance bikes a few weeks ago. They have two kids. The older one has just started school and has a bike with stabilisers but they were considering a balance bike for the younger one. It sounds as though, from what you and bees are saying, they might be a good thing.
 
Leafster said:
I was talking to a neighbour about balance bikes a few weeks ago. They have two kids. The older one has just started school and has a bike with stabilisers but they were considering a balance bike for the younger one. It sounds as though, from what you and bees are saying, they might be a good thing.
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It's in the name really... a balance bike is inherently teaching a kid how to stay upright on two wheels. Because they can put their feet down it's low risk, and they can effectively learn at their own pace. Stabilisers on the other hand can't teach balance, so a kid that has learned on them effectively has to do that from scratch when they get on a pedal bike.

I see you can get them for adults too, good for people who haven't had the opportunity to learn, or have balance issues.

(don't remember learning)
 
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Don’t remember learning to ride, but was the dad who got both kids riding, holding the saddle telling them I’d keep hold but actually letting go, once they found out they were beaming. BB1 on the soft grass of the park, by the time BB2’s time came it was a tarmac car park opposite the house, meh, skin fixes if it scrapes…
 
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