This morning's commute and other commuting stories

Got a mate keen to find an alternative to driving from Worcester to W.Brom - 14m or so he reckons. And back. He's pretty fit (casually ran a half marathon cos his garmin told him to - sort of fit) but wondering about an e-bike - to take the edge off time and effort wise . Anyone got any wisdom re. speed / time / effort on a commute like that ? worth dropping 3k on an ehybrid ?

How hilly and stop start is his commute? In my limited experience of e-bikes, they're great for getting you up to speed and great at maintaining speed uphill. The downside is that if you have a legal one, they're limited to 25kph and they're a fucker to get going any faster than that under your own steam. If his commute is up and down hills and/or stopping and starting every 30 seconds an e-bike would probably be quicker. If it's flat and mostly traffic light free, he might find his average speed is slower than on a standard bike.
It'd be less effort though!

Tell him to get a bike and combine it with train.

He could go from Worcester (my home town) to Stourbridge, to begin with and then work it up from there by getting the train less fat. Or do that one way, just mix and match it, until he can do the 28miles per day...

After a bit of illness and injury I use an ebike for 45-70 mins nearly every day. Quite hilly Sussex lanes, lots of short ups and downs. For sure I use the engine, but not as much as I could. I coast downhill. If you want to make the effort to sustain riding on the flat over the limit it is not much fun. When I finish I have had a reasonable workout. I need to charge up every other day when I am down to 2 bars on the Bosch 500 system. You do not want battery anxiety on these things. If I wanted to do a 14m commute I would definitely consider it. I have a Haibike HT with reasonable spec and it is fine for mixed terrain, pothole lanes, woods, gravel etc.

Worcester to West Brom: Lazy internet searching says that journey is 35 miles one-way. Three hours of pedalling!

(Worcester to Bromsgrove otoh is 15 miles).

Is this designed to maximise risk of pedal strike?

Yeah I got it wrong ! Bromsgrove

Got a classic left-hook maneuver pulled on me on the way home yesterday, southbound at the Clapham Common junction with Clapham park rd.
Drivist looked quite shocked when I smacked on his passenger side window and got all shouty at him. Stayed upright, no harm done.
Nice lady who had been flying southbound with me for most of the journey (I could only keep up because of traffic lights) checking I was okay was much appreciated!

Honestly a daily occurrence these bad drivers at the moment

Report them. I did that for this throbber picking up passengers on CS2.

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has he tried riding it on a regular bike to see how long it would take / what it's like?
maybe try it on a day off /weekend first as an exploratory thing? maybe you could ride the route with him assuming you live nearby?
this is what I did when I started cycle commuting (approx 25miles round trip)
and found it wasn't actually as far as I thought. maybe alternate with train / car / bike while he builds fitness?

another option is to buy a bike rack and drive part way, ride the rest.

Bromsgrove is even easier.

Use the train to Droitwich to halve the distance to begin with.

If he wants to only do it one way, the 144 bus takes him home from Bromsgrove to Worcester.

Anyone who can run 13 miles do a seven mile one way commute.

Rather than advising on the type of bike to get, it's probably more practical to advise him on how to carry luggage and decent locks on the bike. Panniers ftw.

Also, show him this thread. Let him know we all want him to do it!

#creepy
#runaway

Woke up this morning and the cat had done a crap in the bedroom.

Cycled to work, punctured in Balham. Rear wheel on a fixed always seems to be messy.

Sounds like a really crap blues song.

Everyone enjoy Cycle To Work (and back) day today?
Made fuck all difference out here, in fact even fewer (less?) bieks :(

I did and didn't realise until lunchtime when I read it somewhere that it was even CTW day

Also this cunt jumped every red light from Limehouse to Southwark Bridge so it was satisfying to see him pulled over by the old bill

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Excellent!

Everyone enjoy Cycle To Work (and back) day today?

Was it? I didn’t notice any more people on bikes but they probably didn’t know either!

Weird one on the way to work yesterday. Riding along the Water Link Way, across a narrow-ish bridge. Going pretty slow due to not being able to see what's coming round the next blind corner. A dog comes running round the corner so I do a little swerve to avoid it, its owner comes flying round the corner on a shitty mtb and crashes in to me head on. No damage done but this guy starts kicking off, getting right in my face. He didn't appreciate me telling him to have a nice day and riding off. I guess I shouldn't have had the audacity to be in his way having avoided harming his dog? It's always good to have a reminder that loads of people are massive nobheads.

Had something similar going home.

Car slowed down for no reason.
I didnt but then he started off again and left hooked me. He wasnt slowing really near the junction and had no indicator on so just though maybe hes slowing for the redlight and queue or not sure what lane hes in.
He was pissed at me.
Didnt hit the car but I did get a fright, sent a scowl then had a laugh to myself as hes angry eyes-ing me back.
Gettin insurance on payday. Had a range rover drift into me near there too. She was on her phone.

Later a taxi man beeped me. I was unsure what i did wrong. I looked over my shoulder and me being ugly he pulled up to me at the next lights to tell me sorry, he was beeping at some girl who wasnt looking whilst crossing.
I apologised for my ugly face too.
It was a nice moment.

Seems for every bad moment theres either or good one or misunderstood one.

C'est la vie!

I reckon that’ll be the cause of the annoying shimmy then. Lucky I found that before it exploded. RIP HED.

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Seems for every bad moment theres either or good one or misunderstood one

I like this outlook

Steve Wright announced the other day we spend,on average, 6 years of our life angry.

Quite sobering really.
I should work on my RBF.

bastarding bastard wasp down my jersey on the ride in this morning. i managed to grab it and throw it, whilst simultaneously shouting/screeching, but not before it stung me on the heart.
I also stopped for a chat with a nice elderly lady about her cocker spaniel, and phoned the council to report a dangerous fallen tree which had snapped off at face level just after a blind bend. (stopped and tried to shift it but it was still attached to the ground)

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Swiss army knife with the saw blade would have sorted that out.

I use mine all the time when out on woodland walks with the kids.