Cycling UK Forum

plancashire wrote: ↑25 Sep 2023, 11:37am ...... Instead I spent the money colleagues kindly collected for my recent retirement on a very fancy manual coffee grinder which I can use every morning while I remember them and the good times we had together,

You should have bought one of these

Norman H wrote: ↑25 Sep 2023, 12:13pm

plancashire wrote: ↑25 Sep 2023, 11:37am ...... Instead I spent the money colleagues kindly collected for my recent retirement on a very fancy manual coffee grinder which I can use every morning while I remember them and the good times we had together,

You should have bought one of these

Hmm, thanks for the suggestion. We used to have beer bikes here in Düsseldorf. The drinkers sat at a bar and each had pedals. Someone at the front was responsible for steering and braking and was supposed not to drink the beer. I think that was where the problems arose. They have been banned from the city centre. Maybe coffee would work better? I think the stag parties might not hire them, though.

plancashire wrote: ↑25 Sep 2023, 11:37am I thought about fitting a camera to my bike but decided against it. The purpose was not to film near misses and then use the recording for evidence, rather to film my rides then publish them somewhere. After thinking about how much desk work would be required and the likely audience for such tedium, I decided against it on the grounds that it would reduce not increase my enjoyment of cycling by making it more complicated.
Maybe my perspective here in Germany is different?

I think so. Ages ago cycling in the uk was just seen as a part of life. Certainly for both my father and grandfather, cycling to the shops, to work and to visit people filled the gap between walking and driving- when the journey length was 'too far too walk and too short to start the car, for'.

And then came the 1970s and 1980's and all colours of the uk government at that time refused to give any support towards everyday bicycle use- as result cycling in Britain isn't seen as a normal every day activity any more. Its something that you have to wear special clothes for, it's something that you only do at weekends and if anything it's something that you do to exhaust yourself or try and impress others with.

As a result of this because cycling is now not seen as a normal every day activity, like walking, cycling now carries all manner of perceived risks and dangers.

Do you think it is GOOD practice to haver front and rear bike cameras in case !

I don't know much about these cameras, but I would think it is better if you take them out of the case.

Pebble wrote: ↑22 Sep 2023, 11:55am It is a daft term as there is no immediate safety benefit from having one. However, as word gets around that some cyclist record their rides and the police are willing to prosecute on that evidence . Then may be just like they do in front of speed cameras, more motorists will start behaving better whilst overtaking us.

I would like every driver to assume that the cyclist they are about to overtake is carrying a camera.

I think Ill be waiting for hell to freeze over before that happens, no motorist ever seems to consider the possibility I might have a camera when they overtake that will take footage that can be submitted to the police for prosecution, Ive got two passes just today I have to review to see if theyre worth the effort in reporting, and by that I mean theyre totally in the NIP territory, but they make the process so awkward and then its 6months of stressing about it, and for what when theres a stackload more drivers doing the exact same stuff because we are barely scratching the surface at the end of the day