..is now official. FB event here Leaving at 1.30pm. from Harrison Park West via Harrison Road. Please tell friends, neighbours & relations.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Events, rides etc.
Harrison Park #Pop28 feeder ride
(39 posts)-
Posted 12 years ago #
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For some reason that link just redirects me back to my facebook events list - I will never ever ever understand facebook...
Posted 12 years ago # -
"I will never ever ever understand facebook"
I'm not going to try...
Posted 12 years ago # -
I wouldn't but there's so many people for whom facebook practically is the internet & it's the only way to reach them.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Worked out the prob - you aren't 'friends' with anyone going (that must have been the default setting). Have changed it to a public event!
Posted 12 years ago # -
Cool, just checked & it works now (even logged out of facebook). Will add it to the POP site
Posted 12 years ago # -
It also struck me that folks coming in from Dumfries and wanting to park & ride could do worse than to join this? I assume there will be a bit of parking around there.
Posted 12 years ago # -
The more the merrier. We've got at least a couple of cars coming from Fife too, I think. I don't know much about the parking, but others can let you know. I think there's single yellows along Harrison Road, and pay and display along Polwarth terrace/Ettrick, which is where the
rugbyfootball fans usually park. (maybe both..)It won't be much of a cycle though - just 5-10 at normal speed, I assuming we'll take 20-30 en masse, with kids etc.
Posted 12 years ago # -
My driver sister says the parking ought to score about 6/10 since it's after 1pm and Hearts are playing away. Not great, but needing such a ride to the mustering point that folk are likely to get lost.
I'm poking the scottishrugby site with a stick to see if anything on at Murrayfield, but it's apparently dead at the minute.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Hmm, maybe something further out then? It might be a bit of a culture shock to have to *pay* for parking (Dumfries is a weird timewarp in more ways than one)
Posted 12 years ago # -
Postulated Gilmerton feeder will likely have free on-street parking...
Robert
Posted 12 years ago # -
I am based in Eskbank and am likely to come in with my wife via the NCN 1, including the Innocent.
Those from outside coming in by car could consider parking by one of the nicer off-road routes (e.g. canal or Innocent).
Posted 12 years ago # -
If you are able to cycle a bit further, it should be possible to park at the Park and Ride near Heriot Watt and get to the canal from there? (I don't actually know - there might be 5 minutes of "interesting" road riding to get to the canal...)
Sadly I can't make POP as my boyfriend is running from Milngavie to Tyndrum that day.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Mr MeepMeep and I are aiming to come along. I've not yet managed a coffee meet up (like to be in work ridiculously early) and he's not a member of the forum but it will be good to hopefully put faces to usernames and cycle for a great cause.
Posted 12 years ago # -
From Heriot Watt park and ride there is a cycle route that heads west for 25 yards then gets to a pedestrian crossing that takes you to the hamlet of Hermiston (Weir of Hermiston for Robert Louis Stevenson fans and Weird of Hermiston for Jack Bruce fans). At the road, turn right. The road is a dead end to cars to the west so it is quiet, runs for 100 yards. At the t-junction go straight over and on to the pavement which is a cycle path.250 yards to the north you access the canal. All signposted except the bit where you leave the park and ride.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Is anyone of the Harrison Park Mob persuasion free to do a dry run tomorrow? As discussed with Morningsider and Roibeard, the dodgy bit for us is going to be the right turn over that fugly box junction at the King's Theatre.
It would actually be better to do it on Thursday night, day after after the Diggers pow-wow, but I'm posting under the assumption Sundays are more wiggle roomy than weekdays for most.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Uberuce - what time were you thinking of? And which "tomorrow" ;o)
Saturday should be ok, I'm trying out PortoVelo on Sunday
Posted 12 years ago # -
that fugly box junction at the King's Theatre
That's going to be the worst bit. That ASL is seriously bad - I would recommend all but the group leader keeping out of it, buses turning round the corner have no option but to encroach quite far into it to make the turn. You then have to wait for any traffic coming out of lane opposite to go past. Then you can make your turn, having to weave through some horrible road surface.
Once you start rolling, I'd also treat the group as if it were an HGV - the tail should keep following the nose until it's through in one. Don't break the group and then try and regroup later.
If someone is willing to potentially deflect a bit of motorist-wrath, I'd also consider that once it's clear to move, the leader stops on the junction with an arm physically up to stop any further oncoming traffic out of Tarvit Stret. At least that way you make it perfectly obvious that you're escorting a group through and then they can have their shot once you're all through.
Posted 12 years ago # -
K'nik, I tend to agree with you that it is a horrid junction and on how the group should maneuver (sp?) through the intersection, although it is at odds with advice we've been given, which is why i want to talk it through with chief marshal.
however, i disagree with you on the ASL. I sit in it most days and have never had a bus etc encroach. Sitting infront of it, and to the left is bad though, as i tried to explain to three rather inexperienced (but lycra-clad) riders the other day.
Posted 12 years ago # -
@BikeFan: Urp. I had less than half a day at work yesterday and therefore was under the delusion it was Saturday. I guess the best time for checking the route out would be 1.30pm today.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I'll talk to Mr SRD and see if it is do-able. depends on small people naps and such-like. Could combine with some flyering on the canalpath if its not too wet!
Posted 12 years ago # -
:o) 1.30pm today is fine by me.
Your meeting point is at Zazou, I think? I'll be wearing black shorts, yellow top, silver helmet, and on a white road bike.
Posted 12 years ago # -
We could probably get away with a tiny number of people; just space them out to simulate a larger group.
I'll ask my sister if she's free. Aside from being one more body, she's got almost no Edinburgh road riding experience so will give us practice with the unpracticed.
Zazou, yarp. I'll be the one that looks like this:
Posted 12 years ago # -
Today no good for me - I still think it might be worth considering getting smaller kids/less confident cyclists to dismount at this point and push over the crossing - lights are phased so all traffic stops at one time.
Let me know how it goes.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Thanks morningsider. I agree a combination of a cycle-phase, and then pushing may well work. I'm actually not particularly concerned about our ability to get people across safely, but I am concerned about cars getting annoyed by all of us being in front of them, and harassing people. We want people to feel comfortable!
Posted 12 years ago # -
sit in it most days and have never had a bus etc encroach.
I regularly see people come within inches of being hit by the Number 10 because they sit out on the right of the box, and quite far forward, as you would to make a good right turn. I'd really suggest keeping out of that box, just on the off chance. It's scary enough when there's one person, but if everyone was to bunch up in the box waiting for the lights...
but I am concerned about cars getting annoyed by all of us being in front of them, and harassing people. We want people to feel comfortable!
The tail marshal needs to be confident and thick skinned!
Posted 12 years ago # -
the busses do come very close, its true. i always try to make eye contact with the drivers. fun, fun, fun...
Posted 12 years ago # -
okay. off to HP for a practicwe run to the meadows - heck, maybe we'll go all the way to holyrood!
Posted 12 years ago # -
Going at a comfortable pace for 5 year old legs, the Zazou-MMW run took nineteen minutes, so we'll need to leave pretty sharp after the 1.30 time.
Two things I hadn't anticipated:
A) The need to cross lanes at Harrison Road as the park path ends. I ended up walking miniSRD across at the junction using the lights, but on the day I think we'll do better to cross directly at the end of the park with two of our smiliest adults standing one in each lane. That's what we do at work taking walking buses of kids; it's basically irrelevant as a safety thing, since no-one who is crazy enough to run over a bunch of kids would stop for an adult either, but the eye contact and smiling helps the PR side.
3)Roundabout serving Polworth Gardens/Polworth Crescent/Granville Terrace might split up the group.
Leven Street is still the only problematic bit. We'll need to inform childwranglers who'd rather walk it that there's two lanes, and they're to ignore the road contingent in the right lane and use the left one to reach the pavement early.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Is the plan to meet at Zazou for the real feeder run?
Mr MeepMeep suggested earlier that, depending on the numbers, if there's concerns about the group being split through junctions, it may be worth 'assigning' folk into groups of around 10 for the ride so that if the whole group gets split there will be less confusion and less pressure on the whole group making it through lights etc.
I think that so long as we all know the drill as such, it's six of one/half a dozen of the other as to how to tackle the trickier junctions. Happy to be one of the smiley, thick-skinned riders if needed, and Mr MeepMeep certainly can't be called meek!
Posted 12 years ago #
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