Last night I did a brief stint of Dr Bike at a (very) large
comprehensive school.
On the good side: one family, including a 6-ish-y-o, had cycled 4 miles
to get there, really just as an excuse for a ride; nothing much wrong
with their bikes beside a wee adjustment of brakes.
On the faintly horrified side: one bike missing one front brake block,
one rear brake block, and with the freewheel completely broken so there
was no drive at all to the rear wheels. Thankfully (!) it came in the
back of a car ;-).
On the encouraging side: one bike with two flat tires, broken rear gears
(so stuck on the smallest ring), brake block rubbing on the tyre, and
someone had cut off the rear gear cable loose end flush with the nut (!)
Tires pumped up, brakes adjusted, limit screws shifted to move the gear
inwards a bit, and directed to the LBS; the cyclist was all keen on
riding it again.
On the less encouraging side: with the exemption of the Keen Family
above, all the other bikes came in the backs of cars. (Mind you, in a
couple of cases this was a good thing...)
Riding there, I actually found a Useful Cycle Lane (no, really); a wide
road, 40 mph limit but wide enough that even 40 mph overtaking cars
aren't a bother, but with a number of central islands that narrow
uncomfortably. So I'm heading towards the first island, all prepared
to take the lane, when I realise that there's a mandatory cycle lane
down the left hand side, starting just before the island and finishing
just after. There's actually enough room - just - for a car to pass
legally and safetly. But, the big red stripe seemed to deter them;
this road went on for miles, with at least a dozen islands, and not a
single driver attempted to pass [1]; they all hung politely back.
R.
[1] Well, except for a BMW Z3, but that's just to be expected, ain't it?