Silly commuting racing

greg66_tri_v2.0

gaz545 wrote:

Bassjunkieuk wrote:

ketsbaia wrote:

Arm warmers? You guys need to MTFU.

Well we you have to tackle Col De Crystal Palais first thing they do come in handy :-) Besides they are a nice stop-gap measure for me between the wind-proof jacket and short sleeved jersey. Also the red color makes me rather distinctive :-D

Col De Crystal Palais?

Col de Palais de Cristal, shurely.

cjcp

Tights and arm warmers, with the Gore Phantom gilet and overshoes did feel a tad warm this morning.

Was sweating buckets by Putney Bridge. May ditch the arm warmers tonight.

attica

That's the trouble at the moment, it looks cold but it isn't.
Is anybody else doing a rural to urban commute and noticing a big temperature difference between the two?

Sticks = cold
City = warm

jonginge

We have the dreaded cold of Barnes common. Does that count?

cjcp

Attica wrote:

That's the trouble at the moment, it looks cold but it isn't.
Is anybody else doing a rural to urban commute and noticing a big temperature difference between the two?

Sticks = cold
City = warm

There's the usual drop in temp on Queen's Ride and then, again, in RP.

ketsbaia

Bricklayers Arms roundabout is usually a couple of degrees cooler.

Pufftmw

ketsbaia wrote:

Bricklayers Arms roundabout is usually a couple of degrees cooler.

Depends if you've been sauntering along or making an effort :P

cjcp

Pufftmw wrote:

ketsbaia wrote:

Bricklayers Arms roundabout is usually a couple of degrees cooler.

Depends if you've been sauntering along or making an effort :P

Oooooooooooooooooo!

@Ketsbaia - you can't let that one slide, mate.

Gazzaputt

All these tights being worn.

Leg or knee warmers?

Bassjunkieuk

Greg66 wrote:

gaz545 wrote:

Bassjunkieuk wrote:

ketsbaia wrote:

Arm warmers? You guys need to MTFU.

Well we you have to tackle Col De Crystal Palais first thing they do come in handy :-) Besides they are a nice stop-gap measure for me between the wind-proof jacket and short sleeved jersey. Also the red color makes me rather distinctive :-D

Col De Crystal Palais?

Col de Palais de Cristal, shurely.

Yeah, that sounds much better :-)

@TGOTB - I have a little weather station that I picked up from Lidl that has the external reading, not that I ever pay much attention to that and just usually try and catch the Beeb's weather report to check the temp (usually fairly accurate) and if it's gonna rain (think they guess on that part.......)

ketsbaia

Pufftmw wrote:

ketsbaia wrote:

Bricklayers Arms roundabout is usually a couple of degrees cooler.

Depends if you've been sauntering along or making an effort :P

It's the speed brought on by awesomeness that causes the dip, I expect.

That or I'm going so fast, I've gone back in time to the ice age.

cjcp

Gazzaputt wrote:

All these tights being worn.

Leg or knee warmers?

Full leg for me. Was thinking about buying some knee warmers.

SamWise72

Damn. I can't be sure, but it appears that I'm slower on my Brompton than on my 20" folder. Can't be sure; on Kingsway I caught everyone, but on Waterloo Bridge, the guy on the vintage Colnago in the green baggies creamed me, although he did seem tres rapide. He came past me as we entered the bridge, and I gave chase. I have a preferred MO here, I pick the fastest man in sight as my mark, and sit on his shoulder most of the way across as we blitz past all the other bikes, then when the road widens and the lanes split, I go off the shoulder and kill him in the last 3rd.

It didn't work. He passed, I tried to tag on, but he accelerated away; I pushed harder, but he was still going away, albeit slower. I got onto the lower bars, full tuck, and didn't quite sprint (haven't sussed the gearing properly yet, and it was a little tall), but really went. I was able to close the gap, but the the split came, he dived out from behind a bus and turned on the afterburners in what I had considrd my tradmark mov, and droppd m as I usually drop othrs. Ouch. (Sorry, it appars that th ky for th lttr aftr D in th alphbt has packd up on my Blackbrry!)

jds_1981

Had my first run-in with a proper rapid single speed today. He drafted my for about a k before I scalped a taxi + motorbike and left him behind. He did catch up with me later though as I was waiting at a junction...
Knew he was there because of the constant loud click click click click. Is that normal for single speeds?

dhope

jds_1981 wrote:

Knew he was there because of the constant loud click click click click. Is that normal for single speeds?

Nope, should be quieter if anything.

Flyingbogey

Left work an hour early and what a difference. I must admit I was drawn into some less than brilliant riding and rode my luck as much as the bike. I'm much better without the crowds as a slow starter then go for mass overtakes, must have sounded like Timothy Lumsden going along CS7 about 6ish.

Saw the biggest unit on two wheels at the lights at Balham station though, to cap off the look was wearing full grid iron lid. Ledge.

May have lost my maiden scalp, MTB flats and board shorts flew past, sat on his wheel planning my move although i was working to stay with him but he turned off at Clapham North, is this a haircut?

cjcp

Bumped into KD again today.

I was a bit braver on the way home - didn't wear my gilet. Good job, too, because I had to keep up a decent pace to fend off a chap on a Holdsworth and another on a red Cannondale. Second night in a row I got to the lights at Royal Hospital Rd in a bit of a state.

jds_1981

Also beat my previous best time - averaged over 15mph on the way home. 18m 40 seconds

redvee

Attica wrote:

That's the trouble at the moment, it looks cold but it isn't.
Is anybody else doing a rural to urban commute and noticing a big temperature difference between the two?

Sticks = cold
City = warm

Used to ride past Blaise castle after dark and could feel the temperature difference on the 1 mile stretch of open road.

Greg66 wrote:

Also went for a short ride across the pave in Covent Garden. Mein Gott, those things are slippery when wet.

Got caught out on wet pavements when I was much younger and less wiser. Stopped to look at something on the pavement, turned the bike round and stood on the pedals, next thing I know I'm lying on a wet pavement with some old dear saying I shouldn't ride on the pavement.

rjsterry

Vic. Emb. a bit snarled up, but it all cleared up past PS. A bit of showing off on DSC: left the lights behind a couple of early starters, passing one as I got to the other side of the junction, then sitting back off the other to let some traffic through. Just after the right hand bend, the traffic cleared, so I swung out and opened the valves right up. Glancig down, I spotted the computer reading 48.5kph, and hold it in the high 40s until I get past the Shell station where I ease back slightly.

Feeling rather pleased with myself as I reach CB first, I then get caught napping on the slope down to QTR roundabout by another roadie on something black with white bar tape. He leads over the lights and under the railway before peeling off to head for Clapham, with me retaking just as we pass over Wandsworth Road, then him retaking on North St. and finally me jumping ahead as we reach the Common. Iwould have said Hi, but he turned off into C. High Street. Evenin' if you're reading this and chapeau for those swift manoeuvres.

cjcp

No idea how or where, but broke a rear spoke on the non-drive side tonight. Wheel stills seems to be running true. Huh?

Wrath Rob

Comedy bike night tonight. At P'Square a guy pushed past me riding what appeared to be a MTB with a SS conversion but he'd used the smallest rear cog and then slapped the granny ring on the front. WTF? He was pretty quick on it and span up to about 23 mph by which time his legs were a blur. It was such commedy that I looked over at him and laughed out loud as I passed him on the run towards Lambeth Bridge. Kwa;ity sir!

Had a pleasant ding dong most of the way along Embankment from Temple to Lotts Road with a guy on a SS. He topped out at around 24, which was about all I can hold for any length of time. After a few position swaps we reached a truce by CB and cruised the rest of the way. If you're on here, you need to work on your shoulder check skills. Once you were in front you didn't look over your shoulder once and almost took me out a couple of times. Its called a life saver check for a reason

mtb-idle

Flyingbogey wrote:

Saw the biggest unit on two wheels at the lights at Balham station though, to cap off the look was wearing full grid iron lid. Ledge.

I've seen him too.

I said to him, I gotta ask mate but why are you wqearing that?

He said something along the lines of

"I've got it from when I played American football so why not use it (fair enough)
&
I feel safer with it on
&
It stops people f*cking with me"

Can't argue with that and as you say, he's a giant!

Flyingbogey

MTB-Idle wrote:

Flyingbogey wrote:

Saw the biggest unit on two wheels at the lights at Balham station though, to cap off the look was wearing full grid iron lid. Ledge.

I've seen him too.

I said to him, I gotta ask mate but why are you wqearing that?

He said something along the lines of

"I've got it from when I played American football so why not use it (fair enough)
&
I feel safer with it on
&
It stops people f*cking with me"

Can't argue with that and as you say, he's a giant!

He could be wearing a tutu and a I Hate WVM hat and no one would feck with him

cyclopsbiker

no scalps this morning. then again there wouldn't be since I did my 30min commute on the turbo!!! not at work today and didn't want to miss out on the exercise

itboffin

cyclopsbiker wrote:

no scalps this morning. then again there wouldn't be since I did my 30min commute on the turbo!!! not at work today and didn't want to miss out on the exercise

+1

CXXC

the remarkable thing about my commute this morning, apart from scalping all and sundry in my path, is that i stayed bone-dry but i had dressed for a monsoon as all the weather forecasts said london was going to drown this morning?!?! :?

dhope

Think I accidentally avoided some SCR by being sociable :oops:
Coming onto Jamaica Rd there was a cyclist remonstrating with a driver just before the roundabout.
A guy on a red/white Orbea coasted past (commutes from Bexley? if you're on the forums) and commented on the holdup, neither of us had seen what it was, bit off that the guy was holding up 2 lanes of traffic to talk to 1 driver.
Anyway, we then passed the time through Jamaica Rd upto and over London Bridge where I peeled off left and he went straight.

Struck me that he looked quick and had we not paused to chat quite so soon then we could have had a little battle then a chat.

Pleasant cycle in though if a little spray-y from the rain, nice temperature.

nich

dhope wrote:

Think I accidentally avoided some SCR by being sociable :oops:
Coming onto Jamaica Rd there was a cyclist remonstrating with a driver just before the roundabout.
A guy on a red/white Orbea coasted past (commutes from Bexley? if you're on the forums) and commented on the holdup, neither of us had seen what it was, bit off that the guy was holding up 2 lanes of traffic to talk to 1 driver.

I saw this too. Seemed to go on for a while!

Tell you what though, he should do it more often, it made Jamaica Rd look like a ghost town

CXXC

dhope wrote:

Coming onto Jamaica Rd there was a cyclist remonstrating with a driver just before the roundabout.
.

saw that as i came round the rotherhithe tunnel roundabout, he was standing his bike across the front of the queue of traffic on the phone. am guessing something happened between him and the front vehicle and he didn't want that vehicle going anywhere until whomever he was on the phone to arrived...