Nearly fell in the canal!
secretsam
Posts: 5,098
I'd been meaning to try the canal route from work (King's X) to station (Marylebone) - finally did it last night and it was ace, nice and quiet, no cars, lovely - and a little longer without too much extra time involved (no traffic lights, see!)
But there's a section where a wooden bridge has replaced the canal towpath (repairs) and man, it's slippery!!! There's signs saying "Slippery when wet" and they aren't joking! Went a total purler (sp???) last night and but for the barrier would have been in the canal, with all the potential horrors involved (drowning, Weil's disease, lost bike, etc)
Lucky escape :shock:
PS: thanks to the fella on the Tricross who gave me directions - they were spot on!
But there's a section where a wooden bridge has replaced the canal towpath (repairs) and man, it's slippery!!! There's signs saying "Slippery when wet" and they aren't joking! Went a total purler (sp???) last night and but for the barrier would have been in the canal, with all the potential horrors involved (drowning, Weil's disease, lost bike, etc)
Lucky escape :shock:
PS: thanks to the fella on the Tricross who gave me directions - they were spot on!
It's just a hill. Get over it.
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Comments
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SecretSam wrote:Lucky escape :shock:
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I'm hungry. I'm always hungry!0 -
Watch out for gaps between the wooden slats if they are laid lengthways too.
I was going over one on the canal in Milton keynes and the gap in one section got to 23mm and my front wheel dropped and stopped. Took me a few minutes to gather my breath and composure. At least in lycra you can check it's all still there without undressing though :oops:0 -
I think I used that route a few times back in the summer - it's a pontoon walkway right? Gives this lovely floaty sensation under the wheels (right up until you get that base over apex feeling of course...)
Biking in London - love it."Consider the grebe..."0 -
I hope you brushed up on your etiquette first...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-11435200
it doesn't seem to mention how one should behave while nearly falling in though.
PPPeople that make generalisations are all morons.
Target free since 2011.0 -
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I almost knocked someone into the canal once. I was pootling along the Lea Valley route on a 40+ mile ride (that's my excuse for getting scalped...) and some guy decided to speed past on the canal side without warning. I avoided a big hole in the gravel just at the moment he started to pass. His share of path suddenly got very narrow. Glad I didn't knock him in, but I still feel a ''coming through'' call or a ''ting-ting'' à la canal code would have made life a lot safer for both of us.
Weird thing: I feel much safer with the water on my right-hand side than I do the other way round.0 -
I was knocked into the canal ages ago.. it fucking sucksPurveyor of sonic doom
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Clever Pun wrote:I was knocked into the canal ages ago.. it fucking sucks
Someone barge their way through?0 -
UndercoverElephant wrote:Clever Pun wrote:I was knocked into the canal ages ago.. it fucking sucks
Someone barge their way through?
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Proud CX Pervert and quiet roadie. 12 mile commuter0 -
Canal riding has it's benefits, I was cycling from Melksham to Bath last Sunday Morning and was wolf whistled by a gang of mornig after night before boozy birds on a hen do, as I turned to look about 8 of them mooned at me, I nearly fell in the canal!0
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jezoliver wrote:Canal riding has it's benefits, I was cycling from Melksham to Bath last Sunday Morning and was wolf whistled by a gang of mornig after night before boozy birds on a hen do, as I turned to look about 8 of them mooned at me, I nearly fell in the canal!
Er.. I take it you mean the waterway canal, not the er.. erm...0 -
Ah you'd have been fine. I've spent a fair amount of time in the Thames, usually involuntarily, and more recently upside down in a kayak in the Grand Union canal.
They're pretty shallow really, and you'd have to be very unlucky to catch Weil's.
However, as I was cycling along it yesterday, I did wonder if the Maxima would float...0 -
SecretSam wrote:
good god man - everyone knows it's "tishhhh" not "ting" - what have you got? a fisher price kids drum kit?
Many years ago, I was cycling down a towpath, following my college rowing eight in a race, when a women pushed a pram across my path. I just had enough room to brake and get past between her and the river bank edge. I didn't realise that the master of the college, on his brompton and in full rowing club blazer, tie etc.was directly behind me, had nowhere to go, and gracefully pedalled into the river......
.....they still let me graduate.... :oops:
....serve him right for wheel sucking :evil:0 -
Had a lucky escape last christmas.
I was cycling along the canal towpath and it was sheet ice, by sheet I mean inches on the two path and i changed my line ever so slightly and the bike started to go down with me heading towards the frozen canal. I had two options, end up in the freezing canal or attempt to land on the dog egg covered canal towpath.
Amazingly I managed to land on the frozen towpath surrounded by dog landmines much to the amusement of my friends. How I didn't get any turd on me I will never know
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