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Rye

AndyF16AndyF16 Posts: 506
edited October 2011 in The bottom bracket
Just logged in for a moan.... working down in Kent this week, been commuting the 5 miles from lodgings most mornings on the bike but today took the car

The Military Road from Rye to Appledore is a good mixture of straights and swooping bends, but narrow - this morning around 8:15 I came up behind a group of about 6 riders some with RYE (CC?) tops on, taking up the whole side of the road 2/3 abreast - so I hung well back for a straight section to pass safely....

As I started to pass them, one of the group decides to pull out of the line to get on the front, but about 2 feet to the right of the white line like it was the most natural thing to do - cockhead! That's all :lol:
2011 Bianchi D2 Cavaria in celeste (of course!)
2011 Enigma Echo 57cm in naked Ti
2009 Orange G2 19" in, erm orange

Posts

  • martinwitnammartinwitnam Posts: 439
    I had the same thing happen a week back but with Dulwich riders (Another Kent club).
    About thirty riders who were broken up into groups of ten with about three car lengths between each group. Went to over-take the back group and one of the riders decided to sprint up to the next group. Problem was I had already put my foot down and must have missed his back wheel by about a foot! Absolute suicide!
    Can we fix it?
    Yes we can!
  • SBezzaSBezza Posts: 2,173
    The Miltary Canal road is far from narrow, it is a normal single carriageway sized road, for us that use it regularly know it as a very quiet road and unless there are vehicles coming riding 2/3 abreast is not a problem. The road is 90% straight with only a couple of bends, and even those you can see round pretty clearly, it is open marshland.

    With one of them pulling out on you, did they know you were behind, normally you would shout on the right if you were going past a big number of riders (well I do anyhow). They should have looked around to check in all honesty, but they probably knew a car wasn't behind, and just pulled out. Not the wisest thing to do though.
  • YossieYossie Posts: 2,600
    So this isn't bread related?

    Oh. What a disappointment.
  • Redhog14Redhog14 Posts: 1,377
    Yossie wrote:
    So this isn't bread related?

    Oh. What a disappointment.

    +1

    bloody cyclists... get off the road, pay some tax, buy a car its the 21st century..
    @surroundedbh
  • AndyF16AndyF16 Posts: 506
    SBezza wrote:
    riding 2/3 abreast is not a problem.

    agreed, but pulling to the right of the white line is :roll:
    2011 Bianchi D2 Cavaria in celeste (of course!)
    2011 Enigma Echo 57cm in naked Ti
    2009 Orange G2 19" in, erm orange
  • martinwitnammartinwitnam Posts: 439
    As a car driver I think that shouting "On the right!" at a group of cyclists would be seen as incredibly aggressive!
    And as both a cyclist and a motorbike rider I understand the need for an action known as a "Life-saver". This involves actually looking behind you prior to making a manouvre. We as two-wheelers must realise how vulnerable we are.
    Can we fix it?
    Yes we can!
  • jim453jim453 Posts: 1,360
    SBezza wrote:
    The Miltary Canal road is far from narrow, it is a normal single carriageway sized road, for us that use it regularly know it as a very quiet road and unless there are vehicles coming riding 2/3 abreast is not a problem. The road is 90% straight with only a couple of bends, and even those you can see round pretty clearly, it is open marshland.

    With one of them pulling out on you, did they know you were behind, normally you would shout on the right if you were going past a big number of riders (well I do anyhow). They should have looked around to check in all honesty, but they probably knew a car wasn't behind, and just pulled out. Not the wisest thing to do though.

    Are you sure you realise that the OP was in his car? Do you really shout 'coming through on the right' to cyclists from within your car?

    If they didn't know that you were behind then they are riding without due care. I'd say it's the fault of dangerous riding on the part of the cyclists.

    Riding 2/3 abreast very obviously is a problem if the riders are going to take no responsibility for checking behind themselves to see if they may or may not be about to die. And they'll probably carry on not taking responsibility, providing enough drivers shout for permission to come past.

    Bizarre.
  • SBezzaSBezza Posts: 2,173
    Sorry I missed the bit about the OP being in his car, so you are right shouting on your right is pointless. :D

    As for going over the white line, it happens sometimes :? , not a thing to do with a car behind you admittedly but not a cardinal sin, unless you happen to get taken out, but then that is your own stupid fault if you do it.

    As for me over taking, I use the other lane completely the majority of the time, so taking up one side of a road is not an issue. I use the other side of the road to overtake a car, so do the same for a group of cyclists.

    I know the road very well, and it is virtually a straight road, with a couple of bends in it, not an issue for a car driver to over take at all.

    I didn't say the cyclists were not at fault, I was more commenting on the road description, as that is totally wrong, it certainly is not that narrow, and doesn't have lots of sweeping bends in it, maybe a couple of kinks, but that is it.
  • GazzaputtGazzaputt Posts: 3,227
    Nearly took out Sidcup Cycles Saturday ride weekend gone.

    Seems they don't realise at a roundabout you give way to the oncoming traffic to the right. At least 4 riders didn't even look or slow and just went straight over and the rest went to follow.

    Luckily I anticipated this otherwise it'd have been messy. Still gave me the bird though. Nice.
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