The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
Cyril Haearn
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by Cyril Haearn »

Usually I cycle neatly everywhere but now in the snow walking is the first or only choice, I did think of trying the bus but I am not that far gone yet :?
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gaz
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by gaz »

It's been an interesting week.

The local buses have faced delay and cancellation. The local rail station has been closed, first with services not stopping and subsequently no trains even running. Various minor roads have succumbed to drifting snow and have been declared impassable. There have been warnings of similar drifting cutting off the main road too although that did not materialise.

Colleagues at work have variously switched from cars to public transport, worked from different offices or from home and in some cases simply declared themsleves "snowed in".

I have been able to make all my usual journeys by my usual routes, albeit they've taken me a little longer than usual. My bicycle has proved to be an extremely resilient mode of transport.
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mjr
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by mjr »

Zanda wrote:1. How to stow a D-lock so that it's quick to retrieve and use

2. How to carry keys, money and other valuables on the bike in such a way that they can be easily picked up and carried away when the cyclist parks the bike

3. How to carry and protect (removable) bike lights, away from the bike. Ditto the other cycling accessories that's aren't needed when off the bike, such as gloves.

4. How to organise the contents of a bike pannier (or similar large bag) so each item is quickly retrievable.

1. Side pocket of a pannier or thin flat bag down the side of pannier, or under flap of a longflap saddlebag.

2. Satchel in pannier or just take the saddlebag.

3. Use bolted on lights. Put the rest in the satchel or saddlebag.

4. Put things in small bags or drybags in it, but half the battle is discipline, putting things back neatly.
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reohn2
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by reohn2 »

gaz wrote:It's been an interesting week.

The local buses have faced delay and cancellation. The local rail station has been closed, first with services not stopping and subsequently no trains even running. Various minor roads have succumbed to drifting snow and have been declared impassable. There have been warnings of similar drifting cutting off the main road too although that did not materialise.

Colleagues at work have variously switched from cars to public transport, worked from different offices or from home and in some cases simply declared themsleves "snowed in".

I have been able to make all my usual journeys by my usual routes, albeit they've taken me a little longer than usual. My bicycle has proved to be an extremely resilient mode of transport.

Quite surprising how such an antiquated means of transport when all other more modern means fail in such adverse,and at times in your neck of the woods,atrocious conditions is able to overcome them with a little will and determination :D
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Vorpal
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by Vorpal »

This is what I ended up doing
20180421_055718_1.jpg


It worked reasonably well. I wouldn't want to cycle like that for 20 miles, but it was fine for the 2.5 miles to the station from my house.
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thirdcrank
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by thirdcrank »

Vorpal wrote:I'm going to have to figure out a low-hassle way to take cross country skis on my bike.

I took them on the bus today, and that was definitely a hassle.


I've only just noticed this and it shows how wrong one can be. My experience of skiing and Norway are both nil, but if I'd been thinking of somewhere where the buses would be ski friendly it would have been there. Skis must surely be the most bus-friendly kit imaginable, given an absence of obstructiveness by the bus operators. eg you could line the roof of a bus with skis and only reduce the headroom by a few cms. I start my day disillusioned. :(
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Re: The hassle of cycling versus the hassle of driving

Post by Vorpal »

thirdcrank wrote:
Vorpal wrote:I'm going to have to figure out a low-hassle way to take cross country skis on my bike.

I took them on the bus today, and that was definitely a hassle.


I've only just noticed this and it shows how wrong one can be. My experience of skiing and Norway are both nil, but if I'd been thinking of somewhere where the buses would be ski friendly it would have been there. Skis must surely be the most bus-friendly kit imaginable, given an absence of obstructiveness by the bus operators. eg you could line the roof of a bus with skis and only reduce the headroom by a few cms. I start my day disillusioned. :(

Well, the hassle was really down to two things: the quickest route from my work to the ski area is closed so they can build a new pedestrian/cycle tunnel, for which I am grateful (the old one was awful), but the buses that usually go through there are rerouted, and the information about where to get the bus was bad, so I ended up walking just under two miles with my skis. It was, admittedly partly my fault because I supposed that they would put signs up on the bus stops & I didn't look it up or ask anyone before I left. Instead, they just took the normal timetables down. The other part was that the bus route doesn't actually go to the ski area, just to a nearby shopping centre. That would have been fine, if I hadn't already walked a couple of miles. On the subsequent occasions that I did this trip, it went much more smoothly.
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