Not one for boasting.....but

[DavieB]

This week I'm commuting in freezing temperatures full thermal gear on 10 miles each way...

In 3 weeks ill be buying a nice new carbon bike shorts vests and a few water bottles and doing a 15 mile commute in temperatures in excess of 30 degrees . I'm moving to australia .

Biggest issue is Australian drivers seem worse than ours....

Missing the TDU by a week though

 

[smokeysmoo]

In 3 weeks I'll be buying a nice new carbon bike and doing a 15 mile commute in temperatures in excess of 30 degrees

Be careful the bike doesn't melt

 

[Miquel In De Rain]

Where in Australia are you going?

 

[Cyclopathic]

Carbon fiber looses integrity the further south of the equator one goes. Antipodean carbon fiber is a very different animal to our own stuff and used for packaging.

 

[BlackPanther]

Where's the challenge though in cycling in perpetually pleasant weather? I pity you, thinking of you cycling every day in the blazing sunshine.

Good luck mate......I mean cobber.

Just noticed you're from Glasgow. Are you sure you won't melt?

 

[Miquel In De Rain]

Lucky sod,wish I could move.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

You gonna get sunstroke

 

[Easytigers]

Lucky sod,wish I could move.

+1

 

[Drago]

I been commuting this week in just a thing, with a dab of sun cream on my nose.

 

[Davidsw8]

I been commuting this week in just a thing, with a dab of sun cream on my nose.

Im picturing a lovely Borat thong Drago

 

[jefmcg]

It's not all beer and skittles: I've never collapsed from sunstroke after an English commute, and skin cancer is low on my list of concerns. On the other hand, ice is never a factor, and you'll get to laugh when they complain how cold it is when it's 18 degrees.
Melbourne drivers seem to treat cyclists with more respect than London drivers, and the commuting facilities make the so called "Cycling Superhighways" in London seem they joke they are.
Australian newspapers report road death routinely, so cycling will seem more dangerous. The papers were full of this last time I was there, making my father think I was about to die every time I went out without a car.

 

[Cyclopathic]

I thought that it had to be woven anti-clockwise to be useable on the southern hemisphere.

Oh that's probably right, yes in fact that makes more sense and is really obvious when you think about it. I think my information was a bit out of date and came from a time when no anti clockwise woven carbon was being made and all that was available in Aus' was stuff imported from the north which was good for pretty much nothing.
Thanks for clearing that point up.

 

[DavieB]

I'm off to adelaide.

Yes I will get sunstroke lol. Not looking forward to working in 40 degree heat tbh.
I'll be the pale guy with reddish hair lmao . (At least for a week until I turn red)

Jefmcg I've noticed an awful lot of fatality reports and accident reports in SA press is it just because they report it more then and the roads aren't that much more dangerous?

 

[smokeysmoo]

"Australia is a beautiful country, it's just a shame everything there wants to kill you" unkown

Still wish I was going too, (I'd prefer NZ TBH, but beggars can't be choosers and all that!)

 

[jefmcg]

OK, don't buy sunscreen in the UK, it's crap. When you get to oz, go to a supermarket and get a litre pump pack of sunscreen and wear it every day, winter and summer. For sport, go for water resistant. I picked up some of this last time I was there, http://www.cancervic.org.au/store/summer05_sunscreen1/pg_active_sunscreen - it's very good, but a little hard to find. If you are cycling, you want to make sure your sunscreen isn't going to run off your forehead into your eyes.

Oh, and if you have a scottish (or english) accent, red hair and sunburn, expect to be lectured by doctors, pharmacists and strangers on public transport.

Road safety: a bit of both. I just did some googling, and there are more fatalities per head of population than in the UK, but that may be down to the fact that it's easier drive than in the UK (I really don't think Adelaide has a real peak hour), and the distances are much further (ie I expect greater kilometrage per person than in UK). But anyway, you may find this interesting: http://www.bitre.gov.au/publications/2012/files/RDA_Summary_2011.pdf, check out table 1. Road deaths in Australia in 2011, 1,291 with a population of around 21 million, while https://www.gov.uk/government/uploa...alties-in-great-britain-main-results-2011.pdf 1,901 with population of 61 million, so that is about double - which is a lot. But they do report every fatality, and often feature them. For instance during Easter, Christmas and on long weekends (==Bank holiday weekends), the fatalities over the holiday period will often lead the news.
http://tinyurl.com/9wwczft.

And check out this: http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/ipod--the-risks/2006/02/15/1139890771660.html - I bet this fatality did not get as much coverage in London, where it happened.

Don't forget that helmets are compulsory, which means sun protection on a bicycle is a challenge. I used to wear a legionnaire style cover until my partner threatened to leave me.