Silly commuting racing

King Donut

Bikequin wrote:

Then got a puncture just as i'd hit the NKR after Putney bridge - worst thing was i'd just flown by half a dozen bikes only to have to pull in 100m later and see them all disappear up the road.

Think I saw you – 7.30ish by the school just after the railway bridge? I slowed to offer help but you were well on your way to reflation so I cruised on by.

Great ride in this morning. Finally got round to purchasing a track pump to get my tyres above 70psi, and plenty in the legs after four days off last week (made it to July without a single visit from the PF on or off road, but then broke a spoke last Monday).

Had a bogie locked on to my rear after VB. Didn’t even give me room to dodge potholes on Millbank which was seriously unsporting behaviour. I initially let him pass, but then left him begging for mercy on the run in to HoP. I did get dropped by a group entering Blackfriars tunnel :oops: Thought I had left them well behind and eased up after giving it guns for the last 15 miles. Still, new PB in the bag after managing to keep average at 19.2mph, even with a run of reds on embankment.

Bikequin

King Donut wrote:

Bikequin wrote:

Then got a puncture just as i'd hit the NKR after Putney bridge - worst thing was i'd just flown by half a dozen bikes only to have to pull in 100m later and see them all disappear up the road.

Think I saw you – 7.30ish by the school just after the railway bridge? I slowed to offer help but you were well on your way to reflation so I cruised on by.

Great ride in this morning. Finally got round to purchasing a track pump to get my tyres above 70psi, and plenty in the legs after four days off last week (made it to July without a single visit from the PF on or off road, but then broke a spoke last Monday).

Had a bogie locked on to my rear after VB. Didn’t even give me room to dodge potholes on Millbank which was seriously unsporting behaviour. I initially let him pass, but then left him begging for mercy on the run in to HoP. I did get dropped by a group entering Blackfriars tunnel :oops: Thought I had left them well behind and eased up after giving it guns for the last 15 miles. Still, new PB in the bag after managing to keep average at 19.2mph, even with a run of reds on embankment.

Yea I think that probably was me - thanks for slowing up but yea fortunately remebered inner tube and leavers etc this morning - otheriwse could have been a long walk.

Question is.... do I risk going home innertubeless or go and buy another before heading home?

il_principe

Bikequin wrote:

Question is.... do I risk going home innertubeless or go and buy another before heading home?

Buy another one; the p*ncture fairy is a cruel opportunist.

King Donut

Bikequin wrote:

Yea I think that probably was me - thanks for slowing up but yea fortunately remebered inner tube and leavers etc this morning - otheriwse could have been a long walk.

Question is.... do I risk going home innertubeless or go and buy another before heading home?

Tyres/tubes are overrated anyway.

But no point in tempting fate. If I see you languishing kerbside on the way home I might be tempted to ride past laughing.

Gazzaputt

Not looking to the ride home. Realised why sore this morning have a horrid cold developing all day.

Some people will get a great scalp tonight!

Rich158

Gazzaputt wrote:

Not looking to the ride home. Realised why sore this morning have a horrid cold developing all day.

Some people will get a great scalp tonight!

It won't be me

Bikequin

Gazzaputt wrote:

Not looking to the ride home. Realised why sore this morning have a horrid cold developing all day.

Some people will get a great scalp tonight!

Swine flu??!?!

Bassjunkieuk

A while back I mentioned that I spotted Food Chain Numbers mentioned in a C+ article......well it's now up on the site!

http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/articl ... outs-22295

Last paragraph sends people here :-)

T-15 minutes til I spread some awesome along The Highway :twisted:

Roastie

I had a prime viewing of a fairly impressive scalping.

CJ, Mr G Roberts and I are moving quickly along our common route home. I'm feeling lazy, still a little worn out from a meander through to the Surrey hills yesterday so I'm happy to follow CJ's wheel. Along Embankment we come across a head-to-toe Rapha dude does a little kick who marks his intention with a little kick. CJ goes into terrier mode and I follow.

We quickly pass Rapha and continue at a hairy pace. Despite the headwind, CJ is doing a pretty convincing Fabian Cancellara impersonation. We get stopped at the Chelsea Bridge lights, and Rapha dude (who I think has been drafting) tries to cut in front with a filtering move, but fails.

We take off quickly and cue a repeat, including the filter attempt. The pace certainly is impressive. We spot a damsel in distress (PF) and stop to lend a helping hand. As we're slowing I take a peek at my HRM - it is reading 180. Certainly the direction of the wind meant I wasn't getting a clean tow, but it says more about CJ flying. Rapha had no chance.

Chapeau!

shoulder_of_orion

Brilliant homeward run. Tailwind I think.

I scalped 2 yellow jerseys and a KOM. When I got home I was almost expecting to be awarded the jerseys. The KOM one was particularly pleasing because it is rarer and because I did the overtaking on an incline.

Even better though was to have taken the scalps of two of my old foes.

First up there was fully lycra'd up carbon scott dude in rapha or assos. Serial RLJer, but I'm gonna let him off that as I value his scalp. I took him around Oval, what was particularly pleasing was that he tried to re-take his scalp before I had got going properly, before I blew him away BIGTIME. He had to resort to a RLJ and a glance my way said it all.

Second, third and fourth was bearded courier looking dude on his red Cannondale with noisy campag freewheel. Another serial RLJer who I used to have good tussles with. He doesn't bother responding to my attacks anymore and just lets me speed away up the hill like Lance did with Contador yesterday...

redvee

Had to resort to wearing Goretex to work today as it absolutely hammered down as I left for work, the first time I've worn it in ages on the bike TBH and to add to my shame I used the old route to work that is sub 1 mile instead of the normal 3ish miles :oops:

blu3cat

Due to me being a lazy bones I commute as rush hour ends at both times of the day and the fact that I go nowhere near the centre of town means I usually don't see that many other cyclists on the journey.

I've thought about taking it a little easy, hoping to get caught up by an equivalent FCN (or higher) and then responding to their passing me.

Anyone tried and had success with such a technique?


Oh and a RLJing lady in full lycra on a Specialized Allez scalp now sitting by my bike.

il_principe

Scalped a London Dynamo and 2 other roadies on Embankment. I loves my new bike!

cjcp

Roastie wrote:

I had a prime viewing of a fairly impressive scalping.

CJ, Mr G Roberts and I are moving quickly along our common route home. I'm feeling lazy, still a little worn out from a meander through to the Surrey hills yesterday so I'm happy to follow CJ's wheel. Along Embankment we come across a head-to-toe Rapha dude does a little kick who marks his intention with a little kick. CJ goes into terrier mode and I follow.

We quickly pass Rapha and continue at a hairy pace. Despite the headwind, CJ is doing a pretty convincing Fabian Cancellara impersonation. We get stopped at the Chelsea Bridge lights, and Rapha dude (who I think has been drafting) tries to cut in front with a filtering move, but fails.

We take off quickly and cue a repeat, including the filter attempt. The pace certainly is impressive. We spot a damsel in distress (PF) and stop to lend a helping hand. As we're slowing I take a peek at my HRM - it is reading 180. Certainly the direction of the wind meant I wasn't getting a clean tow, but it says more about CJ flying. Rapha had no chance.

Chapeau!

Hehe. That was good fun!

Yep, Roastie and I bumped into one another on Cannon Street and, at the same set of lights, Mr Roberts turns up. Roastie and I give ourselves that knowing look; the one where you know immediately that any notion of a pootle home has just gone right out the window.

Progress was swift towards the HoP and on towards VB lights. We caught and passed Rapha Man in DSC. I was feeling pretty good tonight and this was not one of those nights when he was going to unravel that scalping. No. Way. :twisted: I was in The Vomit Zone between Chelsea and Albert Bridges. I suspect I'll pay for these efforts come Thursday/Friday. Maybe a recovery pootle tomorrow morning.

Thanks for the offer of a beer, fella. It was very tempting, but I managed to do my three laps of the Park. Had some good fun there too. Lots of tit for tat/dossard action. Saw Christophe and his good lady too.

Bassjunkieuk

Oh I had fun last night! After some demon filtering down through the traffic on The Highway I make the turn towards Tower Bridge and notice that the traffic is backed and and cars are tooting their horns and the opposite side of the road is decidedly empty........it was then that I realized WHY we had some odd traffic - a bridge lift!

It's the first time I've ever encountered this to rolled up to the mass of stopped bikes and had a nosey around, not much to look at really so I think I'll hang around. I then notice the reason it's been raised as a rather old boat is making it's way from the western side to come through at a snails pace. I reckon it would be a good 10 minutes before I can get moving and then whilst look down the river I spot the next bridge and think "Why don't I use another bridge? I can backtrack a little, head along through Blackfriars Tunnel and then over somwhere else and claim a few scalps! HUZZAH!"

So around I turn and blitz back over on the empty road and turn towards Blackfriars. A brief while later I'm gunning it through the windtunnel chasing some scooters (no cyclists around in front). couldn't quite get them and just missed 30mph. Coming out the other side and up the ramp a chap on a white Langster appears and is doing a fair lick. I push on and manage to start reeling him in but the then RLJ's :-( I keep on going as I look for a Bridge to cross without having to play silly buggers and turn off the Embankment. I spot Langster guy again and just manage to catch and get past on the approach to Westminster Bridge, he does another ejit move as he seemingly can't be bothered to wait at the line and comes round the traffic island, then hops on one side and off the other to try and get past that RLJ to head round the square.

We part ways and I head towards Brixton where no-one really gave me any hassle and I did feel like a cycling god after racing away from about a dozen cyclists on various machines at one traffic light and it was shortly after this that the SS guy caught up with me. As we enter the A23 up near Kennington I have this chap on a rather nice red SS doing some excellent trackstands next to me. He certainly had the legs for a good race reaching around 25mph away from one set of lights :-) He had me blowing as we came past the underground station and I was rather pleased when he hopped across the road outside McD's Took the lumpy option home from there so I didn't miss out on my "hill" practice that I would have got if I'd used the normal route home.

All in the diversion added a couple of miles to my normal route home from Docklands and gave me a chance for some proper action so certainly worth it!

Roastie

Had a fun SCR with a dude on a Lemond SS out of E&C. He really didn't have hope given that he was running a fairly short gear so hit the silly spin zone at around 20mph but still gave it a good go. I had a chat with him the London Bridge lights then across the bridge, nice to meet another serial SCRer?

As for the rest of my ride, I struggled big time on my "extended ride" this morning from Upminster. I was quite relieved when I checked the current meteorological data and found that there was a moderate easterly blowing.

gtvlusso

Gonna start commuting naked......never been so wet in such a short space of time. No one out today - gurls!

MartinGT

gtvlusso wrote:

Gonna start commuting naked......never been so wet in such a short space of time. No one out today - gurls!

:shock:

King Donut

Bassjunkieuk wrote:

........it was then that I realized WHY we had some odd traffic - a bridge lift!

... "Why don't I use another bridge? I can backtrack a little, head along through Blackfriars Tunnel and then over somwhere else and claim a few scalps! HUZZAH!"

Disappointed in you. I was hoping you were going to say you backtracked 100 yards to get a longer run up…


Was blowing out my erse last night. Got taken by a Giant (TCR I think) at the crest of the hill up to the ballet school in RP. To be honest I was there for the taking way before that. Caught up with him a couple of miles outside the park thanks to a cheeky red and the footbridge over the river. I even had the legs to scalp him before my turn off on Teddington High st but it just didn’t feel like the right thing to do. Am I mellowing in my old age?

Dirty ride in this morning, loads of slippy stuff. Nasty looking accident on NKR – there was a scooter down I think. Followed a bloke in see-through lycra for a bit. Nice look. Should have been more worried about my own attire - arrived at work and realised I’ve two big holes in my shorts. Musta been all that blowing I was doing out of them last night. Apologies to anyone tailing me tonight.

lost_in_thought

When you get in to work vaguely on time there are often other riders about! I'll have to remember that for my next 3 days in the office...

Oh and to the 3 roadies, and one Kingston Wheeler on HSK, I claim your scalps!

amnezia

Roastie wrote:

As for the rest of my ride, I struggled big time on my "extended ride" this morning from Upminster. I was quite relieved when I checked the current meteorological data and found that there was a moderate easterly blowing.

funny, i did exactly the same when i got in thing this morning. Definitely felt harder than usual.

Hopefully it'll hold up for the way home.

cjcp

This morning: I did indeed pay for last night's exertions.

50 miles in total yesterday and the legs were feeling it. So much so that I had my @rse handed to me on a plate within a mile of leaving home. Up a hill. By an Airnimal folder.

Not seen this chap before, but I had left earlier than normal. He was giving it some out of the saddle while I was taking it easy, but he passed me all the same. I overhauled him at the top, but he went by again very soon after he'd recovered. And he stayed ahead. He. Was. Trucking. He looked very handy tbh, but a folder is a folder and, short of putting the hammer down, I wasn't going to recover that scalp. I was done all ends up. Chapeau, sir.

A week is a long time in politics, but 12 hours is a long time in the world of SCR.

Roastie

@CJ: I don't think Airnimals can fairly be treated as folders. In fact, in some circumstances those 24"ers give them an advantage! But I guess in the rules of SCR, fair is fair.

*really should start using those panniers again*

amnezia wrote:

Roastie wrote:

As for the rest of my ride, I struggled big time on my "extended ride" this morning from Upminster. I was quite relieved when I checked the current meteorological data and found that there was a moderate easterly blowing.

funny, i did exactly the same when i got in thing this morning. Definitely felt harder than usual.

Hopefully it'll hold up for the way home.

You get so used to the prevailing South Westerly blowing you along that it seems inconceivable. I was checking for binding brakes, flat tyres and squinting at the flora to try to detect some evidence of a head-wind...

Bassjunkieuk

Very much a mixed affair on the way in today. A glut of RLJ cyclists at the bottom of Denmark Hill provided the first opportunity for me to stretch the legs proper, reeled most of them in before the traffic ahead and then had some rather good luck with the next few sets of lights in that they where either green or changed to green as I arrived at the front :-)

Put the hammer down away from the lights by the green as had a feeling a fellow rider might chance it, a lucky bit of filtering between a hybrid and car meant I carried some speed as I rolled up into the ASL. A sea of green greeted me unitl I turned off down Albany Road and I was giving it some as I could feel someone behind me. On the brakes for the corner and a chap on a celeste Bianchi goes straight on towards Walworth Road - lord knows where he came from as I don't remember seeing him at the lights and I wasn't exactly pootling along :shock: I do think that had I been going his way that he might have had me a bit further ahead.....

It all got a bit silly down on The Highway as I played speed merchant drafting a truck and overtaking another large lorry.......very dangerous antics looking back on it but DAMN was it fun :-) I almost bested the max speed I got on my hill descent on the flat, but I was being careful on that one this morning as it was rather damp! Comp picked up 34.4 for the trip max and I'm sure I saw 33 flash up whilst following the lorry :twisted:

Jay dubbleU

Nothing today and only two bikes in the shed when I got to work - MTFU people

redvee

Left early in the rain and took a longer 4 miles into work this morning which was going well till some tw@t nearly sideswiped me on a roundabout then he stopped 10 yards in traffic which allowed me to point out my presence to him by tapping/hitting his mirror. Left him in the traffic and thought nothing more of it till I left set of lights and he tooted his horn. Will see what the camera saw in a mo.

lost_in_thought

Effing RLJ-ers! SO many of them out and about tonight... I don't know why, but I've never had so many people pass me while waiting at red lights.

Maybe there's a herd mentality to it, they see one person go while they're approaching a light wishing it wasn't red, so think 'pah, clearly reds are for big sissy girls' and cruise through it.

Good for my fitness chasing them down, though!

blu3cat

yep, seems like the number of RLjers is on the rise for sure.

only action this evening was protecting my scalp from a plucky SCR-er on a fast hybrid with panniers and a backpack. I think he was SCRing for sure, no RLJing by him, oh no, just a little filtering to get ahead. He managed to keep up 20mph on the flat.

Damn, and I was going to pootle home to leave me fresh for a run. :roll:

Bassjunkieuk

Sweet jaysus it was an effort to get home this evening!! All the way from Camberwell I felt like I was operating on 50% power, I even double and triple checked what gear I was in as each crank turn just felt like such an effort.

Managed to get home with a clean sheet but I would have been easy pickings if anyone had tried it on and I've had probably ridden myself into a cardiac arrest trying to stop them

Had a to$$pot in a Enterprise hire van right near the end who seemed intent on running me down. I'd stop at this set of lights and put myself in the middle of the lane as I the turn in the road is just over 90 degrees. I've pointed myself at the road opposite to allow me to get round easily but this twat just gives it full lock and guns it right across where I wanted to head when the lights change. Queue much gesturing to indicate he should Foxtrot Oscar and that he should have hairy palms.....

He turned in the next road, same one I was taking and then pulled up. I was fully expecting a mouthful of abuse but it seems he has an ounce of sense as he was on his phone so I assume he'd pulled in for that.

itboffin

Took the day off today sore tail and all that :oops:

Just finished the TT mmm now TT for commuting, in my green jersey... mmm