This morning's commute and other commuting stories

You'd think there is massive research RE backpacks and cycling, but no.

http://www.cyclingutah.com/fitness/pains-of-bike-commuting-tips-on-carrying-your-load/

Is the best I could find, but it extrapolates kids carrying backpacks and personal experience.
Probably if you back hurts/your shoulders hurt and a good backpack doesn't help, it is pannier time.

either that or it's time to un-slam that stem :-)

Had a valve somehow become fucked and got stuck out honor oak way, went into a bike shop who didn't have any 27.5 tubes, they took my wheel around the back and fitted a 28xsomething tube but wouldn't tell me exactly what was fitted. Watched them sell another customer wrong size tube(700x21-28 into 700x32). Cycled slower on the way home worried it will randomly explode and let it down ASAP once in the door at home will swap it once back from holiday.

Slow morning, doing some cooking and listening to TMS.
Lunch? How about a felafel wrap from Shepherd's Bush market?
Cycled along the Uxbridge Road, through the traffic of Southall, Hanwell and West Ealing.
Noticed the Old Laundry Yard appears to have died before it got going. Slight complaint about the generosity of the Felafel Hut with the more liquid dressings. it is impossible to contain them, and they drip down your front. On the way home just getting going and there is a metallic sound, that isn't just the clang of the wheels over a bad joint, more of a 'snap',
the saddle rotates underneath me and drops onto the floor, where it is collected by a passer-by waiting for a the bus that would have crushed it.
Pull over and collect the debris. The saddle clamp bolt has snapped!
Fortunately there is a bike shop just a bit further east, but they have no suitable bolt.
Another 15 minutes walk leads me to the Bicycle Repair Shop, who are,
still open, and once they overcome their disbelief, have a rummage, and find a suitable replacement bolt. 10 minutes and £3 later I'm on my way.
I've retained the head of the bolt to go in the 'trophy' cabinet. I've worn out bits of bike before, but never snapped an M8 bolt with my arse before!

I hope it didn't spoil an otherwise lovely sounding day.

TMS has been cracking from Southampton.

Not a commute, but me and the good lady are out in town on our pub bikes, train up from Norwood to London Bridge, then ambled to Hackney City Farm, then up to the Dove for a half, and now pootling around the city/Farringdon stopping at nice pubs. Now at the Exmouth Arms. This is the life, tho the cricket is making me rather nervous...

Too Much Awesome Arse Power.

Waves to Hoefla I lurk rather than post these days.

@Howard - Too many are fixed on "must get in front" however they can and others don't think about others when they left hook. As per usual, a few take exception to me passing them, even though I'm slow af and couldn't race anyone even with a 30 minute lead rolls eyes.

You were never a nodder.

Happy Monday everyone x

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Oof. Seriously unlucky

Wow that nail has squirrelled itself into the rear of your bike.

Have you seen the picture where a squirrel nailed the front of a bike?

I haven’t but I’m intrigued

At least you can clean a squirrel up though

JODA transport hgv - go f y s!

Most schools are back tomorrow so get ready for a return of the bulk of the traffic.

Enjoyed watching a chap on a Brompton out pedalling himself go past another chap who got noticeably vexed and sped up. I had to turn off so didn't see the catch but did put a smile on my face.

They can't all be dropping turds off can they? Never made sense to me. Get those little pricks to walk to school...

They can't all be dropping turds off can they? Never made sense to me. Get those little pricks to walk to school...

They're mostly on holiday with their little turds which is why the roads are generally so empty during the holidays.

It's bloody lovely when they all fuck off. Maybe I'll start voting for the Tories - I'm sure they'll have some more school closures planned ;)

Woe is me. I've moved house and now my commute is too short. 10mins cycle. May have to start running or some nonsense

(tongue in cheek) Do roadies have something against people with straight handlebars?
To be clear, I've been riding for just over 30 years and back in the old days when cycling as a hobbie was still very niche, it was generally accepted etiquette to acknowledge other cyclists.
Now I accept that nowadays things are different to say the least but here's what I've noticed.
Until a couple of weeks ago I had drop bars on my Cinelli Vig commuter. I would say about 90% of commuters would give some form of acknowledgement, albeit a "good morning" or a wave or a nod or a hand gesture.
I decided to try out riser bars. Since then that 90% has dropped to about 10%. Saturday morning I passed 6 roadies who all just stared at me in a state of confusion. I then passed a 7th on an uphill stretch who was obviously so put out that he felt the need to sprint past me with an inch between us at full pelt just as I was stopping to use the cashpoint.
I can only assume his emotional response was something along the lines of "Oh the indignance of being passed by someone 'not on a real bike'! How embarassing!"

Same happened to me.
I've ended up making a very very scenic route on rwgps, making detours in order to go through 3 to 4 of the local parks depending on how much time I've got

...felt the same when i change my commuter from drops to flats so i could use mtb bike hydro's brakes in winter...

There's too many cycle commuters now on my route to say hello or wave to everyone.
Like you said, in the past you were pretty much guaranteed that any other cyclers were hobbyists where as now it's just a valid form of travel.
I still wave to riders when I'm on longer open road rides. They are still guaranteed hobbyists*.
My only observation with people riding road race bikes wearing all the gear on their commute is they feel the need to gun it everywhere and need to be in front (sweeping generalisation, obviously) .

*EDIT: I don't only wave at hobbyists. I wave at anyone who isn't in a car essentially.

about 90% of commuters would give some form of acknowledgement

You're not in London if 90% of commuters are acknowledging you.