This morning's commute and other commuting stories

I know the feeling I rather not cause any delays either. But ultimately my teeth come first. You need just the ONE idiot.

[in fairness though in Belfast drivers aren't aggro generally. And if that's the issue as others suggested changing route may work]

This might be shockingly obvious to everyone but the thing i find helps most with cunts is making eye contact. every time i go out i make it my mission to look as many people as I can in the eyes. I guess to some extent this humanises you + has the practical benefit of knowing who is actually aware of your presence. I also like to put on a bit of a show if I'm riding in primary with someone waiting behind so that they think I'm actually making an effort to clear the way. I rarely even get beeped at.

I try to do that - it's scary how you can see people look straight through you sometimes

Yea the eye contact thing is spot on, but with cars coming from behind it can be a bit tricky. Saturday I made eye contact with someone who still edged out and caused me to have to come to a complete stop. There was no cars behind me, and he was crossing a single road to another side street so waiting would have been zero time or effort for him. I was just shocked at the complete disregard, as was other pedestrians and the other cyclist. I try not to get angry but appeal to their human side like "cmon, you made eye contact and still did that? Why?" etc etc.

Great route today along the river after putney bridge.

One day I'm really gonna catch a pigeon.............really............

You are Dick Dastardly AICMFP...

I've been meaning to contribute to this one for a while - but today just really irked me and I needed to yell into the void.

On commute home, almost got hit off by a motorbike taking a small gap between a group of cyclists and a car to our right. Pretty normal shit, so I ask him to take more space and get the usual about how I shouldn't be out of the bus lane (going round a stopped bus).

Thing that threw me was a guy on a Boardman who decided that he'd get involved with berating me for being on the road. M'bike almost takes both of us out with some stupid crap and another bicycle pulls that - really knocked my day.

a guy on a Boardman

Fucking nodders.

I hear you, I hear you.

Friend of mine has taken to sticking his tongue out at people - he's only reported confused responses, but such capacity for aggro in response...

Anyone else just been riding at Regent's? Just experienced a group of about 10 carbon-cockwombles, collectively riding about £100k's worth of bikes.
One of the blokes was really keen to be the first one to cream his rapha shorts, so overtook me then slowed right down while the other rapha fetishists boxed me in. I said excuse me and pushed on trying not to be too put out until I was turning right with my right hand out, then Mr. Aero-helmet decided to go around the outside of me and cut in (he was turning left) causing me to have to emergency stop. I threw my arms up in exasperation then Blue-tinted-aero-helmet-goggle-twat decided to tell me "not to ride in the middle of the road"

Without a doubt drove the bike to do laps and so has no experience of the road beyond constantly turning left around Reej.

Regent's Park = wankers. End of.

That's hilarious. I have blown a few kisses at annoyed boy racers and merc/bmw/audi drivers when they've yelled something obscene at me. You get similar results ha.

Beeped at by a bus driver for filtering on his right. He seemed to think I should be in the cycle lane he was blocking.

People are weird.

Yeh...got my single speed back on the road after scraping tarmac in Tottenham via the bonnet of a BMW 5 series. New forks n front wheel courtesy of Clever Mike in Hornsey who represent the best LBS service I know. Thanks guys. Funny how you can climb back on a bike unridden for a couple of months and feel your body making adjustments to the geometry - like a memory returning. A good feeling. Roll on more morning's like today's. 10/10

Glad to hear that you got back out there - enjoy the sun (finally)

Nearly got t-boned in the face by a European green woodpecker on Walthamstow marshes.

At least 1,000/10

Well I haven't been off the road - I have been using a full suss mtb with slicks - suss switched off - I think I'm going to miss those hydraulic disc brakes! But not in the wet. With the Kojaks a scary combo !

Avoid those trunk roads.................

Even better, didn't skip a beat.

Hilariously fun set-up for the wet, DO A SKID!

If it didn't have a weasel on its back I'm not interested

Most people don't think bikes count as "oncoming traffic". There's a weird alternating filter thing where I live and cars just don't bother stopping unless there are other cars behind me

Riding behind an Aussie roadie this evening who got cut up by a left-turning car.

When I expressed my sympathy his response was magnificent.

"He probably voted Leave."

Proper facepalm Halfrauds moment on the way home.

Riding South past Lambeth North and see a bike with SRAM Hydraulic levers. Start looking at the rest of the bike, fairly nice Boardman CX. Something started to look odd and when we stop at the next lights I notice his forks are on the wrong way round. Mega toe overlap and disc caliper on the front face of the forks.

Think about pointing this out but then think he might have done it on purpose for some fucked up reason. He jumps the reds so I think "fuck him, let his bike explode."

Then I feel guilty and imagine him having a really bad crash and resolve myself to pointing it out at the next lights.

Told him, and he was actually pretty embarrassed. Said he thought something was odd but he had not had a new bike in a long time so wasn't sure what was wrong.

He took me up on my offer of fixing it, and said he had only picked it up on Friday. Even then, they rang him to say it was ready so he went to the shop. They then kept him waiting for an hour while they fucked about with it.

tldr; Halfords - making perfectly fine bikes really fucking dangerous.