Downfader's Adventures Blog

At times I feel like I'm going insane...

2012-02-02T10:02:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I feel as if I'm banging my head against a wall. I've looked back on the letters/emails I've written, approximately 300 in 2011, sent to mostly various newspapers. I estimate around 100 have been published in some form. They are written not just from experience, or from my knowledge of statistics and various bits of research (that which is dwarfed by the knowledge of others - Mike Chalkley of the Bournemouth Cycle Forum, or Lindsi Bluemel of Southampton Cycle Campaign - these people have been Guardian Angels to cyclists outside of London). But these letters are written because I feel passionately that I can help do something.

I am the very embodiment sometimes of that cartoon. A man is on the internet, his wife calls out "are you coming to bed?!" His reply is "..hold on, someone is wrong on the internet!" I fully accept that I am like that: if something is wrong and I know better I have an obligation to attempt to set the record straight.

I had recently been doubting my attempts. I've witnessed a fair amount of bad road use, the sort of stuff that's entirely avoidable if people stop and look, slow down, or simply obey the rules or laws of this land. It's not just drivers, its everyone - cyclists included. I got to the point where I've actively challenged a couple of people about their idiocy. I'm not happy to have had to.

So today it is with some relief that I read the same headline again: Save Our Cyclists! A headline printed in the Independent last year, now repeated in The Times. Perhaps the message is getting across? Perhaps with the National Press on our side we can move this forward. However I still have concerns.

- Why is this still so London-centric? There are cyclists being killed and seriously injured outside of London every few days. When you get into a debate with people about this the answers are thus: this isn't London, and our cyclists are different, they are worse! This needs to be challenged. The facts need to come across that many of those in the KSI data are not to blame. And where blame is levelled at the cyclist, even partially, more needs to be said and done from the authorities to challenge this.

- Further... No one is asking WHY some cyclists end up riding on pavements, or through red lights. What is the psychology behind an unlit cyclist at night? I've only spoken to a few who do the two former, and the message is this - "I feel safer and motor traffic scares me!"

- Trucks, lorries and HGVs. Too much focus on these and not enough on safer overtaking practice by all vehicles, and taking the extra second to look when waiting at junctions - you never know when you will encounter a cyclist or motorcyclist. Sometimes, yes sometimes, those large vehicles should not be used in areas where they may conflict with pedestrians and cyclists. We need our hauliers and our delivery drivers, but we need to be sensible. Cyclists need safe routes over and above painting the gutter a funny colour (I am fully in support of segregation in many circumstances, it has to be said).

- And more to the point: we have to ask, yet again, why so many people wont cycle in the UK. It is evidence that successive Governments have paid lip-service. It is evidence that the media has played its part in the demonisation (just you wait, the Independent received many a letter in anger against us following their campaign and The Times will too).

I want people to feel that cycling can help them. I want people to see the health benefits, the financial benefits, the congestion benefits. I want normal people to feel they can pick up a bike, get training if they wish but be safe in the knowledge that nothing bad will happen. There have been tongue-in-cheek websites dedicated to "which cyclist are you?" Lycra looney? Urban cammo warrior? Sit up and beg? But the truth is cyclists in the UK fall into these categories: the disenfranchised, the sportier cyclist often from a club or doing it for fitness, the hiviz with a billion lights on their bikes, and then the ninja.

We have been left with an average modal share of around 2% of all traffic in the UK. Is it any wonder only the stubborn (me), the disenfranchised and the idiots are the only ones really riding.

High Visibility Risk

2012-01-29T06:24:00.000-08:00

The past couple of weeks I have been riding in a very good Gore Windstopper jacket. Whilst I have always like the fluoro colours for how they look, I've never been that keen on riding in them, though once was an advocate to some extent.

I suppose I had been suckered into the myth that fluorescent colours somehow remain fluorescent at night. The truth is they reflect a spectrum of UV light (or close to it) that the human eye can receive. At night street lamps and vehicle head lamps do not emit anything like the same output of this spectrum. Light colour is defined by a terminology called "temperature" in science and technology. The temperature of the sun is that of one which is close to the blue spectrum, as the sun sinks it becomes more orange or pink depending on atmospheric conditions. Street lighting and most vehicle lighting is also of this orange temperature. The emitters in these vehicles cannot produce the range and spectrum of light tones that the sun can.

The trouble is this jacket was given to me for Christmas. Its slightly impractical, has zip-off sleeves and is that fluorescent yellow my old Altura Nightvision jacket used to be. I kind of feel obliged to use it, but it has two problems - one is that the material seems to stink after just 2 or 3 short rides. I get around this by putting it on a hanger and on the line outside for a couple of hours. The second is that there is a black back to it. Sure there are a couple of reflective strips but its mostly black. So far there hasn't been a real issue, my lights facing rearward are good enough to make someone think they're approaching a motorbike.

When I first started using the Altura NightVision (around late 2006) I think I might have been the only rider I saw in one. I certainly don't recall seeing other riders in fluoro, either. This seemed to change over time, and now its a sea of bright yellow out there.

In fact the very first day I wore it I was amused by a driver's reaction. I pulled up behind a car waiting at the lights, no need to filter as there were only two ahead of me. The driver immediately in front of me had his stereo on full blast, and it had just stopped raining so I still had my lights on, so I think this caught the driver's attention and made him look in his rearview mirror.

It was the kind of music that was so loud that my chest was vibrating and I could feel my internal organs rattling.

It was almost as if panic came across the driver, a young lad of around 20, as he turned down his stereo. And I mean so that I could no longer hear it. I remarked this to a friend who joked to me that I "..should get done for impersonating a copper!" However that thought did remain with me, especially when I realised that the only other people on the street I was seeing were the Police.

This soon changed when other riders were quick to adopt the colour and reflective properties of these types of clothing.

When I was young (no it wasn't all fields) I would ride in a dark coat and jeans on a red hybrid with 26 inch wheels. My lights were nothing like we have now, they were miniture incandescent bulbs and only a couple of "candle power". The lights I use now will strip the paint off a taxi if it is dared to drive too close to me. There was less traffic, yes, but it was hardly conducive towards regular cycling, yet I managed something like 30 miles on a bike that by all modern standards was a piece of shit.

You still expected to see cyclists on the road. Now a new culture, 15 years on, had somehow risen. If you're NOT wearing the day glowing tops then you're somehow to blame for any incident. You did for a long time see comments left on news stories by members of the public to the effect: "..if they had bothered to wear a high visibility top then they would still be alive." (This is now, slowly, being countered. We must always question views that are held without evidence, even if it is drawn from personal experience - because that personal experience may have been wrongly interpreted.)

So these past few weeks I have taken down a loose record of how many incidents I have encountered whilst wearing this new jacket. I estimate it being 1 incident every 4 miles. Compare that to my riding in bright but more normal clothing, or the shocking Foska gear and I estimate 1 incident every 12 miles.

(By incident I mean things such as close overtakes within a 2 feet margin, cars that pull out from junctions, pedestrians that step out from pavements despite looking right at me, things that force myself to stop, swerve or shout a warning.)

Last week it came to a head when taking a bend in the road, to my left there was a junction. I am in full view and in daylight. Wearing this Gore jacket, I even have my lights on because the sun is low (it's winter), though at this point I am riding into the sun. Yet a council refuse truck driver decided it was ok to pull out on me. I only just managed to squeeze down his right side.

It is almost as if these colours are there for some motorists to switch to an autopilot. They would rather we'd all wear this as a uniform, then when things go wrong they can get off scot-free, or they can make a cursory glance. It is subjugation, forcing a definition or contract upon another party to your own advantage and it must be fought.

It goes further than just cyclists. I read of one study from Germany where workers had it taken away from them because they felt it contributed to a risk compensation behaviour. We all know that the Police, and other emergency response people are covered in it. Perhaps if the Police went back to black it might lead to a drop in crime? If you can't see the speed-gun operator from a distance and he blurs into the hedges and street furniture then it might catch out a few dangerous drivers.

The overall point of this post? We need to scrutinise the use and evidence that these things work, and why we're drawn to them in the first place. Or else we may be doing ourselves more harm than good.

Extending the ride

2012-01-23T08:26:00.000-08:00

Today started with rather a warm morning. I donned my bright Altura fleecy, reflective jacket, put my lights on and set off on the bike for work. I was rather early so decided upon a detour towards Netley again, Abbey Hill beckoned.

Not entirely sure I'd beaten any time I set during the summer, when I carried lighter loads and wore less clothing, I approached the park further along. The village street was nicely lit up, but the entrance to the park was in pitch black darkness. It is at times like this that you appreciate how good the Exposure light is and can ride in relative comfort. Seeing-wise, obviously, as the road surface is diabolical along parts of that route.

I stopped for a second to double check my light was still fixed after a small pothole bumped the front wheel and remarked to myself - "This would be an ideal spot for the telescope on a clear night." There was little in the way of light pollution there, too.

I set off, did my little climbs on the "easy" side of Abbey Hill and approached Woolston. There's a nice little "bump" I like to climb that way. On approach there is a double bend and snake in the road and then a rather steep climb of around 30 feet altitude. Then back on to Porchester Road and up the Itchen Bridge.

This was when things began to get strange. I was catching up with motor traffic. Something wasn't right. As I hit the brow I slowed down seeing the flashing blue lights. I found myself mouthing the words: please don't let it be a pedestrian or cyclist!! Traffic now jammed right up I found a safe gap to filter through thanks to a good van driver who left a gap for me. What I passed turned out to be the wrecks of 4 cars on the entrance to the roundabout. There was one Police car, ambulance and a big tow truck just starting to load up the first car.

Glass was everywhere and hard to avoid. I hope those involved are not badly injured. I'm sure I'm not the only one to see people drive or ride a little stupidly along there and the nearby roads. It leaves you feeling certain that someone will be to blame, things like that just don't "happen".

The life of cyclists and of cycles

2012-01-22T01:49:00.000-08:00

Its quite interesting to sometimes watch an abandoned bike in any busy street. Gradually it erodes away as a tide of people lap at its shores. I once watched a bike in my city centre outside a local hifi shop. The owner had clearly left it there, gone to do some shopping and returned to find his bike or lock damaged, which made riding away clearly difficult.

Obviously the rider being male is a presumption via the bike's geometry and size.

It being a very cheap Saracen of some sort, clearly the rider thought nothing of abandoning it. I wondered at the time, how often do these specific ghost bikes appear? Given the high rate of theft in the cycling communities, it must be often. Over the period of a couple of weeks the bike, bit by bit, gradually disappeared, until all that remained was a frame and forks chained to the sheffield stand.

In the end the council took it away. Which is what I presumed happened to the bike in the video below:

There is something about long distance riders and runners that I admire. Stubbornness, tenacity, strength of mind. Philippe Gilbert is one of those riders, a champion and a hero of the Tour de France - last year he went from sprinters jersey to yellow.

There's something inspiring in watching them train, even for a relatively short distance rider like myself:

And for some very strange reason this Family Guy clip popped up in the related videos bar:

They're only risking themselves, surely?

2012-01-17T12:00:00.000-08:00

Ninja cyclists, a term used to describe idiots who cycle in all black with no lights, often even with no reflectors on the bike. We all see them as responsible riders, we all deplore them. Don't be like them, give yourself the chance to be seen when riding at night.

Its a personal risk to take in most cases. The information is out there, we all know what the law is - you must ride at night with lights. Obviously any death or serious injury that results will affect the driver (or who ever else is involved), it will affect them emotionally, they may even have to answer a number of questions from the Police and insurers (usually due course in all collisions).

However a thought occurred to me this morning as I rode down the Itchen Bridge in Southampton. I got within 20 feet of another rider, and have to confess I didn't initially realise he was there. Thank christ for the power of Exposure Race lights on urban roads!!! The other rider was none other than a Ninja, had I been going faster or had inferior lights I could have ploughed into him.

The other thought that came to me was this: he was now blocking me from traffic waiting to cross the roundabout further down. Masking my light, and my bright top. Free wheeling at about 10mph behind him made it easier to stick out my arm and overtake, I then took a dominant position on the road through the roundabout so that at least I was seen.

For me, the risk of masking puts not just him at risk, but the rider behind behaving legally. To ride defensively in this scenario the legal rider has a couple of options: 1) overtake and get past (easy if you're able to ride faster) or 2) "unmask" yourself by riding further out to the right in a more dominant position. You may face the ire of a couple of motorists, but that just means you've been seen. That however, cannot always be said for the Ninja.

Twitter Q&A Cycling day proposal

2012-01-15T12:27:00.000-08:00

#ANSWERME #HASHTAG #ANSWERME #HASHTAG
#ANSWERME #HASHTAG #ANSWERME #HASHTAG

Many of us slightly more experienced cyclists have been blogging away with ideas and opinions, or using forums and literature to learn and inform. The internet, just as with cycle clubs and campaigns has been wonderful in helping newbies find out the best route to cycle to work, to tackle a hill and test their fitness, or simply to find a product they desire or need (eg decent lights).

My proposal is this: lets have a day where we can use twitter and answer newbies cycling questions. The forums are already populated with beginners questions, but forums are hard to publicise in the press and usually means a waste of time signing up just for one question or concern. Most people are on social networking sites now, and Twitter is particularly popular, not to mention effective, with its #hashtag scheme.

Just think of the potential: a few well worded emails to newspapers and perhaps we could encourage a few thousand new cyclists nationally. We could help one lady figure out why she keeps getting punctures. Answer a question about night time riding on canal paths involving appropriate lighting. Help someone find out which bike would suit them over a given route.

There is so much potential. All we need is a hashtag and a day...

Letter to the Argus

2012-01-15T04:57:00.000-08:00

The following is a letter/email I've sent to The Argus, a Brighton newspaper. Brighton has had its share of issues regarding cycling and the route in question is said to have been plagued by cars parking in it, or cyclists choosing either the road or the pavement instead. These are signs that things have been a) designed wrong (to not enforce or restrict motor vehicles is dangerous as well as annoying/frustrating), and b) that perhaps some cyclists or potential cyclists don't know the facility is there in the first place.

Most of the comments on The Argus (online and in print) have been negative and anti-cycling. I consider this a chance to put forward a different view and support some of the cyclists that have tried to defend redevelopment:

I read with interest the exchanges about your cycle facilities on Old Shoreham Road and similar. It seems to me that many people are against cycling in this respect because they perceive it will disadvantage them in some capacity.

What they need to do is look abroad at other cycle schemes and see the benefits that these actually bring the motorist (when they are done well).

Motor traffic flow is very much smoother in places like The Netherlands due to sensible and effective cycle planning. The school run does not clog the roads as safe and convenient cycle facilities are at hand. Delivery and long distance drivers can get about with ease as cyclists see the benefits to good infrastructure and chose that over the shared road.

It is not a "war" or "murder" and such language only devalues any subsequent concern. Hyperbole should ideally be replaced with logical debate.

The UK is at a transport revolution crossroads (to use a pun). We have little more space on the roads for cars. Private cars are indeed overused, sometimes abused: where cycling, walking, public transport or motor-cycling can be used instead.

Transport planners realise this. They do actually realise that cycling offers a great solution for local travel in cities and towns for up to 10 miles distance. Certainly for less. If they keep hitting a wall of idiocy and selfishness on the part of some drivers (certainly not all) then things will grind to a halt. If you think roads are congested now, think on.

Cycling will help reduce obesity and other sedentary lifestyle problems. It will help clarify the air (motor traffic does not produce just CO2 but a variety of sulphates and nitrates, not to mention carcinogenic particulates, as well as brake and tyre dust). It will make towns and cities quieter and happier places, and reduce the KSI figures and severity dramatically (and motor vehicles are involved in the vast majority).

Cycling is part of a major solution Britain has been craving for.

Youtube as an educational resource

2012-01-14T10:12:00.000-08:00

The greatest way to learn is simply to listen. The above video represents a growing movement online using websites such as youtube and twitter, as well as good ol' blogs, to share and inform. Youtube is not all about exploding kittens, or crazy crashes, it is full of interesting information that can make you think.

It even can make you dream:

Ever wondered how something worked? Well the internet can now tell you. Cant find it in google? Ask on twitter, forums or yahoo answers and someone is bound to know the answer.

The internet doesn't have to be about boobs all the time, but sometimes chemists can make boobs interesting in new ways:

Learn about science and faith:

Learn how to tune a guitar:

Learn how to play piano:

Even find out why the sky is blue:

So much to learn, so little time!

Parking in Cycle Lanes

2012-01-13T12:44:00.000-08:00

This video (not mine but one by The Amazing Shrinking Gaz) shows one of the major issues cyclists face - blocked cycle routes.

The trouble comes from the lack of any laws to stop people. Most cycle lanes are advisory, and even when they are "mandatory" (meaning that motorists should not drive within them) there is little to stop drivers doing this, or a lack of interest from Councils to tackle the problem.

So what dangers does this pose to cyclists?

Technically it can cause several hazards. It obstructs a clear view of the road ahead, or any pedestrians upon the pavement. It also means having to merge back into the main traffic flow, anticipating a gap and sometimes hoping that a driver will let you out. Another issue can come from how motorists read the road - they will be reading ahead in their own lane, and may possibly miss the fact there is a hazard to be avoided by others. A good driver, however, and there are still many, will read this and slow down to allow safe transit of the bicycle.

When traffic is heavily congested I am personally sure that this encourages pavement cycling, even for a short period. The cyclist seeing the blockage then anticipates that the pavement is the only way around. Momentum is king for the cyclist, so you can see the temptation. The option of merging into traffic flow is often removed (because the cars just ain't moving). It is akin to a HGV just stopping dead in the middle of the road and going to deliver it's goods.

What can be done to stop this? Changing the law so that ALL cycle lanes in on-road infrastructure are protected with double yellows and better enforcement is ideal. Widening cycle lanes is another option. However - giving delivery firms a decent place to park, free and convenient to use would do the best to curb this habit.

My Ableton Love

2012-01-08T13:40:00.000-08:00

Ableton started making music software a few years back. I had been using Logic Platinum 4.8 for a number of years, I'd STILL be using it if it wasn't for Apple-gate. I have to admit that I rarely make music thesedays. I feel a sense of loss because of this, and its party because I've grown older, partly because I've taken my studio apart, and partly because I over-indulged.

There was a time from my 19th year until I was around 27 or 28 that all I would do is write music. It didn't matter if it sounded shit. It was an exploration. A love of sound and dynamics. I would sample anything and make loops, synths and instruments from them. I would run sounds back through guitar pedals and outboard (a sherman filter bank 2 being a favourite), then resample sections of mastered tracks I'd made.

One track ended up being remixed and resampled about 8 or 9 times. I must have worked on that for weeks. That track alone. Weeks. Oddly, I called it "Three" and I have no idea why.

I must have sent off hundreds of CDs to music A&R types over the years. Sometimes I received feedback, sometimes I didn't. Sometimes it was positive, sometimes they just didn't get it. Christ knows why I sent music off, I wasn't marketable in any shape or form. I was experimental, not like the boy and girl bands populating the charts at the time.

So when Logic had to be replaced I looked for something that had a similar feel. The only software I could get on with was Live 6. Which is odd as its nothing like Logic. Nothing at all. The only similarity is in the layout of the sliders and knobs on the mixer. The midi-clips look like the old FX slots on the Logic mixer a little, so perhaps that's what swayed me.

In Logic I wrote around 3000 pieces of music. From varying lengths of 1 minute ditties to 20 minute opuses. Live has not been as productive for me, probably because of the excellent way I can mess with effects and sampling within the program.

Getting Live 6 also coincided with me getting involved in cycle activism of sorts. Letters had to be written, videos had to be made, and potholes reported. I threw myself into that. Over 2 years I logged and reported about 300 road defects to local councils.

But now there are pangs. Cravings. I want to write music again. The last real push I had with writing was a double album I wrote on my own under my old Absense of Meaning pseudonym. A deliberate misspelling and a deliberate political edge. Tracks like The Room Where It Began and Where There's Cents had complete contrasts, but they felt right together in the same place. Warhol had a 60s feel, both tribute and critique of the man... I'm not a singer by any means, not even a vocalist, and it was a real struggle to put voice to hard disk on these things.

Absense of Meaning wasn't the only project I worked on. I worked under Downfader for years. Blood Collar was a metal and industrial inspired project. Lastly Three Travellers was the Ableton years, you might say. I played guitars, synths, violin (badly) and even drums and percussion at times. From programming synths and sequencer software to actual plucking of strings, it was all good.

Just as with the Bush Administration and Blair years, today's Governments give me cause for concern. I feel the need to write something, but perhaps its too late now? Perhaps I've grown too old in my mind to have the same fire to experiment?

Howling Wolf is singing in the clouds

2012-01-03T08:55:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning and the wind was howling. When it blows this hard I tend not to ride, but I often check first rather than waste the chance of a ride in. Seeing the trees bending I thought it best to take the bus, its expensive and less reliable but a damn sight easier than getting blown over by a 45mph gust.

So sat on the bus I decided to do the same counting game I did before: lets count cyclists and see what they're up to. Not many ventured out today, I don't blame them, even an experienced rider like me has second thoughts. Of the riders I did see there were only 15 of them. All had lights, only one was in dark clothing (but it was starting to lighten up quite a bit by then). Only one was seen on the pavement but a second glance revealed that he was joining the road from a driveway.

That rider did make me wonder. How many cyclists are witnessed at a glance in such a situation and presumed to be pavement riders?

A thought for the timid rider

2011-12-30T03:52:00.000-08:00

OK so the original concept of this video was simply some footage to pan out some music I wrote last night. I have plenty of footage of traffic, plus some sundry walking. However when I watched it back it brings out the same old questions. Would you cycle here? Would you even want to walk besides roads like this?

Cities and towns, and many villages have effectively become islands surrounded by rivers of cars. This was my view 10 years ago, this is very much my observation today. Outside of urban areas speed limits increase, so that even a destination a few miles away becomes somewhat frightening for many prospective cyclists.

Take Southampton to Hamble as an example. In the video at 1.39 we see Bursledon road leading out of Southampton. This is a main corridor towards the local supermarket, towards the M27, and to access Hamble Lane. It has no cycle infrastructure for most of the length, this only appears some short distance of a few feet outside the new Eastpoint Centre, and for a few feet at the end of the pavement where I am standing.

Sharing the road here is a frightening experience, even for someone who has been on the bike my whole life. If I find that a scare then no new rider is going to return, children certainly wont be able to use it. Its fast, 40mph is the limit, but during "quiet times" (less motor traffic late at night, early morning) cars can and have exceeded 70mph. I have experience of riding here on bank holidays when most people are in bed, and the only few cars to go past have drivers that decide "screw it, why turn the wheel and use the other side of the road" as they should.

During peak time the road becomes blocked. Nobody moves at 5.30pm on a Friday afternoon. I timed my journey one night in such a situation and found the average speed our car did was 4mph. If that road were a blood vessel the brain must surely be dead. "He's getting away from us!" I shouted in jest at the driver, as a pedestrian walked past with three bags of shopping.

At 1.58 you see the shared status signage that suggests we're allowed to cycle here. However its just one sign. The route isn't marked out on local council maps, and if you're heading out of Southampton its difficult to get over to that side of the road safely from any of the junctions near the car sales firm. The ambiguity of where it starts and where it ends leads to confusion.

A confused or frightened rider is less likely to ride. If they do they're likely to put themselves in a situation where they'd ride on a pavement, and as such they'll risk the fines. "£30 or my life?" is how they must feel in situations like this.

Renault Z.E. TV advertising campaign

2011-12-29T05:42:00.000-08:00

Electric cars are all very well, but surely this advert (and you can forgive Renaut for not mentioning this) misses a couple of key points?

Firstly the kids' toys, and some of the appliances. A good solar battery charger (annoyingly my Father has stolen mine and I've not seen it since) and decent rechargeable batteries will sort out that little issue. You still have the same issues with recycling the batteries when they kark it, but recycling is a hell of a lot better than it was 15 years back. They also last 4 times longer (I've been using the same Energiser AA batteries for about 6 years now).

Secondly there's the issue of where the power is coming from in the first place. It comes from a power station. Many of which are still being run on fossil fuels (up to 2 thirds worldwide). This means in layman's terms that the vehicle is effectively still the cause of some carbon dioxide production, and other air pollutants.

Does that mean we should give electric cars the miss?

Absolutely not! Power points are expanding, they can be powered from a solar panel over a couple of days (Robert Llewellyn's excellent blog reveals how he charges his), and they emit a damn sight less pollutants and noise than regular oil-based cars.

One of the things they wont tackle is congestion and health issues. That's where bicycles really come into their own.

The Cycle Path (A Horror Story)

2011-12-27T08:05:00.000-08:00

"Why, why, why, why, WHY!!!!? Why don't they use the f***ing cycle path? Paid for at considerable expense by the taxpayer? Why do they use the road when there's a perfectly good cycle path over there?"

This is typical of the rants some people leave on the internet, in local newspaper letters sections, and even in person from time. When we've cycled for a little while we're often left with the question: but is it?

The above video is cobbled together from sections of my commute in or out of work. Filmed on the cycle-camera it shows some of the issues we cyclists have to put up with if using an off-road cycle facility. It becomes clear after a fashion why so many experienced cyclists dub them "Farcilities" (a mixture of farce and incompetence becomes clear with several councils around the UK, though even I admit Southampton has done it's best given the circumstances).

Southampton City Council has struggled in the face of public opinion to implement local facilities that work for cyclists. (Further link) It has not always been easy to convince locals that it's no good driving small local distances. I have been told that two of our Councillors actively cycle for both leisure and commuting, plus do also have a cycling officer at the council (he oversees planning, details of how and where, and works to help local rides and events get off the ground: eg the Sky Ride). Perhaps this reluctance by some to embrace bicycles is why SCC have these very words on their cycling section of their website:

"Remember you have as much right to use the road as motor vehicles."

So, for the uninitiated, what are the issues we might sometimes face with taking an off-road facility like a cycle-path or a shared-use path?

- The first has to be risk of shredded or punctured tyres. For some reason local scallies like to break bottles on our routes, I'm using intuition here, but I'm guessing its the same where you are too. Am I right? In the video you also see that there's a risk from wood chippings, these have been known to splinter and puncture, or cause a cyclist to slip.

- Slipping is indeed a problem on some routes. Roads tend to be swept clear of debris more often, either by hard working council workers with dedicated machines, brooms and time, or via the passage of large vehicles. Sadly not long ago Southampton Cycle Campaign's leader suffered such a fall and was put in hospital.

- It isn't always easy to stop the bike, find somewhere to lean it and remove an obstacle, but when that obstacle is wielded into the ground it makes matters worse. Bus shelters, junction boxes, lamp posts, goddam ikea trolleys left there for fun.

- Even fellow cyclists can be an issue because of how tight off-road can be:

It all adds up. Obviously my advice to people like the guy in the video above is this: if you're not very experienced - slow down. Cover the brakes. He gave the videographer nowhere to go, target fixation took over, as did gravity (it was a hill and the path was obscured via, you guessed it, a bus shelter). Even if you ARE experienced, off-road routes are not roads and often are shared not just with adult pedestrians but children, animals (eg dog walkers through Southampton Common). You should in reality only travel around walking speed, or a brisk jogging speed at most (10mph max) unless you can absolutely see the way is clear of hazard to minimise risk not just to them, but to yourself too.

There are shared-use routes I will not use. The road is faster, safer and more comfortable. On these routes I can get up around 20-25mph very easily and it makes little sense for me to share what I see as tight pavements with pedestrians, or to have to constantly stop every few yards for a junction.

- So stopping for junctions? Quite why cyclists cannot be given safe passage here is beyond me? When you're part of the road you have free-flow past junctions, traffic waiting at side roads have to give way. When cycling is removed from this it loses the benefits of vehicular road cycling and pedestrianism. Pedestrians crossing junctions at side roads are supposed to be allowed to do so by right of way, drivers turning are supposed to allow them to cross in safety. Cyclists don't exactly have this.

Rule 206 of the highway code: turning at road junctions; give way to pedestrians who are already crossing the road into which you are turning

I have never been that much into segregation, however there are clearly people who feel scared to mix with motor traffic on a bicycle. I know, I've felt the trepidation myself. Every cyclist gets this. Somehow a balance needs to be drawn, but this approach isn't it. There is a reason why so many look to the Dutch - because they've got it to work, through 30 years and more of experience. They made the same mistakes we sometimes make in the UK and had to fix them at cost to the taxpayer at a later date.

There is little room for growth using these routes. If there was a sudden cut off of fuel, and this could happen with the pressures in the Middle East, people would need reliable transport, fuel prices are set to rocket in the next few years. There is little we can do to stop this, it is inevitable that oil will become harder to extract from the ground, and harder to find in the first place.

Cycling needs to grow for other reasons. Health is a major issue. Obesity and weight gain, plus illnesses such as diabetes are already causing a financial burden on the NHS - much of this is preventable. Only a fool would ignore the fact that we've become lazy as a society. We've changed the way we travel short distances, and we've changed our diets.

However the residing message is this: we can do better. We still have the option, and we will continue to do so for some small time as these problems develop, but it will be a co-operative effort, our Councils will need not just support but advice and input, drivers will need to respect that sometimes the road is still the right place for cycling, and people will have to accept that they can't keep driving less than 5 miles to work only to sit at a desk. Equally, employers and those in charge of public space have to roll out parking and facilities that aid cycling, jogging and walking.

We cannot expect this to happen without us. It will take commitment and self-education of us, the cyclist too, so that the process can be smoothed.

Recurring themes: dreams about cycling

2011-12-24T07:54:00.000-08:00

I often dream about the bike.

Only this morning did I dream that I was struggling to get my shorts on, ready for a ride, but had noted that my sock had worn right through the heel. The sun was shining through my bedroom window, golden and warm, despite the fact in my dream it was still December it felt very much like June. When I awoke I thought to myself: "That's pretty daft! The morning sun rises at the other side of the house!"

You never realise you're dreaming until you awake.

Perhaps a response in my body feeling the warmth of the duvet and the central heating. Its easy to rationalise once awake. I look out my window as I type this and I note a warm glow of the winter sun, now sinking, perhaps to seek its own slumber.

Another time I dreamt I was late for work. I had decided to walk, something I've done in reality a few times. It takes an hour and saves on bus fare, but in the dream a magical, but invisible bicycle appears beneath me and I ride out in symbiosis with the traffic, making headway.

One last theme in these dreams is myself riding at speed. As a child I often dreamt of flying, and riding a bicycle is as close as you can logically come to that "made flesh". Or indeed made flesh, steel, rubber and aluminium. A kind of solitude, not loneliness but a feeling of being one with my surroundings. I hate hippyisms but that's truly the closest I can get to a description. Feeling becomes thinking, feeling spurs thought process, sweat and pain give way to a heightened state, accomplishment, power, forcing my own will and desire upon machinery until it relinquishes its own story.

Johnny Vegas Christmas rant

2011-12-24T03:51:00.000-08:00

So this is Christmas...?

Opinion piece.. response

2011-12-22T05:30:00.000-08:00

In response to your Opinion piece "Time to get tough with the rogue cyclists" I would like to raise some awareness of the justice system as I see it.

£300 is a pretty steep fine for a cyclist to receive in such a circumstance where serious injury has resulted. I do not agree with any cyclist riding on the pavement, I certainly disagree with any practice that puts others at risk.

To call for higher penalties is missing key factors. One is that no one is actually looking at why the behaviour happens in the first place. We also have to realise that the risks are minimal, no matter how annoyed we all get, and that incidents like this are rare. The CTC recently collated the data in a good, referenced document that all can read:

http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/Campaigns/1110_Cyclists-behaviour-and-law__4M__brf_rev_.pdf

Another factor that is putting people off the road itself (and indeed cycling) is our difficult justice record. Whilst a cyclist can get £300 for seriously injuring an old lady (and a BMX rider got the same for knocking down a 56 year old woman in early Dec, too), a driver who kills rarely gets more:

-Eilidh Cairns' killer - Fined £200 and 3 points on licence (found to have defective vision)
-Cath Ward's killer - court costs of £110. 12 month ban and 12 month community order.
-Michael Isherwood's killer - 1 year suspended jail, 200 hour community order and 12 month ban.
-Denis Peachey's killer - £500, 200 hours community order and banned for 18 months.

I could go on. There are around 60 of these lenient sentences reported a year, it seems.

To tackle the pavement abusers we first have to create a conducive environment for people to cycle. Many do not feel this is happening, and when the worst does sometimes happen it scares them. I suggest that its time for a more effective set of court guidelines in ALL road and vehicle collisions, only then will we reduce incidents such as the Brewin case.

[The above is a copy of the letter I have sent to the Bournemouth Echo.]

Letter I am sending out to various newspapers

2011-12-21T11:29:00.000-08:00

Dear Sir,

I feel strongly that much more needs to be done to make cycling safer in Hampshire. There is only so much bright clothing, reflectors and lights can help - now we need to draw an intelligent understanding of the data both the Police and the Dept. For Transport record yearly and accept that driving habits have to change. Infrastructure desperately needs to improve.

The usual complaint is that cyclists must change. I put it to everyone that we have, and it is making little difference to the KSIs, in places they have even risen. There has been a knock-on effect caused by bad driving meaning that many simply wont cycle, a stubborn majority of people like myself will and do so legally, but a minority have been scared off the road on to pavements.

To tackle the pavement abusers we have to first make the roads a tolerant and receptive environment.

Every cyclist will tell you they have had close overtakes, have been cut up, some have been knocked off. The evidence is mounting so I ask of non-cyclists:

...please take the time to check it is safe before pulling out of side roads/junctions. Please give cyclists a moment to pull away at junctions and don't force your way through. Please give cyclists space when overtaking (3 feet is the bare minimum at 20-30mph, wider at higher speeds). Please do not tailgate. Please respect that cyclists have the right to a road, and that cycle paths may not be suitable for all or faster cyclists.

A cyclists place is on the road, historically and legally. Obviously I would implore unlit cyclists to get lights, and pavement and red light abusers to refrain. However these tend not to be the cyclists who end up in KSI stats.

Many thanks!

(If anyone wants to join me in the campaign you are free to use this as an inspiration, etc please do so!! Lets get the message out)

We still have much to do!

2011-12-21T08:28:00.000-08:00

Monday morning a very good family friend was put in intensive care for a short amount of time. I was told this only this morning. He is both an experienced and very conscientious bike rider - the type who wears reflective materials, keeps their reflectors on the bike, and uses lights at night or in poor visibility. The type who, like many of us, frowns upon bad riding practice.

However the problem is there is only so much you can do as a cyclist. He did the best he could to be visible.

Despite a punctured lung and several broken bones he is now stable on a normal ward (or as normal as they come). I have emailed my Father, his close friend for around 40 years, a whole mass of information and advice... solicitors contacts, what to document, and so on. The poor bastard looks to be in hospital on Christmas day.

So, a request!

He was unlucky to encounter a driver who didn't bother to look before pulling out of a side road. Many of us have been in such a situation, many of us have thankfully been able to avoid injury or collision, but for the sake of not just ourselves - for the sake of future generations of cyclists and those that are too timid to ride now, lets make some noise!

Cycling should not be about avoiding bad drivers. It should be free and easy, free from fear or discomfort. Send this idea out to the papers, to their letters pages, blog about it, film it, write about it. Tell your friends and family how you feel and what you have to put up with. Get interviewed by the local and national papers, get on the TV, on the local news broadcasts, the radio (if you've been hit get them to do a story on it). Let the world know how law abiding you are, that you do not deserve the way this has turned out!

We have much to do. Only we, as cyclists, can spur the initial changes that will make cycling safe and attractive to future generations and future cyclists. This spur will set about a chain reaction as friends and family start to see cycling for what it can bring us all, join with us, and how cycling has been hindered in recent years.

The Women's Institute and helmet law

2011-12-20T08:58:00.000-08:00

It is with a bit of a shame that I read today that the Women's Institute are campaigning for helmet compulsion in law to "prevent unnecessary deaths or serious and long lasting injuries".

Now lets be clear on a point of logic here. A helmet, even eventually if proven in efficacy (and that wont happen with the modern materials and manufacturing processes), deals with the result, not a prevention.

Erke and Elvik analysed the data from Australia before and after the law was changed and found that not only did the numbers of cyclists dramatically decrease, but that there was statistical evidence for a 14% increase in risk.

I often repeat myself - and I'm afraid I'm going to here yet again: cycle helmet legislation around the world is akin to forcing people to wear a stab vest in areas of high crime rate. It is the same mentality and does nothing to deal with the errant behaviour that leads to the resultant injuries or death.

https://www.thewi.org.uk/documents/download.aspx?nodeid=74412 (Point 6 in their briefings.)

Buying the kids bikes for Christmas? Things you need to know!

2011-12-18T10:17:00.000-08:00

Its pretty much traditional for parents to buy their kids a bike for Christmas at some point. As a lad I got two bikes like this, its the greatest feeling to wake up, run down stairs full of excitement and find a huge, badly wrapped blob sitting there. Just waiting for the paper to be torn apart in a frenzy.

My first real bike was a white BMX with a full face helmet. Fantastic bike, later to be replaced by a Raleigh Scorpian hybrid of sorts (technically a mountain bike, but with skinnier tyres than my off-roading friends and a saddle that was too hard for anyone I knew). I rode the Raleigh until my 20s.

However there are important considerations that every parent must take to heart when buying their child a bike! Firstly there are the physical constraints: is the bike the right size? Will the child have time to grow into it? A good bike shop can advise on this. Have you got decent tyres? There is no point having a bike if every time you have to come back home and fix punctures. Is the bike well made? Don't rely on buying the cheapest bike you can find! Read reviews, ask any keen cyclists you might know (if they ride regularly in a club so much the better), and make sure you realise that even a kid's bike is an investment.

There are also other obligations: if the bike is to be used on the road make sure you and your kid BOTH understand your rights and obligations. You must read the Highway Code, instil a sense of road discipline in kiddo or else you put them at risk. If you're unsure then ask your school or local council about Bikeability! These training schemes are fantastic and cover all kinds of bases such as signalling, road awareness, how and why to use lights.

You as a parent need to make sure that the bike is fit for purpose. Don't just buy it and forget about it. It will need servicing now and again, sometimes kids also remove brakes and reflectors because its "fashionable" - a highly dangerous practice, so if your's does this take away their access! Be stern, ground them if you have to, and make sure they cannot use the bike until its been reinstated.

A bike must legally have: 4 amber pedal reflectors (this might change soon to allow the use of ankle or shoe reflectors), a red rear reflector. It must have 2 working brakes (if the rear wheel is "fixed", eg it doesn't freewheel/spin when you stop pedalling, then that classes as a second brake - however I would personally prefer a two brake lever system as it makes it easier for kids).

If the bike is going to be used at night or in poor weather (fog and rain can limit visibility) they must have lights. It is a legal requirement to have lights on at night. £20 upwards is not much to invest considering how much you will have spent on a bike in the first place.

We've all seen riders at the last minute who are difficult to pick out, don't let that be your kid!

A future political movement?

2011-12-17T13:44:00.000-08:00

The old Marxist viewpoints and left-thinkers are dying off. In fact they began to die away when Communism fell to pieces back in the late 80s. What eventually sprang up was a form of centre-right democratic market dominated force. Business was king, money was to be worshipped and if you didn't like your job then tough - go and find another.

This was not the way things should have turned out. There is so much positive influence out there: writers, artists, scientists, sports people... All have encouraged us to think and feel differently, but somehow its all been tied in with growth, money, economic fire fights. Competition is "healthy", in some ways it is indeed natural, but our ability to reason and understand can lay waste to natural instincts and its urges. Even these positive thinkers and feelers have succumbed to the vice of money.

OK, so money is needed in modern life, but do we really need to allow it to vulgarise and unbalance society so much? And nostalgia for old values of the old working classes wont bring us any new freedoms or advancements.

We, as working people, as normal people, need a new political mind.

I have thought long and hard about this. I can only think of some values and some criteria and people it should represent. Perhaps that is what we need? Criteria to be laid out before us before we can count those chickens we need to hatch the proverbial egg. A future that represents women, men, children. A future that represents tolerant atheists and tolerant religion alike (though I do believe we will grow out of religion, Nietzsche once said "Mankind is something to be surpassed". Perhaps what he should have meant was that we will surpass religion with knowledge).

Other criteria has to surely include an ability to listen to reasoned thinking. Listen to the scientists who are researching the environmental impact we have created. Listen to social commentators and psychologists when they tell you how to cure society of its ills. Listen to medical experts when they tell you that there is an impending health crisis looming, that we need to work on sustainable transport such as bicycles and public transport rather than being a slave to the combustion engine and the many oil companies that lubricate its traction.

We need a mindset that realises that to dwell on the past is to learn from its mistakes, not to hark back to a golden era. Mankind can be so much more than this: stronger, happier, more informed - education brings understanding, and within time we can eradicate disease, famine, poverty, inequality.

Impact statements

2011-12-16T11:49:00.000-08:00

One thing I have often said is that a statement by a victim of any crime, collision or accident can work wonders in changing attitudes, perceptions and even lead to arrests in the case of hit and runs.

Recently The Bournemouth Echo ran a story on a victim of the hit and run. The man in question was a cyclist and at the time of the incident I remember a couple of people talking about this. I seem to recollect the usual comments of "get some lights" and "get some high vis" popped up here and there. The letters sections of local newspapers always seem to fill up with this kind of complaint during reports like this, too.

Mr Graham said he'd been "lit up like a christmas tree" and no driver taking time and caution could possibly miss him. Perhaps Mr Graham's story will educate more people into understanding that not all cyclists are to blame for their collision. That perhaps there is indeed something going wrong with motoring culture here in the UK.

The CTC analysed data from collisions between motorists and cyclists and found that 60% of cyclists are in no way to blame for the injury or crash that they suffered. Only about 30% were seen to be solely responsible. Another study shows the figure to me much higher. The second report suggests that issues such as red light jumping, and riding with no lights only impact upon 7% of all cycle-motor vehicle collisions.

We as society need to learn to differentiate between bad cyclists and genuine victims.

So let us hope that the driver who caused Mr Graham's injuries is found and questioned by the Police. Someone must know who they are, someone must have seen a car fitting that description with serious damage to it, someone might have been employed to fix said car.

Heal up soon Mr Graham! I hope you're back on your bike soon!

Ghost cyclist!

2011-12-13T11:21:00.000-08:00

On Thursday I set off for home, riding my bicycle around the back streets of Shirley. I find it quicker and quieter than the main road, if a little potholed at times. The air tend to smell less, too.

I pulled up to a junction and waited for traffic to clear before pulling out and heard a "ding ding ding" behind me. I looked around and couldn't see where it was coming from. I set off and 3 minutes later waiting at the next give-way line heard it again. Looking around like a meerkat popping its head out the burrow, all I saw were parked cars.

"Ding ding ding ding" came the bicycle bell. Oooohhh ghost bikes, I thought and set off.

At one further junction I slowed and stopped at the markings. Hearing it again I turned around and saw my work colleague, sweating and breathing heavily like a vicar who'd accidentally stumbled into a brothel, riding his bike on the pavement. "All right mate! Was trying to get your attention to say hello but you didn't hear my bell!?"

This is why I didn't see where the bell sound originated from, I thought. He had been obscured by parked cars due to where he'd been cycling. So I replied:

"What are you doing on the pavement, you five year old!" Laughed, said "see you at work," and rode off.

A simple way to tackle CO2

2011-12-10T07:35:00.000-08:00

I watched a TV programme today on one of the satellite science channels. Scientists were attempting to build a hyper-efficient "tree" device to filter out carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Essentially the air would blow with the breeze or light winds through a series of grates that would trap particulates or CO2 in a membrane, this would then be washed and filtered, possibly stored.

It was fascinating to watch, however it seems some way off being achieved due to the fact it takes energy to run (so you're still technically producing CO2), and it hasn't quite had the funding it could have. I have no idea if the device is still being developed, though I strongly hope it is.

Much of what I read or see seems to infer that we either may have gone past a tipping point of pollution levels, or that the world's companies and governments simply cannot be bothered to tackle the issues, somehow hoping their avoidance will mean someone else might fix it. It is like the little lord has spilt the milk, and calls forth the whipping boy to clean the carpet - in all reality he had been perfectly capable of sorting out the mess himself, but now the carpet it both stained and smells rotten.

So what can we do independent of big business and government to contribute?

Well we know that plants use chlorophyll in an absorption process that takes CO2 from the atmosphere and separates the carbon from the molecule to produce sugars, proteins, more complex carbohydrates and fats, whilst dispersing the oxygen (the o2 bit) back out. This may mean that the most efficient way to tackle the CO2 is to plant more trees and plants.

Trees in every garden, and plants in homes and upon large buildings. Perhaps we might see a time when people chose plants not for decorative purposes but for their chlorophyll conversion properties. An average 3 meter by 3 meter room can easily hold an 80cm high plant in a pot, it doesn't take much to water, food compost can feed them additional nutrient, and they can be managed by a small amount of pruning once every couple of months. When the plant dies, compost and plant a new seed.

Perhaps, just perhaps, this is the way we all have to turn. A self-sufficient measure removed from national or international approach.

There are over 50 million homes in the UK, and a hell of a lot more property on top of that. If half of those utilised a few rooms each it does make you wonder if we could have an effect in a few years.

Red light jumping

2011-12-09T14:42:00.000-08:00

A recent observation of mine when out walking to do some shopping was how different the sets of behaviour are between cyclists who run through red lights compared with drivers.

The video above is by a new camera cyclist SmegHeadDan (great name, LOL! Brings back lots of Red Dwarf memories!) Notice how the cyclists slow down and look left and right to see if the way is clear.

However there is a sting in the tail, the beast being that of Her Majesty's finest who pull over and ticket all the riders who rode through.

So the above video also demonstrates a red light jump, however this time from a motorist. It is in-line with my own observations: the driver sees the lights changing and decides to floor it. This creates significant risk to others - pedestrians waiting to step out on crossings and at junctions, a risk to other road users slowing or stopping, the fact that you're so damn focussed on getting through that you will never fully appreciate being able to read the road correctly.

The increased risk also comes from the extra speed with imparts more velocity and indeed more force upon impact. We've all seen the adverts with the little girl, "..hit me at 30.." - not that anyone would like to hit a damn child it does reflect the evidence of how collisions result with pedestrians and especially kids.

So does this mean it is ok for cyclists to run the lights?

No.

The Police stop RLJing cyclists because they are mostly a risk to themselves. Dealing with even the few KSIs that result a year does cost an enormous amount of money (obviously a hell of a lot less than the motor related KSIs in other aspects). Having an ambulance and A&E team deal with a broken cyclist can cost tens of thousands of pounds. The Police dealing with investigating the incident also costs time and money. Then there is the emotional impact on others - your own family, those not to blame (eg the driver or other road user or pedestrian).

I have to confess, I do sometimes stop and watch traffic. Sometimes I take notes and make observations. Recently I counted nearly 60 cyclists on a mild December morning (I lost count in the mid-50s). I only saw 1 unlit cyclist, and 2 with lights who ran a red light. It doesn't appear to be the problem that many vociferous groups make it out to be, certainly not in Southampton on the routes I take and before 8am.

(BTW - subscribe to the above video makers, I'm sure there'll be more interesting stuff to come!)

Yeah.. I'm not sure either of you are REALLY selling it!

2011-12-07T13:15:00.000-08:00

The fire in your legs from climbing a hill or attempting a sprint do indeed spur an addiction. However I think I have only puked just the once. (This summer riding up Providence Hill near Southampton, I pushed a little too hard and managed to spew up into my mouth, my immediate reflex being to swallow it back down. Tasty!)

Modern Culture

2011-12-04T01:17:00.000-08:00

An ironically named Doctor Khandee today has a letter published in the Independent on body image. Aside from her name she does pinpoint that there is a cultural problem, so here was my web-comment on the Independent's page:

Dr Khandee comments on diet. Is this a real letter?

The subject of the letter is sound, however. People are too obsessed with body image, the next plasma/LCD/3D TV, the next iPad, etc.

I think we also have to remember that people are largely lazy in life. If there is an easy option they seem preprogrammed to take it (loans instead of saving up, fatty ready meals instead of cutting a few veg and slices of meat).

What we need is a culture of self-control and self-filtering.

Don't watch too much TV because yes, you're going to see thin and happy and beautiful people eating a macdonalds. When you do see these images tell yourself: this is not real. It sounds daft but its a great leveller (and a fact in note I have never passed a macdonalds and seen a thin person in there who is over 25). Don't read trashy magazines with such headers as "My lover killed our puppies, but I'm still with him!" Read something challenging, even if you think you wont understand.

And every now and again, switch off the computer or games consoles, and go for a walk, or a bike ride - the air will do you good.

CLICK!

Something tells me I'm in for a pisstake or a telling off! :-D

Since everyone has a view on Clarkson...

2011-12-03T01:33:00.000-08:00

..heres mine, written in the comments section of the Telegraph letters pages:

What we have to remember about good comedy/satire is that it attacks a system or the rich and well off. What we have to remember about Clarkson is how his humour attacks the poor, disadvantaged and disabled.

On the one hand I used to like Clarkson, he used to be funny. On the other he tends to go too far lately, like Frankie Boyle. And we all know what happened to Boyle - he's disappeared off the face of the planet. It's almost as if he's attempting to see how far he can push things?

I'm not offended by Clarkson, just bored. He's a very rich man, paid for by a public body (the BBC) trying to wind up those going through difficult times.

I know many people who have been offended by the man in the past. He's attacked cyclists, the disabled, dog owners, unionists, strikers, the elderly. The only one I can figure out that isn't in a less-well off kind of a position compared to himself is the Government, who he attacks every now and again.

Using the negative to a positive advantage

2011-11-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

Tonight I watched a new BBC television programme called "That's Britain!" It appears from first appearances to be a mixture of That's Life (Esther Rantzen's flagship consumer affairs programme of the 1980s) and Watchdog which kind of took over from the 1980s until recently.

Part of the series conceptual idea is to represent the number of complaints on a given subject on a video wall. The bigger the word, the more complaints a subject has. The usual suspects pop up, road works, dog fouling and littering, credit cards and smoking. But at the end of this weeks episode "cyclists" appeared on the wall.

The issue had been raised because of peoples' concerns about the unlit section of cyclists we all see. It is a concern most cyclists actually share. I nearly saw an unlit rider get hit by a driver a couple of months back. It's dark, every sensible person puts their lights on, he being young and possibly naive did not and a car pulled out on him. I hadn't realised he was there either until I heard the scream, looked over from my own bicycle and saw this shadow swerve around the bonnet.

So is there any way we can use this to a positive social advantage? I think there is. Emailing the show as a cyclist and asking for a number of ideas to be investigated might mean a little education for some, and highlight some safety concerns for others. Here are some suggestions the show could look at:

- film at junctions and do some surveying on red light jumping (of both motorists and cyclists). Find out the behaviours and the numbers, and look at the risks. Is there any case history from red light jumping that they could cite? Do different vehicular users exhibit different types of behaviour (the things I have witnessed have shown that the few cyclists that do jump the lights slow down, treat the light as a giveway marking and edge over cautiously; however the few motorists who jump the lights do so as they change and accelerate into the junction at speed risking a collision with an early-green road user setting off from another junction).

- do a count of how many cyclists are lit, and unlit, and calibrate a percentage. How many people have been injured by unlit cyclists on average a year? How many get involved in collisions as a whole?

- do an educational piece on lighting and the law. What is legally needed to ride at night

Raise issues that may benefit us all and encourage cycling:

- Where to get cycle training from.

- Is it time for proper cycle infrastructure, Dutch style? Do we now need to divide up parallel routes? One for cycles to encourage an obesity-fight, reduce congestion, and tackle pollution; and one route mostly for motor traffic for those that need to travel the longer distances or make professional deliveries.

- Perhaps do a piece on how to cycle safely, the techniques and practicalities. How do you deal with HGVs and large vehicles at junctions? Why we should avoid the door-zone. How to make a right turn.

- Lastly how much money people can save by using a bicycle for short distances, the fuel saved, the fat burned.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b017sq33

The Telegraph probably wont publish my letter..

2011-11-29T12:12:00.000-08:00

Dear Sir,

What a sad attack Lord Lawson propelled upon Sir Attenborough. It clearly shows that the Lord has had his fingers in his ears on this great debate. How can thousands of independent scientists and researchers possibly come up with the same conclusion if this were not happening? I am also slightly disappointed in the BBC for putting in an opt-out clause in the US sale of the programme. The US, probably more than any other Nation, needs to wake up to the very real damage that is being done to the environment, not just in terms of CO2 but also air, water and soil purity.

If there were more people like Sir Attenborough the world would be a much cleaner, safer place for future generations and the one that currently lives here.

Many thanks!

DJ Cook

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/8923287/Lord-Lawson-accuses-Sir-David-Attenborough-of-sensationalism.html

Writing music?

2011-11-26T15:56:00.000-08:00

I haven't written any in a very long time. It's been a while, as one heavy rock band once sang. I still have a full studio's worth of gear - guitars, pedals, stringed instruments like violin, synthesizer keyboard and software such as Live 6. I still have the MIGHTY Sherman Filterbank2.

The trouble is I ran out of space to move around. Not everyone has the luxury of a record deal, I tried for many years to attract interest. It was a strange situation to be in, other musicians understood the experimentation, but your average person didn't. It was either noise to them, annoying or even boring. Even a couple of other musicians, who I had a lot of respect for, went into a tirade that I used a particular effect too much, or a riff too often.

Strangely no-one ever complained that Coldplay used distortion on guitars too much, or about Dylan's harmonica. Stuff like that kills music for people.

I digress.

Every now and again I get this twitch. Today I heard some amazing music on youtube by a guy using a soft synth for orchestral music. The level of control available today meant it sounded just like it had been recorded by a real orchestra. Then some idiot ranted in the comments section about the software being "too expensive" and how it would be cheaper to hire a real orchestra for the day.

I wasn't aware the software was £25,000? It wasn't, it was £600, moron.

As a teen my musical tastes were eclectic to say the least. I attempted to trace as heavy a band as I could find. CDs had become reasonably cheap, there were still hundreds of small labels putting out music. There was a kind of twisted beauty in the early Marilyn Manson, Sepultura, Rotting Christ. I even got into Cradle of Filth.

What was odd, and indeed at odds, was my love of classical music. And blues. And prog.

Pink Floyd - I just didn't get The Wall first time I listened. I was 16, my Father needed a present and it had just been re-released for the first time on CD. I thought one of the tracks was a racist rant, in my naivety I didn't get the satire. The Planets, by Holst. How cool was that, a full-on dreamscape attempting to represent our solar system. Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, Clapton, Jeff Beck - the power of the guitars, the voice, the words or the bands.

It was all good. I still get that twitch. Maybe one day I'll write a film score.

Why the Good shouldn't take the rap for the Bad

2011-11-26T14:44:00.000-08:00

Imagine if you liked to wear a red t-shirt. You've worn this red t-shirt for a while now, it's comfortable, makes you look good, wasn't too expensive... then one day you see the news. A man has been killed by another, the "perp" was wearing a red t-shirt.

At first it means little to you. You carry on wearing it, but over the next few days the Nation goes belligerent. Everyone in red t-shirts are suddenly enemy number one, people draw stories of the indignant: "I was pushed out of the way in a queue at the supermarket by some numpty in a red t-shirt!"

"WHY!! Why are they wearing that shirt! It makes them stand out, they look ridiculous!"

"Who forced me to swerve my car!!? Guy in a red shirt!"

OK, so this sounds a little far fetched. Until you use a logical backstep and realise we as society have done this many, many times over:

"They are a rule unto themselves, to put it bluntly..." Cyclists

"...concerns about gang violence..." Hoodies

Who else? White Van Man, BMW and Audi drivers. Immigrants. Gypsies. Young people. Cops... I could go on. The intelligent among us have a duty to separate the good from the bad, and realise that people, not the things we wear or do, people in the very end of the matter are the cause of problems in this world.

Everything that is messed up about the world..

2011-11-23T11:40:00.000-08:00

I have to say I support the Occupy protests. I'm not an anarchist myself or an anticapitalist (just as with a recent letter published on This Is Bath's website and in their newspaper). I'm just a bloke worried about my future, and the future of my family and friends. The world has changed to benefit the greedy and the liars and bullies who have thrown their weight around with the ethos that if we don't like it someone else will fill our shoes.

The beauty of the web is that the internet has made the world a small place, social networking (eg twitter and facebook) may have many downsides, but there is a growing consensus to use it as an educational, philosophical and cultural platform to debate. There are many people like you or I who have experienced something negative about education, employment or politics, by sharing these views perhaps it can trigger a solution.

What we are now seeing is a growing realisation that the way big business (banks, multinational corporations) and even public service (the NHS, the Police) is run is wasteful when it delegates a large proportion of its income, either through trade or taxation, to an elite. This elite are far too self-serving, they often have power to increase their own wage whilst they have frozen the pay of their employees.

We are fast heading for inequality of pay not seen since the Victorian era, and without its Quaker moral compass. The Quakers were fundamental in changing Britain for the better during that very era, they believed in hard work, ethics, helping and educating the disadvantaged. Even as an atheist I can appreciate those traits. Whilst in a time where the stereotypical banker was Ebenezer Scrooge the Quakers actually created a banking system that was fair to its investors/customers. They also used their wage to set up schooling for under-privileged kids, and work programs for prisoners so they could learn the value of hard work and receive its rewards.

If there is one thing the Occupy movement has been criticised for it is not having a definitive leader, or a definitive list of demands. This is both wrong and ill-informed. The demands are clear:

- enable cheap or free education for those not of status.

- actually force the banks to give some remittance - pay back for their damage. Many have gotten away with acts of criminal stupidity, cost people their homes and their jobs.

- fair pay for all! This is not just about a living wage for the lowest earners, whose efforts should be more highly lauded, but also a recognition that big business cannot keep throwing money at an elite like confetti at a wedding. No-one got married, if anything we need to divorce ourselves from this practice.

Currently pay is 145 time higher on average for the elite 1% compared to that of their average employee. There are heads of Trusts in public service, and top Councillors who have pay that is around £200,000. A comfortable living can be had from £70,000, remembering that the public sector is about public service. It is not a public service to suck off just the cream, but also half the milk.

Business, too, has a problem with this 145 number. It leads the many employees of any company to question if their work is truly valued and appreciated. It leads to a lack of trust between company and employee, where "company policy" becomes used as an excuse to sometimes belittle, and sometimes negatively control.

- Politicians, too, have to change. They have to represent the people, the voter. If they fail to do this (and Labour, the Conservatives, and the Liberal Democrats have all failed) people tend to look for a quick fix in far right, and far left parties. Since the expenses scandals they have still failed to appease the general public, is it any wonder voter turnout is at an all-time low!?

A failure to bring about change and equality could be detrimental to the UK. The last time we were this ignored we had the Poll Tax riots. Will we ever learn from history? Will the elite ever learn?

Confused? You bloody should be..!

2011-11-21T10:54:00.000-08:00

Today Confused.com put up an article on their website about "cycle-rage" and, I think quite rightly, it has spurred a lot of criticism.

http://www.confused.com/press/releases/cyclo-paths-and-two-wheel-tantrums

In psychology there are tests designed to general what is classed as a "loaded answer". What this means is that a question is formulated in a specific way to generate a specific response. Psychology students will know well about this as it is a technique used to educate on how our minds work. It does seriously make me wonder if Confused have done this with the questions to generate the usual nonsense on "road tax" and red light jumping.

Shockingly the percentages do no have qualification as to how the result happened. For example: "A cyclist caused me to swerve in my car [31%]" This could indeed be the result of a cyclist running a red, or leaping from the pavement (I have seen it happen), however to generate maximum percentage they've perhaps been non-specific as it could equally mean the motorist hadn't been paying attention.

A practice that could well explain why cyclists get close overtakes.

22% A cyclist slowed down my journey and caused me to be late. Now it has to be said, there is a technical term for this: utter bollocks. A cyclist is in motion, you are still travelling. If my knowledge of my workmates is anything to go by people tend to be late because they didn't get up earlier enough, didn't leave earlier enough, poorly planned their route, etc.

Any number of factors can happen on the road. Everyone should prepare themselves for delay as this is the nature of road use, the fact is also that with so many private cars being used it is statistically more likely the other drivers that will slow you down, not the cyclists.

If only 5% say they had a collision that was caused via a cyclist, out of a 1000 motorist sample (a statistical irrelevance in all reality) - then this is a pretty low number. I don't doubt them, but these numbers say to me: rarity.

Look. We all see cyclists that have ridden on a pavement or gone through a red light - only 9% of their cycling sample want red light running to be legal, that means 91% of their sample probably appreciate why the light is there (and possibly why we shouldn't ride pavements). However! How many drivers run the lights, bump up on pavements to park or take a cheeky shortcut? I've seen this far more predominantly than cyclists, even with the sheer danger some motorists pose to everyone else when they see the light has just changed, they accelerate and fly through a junction.

Several junctions I know had the attribute where you wont be able to go on green because 3 or 4 drivers go through on the red. They perhaps have the mindset that "..it's only JUST changed!" This is the wrong mindset to have, and one day a visually impaired pedestrian might step out on that crossing and get hit or killed by said driver.

25% want cyclists to pay "road tax" which in fairness is a Strawman. It doesn't exist, and at best it could be argued that Vehicle Excise Duty is a green levy on emissions. An attempt to convince motorists to buy less polluting cars, or indeed opt for cycling and walking, you might say. Perhaps Confused.com should do more to educate their drivers and sample what exactly they pay and why? Education leads to tolerance, not repeating the same old spiel and patting motorists on the back and saying "there there!" as if they have somehow been victimised and treated unfairly.

14% of angry drivers want number plates on cycles. Key word: "angry." Point of logic: if this is the case then why haven't bad drivers actually been tackled more severely and in higher numbers? They do have plates, after all.

It is important to remember that any sample of 1000 is very insignificant when there are 32 million motorists, and a potential of 13 million cyclists (London School of Economics). True data tends to be garnered from constant analysis and bigger surveys.

Most cyclists do behave, but to denigrate those acting in a legal manner is dangerous - it leads to hostility. This has been happening for the past 10-15 years, so is it any wonder that their cyclist sample (who are in all reality most likely to be drivers too, given that they filled out a motoring-insurance survey) has experienced such negative attitudes from motorists such as swearing (24%), chased (4%), run off the road (14%), hit by motorists (13%) or their doors being opened without checking the way is clear (11%, though if you add these up technically that 23% being hit my motorists on their sample).

The sad reality is, despite their Gareth Kloet talking about respect and courtesy, this article does little to actually sort out the real issues. It just trots out the same old diatribe.

The Big Solar Backtrack - The True Problem with Solar

2011-11-20T06:36:00.000-08:00

David Cameron has a lot to answer for. He has made persistent claims about "the greenest government ever" yet even non-environmentalists such as myself can see glaring holes in this claim.

The 80mph motorway proposals, designed to burn even more fuel. The cuts to environmental government bodies, which it appears to have been done on the back of public opinion rather than that of the scientists who study anything environmental. Now the Government are cutting feed-in tariffs.

What essentially happened was that those with solar and wind power generators created a small amount of electricity and this was added back into the Grid. It shared the load between the powerstations and independent power production.

To me there are several issues with the cuts here: job losses as already stated by members of the Liberals and Greens, but also cuts that will stem future growth. How can technology develop if there is no money going into the industry? As it stands people like myself cannot afford solar panels for our homes, and as we all have experienced with previous technologies such as mobile phones, cars, televisions, computers etc - the MORE people who buy into said development, the cheaper it becomes.

With computers it was big business that bought and drove down the prices, spurring future progress. With solar power big business seems actively against it. However, to me, many large public and business buildings have great opportunity to install panels and generate power. Those that DID invest appeared to suck up the Government grants, when in reality this should have been reserved for ordinary home owners and smaller public buildings. Big business should be supplying their own damn panels.

Whilst there is no development and investment in this technology there will be no progress. Therefore the antis will continue to moan it doesn't work. Stalemate!

Bejesus!!

2011-11-16T10:49:00.000-08:00

Today was a brisk morning, yet for some odd reason the birds were still out tweeting like a twitter fiend. I could hear the faint breeze whizzing through the vents in my helmet like a comet through the stars. Like a Tory promise to the working class slipping through the fingers...

So there I was approaching a left turn off the main road. Little in the way of traffic, it still being early I could see a pedestrian approaching the crossing point, a small traffic island in the middle of the road I wished to turn into. I had my arm out and slowed down to anticipate his crossing. He didn't so I turned, but as I drew parallel with him, he walking away from the main road, he stepped out into my path without looking or stopping.

Its a thankful thing, riding at walking speed, as cornering does tend to slow me right down. I braked, my cantis squealed. He poo'd his pants, yet I felt strangely compelled to apologise for scaring the guy. He stepped back and I continued upon my way.

All of this happened in a brief moment, an unromantic brief encounter you might say. (LOL)

He was not the only person to be scared this morning. Riding around a roundabout (probably the best way to navigate one, though I haven't yet managed to transmutate across one) earlier I had been following a young woman around (not in that way). As she approached the next junction a van driver did a rolling stop.

The trouble with a rolling stop and cyclists is we don't know if you're actually stopping, if you've seen us, or if you're just about to thrust the accelerator. She screamed, the van driver looked bemused in a "what have I done" kind of a way, and we both rode off.

The golden rule for me is this: if there is traffic already on the roundabout then just stop. Don't do a rolling-stop as it sends out confusing signals. And that is as true for drivers as it is anyone on the road.

The Stupid Things Cyclists Sometimes Do

2011-11-15T12:22:00.000-08:00

Today I tried to offer advice to a fellow rider.

Now there were two problems with this right from the off. Firstly I was tired, so what came out of my mouth probably sounded to this guy how English sounds to a dog. "Mwwwhheeezeeee blugghhhhhh hold backkkaaahhh...." Secondly I think he only heard part of what I said as I was managing to ride a little faster.

I first encountered this rider after leaving a roundabout and heading up towards a bend. He was a man in his late 40s I estimate, on a normal sit up and beg style of bike, in normal clothes and with a hiviz tabbard. He wasn't particularly fast so I rode past as it was safe and clear.

I pulled up and sat behind a white car at the lights further along. There is an ASL, but being only one car it would have been pointless in the extreme. Plus I could draft the car off the green when it finally did arrive, which is never long. As the light hit amber the Gent on the upright undertook both myself and the white car in the left-turn lane. From his position it appeared he was trying to reach the ASL and then head straight across the junction (rather than a left turn), however he was now in the driver's blindspot and almost clipped by the car as it set off.

It makes you wonder: will this cyclist one day make the assumption that cycling is "dangerous" and not see the link between his actions and the close-call?

So here is the message I wanted to convey. As he undertook - just hold back for 2 seconds, the lights will change very soon. I tried to say this as I passed for the second time, sadly it didn't come across as English, more dog. Sometimes its safer to sit behind a car, rather than fight to get to and ASL. ASLs are not obligatory for cyclists.

Bontrager Flare3 vs Knog Skink

2011-11-13T12:55:00.000-08:00

Its dark out there. You need lights to be seen by others at this time of night (8:40pm) or if it is pissing down during the day. Most road users will actively look for lights and nothing says "bike" more than flashing lights.

The Bontrager Flare 3 is similar to a Smart Halfwatt, but this has two 0.5w LEDs, plus two side facing LEDs of less brightness to make you more visible to vehicles waiting at junctions. There are only two modes: steady with one of the 0.5w LEDs on, and a strobe flash where all four flicker on in a sequence.

The strobe flash works best when used with another light in steady mode. In my opinion Bontrager have missed a trick - they could have included more options. They could also have put moulding on the red plastic to diffuse the light at the sides and centre back as this would reduce glare.

The fittings are good. You can clip in with one or two permanent post clips, or there is the option of a silicone clamp that tightly fits the seatpost. The light is about £20 and can also be screwed in to a pannier rack.

The Knog Skink also uses a silicone clamp. In fact it is the only fitting option it has. Its tighter and more secure than the Flare and comes in a variety of colours. I do feel the white and clear silicones are best as they light up at the sides.

The Skink LEDs are less bright than the Flare, and there are only 4 (plus one next to the on-switch, oddly). I bought mine for £12, it has several flashing and one solid steady mode. Its also about half the brightness and not suitable for daytime riding where you feel the conditions dictate using a rear light.

Still, both lights are great for the money. There's no excuse for being unlit at these prices.

Why New Cyclists are Important

2011-11-13T02:38:00.000-08:00

Much of the campaigning for safer roads and better access for cyclists tends to be done by the more seasoned cyclist, people who have ridden for a number of years. They have some insight into how the roads gave way to cars and junctions have changed, how inner-city traffic has increased, and how the road surfaces themselves have deteriorated.

So what do I mean by "new cyclists" and why are they important?

By new we're effectively talking about those most recent cyclists, usually riding for 2 years or less. They are typically less confident and less experienced, and more likely to give up cycling due to what can sometimes be the trial-by-fire nature the roads present.

Most importantly they bridge the gap between non-cyclist and cyclist. They have their most recent experiences and attitudes challenged by a new approach, their mindset still mostly non-cycling related this allows them to both see things sometimes in a new light and also to realise an empathy with the more experienced riders.

Nothing says "lets change" more than a new cyclist trying to ride a route they have previously driven and finding that the road surface is very uncomfortable or that a driver cuts them up. This is instant empathy.

It has been realised by many that space on the road is running out. In Southampton during peak periods you simply cannot get any more motor vehicles on the roads, with the exception of motorbikes who's riders do their bit for congestion - who should equally be encouraged as a benefit for longer distances and parking solutions. Cycling too, has its place in helping people get about quickly, efficiently and cheaply.

This is why we need to encourage more people to cycle, and show them that it doesn't need to be done in lycra or for a rider to get sweaty to see some kind of benefit. Why drive the car 2 miles to work when there are other options? It will in the very least save you a couple of hundred quid a year. Why sit in that traffic jam when motorbikes and cyclists are the only ones with momentum?

There has to be a better way. There is a better way.

I read a news paper article in February that said obesity operations had risen 70% on the NHS. This has been costing the taxpayer £20 million extra. Obesity related illness is costing the taxpayer £4.3 billion a year, obesity is on the rise. Surgery is not the only way to combat this, people cannot get fit and healthy driving to work and a sea change in culture is needed: change the way people eat, increase peoples' activity rates.

We were designed to move. Lets now give those who want to cycle the infrastructure that encourages them to do so at their own pace in comfort and safety, and without mixing with the motor traffic they so fear:

"...Cycling in London often feels very dangerous to me, too. Today I was riding along Gray's Inn road and a Royal Mail van travelling at too high a speed, almost clipped me. My heart was in my throat..."

We don't necessarily have to "Go Dutch" everywhere to achieve this, but a network of decent cycle routes, free from the majority of motor vehicles will be some way towards reducing obesity and putting more money in the peoples' pocket. In Southampton alone there are many parallel routes that could be divided up to create motor networks and cycle networks, increasing the efficient flow of all traffic in the area.

New cyclists are that important.

Lastly, when someone moans "f***ing cyclists" it is the new cyclist who will most likely be listened to and give an appreciable opinion that challenges misconceptions.

Are you a member of T.I.T.S.?

2011-11-09T11:33:00.000-08:00

Membership of T.I.T.S. is growing fast, and unlike most road user groups it isn't specific to one vehicle type (eg motorists using cars, trucks, motorbikes or pedal cyclists). There are many advantages to T.I.T.S. including getting there faster. (Where ever "there" actually is...)

To be a member all you have to do is the following:
- Ignore all red lights. They're for the little people.
- Blast past drivers who have pulled over to let priority traffic pass through.
- Pull out of junctions forcing all and sundry to jam on the brakes. Waiting is for mortals.
- Bi-pass those waiting for a parking space and steal it off them, and when they complain just laugh at them as if you simply do not understand.

NEW! T.I.T.S. NOW ACCEPTS PEDESTRIANS!!!

Are you on foot and too important to stop? Then just wander into the road without looking - that bus has brakes, make him use them. It's your right, after all! Walk to work too distant? Then cut across peoples gardens by jumping short walls and fences. Getting on the bus, just carry on shouting down that mobile phone when the driver is asking you the destination, because after all - you're Too Important To Stop!

Moron.

This is why people wont cycle!

2011-11-07T09:15:00.000-08:00

Riding into work today I approached a red light. At the red light there is an ASL, with a "keep clear" immediately before it. No motor vehicle should be entering either of these zones whilst that light is on red, and one might even be fined for it if they did get caught (not that the authorities give a shit).

The first problem came from the motorcyclist who cut me up as I entered the "keep clear" to access the ASL. It turned out he was a learner so I let it pass. Everyone has to start somewhere and I had safely managed to avoid him. I sat in the ASL and waited for green.

Green came and the motorcyclist thundered past, sadly the imbecile behind him thought he too could squeeze through like a donkey's dick in a midget.

The thing is I had already taken primary due to the narrowness of the road (parked cars to my left, waiting traffic on my right heading the other way). Imbecile behind, with a drosophilia-dick for a brain decided to play Mr Toad and bang his horn.

"Where do you think I'm going to go? Levitate?!!" I said, already doing about 20mph due to the downhill stretch. "Wait until it is safe!!!"

He remained right up my arse for further 20 feet until an opening arrived. I was not pleased at this anal examination and as he passed he drew parallel, shouting incomprehensible oddities due to the windows being up, and waving his fist at me. He then pointed at the pavement, they always point at the pavement, perhaps this is why some cities have a problem with pavement cycling thanks to the saintly advice admonished by morons like this?

And yes, I'm not proud, but I did ask him to pull over and chat face-to-face. Strange how brave he became by driving off at speed and launching his car over a speed bump like an 8 year old on a BMX.

C***.

What is this new Darwinism?

2011-11-05T05:33:00.000-07:00

Go through any comments section on youtube or a news story about someone's luck escape and you're now bound to come across someone mentioning Darwinism.

Charles Darwin wrote pivotal ideas on how and why species survive and thrive, and why others eventually die out. Evolutionary biology later formed as a more solid theory and many ideas were subsequently proven through careful and repeated scientific processes and study.

The problem comes from idiots using a keyboard to write such messages as: "Stupid bitch! Got what she deserved, doesn't she know what Darwinism is? That's why intelligent people live!"

In one fell swoop they demonstrate their ignorance on evolution. Darwinism, if it exists IS the theory of evolution and the preservation of Darwin's understanding and ethos. People don't survive disaster because of intellect alone, luck plays a part, as does the judgement of others. Genes have no part to play in the death of someone who dies as the result of falling from a bridge, or being hit by a driver who has ignored the risks to others near a zebra crossing by going too fast.

We are no longer pivotal in Europe

2011-11-05T02:03:00.000-07:00

It became glaringly obvious this week to me just how out of step we are with the rest of Europe. David Cameron had several meetings with Sarkastic and that German Gal, who to me looked like the popular kids in the playground. Cameron, some how, has found entry into their uber-cool party (perhaps he'd brought some beer that he stole from his father?). He stands there, all excited and tries to blend in, but just like any other uncool kid he stands out like a sore thumb.

Sarkozy - I seem to recall - even made a bit of a jibe at Cameron. A "why are you here, exactly?" We, the British wanted free trade and business links, but we didn't want to be part of a single currency. We don't fit in. Perhaps they resent us, and perhaps that's a good thing.

Comment made in several newspapers this week suggests that regulation of big business and banks is unworkable unless everyone else around the world does it too. This is a major cop-out. No-one is going to take a first step this way, it needs one nation to be a leader, to stick its head out from the arsehole of Europe and the World Economy and make a difference.

The British Government is here to serve the people - NOT big business, and the sooner they realise this the better. It is they that have destroyed the vote and lead to a record drop off in voting numbers in the past 30 years. I speak of all administrations here obviously. Constantly fellating the milky "goodness" of big business is to ignore where their hands are going, only to notice some while later that your wallet is missing!

Beware the "Poppy Nazi"

2011-11-02T14:42:00.000-07:00

A new type of person seems to have crawled out from under a rock. This cantankerous and aggressive individual runs around at this very time of year interrogating people as to why a certain flower is not presently adorned.

"AND WHERE IS YOU'RE POPPY!!?" They ask.

I am all for supporting the British Legion. They are probably one of the Great unsung heroes of charity work. An elderly man I used to know, the man who cut my hair as a boy, was helped by them. He fought in World War 2, although he would never have admitted it - he was a hero.

Sadly my work uniform will not allow me to wear a poppy. It would simply get knocked off or caught on the machinery. My friends know that I give what I can afford, a few quid to the Legion and that's usually enough for us. Though I have recently been tempted to fit a large poppy to the bike.

What the interrogators have to understand is how those good Men and Women died due to conflict, they fought on bravely so that we would have freedom of choice in many aspects of life, and that includes the choice to wear a poppy.

Bikes I affectionately call "Clown Bikes!"

2011-10-30T06:55:00.000-07:00

Bikes. They come in so many shapes and sizes. Some are not even technically a "bike" or "bicycle", even though we in generalist terminology refer to them as such, but are "tricycles" and so on.

I personally love racing bikes. Traditional, steel-framed 700c wheeled monsters of self-propelled speed. Aluminium-framed cyclocross mudslingers. I'm not as much of a fan of carbon, but without it we would not have the Tour de France for one, which is the single most important cycle race in the world to most people.

Others love mountain bikes. The thrill of thrashing through mud and up steel banks, whizzing through trees and the technical challenge of a natural obstacle descent. Orienteering with a map and compass or just plodding a well known route.

There are other bikes.

When I was around 6 or 7 I watched a pirated betamax video of ET. For me that film opened my eyes to BMX bikes. These were not like normal bikes I had seen my teachers or neighbours ride, they were small and nippy, and designed to be rugged. I didn't know at the time that they were raced and that others did stunts on them, I thought they could fly - all thanks to ET and Elliot.

I was only a little kid, after all.

Around 8 years of age my Mother and Father gave me a white BMX for Christmas. It was a Raleigh and was the cause of a few scraped elbows and knees. I loved that bike, and held on to it for far longer than I should have, extending the saddle and bars higher than they should have reached.

BMX bikes are still popular today, amoungst the teens and young kids who want a fast, nippy stunt bike. There are a few halfpipes in Southampton and walking past anyone can see these kids practice their flips and 180s, a reminder to me of how ignorant I am as to how others live/detail their lives.

To me, seeing a fully grown adult riding such a small bike I am however reminded of Krusty the Clown on his little bike.

I was once raced uphill by a teen on a BMX. My being on the road and his being on the pavement, yet I left him for dead, puffing like a fish for oxygen and his lips flapping. I was amused, I had just done 10 miles on my Jake in relative comfort, yet his knees were up by his ears.

I have always wanted a Brompton. These folding bikes are the cream of the UK bike industry, like Royalty of bipedal wheeled transport. To some, these too, are funny looking bikes as people appear to perilously perch upon tiny wheels. They have however been the saviour of mixed-modal transport where reasonable distance is covered via rail and the rest cycled. Normal bikes can be cumbersome, but folders sat on-lap or packed away.

However it is the future. Small and portable is highly beneficial. Bung a bike on the train, or in the car and split a longer journey. Or stick it under the desk at work, safer with you than locked outside on the street. The truth is there's a bike for everyone, even those who don't like cycling.

More videos that celebrate the small bike:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epG8Xib94yc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBDQn3Qh1AY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fP3r2L8CaB4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nnkmqn-c1Q

Please turn off D R L - with english voice-over

2011-10-29T15:05:00.000-07:00

Inattentional Blindness is a term psychologists use when the brain receives too much stimuli and ends up rejecting important information such as a hazard or a pedestrian crossing the road. Mobile phones are the obvious example, the brain focusses on the conversation and actively tries to visualise what has been said or the person saying it. You end up in lala-land and the risk is that you wont see the horse rider in front of you, or the motorcyclist coming from your right as you start to pull out of the side road.

It appears Inattentional Blindness can also be triggered by motor vehicle lights being run during the day. A few road safety campaigners have suggested DRLs (Daylight Running Lights) would improve safety and reduce things like fender-benders as drivers' attention will be zapped into focus by the light shining forward.

However most bicycles and pedestrians don't use lights during the day. So if you're walking down a country road that doesn't have a verge or a pavement (as some don't) then you're more at risk.

Its a video worth watching and a subject worth reading up on.

Emptiness - a sign of intelligent life?

2011-10-29T06:03:00.000-07:00

I have just watched another episode of Star Trek: Enterprise. A fantastic science fiction drama that beautifully typifies the sense of wonder, invention and intellect of the original Star Trek. It was, in many ways, a bit of a shame that the world got Trekkie Fatigue and the show never got the viewing figures it could have.

When I watch science documentaries about our solar system it amazes me how big it is. It also amazes me that "space" isn't really space, but full of particles, rocks, gas as well as the planetary bodies. Our solar system is just the head of a pin on the tip of an iceberg...

So with this in mind why am I mentioning "emptiness"? There are vast resources in our solar system, as yet untapped. We have also filled up our local space with debris and shit from previous space missions and satellite usage. Now it strikes me that a more advanced civilisation would have the capability to pick up their own litter, they would also find a way to mine asteroids and comets.

I did read that the Chinese are one nation launching a space program to try and mine materials from an asteroid. This would be an amazing prospect, think of the fuels we could harness and the materials we could utilise. Mars is a "dead world" according to some, yet if we could direct an icy comet into Mars you could bring atmosphere, water and heat. Redirecting several small bodies could bring heat via way of the energy released upon collision, they could split the crust and create platelets such as we have on earth allowing Geothermal energy to be tapped.

It strikes me that if a more advanced civilisation did exist then they would have already done these kinds of things. The evidence would be in the lack of local matter floating about in their solar system. Perhaps they would also be able to spot others like them via this understanding. So for the time being this debris could act like a smokescreen hiding us from predation as well as communication and education.

Why good lights are important

2011-10-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

Today was a great ride into work. The air was fresh and cool, the sun was still asleep in its bed and the kids are still away on their school holidays for half term (something which seems to have a fair bit of an impact on traffic where I live in Southampton).

I love riding on days like this. Actually, I even like riding in the rain, it's about using the right kit. Though the canti brakes on the Jake make a heavy honk when I slow or modulate my speed downhill.

The only two appreciable downsides I sometimes suffer with are some motorists not given enough of a gap when overtaking or cutting me up; or coming across another cyclist with no lights and acting like a complete cock. Today the latter had a rude awakening.

Victor Street is a 20mph road sandwiched between a school and a supermarket, it's usually very quiet at 7am in late Autumn and bikes can easily do the 20mph even with the 3 big speed bumps. The fact is cars usually slow us down. As I approached the Ridding Close (ironically named) junction heading towards the supermarket this morning I saw a silver car waiting patiently to pull out. He was waiting to turn right and there was time for him to pull out safely in front of me, however what neither of us had seen was the lad on the bike heading towards us (in the direction of the city centre).

The bonnet pulled out a good 4 feet from the junction and I just caught sight of the rider swinging around the bonnet and letting out a frightened yell. The driver looked as pale as a ghost and just sat there for a second, enough time for me to pass and observe this.

I think I uttered: "Idiot! Get some lights!" as the rider passed me, and shook my head.

At that time of the morning people actively look for lights, whether that be on a bike or in a car (and I've seen a lot of drivers with their lights off at this time of morning in the area). They don't look for vague shadows moving at 15mph or more along a darkly-lit road. Had he been hit I would have stopped and been a witness for the driver.

There's no excuse. I've been in Poundland and similar shops and seen bike lights for a quid. OK, they may not be technically road legal but they will be visible. Even a modest bike shop will sell you a basic full set for about £6, a decent quality set need not cost more than £20.

In the bike forums and social networking sites where cycling is discussed online, or even in clubs - cyclists who ride like this are given the tag: Ninja Cyclist. It seems to me to be the most apt description that details the high-risk strategy and the covert nature of their operation.

Let them eat cake..!

2011-10-23T12:55:00.000-07:00

Mensch is no unintelligent woman. And if this video is anything to go by it makes me wonder if this was indeed a misguided attempt at humour or if she hasn't truly grasped the problem we are now facing due to unethical business and banking practices.

Its true. Many of those in the protests did use iPhones. They did have rather nice tents, and they probably did drink a multi-international supplied coffee. However what is also true is how ordinary people feel disaffected, and jabbing a "let them eat cake" attitude is not going to help.

It doesn't help the OAP across the road from me who is struggling to pay for her heating. The gas company have decided to charge her and others more, as have the electric company. Now this year we've had water meters installed in Southampton and that will only see a rise in bills.

It doesn't help the unemployed find a job. Many have been laid off in cities just like my home town. The Council have sacked hundreds, as has the other large local public services employer - the Hospital Trust. The local car firms have been winding down over the past couple of years, with manufacturing heading to places like the far east.

A casual flick through the employment sections of the papers has shown a drop off in the salaries and hourly rates. If you are doing a non-academic or non-managerial role you'll have to expect minimum wage and difficult working conditions.

"Let them eat cake" attitudes don't differentiate, that consumerism is not an acceptance of problems in society. It is certainly not an excuse for it. Rather consumerism is the result of lowered production costs, advances in technology and cultural shifts. iPhones just as with any device that is used to connect is a tool for sharing and educating.

These are not crusties making a fuss, or for the sake of it. These are ordinary people, some are even Tory. and they accept that change has to happen for we may well be heading into an abyss.

Divide and Conquer?

2011-10-19T09:44:00.000-07:00

Working for a multinational company can really wear you down morally. Its almost as if they see you as the enemy at times, or something to be put in its place and stemmed. Only today I have heard that my company are reprimanding my bosses for not taking out random searches on employees.

Now several things need to be understood. I do not work with sensitive material. I work in a catering environment. If theft is so very bad then why no CCTV? Is it normal to search your employees without proof or reasonable suspicion? I don't think it is, I've never really heard of any other company undertaking such measures.

That's not to say theft doesn't happen. I know it does. I know that customers have taken things like food and cutlery yet nothing has been done to stop this. Again CCTV would help. Curiously the top brass disappear when challenges need to be made, and the person who has stuffed food in pockets or tried to walk out with cutlery becomes agitated and aggressive. This is surely costing the company a small fortune.

Our whole approach to serving the customer has been changed. Frankly we're a struggling mess, and I'm sure our customers know this. Accidents end up happening where there is a rush and blind panic, staff are told to pressurise customers into purchasing extra portions and snacks (with the customer soon becoming quite angry at this ploy they refuse to buy, I know I would too. We then end up in a cyclical struggle with management asking why we're not selling more?).

I was asked for a dustpan and brush today. I then had to explain to my colleague that the company have refused to provide me with one. I ended up using a broom and tray. I informed my colleague that this was the tip of the iceberg, I've waited months for machinery to be repaired.

It has culminated in a serious accident this week. It now looks like the HSE will be involved and that training should have been provided - but that would just eat into their profits.

(Obviously key details have been omitted for legal reasons... but anyone who has worked for a multi-national company will hopefully recognise this situation. It leads me to think this is what was meant by "bad capitalism" and that there must be a better way that doesn't resort to extremes of communism, etc)

Ordinary people are fed up and want change!

2011-10-15T11:14:00.000-07:00

The World is angry. Political and economic systems around the world have screwed us over and people are struggling. Annoyingly for those of us who are not considered "middle class" the press and media have largely ignored our problems, sometimes trivialised, made accusations of dole-scrounging or of petty crime. We are what was once referred to as the working class. Its far broader than that in this day and age, and many children from these backgrounds can and do end up in higher education. Society is a little more fluid today, but much needs to change.

In the United States similar people with similar backgrounds also feel cheated. They have seen the shocking lack of accountability of many politicians and business types. They have seen corruption that has lead to higher taxes, higher food prices, job insecurity, the costs surge to power and heat your home.

A large number of people have decided to take to the streets in what has become known as the Occupy Wall Street movement. Its largely been peaceful, though some violence has broken out. Many have been a little confused by what this means for America but its been rather beautifully summed up by Alan Grayson and a rapper called The Immortal Technique.

Sections of the US media have been quick to dismiss the movement as reactionary (well, actually it is and for good reason), a waste of time, and as something more sinister. Fox News has even been accused to trying to edit video interviews of campaigners to belittle them or make them out to be aggressors against a wholesome and upright state. However due to the power of the web these strategies can backfire with eloquent intellectualism:

I think its important to remind ourselves in the UK as to the issues we now face. This video sums it up so beautifully:

With protests now kicking off in Rome and other places I think its time that those who caused all of these problems were somehow held to account by, ohh I don't know - regulating the banks for one? Whilst it may not be "common sense" it makes practical sense if those who selfishly damaged business, the economy etc were in risk of losing their jobs, had their salaries/bonuses suspended or were even fined. If they commit fraud prison should beckon. The same goes for Politicians who misuse their position in power.

Hyperbole and Bull****

2011-10-14T14:26:00.000-07:00

http://www.mevio.com/episode/296940/cyclists-crusade-against-bad-drivers-and-six/?action=embed-flash if video does not work

The above is an online program it seems that features the Traffic Droid. TD, also known as Lewis Dediare, is a commuter in London traffic who rides by bicycle. He, just as with many of us, is a little sick of bad road users causing problems and even at times danger to the rest of us. He films both motorist and cyclist, what makes him different is his approach to a spark of moment interest film-making (interviews, things of interest), and the fact he hands out cards to people he encounters (something a few riders have done before but most give up).

What strikes me as wrong in this video is the fact the "presenter" (does an internet show REALLY count?) describes the road users as "victims". Watching the videos in question you can see that they are clearly nothing of the sort. They have chosen to ride or drive through red lights, they have chosen to aggress others, or they have chosen to drive or ride without respect and consideration.

The second thing that worries me is the ABD quote:
Roger Lawson, London co-ordinator for the Association of British Drivers, said: "There are a lot more aggressive cyclists than drivers."

This is a shocking statement to make. Citation and validation is needed on that statement so lets use some figures to back up why this is a ludicrous statement and why people should shy away from listening to such hyperbole.

According to the Department for Transport the approximate yearly figures (rounded up by me, but you can independently write to them to see how close I am) there is a major difference in the killed and seriously injured road users (also known as KSIs) stats between those involving cycles and motor vehicles:

Seriously injured by cyclists - 200 a year
Seriously injured by motorists - 22,000 a year (for all road users affected)

Killed by cyclists - 0.5 a year
Killed by motorists - 3000 a year (again for all road users affected)

Any cyclist will tell you that when someone has nearly seriously injured them the adrenalin can flow. Other times you are desperately attempting to wake up another road user (eg SMIDSYs at junctions when someone pulls out on you). Its often not an act of aggression but desperation from a road user that is constantly put on the back-foot.

No-one sensible will deny that some cyclists fly through reds. I've spoken to riders who do this, some are indeed impatient w***ers, many are afraid. Afraid of how some drivers behave at junctions and living in a mistaken belief that running the lights is somehow safer.

With youtube being used as our documenting tool the evidence is mounting up and something needs to change.

Time for a Specialist Traffic Court?

2011-10-14T06:02:00.000-07:00

With recent issues in the news regarding road offences, killer drivers being let off and the Government's plans for a new law that represents the impact of injury from collisions it has yet again raised several unanswered questions about how our legal system works.

- Comparing similar cases in different districts why is there no parity on sentencing?
- Why do the Police favour handing over dangerous and inconsiderate drivers to be disciplined by their employer?
- Why are the CPS so keen to downgrade prosecutions? (Something you'll read on any court proceedings story, and reflected in victim statements.)
- Do the Courts need a refresher on relevant laws when the Police operate a blitz on road users?
- Do Police, the CPS and Magistrates/Judges need stronger, clearer guidelines?

Much of this I cannot answer. I'm sure many in the Legal Profession might have some ideas, as will many charities. I'm sure we all have a personal opinion on this.

This leads me to wonder if we should now in fact look at splitting up the legal system? Perhaps I have this wrong but it appears to me as if we have a generic justice system that has to try and understand many different sections of law. Would it not make more sense to have a separate Traffic Court? With specialist Magistrates and Judges that know the statutes and laws intimately it would increase efficiency, bring parity to sentencing and possibly ensure fair sentencing.

But as you can see from the above video, even places with Traffic Courts have their issues...

Ronnie Corbett's Little Prediction

2011-10-12T11:58:00.000-07:00

Need we say more. He's now being employed by MoD to prevent missile attacks Afghanistan.

Twitter: Shouting at the Telly!

2011-10-11T12:03:00.000-07:00

Gone are the days when I could just sit in the chair and shout at adverts on ITV. Now we have a new option and it isn't Points of View.

Today there was an advert for some lazer eye treatment. Some upper-middle-class brat of a woman was bragging how everything was HD in her head (did someone drop a telly out the window of Currys?), yet if you talk to any number of people who have had the operation they'll say they have simply switched one pair of glasses for another. Short sighted vision is now long sighted.

On to their social networking page. Angry of Southampton has left you a curt response.

Daytime television is full of this shit. Its not just the adverts but the rolling dire of banter. Gaby Logan interviewing some woman about "reading feet" this morning, so I tweeted her show. "They JUST feet!" In almost a nod to my "concern" she said something about how interesting it would be for those who submitted photos to get back in touch and reveal if the Foot "expert" had been correct.

My guess is they would all say "YES!! That is SO me!!" Its the generic, flattering way she did it. Psychologists have a name for this under a little experiment they sometimes run with students.

I hate adverts that treat us as fools. I don't need you to tell me I'm stupid! I'm perfectly capable of working that out for myself through a process of pain and frustrating circumstance. Car adverts with no traffic, adverts that show computers solving problems and making simpler instead of a freeze screen and an apoplectic rage of tapping random keys.

Oh christ. Jordan has just come on the telly with an ad for her new show. I hope someone can mop up this fucking mess..?

Oh and if you're going to advertise toothpaste then mocking CSI by shining an illuminated phallus in an actress' mouth is not going to convince me to buy your product.

What makes Humanity think it is so special?

2011-10-09T14:49:00.000-07:00

I have just watched the new Star Trek movie. The director is clearly a fan and wishes to reimagine the myth in grandeur and to me there is no better way. The films and the TV series show us both the impact of technology and the way we can become blase. Technology no longer scares us in the way it once did, look at the power of the iPhone, the laptop or any games console.

There is clearly ambition in the Human Race to go further, live longer, travel further. We see ourselves as above the animal world, yet we are clearly still animals with whims and urges our logical minds can override. The futurism of how we perceive the technological advancements that will come are idealistic, fantastical and fantasy and yet based in a level of actuality. They very much might, and in some case will happen. We will cure diseases one by one, we will unlock the secrets of the brain and the body, we will travel to the stars yet again.

And so back to star travel, why is this so important to us humans? We have already intellectually realised that the world we live on is finite in resources, humans have always exhausted the capabilities of their surroundings until it is time to move on. The Saxons moved here, we moved to the Americas and who knows where we will all eventually settle..? I would love to dearly see us move beyond this planet. We will soon have the capability to do so.

The Chinese are talking of mining on asteroids. The Americans of mining on the moon. Developments there could change society yet again as new capabilities in energy production become available, or new cures for cancer are found.

We will have to adapt. If we cure so many diseases that people stop dying other controls will have to be introduced otherwise we're no better than rats. Perhaps we have already reached that point - we struggle to find new fuels here on Earth, the National Grid is struggling to keep up with demand, our roads are heavily congested and our cities and countries now heavily populated.

Then there's the issue of food. Too many mouths means not enough food. Do we do a Soylent Green? Will our inhibitions change as a result? Farming will have to change from the open fields of crops to shelves of foods that grow in lower light conditions and dryer weather. A more local growing strategy is needed to counter the issues of transportation (if there is ever a war, or the fuel situation does not improve this will be the only way).

So in my mind, Humanity is special on many levels: we can see a problem and we have the capability to fix them.

SLANCIO Bike Bicycle Laser Beam Rear Tail Light

2011-10-09T00:42:00.000-07:00

Where do we start?

If you're going to seriously promote a "safety product" you should ensure a number of factors with both your advertising and your product.

So firstly the product? Why is the "cycle lane" so narrow? If a car came past me just off my shoulder I would be extremely concerned. Various bodies around the world (including the IAM) promote the 3 feet rule, this doesn't even come close. Next up - this light will be useless during the day - the fact is most riders will ride during the hours of daylight.

What happens if you hit a pothole or speed bump? Will the light flick out of place and glare other road users? When you promote a product you need to also mention the fixings so that everyone can be sure to use them safely.

The promotion? Show some funky lads on bikes, whizzing all over the place, jumping kerbs, popping wheelies and doing endos. Because that's safe, isn't it? Idiotic is more the word. Lights do not suddenly make you invisible if you wish to act like a cock, you still have to act within a defined set of parameters that others will expect - eg the law and the road rules. They even ride right in the door zone, at the speed they were doing, I estimate up to 20mph, if a door catches them it's gonna hurt!

I don't know what the laws are in Korea (where I think this is made) but why no front lights on some of the riders? This is a product I would not buy as I do feel proper lights make far more use for the average cyclist than gimmicky products and promotions.

Kudos to Danny Care!

2011-10-02T11:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier today Twitter lit up. Two comments aired having a pop at cyclists. One was actually a Sunday Times column by Daisy Waugh, and we'd expect nothing less from her - its an easy thing to do when you resort the childish taunts about "road tax".

The second was less than we expected. Danny Care is an England Rugby international and Harlequins player, a respected sportsman:

"I hate Cyclists!!! #getacar"

Many of us responded. We put across the message that most of us obey the law, we just want a little consideration. Perhaps in some respects it made you wonder what someone had done to piss him off? The "getacar" hashtag made it a little ominous though.

Responses varied. Most were concerned, some mentioned how his compatriots rode bikes, some mentioned that Specialized have been a Rugby sponsor (something I didn't know). Scarily others, too, nagged about nonexistent "road tax", or "get off the road!" It is telling how when a cyclist responds in a level headed manner to these kinds of comments that they're labeled "up themselves!"

Mark Cavendish even joined in:

"All cyclists? That's a bit of an ignorant comment, no? #ihavegotmanycarsthankstoridingmybike"

At around 6.30pm GMT Danny left the following on his twitter page:

"My last comment wasn't meant to offend anyone. I didn't realise cyclists were so passionate. I'm sorry. #cyclesafe"

The web has power when we all work together. Cyclists are in the main the same as everyone else on the roads - they just want safety, consideration and respect. The vast majority do obey the laws. Many have had abuse thrown in their direction, generalisations and misconceptions aired. Those who ride just want to keep fit, or commute from A to B.

All credit to Danny for apologising, as that's the mark of a true Gentleman! Lets hope this sets an example.

Insurance for scooters? - Local Businesses - Evening Telegraph

2011-09-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

Insurance for scooters? - Local Businesses - Evening Telegraph

To me this is a reprehensible idea. Those who call for such measures on mobility scooters have no comprehension of the difficulties many of these people face. I used to work for a Hospital Trust as a front-of-house catering staff member, you would regularly see someone on a mobility scooter. I have to confess I have never seen a collision, many know where the brake is, most are going at walking speed.

I talked to a few Nurses in my time, I talked to a few scooter owners too - the simple fact is that many are on disability benefits, some are also too old to work. Without this scooter they simply wouldn't have the freedom they need, to add a level of bureaucracy would mean most could not afford such a device and would be housebound.

Many years back a psychologist I read of used a wheelchair to try and understand some of the issues the disabled faced. He encountered terrible problems not just with entry to buildings or crossing the road, but also a social animosity towards disability. Its a small thing to do, but walking, or indeed riding, a mile in another's shoes could be a real eye opener.

When Pedallestrians Go Bad

2011-09-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

We've all had a grumble at those who cycle on pavements ...and to be frank if you're a fully grown adult and resort to pavements by normal urban roads I think you deserve the odd bit of lip. The vast majority of roads do not deserve the reputation some have foisted upon them.

This past week has seen two stories on pedallestrians (a nickname I stole from someone on a forum for a pavement cyclist). The first involved a hit and run where an elderly lady was seriously injured, someone with a bike was seen talking to the lady (possibly trying to rouse her) and then disappeared.

The Bournemouth Echo reported the story and has a number of key pieces of information about the minimum punishment a cyclist can expect: a fixed penalty notice of £30. Under PACE the Police can detain you until they are sure of who you are. If you get cocky then they can take you to court and the results can be more severe.

The second story involved an attack. A pedestrian verbally reprimanded a cyclist and things turned nasty leading to the pedestrian nearly being killed. There was simply no need for the violence, the guy should have never attacked the man, the worst that happened was a telling off. He responded like a thug, and the QC sentenced him like one - 3 years in prison.

Now a few points I note. Many, many times people have called for cyclists to have some form of registration on the bike, aside from the issues of size, drag and cyclists potentially being followed too closely by motorists who would struggle to read such a small sign - it is worth remembering that the second cyclist was convicted without one. So too was the cyclist involved in the Hove manslaughter earlier this year.

What is it that makes the difference? In my mind its people pulling together and co-operating with the Police. It is local CCTV or a good eye for detail (what kind of bike was the guy on, any logos, colour etc; what did the rider look like?).

In the Capital alone there are well over 3000 hit and runs! 65 people a week are injured because of this, but the telling picture is how the very vast majority of these are by motorists, nationally speaking. The CTC has documentation on the cycling numbers on its website. It shows on average how little risk cyclists pose to others most of the time, and how much more of a risk motorists can be.

Does that mean we should ignore pedallestrians? Absolutely not. What needs to happen is both further Police action, even court action where appropriate; and for pavement cyclists to be studied as to their psychology. Why are they using the pavements? From the people I have spoken to its mostly fear. One or two have had bad reactions from drivers, and that is having a knock on effect. Reading newspaper letters and comments of those that admit to it - again fear of traffic.

So? Further solutions? This is pretty obvious to many experienced cyclists - we can segregate properly (remove the motor vehicles from some routes and reduce pedestrian conflict), we can deal with bad road users better (fines, prison and further training) and we can reduce speed limits - a triple attack.

Why do people hate cyclists?

2011-09-25T12:08:00.000-07:00

I found this today on youtube. The first thing I realised when I had finished watching is how I have had this EXACT conversation with a driver at work. He's better now and has come around to my views a little, I think perhaps because his partner now rides a bike (though I'm unsure).

Cyclists in the News again...

2011-09-24T08:01:00.000-07:00

In response to the recent pavement cyclist who ran over an old dear in Bournemouth this week I have sent the following email/letter to their local paper. Thinking on there is little to actually tell if the woman had been hit in the road and knocked backwards, or on the pavement itself. Hopefully the Police will be able to determine events, and hopefully if found at-fault the lad can be prosecuted.

The recent news of the lady knocked down by a cyclist on the pavement does not shock anyone, however it is worth bearing in mind how rare this kind of collision is.

I think there has been a lot of demonisation of cyclists in recent years, even those who are victims are not exempt. Where cyclists turn to pavements there are several factors that influence this decision from my understanding.

Stopping several local pedallestrians, as I tend to call them, in my home town a couple of years back and asked of their opinion (I was dressed in my own bike gear and had parked the bike up at the time) I noted several concerns - most notably that of speeding motor traffic, also abuse they have had from drivers for using the road. There will always be those that will ride inconsiderately, but we now have to assess whether driving standards in our society are having a knock-on effect.

There are clearly solutions: a reduced speed limit to 20mph in all urban areas (noting that the average journey speeds in these areas are between 12-15mph once you factor in rush hour congestion); an awareness program on the television for and about cycling (many cyclists I know would volunteer); and simply increasing Police numbers and providing better training/guidelines over cycling matters.

Providing for cyclists has to happen. It is inevitable that change will come: fuel costs soar, health issues dominate and for those few that subscribe to the debate - the environment is also a factor.

It is also strongly worth remembering that you're far less likely to end up as a KSI from a cyclist than from a motorised vehicle. The average yearly figures for cycle-on-pedestrian KSIs are approx 200 for injury and 0.5 deaths. For motor vehicle-on-pedestrian it is around 420 deaths and many, many more injuries. There, too, is strong evidence that the more cyclists who use the roads the safer it becomes for them ("Safety in Numbers" research).

I have also sent the following to the Daily Echo. A recent news story about a rider who was deliberately run down has dominated both the Southampton and Bournemouth Echo papers. A letter appeared that seemed to suggest that sanity would involve avoiding certain roads. Perhaps this is true in some respects, but also a little tragic. Here is my reply:

Paddy Maxwell seems to draw correlation between the cyclist knocked off in the New Forest and the rise in cycling numbers, and that cycling is a risky and outdated activity. I think this is a mistake for a few reasons.

Firstly we have to establish how many cyclists there are in the UK. The London School or Economics suggests around 13 million UK cyclists. The Department of Transport suggests that cyclists make up around 3% of all traffic (even factoring in around the 30% increase over the past year), it can be established that cycling cannot currently have a severe effect on traffic, nor is it as big a risk as suggested by some. You are statistically more at risk as a pedestrian or motorcyclist than as a pedal cyclist.

That however doesn't mean that Mr Maxwell isn't on to something. Provision. It would immensely aid cycling and traffic flow if we were to provide more 20mph speed limits in all urban and residential areas (remembering that motor traffic averages around 12-15mph in peak times due to congestion) - this would seriously reduce the impact of injuries, mean that cyclist become part of the normal flow, and encourage more to ride and feel comfortable. We also have so many parallel roads and routes that sections could be made more cycle friendly, and others more motorist friendly. Cyclists would be more inclined towards decently thought out routes that didn't stop start or fill up with debris, and drivers would feel more confident of their route.

He also states that more cyclists equals a "recipe for carnage", and again this is not true. There is good research to show that the more cyclists we have then the safer it becomes as a whole. Safety in Numbers is the name of the study. There is lots of evidence from The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, etc that this is the case.

I agree that nobody wants to be a killjoy, but we have to look at the bigger picture: the encouragement of motoring has had a rather detrimental effect on not just KSIs but also our pockets and freedom of movement. It makes sane-sense to encourage cycling and to provide properly for it.

When Bollards Attack!

2011-09-23T10:12:00.000-07:00

Last year they closed the road I live on to commit major repairs. The road had fallen apart and several large potholes (more like Moon craters) dotted about the place and were a serious concern for not just cyclists but all motorists too.

So to make sure that things ran smoothly the Council did the usual adverts and notices in the local papers, they also did some interviews in a couple of stories. Then they erected several large red and yellow signs denoting the detours and that the road was blocked to all traffic (even residents for some considerable time).

It became quite amusing to watch drivers speed down my road only to hammer on the brakes, become quite confused before attempting a buggered-up u-turn, usually with the gears crunching and accelerator rattling the revs out.

The signs were clear. They even remained in place in full sight, as did the many large contractors vehicles blocking the road.

Then oneday I saw my Mother arrive with some shopping, so out I went to help her in with it. We had access from the other side and she could still park outside the house easily. The works were some 40 feet away and we watched as a car skidded to a halt down by the lorries nearly crashing. The guy then went into the usual frustrated u-turn and headed back up towards us, we now giggling a little I have to admit.

"WHERE ARE THE SIGNS!!!!? WHERE'S THE FOREWARNING!!??" came the driver as he stopped near us.

I approached the vehicle and replied that there had been weeks, even months of warning from the council, and that if he looked at the next junction up he would see a large 3 foot by 2 foot red sign stating "ROAD CLOSED!"

And as he looked over he gave a bemused "oh..!" and drove off somewhat embarrassed. Today I saw the above video again and remembered the incident. They too had motorists complaining about lack of warning and closure, despite the many Council erected signs, the many articles in the local paper, and the fact a number of large, plainly obvious obstructions were now present in the road, much as happened on mine.

I suppose this is what you get for driving or riding on autopilot.

No-Handed Cyclists

2011-09-18T09:50:00.000-07:00

"Golden Tree" by Martin Brooks from Ninian Doff on Vimeo.

Cool video!!

Are Workers Valued?

2011-09-18T05:16:00.000-07:00

Constantly we hear on the news about problems the Universities face and the increase in costs that will befall the student. Whilst I am a strong believer in education and furthering your own mind and problem solving capabilities I am also a strong believer in the values of working in other sections of society.

Not everyone can become an academic. I work in a hard, fast, hot and sweaty work environment. During the summer temperatures can reach near 40 degrees centigrade, during the winter they have plummeted to 3. There is no air conditioning, and very little heating. I have often found it amusing when small children become fascinated with my work, my machinery and have run to my little window to watch. It was the very same when I used to service vending machines some 10 years ago.

The amusement comes not from the child's wonder, but actually from the Parent's reaction. I can hear them through my window as they pull the child away (and I heard them obviously next to me when playing with the vending machines): "Here is where you will end up if you do not work hard at school!"

..and now I have even shouted a "...don't do it, kid!! Get a degree!!" once or twice for the sheer fun of it.

So what exactly are we looking at here? Has society reestablished the norm as some kind of punishment for failure at academia? Are support workers in industry and academia now seen as below their little darlings? I think this is how it has evolved. Frequently my peers will state how they work hard so that their children will not have to, or can move on to something perceived as more liberating.

This is wrong. We need to value the strengths of work ethics, hard work is just as liberating and every spoke has something to give the wheel as a whole. The perception that better pay will result from academia is missing the point as to what the problem with society is: fair pay should be the norm, not a lofty dream a few lefties blither on about. Fair pay brings a better living standard to the working class, the support workers and makes benefit scrounging less of an aim.

Hard workers need to be rewarded with stable and long term employment. The ethics of trust, respect and good time keeping are all important.

No bike for me!!

2011-09-14T08:53:00.000-07:00

Its a little depressing. I've spoken to a nurse (a contact I have) and they've suggested that I wait until my bruising from last week's crash heals. Its certainly in a sensitive area and something no man will really envy. Discomfort is a polite way of describing it.

However even if I do heal I have no bike to ride. I took the Jake into the very good Cycleworld in Thornhill hoping to have the wheels relaced with new rims, but stupid me read the old spec sheet instead of counting the bloody spokes on the wheels, didn't I. I had replaced the wheels 2 years back.

In all honesty Hope Pro 3 and Open Pros were kind of a waste on a bang-around commuter. I've decided to save the hubs for another bike. I'll still use the Open Pros I bought, 36 holes is ideal on a commuter and will be tough and easy to true, but I'm having 105 hubs instead. They're good enough, fast enough, cheap enough to fix if the bearings go, you name it.

The next problem is that nobody has 105s in stock. Nobody. So its a 2 week wait for the bike.

The Kinesis will remain unridden until I can get the local shop to have a gander and give the OK. There might be other reasons I crashed that I'm unaware of, and damage I've missed. The frame looks sound, which is a load off my mind.

Either way you look at it I'm gutted that I'm not riding.

Letters of Worth(ing)

2011-09-10T11:36:00.000-07:00

http://www.worthingherald.co.uk/community/readers-letters/plenty_of_good_1_2965851

http://www.worthingherald.co.uk/community/readers-letters/why_cycling_is_good_1_3013507

http://www.worthingherald.co.uk/community/readers-letters/safer_for_everyone_1_3013510

When you write an effective letter that answers critique and queries, or just dispels the myths it will break down the walls that stand between us and free travel.

Use the tools at your disposal!

2011-09-09T05:50:00.000-07:00

Everyone wants safety and comfort on the roads, no one wants to be abused or hit especially when cycling. The above video is by Gaz545 on youtube, a guy I sometimes chat to online and fellow camera cyclist.

Taken out of context the video could make cycling look dangerous. Gaz is clear, however, that this is a minority of road users causing the issues demonstrated. That's not to say that we should ignore it, we should do everything in our power to sway public opinion and promote cycling as it is a viable option for many.

So what can we do to change things for the better? The most important thing is to educate ourselves on the laws, highway code, statistics and best riding practices. The more of us who cycle, and cycle within the National Standards/Bikeability/IAM approach the safer and more understandable cycling will be.

Here are some other tools that we have at our disposal:

Sign the e-petitions!!
To many it seems counter intuitive, but this is the way forward. Paper petitions are a hard thing to negotiate, it takes far too long to draw numbers and get a response. Time is changing to electronic petitioning just as it has slowly changed from paper mail to email.

You simply must sign the many pro-cycling petitions and those dedicated towards road safety.

Write to your MP!!
Cycling is a viable option for many, but it could be made easier. Your MP can put forward new laws and policy that help make cycle provision happen (20mph limits, Sheffield stands outside shops, cycle lanes where they are appropriate and can be continuous).

With the above issues it needs the Police to take a stronger line. Your MP can put pressure on the Police, the CPS and the sentencing of the Magistrates and Judges. Policy and guidelines can be changed for the better, to be made clearer leaving less of a chance of dangerous road users continuing to share the road with us (as they endanger pedestrian, motorist and cyclist alike).

Write to your Council!!
This is one of the most productive ways to make cycling safer and more popular. They can work on a local level to provide the cycle parking, the cycle lanes and help deal with hotspots. Places where there have been conflicts can be resolved.

An example of this is St Denys in Southampton, leading on to Cobden Bridge. Drivers would pack in and attempt to force out two lanes of motor traffic where there simply wasn't the space. As a strange result many of the locals complained that cyclists would ride on the pavements - the fact is they couldn't get past the cars on the road during the rush hour, the drivers going nowhere fast.

Now cycle lanes have been installed from the start of St Denys road up to the lights at the end of Cobden bridge. Cyclists now use this to safely filter past the motor traffic.

Join a Cycle Club or Campaign!!
There are so many benefits to be had from doing this. Most offer advice, group rides, legal cover and insurance. Many will have a legal team that will also look at the implications of new laws and policies. There are 13 million of us riding bicycles in the UK, to have a more cohesive voice will only benefit us as we can't all know the legal parameters, jargon and procedures, we don't all have the time to individually campaign (though we should all clearly make some sort of effort).

The CTC have been speaking up for cyclists and encouraging cycling for over 125 years. They offer legal, insurance and discounts in many shops. They campaign on a National level to make cycling more affordable, more popular, safer and easier.

British Cycling offer a range of membership options. As with the above they campaign and offer legal and insurance services, and a range of discounts in participating stores. They are also the body that manages the sports side of things, so if you want to race or become a pro cyclist - these are the people to go to.

Joining a Cycle Campaign will offer local benefits. Here in Southampton we have the Southampton Cycle Campaign, in London there is the larger LCC. They will know the local layout of the roads and the issues that those cyclists face on a day to day basis. They will work towards a solution based on local knowledge and often offer advice and critique on proposals from Government and Council levels.

Join an Internet Cycle Forum!!
Pretty simple one this. Mind you, you could just read the messages and get some of the benefits of news and knowledge. Sometimes the info you will find can be a bit suspect, that's the nature of internet forums, sadly. The benefit comes from the solidarity, sharing your stories and ideas, and asking questions that will lead you to the right websites, literature and videos that will enhance your own riding experience.

The CTC has it's own internet forum. Bikeradar is also good, the forum is also backed up by a good news and article section, reviews too. Cyclechat has blogs, a chat room, and other features as well as the normal forum interaction.

Other forums: Boris Bikes, YACF, RoadcyclingUK, Cycling Weekly's own forum, Veloriders, MTBE, Why Cycle?, or just type "cycle forums" into Google and look for something that takes your fancy. There are even many city based forums to chose from.

Contact Corporations, Companies and Employers!!
If you go shopping and find it difficult to park the bike then it may be worth sending an email or letter to the supermarket to let them know they're missing out on a viable option. For example most people shopping tend to just pick up a bags worth of stuff (milk, bread, etc) that would happily fit inside a pannier bag on a bike.

They have to think of it this way: a bicycle takes up far less space than an average car. You can get around 4 bikes in a car parking sized area of space. For supermarkets to encourage cycling makes sense. The old approach of encouraging the car is simply blocking more custom.

Contacting a company can also send out a positive message that when they're company drivers are doing things right that we are grateful, and that when they drive dangerously that we hope to show why. If you have to make a complaint be polite, to the point and reference the relative advice and rules/laws that apply (eg the Highway Code specific rules, if a close overtake then rule 163; or the advice of the IAM on 3 feet minimum distance on overtakes).

Let your Employer know that you cycle and the benefits it can bring them! They wont need to worry so much about parking, just as with the supermarkets. Their employees will be fitter, healthier and tend to work harder. On average they tend to spend 1-2 days less off work sick, and for big firms this can add up to real productivity. The same is true of those who walk and jog to work, these employees tend to be more alert in the morning.

When employers encourage cycling, walking, jogging and even public transport they are reducing the risk of conflict with local residents over neighbourhood parking. They are reducing the impact of congestion.

Write to Your Local paper!!
This is a two-pronged approach. The first is to use the Letters pages to air views, stories and events. Reply to criticism of cycling and cyclists, even correct misunderstandings.

The second approach is to get the Paper to print stories for our benefit. Have you got a charity ride coming up? Let them know! Is there a concern you have about a council scheme, road safety etc? Let them know. Do you think they can provide an article to educate and encourage people into cycling? Let them know!

When people see examples that work for others it encourages them to look at that option more seriously. If they see a benefit over simply driving (losing weight, saving money, ease of parking) it can benefit the wider public, too.

Get out and RIDE!!
This is probably the most simple way to change things for the better. Our being on the road validates our right to it, our proper use of it sets an example. New and inexperienced cyclists gain understanding from watching others to some degree, and reassurance from seeing us using the road and enjoying it. We feel safer when surrounded by like-minds.

More injury than I expected from a tumble... (warning rude)

2011-09-09T02:59:00.000-07:00

So there I was yesterday evening, attempting to have a bath and realised, by Christ I feel bruised on my right rib. Parted the monkey fur and realised a little black bruise is sitting there. I also discovered a a bruise and scuff on my left shin when washing down, and some chain-rash on the side of my right calf, which was to be expected - the regained mobility has allowed me to turn my right leg (2 days nearly since it happened the swelling has gone down in the knees and right hand).

That's not the worst part.

As any man knows his tackle is His life and joy. I now have a black penis. WTF?? I have bruised me cock. If only I had been wearing padded longs I might have avoided that a little. Perhaps I should ride in a cricket box, LMAO!!?

I still have a black bruise across my pubic area, and I still really don't know how the hell I managed to go over. However, sod it, I'm bored - I'm going back to work on Monday, hopefully riding in but I'll see. Its taken a couple of days but I can now make a fist, albeit a lose one, with my right hand.

Bike is a mess!

2011-09-07T11:26:00.000-07:00

I had hoped to finish off a blogpost today on campaign strategies/tools that cyclists can use to push for change and educate themselves and others with.

However I hadn't the time today. I crashed down on to my face and hands this afternoon at about 2.45pm. As I lay there, managing to turn on to my back and still tangled in the bike a few drivers simply drove around me. Obviously they're too important to stop.

It was a Postie, an old Gent and a lady with a pram who offered help, even an ambulance. I was a little in shock, winded even and declined as soon as I realised I was just bashed around a little. I have a split lip, split nose, my hands are road rashed (the right hand is swollen and fairly cut up - thank fuck for cycle gloves, possibly the most important protection a cyclist can turn to, as invariably your hands reach out to save you). My right knee is bruised and road rashed on the cap. A few scratches down my legs, a bruised left tricep, oddly. I also have two scratches on my belly and a black bruise to my pelvic bone due to hitting the saddle.

I ache. A slow motion crash as I attempted to ride up Dale Road, I have since found that my chain snapped. The poor road surface and a lot of shit in the road obviously doesn't help matters.

The most depressing thing is the damage to the bike, a custom Kinesis TK2. The bars are slightly out of shape, the shifters are fucked, the chain in jammed in an upside down rear derailleur. The brakes are jammed or twisted. It just came back from a service last week and I checked the chain yesterday. Its all 2011 105 groupset on there and will take me some while to save up and replace if it cant be fixed.

Not a happy bunny.

BTW thanks to not just the people above, but the 2 cyclists who stopped and offered assistance later as I walked home. Sadly the bike was beyond a simple repair.

Laurier Avenue Segregated Bike Lane

2011-09-04T10:42:00.000-07:00

It seems those officials that work in Ottawa are moving towards a Dutch style of cycling. This can only be a good thing in my opinion. It gives new cyclists the confidence to know they'll have space and consideration. It keeps cyclists away from pedestrians and from driveways that may be in use (a few cyclists a year in the UK are at risk of exiting vehicles from said driveways due to limited field of vision).

The kerb also stops drivers from parking upon the lane, and it is cheaper than employing staff to police the parking infringements when they do.

Petition - Make Cycle Lanes Work!!

2011-08-07T12:16:00.000-07:00

It is an issue all cyclists will know well. Your tyres have been slashed by someone "lovingly" smashing bottles in the cycle lane or cycle path. A trolley has been hidden just around the bend, or a motorist has parked in it to buy some beers or the papers. Or you might be a new cyclist and chose to use an off-road facility and find that you have to stop every 20 feet at junctions and wait for motor vehicles to pass.

All in all it tends to send out a message that cycle facilities don't matter, that cyclists don't matter. That we can be swept out of the way in favour of what is perceived to be "more important traffic".

Also given the fact that the Government's e-Petitions website tends to get filled up with vociferous nonsense about evil, baby-eating zombie cyclists it will be good to have some petitions that reflect a chance for positive change.

Here is my petition:
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/3531

Also, please strongly consider signing these:
Oppose the compulsary use of cycle helmets
Safeguarding Cyclists (I think cycle fines and co are already out of balance compared to motoring offences, but the rest is sound)
Non-slip manhole covers

Thanks for your time. Please tweet, facebook, blog and forum post these to get maximum signature numbers. Together we could make positive change.

Cycle Shops of Southampton and Nearby!

2011-07-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

View Larger Map

The beauty of the internet is how I can now show locals the cycle shops I trust and why I go there. The above shop, thanks to GSV, is the closest cycle shop to me: Cycleworld, Southampton. I have always had great service there, the guys are knowledgable and friendly. Its not the biggest selection of bikes but for the average cyclist its more than enough. They sell clothing, bells, everything you would normally need.

View Larger Map

The above is Peter Hansford Cycles in Park Gate. A slightly smaller shop but a good selection of kit. The Gents who run the shop know their stuff, too. This is about 3 miles further away from me than Cycleworld. They stock less clothes, mostly essentials such as rain coats. A good selection of lights are on sale here, too.

You could always go to Halfords:

View Larger Map

They're ok if all you need is a new light, some cheap gloves or an innertube in an emergency. I'm afraid I would not trust them with bicycle maintenance and would go to the two shops above instead.

There are also Hargroves in Millbrook:

View Larger Map

Prices tend to be a little more, a different range of bikes from the other shops in my experience. Lots of Scott and Specialised gear. Some Kona mountain bikes. Loads of clothes, shoes and gloves.

View Larger Map

If you want an electric you could try Bedford Place and visit Electric Bike World. I'm afraid I've never been in there, but thought I'd list it just in case.

Dream no small dreams

2011-07-23T04:48:00.000-07:00

One of the Philosophers I regret not reading is Goethe. I understand Nietzsche had a small fascination with him at one time, and you can see several similarities in his writings and the writer is even quoted, I'm told.

Scanning the usual subscriptions on Youtube I came across a video recommendation of quotes. The most basic of videos, it is just text and music.The thing with quotes as I find them is that people sometimes take them out of context, but the very last quote is actually quite inspirational:

"Dream no small dreams, for they have no power to move the hearts of Men!"

How apt and true. If we look at the great people who have changed our lives for the better, foisted progress, civility and technology upon us, they all share this in common. Martin Luther King, dreamed of unity and equality; Einstein dreamed of understanding the Universe; Churchill dreamed nonstop to be quite honest, he inspired men and women to fight evil across the world in the name of peace, one of the first politicians in the UK to question fascism and communism; Margaret Thatcher, the first women to be Prime Minister in the UK (you may not like her politics but she was and is still massively influential here).

Much is done by modern society to vilify and put down those with a different vision. The internet, once the arteries that sent information and new ideas from one mind to another at the touch of a keyboard, has now become the tool for the ignorant and idiotic to air their views. With the intention to shout down, and shout louder, these idiots may end up stunting progress.

However there is hope. The internet still affords us great control, just as in a face to face situation we can choose to ignore and walk away from idiots. Most websites let you remove the idiot's access and mouthpiece, deleting their tirades and rants removes their power. It is, after all, your message to be had, not theirs. Most are in it for the tiny feeling of power, but this is false. They never really had power at all, a delusion on their part.

The truth of the matter is this. If an idea or invention is that good others will catch on. If the message is important and right, the message will be spread. If it is wrong it will always be proved wrong in sensible debate, and this is where the ranters lose their grip.

Dream no small dreams. As apt then as it forever will be. To the future!

LA Bicycle Anti Harassment Ordinance

2011-07-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

Fascinating story of an LA politician who recognised where problems occurred and has set out to do something to make thing better. People like this are often vilified, but in truth they are visionaries, willing to take a step in a direction that makes life better for all.

http://www.wendmag.com/blog/2011/07/20/l-a-proposes-anti-harassment-ordinance-for-cyclists/

Helmets - Aggressive Compulsionist Makes a Video

2011-07-20T13:02:00.000-07:00

What stops people from cycling? Fear.

I have several friends/workmates who simply refuse to ride a bike. In their mind the validity that cycling is dangerous is proved - they are drivers and want cyclists to wear helmets, high vis, not ride on the road etc just in case the cyclist wobbles out into their path. Seeing a helmet proves to them that cycling is dangerous, seeing cyclist riding as a part or in traffic also validates this. There is little positive instruction on how to avoid conflict.

I have seen James Cracknell speak on the TV several times about both his accident and helmets. He has become an active and aggressive campaigner for cycle helmets. One TV show appearance he even seemed to state that it should be foisted on cyclists by law.

This is completely the wrong approach. His grisly tale does nothing other than scare. It doesn't scare people into wearing a helmet, it makes those not privy to the full data and statistics assume it will only be a matter of time before they get clumped by a car or an HGV. As a result the bike remains in the shed or gets sold.

James was lucky. Lets be clear about that. No cycle helmet has EVER been tested to withstand any impact over 20mph that I can find. Be that SNELL, ANSI, European CE... British Standard.. The vehicle that hit James came at approximately 70mph.

For all the bluster about helmets why do we never hear anything about this driver? Were they arrested? Were they found to be negligent? James was not exactly hard to see - watching his Discovery documentary where he took part in the RAAM you could clearly see he wore a white jersey at several points, and his lights were the best in the business (Exposure). James was an experienced cyclist and for the life of me I cannot fathom that he personally could have done something to endanger himself.

The scary thing for me is how little he mentions improving conditions for cyclists and cycling here in the UK. This could be down to his recovery, it could be down to a single mindedness that he wishes to help others with his helmet message. If crashing is the big problem, why not do something to stop the crash? Promote cycle training for kids, actively get involved in a safe driving message, speak up for the fact that cyclists represent ONLY 2% of all road and traffic use in the UK.

We should also remember that cycle helmets are no where near a clear-cut scenerio for dealing with injury prevention. For one thing the Thompson and Rivarra study is STILL cited, despite the problems that even they acknowledged with the data. Then there is Dr Ian Walker's small study on driver proximity (finding that drivers sometimes come close to helmeted cyclists than bareheaded). This was largely backed up by the DFT's own findings on driver behaviour.

For every pro study there ends up being a reassessment and downgrading of the material. The researchers Erke and Elvik have even analised the Australian Effect on cycling and found that a) head injuries rose as a percentage of total cyclists and b) that cyclists were 14% more at risk after the law had been changed. Scary. The New Zealand situation is said to be even worse.

So for me, as a believer in pro choice and free information, I feel it a little sad that cyclists get singled out in this whole head injury debate. In some circles it is debated that alcohol could be involved in 65% of all head injury admissions to A&E, for example. Until we deal with the causes we will NEVER stop the result.

Climate Rush -"We're all going to die"

2011-07-19T14:07:00.000-07:00

Too much emphasis has been made by Governments and the media on co2 production. There are other issues with pollution involving air quality however that need serious attention. Carcinogens and particulates produced by motor vehicle use and fossil fuel power tend to cause all kinds of problems, even some illnesses and deaths (I should know, I'm asthmatic).

This video shows an interesting demonstration that took place in London. As a point in note - see how many Police you can see actively filming the demo.

I found this video HERE! An excellent cycling blog with a lot of analysis and information for committed cyclists.

Cuts!

2011-07-17T14:17:00.000-07:00

Cuts, cuts, cuts!
It’s all we ever hear.
They took away from the postal service,
Until it made us all very nervous!
Now they seek to privatise.

Cut, cut, cut...
Hack at the NHS!
Doesn’t matter how long you wait in a bed,
The outlook is a mess!
Now they sell to private buyers!

Chop, hack and chop!
The buses must run on time.
They sold this off a while ago I think you’ll find.
£20 to go two miles,
And it’s never on time.

Fill, please God FILL!
There’s a hole in the road.
It swallows up the bikes and cars,
Like a hungry beast it’s never full,
Your wallet gets thinner and your finances small!

Pay more! Get less!
That’s the moral I guess?
How much more can we cut?
And simply put...
A more sustainable economy is the way we should go.
Don’t you know?

Cyclist Runs Red Light, Nearly Kills Older Woman - The Bay Citizen

2011-07-16T12:07:00.000-07:00

Cyclist Runs Red Light, Nearly Kills Older Woman - The Bay Citizen

The above is an article from SanFran. It shows the risks to others that bad cycling can create and the damage it can do.

Interestingly there is an application that the publication has been using to track and monitor cycle accidents. Where, when and how. The conclusion the publication has made is that cyclist on pedestrian collision is rare.

Jens Voigt

2011-07-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

Jens Voigt is so hard he broke the Mountain today when he crashed!

Is cycling SCARY?!

2011-07-06T14:14:00.000-07:00

I find it strange how some people react. Their preconceptions pop out like the belly in my bibshorts. Many are looking for instant gratification, and when they don't see tits, kittens exploding or teenagers mauling themselves they have an outburst that a five year old would be proud of.

Take the above video as an example.

Its a parody of some of my close-calls, a video to redress the balance that what you often see in terms of cycling videos isn't the whole picture. In the description section I even included an explanation:

My take on an old classic.

So many people have said to me over the years "I wouldn't do what you do, you're mad! I'd be frightened to death!"The truth is there is VERY little to be afraid of when cycling. Yes you will get the odd tosser come too close in a car, but even then you're statistically very unlikely to be hit or injured. The CTC's Safety in Numbers research backs this up:
http://www.ctc.org.uk/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=5225
The benefits include saving a great deal of money, losing weight and fighting depression and stress according to some.

Anyone with half a braincell will have an inkling that its not a serious video from the full-screen "Boo!" that appears. Here are a selection of comments:

thats your own fault
you would be shouting and screaming if you and the car swapped place
making things up to suit your sad campaign

and...

I hope you die

Charming people.
The fact remains that campaigns represent problems that need to be addressed. It is often not indicative of something that happens all the time, sometimes it doesn't happen often at all. The questions that have to be asked are ones that represent risk assessment IN the event, ones that question how often and where, and then pose potentials that might help deal with them.

Cycling is statistically safe. People using the internet are statistically looking for tits, exploding kittens and guts.

Impetigo

2011-07-05T10:11:00.000-07:00

Well the Doctor has been unambiguous. I am not allowed to work in catering because I have impetigo. This is an infection of the skin that forms blisters and a rash, quite irritating. Though it has only really become itchy in the past 24 hours since I realised that moisturising was probably not a good idea.

I did initially think this was just an eczema outbreak, but it spread and changed shape and look.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Impetigo/Pages/Introduction.aspx

TODAY IS THE DAY - "The Descent"

2011-07-04T23:07:00.000-07:00

Time for something different! American progressive metal band, once touted as black metal by some mags. If you like it heavy, like it weird, like it different then give this band a try.

Commercial they ain't!

Ed Miliband These Strikes Are Wrong

2011-07-02T07:13:00.000-07:00

I give you - THE EDINATOR!!

Ed Milliband, robotic leader powered by Deep Blue has been upgraded from his tasks as chess player to full on stuck-record. The man is stuck in a fucking loop.

And no. The strikes are proportionate. People's lives are being affected, their futures damaged. Those that caused this whole fucking shambles - the bankers and the politicians, continue to keep their jobs, their salaries, their pensions. Yes Brown was stupid to wreck the private pensions schemes, that however is no reason to wreck more lives.

I see no "gold plated" pensions. I really don't. Not for teachers, not for bin men, not for admin staff on £6 per hour. Teachers work an average extra 20-30 hours a week unpaid (..well according to a teacher I know), the bin men do a job nobody wants to and with great health risks.

All we hear is "CUT THIS, CUT THAT!! CUT IT NOW!!"

Where are the proportionate cuts for those at the top in the public sector? How can we justify incomes of £70k and more for councillors? How can we justify bonuses for Trust Execs who are on £100k or more? How can we justify travel and food expenses for officials? How can we justify "company" cars when the salaries already cover this?

CHOP AT THE TOP!

I will not be voting Labour any time soon. They have now proven they are incapable of representing the people, the working class, the vulnerable, the frontline worker to the middle management, the small business operator. They have proven incapable of seeing real problems and voicing strong and level headed concerns. The Unions should withdraw all funding to the Labour Party, either look to form a new party or use that money to legally challenge the failings and the adverse changes.

In fact all three main parties have proven to fail the people. Who the hell do we vote for next time around to represent us?

The Meanings, Lost in the Sands of Time

2011-06-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

Have you ever sat down and asked yourself the question "why?"

Many of us talk about the rules of the road, the Highway Code but do many of us actually consider why certain rules are in place? Some indeed are explained, however rules such as 163 are not that in depth.

On a weekly basis I will google cycling related stories and came across the story of 44 year old Paul Brown. He had video'd a Police car overtaking and turning left immediately. This is known as the "left hook". Luckily, Brown was travelling relatively slowly, although in the video you can see a drop off in speed:

Even at a slow speed this kind of driving represents hazards for the cyclist:

- It obscures you from oncoming traffic
- It blocks your field of view of junctions
- It distracts the cyclist from the other hazards that may be present
- It may end up with the cyclist being hit should you misjudge

Is this really worthwhile for a seconds advantage in traffic? I think not. If anything it can lead to a situation where cyclists give up riding at the detriment to their health and the wider implications of congestion. It can lead to animosity. When a Police vehicle is involved it can lead to people not trusting them, or being less willing to contribute information to an investigation.

http://www.thisishullandeastriding.co.uk/police-cut-cyclist-uses-CCTV-capture-police/story-12843782-detail/story.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2008995/Cyclist-forced-slam-brakes-avoid-hit-police-car.html

Stuck in traffic angry driver throws profanity and punches

2011-06-25T14:10:00.000-07:00

You can't help but feel for this poor guy!

Cycling Survival 1 - How to cycle in the mountains - Climbing Technique

2011-06-25T09:05:00.000-07:00

A good video I've just found that could aid many a newer cyclist. Its sadly common to see a local cyclist struggling up a hill or over a bridge in the wrong gear and assuming its hard to ride hills.

To tame the hill you must first tame the bike. Prejudge the gears in advance and make sure you spin your legs! Don't struggle.

MaLaKala - Just a tune to listen to

2011-06-22T16:09:00.000-07:00

Sum muzik wot I wrot.

..as the kids say. Innit.

:-P

What would happen if Monty Python drank Meths?

2011-06-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

This. Strangely compelling viewing.

Dancing Artiodactyla gets Driving Licence from Cereal Box

2011-06-21T08:19:00.000-07:00

Some old hippo with tattoos parked up in front of me as I rode up the Itchen Bridge, managed to block not just the cycle lane but part of the road and bus stop too. I had to ride out into the main traffic lane and as I passed I said in her window: "Nice parkin' love!"
F*** me I thought she was going to have an epi. "F*** you, you c***!! I'll f***ing kill you.....!"

Hahaha! Must be hard to park when you're taking a call on your mobile.

20 seconds later she passed me again as I descended down the other side, leaning over her passenger (a small man who looked at me with "please help, she's going to rape the s*** out of me" eyes) and shouted some more about "I'll F***ing kill you c***....!"

Its quite hard to clap on the bike, so I just blew a kiss and laughed. Highlight of my day.

Cycling Clothing Tips - Dealing with Sweat

2011-06-20T13:42:00.000-07:00

Some cyclists may benefit from using the sports fabrics as used in Cycle jerseys (Foska, Specialised, Gore, Altura and Endura) as these can be great at wicking the sweat away from the body and are quick to dry.

Lycra sometimes has its place for the same reason. The crotch padding is also a comfort on the old ball-sack (there are ladies' versions, too). I find lycra leg gear also helps me cool down a little better on hot days too.

If you find your hands slipping on the bars then gloves can even help that.

Coping without Showers - Cycling to work tips!

2011-06-19T01:58:00.000-07:00

Often you will read the comments on a cycling story, or the letters that follow, as suggesting that people would like to cycle to work but feel put off by the lack of shower facilities.

It can indeed be uncomfortable to arrive at work sweaty and then to have to sit and work in it. However I would say that for journeys under 2 miles you shouldn't need to shower at all. In fact if you moderate your speed on the way in, ride gently, use the little ring at the front of the gears, and the bigger ring on the sprocket of the back wheel, you will most probably not sweat at all.

Cycling to work is not a race, go at your own comfortable pace.

So lets assume you're riding a slightly longer distance, 5 miles or more can get you a little damp. Or assuming you feel most comfortable riding at a slightly faster pace. Showers can indeed refresh you ready for work, but not every employer has space or money to provide them. I myself work at a site where showers were provided (due to it being a very large employer, around 8000 employees when I joined and 2000 students. Over the years this has dwindled to 4000 employees and over 3000 students accessing the site).

However a few years back the showers broke down, I bemoaned to a workmate about this. He turned to me and told me about his years in the army and about what I now call the "Army Wash" and anyone can do this!

The Army Wash simply needs a sink or a supply of water. It can even be a bottle of water. You can be aided by a flannel, but a towel and sink definitely help. The idea is that as soon as you arrive, strip off somewhere private and apply the water to your body (importantly: armpits, arms, face and neck) as soon as possible. Then towel off. This will reduce the chance of becoming smelly as the oils from your armpits will still be warm and wet, and the bacteria that usually feed off the bi products of exercise wont then have a chance to take hold and produce that nasty smell.

A second tip it simply - a change of clothes. Many people ride in lycra and cycle clothing because it is comfortable (padded shorts make slightly longer distances more bearable), it wicks away the sweat and reduces the chances of smells generating in the first place. There are no hard and fast rules that say you have to, but my personal recommendation is that if you cycle for 5 miles and more and find yourself doing it regularly then consider it as an option. You don't need to invest in expensive cycle specific clothing, as there are often cheaper options (Lidl and Aldi will do cycle/sports clothes on the cheap twice a year, check out the deals at the walking/outdoors and sports shops).

Radio 2 "winners" - you haven't won a f***ing Oscar!

2011-06-18T10:52:00.000-07:00

Geoff phones in to the Radio 2 Popmaster quiz. He chooses "Sounds of the 70s" over "High Alert", being born in the early 60 must surely give him an advantage. Surely?

"The year is 1974, what Percy Mayfield track did Suzi Quatro cover?"

"Dangerzone???"

"Noo.. sorry, it was 'Hit the Road Jack' but you've done well, 15 points!"

"Can I just thank my Mum, Dad, my mate Tim... all the lads down the Angsley Social Club.. Westmidlands Football Association for being such an inspiration.. the guys at work.."

An agonising 3 minutes later... Its only a Radio 2 phone in quiz for hell's sake!

;-P

Blogger going nuts

2011-06-15T14:46:00.000-07:00

Something appears to be wrong with the website. I apologise if I havent replied to comments or they havent appeared, there appears to be a bug with the Blogger system. Although I can post new blogposts I cannot leave comments - it sends me around in a circle from the comment box into the login page, back to the comment box to "verify", back to the login page again, then the comment box....

...pain in the arse!

People who deliberately walk on cyclepaths

2011-06-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

Hmm.. I had one this morning, she looked right and saw me approaching, then looked forward and saw two riders from the other direction. Putting her phone out and tapping away she made what I believe was a conscious decision to walk in the cyclepath into the path of the two other riders.

The other two riders frowned at her. No words were said, and she seemed to feign making a text message (I could see over her shoulder and it looked like the phone was off!)

However it was the way she grumbled when I passed her that made me laugh. All I said was "..cyclist! Coming on your lefthand side!"

Oo-er!

Drought..!

2011-06-13T08:58:00.000-07:00

The rainfall this weekend overflowed our 210 litre water butt. Heavy winds and heavy rain hammered the haughty little tub and filled up the remaining 50%. The other previous 50% that had been collected came from a weeks worth of washing up water and mild rainfall.

Usually this time of year is dry. However the past few years have cooled slightly during the summer and we've seen a little more rain. Summer rain in the south of the UK has always been heavy and continues to be so. It was no surprise this week to learn of the drought warnings issued for the East of the UK. There appears to now be just too many of us, and everyone still wants to wash the car and water the lawn.

The water butt is the only solution for that. The amount of rain that does fall on roofs and ends up down the drain is quite a lot over the course of a year, even with the prospect of climate change. I even read of a local Hampshire farmer who had placed drainage pipes and water butts on all of his out-buildings. He just couldn't afford to let his land go dry, crops need a LOT of water.

I have a theory. This is probably more of a hypothesis in fact. My old Grandparents used to tell me as a child of how they would live their lives. There were indeed less people, more resources and more predictable weather patterns, but the things that struck me were the things like throwing bath water on the lawn.

Perhaps this bath water went straight back into the local environment? Perhaps this local environment also had local cycles of water instead of being fed from the rivers and rain patterns that built up from a distance. Over the past 40-50 years we have progressively thrown all of our waste and used water down the drain, literally. That water then ended up in sewage treatment works before being pumped far out to sea.

I can't help wondering. Have we tampered with the water cycle and diluted that which ends up at sea a little too much?

I have bought a second 100 litre butt to use out front. It would be interesting to put on on every drain pipe coming off the roof as there are about 5 in total, and if one has filled in a week like this just think what 5 would bring for the drier weather.

Desalination is a scheme to take fresh, drinkable water from sea water. The scheme uses large vats and the water is heated (either by the sun or via electrical or gas heat). This is being touted as the solution to our drought problem, but it looks expensive and needs a fair bit of engineering.

Climate Change Conspiracy?

2011-06-11T13:31:00.000-07:00

How hard would it be to keep a secret the more people you have in on it?

I mean, come on. I'm a pretty sceptical guy, but to call the thousands of researchers and scientists involved in the fields of geology, weather, marine and other sciences liars or wrong is kind of pushing your luck, is it not. If you're going to pick holes in a theory then make sure you pick on the right targets.

Not as THIS guy does and moan about 2012 and asteroids.

Making cycling look "normal"

2011-06-07T13:59:00.000-07:00

Just posted this to a forum but will share this here:

Have often thought about the local barbers on my route in to work. Thesedays I cut my own hair, shave my head and thats that. When I did used to go I remember the table in the waiting area littered with lads mags. I also remember the Dentists and the GPs tables littered with "caravan news" or some other stupid publication that no one will be interested in.

Nothing wrong with caravans. But why would you read about them in a GP's waiting room..?

So it got me thinking. Cycling isnt seen as normal by young lads, by the people waiting for their BMI tests, etc. Perhaps we should all make an effort to donate those old cycling mags to anywhere with a waiting room such as this. Then, subconsciously, the image of the bike and the activity of cycling will become normalised with conventional everyday behaviour.

But why would anyone read about cycling in a Barbers, I wonder? Perhaps the t*ts will win out regardless. I have to confess even as a committed cyclist that t*ts do it for me everytime.

I also saw some outsider art on the telly at the weekend. The geezer "cleaned" dirty surfaces with a pressure washer and made recreations of Van Gogh, etc. Makes you wonder if a load of bicycle shapes could pop up in random roads in much the same way...

So. What little things could we do, legal things, to normalise cycling with the general public?

Deal or No Deal

2011-06-06T08:12:00.000-07:00

What a stupid game.

Everyone has a strategy, yet they seem to never understand what CHANCE means. No. Picking odd numbers do not mean you increase your odds. No. Picking birthdays don't either. Oh god, there's a blind old dodder on there now, for the "ahhh factor!"

"Happy thoughts!! Happy thoughts!! Positive energy!"

What like? DC? Or AC?

Oh christ, the girls just opened the box and picked 1p. Why are you fucking hugging and kissing her (get a room fer fucks sake!)? She didn't DO ANYTHING!! She just opened a bleedin' box!