Cyclists with no lights....

[Skippy]

Arrrrrggggh.

I see so many stupid cyclists riding along with no lights, it really annoys me. But one topped the lot the other day. Wearing all black, on a black bike, no lights and wearing a black balaclava to top it all off!

On that same stretch of road I hear of one getting run over and put in intensive care. Now that's the cyclists own stupid fault, but they make a hell of a mess which has to be cleaned up. And of course they have no insurance either so getting them to pay up for damaging your vehicle is going to be an up hill battle too.

What on earth are they thinking, do they not know that people have real trouble seeing them? Are these people completely stupid?


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Gone fishing!

[GPS_fan]

I think they have a death wish - no lights, often no reflectors and usually dark clothes.

..but, like so many other things these days, it would probably be the motorist's fault if you hit one.

Has cycling proficiency and common sense on two wheels gone the same way as the Green Cross Code?
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Andy
PocketGPSWorld.com supports Help for Heroes - Read here

[DennisN]

I was a 'proper' cyclist in my youth. I don't know when I learned the rules but I knew :-
Lights after lighting up time.
Audible means of warning (bell, whatever, and we had tiny aluminium ones which were very lightweight for road racing).
Minimum front brake if riding fixed wheel, front and back on gears.

I have always been very unimpressed by cycle proficiency training - I think it tends to teach kids that once they signal (immediately they signal!) they can pull out. I have long advocated that the best training is bike control - teach them how to look behind without wandering off course, to signal with one arm whilst continuing to ride in a straight line and also turn corners one-handed. Teach them how to pedal the things properly. Teach them that once they've got big enough to ride a 'big' bike, they're big enough to ride on the road, not the footpath.

Sorry, bit of a hobby horse.

As for the poll, simply stay clear of any cyclist looking like the one you've seen and any others who are obviously doing it just to get to work and back, not the 'professionals', by which I mean such as club cyclists. We used to ride out on Sundays, two abreast, touching elbows, front wheel a couple of inches from preceding back wheel and do it for 120 miles either side of pub opening hours.
I hate to think how many miles I walked pushing my bike after dark when I didn't have any lights - I didn't dare ride without lights - illegal!!.
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Dennis

If it tastes good - it's fattening.

Two of them are obesiting!!

[GPS_fan]

[Darren]

[DennisN]

[MaFt]

my biggest bug-bear with cyclists (and i used to be one) is those who assume that traffic lights are just for cars...

but yes, it's a shame there's no license or registration for pedal bikes as prosecuting anyone is next to impossible!

MaFt

[Tim Buxton]

[7andy]

So, can we also have a poll about what we do about motorists who are 'cyclist blind'? I drive a car, but I cycle to work, and you can guess where I get most trouble.
Yes, I replace the batteries in my lights, which are used when light gets dull, not dark. I wear a high visibility jerkin, and I remain at my place in the queue when the lights are red. I use hand signals all the time, and have a very good technique for looking behind me.

So why do car drivers insist on running me off the road? This has happened four time in the last year, where I have had to literally jump off my bike to avoid being injured. I can't count the near misses, except to say they are at least once a week. The favourite trick is when approaching a parked car, I pull out pass it, and some (insert own expletive here!) thinks he can get by, but there's a car coming the other way, so said (insert alternative expletive, for variety) has to brake sharply, right in front of me, in a situation where I could have continued.

So, whilst there are rogue cyclists, there also rougue mototrists.

Therefore, when one lives in a glasshouse, please avoid ejecting solid missiles!!!

Cheers, 7&Y

[MaFt]

when i cycled to work i used to wear steel toe-capped trainers so any offending motorists would soon get the point when they drove too close to me ;)

i've also had far too many near misses resulting in people's wing-mirrors being removed by my elbow... surprisingly none of them stopped so they must have known they were in the wrong...

on a slightly different note i also kicked a car once when it ran over my foot... i was on the pavement at the time!!!

MaFt

[Anita]

[Gee-Pee]

[Skippy]

[999tommo]

Cyclists without lights, going through red lights, cars with fog lamps when it isn't foggy, car drivers without lights.....it's all the same to me.......£30 fixed penalty unless there is a good excuse.

Welcome to my monthly score........
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Tommo...

Regularly absent, but still here in spirit !

[Skippy]

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