Cyclists need not apply

Pompous

Hello After Hours. Sit down and I shall tell ye a tale of my woes

I am in my second year of a Fetac lvl 6 course. I cycle 10km each way every day to get to and from college. I have done so for the last 14 months, through wind and rain hail.

My college has:

1. No showers
2. No lockers or storage of any kind
3. No changing rooms

I arrive in the mornings, get changed in a cubicle in the toilets, put my wet cycling gear on a radiator, and stash my dry gear in a utility closet.

Today I noticed, near the end of the day, that my cycling gear was missing from the radiator. After a short investigation, I discovered the vice-principal removed it, put it in a black bag, and left it with the porters.

I retrieved it from the porters and the vice-principal (and principal) told me I can no longer dry my cycling gear/runners on any radiator in the entire college.

I asked the vice-principal what I should do, to which she replied "Buy rain gear", with surprising hostility, and stormed off. I was just amazed by the entire situation, so I laughed and said "This is ****ing ridiculous" with a genuine smile on my face, to nobody in particular.

The principal brought me to her office, called back the vice principal, and forced me to apologise for using derogatory language in the general vicinity of the vice-principal. Then that was it. The topic was closed for discussion since I had used a bad word and needed to be berated like a twelve year old boy.

Granted, I should not have cursed. That was my mistake. I just find it a bit odd that they would make such a nonsense decision that affects only one student (on the wettest day of the year ).

So now my college has:

1. No showers
2. No lockers or storage of any kind
3. No changing rooms
4. Nowhere to dry your cycling gear

Sheep Lover

Good enough for you cycling types, if I was the Principal I'd make you carry around your 19th century play thing all day as well.

Buona Fortuna

Quite a long moany post - Do you know Joan Burton?

You'll probably get a bit of mutual in the cycling forum.

Hold the Cheez Whiz

Why would you just presume that you could leave your gear just lying around? You're lucky they bundled it up for you rather than someone nicking it.

AgileMyth

Go to a real college?

Grayson

Hold the Cheez Whiz wrote: »

Why would you just presume that you could leave your gear just lying around? You're lucky they bundled it up for you rather than someone nicking it.

Or just chucking it in the bin.

biko

Probably broke a red light on the way there too.










jk

Hazys

Just wear spandex suits only in the college all day every day...that'll learn them

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwRJ5IoKTmg

Ruu

You're stinking up the whole college for feck sake! :mad::mad::mad:

Arsemageddon

OP user name is very apt.

The Backwards Man

I wanted to ride my horse to college but there were no stables, hay, or water troughs provided.

So you what I did?

I shot the bastard.

Badly Drunk Boy

Sheep Lover wrote: »

Good enough for you cycling types, if I was the Principal I'd make you carry around your 19th century play thing all day as well.

Just because we're not all fancy enough to have sheep to transport us around?

cloud493

What kind of fetac college has showers or changing rooms in it? In my fetac college we have a small place to smoke and a vending machine.

Akrasia

Most workplaces and colleges don't have shower and washing/drying facilities for cyclists. If you are using a bike as your main transport method, you need to buy waterproof clothes that don't need to be dried on a radiator for the whole day.

I cycled about 8 km to secondary school each way for about 6 years regardless of the weather and I wore a coat when it was raining, and waterproof over trowsers for when it was really wet.

You're going to have a difficult life if you can't even figure out how to solve this little predicament

lazybones32

It's a good thing that human skin is waterproof, isn't it?









No sympathy from me...

The One Doctor

Buy waterproofs, OP. Expecting facilities to cater for your personal transport arrangements is a bit ridiculous. And cycling gear that's drying out smells manky.

marcbrophy

OP has to be a troll. No would would announce themselves as a cyclist in AH!

Sorry pal, just kidding

dont bother

i generally hate cyclists when trying to walk and they come up on the path and all that sort of thing, BUT, i hate these college professionals even more.

you're not a child, and these people prey on students who say "yes sir no sir three bags full sir" to them. they want to treat you like children. DONT LET THEM.

just simply, without any argument, continue to dry your clothes on the radiator and if it results in one of them collaring you, then, and only then, do you just simply REFUSE to attend the principals office.

it's not secondary or primary school, it's college. yes, there may be school rules, but if you want to be treated like an adult, then act like one, and do things like that on the sly.

uuugh these college pro's wreck my t!ts and it's a long while since i was in college!

valderrama1

Just buy a cheap car OP, problem solved. 10 or 12 year old ford fiesta or nissan micra, 500 quid.
10k in the rain isn't fun and it's not like the rain is going to stop any time soon..
Waste of time arguing with the principal...

Caliden

valderrama1 wrote: »

Just buy a cheap car OP, problem solved. 10 or 12 year old ford fiesta or nissan micra, 500 quid.
10k in the rain isn't fun and it's not like the rain is going to stop any time soon..
Waste of time arguing with the principal...

You need to insure, nct, tax and pay for fuel. The cost of a car is the cheapest part of motoring.

somefeen

How fecking old are you that your getting called into a principals office?

The One Doctor

The One Doctor wrote: »

Expecting facilities to cater for your personal transport arrangements is a bit ridiculous.

What, like a car park?

Bacchus

Deleted User wrote: »

What, like a car park?

Cycling equivalent of that would be a bike rack. OP never mentioned there was no bike rack.

Shower facilities, changing rooms, etc are nice to have but it's not like the college lied to the OP about the facilities. The college don't want the OP's smelly, wet cycling gear lying around anymore and it was probably highlighted recently by staff as there have been a lot of wet days lately.

VickieVexed

Become a naturist. No clothes = no wet clothes. Problem solved!

FloatingVoter

Cyclists are boring nutters who hug trees and think they're superior. Walk, buy a raincoat. Public bathrooms are not private property otherwise my brothel in Copperfaced Jacks would not have come to such an ignominious end. Charging for something that was already available for free......the cheek of them.

Bacchus

VickieVexed wrote: »

Become a naturist. No clothes = no wet clothes. Problem solved!

The problem was the OP leaving wet gear out to dry... how do you think the college will feeling about leaving... himself out to dry.

cloud493

Bacchus wrote: »

The problem was the OP leaving wet gear out to dry... how do you think the college will feeling about leaving... himself out to dry.

They'd admire his courage and join in?

jam_mac_jam

You dry out your sweaty smelly cycle clothes on a radiator and you see no problem with this. How disgusting. I would have thrown it in the bin

dont bother

dont bother wrote: »

it's not secondary or primary school, it's college.

There is a good chance it is a secondary school as lots of secondary schools run fetac courses.

That said if it was a secondary school I'd be very surprised if they didnt have shower and changing facilities for after matches/PE etc.

valderrama1

Caliden wrote: »

You need to insure, nct, tax and pay for fuel. The cost of a car is the cheapest part of motoring.

Yes but he's going to have to get a car at some point in life. It depends on his situation but it needn't cost the earth. He's currently cycling 20km a day (10 there and 10 back)... not a good situation.

valderrama1

valderrama1 wrote: »

Yes but he's going to have to get a car at some point in life. It depends on his situation but it needn't cost the earth. He's currently cycling 20km a day (10 there and 10 back)... not a good situation.

Regular exercise. Oh my god, the horror!

10 k isn't that far on a bike. At a leisurely pace no more strenuous than walking it would take about 30 min.

If this 10 k is in city traffic theres a good chance that the bike is significantly faster.

But get raingear OP. Cycling through the winter months without it will be misery.

There's a saying among cyclists ; there's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.

Chinasea

I agree with OP. You do realise that cyclists are demonised and hated in this polluted car is king country.

Suggest fund-raising and or contact local authority to see if funding available.

Proaction is your only hope.

anncoates

It certainly ranks up there with apartheid, US civil rights and the holocaust.

Tail Docker

Buy a tumble-dryer and bring it in with you on your back every day. Ta-dah, no more wet clothes on radiators. Problem solved.

One eyed Jack

Pompous wrote: »

I asked the vice-principal what I should do, to which she replied "Buy rain gear", with surprising hostility, and stormed off. I was just amazed by the entire situation, so I laughed and said "This is ****ing ridiculous" with a genuine smile on my face, to nobody in particular.

The principal brought me to her office, called back the vice principal, and forced me to apologise for using derogatory language in the general vicinity of the vice-principal. Then that was it. The topic was closed for discussion since I had used a bad word and needed to be berated like a twelve year old boy.

Behave like a 12 year old boy, and it shouldn't come as a surprise to you that you'll be treated like a 12 year old boy.

So now my college has:

1. No showers
2. No lockers or storage of any kind
3. No changing rooms
4. Nowhere to dry your cycling gear

5. No sympathy for adults who behave like children.

masculinist

get one of these camping showers OP

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Guide-Series-Camp-Shower-by-Gander-Mountain-/251709491561?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a9b0e0969

set it up in the jacks and hook it up to a hot water tap.

when you are done, pack it away. Hang your clothes and towel to dry on your bicycle. You can even adapt a clothes dryer to bolt onto your bike when its stationary and lock it all so it cant be robbed. I presume you at least have a sheltered bike rack to park in ?

Arsemageddon

Tail Docker wrote: »

Buy a tumble-dryer and bring it in with you on your back every day. Ta-dah, no more wet clothes on radiators. Problem solved.

....... or he could cycle in to college naked every day.

Canis Lupus

Raingear on a bike for a trip over 5k is pointless from the perspective of keeping dry. You end up a ball of sweat.

It's a shame op but depending on the location of the radiator it's a bit gross to have a cycling gear sauna smell from your evaporating clothes.. Maybe it's time to give up the bike for the winter months.

Tail Docker

Arsemageddon wrote: »

....... or he could cycle in to college naked every day.

That's just silly.

Bacchus

Bacchus wrote: »

Cycling equivalent of that would be a bike rack. OP never mentioned there was no bike rack.

Shower facilities, changing rooms, etc are nice to have but it's not like the college lied to the OP about the facilities. The college don't want the OP's smelly, wet cycling gear lying around anymore and it was probably highlighted recently by staff as there have been a lot of wet days lately.

A car park is a facility which caters for someones personal mode of transport.

Hunterbiker

Cant you have a sneaky word with the porters and ask for a place to stash your gear when its been raining?
also Muc-off sell a no water soap called Dry Shower use that to keep smelling sweet.
(1st World) problem solved!

If you were looking for a more sympathetic ear forum number 410 is the place to go...

Pinch Flat

Canis Lupus wrote: »

It's like I've been transported to Facebook.

Interesting.

Op I cycled a 40km round trip in similar circumstances up to a few months back. Now in a new job without a shower travelling 26km round trip per day. Getting changed in the toilet - no issue there but you have to be considerate about where you set your gear.

Wet weather gear is an absolute must as well as a change of clothes. You'll get some gear cheap in lidl / Aldi which is perfectly suited to commuting. Think of layering - plenty of base layers that you can carry as spare.

For your bike fit mud guards - will keep a lot of road spray off you and overshoes to keep feet dry.

There's plenty of us commute short to long distances on the cycling forum - come over of you want some constructive answers / suggestions.

MarkY91

why dont you take her advice and buy rain gear :S? take them off and put them in a plastic bag and then into your school bag. problem solved

endacl

MarkY91 wrote: »

why dont you take her advice and buy rain gear :S? take them off and put them in a plastic bag and then into your school bag. problem solved

New problem. Rain gear + reasonable distance commute = Betty Swollocks.

Wet either way.

ted1

The One Doctor wrote: »

Buy waterproofs, OP. Expecting facilities to cater for your personal transport arrangements is a bit ridiculous. And cycling gear that's drying out smells manky.

If they provide parking spaces they should provide cycling facilities.

OP do thry provide parking spaces? Renting one or two out to a local Buisness would cover the costs

ted1

Bacchus wrote: »

Cycling equivalent of that would be a bike rack.

No it's not, you can park 20 bikes in one car park space. A car park soace in town could be rented out for a couple of K a year . A bike space couldn't

DEFTLEFTHAND

I was a rough day for them today alright, like drowned rats some of them were. Also witnessed a few drivers laying on the horn big time, a van in front of me was blowing them out of it altogether.

padd b1975

Is it an engineering course you're doing at this pretend college?

Maybe you could design some sort of parosol/umbrella type contraption?

CrazyRabbit

Here is a genuine solution for you:

http://youtu.be/DZrjXSsfxMQ

Cookie_Monster

It should be a legal requirement for all businesses and education facilities to provide showers, locker and changing facilities. Not just for cyclist but for anyone who is actively commuting to work / school.

UCDVet

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

It should be a legal requirement for all businesses and education facilities to provide showers, locker and changing facilities. Not just for cyclist but for anyone who is actively commuting to work / school.

Why not make them provide breakfast too? Don't people need to eat as well?