Idiots on the A1

Artleknock wrote:
On Wed, 15 Aug 2007 07:57:01 -0700, jd
wrote:

On Aug 15, 11:45 am, Artleknock wrote:
Before I start a rant - I have been a cyclist all my life.
On Sunday morning the 5th I was driving down the A1 about a couple of
miles short of the first A1M after Scotch corner when I joined a long
tail back of traffic. On finaly reaching the hold up it was a bloke on
a bike, drop handle bars, crash hat, lycra budgie smugglers, the
works, riding on the carriageway!! A bit further on there was a
marshal at the next turn off. The idiots were doing time trials on a
major trunk road on the same day that all the holiday makers were
heading home from up north.
I couldn't help but giggle a bit when I saw the OPs posting
history . . .
http://tinyurl.com/38zul6

A complaint about congestion caused by cyclists.. coming from a
Caravan user

Yes the OP has a caravan, had it on that day and was done for speeding
on the same journey. I also spend weekends away in a tent. I do a lot
of hill walking and go away for cycling weekends.

Your point is?

The point is that you are stereotyped as someone who
causes lots of traffic jams on British roads, due to your
caravanning. Yet you complain about cyclists using a duel
carriage way on a Sunday morning, the least busiest time
of the (daylight) week.

If you do want to go away for cycling weekends, why not
cycle from home.
Or do you just cycle on off road facilities, and complain
about any cyclists in the road?

Artleknock wrote:
Before I start a rant - I have been a cyclist all my life.
On Sunday morning the 5th I was driving down the A1 about a couple of
miles short of the first A1M after Scotch corner when I joined a long
tail back of traffic. On finaly reaching the hold up it was a bloke on
a bike, drop handle bars, crash hat, lycra budgie smugglers, the
works, riding on the carriageway!! A bit further on there was a
marshal at the next turn off. The idiots were doing time trials on a
major trunk road on the same day that all the holiday makers were
heading home from up north.

I regularly ride on dual carriage way A roads. In fact I
commute to work on a dual carriage way. I have no choice
about this as my company is placed next to a dual carriage
way.

Do you object that I have to ride in the carriageway, or
do you expect me to get off and bow as you pass.

If you truly are a cyclist as you claim, why are you
ranting about cyclists legally using British roads.

"Martin Dann" wrote in message
...
Artleknock wrote:
Before I start a rant - I have been a cyclist all my life.
On Sunday morning the 5th I was driving down the A1 about a couple of
miles short of the first A1M after Scotch corner when I joined a long
tail back of traffic. On finaly reaching the hold up it was a bloke on
a bike, drop handle bars, crash hat, lycra budgie smugglers, the
works, riding on the carriageway!! A bit further on there was a
marshal at the next turn off. The idiots were doing time trials on a
major trunk road on the same day that all the holiday makers were
heading home from up north.

I regularly ride on dual carriage way A roads. In fact I commute to work
on a dual carriage way. I have no choice about this as my company is
placed next to a dual carriage way.

Do you object that I have to ride in the carriageway, or do you expect me
to get off and bow as you pass.

If you truly are a cyclist as you claim, why are you ranting about
cyclists legally using British roads.


I crawled along behind two cyclists on a narrow Devon lane recently. They
were the epitome of 'smug' - dressed in bloody silly lycra costumes with
daft pointed pixie helmets and wrap-around sunglasses as they slowly rode
two abreast up a hill, preventing anything from passing them.

The emanations of self-righteous 'greenness' coming from these two gaily
coloured carnival performers was almost overpowering! - and if someone
finally lost their temper and drove over them and their bloody bicycles it
would be hard to condemn them for their actions.


--
In Memoriam

http://www.drypool.net/cgi-bin/system.pl?id=nfflist

said the following on 15/08/2007 19:14:

Certainly not on the M5 through Devon and Cornwall,

The M5 barely touches Devon, and doesn't go anywhere near Cornwall :-)

on it at weekends in June/September than July/August any day. Got
badly held up on it travelling to Bristol Airport last year, a one
hour journey took 2.5 hours - no accidents, just volume of traffic.
Can't remember if it was a Saturday or a Sunday. Also got held up on
south of Bristol a few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon, again just
volume of traffic.

I used to commute from just east of Bristol to Weston-super-Mare, and I
can assure anyone that traffic on the M5 around that area during the
holidays was much worse. The mornings weren't usually too bad during
the week, but on Saturday and evenings it was an absolute nightmare to
get to/from work, often taking two hours to get home, sometimes three
(that was the scenic route over the Mendips!). Many of us formed the
opinion that holiday traffic should only be allowed on the roads outside
of commuter times, but not when we were on holiday ourselves :-)

Now I live in sunny WSM, so don't have that aggro any more, but judging
by the traffic reports the widened motorway doesn't seem to have helped
much, mainly because people don't seem to want to use the extra
left-hand lane up the hill!

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

Rola said the following on 15/08/2007 14:26:

Who in their right minds would go up north for a holiday?

Who in their right minds would go abroad for their holidays when there's
beautiful scenery up north?

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

jd said the following on 15/08/2007 15:57:

A complaint about congestion caused by cyclists.. coming from a
Caravan user

Jeez - that puts a different perspective on it! I deliberately avoided
mentioning caravans not observing the voluntary restrictions on using
the middle lane up and over the hill in my post just now about holiday
traffic on the M5 and thereby causing massive congestion from the M4/M5
junction right down to WSM, but now I wish I'd laid right in!

Caravans are welcome to use the motorways, of course. At any time
between 2am and 3am on the first Thursday of the month :-)

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

On Wed, 15 Aug 2007, Artleknock wrote:

Yes the OP has a caravan, had it on that day and was done for speeding
on the same journey. I also spend weekends away in a tent. I do a lot
of hill walking and go away for cycling weekends.

So, you were ranting about cyclists doing something perfectly legal,
but proceeded (on the same journey) to break the law.

And you call the _cyclists_ idiots?

Perhaps if there were more cyclists conducting time trials it would
help you stay within the legal speed limit.

regards, Ian Smith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

"I've lost my Dhobi Wallah!....." wrote in
:

I crawled along behind two cyclists on a narrow Devon lane recently.
They were the epitome of 'smug' - dressed in bloody silly lycra
costumes with daft pointed pixie helmets and wrap-around sunglasses
as they slowly rode two abreast up a hill, preventing anything from
passing them.

The emanations of self-righteous 'greenness' coming from these two
gaily coloured carnival performers was almost overpowering! - and if
someone finally lost their temper and drove over them and their bloody
bicycles it would be hard to condemn them for their actions.

As a motorist, caravanner, and cyclist:

I suspect that they were just protecting themselves from unsafe motorists
and you from yourself. This was a _narrow_ lane (your assertion), where I
suspect that defensive positioning is warranted. You need road width of at
least the width of your vehicle plus 1.6m (600mm for the cyclist's
handlebars + 1m safety clearance) to pass a cyclist in safety - and that's
if the cyclist is riding "in the gutter". If the cyclist is riding
correctly in the secondary riding position (approximately where your
nearside wheels would track), you're going to need a much wider road. Also,
it's dangerous to overtake approaching the brow of a hill.

Reading between your lines, and particularly your second paragraph, I
suspect that if you could have "squeezed past" you would have - even though
that would have been unsafe. So, IMO the cyclists' are completely
vindicated.

--
Geoff

I've lost my Dhobi Wallah!..... wrote:

I crawled along behind two cyclists on a narrow Devon lane recently. They
were the epitome of 'smug' - dressed in bloody silly lycra costumes with
daft pointed pixie helmets and wrap-around sunglasses as they slowly rode
two abreast up a hill, preventing anything from passing them.

The emanations of self-righteous 'greenness' coming from these two gaily
coloured carnival performers was almost overpowering! - and if someone
finally lost their temper and drove over them and their bloody bicycles it
would be hard to condemn them for their actions.


You sound just like the caravanner's best friend, Jeremy Clarkson.

Tony

On Thu, 16 Aug 2007 07:59:36 -0000 someone who may be Geoff Lane
wrote this:-

if
someone finally lost their temper and drove over them and their bloody
bicycles it would be hard to condemn them for their actions.

It is always interesting when the mask slips and the "poor
downtrodden motorist" is revealed in their true form.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54