You want a sit up and beg on the canal maybe a Pashley and take it easy until after the aqueduct then change bike to a racer until you hit the gates and bridges that are footerie then you need a hybrid. Just need to keep various bikes at various points and it is fine.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
Today's rubbish cycling
(4503 posts)-
Posted 10 years ago #
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I love the canal for running, it's ace. I hate the canal for cycling, unless I am with the kids. Why go on a path that you're only allowed to do 6mph on? I'd rather punch myself in the face.
Posted 10 years ago # -
#jdanielp
I have a former colleague that would take these sections at a fair pace without a bell. Was told he should be more accommodating to other users, he now either very loudly shouts "DING DING" or more oddly, his own name.
Strange lad.
Posted 10 years ago # -
If this read "todays sh***y cyclist" I'd be here saying me.
I went out for a CX training ride at lunch - got LITERALLY covered in dog poop. Least impressed ARob EVER.
I was on 5th 20 second sprint rep and suddenly got the smell of something so vile I almost vommed for all the wrong reasons (the correct reason being that I should be working so hard I vom) I'd clearly picked up something horrendous passing through some long grass (which btw I had an absolute right to be in/on)
I had to wash the bike and myself (oh it was EVERYWHERE from waist down) in the cold tap in the courtyard of my flats. Bad times.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Some people just don't help our cause!
Posted 10 years ago # -
The guy going up Leith Walk this morning around 6.45am with:
- a rear light so dim it was like the glowing end of a cigarette
- a red light on the front of the bike[/*]Obviously never noticed that all the other traffic on the roads only have reds at the rear...
Posted 10 years ago # -
Ah, fixed the last post's formatting. As you were! *embarrassed face*
Posted 10 years ago # -
@Baldcyclist Ironically enough he might actually be safer ploughing along a motorway hard shoulder than on most dual carriageways and many city streets.
Isn't the hard shoulder just an extra wide cycle lane? ;-)
Posted 10 years ago # -
I'll online-ify the picture when I get the right cable, but for now you'll have to take it on trust that the front light I saw in Sainsbury's tonight was mounted behind the bike's basket such that between half and 1/4 of the emitting surface was behind a solid plate section.
The rest of it only has to get through two layers of wire mesh and/or the contents of the basket, so that's fine.
Posted 10 years ago # -
From a wee while back: another weaving numpty slaloming around buses on Princes Street:
[+] Embed the video | Video Download Get the Flash Video Posted 10 years ago # -
Me :o
Went to overtake a guy on the Innocent just before Bingham
As i came clsoe to passing,I saw a woman with a pushchair ahead of him
Slammed on the brakes and he got a dose of front bake squeal too
I apologised and passed after we passed the peds
No high viz or lights on the pushchair ;)Posted 10 years ago # -
[+] Embed the video | Video Download Get the Flash Video Me - for not shoulder checking
Him - for blasting in between two lines of traffic approaching red at that speedHold my hands up to almost SMIDSYing hi, if we hit (there was no contact) I wager he'd have been a lot worse off than me.
Why, you may ask, did I slow before deciding to filter? Well I was establishing the position in the light cycle we were at and if there was a safe space at the front to head for (there's no box there).
Lesson learned on my part.
Posted 10 years ago # -
I would blame him mostly for the speed and lack of bell use to let you know he was there.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Hmm, if it was a car door opening into his path you wouldn't blame the cyclists speed, you'd be blaming the driver for not checking behind.
Posted 10 years ago # -
True, however the cyclist behind is making a rather close pass and giving no warning.
I always ring my bell when passing other cyclists and give them plenty of room just in case they have to swerve suddenly.
Posted 10 years ago # -
50:50 the not checking but also the speed of the filtering and the failure to anticipate K's likely movement.
Posted 10 years ago # -
If a car door opens on me whilst I am doing 20mph am I at least half to blame because of my speed, proximity to the car and failure to anticipate the door opening?
Posted 10 years ago # -
I'd say it doesn't matter who was "to blame", if a car door opened for whatever random reason at that particular pinch point, it's always the cyclist that was going to get hurt. As I said above, if I had moved out marginally sooner and he'd piled into the back of me, I think that he'd also have come off a lot worse than I would have. I think there's always a need to recognise when you're in a position that would mean that the actions of others (considered or otherwise) would put you at a disadvantage. By which I mean, even if a light is green, you always have to expect that the other guy might not obey it and ride with due caution and sixth sense. Even if it's the other persons' "fault", it's best to avoid putting yourself in a situation where you'd come off worst.
I'm not sure if it was spideysense that stopped me actually moving out before I did, or random chance. Strangely, neither of us seemed remotely fazed by it. He never even looked my way. If a car had brushed past me like that, I certainly would have yelled out. Odd, isn't it. I think if I had my pannier on the opposite side he would probably have not bothered to pass me. I should probably have positioned myself further right if I was intending to filter myself, so as to effectively block the gap. Could've. Should've. Would've.
Personally I didn't want to fire through that gap either at speed or without knowing I had somewhere to go, hence had slowed to a crawl to weight up the situation, but it was this slowing that might have almost "caused" something. I think the moral of the story is that even cyclists have to expect that other cyclists might be filtering up from behind - at whichever speed they choose to do so.
Posted 10 years ago # -
If a car door opens on me whilst I am doing 20mph am I at least half to blame because of my speed, proximity to the car and failure to anticipate the door opening?
Fault / blame aside, you'll be significantly more sore than if you'd either been going slower in the door zone, not been in the door zone, or had been anticipating that something might happen as you had acknowledged your presence in the door zone.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Looks bad on the fillm
Not sure where you would go once you had filtered to the front of that queue? Don't think it has a red box? Quite a tricky junction etc the left hand lane does get a straight ahead before the whole junction goes green but I have seen some kamikaze driving from all vehicles and Peds at that diggers junction, assuming that is where it is.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Agree with the points made in the discussion above. I'm also not sure of the value of filtering here - although I'm always going right at that junction and nearly always outside of busy traffic times.
Posted 10 years ago # -
I have to say that if we were wagging a finger of blame I'd be with Bikeability here. I'd say blame, if there was a coming together, would be 50/50 (and if the fast filtering cyclist had had a car door opened on them many would blame the person in the car for not checking first).
But also agreed (given the 50/50 blame laying) that the fast filterererer was nuts.
Posted 10 years ago # -
The 30-something guy with the carrier bag over his saddle who cruised merrily through the red light out of Gilmore Place, through the green man causing pedestrians to scuttle out of the way, mounted the pavement outside the Kings Theatre at speed for a bit more pedestrian intimidation, and then cheerfully cycled away up Tarvit Street the wrong way.
Muppet. Next time I'm going to follow you and let your tyres down. You don't deserve a bike.
Posted 10 years ago # -
Walking along Queensferry Street, I saw a young female rider with a hi-vis jacket approach the new junction with Princes Street. She decided that a red light didn't apply to her and merrily sauntered on through.
Stupid enough at the best of times, but when everyone is still to get used to a new layout? It's not s if the signs there are unclear :-(
Posted 10 years ago # -
The muppet last night heading along Melville drive last night who went through the pedestrian red lights (no junction for cars)as a pedestrian was crossing the road and then amazingly sailed through the red lights at the cross roads before, I think, taking a left into Clerk St. You my friend are the reason moronic motorists think it's ok to insult and intimidate cyclists. I hope that you don't get seriously hurt when a car hits you
Posted 10 years ago # -
Me last night, riding around a set of steps on my way to collect No1 son and trailer.
I successfully negotiated the downhill sloping wet grass section only to allow my front tyre to hit the wet slimy path edging at an angle, schwalbe marathons are good, but unfortunately not that good :-o
Fortunately I was in short sleeves so the only damage was pride, a skint knee some light bruises and muddy trousers/arms. First proper falling off in *years*, lets hope it's the last for a good few more! :-o
Posted 10 years ago # -
7:45 this morning. Morningside Road at Churchill junction then at Holy Corner. Guy in Hi viz vest and long hi-viz socks (!) over leggings, heading towards town. Jumped both sets of red lights. Presumably in hi-viz as he knows he is at high risk of being taken out?
Posted 10 years ago # -
Guy on a racer this morning, Willobrae Road heading east at 7:30. Dangerously, and I mean dangerously blinding light(s)
Unbelievable really! I *think* he may have had two front lamps but they were really so bright I couldn't see properly and may have suffered blurring.
Posted 10 years ago # -
From a wee while back: another weaving numpty slaloming around buses on Princes Street:
Is it just me, or did anyone else think he was cycling ok?
(It may be worth noting that, after cycling east along Princes St yesterday - first time in months - I've banned myself from riding there due to the dangerous combo of road layout and buses. So I may well be a weaving numpty.)
Posted 10 years ago # -
Me last week. Went further into East Lothian than I had meant to. No lights. Called home from Templehall and was picked up by car at Pardivan. I could see but couldn't be seen.
Posted 10 years ago #
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