I think it is the fact it is unrequited that creates the tension – I have no idea what his voew is as I dont read the top gear threads.
What Samurai said AGAIN
I can think of no reason to not take up that position that close to a junction when you are stationary at a crossing.
Anyway JC has a camera in his hand whist driving – we all know that is illegal rather than not approved by some car drivers but lets not discuss the real criminal here
Oh the whole of this JC v Cyclist thing was probably like many things in life just 50/50 both acting a bit knobish
And that’s just the kind of wishy washy, socially minded, positive, helpful nonsense we can do well without on here.
Sorry Pete I had a good nights sleep & the sun is shining, I will walk into town now and it will piss down and I will return in a more aggressive mood 😉
Impossible to judge then, unless someone can identify the road in question – even where pictured, it’s not clear to me the cyclist needs to be in the primary position (unless turning right)
Its at the end of Draycott Place and the cyclist is turning right into cadogan gdns.
JC may (or may note) be wrong on the specific argument here, but a moron? Hardly. With a simple tweet he creates exactly the responses his persona requires to be sustained. Flawed argument, but top execution.
There’s actually no need for any debate about this whatsoever. Primary position is the recommended position for cycling in situations where an overtaking car can put the cyclist in danger.
It’s what British Cycling recommends, it’s what John Franklin in Cyclecraft recommends, it’s what local authority-provided training recommends…
It’s about taking the lane for visibility of the following driver and it’s about preventing dangerous overtakes.
The only issue is that the general public (and many cyclists) have not had primary position and the reasons for it explained to them. To fill this vacuum some people choose to interpret it as deliberate ‘blocking’ behaviour from the cyclist, which is totally incorrect…
I really wish the general public would chill out about cycling…
JC may (or may note) be wrong on the specific argument here, but a moron? Hardly. With a simple tweet he creates exactly the responses his persona requires to be sustained. Flawed argument, but top execution.
Not sure about that, the cyclist involved is a member on here..I’m sure he’ll be along later to give his side of things.
Broess +1 and lazy bike, to be clear, I think JC was 100% wrong wth his flawed argument but simply knows how to deliberately wind folk up. His main raison d’être?
Broess +1 and lazy bike, to be clear, I think JC was 100% wrong wth his flawed argument but simply knows how to deliberately wind folk up. His main raison d’être?
Mods, please allow me to use this account for this thread only, I’ll stop using it when all of this nonsense is done. I post on STW under a different username but I really don’t want to be ID’d on Facebook,Twitter, etc as other STW’ers know me, and my employers may get the hump over it.
Right then, from the horses mouth so to speak…….
I was riding home from work (this is one of my regular routes) down Sloane Avenue in Chelsea towards Sloane Square. As I approached this island at the junction of Ixworth Street, a Range Rover over took me, because he had to veer left to avoid hitting the island I got pushed owards the kerb.
Sloane Ave
There was no point to this pass as there was slow moving traffic a little bit further down the road.
Now I was pretty cheesed off with this and most of you will know a close pass starts pumping adrenaline. Sloane Ave is a nice flat road and it’s really easy to keep up with the trafic and just past the island I was keeping pace with the Range Rover, the driver was looking in his N/S door mirror giving the ‘stare’. I admit that I was fairly vocal at this point and shouted ‘What? you f*****g c**k, f****** knobstick’ not much of an insult but I was too riled up to think straight.
As we approached the junction with Cadogan Street the traffic started slowing so I moved to the middle of the road to overtake. As I passed the Range Rover the window started to come down and a few words were exchanged by both of us as I passed (I can’t remember what, I don’t think it was as bad as the first reaction though as I tend to calm down fairly quickly). I then kept up with the traffic for the rest of Sloane Ave, and then in to Draycott Place which is quite narrow for a two way road.
Draycott Place
Keeping up with the traffic in Draycott Place is easy as well, and as I approached the crossing at the end someone was waiting to cross so I stopped (I always do this, and stop at red lights as well believe it or not!), before it, and not on the crossing as some have suggested.
The junction
I was turning right at this junction to go down to Sloane Square, so as I moved off I was positioning myself for this.
At the junction I looked behind me and saw Jeremy Clarkson just pulling up behind me with his head and arm out of the window, holding his phone and shouting ‘gotcha’ and looking well smug with himself. He was driving, and there was nobody else in the car. I got off my bike and pushed it back to his car and pointed out that he was overtaking me going in to a hazard, and made me change course. He just kept shouting increduously ‘you were four feet from the kerb, but you were four feet from the kerb, I’m a cyclist and you were four feet from the kerb!’.
After a couple of attempts to explain to him why I thought he was wrong I gave up as he just kept shouting, I then rode off. Throughout this exchange I stayed reasonably calm.
At no time did I abuse any other road user or pedestrian on my journey home.
What JC’s pic on twitter doesn’t show is how much traffic was about at the time. Before I stopped at the crossing the junction was busy, and the traffic was queing all the way down to Sloane Square. I was probably well on my way to Parliament Square by the time JC got through Sloane Square. The ambulance wasn’t parked either, it was moving.
Thanks for your patience reading my longest ever post!
After a couple of attempts to explain to him why I thought he was wrong I gave up as he just kept shouting, I then rode off. Throughout this exchange I stayed reasonably calm.
can’t believe you missed the chance to lump the fat bigot in the chops.
Definitely not enough room to take secondary position in any of those streets, Primary is the only safe option there. I do wonder how much urban riding those who are slagging off the cyclist actually do?
…actually I’ll correct my earlier post – the police might be able to take action as there is direct evidence of JC taking a photo whilst driving. Seriously, please do report him.
Its Clarkson – a fairly high profile TV presenter who specialises in glorifying driving stupidity. With his own pic condemning him they may well be interested, especially as its now on social media.