Newbie's first 2 months.....experiences

[Livefast123]

Well it's been my first 2 months of commuting on a pushbike and I have to say that I have enjoyed the experience and arrive at work far more awake / refreshed than if i'd travelled in by car. My route takes me on national cycle route 33 so I can avoid roads full stop if I wish and I usually do given the crazyness off drivers around here. As I work shifts I can be travelling home at 4 in the afternoon, midnight or 7 am which gives me plenty of variety!. It only works out at 8 miles a day but I have seen a marked increase in my fitness and I have lost weight....although I have plenty left to go. I have noticed a few things about cycle paths that nark me :-

1. The surface looks like it was put down by a group of grunts on their first day
2. Pedestrians always block the path by walking 2 + abreast or walk in the cycle lane
3. The council never seems to cut the undergrowth, although this could be a good things with thorns etc
4. Lighting is optional at night
5. Feral chavs always seem to smash bottles which take months to clear up

Is the above normal? You would think the government / council would be doing everything to convince people like me to use the bike but as normal in this country things are done half cock, just come back from several countries in Europe where their cycle paths are better than the main roads in this country!

 

[Hip Priest]

2. Pedestrians always block the path by walking 2 + abreast or walk in the cycle lane

It might be frustrating, but they've every right to be there. Slow down, politely say 'excuse me' (or ring your bell) and move on past.

 

[BlackPanther]

Yes you do get the odd pedestrian in a cycle lane. It's unreasonable to expect pedestrians to be completely aware of where a footpath ends/cycle lane begins (especially when they're in the smart phone zone.)

I tend to almost completely avoid these glass strewn, zombi-pedestrian minefields where, if you do get up to speed you have to slow down to rejoin the road. If you're want to do 20+mph the safest way is to get on the road and stay on the road........unless you come to a red light where it makes sense to use the cycle lane to bypass the delay and gain entry to 'smug zone'.

 

[Archie_tect]

Well it's been my first 2 months of commuting on a pushbike and I have to say that I have enjoyed the experience and arrive at work far more awake / refreshed than if i'd travelled in by car.

Good for you Livefast... and welcome.

 

[Mullerstraße]

Well done on taking up the bike, I have also been commuting for two months and do shift work. Initially I started by using the national cycle paths nearby, however quickly got fed up with broken glass and the large amount of shifty characters lurking around. I now cycle on the road to work and by doing shift work I avoid rush hour traffic, so it has been great for building up my confidence.....as well as being a quicker route to and from work!

 

[jonny jeez]

Welcome Livefast, and congrats on completing your fist couple of months.

I don't tend to use many cycle paths but the ones that I do are nearly always blocked by pedestrians at some point..or glass...or dog poo...or general detritus.

Although the closer I get to the capital, the better they become until the point at which I reach Hyde park,where the paths are as wide as a runway, clean, empty and offer fantastic views.

funny that.

 

[Livefast123]

Cheers Guys

As i get fitter I will probably move onto the road as it will lengthen my journey and give me a chance to put some speed on, i'm just trying to improve my bike at the moment and learn about bike maintainence. Give me a car or motorbike and i'm fine but with a simple ol' pushbike i'm clueless. Are there any good guides for maintainence out there?

My current ride :-
90's Dawes Vision hybrid with Ali frame
Deore LX chainset with Deore XT shifters/levers
Shimano Cantilever V brakes (M350?) which Ebay refers to as retro...lol

I've just put a set of Michelin Pilot sport tyres on which hopefully should run faster than my MTB hybrid tyres

 

[PaulSB]

5. Feral chavs always seem to smash bottles which take months to clear up

IME the best way to tackle this to stop and clear the glass away as you will wait months for someone else to do it. There are two benefits, you only have to do it the once (for each incident) and it's far less hassle than mending a puncture. Secondly you're helping other cyclists etc.

I always clear glass I see on the cycle route part of my commute. I didn't to begin with till I realised how daft I was to have to cycle through and round the same spread of glass every day!!!!

 

[nilling]

I have taken a broom with me in the car at the weekend to sweep glass off my commuting route

+karma

 

[carolonabike]

I'm a sustrans volunteer and it's true that in the more densly populated urban areas some cycle paths have a problem with glass and litter, I think it just comes with the territory, since as well as being quiet tracks to cycle on they are also good for hanging around with your pizza and bottle of w'ked or whatever it is.

We organise regular days where we trim back vegetation and clear litter, but there are miles of cyclepaths and a limited number of volunteers. Sustrans only do the official routes, the others are up to the council and they, however well meaning (and ours is pretty good) just doesn't have the resources.

If we all just do a little bit, whether that's sweeping glass away or ringing the council to report fly tipping it all helps. My attitude is, the more these paths are used, whether by cyclists or pedestrians and the busier they are, the less welcoming they are to that small element who just want to mess them up.

 

[Cubist]

I have taken a broom with me in the car at the weekend to sweep glass off my commuting route

+karma

I was going to suggest that. Respek' nilling, respek' !