Silly commuting racing

tgotb

Protesters setting up gazebos etc on Millbank (both sides of Lambeth Bridge Roundabout). They're waving cyclists through, but it's still slow; suggest taking an alternate route between Parliament Square and Vauxhall Bridge Road.

On the flip side, that car's finally been moved from the Grosvenor Road bike lane.

cjcp

TGOTB wrote:

Wolfsbane2k wrote:

How long did it take to get yours working?

Hard to say - I'd spent a while bimbling around with the radios and some cheap knock-off Arduinos to see what they'd do. From that point it was probably an hour or two each to build the first iteration of the sensor, the fan controller and the RPI/radio interface, and half a day to set up the RPI with Openhab (which I'd already played with a bit beforehand).

The initial version had one sensor, which I had to tweak because the battery life wasn't great (replaced on-board voltage regulator with a far more efficient one, and configured it to dial back the transmit power dynamically based on the signal strength at the receiver). Having discovered the limitations of one humidity sensor, I then had to build another and play around a bit with the rule for turning the fan on and off.

Now I have the basic infrastructure, it's easy to add on sensors or controllers whenever I get annoyed by something in the house not working as well as I think it should. For instance, integrating with Google Home didn't require any hardware at all; I just created some IFTTT rules to send specific messages to the RPI in responce to Google Home commands, and then created additional rules within the RPI to respond to those messages (typically turning lights on and off, or overriding the central heating if I tell it I'm working from home). Everything's message based; sensors and switches send messages to the RPI, controllers respond to messages from the RPI. In theory the controllers could respond to messages directly from the sensors, but in practice it's more flexible to send everything through the RPI. Messages are all encrypted; coupled with the fact that it's a one-off, and doesn't control anything too critical like door locks, I'm not too worried about security.

You're actually 'Doc' from Back to the Future, aren't you?

You have a flux capacitor fluxing away in your shed, and your CX bikes are actually time machines.

Go on, admit it.

anonymousblackfg

cjcp wrote:

TGOTB wrote:

Wolfsbane2k wrote:

How long did it take to get yours working?

Hard to say - I'd spent a while bimbling around with the radios and some cheap knock-off Arduinos to see what they'd do. From that point it was probably an hour or two each to build the first iteration of the sensor, the fan controller and the RPI/radio interface, and half a day to set up the RPI with Openhab (which I'd already played with a bit beforehand).

The initial version had one sensor, which I had to tweak because the battery life wasn't great (replaced on-board voltage regulator with a far more efficient one, and configured it to dial back the transmit power dynamically based on the signal strength at the receiver). Having discovered the limitations of one humidity sensor, I then had to build another and play around a bit with the rule for turning the fan on and off.

Now I have the basic infrastructure, it's easy to add on sensors or controllers whenever I get annoyed by something in the house not working as well as I think it should. For instance, integrating with Google Home didn't require any hardware at all; I just created some IFTTT rules to send specific messages to the RPI in responce to Google Home commands, and then created additional rules within the RPI to respond to those messages (typically turning lights on and off, or overriding the central heating if I tell it I'm working from home). Everything's message based; sensors and switches send messages to the RPI, controllers respond to messages from the RPI. In theory the controllers could respond to messages directly from the sensors, but in practice it's more flexible to send everything through the RPI. Messages are all encrypted; coupled with the fact that it's a one-off, and doesn't control anything too critical like door locks, I'm not too worried about security.

You're actually 'Doc' from Back to the Future, aren't you?

You have a flux capacitor fluxing away in your shed, and your CX bikes are actually time machines.

Go on, admit it.

I love the idea of that much complexity, just as a way of keeping my other half from touching the heating controls.

tgotb

cjcp wrote:

your CX bikes are actually time machines.

This is actually true, and I've proved it; I think it's down to time dilation. What happens is that I go so fast that time effectively slows down; while it feels like I've only been racing for 40 mins, from the timekeeper's frame of reference I appear to have been riding for much longer. Photos taken after the finish also show that I've aged much more rapidly than I normally would.

anonymousblackfg wrote:

I love the idea of that much complexity, just as a way of keeping my other half from touching the heating controls.

Unfortunately the central heating part of the system is off the shelf, so my girlfriend can turn all the thermostats up to 30 using her mobile phone.

rower63

TGOTB wrote:

cjcp wrote:

your CX bikes are actually time machines.

This is actually true, and I've proved it; I think it's down to time dilation. What happens is that I go so fast that time effectively slows down...

... whilst at the same time your mass increases dramatically ...

tgotb

rower63 wrote:

TGOTB wrote:

cjcp wrote:

your CX bikes are actually time machines.

This is actually true, and I've proved it; I think it's down to time dilation. What happens is that I go so fast that time effectively slows down...

... whilst at the same time your mass increases dramatically ...

Exactly.

asprilla

Wore my Shake Dry on the way home (was praying for rain all day) and it's excellent.

Given the temps (14c) then a base, ss merino jersey and the jacket was a bit warm over around 180w, but without the base layer you could race in it.

smokey_bacon

Ride your bike like a knob today apparently or was it just me? Special kudos to the absolute weapon who rated high on the abflg scale and berated a lady at PS for not holding her line then riding off nearly causing three accidents in 200 meters of straight road. Nicest bit was getting a load of cheery good mornings from the ER lot at PS.

rower63

Asprilla wrote:

Wore my Shake Dry on the way home (was praying for rain all day) and it's excellent.

Given the temps (14c) then a base, ss merino jersey and the jacket was a bit warm over around 180w, but without the base layer you could race in it.

This exactly describes my experience yesterday too - superb bit of kit, and the XL has very long sleeves, they were proud of my gloves the whole journey. It sat in my back pocket for the journey in this morning

hopkinb

If you're the rider on a Scott who gave me the sarky "nice riding" for a somewhat imaginary encroachment on the first 2 pedal strokes away from standstill at Kennington tube lights, I do apologise. There was no real need for you to prove that you don't cut across people's line by nearly riding into the back of a taxi a couple of hundred metres later though, because being a polite rider, I had seen the problem and hung back to give you plenty of space and even said "go on", the second time you looked over your shoulder.

anonymousblackfg

Absolute siop siafins out there today, you'd have thought it was traffic pushed east by XR but it was sh1t cyclists causing the mayhem!

Apart from the GlobalHSEgroup driver who undercut me at speed at Raynes Park, special awards go to the chap of £4k of canyon jumping the lights still sporting his dork disc and the Rapha douchebag cutting up a girl in front of me who I was giving space given she was nearly between a truck and Bus.

Else, rode with a guy in Roadman Spatz, what the hell are they, plus Sigma tell me they're £85 for sodding overshoes!

jonginge

anonymousblackfg wrote:

Else, rode with a guy in Roadman Spatz, what the hell are they, plus Sigma tell me they're £85 for sodding overshoes!

I go through overshoes pretty rapidly so 85 quid is a bit steep.

I'm trying these out over the top of overshoes on wet days:
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/gripgrab-hi-vi ... =100384192
Seems to make a difference

mr_ribble

I've never understood people... its milder than you'r standard korma yet everyone is dressed up like they are an extra on an Icelandic Noir drama...

tgotb

No knitted jumpers in evidence on my commute...

Edit: There probably would have been plenty of knitted jumpers an hour or two later, but when I rode through Westminster just before 9am the vast majority of the protesters were still tucked up in their tents...

mr_ribble

Did you throw quinoa at them...

mattsaw

The deer are a bit frisky at the moment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fbt4GueLX-k

mamil314

An actual hole in the panel with a slight nod! Imagine the speed slam

anonymousblackfg

Oddly am being told the van which almost hit me this morning is at a dealership for repairs. All sounds a bit convenient...

kingstonian

anonymousblackfg wrote:

Oddly am being told the van which almost hit me this morning is at a dealership for repairs. All sounds a bit convenient...

mmmmmm.........so either the company is lying or the dealership were taking it for a test drive..............

tgotb

Kingstonian wrote:

anonymousblackfg wrote:

Oddly am being told the van which almost hit me this morning is at a dealership for repairs. All sounds a bit convenient...

mmmmmm.........so either the company is lying or the dealership were taking it for a test drive..............

Or there are two of them...

dekant

Highly tempted on that jacket given glowing reviews here. One question for the folks that have it - a bike radar review questions whether the material is rugged enough for being used with backpack straps (and that gore were working on a commuter version).

Any thoughts?

itboffin

i wouldn't wear anything over the top of it especially any kind of rucksack or shoulder bag, mind you there's nothing to stop you buying the XXXL and wearing it over the top of a bag

hopkinb

dekant wrote:

Highly tempted on that jacket given glowing reviews here. One question for the folks that have it - a bike radar review questions whether the material is rugged enough for being used with backpack straps (and that gore were working on a commuter version).

Any thoughts?

I wouldn't, but there was hedleymiller on here the other day saying he's worn his castelli version with a backpack for 2 years with no ill effects.

asprilla

hopkinb wrote:

dekant wrote:

Highly tempted on that jacket given glowing reviews here. One question for the folks that have it - a bike radar review questions whether the material is rugged enough for being used with backpack straps (and that gore were working on a commuter version).

Any thoughts?

I wouldn't, but there was hedleymiller on here the other day saying he's worn his castelli version with a backpack for 2 years with no ill effects.

Yeah, I'm only wearing mine when using either a handlebar bag or a Carradice on the seat post. On days when I need a rucksack I'll have to get wet.

anonymousblackfg

Absolute Cat 6 chopperdom out there, I went with the play the game and stay ahead option.

On that complaint, I asked which dealer and the company came back pronto, will be interesting to see their response.

asprilla

Nice ride apart from my Garmin dropping satellites like election promises, and my being massively overdressed so regularly having to stop and disrobe.

One bit of fun as a chap through Rocks Lane / Castlenau who put his foot down when I caught him by Barnes Station. Skinned him up Castlemau and he had to jump the lights to get away.

kingstonian

Slightly later departure form home this morning (youngest son's birthday) led me to being caught up in choppergeddon most of my way to work. I find it incredible how people are utterly incapable of riding a bike in a straight line - it really isn't a difficult skill to grasp, and quite frankly if I wasn't able to perfect it there's no way I'd choose to cycle through some of the busiest streets in the country every day.

The approach to Parliament Square was a delight though, absolutely no vehicles and just a thousand yellow-clad coppers stood on the pavement chatting.

jacemano

I now have a new aim in life.

My girlfriend thinks that she can get back from her office faster by car than I can by bike. (Her office in Tadworth, back being Clapham Common). 25km, 200m downhill elevation.

I'm going to take a train just to keep fresh legs and demonstrate oh just how wrong she is.

Think this counts as a silly commute race right?

mtb-idle

absolutely Jaco, definite SCR.

Even out there in the sticks (I'm in Epsom and regularly pass thru Tadworth/Walton on the hill etc. on the way to the Surrey Hills) is chaos during rush hour. The A217? No thank you.

28km for me from Epsom to Canary Wharf (Clapham South is my halfway point) and deffo quicker by bike. Just don't race on a Friday so she doesn't get the benefit of the lighter traffic.

tgotb

jacemano wrote:

My girlfriend thinks that she can get back from her office faster by car than I can by bike.

I tried racing a girlfriend in a car once, albeit over a shorter route (~3 miles). As she opened the door she was already boasting to her mate how ridiculous it was that I thought I could beat her; she went a bit quiet when she found me sat on the sofa, showered and changed.