Tell us about your new improved government regulations compliant cycle part II

silverharp

I had a bit of a scare yesterday evening coming home, guy turning onto a main road from a smaller road, I don’t know for sure but I sense was he hadn’t seen me til last second as he just seemed to be rolling out on to the road, if he did see me he had the driving civility of a boll0x. So the question is about front lights? I have a standard flashing white light. Do I need an upgrade? Something that can be seen better from an offset angle?

Alanstrainor

silverharp wrote: »

I had a bit of a scare yesterday evening coming home, guy turning onto a main road from a smaller road, I don’t know for sure but I sense was he hadn’t seen me til last second as he just seemed to be rolling out on to the road, if he did see me he had the driving civility of a boll0x. So the question is about front lights? I have a standard flashing white light. Do I need an upgrade? Something that can be seen better from an offset angle?

Hard to say. There's a lot of variation in lights out there, from the very cheap and dim, to the extremely bright end and everything in between. I find having one flashing and one constant is the best way to go. That doesn't mean everyone will see you though.

Tell me how

silverharp wrote: »

I had a bit of a scare yesterday evening coming home, guy turning onto a main road from a smaller road, I don’t know for sure but I sense was he hadn’t seen me til last second as he just seemed to be rolling out on to the road, if he did see me he had the driving civility of a boll0x. So the question is about front lights? I have a standard flashing white light. Do I need an upgrade? Something that can be seen better from an offset angle?

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Hard to say. There's a lot of variation in lights out there, from the very cheap and dim, to the extremely bright end and everything in between. I find having one flashing and one constant is the best way to go. That doesn't mean everyone will see you though.

These posts are eerily relevant.

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

It was still daylight (before 5) and I had flashing LED light on front (and rear) but driver said they never saw me.

secman

Thankfully you have no serious injuries, bike can always be replaced.

dahat

Tell me how wrote: »

These posts are eerily relevant.

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

It was still daylight (before 5) and I had flashing LED light on front (and rear) but driver said they never saw me.

You can have all the lights in the world but you can't legislate for careless driving.

rushfan

Tell me how wrote:

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

Best of luck with the recovery.

LollipopJimmy

Tell me how wrote: »

These posts are eerily relevant.

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

It was still daylight (before 5) and I had flashing LED light on front (and rear) but driver said they never saw me.

Sorry to hear that. Hopefully sorted soon

Eamonnator

[QUOTE by Tell me how

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

It was still daylight (before 5) and I had flashing LED light on front (and rear) but driver said they never saw me.[/QUOTE]

I trust this matter has been reported to the Gardai and is being investigated by them.
Lighting up time yesterday evening in Dublin was about 17.10

Tell me how

Eamonnator wrote: »

I trust this matter has been reported to the Gardai and is being investigated by them.
Lighting up time yesterday evening in Dublin was about 17.10

Yes. They attended. Bike was on the side of the road with lights still flashing front and back when they were there. They then asked me when I was making my statement if I had lights on the bike :eek:.

Driver was fine. Shocked mostly. Initially blamed me but then accepted responsibility. This was more a be thankful it wasn't worse thing than a serious incident.

LollipopJimmy

Tell me how wrote: »

Yes. They attended. Bike was on the side of the road with lights still flashing front and back when they were there. They then asked me when I was making my statement if I had lights on the bike :eek:.

Driver was fine. Shocked mostly. Initially blamed me but then accepted responsibility. This was more a be thankful it wasn't worse thing than a serious incident.

I've just been through this and the the process was painless, it actually took longer for the cheque to clear in my account than it took for the insurance company to investigate and pay.

sy_flembeck

Tell me how wrote: »

Yes. They attended. Bike was on the side of the road with lights still flashing front and back when they were there. They then asked me when I was making my statement if I had lights on the bike :eek:.

Bizarre though it obviously sounded, that's actually a pertinent question to ask. Your statement will be read by other people who didn't attend so that has to be in there. The reason they ask is that the statement has to be literally in your words.

Believe it or not if your car was stolen, for example, they have to ask you whether you gave anyone permission to take it!

tampopo

I did this last month. Two weeks ago.

https://walkride-cycling.info/hakone-hc/

Short film at the top of the page, 30 seconds.

90 minutes of last year's race at the bottom of the page. Includes several minutes at the start.

Gerry

Had an eventful commute this morning, along the n4 past the first Lucan flyover, and heading towards woodies. Car came up behind me and laid on the horn. I presumed it was a taxi driver, not a huge surprise, but it was a guard.. they were very rude and abusive and told me to get into the bike lane, I said it was legal to cycle in the bus lane but they were having none of it.. said to get into the bike lane or get a ticket. I'm pretty sure legally I don't have to use that bike lane. It's a footpath which is covered in bumps, leaves and other crap from the road, and after the straight section it turns into a disaster that crosses the road and dumps you onto blind intersections.
Next time get a bell on the bike and ask for the ticket then go to court? To be honest it was the attitude of the guard that got at me as much as anything.

Alanstrainor

Tell me how wrote: »

These posts are eerily relevant.

It's my turn to post about a bad experience. A car pulled on to the roundabout I was going through yesterday and hit me. Spent the night in A&E. Literally. 12 hours . Nothing broken thankfully but walking with crutches now to aid sore hip area now. Immediate damage on bike seems to be limited to wheel/rear cassette as car drove over it but haven't analysed yet.

It was still daylight (before 5) and I had flashing LED light on front (and rear) but driver said they never saw me.

Take it easy for the next while anyway, it can take a while for injuries to manifest after a smash like that. But good to hear there's nothing broken at very least!

Eamonnator

Gerry wrote: »

Had an eventful commute this morning, along the n4 past the first Lucan flyover, and heading towards woodies. Car came up behind me and laid on the horn. I presumed it was a taxi driver, not a huge surprise, but it was a guard.. they were very rude and abusive and told me to get into the bike lane, I said it was legal to cycle in the bus lane but they were having none of it.. said to get into the bike lane or get a ticket. I'm pretty sure legally I don't have to use that bike lane. It's a footpath which is covered in bumps, leaves and other crap from the road, and after the straight section it turns into a disaster that crosses the road and dumps you onto blind intersections.
Next time get a bell on the bike and ask for the ticket then go to court? To be honest it was the attitude of the guard that got at me as much as anything.

What was the Garda going to give you the ticket for?
It is legal to cycle in the cycle/bus lane, so he couldn't ticket you for that. Not having a bell on your bike is not an offence for which you can get a fine on the spot. The garda would have to summons you for that to appear in court.

LollipopJimmy

I left Leeson St yesterday evening and headed out and over Howth Head and back to D8. It was feckin freezing but loving the new bike, however when track standing on the Scott my foot never touched the wheel but it can do on the Look

mloc123

LollipopJimmy wrote: »

I left Leeson St yesterday evening and headed out and over Howth Head and back to D8. It was feckin freezing but loving the new bike, however when track standing on the Scott my foot never touched the wheel but it can do on the Look

The curse of modern compact frames..

Alanstrainor

Had my first flat tyre in a very long time on my commute home yesterday evening. It was a very slow puncture and noticed it at some point coming up towards Baldoyle on the cycle track. I was almost glad it happened then and not yesterday morning, or the evening before as at least it was dry and calm. I didn't take me too long to get a new tube in. I had only been looking at my rear GP4000 and thinking it was looking well worn with a more defined flat section worn into it. Just order a replacement, I reckon it's been on for 8000 or so. Not bad going.

magicbastarder

nice morning for it this morning, but the roads were very mucky.

dahat

Had a glorious 3hrs solo yesterday with my standard Sat coffee top in Cahir. A nice steady z2 /low z3 heart rate.
On this route there is a boxer that gives a pretty good chase but I'm considering ringing animal welfare as it will cause an issue for a less aware cyclist someday.

Club spin today with what was messy roads but a good day until 7k from home when I had to hide in a ditch due to a very heavy hailstorm.

109km at 29.5 avg with some up n overs for 10k or so to liven up the spin at the end for those who held on!

Gerry

Eamonnator wrote: »

What was the Garda going to give you the ticket for?
It is legal to cycle in the cycle/bus lane, so he couldn't ticket you for that. Not having a bell on your bike is not an offence for which you can get a fine on the spot. The garda would have to summons you for that to appear in court.

Yeah I wasn't sure at that moment as apparently this law has gone back and forth on mandatory use. But next time I'll be asking for the ticket yes.

silverharp

i didnt know about the bell, seems like something that guards can have up their sleeve if they want to act the b0llox

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/cycling_offences.html

Under the Road Traffic (Construction, Equipment and Use of Vehicles) Regulations 1963 a bicycle used in a public place must be fitted with a bell capable of being heard at a reasonable distance. It must also be equipped with brakes, one for the front wheel and another for the rear wheel.

Eamonnator

silverharp wrote: »

i didnt know about the bell, seems like something that guards can have up their sleeve if they want to act the b0llox

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/cycling_offences.html

It's not black and white, there are exceptions to the bell rule.
If I remember correctly, if you're on a race bike, cycling to compete in a race, you're exempt.

godtabh

100km for the first time in over a year. Getting my **** together hopefully

LollipopJimmy

Nothing out of the ordinary, just my usual commute but I forgot to remove my groin guard after training. Only noticed as I left the gym and stripping naked on the Naas Road wasn't an option. Bit sore now

Alanstrainor

I was about 6km into my commute this morning and I was crossing the train tracks in Baldoyle and suddenly; BANG. My rear tyre exploded in fantastic fashion. My GP4000IIs was torn from it, a gash a couple of inches long. B*llocks, I was a bit stranded, not half way to work, but a long walk from home. Thought of sticking a tube in it and crossing my fingers but a bus happened to be due and I asked the bus driver whether he'd be able to give me a lift with the bike! He said absolutely, but if there was someone with a pram then I was off. Made it home anyway, and as if by some sign from some almighty being I had only just ordered a new GP4000II on Thurs, fingers crossed it arrives today!

Internet Friend

Had to throw out a GP4000s II on Saturday myself. Noticed a large bulge in the tyre wall that was rubbing off the frame. Had a look at it and there was a nice 1.5cm gash in it. Decided it wasn't worth the risk. Anyway, threw an old gatorskin on for now (new GP on the way) and did 45km with my brother and a mate yesterday, was a lovely morning for it.

WMP

Internet Friend wrote: »

Had to throw out a GP4000s II on Saturday myself.

Two failed GP4000s II. I love the GP4000s but many people think that II's are not as heard wearing as the originals.

Do you lads think that also?

I got a tear in one after a few hundred kms. I did hit a pot hole going fast but I do wonder if the originals would have stood up to it. I used them for years without one compliant.

Mercian Pro

As posted here before, I really don't think that the very marginal gains in responsiveness balance the relatively high risk of sidewall damage with GP4000's. I've switched to Rubino Pro's on my good bike and GP4Seasons on my commuter and won't be going back to 4000's any time soon.

Eamonnator

The Continental Grand Prix 4000 IIs are being replaced shortly.
So you won't have to worry about them for much longer.