P
David Martin wrote:
> Is that the one with the water thingy in the middle? three lane
> roundabout at the end of the A41(M) spur?
Yep, that's the one. At the moment it's worse than usual because there
are roadworks. Yesterday, even though the lights were green in my
favour, traffic was still entering the roundabout from the next exit,
presumably because drivers had become impatient. So there was lots of
hooting all round. There is a cycle lane of sorts there so I might use
that from now on.
> > I never had any problem on it by taking the
> > lane and going pretty fast, my biggest worry was that a mechanical
> > failure like a chain jam might leave me stranded in the middle.
> > Bayswater Road is so solid in the evening that you can pretty much
> > treat the motors as bollards for a slalom down the hill - wheeeeee!
> > Give it a couple of weeks and you'll get used to it, you'll know what
> > lanes to take and where the drivers normally pull out without looking.
>
> Safety is mostly about perception and confidence. If you are not
> confident and are hugging the kerb then it will appear intimidating and
> will be more dangerous than a more assertive style. The main obstacle
> IMO is the HP roundabout as it is a climb to it from both directions
> and you really want some speed to negotiate it happily. Not one for the
> timid or unconfident.
>From my experience you can be very confident until your first accident
;-) I have seen very confident cyclists who zip in between lanes of
traffic without looking behind them. IMO they are stupid (or at least
very naive), not confident. There will come a time when a motorbike or
scooter or another cyclist will run into them as a result.
There are loads of times when I look over my shoulder before overtaking
a bus or parked car/taxi only to find a scooter or other cylists
already overtaking me, some leaving me very little room. I wonder how
many of the other cyclists check over their shoulder before overtaking.
Not that many from my experience. I prefer to slow down and let them
go.
Anyway, other than the traffic and pedestrians, it is polluted, so
doing back streets might be a lot nicer in that respect too.
Pawel
> Is that the one with the water thingy in the middle? three lane
> roundabout at the end of the A41(M) spur?
Yep, that's the one. At the moment it's worse than usual because there
are roadworks. Yesterday, even though the lights were green in my
favour, traffic was still entering the roundabout from the next exit,
presumably because drivers had become impatient. So there was lots of
hooting all round. There is a cycle lane of sorts there so I might use
that from now on.
> > I never had any problem on it by taking the
> > lane and going pretty fast, my biggest worry was that a mechanical
> > failure like a chain jam might leave me stranded in the middle.
> > Bayswater Road is so solid in the evening that you can pretty much
> > treat the motors as bollards for a slalom down the hill - wheeeeee!
> > Give it a couple of weeks and you'll get used to it, you'll know what
> > lanes to take and where the drivers normally pull out without looking.
>
> Safety is mostly about perception and confidence. If you are not
> confident and are hugging the kerb then it will appear intimidating and
> will be more dangerous than a more assertive style. The main obstacle
> IMO is the HP roundabout as it is a climb to it from both directions
> and you really want some speed to negotiate it happily. Not one for the
> timid or unconfident.
>From my experience you can be very confident until your first accident
;-) I have seen very confident cyclists who zip in between lanes of
traffic without looking behind them. IMO they are stupid (or at least
very naive), not confident. There will come a time when a motorbike or
scooter or another cyclist will run into them as a result.
There are loads of times when I look over my shoulder before overtaking
a bus or parked car/taxi only to find a scooter or other cylists
already overtaking me, some leaving me very little room. I wonder how
many of the other cyclists check over their shoulder before overtaking.
Not that many from my experience. I prefer to slow down and let them
go.
Anyway, other than the traffic and pedestrians, it is polluted, so
doing back streets might be a lot nicer in that respect too.
Pawel
