"so the bike isn't completely insecure"
Did you tell it you'd be back soon with a different lock?
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Commuting
Confessions of a Cycle Commuter
(1669 posts)-
Posted 9 years ago #
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It was feeling feeling more insecure when I started drooling over another bike which parks next to it. Matching brooks saddle and grips, hub dynamo and gears. Freshly painted decal free frame...
And then this morning I tucked into an alleyway full of bins saying I'll be back in a minute.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I think it might have been Chain Reaction that had an advert a few years ago with a man who had a photograph of a brand new bike on his computer screen and was glancing furtively round at his old bike lying on his bed. Cheeky but funny!
Posted 9 years ago # -
Forgot pump for first time in months - Puncture when I got to bike tonight. Wheel of shame to nearest bike shop for pump borrowing.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I couldn't quite be bothered to convert my Union34 pannier to Vaude QMR hooks this evening so cleaned out my normal pannier instead. I didn't weigh it but I'd estimate that there was about a kilogramme of compacted shopping receipts and note-scribbles in the bottom.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Towel. Grrr.
Posted 9 years ago # -
After about two weeks of, let's be honest here, negligible braking effort from my rear disc caliper, I finally got round to tightening the pads up last night.
Five minutes of work with an allen key, resulting in a massively more pleasant commute this morning.
Why do I put off these tiny maintenance tasks?
Posted 9 years ago # -
A week or so back I finally gave up on my constantly-sticking-on-the-clamp-side black-anodized (all that was available when I was fitting out the LHT) Tektro RX-5, installed the spare non-black-anodized one that I'd not yet installed on the sparebike and bought a new cheap full-size V seeing as I now have linear-pull levers. Both brakes now properly retract.
I thought I would try wearing my least unbreathable anorak this morning, as the rain was quite heavy when we left the house and the first fifteen minutes would be at child-walking pace. Won't be doing that again, at least not until it's also below freezing.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Took the bike which didn't have mudguards this morning...
Posted 9 years ago # -
"Took the bike which didn't have mudguards this morning..."
Mmmm - did you not notice the rain? It was pouring so heavily that it woke me up.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I did, but one bike is more fun than the other...
Posted 9 years ago # -
It's my last day at work today so I dressed nicely (for once) and took the tram so that I'm not on my bike at all. This is completely not what normally happens. It was a good idea for a bit of a laugh for everyone but the tram was ridiculously warm today so jokes probably on me.
Posted 9 years ago # -
"the tram was ridiculously warm today"
Unexpectedly warm/humid outside too!
Posted 9 years ago # -
On the way in this morning stopped at the post office, went to pull my bike lock out of the pannier, it's one of those coiled cable locks, one end got stuck so I pulled, it acted like a spring, the stuck end came free and the lock smacked me in my face in a Wile E. Coyote style manner. The lock was not made by Acme.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I've decided that I will stop recording my normal commute on Strava and use those rides to do some very easy cycling, then aim to do a few longer, hard training rides during the week. Easy as in "pretend your cranks are made of glass" easy.
My confession is that I find it quite uncomfortable being overtaken (a lot!) :P I was overtaken going up Dalkeith road last night by someone on a fairly rusty mountain bike. I also feel slightly self-conscious pootling in my lycra :D
It really doesn't make that much difference to my commute time over ~5 miles, 5-10 mins max. I knew this already, from when I did the living on a pound a day challenge and was trying to use as little energy as possible on my rides to and from work.
It is actually quite nice cycling at a relaxed pace... :P
Posted 9 years ago # -
Why do you have to stop recording in order to go easy?
Posted 9 years ago # -
"It is actually quite nice cycling at a relaxed pace..."
More 'advice' here -
Posted 9 years ago # -
@galaxy Honestly? It's because I'm a competitive (insert expletive), and Strava stokes that fire :P ...but also it's pointless recording it (why would I?) and it's one less thing to faff around with.
@chdot That's very interesting, because I independently had exactly the same revelation as in the 1st post over the past couple of days! I definitely felt considerably more vulnerable going at a slower speed, and "pressured" when I was on a road with a significant amount of traffic, or when starting off from traffic lights. I'm slightly embarrassed to say that the quote ""plainly some folk really don't seem to understand why everyone shouldn't just "man up" and "take the lane" and all the rest of it"" struck a chord....although I'd add that I'm not the type to express something like that out loud!
On Monday night I chose to take the meadows path rather than the road as normal. (I've actually gone back to the road because my tyres were slipping on the [ribbed bits of path???? not sure what you call those...])
Posted 9 years ago # -
@Smashfacethecat Tactiles? I detest them - frankly terrifying in the damp / wet if you ride on the 'Cyclist' side on skinnier tyres. I've had so many "Oh s*%t!" moments on them, no matter how slowly and carefully I go over in the wet that I now ride over the pedestrian side. Never once have experienced the same skidding/slipping regardless of dampness, wetness or speed!
Posted 9 years ago # -
@threefromleith yup....I had a few of those moments on that one ride, because I wasn't going fast and the first time it happened I presumed I was unlucky and slipped on a wet leaf or something.
Are they oriented differently on the pedestrian side? (I wasn't paying attention to this)
Posted 9 years ago # -
Cyclist side are 'tramlimes', running in your direction of travel. Pedestrian side is similar, but without the depth - and they run from left to right.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I forgot my son's bike lock, so had to use mine for his bike, then had nothing left for mine so had to bring mine inside the school when dropping him off, then had to go home again to leave my key for my wife to take when collecting him and to pick up his lock to use for mine at work or for hometime-shopping. Not my most efficient morning, but better than the time I had to go back home to get something I'd forgotten which I then had to take back to school. I shall have to see if there's space on the frame for a lock bracket.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Forgetting that at this time of year you have to change to feathering of the rear brake because of leaf mulch.
Cue the front wheel skid, which wasn't drastic but still enough to raise heart rate when you're not brimming full of confidence on the bike yet.
Posted 9 years ago # -
I know what you mean, I had my rude awakening before I had even left my driveway this morning. Better there than on a busy cycle path though.
Posted 9 years ago # -
@wingpig we have several combination locks, all set to the same combo which kids know too.
not for normal use, obviously, but handy for inside school grounds, quick stops like school dropoffs. and especially in case you describe where someone else does the pickup/drop-off.
of course, we also have keys to each others locks, but it does mean a ginormous set of keys.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Not commuting, but utility cycling, so putting it here:
Had to go from near the Commonwealth Pool to a pub on London Road near Meadowbank about 9pm yesterday. The obvious route is to go through Holyrood Park.
I'd forgotten that there's no street lighting in Holyrood Park... I have lights, of course, but they're not really for seeing where you're going... It was quite fun and a little bit concerning at the same time!Posted 9 years ago # -
"...but it does mean a ginormous set of keys..."
I have mine inside one of those leather key-bag things to stop them ripping open the insides of pockets and scratching huge holes in my legs. Unfortunately the side-gate key is a big long proper-key which still pokes out of the top. I still need to carry nine keys even when I don't carry a wife-car key (which is now one of those electric fob-only things).
I've been peering at combilocks or combipadlocks recently for the drop-off but it's the stowage which takes the most time.
Posted 9 years ago # -
Be careful what you rest your bike on, which limb you try to stop it falling over with and which bit of the bike you hastily press the limb against.
Posted 9 years ago # -
OW. Pedal injury?
Posted 9 years ago # -
Chainring. Unlocking after child-drop, the combination of heavy pannier and rain was enough for the bike to slide downwards and legwards. Mostly clotted by now.
Posted 9 years ago #
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