I think I'm done with road...
Discussion
When I'm driving in the car and come across someone riding a bicycle I like to overtake 'properly'. Ie where I can see oncoming traffic properly, can leave enough space for the person on their bike and have enough clear road length.
It's so annoying when you get some sod that zooms up behind you that starts tailgating you, swerving their car about and on a couple of occasions honking their horn. This is always worse when I'm in my small daily driver. If I'm in something with a bit more road presence I get way less hassle or at least I feel less pressured.
It's so annoying when you get some sod that zooms up behind you that starts tailgating you, swerving their car about and on a couple of occasions honking their horn. This is always worse when I'm in my small daily driver. If I'm in something with a bit more road presence I get way less hassle or at least I feel less pressured.
lrdisco said:
So much abuse towards drivers here. Have you never thought that we live on a small over crowded island and that people have high pressured time sensitive lives and your recreation/ hobby can cause delays to people.
People don’t see why you have to ride in groups 4 abreast on roads designed for a horse drawn carriage or at best a Morris Minor.
Yes you have the right to ride 4 abreast but your rights won’t get you far on a busy A road when 2.5 tons of SUV spreads you across the tarmac.
Try blaming the politicians who haven’t built cycle lanes.
Now as far as gravel path rides keep off routes where pedestrians are as cyclists seem to be the hooligans there. Are we seeing a bit of a pattern here that cyclists can’t seem to get on with anyone? Maybe cyclists are the problem and are the self absorbed ones?
Do
Good grief!People don’t see why you have to ride in groups 4 abreast on roads designed for a horse drawn carriage or at best a Morris Minor.
Yes you have the right to ride 4 abreast but your rights won’t get you far on a busy A road when 2.5 tons of SUV spreads you across the tarmac.
Try blaming the politicians who haven’t built cycle lanes.
Now as far as gravel path rides keep off routes where pedestrians are as cyclists seem to be the hooligans there. Are we seeing a bit of a pattern here that cyclists can’t seem to get on with anyone? Maybe cyclists are the problem and are the self absorbed ones?
Do
Nobody rides 4 abreast.
Riding 2 abreast can shorten the distance you need to overtake by 50%, given you really want to do it when the other half of the road is clear, so maybe you should appreciate that?
I guess you’d rather cyclists all got in cars, and clogged up the roads even more on our small overcrowded island?
What a thoughtful post!
I switched to gravel/paved. I use the komoot app for certain areas for routes where it says mountain bike route as for many people it's more of a gravel or interesting gravel ride rather than the dull fire road/double farm track that appear to be 90% of gravel rides.
I could ride 99% of Sundays route and it wasn't taxing.
No looking over my shoulder or worrying about close passes.
Edit - on a Vitus Venon carbon allroad bike.
I could ride 99% of Sundays route and it wasn't taxing.
No looking over my shoulder or worrying about close passes.
Edit - on a Vitus Venon carbon allroad bike.
Edited by Hugo Stiglitz on Tuesday 26th March 07:57
I started cycling about 10 years ago when I lived nearer London. I used to commute 30 miles a day into London and tbf I didn't have many problems.
I found riding on the country lanes local to me back then more dangerous with close passes, speed and crappy roads.
Today I've moved and run more. If I cycle I stick to my local loop or small country lanes outside of busy periods. I rarely see a car. I would like to go further but it means crossing or using busy A roads.
I would like to try gravel and need to do some research on where I can do this in my area.
I found riding on the country lanes local to me back then more dangerous with close passes, speed and crappy roads.
Today I've moved and run more. If I cycle I stick to my local loop or small country lanes outside of busy periods. I rarely see a car. I would like to go further but it means crossing or using busy A roads.
I would like to try gravel and need to do some research on where I can do this in my area.
lrdisco said:
Apart from the walkers are going at 5mph max whereas a MTB rider is going 30MPH down hill with limited control of their bicycle.
Pumped up hooligans.
fPumped up hooligans.
k those fking red sock wearing aholes, fair game as far as I'm concerned; more of them I can mow down the better, and at speed if possible; clogging up our bridleways and footpaths 
CheesecakeRunner said:
The thread has already been tidied up once this morning. Let’s not make the mods have to do it again.
Annoyingly so. It seems that a bit of push back against entitled fools like LR Disco and a few hurty words, and it's cleaned up.I am sick of wondering while on the road bike, if I will end up dead or eating my dinner through a straw, all due to some entitled driver, aggrieved at my very existence, just because I ride a bike.
It's tiring and and it's dispiriting and it is no wonder we take it personally, because I see and read comments from people like him all the time. Try running the Facebook page of a cycling club, and the hatred and bile posted on it by complete strangers, purely because they encountered one or two of our riders.
We are running a small charity sportive, in memory of a club member who died on a ride, and the Facebook pile on from mouth breathers for us having the audacity to organise a bike ride, is depressing.
Lots of racism and misogyny hiding in plain site on NP&E, but have a go back at someone who's numerous contributions to a cycling thread, are to attack cyclists, and it's all pearl clutching and sniffing the vapours.
Likelihood is if this thread has been chooped, someone went running off to report it. I wonder who that might have been?
Doesn't matter, it's just talking in the internet & point made I think, OP says they're tired of the risks in road cycling, guy comes along & unwittingly reinforces the argument.
Doesn't matter, it's just talking in the internet & point made I think, OP says they're tired of the risks in road cycling, guy comes along & unwittingly reinforces the argument.
President Merkin said:
Likelihood is if this thread has been chooped, someone went running off to report it. I wonder who that might have been?
Doesn't matter, it's just talking in the internet & point made I think, OP says they're tired of the risks in road cycling, guy comes along & unwittingly reinforces the argument.
Entitled is as entitled does...Doesn't matter, it's just talking in the internet & point made I think, OP says they're tired of the risks in road cycling, guy comes along & unwittingly reinforces the argument.
This is my theory.
95% of drivers you encounter are great and give you plenty of room.
4% lack spatial awareness and / or judgement and don't realise how close they are when they pass (and how scary it can be - it's interesting to watch the oncoming drivers when a car behind you goes for the next risky pass, it's often not just the person on the bike in danger.)
1% are psychopaths and there's no helping them!
I know there's a cat in hell's chance of this ever happening but the first part of the driving test should be 15 minutes riding a bike in the local area of the test. You then get in the car and during the test have to negotiate several pre-planned cyclists on route.
The 4% would then get an idea of what it's actually like riding a bike with cars around (as I'm convinced that nice lady in the Honda Jazz wasn't deliberately trying to push me into the kerb!)
The theory part of the test could cover the 'must get ahead' attitude and show that in an urban area it often doesn't achieve much as you just catch up the next queue of traffic a bit quicker.
Suggestions welcome on how to deal with the psychopaths !
95% of drivers you encounter are great and give you plenty of room.
4% lack spatial awareness and / or judgement and don't realise how close they are when they pass (and how scary it can be - it's interesting to watch the oncoming drivers when a car behind you goes for the next risky pass, it's often not just the person on the bike in danger.)
1% are psychopaths and there's no helping them!
I know there's a cat in hell's chance of this ever happening but the first part of the driving test should be 15 minutes riding a bike in the local area of the test. You then get in the car and during the test have to negotiate several pre-planned cyclists on route.
The 4% would then get an idea of what it's actually like riding a bike with cars around (as I'm convinced that nice lady in the Honda Jazz wasn't deliberately trying to push me into the kerb!)
The theory part of the test could cover the 'must get ahead' attitude and show that in an urban area it often doesn't achieve much as you just catch up the next queue of traffic a bit quicker.
Suggestions welcome on how to deal with the psychopaths !
AndyF2020 said:
Suggestions welcome on how to deal with the psychopaths !
Buy a mountain bike, Then literally none of this ever happens 
OK flippant of me but also a grain of truth. It's just a pity even the 1% you mention are out there, it should be perfectly possible for everyone to coexist but as we've seen in here, you can't rely on some to be rational.
AndyF2020 said:
This is my theory.
95% of drivers you encounter are great and give you plenty of room.
4% lack spatial awareness and / or judgement and don't realise how close they are when they pass (and how scary it can be - it's interesting to watch the oncoming drivers when a car behind you goes for the next risky pass, it's often not just the person on the bike in danger.)
1% are psychopaths and there's no helping them!
I know there's a cat in hell's chance of this ever happening but the first part of the driving test should be 15 minutes riding a bike in the local area of the test. You then get in the car and during the test have to negotiate several pre-planned cyclists on route.
The 4% would then get an idea of what it's actually like riding a bike with cars around (as I'm convinced that nice lady in the Honda Jazz wasn't deliberately trying to push me into the kerb!)
The theory part of the test could cover the 'must get ahead' attitude and show that in an urban area it often doesn't achieve much as you just catch up the next queue of traffic a bit quicker.
Suggestions welcome on how to deal with the psychopaths !
I wonder how many would survive the 15min bike ride prior to the test 95% of drivers you encounter are great and give you plenty of room.
4% lack spatial awareness and / or judgement and don't realise how close they are when they pass (and how scary it can be - it's interesting to watch the oncoming drivers when a car behind you goes for the next risky pass, it's often not just the person on the bike in danger.)
1% are psychopaths and there's no helping them!
I know there's a cat in hell's chance of this ever happening but the first part of the driving test should be 15 minutes riding a bike in the local area of the test. You then get in the car and during the test have to negotiate several pre-planned cyclists on route.
The 4% would then get an idea of what it's actually like riding a bike with cars around (as I'm convinced that nice lady in the Honda Jazz wasn't deliberately trying to push me into the kerb!)
The theory part of the test could cover the 'must get ahead' attitude and show that in an urban area it often doesn't achieve much as you just catch up the next queue of traffic a bit quicker.
Suggestions welcome on how to deal with the psychopaths !
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