That would work
Established Member
Thank God it's ok. 
Any cyclists? Get the miles in!
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MikeG.
Established Member
whatknot":11szuhd6 said:
I can see this from the council's viewpoint. Drivers are not known for their respect for cyclists or cycle lanes. There are squillions of photos on the internet of people parking across cycle lanes, blocking them constantly (and of course those same people will be the first to yell at cyclists to get off the effing road and and back on the cycle lane). Completely separated cycle paths work beautifully on the continent, and they work well here, too. The issue is the change, and the lack of signage.
whatknot
Established Member
I could understand it fully were it an ordinary road, but this is a service road for buses, taxis and delivery trucks, I am not aware of a single incident involving a cycling accident at that point so why waste money on such a pointless project? There is a pavement on the other side (with kerb) so its not a joint cycle/pedestrian path
Where they have added the kerb is a point where pedestrians congregate often blocking that part whilst waiting to cross, so cyclists have to negotiate round them, previously the lack of kerb wasn't a problem, now it very much is
As you say the lack of proper warning really doesn't help, but it was unnecessary in the first place
Where they have added the kerb is a point where pedestrians congregate often blocking that part whilst waiting to cross, so cyclists have to negotiate round them, previously the lack of kerb wasn't a problem, now it very much is
As you say the lack of proper warning really doesn't help, but it was unnecessary in the first place
MikeG.
Established Member
Ah, right. That's different then. Maybe the council's insurers were worried about a claim against a lorry driver or bus driver, so the containment is more for the (legal) protection of vehicle owners/ drivers than the protection of the cyclists. Dunno. We're just guessing....
That would work":hdi412hk said:
Ahh, so you like low pressure tires and using leg energy to bend rubber and generate heat!!
I was never a strong cyclist, but used to live next to a park with a 5 mile loop. It was wonderful - you could go for a casual one hour 20 mile session (well, not that casual) through the mildly hilly park and ride back home and be done with all of it.
Crossing through the park in the woods were many trails - awesomely fit folks sometimes who would emerge out onto the paved loop and as they heard you approaching, do everything they could to stop you from passing them, but it was always done with ease on a road bike by a pasty soft-looking 150 pound dude like me.
The fixies that Mike talks about got popular here temporarily - especially for the man bun types who don't ride for exercise and want to advertise their minimalist tendencies. I always thought they looked neat because they're so plain. Hearing mike talk about them, I'm glad I never got one. I was a little stronger rider than I suggest above - sometimes riding the loop without changing gears or position on the bike at all - just to train legs - the fixies that I see here don't have a very big crank most of the time and would be horrid in the downhills here where you can easily get over 30 miles an hour. I wonder if they make "dad" versions of those that can coast and have brakes. I guess that would be uncool.
That would work
Established Member
Something tells me that you have not read my post correctly. The part that you quote is me making a tongue in cheek/ironic statement. Also, I suspect that your version of a 'fixie' is different to mine.D_W":24v63xjm said:
RogerS
Established Member
MikeG.
Established Member
D_W":2o95itry said:
They're not fixies, but single speed. They're ten-a-penny here.
Inspector
Nyuck, Nyuck, Nyuck!
I have a buddy that has always ridden bikes for fun until he retired a couple years ago, then he got into distance ride rallies/races or whatever you call them. He has one of those training stands in the basement that you remove the front wheel and clamp into with the rear rolling on a drum for exercise. It might be tied to a fan, I am not sure. Trouble with it was he got bored quickly and wouldn't ride it more that 20 or 30 minutes at a time. He put a 30" TV on the wall in front of him and hooked all up to his phone. It has a cycling app that lets him ride roads in places all over the world with it matching his riding speed. It is real video and not simulated animations of these rides. Now he has no problem training for a couple hours at a stretch and he doesn't get rained, snowed on or run over by cars in the dark. The only moisture he contends with is his own sweat. Admittedly not the same as a real ride but an alternative when not allowed to play outside.
Pete
Pete
MikeG.
Established Member
You can actually now take part in organised races against other people sitting in their garages, basements and spare rooms all over the world. Professional riders do them too. It's amazing how they behave very much like real races, with pelatons forming, breakaways, solo attacks, and so on, yet without any of the team orders or communications to control things. Zwift is one of the most well known ones, but there are lots of others. There was talk of one of the stages of the Tour de France happening indoors on Zwift or similar in the next year or two.
People who do this regularly put a plastic sheet on the floor to collect the sweat, and need the fan to keep themselves cool.
People who do this regularly put a plastic sheet on the floor to collect the sweat, and need the fan to keep themselves cool.
Trainee neophyte
Established Member
MikeG.":52phuh58 said:
I'm just a Sunday cyclist but we once had a chap from Sweden cycle all the way to Greece with a fixed single gear bicycle - he reckoned that there would be less to go wrong. Apparently what you lose on the flat you make up for on the hills, or something.
That would work":29s2c7r2 said:
Mine was a joke, too. bending rubber, making heat. My first two bikes were mountain bikes - i liked them. I never knew how much faster a road bike would be until I got on one, though, but will admit with the tires at 110 psi, the initial feel was a combination of "wow" and "ouch...bumps".
I did always get a giggle out of an average recreational biker riding the loop here - watching the mountain biking guys do a round, they hear you coming (no cars), they look back quickly, they speed up their cadence as much as possible out of being competitive, you leisurely ride by them, and then once you pass them, the cadence slows down again....and you giggle, until you see them veer off into the woods and realize you can't go there.
That would work":2t0wnvzs said:
The fixie sold by the company that I bought my bike from was a single speed bike available two ways (just looked it up - the company is out of business):
* the wheels turn, the pedal turns. with or without brakes (apparently, there are laws in some states here that don't allow use of bikes on roads without separate brakes. Bummer)
* or you could buy a combo bike (single speed bike, but flip the hub around and it's a fixie, but with brakes).
I didn't look that hard at them - the front crank isn't very big and they look like a crappy dad bike (which is what I ride now). My road biking days were before the man bun era and I don't remember seeing fixies - only package delivery folks in the city would've been trendy enough to be into that kind of stuff back then. It's far back enough that my bike was made in the united states and the components were made in japan. I wouldn't trade shop time for bike time at this point, but I still have the bike - sans pedals, they're on an exercise bike in my basement.
Maybe you're just too cool for me. I'm fine with that.
Inspector":vsctfbxy said:
those trainers (that the bike goes in) are magnetic or fluid. Things have probably changed - mine is magnetic (that was the cheap type). Which reminds me that i need to put it out for the trash.
Inspector
Nyuck, Nyuck, Nyuck!
Wrap some sandpaper around the drum and mount it in your lathe to make a thickness sander.
Pete
Pete
MikeG.
Established Member
D_W":3h8v4nn7 said:
Ignore SBJ. He has a grudge, and follows me around the forum sniping whenever he can. It's all rather sad, and of course he's on my ignore list so I don't see any of it unless someone quotes him.
Back in about 1986 I bought myself a brand new cycle, a Claud Butler Majestic like this one.
It was a major purchase for me at the time. I rode it a fair bit but I left the bike in the UK in 2004 after an extended visit. The bike sat in a relatives shed until last year when I was in the UK for a a couple of months without transport. I pulled out the bike and fettled it with new tyres & tubes and it was good to go. Unfortunately, after 15 years out of the saddle, I wasn't. I found that journeys I used to do without thinking had somehow become major expeditions. Did they stretch all the roads in the UK or something?
The other thing was I hadn't realised how much cycles had advanced since I bought this one. The rat traps on the pedals, gear change levers around my ankles, skinny little tyres, everything seems very dated compared to modern cycles. If I were to start cycling again I would definitely want a modern bike. As it is I am unlikely to do much cycling in the future and my bike is back in my relative's shed.
It was a major purchase for me at the time. I rode it a fair bit but I left the bike in the UK in 2004 after an extended visit. The bike sat in a relatives shed until last year when I was in the UK for a a couple of months without transport. I pulled out the bike and fettled it with new tyres & tubes and it was good to go. Unfortunately, after 15 years out of the saddle, I wasn't. I found that journeys I used to do without thinking had somehow become major expeditions. Did they stretch all the roads in the UK or something?
The other thing was I hadn't realised how much cycles had advanced since I bought this one. The rat traps on the pedals, gear change levers around my ankles, skinny little tyres, everything seems very dated compared to modern cycles. If I were to start cycling again I would definitely want a modern bike. As it is I am unlikely to do much cycling in the future and my bike is back in my relative's shed.
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