Can I sew the council after accident today?

2

Comments

  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    Sicknote, the issue is the fact that he approached the drain at a funny angle, not the normal approach to the drain.

    The other point is that the driver of the other car is liable as they caused the accident, not the council...
  • sicknote
    sicknote Posts: 901
    NapoleonD wrote:
    Sicknote, the issue is the fact that he approached the drain at a funny angle, not the normal approach to the drain.

    The other point is that the driver of the other car is liable as they caused the accident, not the council...

    I do get it but that problem should not be there in the first place as I see it and as it the last week or so I have been pushed it to the gutter by drivers.

    Some of the drains a round here are the same North London and with a bad driver could mean me or some other cyclist ending up in hospital because of it.

    I know you are not saying he should not have move for the car.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    As for spelling.

    As a dyslexic, you might guess that spelling is not what I might be best at ( lucky I have spell check on firefox ) but still get it wrong sometimes if I dont look before posting.

    Glad you are so good at it that you dont have to think about it.

    Lifes to short

    Sicknote, I don't believe I was having a pop at you for spelling. Who mentioned dyslexia?Your comment was fair about the incident, but slating me when we have never swapped comments before, let alone it was someone else posting, come on, give me a break.
  • sicknote
    sicknote Posts: 901
    dmclite wrote:
    As for spelling.

    As a dyslexic, you might guess that spelling is not what I might be best at ( lucky I have spell check on firefox ) but still get it wrong sometimes if I dont look before posting.

    Glad you are so good at it that you dont have to think about it.

    Lifes to short

    Sicknote, I don't believe I was having a pop at you for spelling. Who mentioned dyslexia?Your comment was fair about the incident, but slating me when we have never swapped comments before, let alone it was someone else posting, come on, give me a break.

    What I mean is because you dont have a problem with spelling.

    Telling someone you dont know to learn to spell and punctuate, is not seeing that not everyone finds it easy but you are saying that because it was not me I should find that ok!
    Please think before you post if you are going to post stuff like that and see there might be two sides.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    The rreason I got so annoyed at your comments is the fact not only am I dyslexic I am also dyspraxic, so riding my bike let alone spelling is hard for me. See there is 2 sides to any story.....
  • sicknote
    sicknote Posts: 901
    dmclite wrote:
    The rreason I got so annoyed at your comments is the fact not only am I dyslexic I am also dyspraxic, so riding my bike let alone spelling is hard for me. See there is 2 sides to any story.....

    Then you have me very confused, as I cant see how you would say what you did since you should understand.
  • bigjim
    bigjim Posts: 780
    Why can't he spend whatever he likes on his bike? Good luck to him. It's people like the OP help keep the cycling industry going. Plenty of D/heads spend a lot more on crap cars etc. It's his hard earned cash. Personally I do most of my cycling on cheap classics but everybody to their own. Looking where you are going? I miss plenty of potholes and my wakeup call is when one of my cheap wheels crash into it and my teeth jar. Easy missed on today's roads. Don't think he is a beginner on the amount of mileage he does. These councils need a wakeup call. As for spelling. Please! Give the guy a break.
    Nothing to prove. http://adenough1.blogspot.co.uk/
  • STEFANOS4784
    STEFANOS4784 Posts: 4,109
    bigjim wrote:
    Why can't he spend whatever he likes on his bike? Good luck to him. It's people like the OP help keep the cycling industry going. Plenty of D/heads spend a lot more on crap cars etc. It's his hard earned cash. .


    +1, it's hard to believe how judgmental and snobby some people can be, i hope none of you people wear team kits without actually being in that team. (you blatently do so in future if you don't have anything nice to say........................)
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  • flyer
    flyer Posts: 608
    Bigjim thanks for the support.

    In terms of not looking where I was going........................... I had no option but to take evasive action. The car was reversing out onto the main road about 10 feet away, may be lack of experience but I had 1 second to make up my mind to brake hard and get my feet out of my clipless pedals. So I decide to swerve on to a "parked area" where you can cycle if you wish, at the point of swerving the drain was only about 2 feet away. Bang my wheel went down and the rest is history.

    I honestly think this could happen to anyone and becasue the drain gaps are at an angle \\\\\\\ this is where the problem is.

    Anyway I think the main thing is I am not hurt badly, hitting the drain was like hitting a brick wall, over the hadle bars and the bike on top of me.......good job it was an expensive carbon weighing only 16Ib ....lol

    Thanks everyone

    Flyer
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    Then you have me very confused, as I cant see how you would say what you did since you should understand.[/quote]

    You also need to be brainy to work it out. :wink:
  • shogunsteve
    shogunsteve Posts: 209
    edited May 2009
    I dont see why you shouldnt have a case. If the design is dangerous then its dangerous end of story.

    Also, if you are a safe distance from the curb with a car passing you, this drain sounds like it could cause a nasty accident if you came off in its path, or had to swerve to avoid it. I mean are you supposed to swerve around every drain cover? They should be safe for every approved road going vehicle, of which the bike is one.
  • Justpush
    Justpush Posts: 52
    bigjim wrote:
    Why can't he spend whatever he likes on his bike? Good luck to him. It's people like the OP help keep the cycling industry going. Plenty of D/heads spend a lot more on crap cars etc. It's his hard earned cash. Personally I do most of my cycling on cheap classics but everybody to their own. Looking where you are going? I miss plenty of potholes and my wakeup call is when one of my cheap wheels crash into it and my teeth jar. Easy missed on today's roads. Don't think he is a beginner on the amount of mileage he does. These councils need a wakeup call. As for spelling. Please! Give the guy a break.

    Well said.
    Far too many sanctimonious posts in this thread.

    This website
    http://www.asyf99.dsl.pipex.com/croydon ... lanes.html
    clealry illustrates the nonsense of the 'should have watched where he was going' brigade. It would be interesting to hear from the OP if the storm drain was indeed the highly dangerous 45 degree one show on the link.

    Just as I'm about to post this it seems the OP has.

    This clearly strengthens your case.
  • dodgy
    dodgy Posts: 2,890
    I think if someone falls off after falling into this drain, they might have a case:

    3423667063_4040891e86_b.jpg

    Credit http://frank.kinlan.co.uk

    Dave
  • Pokerface
    Pokerface Posts: 7,960
    The drain gaps are at an angle ////// as you say to accommodate cyclists traveling in the normal North-South or East-West directions. As you swerved and hit the drain gaps at a 45 degree angle (instead of the normal 90 degree angle that most people would travel over them) - you got caught and thus crashed.

    Basically it's bad luck on your part but nothing anyone could have done to prevent it short of a complete redesign of drains. They are designed and placed in such a way as to PROTECT cyclists and only in extreme situations (such as yours) add to an accident.

    Unless I am not reading your explanation correctly.
  • Homer J
    Homer J Posts: 920
    I bet you're really glad that you posted this question!
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    dodgy wrote:
    I think if someone falls off after falling into this drain, they might have a case:

    3423667063_4040891e86_b.jpg

    Credit http://frank.kinlan.co.uk

    Dave

    Oh my. That is awesome planning.
  • Shezzer
    Shezzer Posts: 229
    dodgy wrote:
    I think if someone falls off after falling into this drain, they might have a case:

    3423667063_4040891e86_b.jpg

    Credit http://frank.kinlan.co.uk

    Dave

    Why not notify the local council now BEFORE someone has an accident?

    Can't believe a 'road maintenance professional' installed something like that.
  • Smokin Joe
    Smokin Joe Posts: 2,706
    Shezzer wrote:
    dodgy wrote:
    I think if someone falls off after falling into this drain, they might have a case:

    3423667063_4040891e86_b.jpg

    Credit http://frank.kinlan.co.uk

    Dave

    Why not notify the local council now BEFORE someone has an accident?

    Can't believe a 'road maintenance professional' installed something like that.
    Where's the fun in that? :wink:
  • Shezzer
    Shezzer Posts: 229
    Chuckle. Of course if you wanted to make £250 out of it all you need to do is get Harry Hill's details and hang around by that drain cover with your camcorder for a while.
  • Sirius631
    Sirius631 Posts: 991
    To the OP on the original question, I'd say sue them with a no-win-no-fee solicitor. It is reasonable to expect that cyclists could be turning at this point, so the wheels would be running at an angle to the road. I can't see why the drain covers can't be made with holes rather than slots, so that no matter what the orientation of the wheel they would be no way of catching the wheel in the grid.

    If nobody complains then the grid will not change, and someone else might be on the receiving end of a decking. We have enough to look out for without having to assess the slot direction of grids in the middle of junctions.
    To err is human, but to make a real balls up takes a super computer.
  • term1te
    term1te Posts: 1,462
    You want to try cycling around a city with an excellent tram system such as Basel. The tracks are specifically designed to catch 23mm tyres! I haven't fallen in yet, but seen it happen. You soon learn to cross them at as close to 90 degrees as possible, hence there is a lot of what looks like erratic or drunken cycling.
    The Master
    The Moser
    The VN
  • Pokerface
    Pokerface Posts: 7,960
    Sirius631 wrote:
    I can't see why the drain covers can't be made with holes rather than slots, so that no matter what the orientation of the wheel they would be no way of catching the wheel in the grid.

    Perhaps there is a reason why globally, drains seem to be of the 'slot' variety, rather than the 'hole' variety?

    Surely drain designers everywhere can't have overlooked us poor cyclists and maybe drain design has something to do with making sure water can flow into them and not get clogged with various types of debris?

    I'm not a drain designer - but I'm just sayin'.....
  • Flasheart
    Flasheart Posts: 1,278
    As I work for a Local Authority, I'm going to check out the drain covers in the Stores yard when I get to work and see what we are using. Funny all these years there and I never bothered to look at them.
    Roads around my way are pretty awful in places, but as Hampshire County Council took away the road maint from the local councils a 4 or 5 years ago, we can't do anything about it except in jobs they CBA to sort. :evil:
    The universal aptitude for ineptitude makes any human accomplishment an incredible miracle. ...Stapp’s Ironical Paradox Law
    FCN3
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  • guilliano
    guilliano Posts: 5,495
    Gotta love the way that all the drains with slots at 90deg to the kerb also have a nice slot for bike wheels at the edge furthest from the kerb..... is it a booby trap?
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/guilliano/
  • jellybellywmb
    jellybellywmb Posts: 1,379
    cougie wrote:
    Why is a beginner riding round on a 2.5k bike anyway ? Start off with something cheaper so its less of an impact on your wallet when you do come off it.

    Why not!!!
    Ride what you can afford.
    "BEER" Proof that god loves us and wants us to be happy
  • jellybellywmb
    jellybellywmb Posts: 1,379
    cougie wrote:
    'all the gear and no idea'

    :twisted:

    You must be oh so superior!!
    "BEER" Proof that god loves us and wants us to be happy
  • Sirius631
    Sirius631 Posts: 991
    Pokerface wrote:
    Sirius631 wrote:
    I can't see why the drain covers can't be made with holes rather than slots, so that no matter what the orientation of the wheel they would be no way of catching the wheel in the grid.

    Perhaps there is a reason why globally, drains seem to be of the 'slot' variety, rather than the 'hole' variety?

    Surely drain designers everywhere can't have overlooked us poor cyclists and maybe drain design has something to do with making sure water can flow into them and not get clogged with various types of debris?

    I'm not a drain designer - but I'm just sayin'.....

    You'd like to think there was some method to the madness, but it is more likely that they didn't do a proper risk assessment on the design. They stopped using the covers with slots along the road because of pressure from the CTC, but what if a cover with a perpendicular slot was placed next to a dropped curb, where riders could still cross in the same direction as the slots? In this case the rider was turning, as is reasonable to be expected, and his wheel ran at the same angle as angled slots.

    There are curb designs that incorporate drain openings, so the whole question of the direction of slots in the covers is totally avoided.
    To err is human, but to make a real balls up takes a super computer.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    In the photo we can see the shadow of your bike, you seem to have a large pole coming out your seat? Is it a special Aero post to match the tri bars? I'm intrigued, what could it be...hmmm..dunnot, let me in on the secret pleeeeze :wink:
  • STEFANOS4784
    STEFANOS4784 Posts: 4,109
    Sirius631 wrote:
    I can't see why the drain covers can't be made with holes rather than slots, so that no matter what the orientation of the wheel they would be no way of catching the wheel in the grid.


    Surely holes would be more likely to become blocked with twigs, leaves and rubbish etc :idea:
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  • dodgy
    dodgy Posts: 2,890
    dmclite wrote:
    In the photo we can see the shadow of your bike, you seem to have a large pole coming out your seat? Is it a special Aero post to match the tri bars? I'm intrigued, what could it be...hmmm..dunnot, let me in on the secret pleeeeze :wink:

    I didn't take the picture mate, as I said it was credited to http://frank.kinlan.co.uk who is an acquaintance of mine. I would guess that the pole is a signpost, looks like a 'no parking here' type sign and the bike is leaning against it.

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