Tales from today's commute....

[Miquel In De Rain]

Traffic was nicer today,esp round the Mile End and Stratford routes but the 2012 BMW's are becoming more lairy.

Wonder if the general niceness of the traffic was to do with the Olympics influence.

Different route back,avoided Tower Bridge and came back via Southwark Bridge,long day so I just wanted a more direct route back.

 

[subaqua]

lovely ride in today, had a little chuckle as 3 nobbers tried their luck at a red light ( mid red ) and realised that it is red for a very good reason .

the best thing is that I am back on the bike. the week and a bit of enforced no riding was hell. I hate the tube with a passion ( not the frontline staff the nobbers who couldn't sort a pedestrian management plan if their life depended on it.

 

[BSRU]

First day back commuting after a few days off with Vertigo, caused by an inner ear infection.
Took it easy on a shorter route than normal but probably could have done with another day off as not the most energetic ride I have had, not feeling as good as I thought.

 

[400bhp]

Had some Ford Fester driver decide to drive in the cycle lane next to me. His reason, he was avoiding my "mate" (another random cyclist) who was in another lane and he (the Fester driver) couldn't pass him. Apparently waiting isn't a word in his vocabulary,

 

[GrumpyGregry]

It's September. QED the twunts are back out driving in the mist. My, how we larfed.

 

[martint235]

Having been unable to cycle over the weekend, I decided to treat myself and bring Lelly to work today. Very weird having a backpack on again (the commuter now has a Carridice) but the ride feels so much quicker. The final time showed it wasn't actually any quicker at all but it's all about feeling!!

 

[BSRU]

My ride this morning turns out to better than I first thought as my Garmin auto calibration yet again underestimated wheel size, setting it to 1938mm for a 700cx25 tyre, meaning the Garmin reported a ride 2km shorter than previous exact same rides.
I read on a few forums that auto-calibration occurs everytime you ride, explains why three times recently it has been wrong.
Using a manual setting of 2105mm for now until/if I work it out properly.

 

[400bhp]

My ride this morning turns out to better than I first thought as my Garmin auto calibration yet again underestimated wheel size, setting it to 1938mm for a 700cx25 tyre, meaning the Garmin reported a ride 2km shorter than previous exact same rides.
I read on a few forums that auto-calibration occurs everytime you ride, explains why three times recently it has been wrong.
Using a manual setting of 2105mm for now until/if I work it out properly.

Bizarelly (coincidentally perhaps) my mate mentioned this exact thing to me last week. He has a 705 like me and has been having issues with the measurement that Strava uses (2 miles out over 20 miles iirc). I've now turned auto calibration off.

 

[BSRU]

Bizarelly (coincidentally perhaps) my mate mentioned this exact thing to me last week. He has a 705 like me and has been having issues with the measurement that Strava uses (2 miles out over 20 miles iirc). I've now turned auto calibration off.

Apparently in the first 3/4 of a mile of starting each ride it uses GPS to measure the distance and counts the number of revolutions of the wheel to determine the measurement, so it is reliant on a good quality GPS lock.

 

[Edwards80]

Highly amusing incident on the ride home. I'm spinning up the hill at the end of my ride and a chap in a 4x4 pulls out into the bus/bike/taxi lane without looking, I get on the brakes and raise a "what was that" hand and then see his wife give him a good smack. He looked like a schoolboy who had just been told off.

Every dodgy driver should be required to drive around with a short tempered violent lady in the passenger seat.

 

[400bhp]

Maybe people are starting to change.....

I think I educated a driver on the way home tonight. He passed me within a foot or so, on a residential road with speed humps (was plenty of room for him to pass safetly).

He turned into a cul de sac 1/2 a mile or so later. I followed him. Late 50's early 60's distinguished looking bloke in a 3 bed suburban semi. Very calmly I asked him to give more room in future, he was far too close etc. He responded that I was a little far out. I then asken him the direct question "why do you think I was that far out?" He paused for a moment and said "don't know". I told him that because of the parked cars which were pointing away from me, and the fact that a lot of people leave their cars there to get the metrolink, given the time of day it was very likely someone could be getting into & out of their car, hence very dangerouus for me to cycle so close to the doors".

He apologised and seemed to understand.

On the other hand it could have been fear that I know where he lives...

 

[400bhp]

Oh, and some bellend in a Sky top decided to twatstand ahead of a set of red lights, then dodges the cars to go through on red. Utterly pointless and would have made a lot of the car drivers concentrate on him rather than more important stuff. Me and another cyclist at least took the pish out of him.

 

[subaqua]

lovely view along CS3 on the way home. but i didn't keep it for long . a nice ass is not worth dying for by following through red lights

 

[BSRU]

During the warming up part of my ride this morning passed a couple(man and woman) on mountain bikes. The guy obviously did not like being overtaken as he put in a huge effort to catch up with me seemingly forgetting about his partner.

 

[Miquel In De Rain]

Not too bad yesterday and today.People were being nice,not really any trouble although had a slight go at two cars,one being out of lane near Tower Bridge and the other pulling into the bus lane at Elephant in front of me and then realising that he was driving into the ar53 end of a bus so had to go back to the lane he originally came from,not that I have ever done that.

Think I was wrong,should have just left it.

Made a mistake tonight at Stratford,thinking a bus would go left but it didn't so had to adjust for my mistake,think I was tired but so is everybody else.