Cycling UK Forum

I enjoy reading all the cycling miseries - nasty car drivers, institutional bias/inertia etc but my own cycling experience suggests that it isn't just any one group of road users but all, and probably our societal attitudes, that cause conflict... I'm a motorcyclist too and enjoy analogous comments on biker forums.

For example... my daily 16 mile commute on a cycle-path in the early morning dark has me blinded each day by searchlights attached to oncoming handlebars. Most riders do not dip/cover their lights making it impossible for me to pick out the path... and sometimes causing me to wander toward their light with entertaining consequences. Other adopt the flashing 'be seen' mode, forgetting that we only need to see each other as there are no cars on the cycle path - utterly pointless and very irritatiing to ride towards.

On the one occasion I called out 'you're too bright' to an oncoming cyclist he told me to 'F off' - we were the only people for a mile in each direction but still achieved road rage.

I'm unimpressed with cyclists' attitudes in general and not surprised we have an appalling reputation. The other morning I was squared up to my a dog walker who mistook me for the 'crazy mountain biker' who ran into his dog at speed on a dark path and then just rode off. Lucky for me I have drop bars!

Saying 'Hi' to peds on cycle paths and warning them with a bell plus thanking them forgiving space afterwards, along with not blasting past as though we are just entering the Arc de Triumph in victory sprint, costs nothing but massively enhances the rep of cyclists - as does considering the retinas of others on cycle paths.

Some awful postcript to email I get at work says 'Be the change you want to see': yuk! But true, perhaps. Or, perhaps, imagining your small child next to you asking why did you do/say that and having to explain it to them might reduce some of the inconsiderate behaviour and attitudes that cyclists share with other road users imo.

I'm getting my coat!

Simon

Don't go, I think you might get more agreement than you expected!

As hexhome says, your feelings seem to reflect the majority on this forum: that it is bad road users that are the problem not cyclists, drivers or pedestrians.

However, it is bad driving that offers the greatest threat to our lives and limbs so it is unsurprising that this particular group of bad road users get the greatest number of reports on this forum. This might make it seem like some people are anti-car driver but you'll probably find that most on here are also drivers, and that in reality what people mean (although due to the severity and number of incidents they don't always specifically state) is that it is bad drivers rather than drivers in general that they are targeting.

However, as you will see there are a number of RLJ/pavement riding/no lights at night threads where (bad) cyclists come in for criticism too.

Perhaps, Simon, just like many of us forget the numerous incidents of good driving we see every day and remember the one instance of bad driving, you are just a little more sensitive to those few posts on here that seem to give the impression that cycles are always right and everyone else wrong?

You are absolutely right, idiots are not confined to those on four wheels. There seems to be plenty of phscyclists around every time I visit a town . I always try to ride my bike as an ambassador for my pastime, and that's what you seem to be doing.

Al

Locksim wrote:I'm unimpressed with cyclists' attitudes in general and not surprised we have an appalling reputation. The other morning I was squared up to my a dog walker who mistook me for the 'crazy mountain biker' who ran into his dog at speed on a dark path and then just rode off. Lucky for me I have drop bars!

Saying 'Hi' to peds on cycle paths and warning them with a bell plus thanking them forgiving space afterwards, along with not blasting past as though we are just entering the Arc de Triumph in victory sprint, costs nothing but massively enhances the rep of cyclists - as does considering the retinas of others on cycle paths.

Simon

Simon: please can you explain in some detail what you were doing on a path? I appreciate the spirit of your post but we do need to ask ourselves how we as cyclists came to be riding on the pavement.

HID lights - probably the 'searchlights' you encountered on the bike path - are increasingly popular - and unnecessary in my view, except for serious off-road stuff. Certainly not on the road - or on a surfaced path. Those that do may be making the wrong sort of 'statement' - i.e. macho, aggressive.

I find my 10W filament lamp (Electron) perfectly adequate for town riding: for rural unlit roads I sometimes change to the 15W. In extreme cases I might run the two together, but then I don't get much battery time! But neither of them could be taken for a 'searchlight'. As a spare (in case the battery runs out) I carry a cheapo LED light just to get me home.

But maybe I have better night-vision than some (I'm an amateur astronomer). Anyway I know there are some who have a passion for lighting up the whole countryside like Broadway, and I don't go for it.

Giving way to pedestrians on a shared path (including bridleways) is a 'must'. No buts. I always slow to walking pace, and stop if necessary (especially if the ped. has a dog). That rider on the BBC programme, who we saw knocking down a female pedestrian on a fairly wide path, was most definitely in the wrong, no question. But if a ped. steps into the road without looking, then you can start blaming him/her.

Surely the issue isn't with brightness of lights, it is where they are pointed.
Some cyclists have front lights pointed straight ahead so they blind other road users, and also don't illuminate the road ahead for the rider.
I have my front light angled down to a spot about 15 feet in front of me - this means I can see obstructions and I don't blind other people.
I use a shared used cycleway every day. It is astonishing how many cyclists have no bells on their bikes, and don't bother giving pedestrians any warning as they come up behind them at crazy speeds. I always slow and give warning when passing from behind.
The only conclusion I can come to is that quite a lot of people (whatever their mode of transport) simply have no consideration for other people. Unfortunately those same people are the ones who swear at you if you point that out. Such is life.

horizon wrote:Simon: please can you explain in some detail what you were doing on a path? I appreciate the spirit of your post but we do need to ask ourselves how we as cyclists came to be riding on the pavement

I took it that he was using the same cycle path. I fail to understand why that is relevant to his and my problem with cyclists attitudes?
I do find myself agreeing with his post and the issues it raises especially the lack of thought for others.

Simon it was not that long ago that I was asked why I was not using this forum as much. The reason I gave was that I had an incident with two cyclists when out in the car.
I am also finding some attitudes on here to be very polarised and some very confrontational with regard to drivers.
It is probably best for you to just keep watching what is written and not let it get to you.

661-Pete wrote:HID lights - probably the 'searchlights' you encountered on the bike path - are increasingly popular -

<...>

I find my 10W filament lamp (Electron) perfectly adequate for town riding: for rural unlit roads I sometimes change to the 15W. In extreme cases I might run the two together, but then I don't get much battery time! But neither of them could be taken for a 'searchlight'. As a spare (in case the battery runs out) I carry a cheapo LED light just to get me home..

Blimey !

Things have moved on a very long way since you bought your lights. I'm pretty sure I have never encountered an HID lamp - they're obsolete technology on bikes and obsolescent in cars.

I certainly wouldn't invest any more money on your incandescents - though it would be a pleasant option for shared paths.
You must have amazing night vision or cycle very slowly !

LEDs do it all now, and even 1 watt B&M dynamo light will let most people ride on unlit roads.
I can ride full speed on a familiar one with my home made lights which compare well with any motorcycle light I ever owned.

LEDs don't need to be horrible.

Locksim
You're right and I agree with everything you say,in particular that we do have societal problem and a serious one IME.

Locksim wrote:On the one occasion I called out 'you're too bright' to an oncoming cyclist he told me to 'F off' - we were the only people for a mile in each direction but still achieved road rage.
Simon

http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=66068.0

3rd one down. Couldn't be could it?

gentlegreen wrote:I certainly wouldn't invest any more money on your incandescents - though it would be a pleasant option for shared paths.
You must have amazing night vision or cycle very slowly !

Why thank you sir! Spot on!
And yes - I think I do have fairly good night vision - for my age. Probably better than you townies. I can generally pick out six of the Pleiades on a good clear night, and if conditions are really good I can find M33 in the bins - but not with naked eye.

But that's neither here nor there. I've been quite happy with the Electron filament set for some years now, and I expect them to last a good few years yet. And that's despite having short-circuited the battery a few years ago - and not noticing until hours later ("is that a wisp of smoke coming from your bike Pete?"). Amazingly, that very same battery still works!

I suppose, having been 'off the forums' for some time now, accounts for my being a bit out of touch with the latest light techno. I've done some googling, and yes I can see there are lots of pricey LED sets on offer with lots of lumens. And so the world moves on....

As Mr Burns might have written had he lived in our time:

Wad some pow'r the giftie gie us,
To see worsels as others see us,
Or cannae see us on dark neets,
When we blind em with owr selfish leets.

(With appropriate apologies )

661-Pete wrote:

gentlegreen wrote:I certainly wouldn't invest any more money on your incandescents - though it would be a pleasant option for shared paths.
You must have amazing night vision or cycle very slowly !

Why thank you sir! Spot on!
And yes - I think I do have fairly good night vision - for my age. Probably better than you townies. I can generally pick out six of the Pleiades on a good clear night, and if conditions are really good I can find M33 in the bins - but not with naked eye.

But that's neither here nor there. I've been quite happy with the Electron filament set for some years now, and I expect them to last a good few years yet. And that's despite having short-circuited the battery a few years ago - and not noticing until hours later ("is that a wisp of smoke coming from your bike Pete?"). Amazingly, that very same battery still works!

I suppose, having been 'off the forums' for some time now, accounts for my being a bit out of touch with the latest light techno. I've done some googling, and yes I can see there are lots of pricey LED sets on offer with lots of lumens. And so the world moves on....

DIY

Except some would say it doesn't look pretty.
I have motorcycle-quality lighting for £50, plus 8 to £12 a year due to NiMH battery abuse - but I used to wear out my lead acids just as quickly.
I was gobsmacked the other day in the bike shed when this chap said he'd paid £100 for a nasty little LED lamp.

The key thing about DIY is I that get to have a proper dip and high beam and a handlebar switch to operate it.

If you want something neater, but a lot more expensive, the 1 watt B&Ms are amazing. I'm determined to get a good look at the optics and make my own higher powered version.
I have 6 watts - which will be the equivalent of about 35 quartz halogen watts.

Locksim wrote:
I'm getting my coat!

Simon

Leave the coat, I'm buying you a pint for your gentlemenly ethos.