Any locals in the Vilanova, Spain area?

craigmacbeth
craigmacbeth Posts: 3
edited January 2014 in Road general
Hi All,

I've just started a job down in Vilanova I La Geltru and i'll hopefully be heading home to take my bike down with me in a week or so.
I'm new to road cycling in general but even more so to the roads around here. Basically i'm looking for some pointers or people to head out with.
I'd usually just get out and go but to be honest the prospect of cycling on the wrong side of the road is bad enough but there are loads of roundabouts to get out of the town area so i'll have to negotiate these before I can get into the quieter areas.

Craig

Comments

  • mekkhombre
    mekkhombre Posts: 19
    Hi Craig

    Although I don't live in your area I am relatively new to road cycling and live in Arcos De La Frontera in Cadiz province. I have had no problems riding on the right hand side and in general find Spanish car drivers a lot more courteous than British ones. Once out of town the roads are very quiet and mostly smooth.
    Enjoy your bike and the superb weather.
  • getprg
    getprg Posts: 245
    I'm not local to you but ride a lot in Andalucía and "drive on the right" roundabouts still throw me whether biking or driving.

    For some reason my brain says "ah roundabout" then tells my eyes to look right instead of left when entering - even though I've conquered the problem at normal junctions.

    It just doesn't seem right going anti-clockwise - after all the clocks still go clockwise in Spain.

    One of these days a near miss will end up being a direct hit - oh dear.
  • getprg
    getprg Posts: 245
    find Spanish car drivers a lot more courteous than British ones. Once out of town the roads are very quiet and mostly smooth.
    Enjoy your bike and the superb weather.

    +1 - it's usually the tourist rental car drivers (and Brits in their UK cars) that crowd you on the road.

    I was told by a local that it is Spanish driving law that drivers must leave at least 2 meters space when passing a pedestrian, cyclist, horse rider or mule and cart at the side of the road. Spaniards will often hang back until the road is clear rather than squeeze through a narrow gap.
  • craigmacbeth
    craigmacbeth Posts: 3
    Brilliant!! Thanks for the advice, i've had a look on the Bikemap app on my iPad and some of the routes look really nice around the countryside.

    Now just to get the bike over from Scotland!

    Thanks again :)

Categories