Your rants here.

always_tyred

Rockbuddy wrote:

Ok, so I've been viewing the forums for a while now and thought I'd join in. This is my first post and it's a bit of a rant...

I usually ride my bike to work as it's only 3 miles from home but this morning I took the car. Coming up to traffic lights the lane splits into 2 but only after a traffic calming narrow bit. I wanted to turn left so pulled to the left but the gap between the calming bit and the van in front was not quite big enough for me to get through, however it would have been for the cyclist who was attempting to filter on my left. The first I new about it was a screech of brakes...the van blocking me then moved off, so I pulled up to the lights. Of course the cyclist pulled in front of me, I tried to say sorry but got a right scowl back for my troubles. I'm definately not saying I was in the right (as I am used to not been seen, maybe I should have been more aware) but having said that I do think if you are filtering you can't always expect cars to see you. You should take responsibility for your actions.

Agreed - the person filtering takes at least equal responsibility. However from the cyclist's perspective, it may have appeared that you suddenly changed road position for no reason. Were you indicating left? (All that said, the fact that there was traffic calming to me is important - if I'm filtering on the bike, I most certainly take this into account).

Rockbuddy

Always Tyred wrote:

Rockbuddy wrote:

Ok, so I've been viewing the forums for a while now and thought I'd join in. This is my first post and it's a bit of a rant...

I usually ride my bike to work as it's only 3 miles from home but this morning I took the car. Coming up to traffic lights the lane splits into 2 but only after a traffic calming narrow bit. I wanted to turn left so pulled to the left but the gap between the calming bit and the van in front was not quite big enough for me to get through, however it would have been for the cyclist who was attempting to filter on my left. The first I new about it was a screech of brakes...the van blocking me then moved off, so I pulled up to the lights. Of course the cyclist pulled in front of me, I tried to say sorry but got a right scowl back for my troubles. I'm definately not saying I was in the right (as I am used to not been seen, maybe I should have been more aware) but having said that I do think if you are filtering you can't always expect cars to see you. You should take responsibility for your actions.

Agreed - the person filtering takes at least equal responsibility. However from the cyclist's perspective, it may have appeared that you suddenly changed road position for no reason. Were you indicating left? (All that said, the fact that there was traffic calming to me is important - if I'm filtering on the bike, I most certainly take this into account).

Ok, you got me, I wasn't indicating (which is a pet hate of mine, especially when cycling) so I can understand the cyclists point of view. It's just the scowl at the lights when I tried to appologise came across quite indignant, like I'd blocked her on purpose!?

grayo59

You did say you heard a screech of brakes and that was the first you knew about it - that indicates to me that you moved into the cyclists path at the wrong moment. I think getting a scowl was the least you could expect.

And yes - it could have been me cuz I'm not perfect either! It just makes us more aware so that is good.

Welcome to the forum!

el_presidente

To the guy outside Lords who sniffily said "I don't want you sitting on my back wheel"

1) I was NOT on your back wheel I had executed a clean overtake then got balked by a taxi U-turning
2) I didn't want to follow you through the red light anyway
3) Yes I did beat you to the next set of lights anyway
4) chill out dude

downfader

This afternoon... Heading up a local hill I shoulder check and move out to go around a parked car. As I do this the guy in a 4x4 who has just caught up with me decided to try and push me to the edge of the road - ofcourse theres no space for me to move into because of the parked car.

As I raise my hand and I'm about to gesture a loud "why?" (as he had the whole other side of the road for one) I realise its a fella about late 50s and he's angrily leaning around giving me the finger. Er yeah, cheers fella. Thats really mature. :roll: I in no way swore or gave him anything like a finger...

That was one of two things that happened in an otherwise loverly ride in and out of work. The other being as a taxi overtook me he must have visually blocked me as the car waiting on my right at the next junction lurched out. I kind of panicked and went "WHOOAAGGHHH!!" thinking he was going to drive into me and flicked left into the kerb.

It was like he suddenly woke up when I did that, as he then waited until it was safe to overtake. No harm done there though I did poo myself a little. :oops:

jopari

Assuming I'm allowed to slag off a whole coach company....
I had a scary near miss with a particular popular Leeds coach company a few weeks back, and had a letter all draughted out to send, but didn't do it for some reason.

Yesterday I had 2 near-passes from the same bus company (2 different coaches), one on burley road bus-lane, the next on the A65 past Horsforth (same place as initial near miss). In both cases I'd checked behind me, seen the bus, assumed there was no way they would try to pass where it was so tight, then they've ploughed on through.

I've now checked and two of the incidents have been with the same coach.

btw, a clue to the company's name: they're called Fourways.

Has anyone else had similar experiences? What should I do? Cycle in prime position for whole of bus lane and thoroughly nark the bus drivers and/or complain to the company in question?

thoughts please...

Kieran_Burns

You must complain (in my opinion). It's your life they are gambling with and incidents are noted. If no one said anything nothing would ever be done as no one would know.

However if people are complaining then the Management will be aware and MUST respond to the written complaint.

downfader

Jopari, you are within your rights to go and have a chat with the Police if you feel that your life was seriously threatened.

Personally I would definately report it to the company. There is no excuse for putting a life at risk and they could end up paying a small fortune should an accident occur.

The Chingford Skinhead

jopari - if it was a one-off incident then I might leave it but three occassions in a short sense of time might suggest that there is either a problem with training of culture at the company and both need to be addressed for the benefit of you and other cyclists / vulnerable road users.

Stay safe out there mate

Rich158

Victor is back!!!!!!!!!!

To the Astra driver who tried to force me out of his way this morning, sir you are a complete c%$£ who needs to learn some road manners.

At the start of my route I have to cross over the A2 with several slip roads etc. I start turning left at a fairly major roundabout, and then enter a short two lane stretch of road. The left hand lane peels of for the A2, so I have to move over into the outer lane, which due to traffic islands etc then becomes single lane before convderting back to two lanes for the roundabout on the other side of the A2. I turn right at the roundabout, so tend to ride primary in the outer lane for the 50 meters or so untill the roundabout. Mr Astra however had other ideas and tried to pass me on the outside. It was apparent he wasn't going to be stopped my me being in the middle of the lane and then proceeded to deliberately force me into the inside lane, it was a case of either move or I'll drive into you, and then cut me up as he moved into the inside lane to turn left at the roundabout, all the time gesticulating at me to get out of the way. I guess his precious time is more valuable than my life, cnut :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: Why he couldn't have waited 10 secs or so and passd me on the inside I'll never know, 99% of cars do every day, and it's not as if I'm riding slowly at this point I'm normally doing 20-25mph. My only regret is I didn't get his number to report him.

rant number two :shock:

To the guy on the hybrid who drafted me down through Welling this morning, chapeau for keeping up with me at 20mph plus on a hybrid, but would it really have been too much to pull alongside at the lights and say hello. After all I was doing the majority of the work for you, which you didn't even have the good manners to share :twisted:

posh_pedaller

OK, not a commuting rant, but a rant nonetheless...
Finally got my first proper road bike, a 2008 BeOne Storm 2.0, delivered on Friday (to the house I've just moved into). Opened it on Sunday, after unpacking my other stuff, took most of the packaging off... and found a whopping great big dent on the side of the frame :evil:
I'm absolutely crushed, simply because I haven't been able to find another bike with this spec (full Tiagra) in my size that I can afford anywhere else, and they're out of stock at Chain Reaction, meaning a replacement is unlikely (unless others can advise on this? Are they obliged to give me a replacement or just a refund?).
Am waiting for a reply from Chain Reaction - if they don't email me back today I will give them a call. Until then, I'm stuck on the tram, which from my new house is twice as crowded and twice as long. Fun.

alfablue

You can accept a replacement but you can't force them to give you one if they can't get one. You can force them to give a refund (you "reject the goods" as not of merchantable quality). CRC are a bit naughty in that they don't refund return postage costs when they are at fault - however, you are entitled to them, so insist they collect (they may well do this without fuss as it is a bike), or sue.

Now, the replacement, you're (probably) not going to like this, but Boardman (like the Boardman Comp) do good value bikes (if you are worried about Halfords buy it boxed and build up yourself, or take it to LBS - a local one to me does such builds for £15). Other good value bikes, Jamis, Ribble.

Rockbuddy

Rich158 wrote:

Mr Astra however had other ideas and tried to pass me on the outside. It was apparent he wasn't going to be stopped my me being in the middle of the lane and then proceeded to deliberately force me into the inside lane, it was a case of either move or I'll drive into you, and then cut me up as he moved into the inside lane to turn left at the roundabout, all the time gesticulating at me to get out of the way. I guess his precious time is more valuable than my life, cnut

I don't understand? If the Astra was going to turn left and you were in the outside lane in primary ready to turn right, why didn't he just go into the inside lane and turn left and leave you alone (or have I missed something?). I do hate it when drivers try and make a point by trying to get you to move to the side of the road even when you are safely turning right. Apart from being dangerous, it just doesn't make sense!!! :x
Hope you have better luck on the way home

girv73

I was out for a Sunday run there, but my day was nearly cut short before it even started, as I narrowly avoided being run over by a red light jumping Audi in Belfast city centre.

I had to grab the brakes, jump off the bike and fling it sideways to avoid a collision! Unfortunately the jumping off part didn’t go so well and I landed heavily on the top tube,using non load bearing parts of the male anatomy as shock absorbers. It’s left me with a nasty bruise in a not-safe-for-work kind of area. RANT!

Rich158

Rockbuddy wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

Mr Astra however had other ideas and tried to pass me on the outside. It was apparent he wasn't going to be stopped my me being in the middle of the lane and then proceeded to deliberately force me into the inside lane, it was a case of either move or I'll drive into you, and then cut me up as he moved into the inside lane to turn left at the roundabout, all the time gesticulating at me to get out of the way. I guess his precious time is more valuable than my life, cnut

I don't understand? If the Astra was going to turn left and you were in the outside lane in primary ready to turn right, why didn't he just go into the inside lane and turn left and leave you alone (or have I missed something?). I do hate it when drivers try and make a point by trying to get you to move to the side of the road even when you are safely turning right. Apart from being dangerous, it just doesn't make sense!!! :x
Hope you have better luck on the way home

Yep no reason for forcing me out of his way at all, as soon as he went past he pulled over to the left, cutting me up in the process. He was just being an arrogant c*$% and trying to make a point that I shouldn't have been on the road, in his way. After all I added all of 20 secs to his journey :roll:

jopari

downfader wrote:

Jopari, you are within your rights to go and have a chat with the Police if you feel that your life was seriously threatened.

Personally I would definately report it to the company. There is no excuse for putting a life at risk and they could end up paying a small fortune should an accident occur.

Thanks for replies, this is actually the 4th time I've felt they've passed too close. I didn't feel in a massively dangerous situation as I knew they were coming on all occassions, but I did think "sh1t that was close", I'm sure they'd seen me every time. In comparison, I don't have a problem with the local bus company on the same route.

This company have their depot not far from my house, so i'm sure there will be more chances to get a reg number!

I think an email is in order.

Rich158

jopari wrote:

Assuming I'm allowed to slag off a whole coach company....
I had a scary near miss with a particular popular Leeds coach company a few weeks back, and had a letter all draughted out to send, but didn't do it for some reason.

Yesterday I had 2 near-passes from the same bus company (2 different coaches), one on burley road bus-lane, the next on the A65 past Horsforth (same place as initial near miss). In both cases I'd checked behind me, seen the bus, assumed there was no way they would try to pass where it was so tight, then they've ploughed on through.

I've now checked and two of the incidents have been with the same coach.

btw, a clue to the company's name: they're called Fourways.

Has anyone else had similar experiences? What should I do? Cycle in prime position for whole of bus lane and thoroughly nark the bus drivers and/or complain to the company in question?

thoughts please...

Some coach drivers are sods, I've the same issue with a local co. At least three times a week one of their coaches passes me, and is way to close, at times he can't be more than a foot from my shoulder. Crossing the road yesterday at a ped crossing, and the same coach flew past way over the speed limit about the same distance from the pavement. It's always the same coach as he has a very unique licence plate. Next time I'll be going straight to the police rather than his company.

downfader

posh_pedaller wrote:

OK, not a commuting rant, but a rant nonetheless...
Finally got my first proper road bike, a 2008 BeOne Storm 2.0, delivered on Friday (to the house I've just moved into). Opened it on Sunday, after unpacking my other stuff, took most of the packaging off... and found a whopping great big dent on the side of the frame :evil:
I'm absolutely crushed, simply because I haven't been able to find another bike with this spec (full Tiagra) in my size that I can afford anywhere else, and they're out of stock at Chain Reaction, meaning a replacement is unlikely (unless others can advise on this? Are they obliged to give me a replacement or just a refund?).
Am waiting for a reply from Chain Reaction - if they don't email me back today I will give them a call. Until then, I'm stuck on the tram, which from my new house is twice as crowded and twice as long. Fun.

Sorry to hear that. My Kona Jake has full taigra (hubs, gears and brake levers) but it saves on the price compared to the BeOne in that it has cheaper chain and sprockets...

I hope you get the bike sorted.

idwa

New here and already having a rant! - but when i turned round to have someone right on my wheel going up Farringdon street - and when I told him to f-off - his response was childish slanders of faggot.

So - what should I do next time - slam on my brakes and wait for the crunch?

Your views on slipstreaming - should people do it in London? Or leave it to the tour de france?

Rockbuddy

idwa wrote:

New here and already having a rant! - but when i turned round to have someone right on my wheel going up Farringdon street - and when I told him to f-off - his response was childish slanders of faggot.

So - what should I do next time - slam on my brakes and wait for the crunch?

Your views on slipstreaming - should people do it in London? Or leave it to the tour de france?

I don't think people should do it on the roads in general unless there is an understanding between the riders (i.e. team rides). In the tour de France and other competition it's accepted as part of the race. Though on roads you are not always aware someone is there. it's not just annoying, it can be bloody dangerous. I guess the easiest way to get rid of someone would be to slow down. The hardest way would be to out gun them. Slamming on your brakes is just gonna cause an accident...

Feltup

MTFU and put some distance between you and him, simple!

Eau Rouge

idwa wrote:

New here and already having a rant! - but when i turned round to have someone right on my wheel going up Farringdon street - and when I told him to f-off - his response was childish slanders of faggot.

So - what should I do next time - slam on my brakes and wait for the crunch?

Your views on slipstreaming - should people do it in London? Or leave it to the tour de france?

Do as a rider on the Tour would do, play cat and mouse, slow down and move across the road, intending to pull back in behind the wheel-sucker when they move through, gesticulating and insulting them in your best Flemish or Italian as required. Watch the end of any race where a handful of guys are away for examples.

Note: You might not actually want to do this in London traffic.

On a serious note, it's very bad form on the commute to draft someone without them being ok with it.

robmanic1

I don't see that it matters too much, it's just a good opportunity to put the hammer down and see if you can drop them (unless your not man enough?)

And you were surprised at his "childish reply" to your, extremely mature "fcuk off"? Hmmm, double standards methinks. If you'd done that to me I think I'd have done more than call you a faggot, friend!

Seriously, what kind of response were you expecting , "oh I'm terribly sorry old chap, I'll throw myself under the next bus so as not to annoy you further"?

:roll:

Soul Boy

I like to go at my own pace and don't like drafters, its dangerous.

If I look behind and see someone on my wheel, I sit up, I freewheel, generally amble. They usually pass without too much fuss. Never had a cross word.

It is amusing when they steam past, only to bonk a few metres down the road, at which point you claim the scalp. 8)

Animal100

A good few years ago when I used to commute Bexleyheath to the West End (that'll be in my late teens then, err 30 years ago). I always encountered people wanting to pace, we always exchanged OK's and we were off, sometimes swapping leads, always said thanks to each other when we went our own ways, I used to love it because it got me home that little bit quicker. Never used to get anyone drafting unannounced.

vanquished

Just been spat at :-(

Was riding back to work after lunch, when a metallic green Astra pulled alongside, momentarily. The passenger wound down their window, spat at me, and then the driver accelerated off.

Didn't get the number plate, almost caught up with them at the traffic lights a mile distant, but just missed the phase.

Soured the ride in somewhat.

robmanic1

vanquished wrote:

Just been spat at :-(

Was riding back to work after lunch, when a metallic green Astra pulled alongside, momentarily. The passenger wound down their window, spat at me, and then the driver accelerated off.

Didn't get the number plate, almost caught up with them at the traffic lights a mile distant, but just missed the phase.

Soured the ride in somewhat.

Possibly the worst thing a human can do to another! :evil: :evil: :evil:

Mr Sworld

vanquished wrote:

Just been spat at :-(

After living in Hull myself, for two years, I can quite understand that!

The Chingford Skinhead

Robmanic1 wrote:

vanquished wrote:

Just been spat at :-(

Was riding back to work after lunch, when a metallic green Astra pulled alongside, momentarily. The passenger wound down their window, spat at me, and then the driver accelerated off.

Didn't get the number plate, almost caught up with them at the traffic lights a mile distant, but just missed the phase.

Soured the ride in somewhat.

Possibly the worst thing a human can do to another! :evil: :evil: :evil:

:?: :shock: :?: Really? I'd have put it way behind: Murder, shooting, stabbing, raping gbh, abh, torture etc etc

I may have put it close to drafting another rider without their consent and then abusing them with an insulting phrase when they make it clear they don't want you tail gating them - see first post on this page and then your response.

robmanic1

The Chingford Skinhead wrote:

Robmanic1 wrote:

vanquished wrote:

Just been spat at :-(

Was riding back to work after lunch, when a metallic green Astra pulled alongside, momentarily. The passenger wound down their window, spat at me, and then the driver accelerated off.

Didn't get the number plate, almost caught up with them at the traffic lights a mile distant, but just missed the phase.

Soured the ride in somewhat.

Possibly the worst thing a human can do to another! :evil: :evil: :evil:

:?: :shock: :?: Really? I'd have put it way behind: Murder, shooting, stabbing, raping gbh, abh, torture etc etc

I may have put it close to drafting another rider without their consent and then abusing them with an insulting phrase when they make it clear they don't want you tail gating them - see first post on this page and then your response.

1.Oh yeh, forgot about all those things :roll: :roll: :roll:
2. Wot are you talking about?