[Closed] Sprinting from red lights

good for training?

Dunno. I'm never sure why folk don't change gear too while doing it, instead of doing the comedy sprint away with legs spinning like crazy.

I do it, mainly so that I don't get squeezed into the gutter by cars.

I don't stop for red lights in the first place

Because you want the traffic to pass you as a series of individual vehicles, each making their choice about if it safe to pass, rather than as one mass.

When the line of cars is unbroken the potential for the cyclist to me hidden by a vehicle in front is much higher - having gaps between the cars means more opportunity to be seen.

The cyclist asserting themselves in this way is another major benefit, rather than shrinking out of sight and out of mind in the gutter.

All three of those are very important factors. Plus, thinking about this subject really does show how dangerous and what bad driving it is it is for cars to drive too close together.

I do it to get up to speed, and to cleanly get past other cyclists, as well as to claim a sensible road position before any traffic islands and stuff crop up.

I rarely get caught by other cyclists.

I do. Partly to get away from any cars turning left who haven't bothered to indicate. Partly because I'm trying to get the single speed up to a decent spinning speed as quickly as possible!

Do your legs flail like a rag doll's glenp?

out of sight and out of mind in the gutter.

WTF? Are you one of those types that rides 8 feet out from the kerb for no reason at all?

Because every ride is a race.

I sprint from red lights to make sure I get to the Todmorden veggie patch before anyone else.

Oh, and to claim a good position, etc, as has already been mentioned.

Don't know what you're on about with the legs. I ride in a normal fashion.

As for riding out. I certainly don't ride in the gutter, and if I think I need to take the road, I do. As should you and everyone else.

Being seen is absolutely vital for cyclists - if you don't know that yet you don't know much at all.

WTF? Are you one of those types that rides 8 feet out from the kerb for no reason at all?

trying too hard now.

I do it because its fun. Nobody catches me.

I ride an 81" fixed gear, so no flailing here. Makes pretty girls moist when they see me unleash the power.

hmm, the 8' comment speaks volumes!

i never sprint from red lights, i either cruise straight through reds or wait for them to change to amber before commencing my sprint.
ok, sometimes i go when the opposing lights go red

its cos it makes me a winner, something i dont experience very often.

Wot GW said.

Traffic lights - they only apply to cars

I'm trying to get the single speed up to a decent spinning speed as quickly as possible!

+1

For 50 metres I'm the best in the world.

Ah well, just wondered.

I prefer letting cars pass and gently getting up to cruising speed, at which time I inevitably catch the riding gods who are puffing & sweating away, gripping the bar ends on their riser for all they're worth.

Bless.

In an urban environment, staying out of the gutter whenever possible and taking your lane is fundamental to safe cycling.

edit: Yeah I sprint. It's fun.

Because it's fun!

All those cyclists that get squished into the edge of the road, some of them killed, think they are "letting the cars past".

So do continue, al.

Coz this is Madrid and there isn't another option. You snooze, you die!!!

You are willing me to get killed?

I just don't see the point in holding traffic up unnecessarily.

The main reason I commute is for fitness (there are obviously other benefits but fitness is the main reason)

So sprinting from the lights is like interval training. As others have said its also a good way of asserting yourself in traffic.

If you're talking about at junctions and crossroads, I much prefer to control the bedlam and be in front and clear of the traffic. Indicators do not mean the car is turning, no indicator does not mean the car is not turning! Arrows and signs are not to be respected, there is every chance that the car in the left filter lane is going to charge across three lanes to turn right, without looking and definately not looking for a cyclist. I wasn't joking above!!

If you're talking about pedestrian crossings, I go with the flow and try to move with the traffic.

I do it because I have to get to ****ing ing work, and don't ignore red lights like some of these idiots

cynic-al - Member
You are willing me to get killed?

I just don't see the point in holding traffic up unnecessarily

go on then, tell us what car you have bought!
does it look really fast?

You are willing me to get killed?

I do it to get up to speed so that I can get past the arseholes that have already cycled through the red lights, causing traffic chaos behind them (which they're usually oblivious to) and then inexplicably dawdle.

If you're in that much of a sodding hurry to jump red lights, ****ing cycle at a rate where you're not going to hold me up! 👿

And breathe....

Steve that's mean 🙁

glenp who says I don't ride assertively?

I also think traffic treats a faster travelling cyclist with a bit more respect than a slower travelling one. If you are moving with the flow of traffic you are less of an obstacle, so getting up to speed quickly is generally a good idea

Can you explain why, when lots of folk inevitably catch you up as you run out of puff after 50m?

Don't understand that last bit?! "Catch you up" and "Run out of Puff" does not compute!

As for riding out. I certainly don't ride in the gutter, and if I think I need to take the road, I do.

I take the lane as default. I move further to the left if it's safe.

who says I don't ride assertively?

I like the fact that everyone has different riding styles and techniques. Makes cycling fun, and is closely linked to sex.

I never jump reds unless they are out in the sticks and there is obviously no traffic. I try to make eye contact with motorists anyway sto try and trigger a humane response which I think makes them less likely to hit me. I do sprint out of the red light from the box mainly because I have found that I can accelerate faster than a car at lower speeds (unless they have a really fast looking car :D) then the car will overtake me later on. If I wait in the traffic line then I have found I get cut up too often and it gets messy.

i do it to get back to a decent speed, always trying to beat my previous commute time so every little helps

Half my point is that those wanting to go as fast as they can print off at an incredible effort then plod along at 15mph, clearly having no idea of how to pace themselves.

I also think traffic treats a faster travelling cyclist with a bit more respect than a slower travelling one.

Respect? not sure about that but if drivers percieve you as a "cyclist" rather than "just someone on a bike" they tend to give you less room. wheelies always work if you want to be seen and want more room!

Unsurprisingly this is turning into a pointless discussion! You said you let all the traffic past. For all the reasons stated clearly above this is a bad idea - it is safer to get a little ahead and let each car come by in turn, when it is safe for them to do so. The cyclist decides if it is safe, not the driver.

Eh?

If you sit back and wait for all the motorists to get past, you as a cyclist can then choose when it's safe to enter the flow of traffic. Junctions are dodgy places because arses on bikes jump lights or don't signal, and arses in cars jump lights and don't signal. At certain junctions I'm quite happy to wait for the chaos to clear before joining the flow of traffic, other times I sprint off at the lights to get ahead. It depends on the makeup of the junction.

Sprinting from red lights?? I tend to sprint towards red lights, only if they've just changed to red mind. Adrenalin mixed with 'will I wont I make it' is good way to wake up before work

Last post from me on this. They are sprinting and [i]then[/i] settling into their comfy pace for all the reasons stated. If you amble away from the lights you are maximising the time that you are riding in a very vulnerable manner. It has nothing to do with macho sprinting, or any other facet of pure cycling - it is just to get into clear space on the road.

The best way to do as you suggest, al, would be to not go near the lights at all. If the lights are red, then stop some good distance short of the lights and allow the cars past as they are slowing down. Then they're already past you when they go into get-away mode. Similarly, if approaching red lights with a queue of cars already forming just sit in the road in the queue as if you're another car (which I often find a better option).

Eh?

If you sit back and wait for all the motorists to get past, you as a cyclist can then choose when it's safe to enter the flow of traffic.

Plus, as a cyclist you [i]are[/i] traffic. You aren't subserviently waiting for proper traffic to allow you to use a bit of the road.