This morning's commute and other commuting stories

This morning was just perfect. Bright, dry and cool enough to go fast without getting horribly sweaty. Lots of cars out, but I had my filtering mojo working.

10/10

Meet up a long time mate for a gentle training session at swains and then a solo TT around RP, lovely to get up around 4am this morning for this, especially with the beautiful sunshine plus got into work just before the traffic got heavy in London Town.

Sounds like heaven. Might give this a shot tomorrow morning.

Sleep > training

get up around 4am

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Good one. Will look into it for sure. No Hamax distributor in Aussie though.

After writing the last post I just waited it out and did ride the usual 40k thursday lap with stopover and lunch at grandma's, pretty much the only ride I get in apart from my 15 min ride to work. Was rewarded with clear sky in the end and steamed up in my rain jacket like an old cheese in a plastic bag on the way back.

Aren't you about to take delivery of a very loud erratic alarm clock that has no snooze button?

Gah, both tyre levers snapped during puncture repair. Managed to wrestle the bugger off eventually. Ruined a good commute and now i'm late and have very black hands.

Do not buy these: http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WSTYRELEVER/ekip-tyre-lever-made-in-italy

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mobile/pedros-tyre-lever/rp-prod10042?gs=1&gclid=COzL7-6798wCFcsW0wod_lINQA&gclsrc=aw.ds

Pedros, only ever use Pedros

We are. It's taking it's sweet damn time at the moment though.

So much this.

I slept for 9.5 hours last night. It was fucking heaven.

Yep, I've got a pair of fetching Pink ones in the mountain bike bag...
Bought the Planet x ones to help get over the free postage point. Regret that now.

Yelled at the people trying to cross when they shouldn't be outside Tottenham Court Rd station. They need to sort out that intersection before someone gets seriously injured.

unrelated note I need to stop procrastinating about buying new brake pads.

I think it's part of Camden's West End plan. Obviously they are waiting for Crossrail to finish before anything significant happens.

Spotted a teacher with his group of ten or so school kids on London Bridge N/S. He'd led them onto the central reservation where there's a guard rail to discourage stupid people from trying to cross 6 lanes of rush-hour traffic. Poor kids looked shit scared.

Isn't the eventual plan to have Tottenham Court Road as buses/cycles only. I seem to remember reading about taxi drivers being outraged by the plans.

I seem to remember reading about taxi drivers being outraged

Really? That seems out of character for them.

Are Pedro's abuse proof?

Le Manfriend snapped park tool and var ones and has gone back to steel...

(Poss boast post) :)

This is the only tyre lever you'll ever need.

You know it's satans spawn if it stops you coming on Saturday.

Tx ^_^

Slightly rainy commute... nearish miss by a driver who came out of a side road looking the other way.

Had he gone faster or veered more he would have bumped into me from the side. Just look both way FFS how hard it is...

The chap in the blue van behind me did not like me using the main bit of the road on Upper Thames Street this morning.

I use it for all of about 150m - right off Southwark Bridge then right again onto Cousin Lane - so there's really no point in using the cycle highway because that adds another crossing to my journey (i.e. crossing the lane of traffic I might as well just be part of).

Blue van man didn't seem to appreciate this, so leaned on his horn about a metre from my back wheel until I made the turn. Nice one, mate, I hope being able to sit slightly closer to the HGV I was following was worth endangering my life.

In other news, people seemed fairly vocal this morning. Chatted to a bearded gent on Kennington Park Road about the idiots jumping the red despite the cross-traffic. At E&C there was an Antipodean-sounding chap chatting to some bloke about how he shouldn't go up the left of anything big. Also a lady shouting 'red light!' when someone RLJ'd across St. George's Road.

This morning was glorious. Quiet roads, perfect temperature, took it easy.

Bike felt slow but that's probably the half-stone I've gained since I last rode my bike :/

empty roads again .. whats with Fridays?