Cyclists - your experiences on the road

[Bletchleyite]

It works the same as a car braking system (minus servo assistance). Plenty of reading material on that.

 

[ashkeba]

No, caliper assembly, hose and lever comes as a system which is matched to the range of mechanical advantage that normal riders expect to use.

So how can it "be set for a higher mechanical advantage" within that range? It sounds fixed as what it is.

It works the same as a car braking system (minus servo assistance). Plenty of reading material on that.

Know any on resetting mechanical advantage?

 

[AM9]

So how can it "be set for a higher mechanical advantage" within that range? It sounds fixed as what it is. ...

I said:

No, caliper assembly, hose and lever comes as a system which is matched to the range of mechanical advantage that normal riders expect to use.

That 'range' is the amount of force that an adult would find reasonable to squeeze the brake lever. I don't know what the level is in lb. or kg. and nor does it matter to me. For a car, the typical pressure to achieve maximum braking force on the wheels is set to around 50-75kg. but owning to the servo assistance of the brakes, it is possible to stop a vehicle of several tonnes weight with than force. On a cycle, - stopping about 10-20kg of cycle plus up to 100kg of personal body weight, there isn't the same weight ratio, so there is no need for a servo assitance. However, by designing in a hand pull of say 50mm, which is reduced to c.2mm at the brake pads, a 25:1 magnification of the hand force gives enough retardation to stop both cycle and rider.
I can't explain it any better than that, but rest assured it works which is why major cycle races usually insist on all competitors having the same type of brakes. If the leaders in a peleton on the Tour De France had hydraulic disc brakes and the rest had simple mechanical brakes, there would be some pretty destructive pile-ups.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Disk brakes can be too powerful, for someone used to rim brakes
In some races only rim brakes are allowed because discs could cause serious injury (working like a meat slicer) in crashes

Best to ride carefully and avoid braking as much as possible

 

[AM9]

... Best to ride carefully and avoid braking as much as possible

Probably not the best way to cycle competitively!

 

[Bletchleyite]

So how can it "be set for a higher mechanical advantage" within that range? It sounds fixed as what it is.

I don't think he said it could be adjusted, but rather it was configured that way by virtue of the size of the pistons.

 

[4F89]

I don't think he said it could be adjusted, but rather it was configured that way by virtue of the size of the pistons.

Yeah, its pretty understandable

Conventional brake, long lever, lots of "brake gap" before contact and pressure applied to rim

Disc brake, long lever, virtually zero "brake gap" before contact, more pressure applied to disc with less effort.

 

[185]

I find bus drivers to mostly be the best fellow road users when cycling.

*One exception in Warrington at a stop line, bus parks next to me then slowly steers left pushing me over onto the kerb... I then realising it was a pain in the neck total clown who I used to work with lol

 

[telstarbox]

I would mostly agree except the ones who drive through Lewisham and always manage to block the main pedestrian crossing with their bus. Not helpful!

 

[charley_17/7]

I find bus drivers to mostly be the best fellow road users when cycling.

*One exception in Warrington at a stop line, bus parks next to me then slowly steers left pushing me over onto the kerb... I then realising it was a pain in the neck total clown who I used to work with lol

I found the opposite, wearing a FirstGroup uniform cycling to/from work made me target practice for most Stagecoach drivers!

 

[JohnMcL7]

Disk brakes can be too powerful, for someone used to rim brakes
In some races only rim brakes are allowed because discs could cause serious injury (working like a meat slicer) in crashes

Best to ride carefully and avoid braking as much as possible

That's no longer the case and for all the noise about disc brakes being banned from races, their reintroduction has been oddly quiet and even at the Tour de France most of the bikes were racing with disc brakes:

The bikes of the Tour de France

A look at the 22 team bikes that are being raced at the 2022 Tour de France.

www.velonews.com

The discs causing serious injury has not been the case and the one occasion where a rider claimed a disc had caused a large cut in his leg due to a brake disc had been lying, the cut was on the wrong side from a disc brake and the crash didn't even involve a disc braked bike.

Hydraulic brakes are not 'too powerful' and with most brake types if you grab the lever of any braking system you're likely to crash the bike so you shouldn't be doing that with rim or hydraulic brakes. Although many people focus on the outright power of brakes it's the consistency of hydraulic systems that are their big advantage both in the lever pull and on the disc itself which handles wet conditions much better than rims on the wheel.

Suggesting people avoid braking as much as possible is downright dangerous since it's a key skill for riding that a cyclist can brake effectively. I don't even know what basis you make that claim as it implies the braking systems on bikes are not good enough and need to be avoided which isn't the case, even low end brakes work well and decent hydraulic brakes work extremely well even when barrelling down a hill in wet and muddy conditions.

I can't explain it any better than that, but rest assured it works which is why major cycle races usually insist on all competitors having the same type of brakes. If the leaders in a peleton on the Tour De France had hydraulic disc brakes and the rest had simple mechanical brakes, there would be some pretty destructive pile-ups.

Major cycle races do not insist on all competitors having the same type of brakes and the exact scenario you describe was the case in the Tour de France this year with a mix of disc and rim brakes but there were no pile ups due the different brake types. Disc brakes have been mixed in the peloton for years now and few have noticed because there's been none of the disasters or issues that were predicted.

I wonder if the nonsense and hysteria around disc brakes will ever stop but evidence suggests not given no matter how often the doomsday claims about disc brakes are shown to be wrong, people still perpetuate them.

If people want to argue the cost of hydraulic disc brakes especially on road bikes, I agree and they can be a pain getting a caliper aligned without rubbing at times plus no-one likes bleeding them. However it's 2020 and there's no need to keep repeating long disproved myths about them.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Cost and complexity of disc brakes could still be troublesome, introducing more new different components to sell more, - 1

Soon the hillclimb season begins, not much need for brakes there

I cycle for exercise, do try to push myself and get tired, I never use my rim brakes. Deceleration using back-pedal brake or holding back on fixed, simples

 

[Bletchleyite]

I cycle for exercise, do try to push myself and get tired, I never use my rim brakes. Deceleration using back-pedal brake or holding back on fixed, simples

Most UK bikes don't have backpedal brakes, you pretty much only get one of those if you import from Holland or Germany. Fixies and singlespeeds are for enthusiasts (like their running equivalent, barefoot-style shoes), not a sensible, practical mode of transport.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

I use a fixed-wheel machine in town and often for 20-30 km trips, quite flat here mind. I have a freewheel cycle too but I love fixed a bit more
Thick tyres, dynamo lights carrier
Very practical and not more complicated than necessary
Makes me work a bit harder too, and most tealeaves couldnae get away on it
Many children learn to cycle on fixed-wheel tricycles
@Bletchleyite: have you ridden one?
I shall post a photo of mine

 

[E27007]

Cyclist road deaths are a great topic for the media to sensationalise in their news columns, thereby propagating the perception among the public of the foolhardiness of riding a bicycle. Statistics show the risks to cycling of being only slightly greater than those of being a pedestrian.

 

[ashkeba]

Cyclist road deaths are a great topic for the media to sensationalise in their news columns, thereby propagating the perception among the public of the foolhardiness of riding a bicycle. Statistics show the risks to cycling of being only slightly greater than those of being a pedestrian.

The annual reports of UK homicide statistics include analysis of the suspected attackers as well as victims. Why do the road casualty statistics only analyse the victim types?

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Wat puzzles me are articles about suicide that mention that many more take their lives than die in 'road accidents'

 

[cactustwirly]

Almost got wiped out by a knobhead driver who was approaching a roundabout way too fast

 

[notlob.divad]

There are quite a few, and I'll use my judgement to change lanes.
It's often more dangerous to change lanes unnecessarily on a busy A road anyway.

If a road is wide enough that you feel you can safely pass a cyclist without crossing the white line, it should have a physically segregated cycle lane down the side of it. Therefore, If it doesn't have a fully segregated cycle lane (and no a stripe of white paint doesn't count) then you shouldn't be overtaking a cyclist without crossing the central line.

There is no excuse for the poor levels of cycling provision in the UK.

Most UK bikes don't have backpedal brakes, you pretty much only get one of those if you import from Holland or Germany. Fixies and singlespeeds are for enthusiasts (like their running equivalent, barefoot-style shoes), not a sensible, practical mode of transport.

Totally disagree with you on this. My friend living in the flatlands of peterborough cycles to the train staion to work everyday for his commute. I suggested a single speed bike for him due to the lower maintainance required. He finds it absolutely perfect. A perfectly practical and sensible mode of transport, I didn't suggest the back brake.

In contrast, my fiance and I live in a city with quite a lot of hills. She rides her amsterdam style city bike picked up 5 years ago at a 2nd hand market. That is equiped with 3 gears and a back pedal brake and is perfect for her commuting, shopping and socialising needs.

 

[LowLevel]

If a road is wide enough that you feel you can safely pass a cyclist without crossing the white line, it should have a physically segregated cycle lane down the side of it. Therefore, If it doesn't have a fully segregated cycle lane (and no a stripe of white paint doesn't count) then you shouldn't be overtaking a cyclist without crossing the central line.

There is no excuse for the poor levels of cycling provision in the UK.

That depends on the road. I use some A roads through rural areas between urban ones that have huge amounts of space in each lane, presumably due to them being regularly used by very large quarry lorries and tractors.

No authority would bother painting a few miles of cycle lane in however, despite it's popularity with cyclists.

What has happened on one road in my area though is that the speed limit has dropped from 40 to 30 and a cycle lane plus decent segregation has been added to the outside and the same has been done with a section of former dual carriageway but with the central reservation left in place. A number of no right turn restrictions are also being trialled presumably to reduce the risk of wiping out cyclists on the other side. An excellent idea - except late at night traffic rarely flowed at 40 and there are lots of schools, houses and side roads along the stretch.

 

[notlob.divad]

That depends on the road. I use some A roads through rural areas between urban ones that have huge amounts of space in each lane, presumably due to them being regularly used by very large quarry lorries and tractors.

No authority would bother painting a few miles of cycle lane in however, despite it's popularity with cyclists.

Usually they are 2 wider lanes that have replaced a historic central 'bi-directional' overtaking lane. What used to be termed a suicide lane.

Your second line about authorities not being bothered is exactly the point I was making. There is no excuse, the cost of adding a cycle lane to these roads where there already is plenty of space for doing so is miniscule. Instead they create pathetic 10metre long cycle lanes with a 0.5m width and claim that it is good infrastructure.

 

[Westcountryman]

I use a fixed-wheel machine in town and often for 20-30 km trips, quite flat here mind. I have a freewheel cycle too but I love fixed a bit more
Thick tyres, dynamo lights carrier
Very practical and not more complicated than necessary
Makes me work a bit harder too, and most tealeaves couldnae get away on it
Many children learn to cycle on fixed-wheel tricycles
@Bletchleyite: have you ridden one?
I shall post a photo of mine

Hope you have brakes as well even if you don't use them. Two brakes are a legal requirement in the UK.

Are fixed gear bikes illegal?

In short, no. To our knowledge, it is completely legal everywhere in the world to ride a fixed gear bicycle when they are equipped with brakes. The problem arises with the question:

unknownbikes.eu

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

I have a hand brake in working order on the front wheel, but I never need to use it
There may be different interpretations, but I understand a fixed gear is legally a brake

It is great not to have to worry about rim wear, replacing brake blocks, checking cables

The fixed machine is my go to bike, I use it much more than the freewheel machine. The latter is for long or hilly trips only

As for the original question: I avoid roads and motors as far as possible

 

[Techniquest]

Morning all,

It occurs to me that we don't seem to have a thread dedicated to cycling, unless I've failed to find it. If it exists, please direct me to it!

Today marks the first anniversary of getting back into cycling, and indeed the beginning of a new love for physical fitness in general. It seems mad now, looking back, that there was a time when I was too scared to get on two wheels!

Later today there is going to be a ride to celebrate the anniversary of my first Beryl Bikes ride, which was from a spot near the city centre Tesco to the railway station. I believe I was going that way anyway to investigate which IET was on an afternoon service to London, and as it was a day of free rides up to 30 minutes long, it was a good day to finally bite the bullet and give the bikes a try.

I won't lie, it was a bit nerve-wracking to begin with, but by the time the mile and a bit ride was over I was hooked! So much so I immediately took another bike (they all carry 5-digit IDs as well) and rode across town along the busy main road to get some shopping and once more afterwards to head home.

One year on, and I've rode 196 unique Beryls. 195 of them are on a mile or more, just one of them remain under that target. 26 of the 196 have been had for 10 or more miles now, and I bought my first mountain bike in May 2020. That ended up being retired at the end of 2020, after 1,501 miles. It saw some serious use in that time, and it's now going to the scrappers when I can get it done.

That was replaced by my first touring bike in early January 2021, which has now seen 581 miles rode already. I got it back yesterday after some badly needed new brake blocks, they wore out faster than expected it must be said. For most of January I was riding every day, as part of my long-running injury recovery programme. That seems to have completed itself now, and every day I'm still getting stronger legs. The muscle to fat ratio around the quads is still not to my liking, but it's getting there.

Slowly but surely, we seem to be getting to a point in this pandemic where another cycle tour will be permitted I was hoping to do one in March, but that's 's not going to happen sadly. I'll be happy with going out for some actual countryside rides though, I'm getting mighty frustrated with sticking to the city limits! Obviously they will only be day trips, so I won't be trekking too far from home on that week off.

Anyway, enough of me and a rushed back story to my main love of adulting. I'd love to hear stories from everyone else. There's not anyone at work who is really into cycling, so I don't have anyone to natter to about it.

Bring on the tales and maybe even some photos! I'll try to get some of mine shared at some point too, I have a good few hundred to share!

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

I love cycling too, it has been mentioned here before I think. Why, only yesterday I had to change my 'unpuncturable' tyre, it had a puncture %)
One favourite cycling memory is doing 250 km in a day in Eryri. Not too difficult, nearly half the route is downhill, I do remember food stops: baked beans and tea. Could not do that so many kilometres now, mind

@Techniquest : brake blocks? I never use them: fixed-wheel on my GoTo cycle, back-pedal brake on the other

What is exactly is a Beryl? Is it something to do with Beryl Burton, the lady cyclist who beat all the gents?

Cyclist road deaths are a great topic for the media to sensationalise in their news columns, thereby propagating the perception among the public of the foolhardiness of riding a bicycle. Statistics show the risks to cycling of being only slightly greater than those of being a pedestrian.

Still far too high

Walkers create almost no danger, and cyclists very little. Motorists create an awful lot of danger, and injure or kill walkers and cyclists,often without being physically harmed themselves

 

[Techniquest]

Thanks for your reply, I didn't know of this thread to be honest otherwise I'd have not started a new one.

Beryl Bikes are in multiple places around England, including Hereford, Bournemouth, Watford and Norwich. I think there's one or two other places as well but I fail to remember right now. They're basically city bikes, bigger than a Brompton but smaller than a full size bike. I'll try to attach a photo, the attached one should be of a bunch of Beryls at Highmore Street, Hereford, last week.



If it hadn't been for these bikes, I may never have got into cycling at all, and I can't even imagine what I would be doing now without cycling. I certainly would not have coped as well with the lockdowns! On which note, I see from 29th March I will be able to leave the city again. That would be great, and obviously I wouldn't go too far anyway, but my week off work is the week before. It will be mighty tempting to try and change that...

 

[py_megapixel]

Something I am interested in asking is what is the opinion of members here on using the main carriageway if a cycle lane is present?

Some cycle lanes where I live are barely a foot wide (probably slight hyperbole - I haven't actually knelt in the gutter and measured one, you'll be surprised to learn(!) - but they are very narrow) and you end up going over drainage gratings and people's discarded litter; also people park in them. I could keep swerving around but I often just give up and go in the same lane as motor vehicles.

I don't believe there's any issue with doing this in the eyes of actual road rules - as there would be if I was to cycle on a public footpath or a motorway, for example - but I know some car drivers don't like it.

 

[telstarbox]

Sadly that's not unusual. The one I remember is from Gravesend to Rochester where they've nicely resurfaced the main lane but not the cycle lane!

 

[Techniquest]

Cycle paths are a bit of an issue for me too, more specifically the ones shared with pedestrians. More accurately, taken over by dogwalkers and social gatherings...

Hereford is not blessed with lots of cycle friendly routes, and we did get a few temporary changes to the road layout in places. On one of the busiest roads, where it was useful, the council soon covered up the markings and restored the lanes to better suit cars! Thankfully they haven't removed them all, and the one along Ledbury Road I use semi-regularly on my fitness improvement rides.

In general, Hereford is not geared to promoting safe cycling at all. It doesn't help that the entire county is car-focused, given how rural most of it is. The paths we do have are normally full of dogwalkers or groups of people blocking the entire path talking to each other. Then you get families out which I don't mind, I'm not a total monster. I do have issue with the parents letting their kids run around all over the place (same with dogs for that matter) and the kids have an annoying habit of crossing one's path at some of the most dangerous times! The amount of times I nearly crashed into a kid or dog...

I tend to avoid shared-use paths whenever possible now. Even with a loud and clear bell, people ignore cyclists. I would also like to see more cyclists with bells attached to their bikes and using them, to be fair. I prefer to ride on the main roads, where I'm not going to come across families and dogwalkers very much and I can put the legs to good use and actually ride at more than 10mph.

The problem there of course is the traffic. There are very few drivers in my experience in Herefordshire who actually leave 1.5m of space between themselves and cyclists, and the amount of times I've nearly been knocked off my bike...Or indeed, the amount of close calls I've seen between cars/lorries/etc overtaking me in a dangerous spot and nearly causing a head-on collision with other traffic...

I've had to get used to such nonsense, although it does give one an unwanted test of the cardiac system! This is all on roads during a (supposed) national lockdown. I dread to think what it will be like soon when the schools re-open, and the dreaded school rush traffic begins again.

Mind you, the school near Sainsburys was very well populated yesterday when I happened to go shopping just after 3pm. I'm guessing lots of key workers there then, although I know one of my colleagues at least works the early morning shift then goes home to teach her kids all day. Fair play to finding the energy for that!

I'm hoping to go out for a ride later, I was meant to clean the drivetrain on the bike and oil it up yesterday, but my other health improvement missions got in the way. So maybe this morning I'll actually do it, already got a vague plan for my route in mind!

 

[matt_world2004]

I tend to avoid shared-use paths whenever possible now. Even with a loud and clear bell, people ignore cyclists. I would also like to see more cyclists with bells attached to their bikes and using them, to be fair. I prefer to ride on the main roads, where I'm not going to come across families and dogwalkers very much and I can put the legs to good use and actually ride at more than 10mph.

On a shared use cycle path the priority is for pedestrians. Ringing a bell does not give you priority and can be intimidating to those with sensory disabilities.