I haven’t given up the bike, but have stopped the road cycling – MTBing is more risky, but it’s depends upon how hard you push it.

On the plus side, the compensation will buy me a few new shiney MTB’s, before I can no longer ride and my back gives in permanently.

I noticed after being down south for a week that a lot of cyclists have rear and sometimes front lights on in the daytime. Don’t see that up north much but I reckon it’s a good idea as a lot of new cars have DRL’s so I suppose it’s good sense to “match” them so we don’t fade into the background.

not cycling on the road.
*checks to see if this is still a mtb forum*

How does the Garmin thing really help?

Knowing a car is coming towards you is useless unless every time the thing beeps you leap off your bike and hide behind a tree until it’s past???????

I did wonder exactly that before I got it. Mostly it’s very early awareness and the ability to plan ahead. Know there’s a car or two coming up 100m behind you, scanning the road ahead, bends, road surface, pot holes, how close are the cars, how fast are they approaching, are they likely to reach me at a point that’s suitable for passing, is there oncoming traffic, should I slow down or speed up, are there junctions coming up, where do I want to be on the road? How can I make this as simple as possible for the driver and low risk for me? And I can do that all a long time before they’re right behind me.

It also doubles as a rear light, the pattern of flashing also changes when there are vehicles approaching to further attract attention, and I think it also changes with approach speed.

I expect if a LBS had some to lend out for a trial to the sceptical then not many would be handed back.

Assume every other road use is out to get you.

This..and just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean(some of them) aren’t out to get me/you.

Being seen is a good idea, being a clown in hi-viz just makes you better target.

My commuter has a dynamo hub so front and rear lights all the time. My other road bikes get small LED lights according to conditions, usually if it’s foggy.

Idiot lights, sorry DRL, are used round here as a substitute for actually turning on the correct lights in fog or at night.

no riding when it’s wet or high winds, not that i mind riding in the rain it’s just the locals turn into complete speed freak nut jobs which exacerbated by poorer visibility and worse stopping distances. It was kind of confirmed for me when looking at the rta map seemed most of the fatalities happened in adverse weather conditions.

If I hear a car behind me get over to the left

Funny that – cycling in the low sun this week, if I saw a shadow of a car looming behing me, I moved slightly to the right until it was safe for them to pass.

I have bought a Sugoi Zap jacket for this winter. Proper reflective.

If I hear a car behind me get over to the left

that statement needs to be seriously heavily qualified I think, there’s no way you should be doing that if there’s any doubt at all about the dirver behind you being able to make a safe pass, I would practically never do that in an urban environment. If there’s no traffic coming the other way then I want them in the other lane, and if there’s traffic coming the other way then most roads aren’t wide enough to allow them to pass safely…[/quote]This. Absolutely. Moving to the left every time you hear a car is asking to get squeezed.

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

No road user has any more or less right to be on the road than any other road user. Just because there are more cars does not make them any more (or less) entitled to use the road than any other group of road user. We do not pay a fee or a tax to use the road in this country (M6 Toll excluded, but I’ve been asked not to time-trial on there again!) so you should start with an “everyone is equal” mindset.

So then it comes down to survival. You do what you need to do to get home to your family safely and in one piece. Motorists often do not understand what their obligations are around cyclists, so you are quite within your rights to control these yourself. If you do not believe that the car behind you can safely overtake on a blind bend without compromising the 1.5m gap that they should be leaving, then stick your bike in such a position on the road that makes it clear to the motorist behind that you are taking charge of the situation. There is nothing wrong with this and, in fact, it is the recommended way to be a safe, assertive cyclist.

If you’re driving your car and another car comes up behind you, would you drive in the gutter so they can squeeze past, barely clearing your wing-mirrors? No, of course you don’t. So why is there an expectation that cyclists should do the same, particularly when the risks for them are so much higher?

Commuting on the bike is a great way of keeping fit for the fun stuff at weekends. My commute became much more dangerous when our office moved from the suburbs into Manchester.

I’d re-worked a better route after someone clipped my rear sending me crashing down (broken ribs) and was using the ‘Fallowfield Loop’ for about 4 miles. Unfortunately, my spine breaking accident was just 300 yards short of this traffic free route on a suburban street ! My wife said ‘why weren’t you using that path’ – me “I was just about to get on it”.

I was only doing 13mph when the car hit me, the bike only had a small scratch on the forks, but apparently my injury was like the ‘old lap seat belt’ injuries in that my body must have doubled over and split my vertebrae front to back.

Nothing can protect you from drivers who don’t look. The driver came over to me and said ‘SMIDSY’ – as you can imagine, between the screams of pain, I said ‘how could you not see me’. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get up and punch his lights out. I’d had two Hope 1’s on constant and another mega light on a pulse mode. Bright red bike and a bright red top.

Just because there are more cars does not make them any more (or less) entitled to use the road than any other group of road user

That’s an argument you ain’t ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

That’s an argument you ain’t ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

In this case, I suppose I wasn’t arguing it. I was stating it, and putting my bike in a position on the road that reflects it.

I know that I’m falling into the “self-entitled ****” category, but when you rethink your place on the road, you stop being submissive and start thinking like what you really are – a vehicle on the road.

I know you weren’t arguing it… but if you were to, with any driver!

I know you weren’t arguing it… but if you were to, with any driver!

Sure, and sometimes I do get tooted at and even shouted at, but (so far at least), I’ve not been squished and this counts for much I reckon.

Sadly, the education of so many motorists on our roads is simply appalling 🙁

but when you rethink your place on the road, you stop being submissive and start thinking like what you really are – a vehicle on the road

This makes more sense to me than prescriptively telling cyclists to ride in position x in the road. Being a driver helps with also – reading the signs of drivers intentions and being able to use them yourself while riding (or maybe I’m deluding myself and am just lucky so far).

Definitely say riding fast is a good idea – not talking about smashing it or anything silly, but closer to the speed of urban traffic just gives you more options, cars take fewer liberties IME.

I occasionally take a hire bike across Manchester – heavy and undergeared. The difference is stark – feel very vulnerable bimbling along at 10 mph, no way of moving the bike forcefully. Drivers definitely show less respect.

Sry to hear about your accident fossy and hope your back holds up – I commute daily in Manchester and must say I’m pretty relaxed about it. Sobering reminder that it only takes one dickhead, and there’s no shortage of them about.

I said ‘how could you not see me’. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get up and punch his lights out.

Wow, really sorry to hear about your injuries fossy – that’s dreadful

but if it was dark or even dusk then my own view is that

I’d had two Hope 1’s on constant and another mega light on a pulse mode

may be the answer to your question 🙁

The lights acted as an invisibility cloak?

Good lights, brakes and wide grippy tyres for urban hilly commuting. Observation and road positioing

robz400 – Member
How does the Garmin thing really help?

Knowing a car is coming towards you is useless unless every time the thing beeps you leap off your bike and hide behind a tree until it’s past???????

not sure if the Garmin rear radar was designed/intended for use on busy UK roads – living down under on rural roads definitely beneficial to know a vehicle is coming up behind as can check looks like is going to move over, I’ll ride wide (at least 1m out so have some space to move into) – drivers are often fatigued/drugged or not just looking on boring country roads with very little traffic – US conditions can be similar – don’t have a Garmin but have found a mirror essential and use daytime rear lights – considering one though but have found the newer daytime lights seems to help a lot

– as above route choice (sadly) is the number 1 safety measure for me – spend quite a lot of time looking at googlemaps looking for gravel alternatives and roads that are dead ends for motorised users

DezB wrote:

That’s an argument you ain’t ever gonna win (despite being correct)!

I know you weren’t arguing it… but if you were to, with any driver!

Thing is, it isn’t an argument; with most motorists (round me anyway) it already is won. Most motorists are fine, many are extremely considerate. A few get it wrong mostly through lack of understanding I think.

But there are a very small minority who just decide they can see round corners. And another minority that are absolute cockwombles of the finest order and go out of their way to scare, intimidate and bully.

It’s not about cyclists vs all motorists. Most are fine. It wouldn’t take much of a change in behaviour for the roads to be much safer and more pleasant – trouble is it would need to be the worst offenders that changed or got sanctioned and they’re the hardest to reach.

It’s not helped by the media stance that it’s all of us vs all of them, and that it’s a war. And that it’s ok like that – that’s the thing I can’t forgive the likes of Jeremy Clarkson: popularising the cyclists are scum thing.

Most people know it’s not true, most drivers do an ok job. We need to change peoples’ opinion of “people on bikes”, and we’re not as far away from where we need to be as the doom-monger would have you believe.

I’ll certainly not stop riding on the road, I’ll still take the lane where that’s the safest thing for me. The small minority of drivers can just suck it up and wait IMO.

Sadly it seems the first people whose opinion we need to change is Cambridgeshire police. Their conclusions have given my sunny and optimist outlook that things might not be terrible a good shoeing TBF.

Trying not to ride like a self-entitled titled cock. Seems to be working so far.

I need to remind myself of this at times. Generally I’m a safe and considerate rider but bad driving does tend to bring out the bad cyclist in me which can’t be a good thing!