Irn-Bru? Scottish Blethering Thread

[Slick]

I know this particular thread has all but died, but I wasn't particular sure where else it fitted as I have very little information at the moment and Google can only produce the snippet below.

https://www.dumbartonreporter.co.uk/news/24042997.vale-roundabout-road-closed-balloch-road-smash/

I was heading home from a trip today from Aberdeen and I cut off at Stirling to avoid the usual congestion on the Kingston bridge. The stretch of dual carriageway between the Stoney Mollan roundabout and Dumbarton was closed, apparently because of some sort of crash. I'm not on Facebook, but Mrs Slick could tell me the chat was around a cyclist being hit, but details are very sketchy.

 

[Slick]

Still very few details of what happened but I can only assume it was a stranger to the area, as I don't think I can ever recall seeing a cyclist using that stretch of road.

Fingers crossed he makes a full recovery.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-67956825.amp

 

[Twilkes]

Still very few details of what happened but I can only assume it was a stranger to the area, as I don't think I can ever recall seeing a cyclist using that stretch of road.

Fingers crossed he makes a full recovery.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-67956825.amp

Ah yeah, that section is a racetrack - even north of Balloch the traffic thins out and visibility gets better, but on that stretch it bunches up because of the roundabouts and 90mph isn't uncommon. No pathway either, notwithstanding the cyclepath from Balloch itself.

I cycled that road south 25 years ago (ironically due to the Balloch cyclepath surface being awful!) but pretty sure I wouldn't be doing it these days. :-/

 

[Slick]

Ah yeah, that section is a racetrack - even north of Balloch the traffic thins out and visibility gets better, but on that stretch it bunches up because of the roundabouts and 90mph isn't uncommon. No pathway either, notwithstanding the cyclepath from Balloch itself.

I cycled that road south 25 years ago (ironically due to the Balloch cyclepath surface being awful!) but pretty sure I wouldn't be doing it these days. :-/

Yeah, I'm sure plenty have done it, but I know that I wouldn't.

Still no excuse though.

 

[Brandane]

That is one (of many) stretches of roads that comes under the description of "yes I know it is legal and I am entitled to cycle on it, but it's not worth risking my life for". That list in my case is lengthy. In my local area alone it includes the A78 Largs to Wemyss Bay, A78 Hunterston to West Kilbride, A760 Largs to Kilbirnie (where there was a cycling fatality about 2 years ago, classic low sun excuse), A737 Lochwinnoch to Johnstone (an absolute NO WAY; especially as there is a perfectly good disused railway line alternative). Add to that ANY dual carriageway where the national speed limit applies (as in the A82 where the OP incident happened) - basically a motorway without the advantage of a hard shoulder.

I hope the victim in the OP makes a full recovery, and that the driver involved is properly dealt with by the judicial system (and pigs might fly).

 

[oldwheels]

It appeared on the A85 Roadwatch page yesterday but just gave the newspaper reference. I stuck it on my mundane news this morning tho’ it is nor really mundane.

 

[Slick]

That is one (of many) stretches of roads that comes under the description of "yes I know it is legal and I am entitled to cycle on it, but it's not worth risking my life for". That list in my case is lengthy. In my local area alone it includes the A78 Largs to Wemyss Bay, A78 Hunterston to West Kilbride, A760 Largs to Kilbirnie (where there was a cycling fatality about 2 years ago, classic low sun excuse), A737 Lochwinnoch to Johnstone (an absolute NO WAY; especially as there is a perfectly good disused railway line alternative). Add to that ANY dual carriageway where the national speed limit applies (as in the A82 where the OP incident happened) - basically a motorway without the advantage of a hard shoulder.

I hope the victim in the OP makes a full recovery, and that the driver involved is properly dealt with by the judicial system (and pigs might fly).

I've cycled down to Largs using the 737 many times, although I do usually end up getting the train back after visiting the Fish Works.

I don't think I've done it since that fatal incident you mention, as that really was tragic. Did they accept that excuse in the end?

 

[Brandane]

Did they accept that excuse in the end?

Not heard anything more about it. It happened in August 2022 which in terms of our creaking legal system wasn't very long ago; so it's quite possible that it has still to go to trial (assuming the driver was charged, which I would think was a given, surely?).

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

A shout out for BBC Scotland’s House of the Lion podcast, covering the early years of the Scottish throne. Very lively presentation by Susan Morrison and Len Pennie, worth a listen . On BBC Sounds.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0h5q3rb?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

 

[Slick]

A shout out for BBC Scotland’s House of the Lion podcast, covering the early years of the Scottish throne. Very lively presentation by Susan Morrison and Len Pennie, worth a listen . On BBC Sounds.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0h5q3rb?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

I am not a huge fan of podcasts, but I thought I may venture in to listen to Trumped.

Well, everyone enjoys seeing him getting his erse kicked and if I'm honest, my prediction at the time was that he would get his own way as every man has his price. Turns out it tells you more about me than the people of Balmedie.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0h9zh47

 

[Scoosh]

Another couple of BBC Sounds ones well-read by Kenny Blyth are Kidnapped (RLS) and The Thirty Nine Steps (John Buchan), the latter being nothing like any of the various films !