Padded Shorts » SillyCyclist

Use Your Head – Stop at Red

extra — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 22:19:24 +0000

Now this is something good.

I hope that you’ll sign this, if you haven’t already. We (cyclists) are only hurting ourselves if we keep red light jumping (RLJ) and breaking the Highway Code in other ways.

The more cyclists who respect the code and show courtesy towards other road users and pedestrians, the better response we will get.

Any ways, no matter how fast I try to go from A to B at rush hours, there is only a couple of minutes between the “pecking it time” and the “take it easy and pootle time”. So relax and enjoy your ride and above all respect the law and smile.

Stopatred is a campaign to improve the status of cycling in the eyes of the public and policy-makers alike, and to tackle the attitudes of those cyclists whose behaviour perpetuates the image of cyclists as a low-status social ‘out-group’ on wheels.

Its specific focus is on the disregard of traffic signals.

It also has two general aims:
To encourage cyclists to show courtesy towards other road users and pedestrians.
To encourage greater compliance with the laws of the road.

Stopatred was created by concerned cyclists, alarmed about how the cause of cycling is being undermined by the reckless actions of an unrepresentative minority.

LINK : Stop at red

SillyCyclist XIII

extra — Mon, 10 May 2010 20:20:09 +0000

Hooooly sssshhhittt ….

Click here to see this little clip http://www.youtube.com/ – CyclingMikey’s Channel

Sorry for the strong words here, but how the f@&k can you be this stupid. Nearly hurt herself and another fellow cyclist and just jumped off the bicycle and carried on like you had planned it all along, without any care at all.

I was crossing a side road on my way to get some fish and chips tonight. As I was crossing the junction, I saw SillyCyclist being overtaken by a car down the side road, plenty of space, nothing wrong with that move. The car came up to the give way lines and stopped for me as I was crossing on foot. Then the SillyCyclist decided to overtake the car at the give way line, on the right hand side of the car and on the wrong side of the narrow side road.

I kept my eyes on this SillyCyclist since I sensed that she wouldn’t stop at the give way lines. As I had already spotted the cyclist and car coming on the main road, going from the right to the left.

And yup I guessed right, the SillyCyclist just kept going going right out from the side road onto the main road. And right in front of the cyclist on the main road who was followed by a car, lucky the cyclist was nice and wide on the main road and saw it all happening.

The SillyCyclist was now heading down the main road on the wrong side against the cyclist and the following car. SillyCyclist bailed out by hitting the kerb and nearly came off her bicycle. Lucky the cyclist moved around and made extra room for SillyCyclist and the car managed to slow down in time.

SillyCyclist just jumped off her bicycle and onto the pavement and carried on like she was planning this wonder move, erm, let’s call it a stunt, from the start.

She then continued her journey after a pref interlude on the pavement, like nothing had just happened. The mind boggles.

My SillyCyclist have started to spread, my friend Ham of the LondonDailyPhoto fame, has a new blog called cyclesafeandhappy and he has just started the Numbnut Awards, with this little wonder.

Just an observation

extra — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 12:01:06 +0000

This is by all means not a scientific study but just an observation by me. Over the last few weeks a I have been counting while cycling around town.

16 cyclist with bicycle helmet have jumped red light, totally blind as in not looking right or left, at speed right across the junction.

Six cyclist without bicycle helmet jumped the red light but at least half of them did sneaking and peaking across the stop line and looked right and left and right before crossing the junction slowly and carefully.

I do not condone jumping red lights but if you are going to break the law do it carefully and look where you are going.

And again wearing a helmet doesn’t make your cycling safer if you still cycle like a numpty. So when you are cycling do obey the High Way Code it is there to help you and others. And remember the three C’s – to be seen, to see and communicate – cycle where you can be seen, cycle where you can see others and communicate with others, with eye contact and hand signals telling others where are going. It does make sense and will help you on your journey.

On another note : For some reason people without helmet tend to cycle on the pavement much more. Now that is one place I would wear a helmet, just like mountain biking, there is plenty of unknowns. Like trees, lose pavement slaps, dogs, people coming in and out of their houses or shops, kids running about, push chairs, bins to name but a few. And above all people on the pavement do not expect you there so they will not be looking out for you.

SillyCyclist XI + XII

extra — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 15:16:45 +0000

Went out on a pootle today with my partner, while we were stopped at a red light we met SillyCyclist number XI.

Just as we were setting off from the light she came up on my inside. There were not enough room for either her or me to manoeuvre a little bit. So told her “please not on the inside, it is dangerous” and as she was clearly gunning ahead and looked like she would have tried overtake on the inside of my partner, who was closer to the kerb than I was.

Guess who got told to f*beep*k off and that it was ok since she did it all the time.

Then when we go home I saw this lovely video from my friend Mikey, off London skaters who spotted SillyCyclist number XII yesterday. Sorry for the language in this clip but honestly in this situation I would use colourful language too.

I have talked about this before, SillyCyclist IX and Sillycyclist vs SillyCyclelanes, when watching the video it is very hard to just blame the HGV’s for the cycle fatalities in London. Especially when someone is such numpty as this, having been told about the danger and nodded in agreement. To do it again is just plain foolish, when there is clearly not enough room as you can see. He had one leg on the kerb as he was scooting past the HVG, which can start to drive again at any moment.

SillyCyclist X

extra — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 21:21:29 +0000

A couple of days ago, four of the six cyclist following me down Chiswick High Road was wearing helmets. And all four of them were jumping the red lights, hmmm.

Please do remember wearing an helmet does not make your cycling safer it is the way you cycle that makes your cycling safe. So jumping the red light, cycling on the pavement, jumping up and down the kerb and cycling around without looking where you are going etc with a helmet is not safe cycling.

A ill fitted helmet is as good as wearing none, I have blogged before about how to fit your helmet in my post, SillyCyclist III.

SillyCyclist vs SillyCycleLanes

extra — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 08:12:37 +0000

TfL have started to build, or rather paint, the new cycle super highways around London. The first pictures I have seen are, in one word, crap. Not thought-out or well-planned. Simply a dash of blue paint randomly added at a junction. Just like the green paint we have already seen on the roads, which is clearly ignored by other road users or puts us cyclists in danger. I will no go into a rant about how crap, annoying and unsafe they are to use. Just look at the nightmare that is Vauxhall, – just read this blog post from realcycling.blogspot.com. I will happily go the extra mile or two to avoid this junction. And often I stay on the road as most cycle lanes here in the UK are just ridiculous: send you the wrong way, stop randomly or send you right into oncoming traffic with no clear idea of what do to.

TfL have also come up with the Cycle Safety Action Plan, there is a .pdf and it is a good read. There are some good facts and good information and it looks like there are a few good ideas that can help to make road users safe in London. Though these SillyCycleLanes aka “cycle super high ways” are not the answer. Yes, it is a start but just like the green lines, these blue lines are going to be ignored by other road users, unless they are clearly told what they mean and there is some policing.

I cycle around 25miles a day in around London every day, both for commuting and part of my job as an Cycle Instructor. I do see lots of SillyCyclists on the road every day. Honestly it surprises me that there aren’t more fatalities here in London.

Don’t get me wrong, I do feel for the families of the ones we have lost, any loss of life is sad and should be avoided. We really need to do much more to cut down on these fatalities. Though it does just seem to me with that every death we’ve seen, we are blaming the HGV driver. Everyday I see cyclists jump red lights, turn right out in front of me and others and worst of all going on the inside of a big vehicle and even when it is clearly turning across their path. These manoeuvres I see make me wince, and cross my fingers in hope that I will see the cyclist on the other side of the junction. So therefore it surprises me that every time that we have a cyclist fatality and there is a HGV involved it is the HGV driver that gets all the blame. From what I see every day, it simply can’t always be the HGV’s fault.

This is gratefully nicked from road.cc’s article, Cyclist killed by HGV as London Mayor launches Cycle
Safety Action Plan. In Issue 7 of its Keltbray Live newsletter published earlier this year, the company highlights on page 5 the steps it has taken to improve cyclists’ safety including the use of sensors on its vehicles, which are also featured on a video on YouTube.

Yes, this is a great idea to add to the HGV’s but seeing how other cyclists already are cycling on the roads of London I do not think this is the answer, though it might help and teach some, how and where to ride in London.

I have been working on this blog for some time and still don’t have a end to it. Today I found a blog on ibikelondon – A call for action on cycle safety and HGVs, which does tell it much better than I ever could a very interesting article. We clearly need to do something, but the cycle lanes we are putting in here in the UK are not the answer. We also need to give bigger fines and someone out there to do something about it. When I lived in Denmark you will be stopped if you cycled without light at night, you will be stopped if you jumped the red light, you will be stopped if you cycled on the pavement etc. That goes too for other road users, life will be so much safer and easier if we all think, look and take care out there and d/ride to the highway code.

SillyCyclist IX

extra — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:50:12 +0000

Rule number one of cycling in London : never go on the inside of a bus or HGV. Stay behind and let it do what it gotta do, you will still get there before them, and most of all, you’ll be in one piece.

SillyCyclist IX came up on my inside and undertook me, ok I was nice and wide this time so I didn’t mind so much. The reason why I was out wide near the middle of the road was because I was trailing behind a bus. I was heading east on the Chelsea Embankment coming up to Albert Bridge and the road does a s-bend to the left then a right as it goes over the bridge approach. Just before the the start of the s-bend there is a bus stop and that was why I was out wide as I was planning to over take the bus, but the bus pulled out before I was near it. So since I knew the road was turning to the left and had the SillyCyclist on my inside I stayed out wide, to take the lane.

As the road really started to bend the SillyCyclist started to undertake the bus as it was slowing down because of traffic ahead. Though soon to start off again just as it always happens in rush hour traffic in London. The SillyCyclist then had to bail out of his attempt since the bus turned left and started to pull into the left as any vehicle would do while driving through a turn. Luckily on that bit of road there aren’t barriers that stop pedestrians walking across the road. So the SillyCyclist could jump off his bicycle onto the pavement to save himself from getting run over. The SillyCyclist then quickly jumped on his bicycle and joined the road again without looking behind him, like nothing had happened.

I pulled up next to him and said “that is why you don’t go on the inside of a turning bus”.

He then looks at me as I was the idiot! Eh?

What a waste of a young life

extra — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:57:14 +0000

A SCHOOLGIRL killed in an accident on her way home from school was riding a dangerous and unfit bicycle at the time, an inquest was told.

Sadly this is a terrible way to remind you, but do check you and your loved ones bicycles over now and again. Click here to read what I wrote, “a plea to parents”, then again you don’t need to be a parent. to carry out a simple check on your bicycle.

Last night, assistant deputy coroner Richard Whittington called on schools and parents to teach children basic cycle maintenance.

Hear Hear, the state of bicycles I see every day is really shocking. And I don’t work in a bicycle repair shop, I just commute in London and teach Bikeability as schools.

Not only do the kids need to know how to tell if there is something wrong and even able to fix them. But the parents need and SHOULD check the bicycle over REGULARLY and if they can’t fix the bicycle TAKE IT TO A LOCAL BICYCLE SHOP!

But parents who are the (and should be) responsible one, really don’t care and see the bicycle as a toy which IT IS NOT!

Quite often they give little Jr. a Magic Hat*), which is also often ill fitted **). And that ticks the box that say “little Jr. is safe and sound”. Then they don’t think about the state of the bicycle or how and were little Jr. is riding it, because he is safe as he got a lid***) on.

I do not know what kind of bicycle she was riding, but my money is on a BSO, since that is what most kids are riding. They are of pour materials and quite often never put together right and will fall apart fast even when used with care.

Sad and tragic lost of life.

LINK : Herald Series – Girl cyclist, 11, fell into path of lorry.

*), ***) Magic Hat and Lid is nick names for a bicycle helmet.
**) If you choose to wear a helmet, please do fit it correctly, remember an ill fitted helmet is as good as wearing no helmet at all.

LGV Cycle Safety – epetition response

extra — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 12:07:35 +0000

Remember this epetition, ‘Cyclists THINK! Watch out for HGVs‘ (that I wrote about there, SillyCylist IV). I just got an email saying that the Prime Minister’s Office have now answered to it.

The Government shares Ms Clegg’s concern about the safety of cyclists. But we believe a better way to help all road users to share road space safely is to raise skill levels. The Driver Certificate of Professional Competence, which we introduced in September for professional lorry drivers, will help them maintain and develop their driving skills. Lorry drivers now have to take extra tests on top of a LGV licence to get a Driver CPC. They then have to take 35 hours of approved periodic training every five years to retain the CPC and continue to drive professionally. There is no evidence to suggest that a LGV safety certificate would make lorry drivers more aware of cyclists. Such a scheme would be expensive to introduce and operate, and would be difficult to enforce.

There is a number of questions in the LGV driving theory test (the test a person takes to acquire a LGV licence, whether they need a CPC or not) which tackle specifically the issue of large vehicles sharing the road with cyclists, particularly at junctions. The Driving Standards Agency’s publication Driving Goods Vehicles, one of the main test source materials, also refers to cyclists in a number of sections.

Fair dinkum, I do agree with that that we need help all road users to share road space safely and raise their skill levels. And I’m glad to hear that the LGV drivers are having extra tests on this issue.

But what about all the SillyCyclist I see every day on the roads, they need to be trained too. Every day I see one sneaking up on the inside of a bus or a lorry, when it is clearly not safe to do so.

Like the other day when I saw a cyclist trying to over take (or should be undertake) a bus on the left hand side on a left turning bend of the road. Of course he came to halt and have to bail out and had to do a bit of hopping and skipping up unto the pavement to avoid being dragged under the bus. When I then told the SillyCyclist that is why I never go on the inside of a bus/lorry he looked at me as I was the mad one.

LINK: LGV-Cycle-Safety – epetition response

What are the odds ?

extra — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:15:43 +0000

Humans really baffle me. If I were an betting man I wouldn’t put money on us lot passing our 30th year. And yet we quite often pass the average age of 70-odd years. The amount of stupid things I see people do, on the roads when they are rushing to and fro in their daily grind, really shocks me.

Cyclist :

- Red light jumping, is against the law and not even safe for you or others.
A good example: you as a cyclist come up to the red light, see it is clear, only one car around 100 or so yards down the way and you have plenty of time to cross before they arrive. But see it from their angle, they see you rushing across their GREEN light where they have right of way. They will tap their brakes since they don’t know if others are following you. The road user behind them will just see the car in front of them hitting the brakes for no apparent reason. They will hit the brakes rather hard and therefore get the following car parked right up their back.

- Not looking where you are going or looking behind you.
I see that every day and for some reason which escapes me you still manage to miss all the obstacles which are around you.

- Not telling others where you are going.
See the first example in this post “Look and see“. She was very close to getting knocked off her bike and causing a crash between two cars, simply because she didn’t tell others what she was doing.

Car/bus/van/taxi/etc users :

- Not telling others where you are going.
You have indicators, so please use them, it does help others to know where you want to go.

- Pulling out from from a side road over the Give Way line without looking.
Yes sometimes you do look and give way, though quite often you just zoom right out without any due care. And when you are giving way at the give way line please don’t edge out when you see a cyclist coming, because it scares the heebie jeebies out of us.

- Not looking where you are going.
You’ve got mirrors. It would be a big upgrade if you actually used them. Though don’t rely on these as they will not give you a full view of what is going on around you. Plenty of blind spots so please turn your head and check around you, you will spot that cyclist that are just about to turn into.

- Overtaking just for the heck of it.
Quite often when you are stuck in traffic and you have a little gap between you and the road user in front of you. And then a cyclist over take you on the outside and you just have to floor it and race along for that three metres gap, why ? It didn’t get you anywhere did it ?

Other times a little looking ahead of you you can see either a red light or a traffic queue. Why do you have to overtake us, zoom past pull right in and squeeze us against the kerb. What did you gain? Nothing since you are still stuck in traffic and we will filter past you seconds after.

Here is a good example of when are car user have just been dangerous, Sillydriver I, how the heck do you think it is a good idea to drive fast and over take when you got children on the road?

- Advanced Stop Lines (ASL) and bicycle lanes.
Is not a place for you to park, it is for us cyclists so that we can get in front of you so that you can see us before you pull away from the light.

Pedestrians :

- Crossing the road without looking.
Remember the Green Cross Code? So please do look before you cross the road, even getting hit by a bicycle will hurt. I heard the other day that a fellow cyclist hit a runner who had stepped out in front of the cyclist. Cyclist ended up in A&E with a cut on the elbow but the runner had a broken finger and a very sore set of ribs.

When you see the traffic at a standstill, don’t just walk right out onto the roads. Even if the traffic isn’t moving their light is still green, not red, and there may be motorbikes or cyclist filtering along. So do look before you cross, see the third example in this post, Look and see

- Not using the pedestrian crossing.
Other road users WILL give way for you when you use the pedestrian crossing, so why not use it ? Quite often you just have to walk 20 yards down the road to find one, instead of standing and waiting at some random point and then start sneaking out with the risk of getting hit.

For the life of me I can’t understand why a parent would have the bright idea of crossing a busy dual carriage way and then lifting their two loved ones over the fence in the middle reservation and continue on the other side.

- Red man
Yes the red man or red light does mean stop.

So as you can see we all are doing it. Even though I have split these very few examples up this is the case for everyone. Everyone forgets to look around them or communicate to others what they’re doing: just blindly heading for an early grave. But still we survive, it’s mind boggling.

Pretty much no regard to the highway code more like “I want to be over there” and I don’t care how I get over there and if I get in the way of others, they can move out of the way, not me.

I’m only saying that it is in your own best interest to be a more aware of what is going on around you and take care of yourself and others. Because it will save your life one day.