Is it time to start calling out bad cyclists?

This thread is great because I can see it happening on imaginary forums for every kind of person who lives in London (or other major metropolis). The same as when you drive you get cut up, when you use the tube you get people pushing through you to get on before you get off, the same as when people walk three abreast down a pavement and force you into a gutter.

Living in a big city fucks with peoples heads to the point where they become entirely obsessed with self preservation at all costs. It's mental.

My highlight last night was the pedestrian crossing outside of Waterloo St. on Waterloo Road. As the flashing amber goes there was still a middle-aged woman struggling across on a crutch, which is a pretty visible sign that she might be less mobile than normal and so a bit slow. Did it stop the ten or so bike riders streaming within maybe a foot of left and right of her causing her? Did it fuck. She had to stop in the middle of the road to let the fuckers go past.

In what kind of society is that even remotely normal behviour towards one another?

This is really annoying. However, one problem is that it's really difficult and dangerous to try to "speak" for other road users. If you stop behind a car to wave them round the corner then you risk another cyclist hammering past you and getting left hooked. It only really works if the gap is narrow enough for you to physically prevent other cyclists from getting past.

It should work if peeps are paying attention.

whats the general consensus on using earphones whilst cycling? Personally i can not do it. Feels dangerous. Although the guys i cycle with can not ride without them.

I have no issue with earphone otherwise the deaf should be banned from the road. The issue I do have is instead of compensating for the loss of sense the majority seem even more blinkered.

I have no issue with earphone otherwise the deaf should be banned from the road. The issue I do have is instead of compensating for the loss of sense the majority seem even more blinkered.

i heard it makes you go faster. is this true?

I imagine you'll be going quicker then most here.

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You need to lighten up. Ive only been on here about 2 hours.

Ill have loads of friends soon.

A cyclist wearing earphones was run down and killed by a lorry a few years ago in Streatham. The driver wasn't charged because it was assumed the cyclist hadn't been paying attention.

It's not just getting killed by an HGV driver that I fear, but the outcome based on my disability.

You need to lighten up. Ive only been on here about 2 hours.

Ill have loads of friends soon.

Optimism, by the bucket full

Anyone remember BigChainRing??? #thatisall

brixtonjones must be a troll.

Ads BrixtonJones

brixtonjones must be a troll.

How do you work that out?

I think the whole forum figured it out when you put "red light jumper" on your profile and then started posting.

You're only still here whilst I wait to see if you'll settle down and be a bit less of an idiot.

^if "God" acted like that the world would be a far better place.

I think the whole forum figured it out when you put "red light jumper" on your profile and then started posting.

You're only still here whilst I wait to see if you'll settle down and be a bit less of an idiot.

I put that on there just to wind up a few posters I was having a bit of banter with. The ones that ridicule new posters for making a mistake.

Don't worry Jones just chill a bit and introduce yourself slowly to the forum and I'm sure you'll slip in well, some of the flrum users seemed about hostile when I first joined but now I see they're really useful and most of them real good guys and girls.

Where one has moved from toddlerdom to small boy status, and the other has shifted from enthusiautistic fixed rider to high strength lager alcoholic, their respective stools have moved to opposite ends of the spectrum. You couldn't even call tynan's waste stools these days. Beanbags maybe.

BMMF in lower case shocker !

I have no issue with earphone otherwise the deaf should be banned from the road.

This is a non-sequitur. As far as I'm aware no-one on here ever tries to suggest that a hearing impairment should disqualify someone from cycling. However this does not mean that those who can hear should not use this to their best advantage when riding.

This is similar to the brakeless debate: yes, one might be able to stop effectively without a front brake, but surely one could stop even more effectively with one...

I'll do my own chevrons :-)

This thread is great because I can see it happening on imaginary forums for every kind of person who lives in London (or other major metropolis). The same as when you drive you get cut up, when you use the tube you get people pushing through you to get on before you get off, the same as when people walk three abreast down a pavement and force you into a gutter.

Living in a big city fucks with peoples heads to the point where they become entirely obsessed with self preservation at all costs. It's mental.

My highlight last night was the pedestrian crossing outside of Waterloo St. on Waterloo Road. As the flashing amber goes there was still a middle-aged woman struggling across on a crutch, which is a pretty visible sign that she might be less mobile than normal and so a bit slow. Did it stop the ten or so bike riders streaming within maybe a foot of left and right of her causing her? Did it fuck. She had to stop in the middle of the road to let the fuckers go past.

In what kind of society is that even remotely normal behviour towards one another?

Reminds me of a time when for one moment I felt like I brought some humanity to a hoard of commuters... A few years ago, days after I'd just fucked my knee (acl) playing football. I was the walking wounded, limping around rush hour slowly. Tying to avoid those (us) self preservation obsessed people bumping into me and knocking me off balance making things worse...

I reached a ped crossing on new bridge street, green man is on but might be about to go out... To my right, a line of traffic: cars, vans bikes. All poised waiting for my crossing to go green for them to head south over blakfriars bridge. I looked to my left and saw that they were actually about to head about 12 yards further than my crossing to stop in another line of traffic at the final set of lights before the bridge. Being slow and hobbling, I was running late for work so I decided to just go for it - they can wait.

Immediately as I stepped into the road I saw the green man flashing me, meaning of course flashing amber for the waiting vehicles and bikes which usually translates in london as green light = go go go....

I guess generally speaking I was a pretty healthy looking guy, twenty something, suited and booted but clearly in a bit of pain and suffering some kind of leg injury. But to a woman every one of them in that front line just sat and waited for me to get all the way across both lanes before they set off. Despite the fact it was already 'proper' green for them long before I got all the way over and the inside lane could of safely set off behind me.

I probably thought about it more because I was feeling like the whole world was against me at the time, especially after commuting by tube and bus in that state at rush hour - Even walking with a crutch idiots still think nothing of nudging you out of the way to save a few valuable seconds. Those people waiting and watching me made me feel a little better and it was like one of those strange human group experiences where people stopped and thought for a second. No one wanted to be the first one to go steaming off into another red light.

The whole ped crossing amber flash green man etiquette just doesn't generally exist in london. I think you're spot on with your self preservation anger thing. It's quite amazing how primitive we really are without realising it most of the time.

This is a non-sequitur. As far as I'm aware no-one on here ever tries to suggest that a hearing impairment should disqualify someone from cycling. However this does not mean that those who can hear should not use this to their best advantage when riding.

There are two points that set apart hearing impairment and earphone use to me.

1 - Music, or whatever else you may be listening to, adds another layer if distraction that wouldn't be present if you couldn't hear anything. If you're paying attention to the music, you're paying less to the road. I ride with my phone on speaker sometimes (boring commute or motivation required) and even then I KNOW I'm slightly distracted by it, although I still make an effort to focus and ride carefully. If it was distracting me dangerously I'd turn it off.

2 - People living with deprivation of one of the senses adapt to fill in that gap. Someone living with hearing impairment will find ways, instinctually, to cope. I remember a friend of mine dating a deaf girl and saying she was a wicked dancer because she danced by FEELING the vibrations of the music. Unless you've been living with earphones CONSTANTLY in your ears for years, you won't have adapted shit, so you are effectively reducing a key sense.

On training rides on long, high-visibility, quiet roads then I think earphones are probably fine, but in the city or even on many/most country roads? No way. Why take away one of the key senses that is keeping you alive?

However, riding with earphones can encourage people to use their eyes a lot more. Many cyclists are too reliant on their ears to tell them what is happening behind, but this does not give accurate information regarding speed or proximity of the vehicle behind. Also sound can reflect adding a further confusion - think about standing at a junction and you hear a police siren, often it can be hard to tell which direction it is coming from.

So using earphones can be a training aid to help encourage cyclists to use their eyes (which are a more reliable sense) than hearing to check what is going on behind. This can help people to adapt their riding style.

If music is such a distraction then radios and music should not be allowed in cars either. However many of us are used to having music going in most environments and functioning well. Some people can focus better with music playing.

I ried cycling with earphones on earlier this week, I only had one ear in and it was really nice but it did distract me a bit from the road I think so I doubt I'll do it on the commute again.

did you look around more?

do people ride with music at full volume or at a level where they can still hear what is going on and even maintain conversations with other cyclists?