They don't even pay road tax Joe. **Off topic thread**

Eamonnator

Johnny Jukebox wrote: »

His da was a savage MTB racer too...

Chris was a very handy MTB racer, in his young days, in fact he represented Denmark, as a junior in the MTB XC World Championships.

Junior

Harrybelafonte wrote: »

Rode out to Stamullen in the pouring rain this morning, sat around for awhile, wished team mates luck. Got a phone call from GF wondering where I was, as was to be in town... total amnesic attack... one never disappoints one's lady... in other words, I panicked and rode as hard as I could back to Ballymun. Strava says 12 PRs and notified me of a KOM I wasn't aware of. Still, I won't be keeping her waiting again. Totally not worth it (she was totally cool about it, but I thought my heart was going to give up the ghost on the descent into Ballyboughal).

She needs to ring you at the start of a race so in future...

daragh_

<short rant>The new bike lane along the Blackrock bypass has now become a handy way for motorbikes and scooters to escape gridlock. Stuck behind two scooters and what looked like a Harley this morning. It's a segregated lane with its own kerb FFS.:mad::mad::mad::mad: </short rant>

Macy0161

daragh_ wrote: »

<short rant>The new bike lane along the Blackrock bypass has now become a handy way for motorbikes and scooters to escape gridlock. Stuck behind two scooters and what looked like a Harley this morning. It's a segregated lane with its own kerb FFS.:mad::mad::mad::mad: </short rant>

Although I haven't seen it on segregated lanes, I am seeing motorbikes and scooters in mandatory cycle lanes more often.

daragh_

I'm not sure of the legality but I often see motorbikes cut in and out of standard bike lanes to get around stalled traffic. Don't have a problem with that TBH. In my experience motorbike users tend to be the most aware road users.

But riding up behind a bunch of cyclists in a segregated bike lane is just taking the p!ss.

lennymc

Macy0161 wrote: »

Although I haven't seen it on segregated lanes, I am seeing motorbikes and scooters in mandatory cycle lanes more often.

mandatory as in contra flow cycle lanes or on pedestrianised streets?

As a motorbiker, I occasionally use cycle lanes (scoot in and out as described by _Daragh), but only when cyclists are not in them. As far as I recall, the ones I use are the 'shared' ones with broken white lines. I wouldn't use a segregated or mandatory (as above) cycle lane.

Macy0161

daragh_ wrote: »

I'm not sure of the legality but I often see motorbikes cut in and out of standard bike lanes to get around stalled traffic. Don't have a problem with that TBH. In my experience motorbike users tend to be the most aware road users.

They're not (well any motorised vehicle is not) allowed in a mandatory cycle lane. My main issue is when they hammer up behind me, or get stuck ahead ahead because they're too wide and stop me filtering up the cycle lane (used to happen to me a lot on the Merrion Road when that was my route!).

lennymc

again - are you saying mandatory as in a cycle lane on a pedestrianised street or contra flow cycle lane, or are you saying mandatory as in a cycle lane with a solid white line?

quozl

lennymc wrote: »

mandatory as in contra flow cycle lanes or on pedestrianised streets?

Mandatory means the ones with the solid white lines. It means mandatory for non-bicycle vehicles to keep out of them, not mandatory for cyclists to use them.

It has a specific and very confusing meaning

Macy0161

lennymc wrote: »

mandatory as in contra flow cycle lanes or on pedestrianised streets?

As a motorbiker, I occasionally use cycle lanes (scoot in and out as described by _Daragh), but only when cyclists are not in them. As far as I recall, the ones I use are the 'shared' ones with broken white lines. I wouldn't use a segregated or mandatory (as above) cycle lane.

Mandatory/ no motorised vehicles are the ones with a solid white line.

lennymc

quozl wrote: »

Mandatory means the ones with the solid white lines. It means mandatory for non-bicycle vehicles to keep out of them, not mandatory for cyclists to use them.

It has a specific and very confusing meaning

cheers for the clarification - it sure is confusing.

Lumen

quozl wrote: »

Mandatory means the ones with the solid white lines. It means mandatory for non-bicycle vehicles to keep out of them, not mandatory for cyclists to use them.

It has a specific and very confusing meaning

Much of bureaucracy uses technically correct but counter-intuitive meanings.

For instance, the banks call full mortgage approval a "sanction". WTF? Surely sanction means something you're not allowed to do? But no...

noun
1. a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule.
2. official permission or approval for an action.

If you get caught speeding in the UK, you get an "endorsement" on your licence. Endorsements are good, right? But no...

1. the act or process of endorsing
2a. something that is written in the process of endorsing
2b. a provision added to an insurance contract altering its scope or application
3. sanction, approval
4. money earned from a product recommendation <made millions in salary and endorsements>

So an endorsement is a sanction which is good for mortgages but bad for driving. Riiiiight.

tomasrojo

I think "endorse" derives from the same root as the French "dos", and has the basic idea of writing on the back of something.

In Lolita, Humbert Humbert mentions Lolita endorsing a dromedary, which I guess means getting up on the back of. Mind you, with that book's reputation ...

tomasrojo

Or endorsing Camel cigarettes, now I think about it. It's a fantasy sequence about her becoming a professional tennis player.

Wishbone Ash

Macy0161 wrote: »

....or get stuck ahead ahead because they're too wide and stop me filtering up the cycle lane...

I don't generally have a problem with them using the track except in the situation described above - commuting on a Gold Wing is probably counter-productive!

When I was doing motorbike lessons, the instructor said that in heavy traffic if a cycle track was free and safe to use, the tester would expect me to use it. It just didn't sit well with me. I can't recall now if the situation arose during the actual test.

CramCycle

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

When I was doing motorbike lessons, the instructor said that in heavy traffic if a cycle track was free and safe to use, the tester would expect me to use it. It just didn't sit well with me. I can't recall now if the situation arose during the actual test.

Mine told me to sit in traffic and be happy to pass without doing anything, it does depend on the tester, and if you have a good instructor, they will know the most common testers and what they will expect.

A flawed system to say the least.

Darkglasses

http://www.uci.ch/pressreleases/the-uci-and-wfsgi-study-the-introduction-disc-brakes-professional-road-cycling/?utm_content=buffere780f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Disk Brakes are coming to a professional peloton near you this August. New bikes all around, gents.

manafana

Darkglasses wrote: »

http://www.uci.ch/pressreleases/the-uci-and-wfsgi-study-the-introduction-disc-brakes-professional-road-cycling/?utm_content=buffere780f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Disk Brakes are coming to a professional peloton near you this August. New bikes all around, gents.

industry lobbying at its best

AstraMonti

Need to start looking for carbon disks then!

Qualitymark

AstraMonti wrote: »

Need to start looking for carbon disks then!

Yeah, otherwise the brakes will be the heaviest part of the bike. Apart from the great stout fellow on top, of course.

Tea drinker

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=4d9_1428785010
lucky escape

Wishbone Ash

Tea drinker wrote: »

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=4d9_1428785010
lucky escape

:eek: That's horrible to watch! :eek: Lucky is an understatement!

Alek

That's horrible to watch as the guy with the camera carefully puts his bike aside instead of helping his friend to get off the road... :mad:

eeeee

Thought the exact same thing. Yer man's in the middle of the road, groaning in pain and camera guy takes his sweet time propping his bike up. They then leave him on th aside of the road after carrying him over on his own for a while, no talk. Poor guy Can you find out anywhere is he's ok?

couerdelion

Sometimes Google adsense just doesn't quite get it...

Just ordered new gear and decided to upgrade the chamois or foam pad as it was called - Google adsense is now pushing Sanitary Towels... :eek:

manafana

pretty busy road to be cycling on with all the entry exits too, then being in middle lane didnt help

Qualitymark

couerdelion wrote: »

Sometimes Google adsense just doesn't quite get it...

Just ordered new gear and decided to upgrade the chamois or foam pad as it was called - Google adsense is now pushing Sanitary Towels... :eek:

Back in the day, the men of the CTC told me that sanitary towels were good for padding the coccyx against those nasty blisters that come to the unaccustomed arse on first cycling long distances.

lennymc

Cycling up grafton street this morning, dawdling along when suddenly I'm over the bars!! Ouch. My bag carrying my lunch (I left my backpack in work) got caught in the front wheel. Thankfully I was unhurt, but I heard a cracking as I went down. Nooooooooooooooo! I thought. But, after getting up, my worst fears were confirmed. My jar of olives was broken. I was distraught. I love olives.

Eamonnator

I'm delighted to hear, that you're unhurt Lenny, but is the bike damaged in any way?

manafana

lennymc wrote: »

Cycling up grafton street this morning, dawdling along when suddenly I'm over the bars!! Ouch. My bag carrying my lunch (I left my backpack in work) got caught in the front wheel. Thankfully I was unhurt, but I heard a cracking as I went down. Nooooooooooooooo! I thought. But, after getting up, my worst fears were confirmed. My jar of olives was broken. I was distraught. I love olives.

cycling on grafton street? tut tut

lennymc

Eamonnator wrote: »

I'm delighted to hear, that you're unhurt Lenny, but is the bike damaged in any way?

Couple of small scrapes on the levers, but, it's mostly ok, unlike my olives.
Everything still works anyway. It's my race/training bike so I have made peace with the fact that I may write it off in a crash, which makes stuff like that easier to deal with.

lennymc

manafana wrote: »

cycling on grafton street? tut tut

Cycling on grafton street is allowed before it becomes a pedestrianised zone afaik.

seamus

manafana wrote: »

pretty busy road to be cycling on with all the entry exits too, then being in middle lane didnt help

This was kind of my thinking. A few faults all 'round there. So the truck driver should have expected that the cyclists would move back to the slow lane and have not attempted the undertake, but the cyclist didn't even check the lane was clear before moving.

Much earlier on, there was a lane for taking a slip road. Textbook-correctly they moved left and took up the secondary position in the middle lane.
However, if they had kept to the centre/left of the slip lane and ridden across the chevrons, they would have found themselves in control of the right-hand lane rather than the middle lane and in a much stronger position on the road.

Sometimes the correct/safest action isn't the legal one. That said, I'd be looking for an alternative route than the one they take. Having driven in the US I wouldn't ride on any road with more than two lanes.

OleRodrigo

lennymc wrote: »

Cycling on grafton street is allowed before it becomes a pedestrianised zone afaik.

Same on Henry Street. Although I've yet to correct the tut tutting pedestrians on this..

Qualitymark

lennymc wrote: »

Cycling up grafton street this morning, dawdling along when suddenly I'm over the bars!! Ouch. My bag carrying my lunch (I left my backpack in work) got caught in the front wheel. Thankfully I was unhurt, but I heard a cracking as I went down. Nooooooooooooooo! I thought. But, after getting up, my worst fears were confirmed. My jar of olives was broken. I was distraught. I love olives.

Happened to me (minus the olives) going down the ramp into the GPO cycle park years back. The bike cartwheeled slowly over me, and in slow motion I saw the pedal coming down towards my hand, flattened on the ground - I was frozen and couldn't move. The pedal with the full weight of the bike on it missed my hand by a palm's width. :eek: I was so shook that I bit the face off the kindly porter who rushed to help me; regret my rudeness to this day.

manafana

seamus wrote: »

This was kind of my thinking. A few faults all 'round there. So the truck driver should have expected that the cyclists would move back to the slow lane and have not attempted the undertake, but the cyclist didn't even check the lane was clear before moving.

Much earlier on, there was a lane for taking a slip road. Textbook-correctly they moved left and took up the secondary position in the middle lane.
However, if they had kept to the centre/left of the slip lane and ridden across the chevrons, they would have found themselves in control of the right-hand lane rather than the middle lane and in a much stronger position on the road.

Sometimes the correct/safest action isn't the legal one. That said, I'd be looking for an alternative route than the one they take. Having driven in the US I wouldn't ride on any road with more than two lanes.

double lane is fine where the turns are lights but not slip roads like that as speeds are just so high but as with every cyclist on here who cares for themselves you don;t put yourself into a situation like that by avoidance even if as you say the safest way isn't isnt always the legal way

Weepsie

Just saw someone advertise a bike on donedeal for 1400. Nothing strange, til I realised this was a bike they paid 700 for on adverts.ie only a few days ago as i had considered making an offer on it.

NiallBoo

lennymc wrote: »

Cycling on grafton street is allowed before it becomes a pedestrianised zone afaik.

I thought it was that vehicles were allowed in at certain times only for access (ie. not to used as a through-road)?

Do you know where the rules are on this? I had a quick look but couldn't find anything.

Lusk_Doyle

lennymc wrote: »

cheers for the clarification - it sure is confusing.

You confuse easily.

RainyDay

couerdelion wrote: »

Sometimes Google adsense just doesn't quite get it...

Just ordered new gear and decided to upgrade the chamois or foam pad as it was called - Google adsense is now pushing Sanitary Towels... :eek:

You're very cranky about a very minor issue. Any reason for this crankiness today?

lennymc wrote: »

my worst fears were confirmed. My jar of olives was broken. I was distraught. I love olives.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/lukelewis/agonising-waitrose-problems#.dcZDLz7E4

eeeee

lennymc wrote: »

Couple of small scrapes on the levers, but, it's mostly ok, unlike my olives.
Everything still works anyway. It's my race/training bike so I have made peace with the fact that I may write it off in a crash, which makes stuff like that easier to deal with.

Did similar getting cocky near luas lines (the surface is way soothed right next to the track!). Splattered down I went, and smash went the two bottles of red wine I was carrying in my bag


In other news, accuweather lied to me today. I set out in jersey and shorts to Howth, (and armwarmers and a baselayer. Summer gear!) and it started raining once I got there. That was not a fun cycle home. Still trying to get warm .:( .1% chance of rain my arse!

AstraMonti

lennymc wrote: »

Cycling up grafton street this morning, dawdling along when suddenly I'm over the bars!! Ouch. My bag carrying my lunch (I left my backpack in work) got caught in the front wheel. Thankfully I was unhurt, but I heard a cracking as I went down. Nooooooooooooooo! I thought. But, after getting up, my worst fears were confirmed. My jar of olives was broken. I was distraught. I love olives.

PM your address, I 'll send you some of the real stuff

rollingscone

Saw 3 of the usually rare on my route female roadie commuters this morning I.E. proper roadbikes, road shoes and in one case some pretty rad looking orange Lycra.

The third mistook my lateness to work for competitiveness and was sure to catch up and then drop me.

Good to see.

arybvtcw0eolkf

If anyone seen a struggling cyclist on a hybrid, dash into the bushes at St.Annes Park and coming out covered in a cold sweat I hope you didn't call the guards for me!..

I've normally a cast iron stomach, but during work today I felt a slight discomfort in my tummy. This morning I took the hybrid intending to take the canal route but decided the discomfort was great enough to dash for home, thank God I chose this option.

Got caught with the worst gastro bug in my life.. Had to throw the bike into a taxi and home, I'm a shivering wreck.

Between clenching my butt and trying to keep my lunch down this was the worse cycle journey ever!.

eeeee

Oh god that's miserable, you poor thing. Get well soon ()

OldBean

Ah jaysis, Mak.

Nothing worse. There's a couple of nasty doses doing the rounds.

On a slightly lighter note, I think we crossed paths on Monday morning, gave each other a good old "Mornin'".

rollingscone

Aiden Defeated Revolver wrote: »

If anyone seen a struggling cyclist on a hybrid, dash into the bushes at St.Annes Park and coming out covered in a cold sweat I hope you didn't call the guards for me!..

I've normally a cast iron stomach, but during work today I felt a slight discomfort in my tummy. This morning I took the hybrid intending to take the canal route but decided the discomfort was great enough to dash for home, thank God I chose this option.

Got caught with the worst gastro bug in my life.. Had to throw the bike into a taxi and home, I'm a shivering wreck.

Between clenching my butt and trying to keep my lunch down this was the worse cycle journey ever!.

Are you sure you didn't just see the Giant All-road? The symptoms match

arybvtcw0eolkf

OldBean wrote: »

Ah jaysis, Mak.

Nothing worse. There's a couple of nasty doses doing the rounds.

On a slightly lighter note, I think we crossed paths on Monday morning, gave each other a good old "Mornin'".

Wasn't me, sorry. I had to take the car into work on Monday but I think we share a similar route along Clontarf, Sutton Cross and into Portmarnock.

Since we're back in shorts you'll know me by my leg tattoo's;



Please say HI Makikomi (or Lenny).

I guess I'm unusual in that I normally ride a Whyte CX with road tyres (a Gatorskin on the rear) and a Brooks B17 saddle ~ I haven't seen anything similar along the same commute.

OldBean

Ah - was the spit of you!

I'd be heading out that direction most mornings I'm not working; town - Clontarf - Sutton - Malahide with a potential Howth climb thrown in.

Will keep on eye out for the bike/tatt's - I'll be on a red n'silver bike with a squeaky Brooks Flyer and the loudest water bottles. Can't miss me.

arybvtcw0eolkf

OldBean wrote: »

Ah - was the spit of you!

I'd be heading out that direction most mornings I'm not working; town - Clontarf - Sutton - Malahide with a potential Howth climb thrown in.

Will keep on eye out for the bike/tatt's - I'll be on a red n'silver bike with a squeaky Brooks Flyer and the loudest water bottles. Can't miss me.

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled.

Although it won't be tomorrow. I'm still running to the loo and feeling very sick now so it'll be a doctors visit for me in the morning