why are so many "cyclists" such woosies about the

gaz545

I'm not cycling in the snow or ice. Not because i can't but more to the fact the drivers around me can't, i'm not putting my life at risk because some idiot in a BMW decided to drive to the shops and can't control his car.

wyadvd

SimonAH wrote:

I woke up this morning half an hour before I went to bed. After shaking the broken glass out of my brown paper sleeping bag I got onto my 150Kg utility bike, loaded the back with sacks of manure and started off on my daily 150 mile round trip to work as a volunteer at the North Wales sheep collective.

It was only drizzling this morning so I was a bit pissed off TBH

you forgot to mention you ate gravel for breakfast ( im 44 i remember the pythons)

wyadvd

gaz545 wrote:

I'm not cycling in the snow or ice. Not because i can't but more to the fact the drivers around me can't, i'm not putting my life at risk because some idiot in a BMW decided to drive to the shops and can't control his car.

one thing i found on my (rural) commute, was that it took 2 days of proper icy conditions for darwin to take his toll on such drivers and make it a bit easier for the rest of us!

wyadvd

oh dear got a few people hot under the collar.... Maybe i should have saved my late night rantings for the 'rant' section of the forum?

I suppose my problem is that for the first 20 years of my working life i ran a 200 acre vegetable farm. this involved extreme exertion outdoors in all weathers.... So i guess im used to that! it made us a comfortable living. In 1999 our farm was flooded and we lost everthing and had to lay off 150 people. i retrained in a medically allied profession, and ive been cycling the 15 miles to work for the last 2 years. as a matter of fact i absolutely love my job. i also believe quite strongly that cycling should stand on its own two feet as a viable mode of transport. and for me that means battling through the elements. as a matter of fact, in the south east of england, it has been observed that if you were to cycle 300 days a year for 10 miles dressed only in tights and jersey, your skin would only get wet on 10 days a year due to ingress of rain water.

suzyb

And in Scotland the opposite is true

I didn't think you'd be back to this thread tbh, thought it was a wind people up and run type thread.

meanredspider

suzyb wrote:

And in Scotland the opposite is true

It's funny - I cycled from Feb to June and got wet about 3 times - then I got wet nearly every day in the Highland "summer" :roll:

SimonAH

I invested in a set of DHB jacket and trousers and just really don't seem to get wet or sweaty no matter how hard it's raining - except for my damn feet. What is needed are the bootees from a diving suit wit the soles from a pair of trainers glued on to them.

(genuinely) [goes off to have a look at eBay, this could make my fortune!]

deptfordmarmoset

wyadvd wrote:

oh dear got a few people hot under the collar.... Maybe i should have saved my late night rantings for the 'rant' section of the forum?

I suppose my problem is that for the first 20 years of my working life i ran a 200 acre vegetable farm. this involved extreme exertion outdoors in all weathers.... So i guess im used to that! it made us a comfortable living. In 1999 our farm was flooded and we lost everthing and had to lay off 150 people. i retrained in a medically allied profession, and ive been cycling the 15 miles to work for the last 2 years. as a matter of fact i absolutely love my job. i also believe quite strongly that cycling should stand on its own two feet as a viable mode of transport. and for me that means battling through the elements. as a matter of fact, in the south east of england, it has been observed that if you were to cycle 300 days a year for 10 miles dressed only in tights and jersey, your skin would only get wet on 10 days a year due to ingress of rain water.

I'm sure there was a thread on this forum where a cyclist decided to test this last year by noting how many times he got wet on his commute. I seem to remember the climate owed him an awful lot of dry days when I finally lost track of him. I think he may have drowned.

dodgy

dodgy wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

Im deliberately trying to provoke a discussion on this, provoke being the operative.

How long have you been riding for?

2nd time of asking, wyadvd, how long have you been riding fella? Just curious.

wyadvd

SimonAH wrote:

I invested in a set of DHB jacket and trousers and just really don't seem to get wet or sweaty no matter how hard it's raining - except for my damn feet. What is needed are the bootees from a diving suit wit the soles from a pair of trainers glued on to them.

(genuinely) [goes off to have a look at eBay, this could make my fortune!]

have a look on the parker international website at the bbb range of overshoes. their top end ones pretty much match your decription

wyadvd

dodgy wrote:

dodgy wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

Im deliberately trying to provoke a discussion on this, provoke being the operative.

How long have you been riding for?

2nd time of asking, wyadvd, how long have you been riding fella? Just curious.

sorry mate.......kind of dropped it into another post......

just going through my second winter. started spring of 2009 (I think that's right!)

wyadvd

wyadvd wrote:

dodgy wrote:

dodgy wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

Im deliberately trying to provoke a discussion on this, provoke being the operative.

How long have you been riding for?

2nd time of asking, wyadvd, how long have you been riding fella? Just curious.

sorry mate.......kind of dropped it into another post......

just going through my second winter. started spring of 2009 (I think that's right!)

how about you??

I dont know if time in the saddle increases ones zeal or moderates it.......... I guess Ill find out!

Initialised

STFU

dodgy

wyadvd wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

dodgy wrote:

dodgy wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

Im deliberately trying to provoke a discussion on this, provoke being the operative.

How long have you been riding for?

2nd time of asking, wyadvd, how long have you been riding fella? Just curious.

sorry mate.......kind of dropped it into another post......

just going through my second winter. started spring of 2009 (I think that's right!)

how about you??

I dont know if time in the saddle increases ones zeal or moderates it.......... I guess Ill find out!

Well, about 30 years for me, I ride in most weather but never, ever go out in ice. I have learned my lesson. I have also had phases in my cycling career when I have not cared to go out in rain, or wind and take up running for fitness instead.

I guess what I'm saying is that many guys on here are time served cyclists, they've earned their wings in many disciplines, and they might not take too kindly being instructed by a comparative beginner to ride in more inclement weather. They might have weighed up the pros and cons and decided to stay in, we don't all ride as some kind of self flagellation, it's OK to ride for fun/fitness on your own terms.

Come back and read your first post in 10 years or so

meanredspider

As I think someone else posted, I'm less worried about ice running my Ice Spikers - I test the grip they give me on various ice/snow in safe circumstance and I think they're pretty much as good as my road bike tyres are in the wet - I'm more concerned about other vehicles.

The good thing for me, though, is that there are hardly any other vehicles on my route so the risks from them are very limited. There have been days, though, when the roads have been solid ice wall-to-wall when discretion has been the better part of valour.

wyadvd

thanks guys for all you comments. Ive just been playing devils advocate tbh to smoke you out!

now ill stfu as someone so charmingly put it!

Just off fo sunday lunch with my mum on my bike in the pouring rain through a 30mph head wind!

tailwindhome

As Girv once put it; "You're Ace you are, I wish I was as Ace as you"

dhope

wyadvd wrote:

thanks guys for all you comments. Ive just been playing devils advocate tbh to smoke you out!

now ill stfu as someone so charmingly put it!

Just off fo sunday lunch with my mum on my bike in the pouring rain through a 30mph head wind!

Curious, the weather around your way is dry, not too cold and even a bit sunny, with 15mph winds. You must ride a special route with some extra weather reserved for well 'ard people :twisted:

wyadvd

lol ..... I think ive been both victim and protagonist of the lowest form of wit!

dhope

wyadvd wrote:

lol ..... I think ive been both victim and protagonist of the lowest form of wit!

What was your mum doing on your bike anyway?

jimmypippa

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

oh dear got a few people hot under the collar.... Maybe i should have saved my late night rantings for the 'rant' section of the forum?

I suppose my problem is that for the first 20 years of my working life i ran a 200 acre vegetable farm. this involved extreme exertion outdoors in all weathers.... So i guess im used to that! it made us a comfortable living. In 1999 our farm was flooded and we lost everthing and had to lay off 150 people. i retrained in a medically allied profession, and ive been cycling the 15 miles to work for the last 2 years. as a matter of fact i absolutely love my job. i also believe quite strongly that cycling should stand on its own two feet as a viable mode of transport. and for me that means battling through the elements. as a matter of fact, in the south east of england, it has been observed that if you were to cycle 300 days a year for 10 miles dressed only in tights and jersey, your skin would only get wet on 10 days a year due to ingress of rain water.

I'm sure there was a thread on this forum where a cyclist decided to test this last year by noting how many times he got wet on his commute. I seem to remember the climate owed him an awful lot of dry days when I finally lost track of him. I think he may have drowned.

That would be me:


I did it for a 11-months, then gave logging it...

64-instances of rain, 17-snow and 1-sleet in 178-days (356-instances) cycle commuting.

deptfordmarmoset

jimmypippa wrote:

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

oh dear got a few people hot under the collar.... Maybe i should have saved my late night rantings for the 'rant' section of the forum?

I suppose my problem is that for the first 20 years of my working life i ran a 200 acre vegetable farm. this involved extreme exertion outdoors in all weathers.... So i guess im used to that! it made us a comfortable living. In 1999 our farm was flooded and we lost everthing and had to lay off 150 people. i retrained in a medically allied profession, and ive been cycling the 15 miles to work for the last 2 years. as a matter of fact i absolutely love my job. i also believe quite strongly that cycling should stand on its own two feet as a viable mode of transport. and for me that means battling through the elements. as a matter of fact, in the south east of england, it has been observed that if you were to cycle 300 days a year for 10 miles dressed only in tights and jersey, your skin would only get wet on 10 days a year due to ingress of rain water.[/quote





I'm sure there was a thread on this forum where a cyclist decided to test this last year by noting how many times he got wet on his commute. I seem to remember the climate owed him an awful lot of dry days when I finally lost track of him. I think he may have drowned.

That would be me:


I did it for a 11-months, then gave logging it...

64-instances of rain, 17-snow and 1-sleet in 178-days (356-instances) cycle commuting.

Good to hear you survived! I sometimes wish I could be amphibious like you.

wyadvd

jimmypippa wrote:

deptfordmarmoset wrote:

wyadvd wrote:

oh dear got a few people hot under the collar.... Maybe i should have saved my late night rantings for the 'rant' section of the forum?

I suppose my problem is that for the first 20 years of my working life i ran a 200 acre vegetable farm. this involved extreme exertion outdoors in all weathers.... So i guess im used to that! it made us a comfortable living. In 1999 our farm was flooded and we lost everthing and had to lay off 150 people. i retrained in a medically allied profession, and ive been cycling the 15 miles to work for the last 2 years. as a matter of fact i absolutely love my job. i also believe quite strongly that cycling should stand on its own two feet as a viable mode of transport. and for me that means battling through the elements. as a matter of fact, in the south east of england, it has been observed that if you were to cycle 300 days a year for 10 miles dressed only in tights and jersey, your skin would only get wet on 10 days a year due to ingress of rain water.

thats really interesting actually!

How many of those instances were actually enough to wet your skin, in fact, were you not wearing a membrane jacket?

In the meteeorological records, aaveraged for the whole of the UK there are 130 days per yearwhere precipitation measures in excess of 0.1 mm. I dont know what rate of precipitaion is required to wet out your average non waterproof cycling gear, but im guessing its about 10mm per hour. taking into account the probability that being outdoors for say 2 hrs a day at the same time of day every day every day would coincide with one of the 130 instances of rain per year which prroduced precipitation rates sufficient to wet out? , i dont know what the answer is? Maybe empirical proof is best!

jimmypippa

A pretty large proportion of them. I only get wet feet through my overshoes about once or twice a month.

I only took waterproof trousers when it was wet snow, or forecast. Otherwise windproof (pertex) layer over tracksters.

EKE_38BPM

Skin is waterproof.

Alas though, not resistant to cold.

Butterd2

Wow, what a lot of insecure people out there. I don't believe the OP was referring to anyone on this forum in particular but a few seem to have reacted as if he did?

I cycle when I choose and I'm comfortable with that.

To the OP, good on you mate, keep it up.

Blacktemplar

Butterd2 wrote:

I cycle when I choose and I'm comfortable with that.

+1

It's better (for cycling in general) that a greater number of bodies get out on two wheels and enjoy the open air, than if it's only well 'ard cyclists who go out in all weathers. The more the better. If we (as "serious cyclists" ) can inspire even a small number of people to take up cycling then that can only be a good thing IMHO. (Pretentious p1sh over....)

That said I've commuted right through two very harsh Scottish winters, and have only "woosed out" when the ice made it too difficult. And it DOES rain more in summer than winter of late. I just do it 'cos I love cycling, especially early in the morning as the sun (occasionally) comes up.

Each to their own, especially the OP.

tackleberry

Devils advocate or not, if your commute is 15.5 miles of unclass roads, climbing 400m, most of it up hill on the outward leg across some of the worst tarmac ever laid by human beings, if you live in the wettest county in England where the AVERAGE temperature during Dec was MINUS 5 deg, if your route didn't see grit for months and when it did it was that pathetic grey sharp stuff that shreads your Armadillos and you do this all year round (more fool you if you do!) then you can call e a cycling woose.

I'll tell you I am not riding through pitch dark down 12% hills over random puddles of black ice, with God knows how many bike swallowing potholes, risking dislocated shoulders or more importantly a shredded bike, so I can have bragging rights over someone who rides bathed in the afterglow of glorious sodium lighting through flat roads with a pub on every corner and a cake shop every other street then in the words of id the manager "You/re MAD pal?".

Or just irritating. You be the judge.

T

DonDaddyD

Why is everyone being so mean in this thread?

ellieb

Because the OP is behaving like a child?