Police spotting (junction watch)

https://www.lfgss.com/thread73.html

On the example above I take the primary in the right hand lane at the previous lights. There's usually too many nodders for cars to undertake and the timing of the lights means cars never make it without queing at the next lights anyway.

You may get beeped, but I take honking to mean they've noticed me (unless I'm hungover in which case I sometimes have a slightly shorter fuse)...

All assuming rush hour... If the roads are clear I'd do what scoble suggests.

Yup getting beeped means you're ok. You've been seen. Cycle trainers point. Drivers seem to beep less nowadays imo

You may get beeped, but I take honking to mean they've noticed me.

Exactly.

If you get beeped, all you need to do is to look back, acknowledge and carry on riding.

8:30 am Cops at the junction of old street, hackney road, kingsland road and shoreditch high street. South of the junction on the start of shoreditch high street, stopping all kinds.

Exactly.

If you get beeped, all you need to do is to look back, acknowledge and carry on riding.

I'd also prepare yourself for the occasional, unpleasant occurrences - tailgating; unnecessarily close "punishment" passes; brake testing (i.e. they overtake and then slam on the anchors in front of you); more horn blaring; a bit of verbal abuse and, if you're really lucky, they will get out of the car to remonstrate with you.

...which happen once in a blue moon.

If they did all that, I'd just drop back and let them pass.

You made it sound worse than it is.

...which happen once in a blue moon.

If they did all that, I'd just drop back and let them pass.

You made it sound worse than it is.

Ed, you need to anticipate what an impatient road user might do when confronted with a cyclist riding in the centre of the lane. Unfortunately, a sizeable minority of road users do not take kindly to this (pace Skydancer's earlier remarks) and it can result in poor and aggressive driving (not regularly, but intermittently). It is important to understand how different forms of riding behaviour can affect others as you are then in a better position to prepare for the potential consequences.

Okay, I'll write down what I would do in situation that you've described;

1 - If someone did a punishment pass while I'm in primary, I'd brake hard while moving a little into secondary till the vehicle is now in front of me, and resumed back into primary.

2 - If someone tailgating, I'd look back, acknowledge them and carry on riding till they think there's enough room to overtake, and if they did 1, I'll repeat what I did with 1.

3 - Horn blaring, verbal abuse etc. this is usually one of the situation where I'd just pull over and let them go, no point in confronting someone with a big broad sword against your garlic crusher.

4 - Very very rare, people just don't suddenly do this for no reason, they did when I confronted them back when I didn't had cycle training let alone experience, but nowadays it's rare as hen's teeth, if I did 3, then 4 is even less of a likelihood.

Okay, I'll write down what I would do in situation that you've described;

1 - If someone did a punishment pass while I'm in primary, I'd brake hard while moving a little into secondary till the vehicle is now in front of me, and resumed back into primary.

2 - If someone tailgating, I'd look back, acknowledge them and carry on riding till they think there's enough room to overtake, and if they did 1, I'll repeat what I did with 1.

3 - Horn blaring, verbal abuse etc. this is usually one of the situation where I'd just pull over and let them go, no point in confronting someone with a big broad sword against your garlic crusher.

4 - Very very rare, people just don't suddenly do this for no reason, they did when I confronted them back when I didn't had cycle training let alone experience, but nowadays it's rare as hen's teeth, if I did 3, then 4 is even less of a likelihood.

Without knowing the conditions on the ground, those default avoidance tactics are meaningless, Ed. They might be appropriate or they might not. Traffic and road conditions are dynamic and the circumstances of each incident are going to be different. However, you are at least addressing the point I made about the need to prepare and take action if confronted with a road user who takes umbrage at your central lane position.

Best tactic against a tail-gater is surely to slow down to a crawl. If they don't keep a gap appropriate to your speed, keep your speed appropriate to the gap.

Best tactic against a tail-gater is surely to slow down to a crawl. If they don't keep a gap appropriate to your speed, keep your speed appropriate to the gap.

But, as I and others are of the opinion.. that's a sure fire way to get "Punishment passes", "brake testing" and the rest of it. Let's not dress it up each of these things is highly dangerous, an attempt to harass or worse and yes happen once in a blue moon but how many blue moons can anyone survive?

Ed's right, basically if you are Buddha in primary, you may get a few close passes (for which you will have plenty of room to avoid as you have a meter or two on your left) and then you avoid having the driver behind you.

The rest doesn't happen unless you are trying to stay in front of a dangerous driver or getting too close behind them.

I've got to admit though, I'd say I am Buddha like maybe one day in a hundred. The rest of the time I'm waiting for a driver to give me the reason to drag him out of the car and beat him to death with Jeremy Clarkson(*).

Ironically I was pushed out of primary this morning by a skip lorry.

You should have held you ground, and be run over with honour.

Ironically I was pushed out of primary this morning by a skip lorry.

Just add this;

1 - If someone did a punishment pass while I'm in primary, I'd brake hard while moving a little into secondary till the vehicle is now in front of me, and resumed back into primary.

Punishment pass in secondary is pretty dangerous with even less room to manoeuvre.

Cheers Ed - Perhaps I should consider cycle training

I tried to hold my ground once, and was killed instantly. Thankfully I was wearing a helmet.

Very keen bunch of officers stopping and searching cyclists on Aldgate High St/Frenchurch St all day today.

searching?

If they find a blim they nick it and send you away, treated as a detected crime and boosts their stats.

searching?

This.

Or do popo think that sus is back again?

If they find a blim they nick it and send you away, treated as a detected crime and boosts their stats.

Thought they needed reasonable suspicion that a crime has occurred or something?

Yappy little spaniel dog caught me.

My mate.

Yappy little spaniel dog caught me.
From here:
The police do not have a general power to require you to submit to a dog sniff and the Police and Criminal Evidence Act states “there is no power to stop or detain you in order to find grounds for a search”. Current police practice, however, is to treat attempted evasions of a police dog as reasonable grounds for a search.

Oh, didn't know that, I got caught at Leytonstone tube station, the little yappy bastard spaniel sat down in front of me accusingly and Johnny Law nicked my blim. I mean my mate's.