This morning's commute and other commuting stories

12.5 miles took about 25 minutes longer than usual. Couple of stops for photos and a wee, though.

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Yesterday there was nothing of interest in London. Today... WFH. If they're not gonna install showers I'm not going to waste my time sponging dry in the bogs. #toasty

miserable for me in SE. slipped on ice going up fountain drive at 6.40ish, and slammed into the road. elbow kills now. as i hit the deck i thought 'i'm old' thinking i wasn't going to get away with it. lay on the deck groaning for 5 secs more than was strictly necessary: self indulgent prick! I think i toxic masculinityed myself

^ ouch :(

Back in Belfast from business trip. Go cycling in the park with my son (who loves it now) then cycle up the hill back home later that day. On the road, by myself.

Close pass even though there was loads of room to overtake and broad daylight.

FFS. It's starting to make me stressed lately, and put me off cycling. The vast majority of Belfast drivers is fine, there's just always has to be one c--t ruining it.

Anything you can recommend to reduce this "oh fuck scary" response? Cos that bums me ATM.

If I get a cam the PSNI will talk to these **** for sure. But it'll take ages before they got them all!

One, fuck me moment today. Truck on the other side of the road decides he wants to park on my side off the road, ON the road. Cuts in front of me and just stops. Goddamnit. Better than a coffee, to wake up..

Cycling home through Tesco car park last night a nodder on a folding bike, earbuds in, drifts blithely across my path, causing me to brake. I say, politely enough, 'Whatch where you're going mate,' to which he replies, "Fuck you." This gave me an opportunity to tell him what I really thought of him, so I suppose he did me a favour really.

Slippy out tonight. Lost the front wheel on a roundabout and went down on my right. No cars around thankfully. Just one pedestrian who walked by, watching me get myself up off the wet road and didn’t say a word.
Some road rash on my elbow, hip, knee and a torn Rapha glove. Bike’s okay but mech hanger is maybe a bit bent as the indexings gone to shit, torn my spenny bar tape and scraped my red levers and mech.
Mech hanger is part of the dropout so might need a gentle bending

Took an alternative route home yesterday. Fuck whatever tool gave me that route.

Ah shit man! Glad you’re alright. I have the tool for that if you wanna borrow it

Might take you up on that

Yesterday, returning along the (unofficial) cycle path alongside West London's Urban Motorway the A312 Hayes Bypass. If the DfT's Term Contractor ever trimmed the bushes and swept the delineated area this would be a dragstrip of a bike lane. There is an adjacent shared cyclepath, the other side of the bushes, but in my limited experience, it is typically littered with broken glass, and swept even less than the A312.
Steering goes 'funny' and sure enough a p*nct*re. Hmmm, feeling hard done by until I remind myself this is the first one on this bike in ........ forever.
Only 4 miles from home, so I walked the bike back along a route I cycle at least twice a week.
Funny how much more you see at footpace, rather than the normal 360 degree alert scannng for errant drivers. Grass verge to the (defunct) White Hart roundabout, up past the Dinosaur Golf and Ruislip International Airport, R Gardens and past Waitrose and uphill to home.
Invested some of todays lunchtime in replacement. Turns out this Lugano is worn through to the yellow (slightly) reinforcing layer in a number of places,
but,
a quick search of the garage soon reveals the (unused) pair of the Durano Plus that is on the rear wheel. Check rim tape, wipe every surface with a wetwipe, and all is ready for the next rides.

I fucking love commuting to jobs where there’s a properly secure spot to bring bikes in, or use minimal locks on nice bikes with confidence. As a freelancer this is not always the case for me. I’ve been on the same job since August bar a two week bit, unheard of for me. Lockup is on their railings in the street. I am so bored of riding the same basher every single work day.

I know the feeling, have been working in some real iffy places and knowing I'm booked to work somewhere I can take my bike in that also has 30p hot chocolate machine is great.

Cool, send me a message if you wanna arrange something

Pizza delivery with style

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Hope not, your toppings are getting messed up like that.

40mph tail wind. Yes please!

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40 mhr headwind , btsd of a ride in .

Carpe the-gap-in-the-rain!

In work half an hour earlier than I need to be, but at least I'm dry.

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Blimey. How many saddles that need customising have they got?

This plus fallen trees so two diversions required for extra work-out funtimes

Lovely tail wind. Hardly had to push the pedals. Wind's dropping for the evening too, so I should be up on my virtual meteorological trading platform. Feel for you folk heading east>west.

Bought a new (to me) bike last night and is the first one with gears I've had in a long time. I kep forgetting that I needed to change down to a lower gear at the lights and so was one of them embarrassing planks that try to pull away in top gear :( Sorry everyone.

Black icons are gusts, white is average.

Coincidentally, 40mph gusts is the threshold for the change.

Yeah for the first time kinda regret my spinny spin spin gear.