This morning's commute and other commuting stories

you could have got a barge through that gap. It's a peeve of mine when they see you coming but step out anyway...

I flew in front and said "excuse me!" "you fucking wanker" shouted the girl in the hijab. What happened to the serenity and inner peace of religion I thought...

It's a peeve of mine when they see you coming but step out anyway...

What a correlation...

Guh... okay. I accept speed may have been a factor. My bad.

I'm confused...you turned when it was green for you?

In that case, cha, they could have expected someone.

It was a Green light right hander. Yes they looked, saw me, but stepped out anyway. I was giving it rice but I never RLJ. Just your average cycle hating pedestrians... lol.

You realise that you are meant to give way to pedestrians crossing the road don't you?

They were in the right, you weren't.

I think they were pushing the bounds of etiquette though, when they saw me and then stepped out from the island anyway... if I'm being generous I'll throw in an underestimation of speed.

Most likely a mid-40s bald guy called Steve in the hijab.

In Bolton anything can happen... someone wearing a hoodie cycled up under the cover of night and painted the jewels area on Fred Dibnahs bronze statue white and cycled off. From the CCTV footage what was puzzling was someone knew who would do that...

That will be Steve again, what a lad.

Don't scare the horses...eh pedestrians.

Got those everywhere, along with the "oh I'll step out in front of you with my pram while you are driving, special shield deployed!! " ;)

Anyone dealing with the stress, unhappiness, and poo a baby causes deserves a break.

And if you can't brake in time then running them over will give them the very break they need.

Haha :):)

There needs to be a special class on how to properly stack bikes in the bike car of the train. Or maybe a traffic school situation for when somebody comes and puts handlebar to handlebar.

The bike shed at work has bikes covered in battlescars from fuckwits flinging their old heap on your pride and joy, so I don’t commute. Also Trafford Parks like Rollerball in a morning mainly due to the preferred marque of the middle class repmobile tosser, Audi, Bimmer and Mercedes.

It is for this reason that my pride and joy is a dented track frame from the 70s with chipped paint and miche components. I do my best to not fling it on any nice bikes. That said my brake cable has been dented to the point of replacement twice in a couple of months.

I'd suggest changing colleagues.

Train again because my bike's in the shop being treated for a mysterious squeak in the rear hub.

I don't understand how people do this every day. It's soul-crushing.

Left for work at 7.30 instead of the usual 8. I thought it was Sunday it was so quiet.

Out of interest what sort of rear hub have you got? Ie: Coaster? Drum brake?

https://www.sram.com/sram/urban/products/automatix

I was very silly and massively overtightened it.

Cool! is it good?

Not the same sort of hub then but a friend has an old post bike with a knackered drum brake.

Wondering what shop would be best equipped to repair / replace it...

Yeah - it's brilliant as part of the overall bike (https://flyingdutchman.bike/our-bikes/dutch-city-bikes/pilen-lyx-mens/), the only drawback being if you increase your cadence to go up a hill it will shift up without you wanting it to. I like not having shifters on the bars though.

Currently it's with the lovely people at The Flying Dutchman - who I understand have reached a point where the only way they can make it squeak is by having their heaviest employee put his whole weight into the brake. I could replace it, but I have no idea where to get one and they don't have a SRAM dealer.

Chaining colleagues where? Oh to the bikes to act as a kind of bump stop/wrap to protect the bikes. Good idea!

Calling out the big lad in the Belkin kit this morning. Not since hippy's great 6am deploy of 2017 have I seen someone so keen to get to work! Busting every red like he was on a Lucas B video.
Of course I named him Bel-end and oh how we laughed. Mind you, I still got the KOM points for Col du Notting Hill buddy and I stopped at all the lights. Conclusion: all show, no go.