9°C, windy.
Desperate for a break, this weekend will have to do.
Motorway cops- a documentary series on BBC television is easy watching. None of the sensational drama that seems to encourage crime as found on other channels. It did leave me with some questions.
One incident closed the motorway because of a multi-car crash. The front car driver said red car braked in front and then 4 more collided in a cascade. It was never established who caused it all, so no charges were filed. Breathalysers were used but no checks were made on mobile phones. Also, none of the following cars were prosecuted for tail-gating.
The most disturbing incident involved the death of a cyclist. The body was found on the busy, fast section of the A10, late at night with fast traffic still passing. Police spent time searching for alter and were interrupted by a phone call. Police went round to a mini driver’s house where a badly damaged car was parked. The wind-screen was broken on the near-side and the driver thought she had hit an animal. When told of the death of a man, she collapsed and threw up.
Back at the accident scene, was the body dressed in dark clothes, a mangled bike with no lights or reflectors. The victim was also very drunk.

I felt rather sorry for the mini driver. She will have to come to terms with killing someone, which was in no way, her fault.
A troubling programme. She was breathalized, a standard procedure. But why are mobile phones not checked as standard procedure? Distraction would explain at least 3 of the unexplained accidents, and phone companies hold those records.
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Monthly Archives: Nov 2013
Counting games.
6°C, clear,still.
Commuting is mostly dull. So, I pass the time standing in traffic making up counting games. Today, I counted the cars driving with only one headlight. Coming back from Walsall, there were 14 seen in the first 3 miles. Then, only one more in the remaining 7. Does that mean Walsall drivers are 14 times more likely to drive a faulty car? It’s not because they are poor, headlight bulbs are only £5 each, and easy to fit.
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Asteri 3, 1st use.
2°C, cold but dry.
The new lights are very impressive but maybe not quite enough on its own. I shall definitely buy a supplementary lamp now, to fill in. The old, halogen 2x 10W set are noticeably yellow and dull at the end of the hour’s ride. I feel encouraged to upgrade the remaining red lights too.
Maybe as a result of the source light’s small size, it really picks out rubbish in hedgerows as I ride along. Foil wrappers and tins shine like mini lights, probably more clearly than in the day. Mind you, English hedgerows are hold a lot of rubbish, mostly thrown from cars I presume. Hedges capture wind-blown jetsam too.
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ASTERI 3, many photons.
11°C,dull.
How should I review a bike lamp? The first rule has to be – no clichés.
It’s small, like a fat cigar, but as bright as 25-30 watts of halogen lamps. Compared to my current light set, it has further reach but is much whiter, almost blue. That makes comparison tricky. The only real test must be on an unlit road at speed.
I shall use it together with the old lights until I am confident of its burn-time. The online reviews criticise it for the lack of side spread illumination. If it works well, then the old, heavy lights will get packed away. Then I will pick up a new secondary light.
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ISON- a glimpse from England.
2°C,still, clear.
Barely visible– even in 8×40 binoculars. Scan just up and right of Spica in Virgo, immediately before sunrise; in my case- 05.50.
It was only a fleeting glimpse, with eyes slightly averted. Just a smudge.
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Weekend’s ambitions.
9°C, clear and still.
Extended 18 miles after work, the lights held with no fade. There is some encouragement to add more. Next week, add another 5 miles. I may get brighter secondary lights this weekend anyway.
It’s Tuesday, and all I can think of is how to use the coming weekend. Repair the lock-up door, paint it; get that bike light. Nothing fantastic.

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Snowdon Bomber.
14°C, heavy rain, earlier.
Drive home often includes thinking of supper. Tonight, I thought about cheese. Actually, one cheese in particular, Snowdon Bomber. It comes in a black wax cylinder to protect its freshness. It works, there is a gorgeous milky texture but a strong cheddar taste. I eat this stuff and gasp at its loveliness.
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Be more happier!
9C, light wind,rain till hometime.
CA-16 miles.
Dark lanes route. Started with an amusing incident. Crossing a junction, the car opposite pulled forward at the same time. But, he turned right, in front of me. I called out “Indicate!” then as he drove away, shouted “YOU SHOULD BE MORE HAPPIER!”.
I was more happier until I met a dangerous driver.
This ride was in question all afternoon, the heavy rain seemed non-stop. It cleared in time, so I took the 16 mile lane route. Even with wet, black roads, the visibility was good enough.
It seems that these lights are holding their charge better as the week wore on. Could it be that the training period that new batteries need should be done with batteries that have been left in storage all summer?
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Dark.
6~14ºC, clear, no wind. CA:22 miles.
Do you tell-off drivers who take pointless risks. I do. Today, two were texting as they drove. And another had a spiral notebook on the steering wheel which she wrote in as she drove along. I shouted at that one. PUT it down! … then…Thankyou!
Ever the teacher…

Teaching kids: a bunch of year 9 kids about storage media in today’s Computing class. We talked of durability and ways they can get damaged. One way that they didn’t anticipate was DVDs can be spoiled by bright sunlight, especially the recordable ones. So, I told them it would be fine if you put them where the sun doesn’t shine. I didn’t mean to!
Some got it and felt the need to explain to the rest.
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Dark, single-track lanes.
11ºC,cold, dry and clear.
First ride though those narrow lanes I have explored recently. It felt like a test, to find out whether view are safe in the dark. Tonight, they were. As long as there is no ice or slippery mud, then it should work well enough.
It’s great to see so little traffic.

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