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Angry in the letters page.

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A letter to my local paper:

“Whilst I can sympathise with letter writer Michael Swann’s plea for cars (#1a) to consider cyclists when they are coming out of side roads, can I ask him and other cyclists to also take some responsibility when they are on the road?

Several issues spring to mind but my main frustration is the fact that extremely few cyclists have mirrors on their handlebars. Years ago, a cyclist would not think of going on the road without one on either side.

How else can you see when you are contemplating moving out? #2

The responsibility for taking care in is situation appears to rest solely on the shoulders of the car driver.

Another annoyance are those cyclists that ride on a main road when there are clearly marked cycle paths next to the road. This frequently happens on the coastal road travelling toward the Formby Bypass. #3

Can I also ask the many cyclists who go straight through red lights to please follow the Highway Code? It applies to you too! #4

Catherine Marland, Southport

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#1a: cars don’t think.

#1/ I am old enough to remember kids proudly riding Raleigh Choppers which actually did come with 2 handlebar mirrors. They were trying to look like motorbikes. Nobody else used mirrors on a bike, there was never a time when mirrors were the norm for cyclists.

Personally, I’d never trust the narrow view from such a tiny porthole that a bike mirror provides. I don’t use a mirror because I value my safety.

#2: For those few who don’t know, mirrors are rarely fitted because there is a far more effective method – look over your shoulder! I can’t tell why Catherine didn’t think of that.

Most of us have a neck with 12 vertebrae which is a biological feature that allows us to turn our heads.

#3 that particular track is very narrow and lumpy there is no passing space for incoming bikes. Imagine driving on a single-track lane but without any passing spaces!

#4 just like car drivers always do?

I never jump red lights but there are many who assume we all do. Those assumptions are wrong.

You specify cyclist who go straight through red lights; presumably you accept those who turn left on a red light (as done legally in the USA).

Mobile phone.

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I’ve come back from my hiking trip in Scotland annoyed with my phone. I have an old 3G Samsung Mini 3III.

There are two main problems:

1/ the screen is unreadable in summer sunshine,

2/ sometimes, the notification sounds and switches on the screen. Sometimes, it does this every 4 seconds, sometimes even when the phone is switched off. Doing that, the battery is used up in just a few hours even when the phone is left on flight mode.

While I was away, the phone used half the monthly data on Google Services. That’s presumably some kind of software update. It did this while on flight mode with synch switched off.

This phone is about 4 years old, so it may be time to replace it. The criteria for choosing a phone has changed since:

  1. brighter screen,
  2. Longer battery life
  3. Bigger screen
  4. Better camera
  5. More RAM
  6. 4G.

The solution could be: a Motorola G6.

  • Double battery life,
  • 3Gb RAM,
  • 32Gb internal storage,
  • 13Mp camera
  • MiniSD slot,
  • No bloatware,
  • I don’t know how bright the screen will be. This is a serious concern; often, I can’t use my phone in bright sunlight.

Next bit, pick a contract. Either get another SIM only contract and buy the phone. The other choice is a monthly contract that dovers the cost of the phone. Initially, I decided on the latter. Once I went through the registration, it was revealed that I’d have to pay more because I’m not a new customer. This is annoying because that penalises me for customer loyalty. At that point, I backed out and left the shop empty handed.

Fat Bike on the beach.

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20°C grey start, humid and warm.

I rode a Trek fat bike with MapMyRide+! Distance: 34.76km, time: 02:16:58, pace: 3:56min/km, speed: 15.23km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/3037169839

The idea of tbe ride on this bike was to look for a shipwreck on Ainsdale beach. I saw it from tbe dunes last winter. As I rode, my eyes scanned the sandbanks, but nothing. Either the sands have moved or we need a neap tide to reveal it.

Nevermind my boy, it was still a good ride. Despite the front suspension, my wrists were sore. My riding losition was too upright with too much weight on my hands. On the road, the handling was odd, mainly because of the heavy tyres. Those tyres caused another effect, strange forces pushed tbrough the bars at higher speeds. Probably a gyroscope effect with those heavy flywheels spinning. Most noticeable on corners or road camber, most odd. This bike has SRAM hydralic disc brakes and they’re amazing, perhaps a little sharp, but very stong on descents.

By lunchtime, I’d reached home and wasshed the salt off with a hosepipe. To return, I took the canal. This was interesting because of the comparison with the same familiar journey on the cross bike. Although the huge tyres cushioed over bumps and troughs, the precision tracking on a cyclo-cross bike is preferable in my view.

If I were to buy a fat bike, I might skip the front suspension as unnecessary. More likely, I wouldn’t buy one at all, it’s cheaper in practice to rent one from Leisurelakes; this only cost £15 for the day. How many days would I need to rent before it’s better to buy? No longer in the market to buy, I may rent one again, but frankly, I’m in no hurry.

Return commute on empty legs.

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26°C, full sun, light wind.

I rode home with MapMyRide+! Distance: 27.84km, time: 01:19:25, pace: 2:51min/km, speed: 21.03km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2995465684

Tired, but I know why. Sunday’s walk was 6,000 calories, and Tuesday’s was 8,800 calories. Wednesday wasn’t much but maybe I didn’t eat enough. I’m not complaining, I missed out on some exercise recently so it’s excellent to do a long walk.

The view of Blackpool from near home, if you look closely.

DofE 4.3: change of weather and an emergency.

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Rain from before dawn. 13°C, easing through the day.

A slightly slower start becaue of the rain. It fell upon me to breif and set all the groups off. All 72 kids. It was an hour and a half before all groups were underway. Hat time flew flr me and gave a temporary repite from my throaty cold that arose overnight. The rest of tne team packed a d took the maquee down around us.

A call for help: over the radio, we got a call for help, somebody was injured from group 3. Chris and I set off once we got the grid reference. After some searching around, we found them. The grid reference was slightly out but 2 of the girls stood on our path to meke it easy.

I got there first. The casualty was sat on the edge of a gravel path, cold and in pain from a fall that twisted her knee. I’m so glad the recent first aid course was of such high quality. It was obvious that apart from her knee and losing body heat quickly, there were no serious injuries. Priority was then to get her warm. Out came carry mats, a sleeping bag and my bothy bag. Another girl got inside with the casualty and the warmth gradually built up. Meanwhile, Chris radioed to get colleagues to phone for an ambulance. I fixed a tie to hold her feet together, including the one that was at a funny angle. There was very little else I could do, she had to guide me on what is comfortable but couldnt have any painkiller.

It took quite a while for the ambulamce to arrive but the First Responders were quicker. They gave Y some gas-air painkiller and she had the giggles. With 3 staff and 2 medics, I decided to move out to make myself useful elsewhere. There were 3 groups unaccounted for to the east. I set off but missed the fiasco of the ambulances getting stuck in the gravel.

Apparently, the Forest Rangers were not impressed with the ambulances but they were with our first aid response. We found one group and the other two completed by themselves. That took about 3 miles of walking on an empty stomach.

I’ve paid a personal price for this day. Although I didn’t get cold at any point, I now have a heavy head-cold. Its not made any easier by incremental tiredness and giving my food away to kids who raised the call for help. They were so brilliant, they deserved a better reward than a smokey-cheese sandwich.

DofE 4.0: Cannock Chase.

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17° C, sunny and dry.

Very early start, wake at 4am and pack to drive the 100 miles to the school. The other staff for the trip were out and about gathrring kit and minibuses. So I hung my head round the drama studio door. All of the kids were there, with their kit ready. Then something happened that I will never forget. I got a standing ovation! They roared and whooped. I’ve never had a welcome like that, it send a shiver down my spine.

The coach ride to the start point was relatively short, and day 1 was training in navigation and camp craft. The group I had were easily the most receptive I’ve worked with this year. I got through masses of material which meant they got the most out of me too,

This little guy landed on my map while we were discussing a navigation descision. The girls recoiled until they saw my reaction, with one hand, i manouvered my phone and unlocked it for the photo. All the while expressing wonder at this little chap. It worked, the girs came over and took pictures of their own. This is a way that city kids can become comfortable with this environment.

Flotsam.

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The flotsam was useful to prop the bike up while I photograph it. Later, I returned to collect the net for the art room.

I don’t quite know what it’s for yet. Maybe a driftwood still life.