Boris Bike Noob

[Paco de Bango]

Regarding the bikes themselves:

Before you undock, give the back wheel a spin to see if it spins freely, sometimes the brake can be rubbing and it's like riding uphill everywhere.

If your riding at night, give the front wheel a spin to check the lights are working, again you can do this before you undock.

When you get a green light, release the bike by lifting it up by the saddle then pulling it out. Far easier than trying to pull it out by the handlebars.

When you re-dock it, get extra cool points by riding the bike directly into the docking station without putting your foot down (Not if the docking station if on the pavement though of course )

 

[LizardEye]

Well I managed it, but it didn't start quite the way I planned. The bay next to my start point was empty despite the app saying there were two. So I had to walk to the British Museum. There were loads there but the terminal was disconnected so had to Tube to St Pauls. Got there and were plenty so had a good tootle round the empty streets.
Tootle is all I could mange though - the gearing is really low and it was a struggle to get to a usable speed. Not sure why they've done that. Surely it's only fairly experienced cyclists who would use them, and they should be able to manage higher gearing.
Really enjoyed it though. I can now read some of the London posts with something approaching empathy

 

[Red Light]

Well I managed it, but it didn't start quite the way I planned. The bay next to my start point was empty despite the app saying there were two. So I had to walk to the British Museum. There were loads there but the terminal was disconnected so had to Tube to St Pauls. Got there and were plenty so had a good tootle round the empty streets.
Tootle is all I could mange though - the gearing is really low and it was a struggle to get to a usable speed. Not sure why they've done that. Surely it's only fairly experienced cyclists who would use them, and they should be able to manage higher gearing.
Really enjoyed it though. I can now read some of the London posts with something approaching empathy

Its not mainly experienced cyclists that use them nor that they are aimed at. For experienced cyclists the gearing will be too low but for inexperienced ones it varies between OK and too high.

Availability is becoming a bit of an issue - over the last few weeks with the good weather and holidays I find myself passing large numbers of sites with no bikes docked.

 

[srw]

Surely it's only fairly experienced cyclists who would use them, and they should be able to manage higher gearing.

They're designed to be used by inexperienced cyclists, and keeping the gearing very low makes it more likely that the unfit will use them and less likely that a lycra lout will take one to an unsafe speed.

They're perfect pootling bikes, which is what you need for short journeys in the city.

 

[Red Light]

+1 regarding Addison Lee cars, from my own experience they are consistently the WORST drivers. I can only assume the drivers go through a rigorous selection procedure in order to find the most ignorant pig headed cretins available.

+2

 

[LizardEye]

But would inexperienced cyclists risk life and limb battling the buses and one- way streets. I commute every day and I was a bit nervous.

 

[Bromptonaut]

But would inexperienced cyclists risk life and limb battling the buses and one- way streets. I commute every day and I was a bit nervous.

Most seem to manage but whether they're newbies or returnees is difficult to gauge. Gratifying thing is sheer numbers of ordinary people in ordinary clothes using a bike from A to B.

Also, the number of cyclists on London streets is now so high drivers have learned to cope!!

 

[LizardEye]

Well I was whizzing around in suit, tie and shiny black shoes, which made a nice change from the usual getup.

And as you say, hopefully more bikes means better drivers.

I'm in London again next week so might give it another go.