Silly commuting racing

attica

lost_in_thought wrote:

Attach it to the video camera. Job's a good'un. :twisted:

If you do that, attach the camera to a tripod and yourself to some running shoes.

On your marks, get set, kaboom!

jedster

more likely to grind the neighborhood to dust with its cannon I reckon.

I think the top tip other tip is:

next time your driving your speed boat off Dubai, why not go and wave to the crew of the nearest US destroyer...

cjcp

jedster wrote:

next time your driving your speed boat off Dubai, why not go and wave to the crew of the nearest US destroyer...

Or the Shatt-el-Arab waterway. You'll have everyone after you there. It'll be like a James Bond scene.

martinc

I can highly recommend Not using a laser pointer. Some colleagues of mine were playing with one out of the window of our offices into St James' Sq back in 95. Within minutes a police armed response unit was running through our offices while a helicopter hovered above. :shock:

Oops. :oops:

el_presidente

Shining lasers at planes or helicopters is not cool, can seriously disrupt pilot's eyesight if you shine it in their eyes

attica

Killjoy

Bassjunkieuk

As I suspected by earlier homeward bound journey was completely devoid of opposition. I found an oldie roadie in Camberwell but got a jump on him from the lights and consequently a good run on the traffic ahead.

Also rather oddly it seems I'm more difficult to see in broad daylight...........had a car almost flatten me as they turned right from the opposite lane! Thankfully my spidey senses where working and I saw she wasn't actually stopping to pulled on the brakes and took evasive action (basically a sideways skid which took me right in front of her..........) she seemed a bit shocked that she'd nearly killed me and was gesticulating "sorry" as I swore at her!

Then a bit further ahead on the same road I've had one of those lovely people who races past only to turn left :evil:

cjcp

It's that time of day chaps (go to 5:40 in - that's when you clear the Houses of Parlt and the fun begins... :twisted: )


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt5hz8fc ... 10&index=3

DiggingDeeper

Rock all scalps, just the usual assorted large frame/fat tyre flotsam, but a new seasons best

No I lie, there was a roadie coming out of camden. Did him but he had jeans with way huge turnups and a rack. Clippy shoes I seem to remember now.

Will now celebrate by finishing bosses spreadsheet all night.....huzzah

cjcp

Yeah, not much sport tonigh, so it was all fairly easy going until I met up with a rather swift club mate in Putney. I always struggle to keep up with this chap and talk at the same time. I'll sleep well tonight.

lost_in_thought

I had a really nice ride last night, no scalpage, but just felt really good on the bike and got some decent speed. Got fed up waiting for the edge to find some satellites, so no data, but hey.

About to go off for a ride in the sunshine, once I've digested breakfast. Saw a cycle club out round here last week (Chelmer cycle club) so might go hunting for them!

Jay dubbleU

I have to confess total humiliation on my way home last night - turned onto the Canal Path which has been the scene of most of my victories in the past and a guy on a fancy looking Moulton in full kit pulled on about 20m ahead of me - "Aha" I thought (pirate genes coming out) "I'll have you sunshine" and started the push - at the same time he put the hammer down and shot away like he was rocket propelled - chased him for half a mile at full stretch and he was still gaining on me - never seen a collapsing bike ridden so fast! Although he didn't actually pass me I definitely felt scalped - +1 sir whoever you are :shock:

stuaff

Jay dubbleU wrote:

I have to confess total humiliation on my way home last night - turned onto the Canal Path which has been the scene of most of my victories in the past and a guy on a fancy looking Moulton in full kit pulled on about 20m ahead of me - "Aha" I thought (pirate genes coming out) "I'll have you sunshine" and started the push - at the same time he put the hammer down and shot away like he was rocket propelled - chased him for half a mile at full stretch and he was still gaining on me - never seen a collapsing bike ridden so fast! Although he didn't actually pass me I definitely felt scalped - +1 sir whoever you are :shock:

Humiliation? Nope. Moultons do not fold, never have. The 'collapsing' ones in fact separate. If it was a TSR (the 'cheapo' one), let alone a AM/Esprit/New Series, what you're basically talking about is a very stiff & reasonably light steel road bike, perfectly up to the job of Race Across America or Paris-Brest-Paris, let alone a commute. And with the added advantage of those teeny wheels (which accelerate faster).
And if anyone still thinks folders are slow, go to one of the Nocturne Series events.

gb155

Afternoon all, How the hell are we? Managed a couple of scalps last week but damm didnt it get warm towards the end of the week?

itboffin

It's easy as 1 2 3...!

Yes count them people 3 scalps in one day

Scalp no. 1 was less than 3 miles from my house at the bottom of my first hill which normally i'd take at my own pace, on arriving at the base of this particular mountain what do I spy ahead :twisted: - no chance to warm up baaam! straight into overdrive and whizz past in the mid teens, of course I followed the rules and imparted a cheery hello before apply another 10RPM - up up and away

Scalp no. 2 boring pass of a very sweaty looking youth

Scalp no. 3 was an all time itboffin classic, given the beautiful weather today I chose the long route to the in-laws carefully taking in "The Road" almost immediately on turning onto the road I spotted far of in the distance the tell tale sign of a lycra clad drop bar cyclist - at last fair and justified GAME :twisted:

Taking my time I gently slip into a comfortable middle gear and bring up the RPM's - The Road being butter smooth quickly allows me to get up to the mid 20s and before I know it o'm on the back of my prey :twisted: - confirmation of his status, I decided this auspicious occasion merits something special, by now i'm easy doing high 20s, I swing slightly right sit completely upright hands on the middle of the bars and ease past oozing 0% effort past poor roadie who's clearly trying :twisted:

"Morning, what a wonderful day" I say to which he replies ugh or some other such grunt I've saved the best for last when I'm 30 ft or so ahead I dropped a couple of sprockets and POW up to 32 mph :shock: - Which I held for almost 1 mile

Thank you, thank you all very much! i'll be signing autographs later

Funny enough the rest of the ride was a complete joy apart from sever pain in the left knee for which I will be asking advise on later once the press & my fan club leave

biondino

itboffin wrote:

Funny enough the rest of the ride was a complete joy apart from sever pain in the left knee for which I will be asking advise on later once the press & my fan club leave

Dude, when your leg actually comes off you should really, really stop cycling.

biondino

I commuted today! On a bike! Woohooo! I even scalped a dude on a flashy Giant, but he must have been recovering, or running in a new bike or something - it wasn't natural, the speed he was going.

The ride was fine - I only pushed hard once, and sure enough, quickl;y ran out of juice and took an age to get my breath back. But otherwise my ride - a fast pootle, maybe the slowest end of normal - was great. Potholes hurt but I know where they are and they don't catch me out much nowadays.

A great way to start the first day of the second half of my life!

jonginge

Really lovely morning. Sooo glad I'm now sat at my desk instead of out riding in the sunshine.
CJ caught up with me as I was sitting waiting for the lights to the north of Col de Putney bridge. We then did an informal and irregular bit and bit all the way to upper thames street. We got held up by traffic going through Blackfriars tunnel but still got up to ~32mph. Chris is quite a bit better through the traffic than I am (safe, though) so I thought he'd gone at the top of millbank, must have waited

snooks

ITB gets the most smilies in one post award!!

It was indeed a good morning to cycle in, I'm still acclimatising to my new East London surroundings, but to be honest there really isn't much to play with ...Just when there is some competition, the traffic backs up and it's into filtering mode...Or I get past a load of peeps with lower FCNs and get a lonely (but worthy) scalp, only for the all the cyclists I've just taken, to bunch around me at the lights allowing the track standing SS who's slowly drifting over the stop line to get a clean getaway and pi$$ off into the distance. Meanwhile I'm waiting to pick my way around all the bits that have dripped off the bikes in front.... :evil:

And my body is still trying to get over the headwind in the morning phenomenon that the Eastenders on Mile end road go through.

Then I get to work and find someone had nicked my deodorant from my desk...so now I'm festering here until lunch time

But hey, the sun is shining!!

greg66_tri_v2.0

Gorgeous out there this morning. I dunno, but maybe the warmth is helping my legs feel looser. Something is.

EDIT: it was so nice, I forgot this: which one of you c**** has put the red light transponder on my bike? Own up! Every s*dding light I came to this morning, bar one, switched green to amber as I approached it. Even the lollipop lady wandered out to stop me!

cjcp

Really lovely morning. Sooo glad I'm now sat at my desk instead of out riding in the sunshine.

Yep, that was divine. First time the legs have seen the light of day on the commute since September.

Chris is quite a bit better through the traffic than I am (safe, though) so I thought he'd gone at the top of millbank, must have waited

Waited at the roundabout and then soft-pedalled after it on the stretch to ped crossing. Might be the only time it's been me waiting for you.

Bassjunkieuk

Excellent weather this morning, so much so that I ventured out in my short sleeved jersey for the first time this year!
Even got a valid(ish) scalp this morning which isn't bad considering I only covered 2.5 miles!
I was coming down on a set of lights and having already seen the guy who had a huge lead on me turn off as I got near him I spied another bike ahead. At first I wasn't sure but on getting a bit closer I spotted the drop bars - GAME ON!!

The tw4t went through a red light at a very bad junction, narrowly missing cars!! He filtered a bit better then me and got a lead but in doing so he got a bit of a lead and left himself on a clear road - BIG MISTAKE :evil:

I filtered round to the right following his lead and then put the hammer down and got past him before the next junction, almost wiped out my lead as I came to the next give-way line at the same time as bunch of cars. I managed to time it well tho and kept some speed to snuck in behind the last car. Didn't see him again until I'd pulled up in Croydon and was looking for a cash point :-) Unfortunately I don't think they'd accept his still warm scalp in payment for my residents parking permit :-)

BD - Glad to hear your back on the bike :-)

cjcp

biondino wrote:

I commuted today! On a bike! Woohooo! I even scalped a dude on a flashy Giant, but he must have been recovering, or running in a new bike or something - it wasn't natural, the speed he was going.

The ride was fine - I only pushed hard once, and sure enough, quickl;y ran out of juice and took an age to get my breath back. But otherwise my ride - a fast pootle, maybe the slowest end of normal - was great. Potholes hurt but I know where they are and they don't catch me out much nowadays.

A great way to start the first day of the second half of my life!

And he's back in The Game! Hurrah!

Which bike were you on?

DonDaddyD

The beam of Sunlight this Morning woke me up into what I hoped would be a glorious commute. So full of zest was I that I don my ¾ length bib (also known as mankini amongst my friends, family and girlfriend) cycle t-shirt and wraparounds – with the slightly darker lenses – and I head into the World, on my bike, eager for a bout of SCR!

I encounter nothing and no cyclists (except for the same guy on the red Cannondale who overtakes me in Tooting and proceeds to RLJ by Balham tube every time) until I hit Clapham South and looked at the drag strip before me. Six or so cyclists around me and the lights go green!

’Let the car on my right go, watch your distance from the two cyclists ahead, they may turn left. They do! Check you shoulder, pull out wide and go’ I think aloud.

I do all of these things in one swift movement and before I know it I’m spinning and moving up through the gears with a zeal any description I could give would pale to the sheer ferocity of my passion.

1 scalp, 2 scalp, 3 scalp, 4

I’m going so fast I was about to start singing! But I was taken out of my stride with the pending crater of ‘pisstake’ looming at warp speed.

“If I swerve left I’ll hit the cyclist I’m about to scalp, if I swerve right I may end up under a car – well it sounds like there was a car on my right” I think aloud again…

With no other choice and a lack of experience I forget myself and the fact that I’m on a road bike and attempt to bunny hop the pot hole as though I’m some heavily bearded Wolverine looking Mountain Biker.... It did not occur to me that I could slow down. So bunny hop I did.... My front tyre clears the pot hole, my back tyre lands perfect in the pothole…

Ah yes I must be a lot heavier than I was when I was 13 because….

Psssshhhhhhh

Oh yes, that sound I know so well. The P’fairy has had another orgasm… I swear she fancies me…

Brakes, pull over, unclip, bike on shoulder and walk to the Clapham Evans to change the innertube… might as well, they had a track pump…

biondino

cjcp wrote:

biondino wrote:

I commuted today! On a bike! Woohooo! I even scalped a dude on a flashy Giant, but he must have been recovering, or running in a new bike or something - it wasn't natural, the speed he was going.

The ride was fine - I only pushed hard once, and sure enough, quickl;y ran out of juice and took an age to get my breath back. But otherwise my ride - a fast pootle, maybe the slowest end of normal - was great. Potholes hurt but I know where they are and they don't catch me out much nowadays.

A great way to start the first day of the second half of my life!

And he's back in The Game! Hurrah!

Which bike were you on?

Don't think I'll be in the game for a couple of weeks - should be riding most days from now on but until the rib stops hurting (and it was agony when I got out of bed this morning - how come it's getting worse, albeit only when I'm in bed?) I'm not going to be at 100% for a while.

Oh, and I was on the Focus - still haven't picked up the fixie! Must do soon - tomorrow maybe. Still scared about riding it!

Feltup

There were cyclists out today, fair weather and here they come but still all going in the other direction Legs felt heavy after yesterdays hill fest so probably just as well.

On a plus side I happened to spot my Dad in his TVR so gave chase. Thanks to a bit of traffic I managed to get along side and then leant on his roof and looked through the passenger window to say hi. The only problem was setting off again as I had forgotten how damn low those cars are plus I was in a fairly big gear. Very close to falling on his bonnet He followed me for a while and apparently I was doing 30mph up until I hit the incline at which point 5.0l V8 won the day!

il_principe

I was meant to get the first early morning lap of RP in this AM, arose at 6:50 meaning to be on the bike by 7, home again by 8, before swapping bikes, picking up my bag and heading to work. Stuffed a banana down my gullet and grabbed the Prince only to find the rear tire was totally flat. Must have picked up a slow p*ncture on Saturday. So fricking annoying, the ProRace 3's have done less than 100 miles already, 1 visible cut in the rubber and they've p*nctured. Fcuking hell, that's what I get for trying something other than GP4000S'. Tempted to put the Conti's back on tonight, suffice to say I didn't ride this AM, time tolerances were too tight to allow for a p*ncture change, in retrospect I should have stuck the Fulcrums on, but a 7am cassette change would have been a faf. Tomorrow AM instead I guess.

Still whipped into work in record time, 8:25 door to door, hit green light after green light, had time to give an idiot WVM the finger and comprehensively annihilated 1 roadie and 2 fakengers. Frustration is a motivator.

Took the missus out on the bike yesterday, from Willesden to her offices in Tower hill - via Kilburn, Edgware rd, Park Lane, Pall Mall and Embankment. Then off to the British Museum and a rather wiggly route home via Primrose Hill (poor thing had to walk that bit). Still she coped admirably. We must have done 20 miles or so and that's the furthest she's ridden for years.

It's funny how quickly you forget how hard things can be when you first get into cycling. Hills that I think nothing of were a real labour for her, and she was worried by the traffic. It's a pity that her commute route takes in some really busy roads, but she's not native to London, and a route on quieter streets will be too complicated I think. At least with a direct route she won't have to worry too much about where she's going and can concentrate on getting there safely. Although if anyone can suggest an easy and quite(ish) route from Willesden Green to Tower Hill, then I'm all ears.

We'll have a proper "there and back again" ride of her commute next weekend and then hopefully she'll ease into becoming a full time commuter and start to WTFU!

Clever Pun

had a nice battle/ride with the guy who destroyed me last wek with the tribars over a good 6-7 miles...

I took him and another guy with some calm spinning and he stuck to my six.. we traded places through traffic and he took me back legitimatley I bode my time and when a nice stretch opened up I dropped him and another fixed rider... he stepped up and caught my wheel. We got to the sprint traffic lights and both gunned it leaving everyone else dead and buried in a wake of awesome. he eventually turned off

no real winner 2-1 overtakes for me but no one was left behind so to speak, damn good fun though

jedster

Biondino,

IME cracked ribs do hurt more when you when you are horizontal - they seem OK when you can keep your spine vertical. I think a lot of the discomfort comes from tweaking/ partially tearing the small muscles between and around the ribs rather than from the bones. These tend to tighten up in bed and of course need to fire as you curl your torso or lift your head.

Do you take ibuprofen before you go to bed?


J

biondino

jedster, that makes sense. I don't take ibuprofen at the moment as I was getting concerned about taking it for too long (two and half weeks, alternating it with paracetemol, before I kicked the habit). During the day the pain is minimal but omg I was almost in tears this morning.

Perhaps I should start taking the pills again? I've detoxed for 6 days now, that's enough, right?