So, as a car driver, how did I do with the group of cyclists? VIDEO

[Tony Sutton]

As a car driver, how did I do?

Some say I should have overtaken on the hatched lines, others has said I was right to wait. Your thoughts? Check out the comments on YouTube...


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvF6h55rYCg

 

[Tommy2]

I like 10ptrixie's phrase "where there's blame there's a clam" that's just being shell fish.

They seemed to be shifting at a fair pace but what if they were just rolling along, that's when most people seem to get frustrated.

 

[CopperCyclist]

You dealt with the. safely and as a cyclist you couldn't ask for more!

The text of the video is a little misleading though as you never show how to 'overtake/deal with' a group of cyclists, you just cover the 'deal with' part

If I was being mega critical and treating it like it was a police driving course, I would suggest that there possibly were opportunities to make progress and overtake them safely - however I would not have 100% confidence in this without actually being the man in the car, knowing the speeds I'm actually doing, the capabilities of the car, and getting the view myself. All of these points aren't possible to ascertain from the video.

You did what you felt to be the safe course of action, based on perfectly good reasons and no one can fault you for that.

 

[screenman]

I would say they did not know you were there, otherwise they surely would have or should have made it easier for you too overtake. I know when group riding I appreciate a little beep on the horn from the car behind, much the same as the cyclist would use on a shared cycling walking path. It is something I do when driving and have never received abuse for doing so, I do i from a good way back not when I am on the riders back wheels.

As some of you will know group riding at speed creates quite a bit of noise along with wind noise making hearing a car behind difficult, that and the fact that the people on the back of the group need to be strong enough to look around means they often do not know what is going on behind them.

When captaining a group ride I always make sure I have a strong sweeper who is not grovelling to hold the wheel in front, this persons job is rear observation along with helping and guiding the less strong.

Just the views of an old time club cyclists so things may be different now.

 

[growingvegetables]

Driving's brilliant

But the cycling? Hmm - dopy beggars, imho - through the bend, pedestrian lights, pinch points, 2 roundabouts, a left turn and a right turn, I think I caught only one of 'em casting one single glance over his shoulder.

Only noticed because an Arriva driver gave me the gentlest, politest beep on his horn the other day - cos I wasn't looking behind enough and hadn't heard him come up behind me.

 

[400bhp]

You dealt with the. safely and as a cyclist you couldn't ask for more!

The text of the video is a little misleading though as you never show how to 'overtake/deal with' a group of cyclists, you just cover the 'deal with' part

If I was being mega critical and treating it like it was a police driving course, I would suggest that there possibly were opportunities to make progress and overtake them safely - however I would not have 100% confidence in this without actually being the man in the car, knowing the speeds I'm actually doing, the capabilities of the car, and getting the view myself. All of these points aren't possible to ascertain from the video.

You did what you felt to be the safe course of action, based on perfectly good reasons and no one can fault you for that.

Agree, probably too far back to attempt to overtake anyway.

Man, that was a boring videooooooooo

 

[GrasB]

Agree, probably too far back to attempt to overtake anyway.

Man, that was a boring videooooooooo

Not really, being that far back gives you plenty of pre-commitment space to accelerate (& brake in if you decide to abort).

 

[Boris Bajic]

I thought it was good driving - and quite representative of the situation one meets when following a chaingang or similar (the group in the video was pretty small). I am not infrequently caught for a few miles behind a chaingang or a cycling family at the weekend. It never seems to add more than a minute onto my journey time.

The distance was good. A modern car, even modestly driven, can whomp up from 20 to 50 in very few metres. I dislike cars being too near the wheel of a bicycle. Because the bikes were closely bunched, a one-by-one passing policy wasn't going to work.

I was hoping for an overtake (maybe hoping is too strong a word) so I was disappointed to see the riders pull off, but it was representative in that one often turns off before a passing chance arrives.

I was also disappointed at the apparent lack of rearward glances of the tail-end Charlie. That was the lasting impression of this clip. Road users should be aware of what is behind them and (even if they have a mirror) a glance makes the following party aware that they are aware.

The video was pretty dull, but the driving was appropriate and considerate. The riders were slightly selfish, but that isn't a crime.

 

[KateK]

Agree, probably too far back to attempt to overtake anyway.

Man, that was a boring videooooooooo

Makes a change! New Year seems to have brought the worst out in car drivers round here. had three come through pinch points driving straight at me yesterday (I had priority and I was moving), and one car that cut me up at a traffic island. On Sunday I had that Oh-my-god-that-car-is-doing-60-on-the-wrong-side-of-the-road-and-coming-straight-at-me moment. Still I had a very polite bus driver who followed me a little way back for 1/2 a mile whilst I looked increasingly desperately for somewhere to pull in and let him past.

 

[steve52]

spot on

 

[NormanD]

The one thing I did notice was there wasn't a single rear flashing light between the whole cycling group (or am I going blind) ..then again when you did pass them I didn't even notice a front light either!!

 

[400bhp]

Not really, being that far back gives you plenty of pre-commitment space to accelerate (& brake in if you decide to abort).

Actually, that would mean you have committed too early. Lightly accelerate near the back, then overtake.

 

[GrasB]

Actually, that would mean you have committed too early. Lightly accelerate near the back, then overtake.

Not at all. If you use good judgement it means you've got the ability to get up to a good overtaking speed before needing to pull out.

 

[4F]

The one thing I did notice was there wasn't a single rear flashing light between the whole cycling group (or am I going blind) ..then again when you did pass them I didn't even notice a front light either!!

The video I watched was shot in the daylight.

 

[donnydave]

Wow that was boring. I watched it without sound so in my mind I added supercharger whine over the whomping great noise of a full race ford 427 V8 being restrained on/off overrun with dollops of fuel banging away in the exhausts, ready to charge past in one of the several million overtaking opportunities you were presented with (made possible by having 800bhp)