Cyclecraft: Exceptions

[Simon Brooke]

in message <[email protected]>, Don Whybrow
('[email protected]') wrote:

> Simon Brooke wrote:
>>
>> Don't listen to Tony, he's always wrong. All you need to do it read my
>> wisdom, my moderation, my good sense and my encyclopaedic technical
>> knowledge, and reverse everything I say, and that's what Tony thinks.
>>
>> Smiley? what smiley?
>
> Are you from Minnesota as well?

I'm not a Dolan, I only ride one.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
"The result is a language that... not even its mother could
love. Like the camel, Common Lisp is a horse designed by
committee. Camels do have their uses."
;; Scott Fahlman, 7 March 1995

 

[Martin Dann]

Ekul Namsob wrote:

> On my drive to work, I routinely pass a chap cycling up the A6 through
> Westhoughton who uses the white edge of road marking as a lane marker. I
> am so often tempted to wind my window down and tell him to get in to the
> primary or even secondary positions.

It is very difficult to understand what someone is
shouting, when they shout out of a moving car window.

The cyclist is question will probably think that you are
another twunt in a car just shouting abuse.

Martin.

 

[LSMike]

On Jul 2, 7:35 pm, "Pete Biggs"
<[email protected]> wrote:
> David Damerell wrote:
> > Cyclecraft recommends an odd approach to slip roads. I prefer to take
> > the normal line any other vehicle would use.
>
> Including on the fastest and busiest dual carriageways, with slip roads
> alongside for many dozens of yards and speed differences of 60 mph between
> yourself and the cars?
>
> ~PB

I too am with John Franklin's approach.

 

[Jeremy Parker]

There's Cyclecraft, there's Effective Cycling, and in Boston there's
John Allen's "Street Smarts". I get the impression that all good
cycling advice, in any book, in any language, derives from one of
those.

The question is, what general purpose bike books are in print
nowadays that might contain a section on how to ride on roads? If
such books exist, where do they seem to have got their information
from. There used to be Rob van der Plas's books, for example. He
was out in California when John Forester first erupted, and pretty
much agrees with Forester, but I think he's been out of print for a
long time.

Are there books which should have such a section, but don't? Are
there boooks which have a section, but bad?

There's one other interesting alternative to the above trio, "Urban
Bikers' Tricks and Tips", by Dave Glowacz, of Chicago. Chicago must
be an interesting, no amazing, place. To my surprise Glowacz is a
qualified instructor, apparently, under the League of American
Bicyclists' course which used to be called "Effective Cycling",
before John Forester took back the right to use the title.

Chicago cyclists seem very keen to separate themselves from motor
vehicles, and vice versa, I imagine.

Are there still good "everything about bikes" books? Come to that,
are there even not so good ones?

Jeremy Parker

 

[Tony Raven]

Jeremy Parker wrote on 03/07/2007 17:37 +0100:
> There's Cyclecraft, there's Effective Cycling, and in Boston there's
> John Allen's "Street Smarts". I get the impression that all good
> cycling advice, in any book, in any language, derives from one of
> those.
>

You've forgotten the excellent Theory of Big.
http://www.martin-family.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/BIG.html


--
Tony

"The most savage controversies are those about matters as to which there
is no good evidence either way."
- Bertrand Russell

 

[Jeremy Parker]

"Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Jeremy Parker wrote on 03/07/2007 17:37 +0100:
>> There's Cyclecraft, there's Effective Cycling, and in Boston
>> there's John Allen's "Street Smarts". I get the impression that
>> all good cycling advice, in any book, in any language, derives
>> from one of those.
>>
>
> You've forgotten the excellent Theory of Big.
> http://www.martin-family.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/BIG.html

Er yes, and it's justly famous, too. My apologies to David Martin,
its inventor, and all on this newsgroup.

Jeremy Parker

 

[David Damerell]

Quoting Pete Biggs <[email protected]>:
>David Damerell wrote:
>>Quoting Pete Biggs
>>>David Damerell wrote:
>>>>Cyclecraft recommends an odd approach to slip roads. I prefer to
>>>>take the normal line any other vehicle would use.
>>>Including on the fastest and busiest dual carriageways, with slip
>>>roads alongside for many dozens of yards and speed differences of 60
>>>mph between yourself and the cars?
>>Well, if it's that busy, imagine this;
>I'm not saying Franklin's approach for slip roads is /always/ the best, it
>sometimes is, IMO. Are you saying it /never/ is?

Well, hang on, this is straying off the point - _Franklin_ certainly seems
to think it always is (with the usual provision that there might be some
exceptionally unusual circumstances).

Certainly in the case you mention - where the road is fast and busy - I
think Franklin's approach almost guarantees getting stuck at point A, and
I would never use it.

>Well, sometimes I can change to point B, and sometimes it's the safest thing
>to do. Doesn't always have to be from point A. Often changing lane
>somewhere from between points A and D is better.

I often nip into the slip road when I'm quite close to point D, but that
doesn't strike me as being Franklin's approach in any meaningful sense.
--
David Damerell <[email protected]> Distortion Field!
Today is Second Wednesday, Presuary.

 

[Ekul Namsob]

Martin Dann <[email protected]> wrote:

> Ekul Namsob wrote:
>
> > On my drive to work, I routinely pass a chap cycling up the A6 through
> > Westhoughton who uses the white edge of road marking as a lane marker. I
> > am so often tempted to wind my window down and tell him to get in to the
> > primary or even secondary positions.
>
> It is very difficult to understand what someone is
> shouting, when they shout out of a moving car window.
>
> The cyclist is question will probably think that you are
> another twunt in a car just shouting abuse.

That's one reason why I don't bother.

Cheers,
Luke

--
Red Rose Ramblings, the diary of an Essex boy in
exile in Lancashire <http://www.shrimper.org.uk>