Silly commuting racing

asprilla

Followed a roadie with legs shaved like a girl from PB to the park today. The bugger kept jumping reds and traffic meant there was little opportunity to overtake. Eventually went past him on the little hill up to White Lodge, I offered a wheel but he couldn't hold on. Shame.

Wrath Rob

MonkeyMonster wrote:

Wrath Rob wrote:

No SCR for me today. I was supposed to be going to the Goodwood Revival but my car died on the way down. Diagnosis was water pump failure leading to blown head gasket. Nice Mr RAC man recovered me home but no fast old cars for me today. Going to sulk in the gym instead and head out for a ride on Sunday

Ehhh... get on the steed and come up to the Morpeth

That was a good idea but I pretty much killed mself in the gym then ate some chocolate and am now starting to feel better. However, still got to sort out the car

ITB : Unless you're inviging me to join the party you're not helping :evil:

Pufftmw

Been out for a nice meal in the West End but OH how I hate the frigging tube and crowds :twisted: Back in Aldgate, just going to change and have a pleasant ride home - don't expect any scalpage though...

Bassjunkieuk

Pufftmw wrote:

Not many would follow me I guess and some might think it dangerous but its how I used to ride as a courier and its definitely safer on the outside than the inside IMHO. Mind you, pedestrians don't always look right when they walk through 2 lanes of solid traffic - so I gave some bloke a bit of a number 1 trim as I went past him this morning...

I quite enjoy the filtering down the centre, generally speaking a lot more room then the left and it certainly adds an extra edge literally staring down the oncoming traffic :-) I've even had a few times where I've gone round scooters who just don't have the balls to make progress.

Got plenty of practice at that last night as I headed down VB road. It was stuffed up something rotten! Got to the end tho to turn onto DSC only to see Millbank was open!!! Was nice riding along there tho with no other traffic, just a few bikes to chase. Wasn't until past the coach park that we picked up some other riders and one was rather fortunate to be upright after some twunt trying to head the other way got bored and tried to do a rather aggressive u-turn. Seemed he shot across the road and I just heard the screech of brakes as he *just* missed running into a women ahead of me.........

No real action but a lovely evening for a ride home! I love the orangey glow everything gets around that time so being able to ride along the river and just enjoy it made for a really good finish to the week :-)

Pufftmw

Pufftmw wrote:

Been out for a nice meal in the West End but OH how I hate the frigging tube and crowds :twisted: Back in Aldgate, just going to change and have a pleasant ride home - don't expect any scalpage though...

As predicted no scalpage, which is fortunate as my breathing/pacing was all to cock cos of the drink and the lateness of the hour. But, I did have a run in with a pair of pillocks who thought it was OK to jump (well dawdle through) the lights at the end of the OKR at the new junction well after my side was green. I went round them but stopped at the next junction in the ASL, Just before it changed they came through on the right then proceeded to cut (meandering and slowly) across my bows as the lights changed and I started off. They were so obviously completely ignorant of other road users that I just let lose with some good old-fashioned 4-letter abuse about jumping red lights and being ignorant ****s. Did I feel better? No, not really but maybe it might make them be a bit more observant next time but probably not...

Headwind predicted for the morning - oh joy!

asprilla

Bike is fettled and running sweet, so this morning the mighty looked upon my SCR and dispaired.

Actually that's not completely true.

Everything is running sweet, but it's my last tri of the season on Saturday so this week is a rest week. I even let a hybrid do me in the park, although the grinding noice you heard was coming from my teeth, not the bike.

MonkeyMonster

Bike envy today for me... I scalped loads on foot but they don't count

HamishD

You: 2010 S1.

Me: 2010 S1.

We met at the lights on Croxted Road in Dulwich just before 8. I said good morning, you blanked me. Miserable sod.

jonginge

I made like a mid-nineties single by the Sneaker Pimps this morning. Deliberately took it easy but, surprisingly, my scalp remained firmly attached. Where are all the fast guys n gals?

Bassjunkieuk

JonGinge wrote:

I made like a mid-nineties single by the Sneaker Pimps this morning. Deliberately took it easy but, surprisingly, my scalp remained firmly attached. Where are all the fast guys n gals?

I certainly found one of the fast ones this morning! Arrived at the lights on the cross-road to head towards QTR and I'm joined by a couple of people I remember for last week. A chinese chap on a SS and a young bloke on the old Peugeot. Great me thinks both these two are fairly quick so I'm gonna be pushing it down here :-)

Was all good once the lorry got out of our way and we had the bus lane to ourselves. Peugeot guy overtook SS then I went past him at around 31 with a rather un-professional and noisy gear change DOH! We re-grouped at the lights after the railway bridge and all headed up and over CB roughly level - SCR suspended as we are all filtering.

Once we hit Embankment Peugeot guy turns right so I know I have someone to play with but we are also joined by a BMC (different to Fridays....) and a Cinelli. The latter isn't hanging around and shoots off like a man possessed leaving me and Pug guy in his wake! I'm not one to let that go un-noticed so duly set off after him but can't close the gap. There was some wind and I was on the drops doing 26/27 and the Cinelli guy is SITTING UP on the FLATS FFS!! I just couldn't figure how he was holding that speed and pulling out a larger gap! We re-grouped at VB lights and I then spent Millbank staring at the same guys Cervelo Test Team kit and rucksack......Chapeau sir! That was some impressive speed :-) As I said last week taking on the Embankment means I do sometimes get taken down a notch and this morning I was spanked....

mr_ribble

Saw a very rapid guy on a airnimal today (dressed mainly in black). Not the guy I have seen on a yellow/organge one a few months ago.

He caught me napping, by Dolphin House and I needed to crank it up through DSC as we approached VB, to keep on his wheel. Traffic quite heavy and I just managed to get the green light. I then gave it beans down Millbank and caught the wheel of a scooter which I then proceeded to overtake. With all this activity going, I turned around but couldnt see Mr Airnimal, but definatley not a scalp.

Its wierd to see a small bike shift like that.

ketsbaia

PT today.

Flyingbogey

3/5ths of the way through a stint of nights and all the action is frustratingly going the other way. Its a lonely miserable ride home at 730am with nothing to spice it up. Got to grips with the new bike now so who wants to be the first to claim my virgin scalp??

cjcp

Mr_Ribble wrote:

Saw a very rapid guy on a airnimal today (dressed mainly in black). Not the guy I have seen on a yellow/organge one a few months ago.

He caught me napping, by Dolphin House and I needed to crank it up through DSC as we approached VB, to keep on his wheel. Traffic quite heavy and I just managed to get the green light. I then gave it beans down Millbank and caught the wheel of a scooter which I then proceeded to overtake. With all this activity going, I turned around but couldnt see Mr Airnimal, but definatley not a scalp.

Its wierd to see a small bike shift like that.

There is another, as Yoda said.

I spoke to a chap riding one on Embankment some time last year. He came in from Woking or somewhere. Think he was a member of Charlotteville CC.

itboffin

I just had the closest near miss ever!

This weekend I managed to re-injure my shoulder, enough that I'm WFH today, so anyway in my lunch break I thought i'd do a lap of the forest a very slow lap.

Anyway I can't get on the drops at the moment for have to take the descents very slow too, whilst coming down the descent I spotted a deer running along side the road, knowing these gritters love just out in front of people i slowed even more, alas the speeding Volvo estate coming the other way didn't - they managed to connect head on at some speed almost right in front of me, that in itself is a nasty thing to see, which was only made worse by the car then skidding right at me, still carrying a fair bit of speed and now an extremely messed up fully grown deer under the front bumper.

As the subject says, it was close REALLY close, one of those moments when you know your going to crash and all you can do is wait for the impact.

Jeez that's shaken me up, especially when I saw just how much damaged the impact cause the car and the poor stupid creature, could have been me!!!

asprilla

Did you take a venison leg home?

itboffin

Asprilla wrote:

Did you take a venison leg home?

No but i did drag its still twitting body to the side of the road, lucky one of it's legs was still attached :shock:

very messy

The driver of the car was bleeding lucky it didnt go through the window, she and her baby could have been badly injured, those deer are pretty heavy.

lotuseater

Asprilla wrote:

Did you take a venison leg home?

Mmm....good, high quality recovery protein hit.

asprilla

Mother in law hit a deer. It tried to clear the bonet but that just resulted in it caving in the windscreen and roof.

It's not pretty and they cause a hell of a lot of damage.

lotuseater

itboffin wrote:

Asprilla wrote:

Did you take a venison leg home?

No but i did drag its still twitting body to the side of the road, lucky one of it's legs was still attached :shock:

very messy

The driver of the car was bleeding lucky it didnt go through the window, she and her baby could have been badly injured, those deer are pretty heavy.

Reminiscent of Alan Partridge's hilarious quip to a sensitive audience about having to "finish it off with the jack" after he hit a badger, I think.

greg66_tri_v2.0

itboffin wrote:

I just had the closest near miss ever!

This weekend I managed to re-injure my shoulder, enough that I'm WFH today, so anyway in my lunch break I thought i'd do a lap of the forest a very slow lap.

Anyway I can't get on the drops at the moment for have to take the descents very slow too, whilst coming down the descent I spotted a deer running along side the road, knowing these gritters love just out in front of people i slowed even more, alas the speeding Volvo estate coming the other way didn't - they managed to connect head on at some speed almost right in front of me, that in itself is a nasty thing to see, which was only made worse by the car then skidding right at me, still carrying a fair bit of speed and now an extremely messed up fully grown deer under the front bumper.

As the subject says, it was close REALLY close, one of those moments when you know your going to crash and all you can do is wait for the impact.

Jeez that's shaken me up, especially when I saw just how much damaged the impact cause the car and the poor stupid creature, could have been me!!!

:shock:

Just

:shock:

jonginge

^ What he said. :shock: :shock: :shock:

Bassjunkieuk

At least it was a deer and not an alpaca ;-) Glad your relatively OK tho!

Wrath Rob

@ITB : :shock: + lots

My daughters first day at school today so rode in later than normal, plus I had to go via Fulham to return something I'd hired at the weekend so got to do NKR. I'd forgotten how crap it was with the traffic at Lotts Road. Also had a lack of SCR action, though I did scalp a shaved roadie who didn't seem up for anything. Very boring. Embankment was dead (apart from the cars), hopefully this evening's run will be a bit more entertaining.

W1

W1 wrote:

Wrath Rob wrote:

W1 wrote:

I know there is now a cycle-lane along part of that, but when the traffic is bad it's agonisingly slow - 17mph would be a dream most evenings between 6 and 7pm!

THe cycle lane has removed a lot of the parking along Embankment meaning that its much easier for cyclists now. There are only a couple of spots, 1 by Temple and the other by Embankment Tube, where you can get stuck now. Even last night I could easily do 18+ along the cycle lane, although I grant you there are a couple of spots where the cycle lane stops and filtering can become tough.

I'll give it another crack then and report back. I suppose the cycle lane can be clogged with nodders though? I should add that if it's a late evening (like last night - around 10:00pm) I'll go north of the river. It's only when the traffic is snarled up that it's slower.

I also think there's something in the traffic light phasing - I always seem to get caught on the Blackfriars down ramp!

It's Embankment all the way in the mornings though!

Gave this a go one evening last week - it's certainly quicker than before, but still not convinced it's quicker than going south and back over at Lambeth. Will do some experimenting this week.

mr_ribble

Anyone here ride a Merida??? Wearing a marmite top and black shorts. On the Embankment today circa 7pm

cjcp

Lots of fun on the way home tonight. A whole load of bikes pulled off from VB lights, which thinned out to a Prince down DSC, a SSer, me and a chap on a roadie in a Trek top and Castelli shorts. Made it to BB first. Then collected a little train along the NKR from WBR lights to the URR. Ker-ching.

dondare

Mr_Ribble wrote:

Anyone here ride a Merida???

Not me.

Mr_Ribble wrote:

Wearing a marmite top and black shorts.

That's me!!

Mr_Ribble wrote:

On the Embankment today circa 7pm

No, that's not me.

mr_ribble

Well anyhow....Mr Merida

Scalped him coming out of DSC, only to watch him sail through the red lights just after the garage. Catch up with him again, and bam, another scalp directly opposite the power station, only to get the red lights at the t junction just before the railway bridge. I cringe as I watch him rlj again. As we pull away from the down ramp after Chelsea Bridge, I lay down the beans and scalp him for the third time.

So as I go past I whisper sweet nothings in his ear and say somehat sarcastically "do you know you are meant to stop at red lights" to which he replied.... "f$%k off you hippie!"

So I leave him in my wake, but the guy is persistant nontheless. By Battersea Bridge he is jumping again, and I duly dispatch him one final time before I look back to see him coward away and turn down Lotts Road.

So Mr Merida .. if you are out there, dont be a baffoon, you caused a car to swerve so not to hit you when he was on green at the CB t junction, just so you could save 30 seconds. If you wanna be quicker, train, and dont be a to$$er all you're life.

They say that when it comes to Marmite you either love it or you hate it.. this one was definatley the latter.

cjcp

Came in about 30 mins earlier, today. Felt like The Wacky Races out there.