This morning's commute and other commuting stories

Forgot my helmet. That was interesting/liberating.

Got overtaken doing 40kmph yesterday by a dude on a mountain bike with a glacial cadence.
Bit of a WTF moment as I don't usually get overtaken and took me a while to work out it was an ebike.

I've seen this rider I think, on Q1. I have to say it seemed a bit fucking dangerous.

There’s a dude in a suit riding a white ebike that I sometimes run into -he’s usually doing about 40kmh, not breaking a sweat, in a suit. I commented to him once at the lights that it might as well be a motorbike and he told me to fuck off.

Charming

Little girl waiting for the bus on Kennington Park Road decided it would be fun to start running along with the bikes.

She was having lots of fun, but wasn't looking where she was going, so ended up running into a lamppost.

There was no real speed involved, so she just bounced off it gently and frowned it, as if to accuse it of getting in the way.

Did lol.

40 km/hour is, if I read this right, not legal for road use http://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/product-news/electric-bikes-uk-law-234973

Get the police on him?

...woah... :/

How many of your lives have you used up by now? :)

then the fucking idiot driving the bus behind who was turning right as
well just flashed him through while i'm right in his path

I get this a lot - cars behind me flashing others through while i'm 'holding up traffic' with a fucking toddler on the back. usually in near gridlock. cunts, all of them.

i'm 'holding up traffic' with a fucking toddler on the back. usually in near gridlock. cunts, all of them.

So much this^

Makes my ride with a close pass by a Polo at Clapham South and a Transit at Clapham Common sound like a dream!

Just started snowing while riding to work this morning. Not the horrible wet sort, but a light sprinkling of the dry-ish kind. Make it kind of scenic with the sunrise. Did a bit of rad riding at the end since I took my CX bike today, not bad for a Tuesday/10.

Nice ride in this morning. Fine layer of salt on the road blowing/swirling across the road coming through Lewisham. Ended up getting a salty mouthful.

I had this happen a few months back. Car flashes it’s light to let a transit van turn right across our path. The transit turns and just barely misses hitting me as I swerve. A pedestrian stopped as they saw it happen and shouted “Jesus that was very close!”.

I asked the van ride wtf he was doing turning right in front of me. He told me “he had right of way because the car flashed its lights saying he could turn”and “if you don’t leave now I’m going to hurt you”.

He just saw the car flash it’s lights and didn’t even bother to check to see if it was safe to turn, he just went for it.

I thought driving lesson 101 you learn if a car flashes their lights at you isn’t a signal that is ok to turn.

“if you don’t leave now I’m going to hurt you”.

I think this tells us all we need to know about his views on the highway code, and humanity, decency, empathy, fairness...

Perhaps there should be a section in the driving test, like the eyesight requirement, that weeds out people with psychopathic disorders.

ebikes riders are just scooter riders on a tighter budget

psychopathic disorders

Doh! Riding my bike to work is how I've managed not to kill anyone so far...

@farewell @HatBeard that's how I got hit by a van (well technically I smashed into the side of him) and wrecked a bike. O Jefcott sorted me out nicely thankfully but the driver was a total cunt. Shouted abuse at me while I was on the floor, tried to pull me up when my back was in agony, told me that I might have had right of way but look who's lying on the floor all smashed up, then he drove off without leaving any details because I didn't have any details to give him and who was going to pay for his mirror and his door? Must have called his boss to say he was going to be late and realised that he'd get done for leaving the scene of an accident so just came back to give me a piece of paper with his mobile number and registration number. Apparently that was just enough information to not get done by the police who eventually turned up and did nothing. I could barely walk, no ambulance turned up, my bike was smashed, and they didn't even offer me a lift home.

That's so shit, have also been there with the angry prick who just knocked you off your bike acting like he wants to fight you while you lay on the floor in pain. nice one tough guy.

Had a truck driver offer his dashcam footage to guy who doored me and call me all names under the sun as I lay in the road with my smashed up collar bone. Luckily another cyclist and a passer by joined me in telling him to do one. That footage may well be posted on youtube when the legal proceedings are done.

You got his footage?

No. My fly6 got the whole exchange clear as day. Jaunty angle of course as the bike was on the ground.

Ah, I see.

Drafting a bus. Van in the right lane decides she wants to pull into a loading bay - pretty keen. Bus goes through and she immediately pulls into the bus lane almost taking me out in the process. I swerve around and stop in front of her, and she just puts her hand up. Nearly died. Apology accepted.

love a bit of bus drafting and i am a soft touch for a heartfelt wave after a near-death experience

I got doored by a black-cab passenger the other day. Luckily cab was pointing towards me so as the door opened, I slammed it shut with my hand as I rode past shouting "TWAT".

Felt so cool. csb