woodbloke
Established Member
At last, the definitive article. Is there one of these for honing and sharpening by any chance [-o< - RobPete Maddex":1tvhd4cw said:
Cyclists!!!
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Jacob
What goes around comes around.
No but seriously, picking on minor transgressions by cyclists is getting to be just a bit uninteresting.
Motorists are going to have to learn to like cyclists and there are plenty of good reasons why they should.
Here are a few:
There are a lot of cyclists, increasing all the time - there are more bikes in the world than cars.
Cyclists very rarely kill, injure, or damage anything except themselves and/or their bikes (though it has been known).
Cycling is (just about) carbon neutral and generates no pollution or noise whatsoever (except creaking, groaning, farting etc).
A bike journey may well replace a car journey. Bikes take up less road space and so reduce traffic jams, speeding up car journeys and also freeing up parking spaces for cars.
Cycling keeps you fit - increasing your productivity and reducing the burden on the NHS - saving taxpayers money!!
That's a few for starters, there are more!!
Motorists are going to have to learn to like cyclists and there are plenty of good reasons why they should.
Here are a few:
There are a lot of cyclists, increasing all the time - there are more bikes in the world than cars.
Cyclists very rarely kill, injure, or damage anything except themselves and/or their bikes (though it has been known).
Cycling is (just about) carbon neutral and generates no pollution or noise whatsoever (except creaking, groaning, farting etc).
A bike journey may well replace a car journey. Bikes take up less road space and so reduce traffic jams, speeding up car journeys and also freeing up parking spaces for cars.
Cycling keeps you fit - increasing your productivity and reducing the burden on the NHS - saving taxpayers money!!
That's a few for starters, there are more!!
You missed something Jacob.
Cycling is hard work and most people's idea of exercise is reaching for the remote control on the telly or tearing open a packet of crisps. Or, for those adventurous few, riding to the pub so they can get p1ssed and not worry about driving home.
I cycle to work daily and every holiday for the last 22 years has been with our (my wife is a keen cyclist too) bikes and I can say that I take every precaution to protect myself from the large number of ***** drivers on the road. Even if that means pulling away from a traffic-light controlled roundabout (what a stupid idea to put lights on a roundabout) when I see the traffic on my right stopping as their light goes red and BEFORE my light starts to change. This means I can clear the roundabout safely, before the traffic waiting with me moves off, without some dummy cutting across me as they take the "racing" line to hit the apex when turning left in front of me in case I might hold them up for a nanosecond.
I've been run off the road into ditches by lorries swinging their tails in at me as they overtake, knocked off by cars overtaking me only to turn left immediately in front of me, had things thrown at me and been spat at by passengers in passing cars for no reason other than their own amusement, and many other near misses.
The real reason many drivers hate cyclists is because our roads are so overcrowded and it takes so long to get anywhere. Seeing a cyclist make progress while they sit bumper to bumper crawling along gives them an easy target to vent their frustrations at.
Cycling is hard work and most people's idea of exercise is reaching for the remote control on the telly or tearing open a packet of crisps. Or, for those adventurous few, riding to the pub so they can get p1ssed and not worry about driving home.
I cycle to work daily and every holiday for the last 22 years has been with our (my wife is a keen cyclist too) bikes and I can say that I take every precaution to protect myself from the large number of ***** drivers on the road. Even if that means pulling away from a traffic-light controlled roundabout (what a stupid idea to put lights on a roundabout) when I see the traffic on my right stopping as their light goes red and BEFORE my light starts to change. This means I can clear the roundabout safely, before the traffic waiting with me moves off, without some dummy cutting across me as they take the "racing" line to hit the apex when turning left in front of me in case I might hold them up for a nanosecond.
I've been run off the road into ditches by lorries swinging their tails in at me as they overtake, knocked off by cars overtaking me only to turn left immediately in front of me, had things thrown at me and been spat at by passengers in passing cars for no reason other than their own amusement, and many other near misses.
The real reason many drivers hate cyclists is because our roads are so overcrowded and it takes so long to get anywhere. Seeing a cyclist make progress while they sit bumper to bumper crawling along gives them an easy target to vent their frustrations at.
Peter T
Established Member
Jacob":3keafzad said:
If they want to support the NHS maybe they should pay road tax, insurance and fuel duty. I'm sure, however, that their largesse won't stretch quite that far!!!
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
Fuel duty? On all day breakfasts and muesli bars? :lol:Peter T":yn755nd1 said:
Insurance? Some do, but they aren't a danger to the public anything like motor vehicles.
Road tax? Some do - they also drive cars but whilst cycling their cars are off the road - road tax discount for them? Anyway their cost in terms of wear and tear, infrastructure etc is minimal compared to motorists.
You can't beat them - you might as well join them!
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
Absolutely. The fat lazy f****s are jealous! And so they should be. :lol: :lol: They don't know what they are missing.myturn":33dsrlkw said:
Mick, we cycle holiday too (camping). Puglia this spring - lovely. Rotterdam to Ejsburg last year. Cevennes year before. Wales, Scotland, Ireland etc. every now and then.
Monsal Trail last Sunday.
Lytham to Glasson dock Sunday before
Used to Audax a bit.
Peter T
Established Member
Jacob":1uwb6a97 said:
What a charming, well actually no, moronic would be better, way you have with words!!
Ahh, you're a REAL cyclist if you carry your bed and tent on your bike.Jacob":3c2wt3dq said:
I prefer the luxury of, dare I say it, driving (or flying) to where I'm staying and then cycling from there. Disadvantage is I have to start and end up at the same place whereas you can just keep on going wherever you fancy, but I like my comfort!
I wouldn't mind so much sleeping in a tent, it's carrying all the luggage on the bike I would hate. 2 bottles, a saddle-bag and pockets stuffed full is as much as I like to carry.
There's nothing like a cycling holiday for discovering roads, enjoying the scenery and generally feeling on top of the world.
A
Anonymous
Guest
Karl":o8d3odba said:
hmm in future i reckon you should be pushing your car through the country lanes, how dare you use an engine!!!
woodbloke":o8d3odba said:
How very tiring!!
Fact is, most adult cyclists are drivers too, so they do pay all that stuff. Meanwhile, whilst on the bike, there is one less car on the road to add to conjestion, pollution, shortage of parking &c. &c. Cycling makes you healthier too, therefore less strain on the NHS, whilst paying NI, just like any junk food eating, smoking couch potato. Bit of largesse going on there, I think!Peter T":20qysgas said:
Cyclists should obey the law & follow the highway code though.
Can't stand that rabidly anti-cyclist Jeremy Clarkson: a lardy, sixth rate celebrity who thinks he's oh-so-funny. If he wants to give us a laugh, let's see him try to clean up an oak table top with a jack plane. He'd be k****erd in next to no time.
I live at the bottom of a Cwm with steep hills out of the village in both directions, so cycling is not a big thing here, horses are though.
I used to ride when I was younger and always slow when approaching horses, on my motor bike 'tother day a met a dou of female riders, and as the bike is somewhat noiser than a car I stopped and turned the engine off, but it is amazing how many drivers just blast past riders.
Roy.
I used to ride when I was younger and always slow when approaching horses, on my motor bike 'tother day a met a dou of female riders, and as the bike is somewhat noiser than a car I stopped and turned the engine off, but it is amazing how many drivers just blast past riders.
Roy.
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
We don't always do it. In Puglia we had a flat and hired the bikes. A few years back we did hotels in France but it was a freeby as we were assistants on a group tour. Luxury, but claustrophobic. We missed sitting about on campsites in the open air, under the sky etc.myturn":r681ng9p said:
You just get used to the weight of the gear and the slower speed. Slower up hills that is, the weight doesn't hinder otherwise.
Ditto past bikes though it'd be worse with a skittish horse of course.
Horse riders and cyclists are usually quite empathetic, perhaps because they are both out in the open without much protection, liable to falls, vulnerable to bad driving etc
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
Haven't they done well! I thought they might have blown it but Cav came through like a rocket. I didn't see how he got through I'll have to watch the highlights.
Lots of talk about British cycling on the increase, maybe BBC will pick up on the tour one day :roll: .
So Clarkson fans take note - you are on a big loser and there will be even more of us shortly!! Get on your bikes lardies!
Lots of talk about British cycling on the increase, maybe BBC will pick up on the tour one day :roll: .
So Clarkson fans take note - you are on a big loser and there will be even more of us shortly!! Get on your bikes lardies!
RogerP
Established Member
myturn":3jkv3ion said:
I think you're very close here, but not quite on the money. I drive a lot in London, and bear no particular ill will to cyclists, but I do get very narked by the way cyclists will weave through slow traffic, using their small size and maneuverability to make headway, yet as soon as they hit a clear stretch of road, do they return the favour and keep near the kerb to allow traffic to pass.... do they F*&$!
Jacob
What goes around comes around.
Keeping near the kerb is dangerous in traffic. The reason being that a slight wobble to the left, if it hits the kerb can throw the bike back into the traffic. Timid beginners do this and and are advised to keep a distance and to hold their space, ignoring the traffic behind. 2 ft or more is necessary, especially as there are other hazards in the gutter such as drain covers or broken glass etc.Setch":26t8bl0k said:
Similarly in lanes - cyclists should hog the centre of a lane so that they aren't squeezed in from either side.
Ignorant motorists may not know this. The sooner they learn the better. Now you know!
Drivers who wish to vent their frustrations on cyclists shouldn't be on the road anyway.
woodbloke
Established Member
+1...agree absolutely - RobJacob":31xqxj1z said:
bugbear
Established Member
Jacob":uv5c56kf said:
Yeah - but sadly, they ARE on the road, and if you want to stay alive as a cyclist, you have to allow for it. Or face the consequences.
There's a famous Thelwell cartoon of a small dinghy claiming right of way over the Queen Mary, which (engine gives way to sail) it's entitled to do...
BugBear
RogerS
Established Member
Cyclists...pah! What is it about the TdF that seems to trigger the same lard-arses squeezed into ill-fitting Lycra pretenting they are Bradley Wiggins and giving themselves a coronary in the process.
Seriously, as long as they apply give and take on the road then they are as entitled as anyone else. But what does get my goat is where you get a bloody phalanx of them two or three abreast with no opportunity to overtake. That's just plain selfish.
Seriously, as long as they apply give and take on the road then they are as entitled as anyone else. But what does get my goat is where you get a bloody phalanx of them two or three abreast with no opportunity to overtake. That's just plain selfish.
woodbloke
Established Member
Peleton is the word your looking for Rog :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :lol:...have to agree with you though. Cyclists are road users the same as anyone else - RobRogerS":wx0nk3u6 said:
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