The Joys of Riding Locally

[Johnno260]

People who ride in a sensible manner at an appropriate speed should not be falling off their bike too often, especially not in good warm dry weather. Most of the tales of incidents I read of on here seem to involve fast descents, hard braking, loose gravel on the road surface, bends with loose gravel on them, and vehicles appearing in the path of a bike being ridden at speed on urban commutes.
That's not to say incidents can't happen anyway, but usually a fast/aggressive riding style combined with a lack of caution seem to be common factors.

pretty much this, only people have seen fall off recently are people not cycling to the situation.

Both offs I have witnessed were people going fast on roads coated in that loose gravel

Todays off I witnessed was on a gravel track that the farmer doesn’t mind people using, I was on foot with the wife, eldest daughter riding and youngest on her balance bike, the guy came flying along I asked my youngest to move to the edge which she did, and he saw me usher her to the side, but the guy tried to thread himself between me and my kid without slowing, if he had slowed and allowed us to get right over to the side then he wouldn’t of needed to even move himself, but I suppose a KOM is worth crashing for?

He ended up on the verge and fell off, then threw his bike in my daughters direction.

He respected no social distancing, no common sense to the road surface etc, he is lucky the bike missed.

I have seen plenty of people out riding, and loads of horse riders, horse I always pass slow and wide, if the horse is oncoming I stop and cover my light, as for other cyclists if they have kids slow and wide as they’re children they will do the most random things sometimes, it’s about having respect for other road users and the situation.

Anyway that image is from a loverly new road I found, I will say I’m being much slower and appreciated the views more.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Feckwits that ride like that are deserving of a good hard slap!

 

[PaulSB]

Agreed it has been a fun and enjoyable challenge to find ways of mixing up very familiar local roads in to routes. Hitting my target for these of +/- 35 miles is becoming very difficult.

Headed out to one of my favourite areas yesterday. Once I got there checked the mileage and found I'd done 15 so all I could do was skirt around it and head for home.

I miss cycling with friends and hadn't appreciated how often we ride 15+ miles before beginning the route we want to do!

I'll spend some time on RWGPS today.

 

[stoatsngroats]

I agree, it’s is good to find new local routes, a short 8 miles in my Brompton recently saw my cycling roads into a fantastic wood, somewhere I have only driven to before.
The link below is our regular ‘mental well-being ride, which mixes countryside and seaside.
15 miles.

 

[GuyBoden]

I've been riding locally with my wife since the lockdown, about 20-30 miles most days. We ride in a 10mile(ish) circle around the locality, so always easy to get back home. It's nice to see many newbies out on bikes, some obviously on new bikes from Halfords, I hope they catch the cycling bug.

 

[uphillstruggler]

All from a 10 mile ride along bridle ways and the MK red way system, I’m discovering loads of new paths and bridle ways and revisiting old routes that I haven’t been on since I was a kid

I’m riding sensibly and with care and consideration for others.

It’s like being a kid again, it may help that I bought the bike in the pictures recently but it’s opened up the Chance to check out turnings and tracks that I may not have been able to ride before for one reason or another.

I love MK, it’s not to everyone’s taste but I’m enjoying exploring again, it’s also good to see so many people taking advantage of the wide open spaces I have available on my doorstep

 

[ianrauk]

I've been riding locally with my wife since the lockdown, about 20-30 miles most days. We ride in a 10mile(ish) circle around the locality, so always easy to get back home. It's nice to see many newbies out on bikes, some obviously on new bikes from Halfords, I hope they catch the cycling bug.

On our local loop today I can't remember ever seeing so many couples out on bikes together. Many obviously newbies getting some exercise in.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

On our local loop today I can't remember ever seeing so many couples out on bikes together. Many obviously newbies getting some exercise in.

Or relapsed couples trying again, I do wonder if there will be a birth spike in 8-9 months

 

[ColinJ]

Aha! In an earlier post recently I mentioned a local reservoir having gone walkabout...

One thing caught my eye...

The thick red line shows part of a mixed-terrain ride that I did with @Littgull a couple of years ago. I was thinking that the woods below Ramsden Clough reservoir looked like they would be good for a local walk. I have never been up there on foot. Then it struck me.... I had no recollection of seeing Ramsden Clough reservoir on the bike ride! I decided to check on Google Maps...

Okay, who's nicked me bleedin' reservoir!

I was just looking through some of my old ride photographs and lo and behold, there it... WASN'T!

 

[8mph]

Had a quick ride on The Ridgeway and around Barbury Castle Estate. Plenty of empty tracks to ride

but as usual, even after light rain, riding on the chalk downs is a messy business.

 

[albal]

Usually ride for a few miles finishing at dusk. Much quieter.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

 

[Drago]

All from a 10 mile ride along bridle ways and the MK red way system, I’m discovering loads of new paths and bridle ways and revisiting old routes that I haven’t been on since I was a kid

I’m riding sensibly and with care and consideration for others.

It’s like being a kid again, it may help that I bought the bike in the pictures recently but it’s opened up the Chance to check out turnings and tracks that I may not have been able to ride before for one reason or another.

I love MK, it’s not to everyone’s taste but I’m enjoying exploring again, it’s also good to see so many people taking advantage of the wide open spaces I have available on my doorstep

I cycled up to those kilns last year. It's a nice part of the world for an urban area, one of the parts of MK that seems to work.

 

[stuarttunstall]

For the last 3 weeks I have been one of the furlough workers so doing 14 miles a day around the village on country lanes.... I always do but these days it is so quiet, I have seen about 10 people and vehicles combined in 3 weeks....

Just horses, deer, rabbits and sheep with lambs...

 

[uphillstruggler]

I cycled up to those kilns last year. It's a nice part of the world for an urban area, one of the parts of MK that seems to work.

You’ll likely know about the way MK grew up but there’s quite a few of these villages that were incorporated into MK as it developed. There are paths and tracks you can use to join them up, it’s a bit of time travel in the new (not a) city

That was the first time I’d actually been there even though I knocked about in Great Linford for a while.