And, if you do, would you consider stopping your bike first?

Reason I’m asking is this. Last night I very nearly pranged a cyclist whilst taking the MIL home. Said cyclist shot out of a junction and weaved out to the middle of the road right in front of my car – one hand kind of on the bars, the other holding mobile to ear – evidently mid argument.

I screech to a halt. She turns, glowers and – best of all, I thought – flips me the bird and calls me a ‘kin w*nker’. 😕

Red light jumping, I can take. No helmeting, I do myself. But surely mobile socialising in the saddle is a step too far…

I have been known to do this…sorry 😳

I only find it acceptable after I’ve had a few pints.

the issue is not what she was doing with the phone but what she was doing with the bike
I dont ride and use my phone

I have been known to do this…sorry

The calling, or the abuse throwing? 😀

No, it’s utter madness like driving with a mobile phone. In my opinion should carry the same legal penalty.

One handed call making finger flippin’ cyclist.. prat, but good skills! 😉

As someone who grew up before mobile ‘phones I find it unecessary to have a ‘phone at my ear continuously so, in answer to your question, no.

Cripes

Bit of both… 😳

which, in my defence, is not as bad as my gf who once asked some old boy whether he’d like to be fisted!!

Edit: Makes us look bad!! it was once, in both cases, and I’ve not been on the phone and flipped the finger at the same time!!

I don’t take them, simply because by the time I have stopped and fished my ‘phone out of my bag it will usually be through to voicemail. I only bother doing that if I’m riding during ‘work’ hours. If not I just wait until I’m home/back at the car.

My phone stays on silent in my bag whenever I’m out on the bike. I can’t really imagine a scenario where something is soooooooooo urgent that it can’t wait a couple of hours

Mind you, I seem to be in a minority of less than 1% of the population, in holding this belief

Anyroad up.. from cycling tribes, makes me laugh..

The Beautiful Godzilla

The Beautiful Godzilla is a particular kind of urban female cyclist who rides as though the rest of the world were created simply to yield to her. She’s generally young, good-looking and clad in expensive clothes. She also rides an old three-speed or perhaps a 10-speed or Dutch city bike, carries her handbag on the edge of her handlebars and if she has a basket it usually contains a small dog or perhaps a baguette. She’s on her mobile phone at all times and her approach to cycling in a densely populated city is a combination of self-entitlement and Mr Magoo-type dumb luck. Like any self-entitled person, she can’t imagine a car would possibly hit her, even if she’s riding against traffic and it’s coming right at her. Actually, you sort of find yourself disappointed when it doesn’t. And just like Mr Magoo would wander into a construction site and a girder would materialise right as he was about to walk off the scaffolding, the Beautiful Godzilla blithely rides through red lights and busy intersections, emerging on the other side unscathed and just as photogenic as she was when she entered it.

Why other cyclists don’t like them: They should be dead but aren’t.

Compatibility with other cyclists: Will accept deliveries from Messengers; will develop crushes on Messengers.

No, ever take calls while riding, mainly because I don’t trust myself to stay upright, never mind any of the other risks!

On a similar theme, there recently seems to be a significant increase of idiots round here riding on busy roads hands free. I’ve very nearly collided with 2 of them and one RLJ’d at a very busy junction without even slowing.

Why? Are they trying to prove Darwin right?

no coz by the time i get it out of my bag its rung off anyway!!! plus riding always comes first

I can’t answer the phone whilst riding as I can’t get my hand into the jersey pocket due to a shoulder injury. This is the official line i give to my wife.

The reality? Bike time is my time, I carry my phone for emergencies and strava use. Everything else can wait for an hour or two.

usually won’t but sometimes I’ll take a call, depends on what’s going on with family and friends at the time.
Will usually stop, have been known to talk while bimbling along (have been known to crash whilst doing so aswell – offroad) but wouldn’t attempt to negotiate a junction or busy road

depends!

on the road not a chance
on a quite, empty cycle route and in no hurry then maybe in fact I have done a few times

off road on singletrack or some fun bit then no chance
on a fire road or something linking up with something else fun then maybe

Just like driving, it’s really not a good idea.

Statistically (probably), 99.9995% of mobile phone calls are about total sh*te and can be safely ignored whatever you’re doing. From my own research on public transport, people who talk the loudest have the least to say, as do people who spend the longest whittering on mobile phones.

Great quote in a film I saw recently; if what you have to say is less important than silence, be quiet.

Great quote in a film I saw recently; if what you have to say is less important than silence, be quiet

…and maybe I should follow my own advice. Shush now, zimbo…

Under normal circumstances, I’d ignore it and check it later when I’d stopped. I carry a phone for my convenience, not everyone else’s.

However, both my parents are ill at the moment, so currently I’d probably make the effort to answer it. I’d definitely stop though;, not for any moral reasons so much as I’d probably fall off if I didn’t.

Yes pretty much on every ride (the joys of being on call 24/7) I always stop though.

Statistically (probably), 99.9995% of mobile phone calls are about total sh*te

My favourite recent OT mobile related experience is this:

I’m in a lift with two girls. We’re in a relatively swank Liverpool office set-up.

Girl 1: Ooooh he’s texting me again.
Girl 2: (sniggers) What’s he say?
Girl 1: Says ‘I’ll never find a guy who’ll love me as much as he does.”
Girl 2: (sniggers) Loser.
Girl 1: I’m gonna reply!
Girl 2: (sniggers) What you gonna say?
Girl 1: I’ll say I already found 2 or 3…
Girl 2: (sniggers) He’s such a loser.

Finis

Not sure 21st century communication is being wisely used…

Mid-ride phone calls? What a strange idea.

Just as daft as the nitwits who climb Snowdon (other mountains are available) then for some reason feel they have to call their wives just so they can say “I’m on top of Snowdon” followed by “Hello? Hello? Love? Sorry, you’re break.. hel.. you’re breaking up. Can you hear me? I can’t hear you” and so on… that, after spending 25 minutes walking around holding their phone up in the air trying to get a signal

People riding bikes on roads with phones to ear, have whats coming to them.. There is no justification where it should be acceptable. Even a quiet road can become a nightmare when you get a numpty screaming down it at 60mph, to come confronted with a cyclist weaving over the road, with not great hearing as they are listening to the phone call.

It’s wrong.

The Beautiful Godzilla

Nice one. 😀

Except the cyclist in question would probably only qualify as a Godzilla.

I can’t really imagine a scenario where something is soooooooooo urgent that it can’t wait a couple of hours

“Can you pick up some milk on your way home?”
“One of the kids is badly injured, meet me at the hospital”
“You forgot your keys, I need to go out so I’ll leave them under the cat”

etc etc

Not all mobile phone conversations are vacuous shite. No-one phones me with out a decent reason, and that’s very rarely, so it stays on. I do however stop to answer it unless I am pootling on the commuter and it’s an empty road and a short exchange.

in the days when mobiles were pretty rare a few of us went for a wander across morecombe sands, was a gorgeous day, the sand flats spread out for miles all around us, hadn’t seen anyone all day, our mate the guide, bit of a mountain man said see don’t it feel great to be out in the middle of nowhere, on cue one of the lads mobile went off. Classic.

molgrips +1
the biggest risk for me is that I drop my nice shiny phone and it gets ran over by a bus

Under normal circumstances, I’d ignore it and check it later when I’d stopped. I carry a phone for my convenience, not everyone else’s.

This. When I’m out for a ride, I’m basically unreachable, unless I have reason to think I should answer it. If it’s super urgent (e.g. molgrips’ scenario #2) and keeps ringing I’d stop and answer it though.

Scenario #1 though is for when I’m on my way home from work or the station or something though, not out mtbing.

I can’t really imagine a scenario where something is soooooooooo urgent that it can’t wait a couple of hours

I’ll normally let it go to vmail (can’t usually get it out before it hangs up anyway) but then I’ll check it at the next convenient opportunity. Having once had the call that an ambulance was on the way because my Dad was having a suspected heart attack, doesn’t seem too much inconvenience

the next convenient opportunity

+1

I do the same. Wouldn’t ride and phone chat and certainly wouldn’t ride out of a busy junction, phone argue and call the driver I’ve almost whacked a ‘kin w*nker’.

Outraged, from Liverpool. 8)

I’m normally listening to music so it’s hands free baby. Not that anyone calls me