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More pedal power chat.
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Last edited by: VxFan on Sat 5 Sep 15 at 17:18
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Here we are Bromp
www.commercialmotor.com/latest-news/operator-whose-driver-caused-cyclist-s-death-has-o-licence-revoked?
Absolutly the right decision and I doubt it will end there either.
Pat
Last edited by: Pat on Fri 3 Jul 15 at 16:07
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Cheers Pat. Today's CTC newsletter had same message. Currently on a caravan club site in New forest with iffy wi fi and poor mobile so struggled to post earlier.
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The report on the CTC website is here:
www.ctc.org.uk/news/20150630-regulator-bans-haulage-operators
A linkv to Commissioner Denton's decision is at the end:
tinyurl.com/qzdh887
He concludes with some very scathing comments about the operator and his transport manager and their 'reasons' for failing to attend his inquiry.
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>> He concludes with some very scathing comments about the operator and his transport manager and
>> their 'reasons' for failing to attend his inquiry.
>>
>>
>>
I daresay the TC would be somewhat frustrated that this was really as much as he could do.
I would also assume that the vehicles operated pre-dated the need for modern "digi-card" systems; falsification of tachograph records (assuming they were kept at all) is not so easy with the modern set-up.
Traffic Commissioners hate this sort of thing just as much as genuine hauliers do; despite what some might think, much has been done in recent years to rid the haulage industry of the "cowboys" operating at its fringes.
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>> Traffic Commissioners hate this sort of thing just as much as genuine hauliers do; despite
>> what some might think, much has been done in recent years to rid the haulage
>> industry of the "cowboys" operating at its fringes.
At the very least the old bill should have brought charges of aiding and abetting against them.
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>> At the very least the old bill should have brought charges of aiding and abetting
>> against them.
>>
Agreed.
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Thanks for the linky Bromp. I have to agree with every word HM says about this.
Pat
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>> Thanks for the linky Bromp. I have to agree with every word HM says about
>> this.
>>
>> Pat
There's a suggestion on cycling sites that a Hayley Caroline Drummond has sought licences etc using same or similar operating address to those disqualified. Is it really as easy as setting up a new dodgy glazing company (Watchdog passim)?
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>> There's a suggestion on cycling sites that a Hayley Caroline Drummond has sought licences etc
>> using same or similar operating address to those disqualified. Is it really as easy as
>> setting up a new dodgy glazing company (Watchdog passim)?
>>
Again, it used to be; well, anyone can apply as long as they hold the appropriate qualifications and can satisfy the relevant criteria. Generally speaking, Traffic Commissioners are more vigilant nowadays than they used to be, and if there is any suspicion of a "cowboy" with previous form for dodginess starting up again they will likely fall on him very hard.
Have a read through of this, it will give you an idea of what hoops have to be jumped through;
www.transportmanagersolutions.co.uk/information.htm
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Live on ITV4 now, and also on the website (time trial today):
www.itv.com/itvplayer/itv4
Last edited by: Focusless on Sat 4 Jul 15 at 14:48
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>> Live on ITV4 now, and also on the website (time trial today):
>> www.itv.com/itvplayer/itv4
Just finished watching the time trial (prologue?). Seriously unimpressed by the coverage and the commentary. There was so much information that we could have been given, but weren't.
Almost a complete absence of any split times. The transmission seemed to spend too much time looking at the crowd, when we could have been watching the riders.
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IIRC the coverage on the road is taken directly from French TV. Only the bits to camera and the race commentary are ITV4's. The crowd, scenery and the roadside displays by local communities are, fo many viewers, part of the experience.
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>> IIRC the coverage on the road is taken directly from French TV. Only the bits
>> to camera and the race commentary are ITV4's.
Which I thought was poor.
>>The crowd, scenery and the roadside displays by local communities are, fo many viewers, part >>of the experience.
If I wanted an architectural tour of Utrecht, I would have looked elsewhere other than a cycling programme.
How many more days of staring at multi-coloured blocks of flats have I got to put up with?
Grump. Grump.
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ITV's commentary team are as poor as it gets, Phil & Paul get slaughtered on the cycling forums. Best place to watch is Eurosport, £3.99 a month for the app if you don't have a Sky subscription. They have commentators and pundits who actually know what they are talking about.
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>> ITV's commentary team are as poor as it gets, Phil & Paul get slaughtered on
>> the cycling forums.
Until C4 started the Phil'n'Paul show c1987 the tour got no coverage at all on UK TV. In the intervening years they've turned it into something that draws decent viewing numbers and makes it pay for the advertisers. Some people watch it as much for the 'France Profonde' element as for the racing.
Inevitably, the purists/obsessives will want something different.
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>> >> Until C4 started the Phil'n'Paul show c1987 the tour got no coverage at all on
>> UK TV. In the intervening years they've turned it into something that draws decent viewing
>> numbers and makes it pay for the advertisers. Some people watch it as much for
>> the 'France Profonde' element as for the racing.
>>
>> Inevitably, the purists/obsessives will want something different.
>>
1981 to be exact.
It's great to have terrestrial coverage of the race, but no excuses for P poor commentary. Half the time they seem to lose track of what's going on.
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I guess we are the ones they appeal to. I know nothing about cycling, and don't follow it it any way. Outside the Tour, we don't know who,anybody is or any events and certainly, have no interest in bikes themselves.
But we do like the Tour as presented in this show, although only the highlight show. We like the commentary, as its about our level. We like the views of France, and can easily forgive the slip ups because after all the poor commentators are only seeing the French feed the same as we are, and gave to make sense of it on the fly.
And as I always read a bit when the sound muted whenever there's a commercial on TV, I can also get through War and Peace in about two programmes, if we watch it as broadcast.
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>> I guess we are the ones they appeal to .... of it on the fly.
That's much the way I feel about it too, except that occasionally I'll watch a whole stage. Sport-wise these guys are my heroes. They make professional footballers look like mummy's boys.
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I watched the Murray match last night. Even though not a tennis fan I felt my enjoyment of the game was enhanced because the commentator knew his sport and the expert punditry by John McEnroe made me feel I was actually learning something about the game and what it took to compete at that level.
Good commentary and analysis are essential ingredients in any live televised sport.
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Enjoyed the match also.I have been watching tennis over 40 years.Back to the Bjon Borg days and Boris Becker.
When McEnroe played he was difficult but a top player.Murray has what it takes, keep the momentum going.
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>> I watched the Murray match last night. Even though not a tennis fan I felt
>> my enjoyment of the game was enhanced because the commentator knew his sport and the
>> expert punditry by John McEnroe made me feel I was actually learning something about the
>> game and what it took to compete at that level.
Exactly the same for me. An enjoyable experience, enhanced by the JM commentary.
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>> >>
>> Exactly the same for me. An enjoyable experience, enhanced by the JM commentary.
>>
If you watch the Tour on Eurosport you'll find the same expert analysis from Sean Kelly, much better than the inane cliché ridden babbling from Paul Sherwin, the Andy Townsend of cycle commentary.
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>> If you watch the Tour on Eurosport you'll find the same expert analysis from Sean
>> Kelly, much better than the inane cliché ridden babbling from Paul Sherwin, the Andy >>Townsend of cycle commentary.
>>
Um, doesn't Eurosport cost money?
I do have this deeply engrained objection to paying money to watch telly. Sorry.
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>> >>
>> Um, doesn't Eurosport cost money?
>>
>> I do have this deeply engrained objection to paying money to watch telly. Sorry.
>>
£3.99 a month if you download the Eurosport app. Well worth it for me as all the major (And not so major) cycling classics and stage races are shown live.
TV isn't free anyway, you have to pay the licence fee.
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>>
>> TV isn't free anyway, you have to pay the licence fee.
>>
Oh?....... Is that right? I didn't realise!
;-)
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>> TV isn't free anyway, you have to pay the licence fee.
>> Oh?....... Is that right? I didn't realise!
MB LEC.
Licence fee = Small beer.
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>> >> TV isn't free anyway, you have to pay the licence fee.
>>
>> >> Oh?....... Is that right? I didn't realise!
>>
>>
>> MB LEC.
>> Licence fee = Small beer.
More like "so old gets tv license free"
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>> More like "so old gets tv license free"
Oh yes...I'd forgotten his age.
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>> Sport-wise these guys are my heroes. They make professional footballers look like mummy's boys.
See what I mean?
tinyurl.com/nmj2rgk
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Can't be accessed from the UK.
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Oh yes it can, you just have to be naughty and go through a proxy:
tinyurl.com/ppt25pz
(above is same page via www.uswebproxy.com/ )
Last edited by: Slidingpillar on Tue 7 Jul 15 at 20:31
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>> Oh yes it can, you just have to be naughty and go through a proxy:
>> tinyurl.com/ppt25pz
>> (above is same page via www.uswebproxy.com/ )
Seems not to go to bbc.com page directbut rather via www.uswebproxy.com link.
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Unfair to blame the BBC, the fact it cannot be seen in the UK is a charter issue. Blame governments from 1927 to date if you like.
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Useless sites.
Can't help fancying a powerful electric bike nevertheless. I wouldn't mind making a small contribution to the motive power. Just a small one.
I suppose when they seize up you'll need the AA or a friend with a van or big car. They look a bit heavy to wheel let alone pedal for any real distance uphill.
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Paris will allow cyclists to perform kerbside turns on red after tests show no increase in accidents:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33446899
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Whereas in London they just do it anyway.
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>> Whereas in London they just do it anyway.
It's wrong because it's 'bringing the game into disrepute' but it's no more dangerous than in Paris.
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I have no idea whether or not it would be more or less dangerous in London.
But its wrong because its against the law. There is no permissable discretion, its not a game and they are fools to try to justofy themselves.
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>> Whereas in London they just do it anyway.
>>
I assume you've never put your foot down as the lights go amber?
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People do that?? :-)
I read today somewhere that the RNLI said that more people die in British coastal water than are killed cycling. Not sure I'm making any point but I guess someone can make something of it :-)
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Statistics prove that cycling in coastal waters is the worst possible thing you can do to shorten your life expectancy. ;-)
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>> I read today somewhere that the RNLI said that more people die in British coastal
>> water than are killed cycling. Not sure I'm making any point but I guess someone
>> can make something of it :-)
>>
Cycling injury/fatality figures:-
www.rospa.com/road-safety/advice/pedal-cyclists/facts-figures/
All causes of death - drowning is no. 32 IIRC. Link to Grauniad:-
tinyurl.com/n9fpzld
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Thanks Duncan, though they are from different years...
My statement was from the Beeb - www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33457009
I couldn't find anything about it on the incfredbly slow RNLI site.
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>> Paris will allow cyclists to perform kerbside turns on red after tests show no increase in accidents:
>> www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33446899
As Lord Montgomery of Alamein said regarding the 1967 Act to make Homosexuality legal:
"this sort of thing may be tolerated by the French, but we're British – thank God."
Last edited by: Londoner on Thu 9 Jul 15 at 23:15
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I believe that some posts have been removed (probably very wisely to avoid any possible legal implications).
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What do our cyclists on here think of this:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/819484536/lumos-a-next-generation-bicycle-helmet
I think it has some good ideas but if following, I'm not sure the drivers would know what the flashing lights mean, e.g. slowing down.
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Fast forward to 1:55 for Geraint Thomas's spectacular head butt of a telegraph pole. It's a wonder he survived, let alone got back on his bike and lost only 40 seconds in the overall.
www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/jul/20/ruben-plaza-16-stage-tour-france-geraint-thomas-crash
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I watched that live (ish).... he's a lucky chappy.
Can't believe he's only 40 secs down.
If spectators helped him up the embankment, would that disqualify him?
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>>>>
>> If spectators helped him up the embankment, would that disqualify him?
>>
No.
As long as they don't help him ride his bike...
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>> Fast forward to 1:55 for Geraint Thomas's spectacular head butt of a telegraph pole. It's
>> a wonder he survived, let alone got back on his bike and lost only 40
>> seconds in the overall.
That report says it was an accident, looks like he got deliberately diverted to me.
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>> >>
>> That report says it was an accident, looks like he got deliberately diverted to me.
>>
>>
The rider who collided with him, Barguil, is a notoriously poor descender with some history of causing chaos.
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But didn't Barguil say (and it looked to be true in the half second clip we got on ITV 4) that he had made contact with Tejay van Garderen (or vice versa I suppose), which put him so out of line for the corner he couldn't avoid it?
Last edited by: Crankcase on Tue 21 Jul 15 at 11:47
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>> But didn't Barguil say (and it looked to be true in the half second clip
>> we got on ITV 4) that he had made contact with Tejay van Garderen (or
>> vice versa I suppose), which put him so out of line for the corner he
>> couldn't avoid it?
>>
Apparently Barguil was passing Van Garderen then dropping behind on numerous occasions during the descent, not something it is really advisable to do when going downhill at those sort of speeds as it upsets the positioning of everyone in the group.
Last edited by: Robin O'Reliant on Tue 21 Jul 15 at 11:59
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All those wendy-ballers that need carried off the pitch and a month to recover when they get a tap on the shin should take note..... :-)
I'd be very surprised if GT doesn't have a bit of a stiff neck this morning - although his helmet appeared to be not heavily damaged. Hate to think how much it would have hurt had be not been wearing one.
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>> All those wendy-ballers that need carried off the pitch and a month to recover when
>> they get a tap on the shin should take note..... :-)
>>
>> I'd be very surprised if GT doesn't have a bit of a stiff neck this
>> morning - although his helmet appeared to be not heavily damaged. Hate to think how
>> much it would have hurt had be not been wearing one.
Helmets do nothing for safety, how many times does brompy have to tell you that.
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It's very unusual to get a blow to the head in a cycling prang, but this is one of the few times when a helmet was definitely a bonus. His biggest complaint was that he lost his glasses, which are apparently no longer made.
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>> Helmets do nothing for safety, how many times does brompy have to tell you that.
Racing is a different thing to commuting. It should be noted however that helmet compulsion in UCI races has not changed the death rate one iota. The last to die in the tour, Casartelli, was wearing one. The TdeF went past the beautiful monument to him on the Col de Portet d'Aspet last week.
I've never said helemets do nothing, just that their benefits are a lot less than 'commonsense' or those promoting their use for commercial etc reasons suggest. Chris Boardman has stated that helmets are not even in the top ten things to improve your safety as a utility rider. I agree.
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>>>> in UCI races has not changed the death rate one iota. The last to die
>> in the tour, Casartelli, was wearing one. The TdeF went past the beautiful monument to
>> him on the Col de Portet d'Aspet last week.
>>
>>
>>
Casartelli was bare headed as a matter of fact, though it would have made no difference as he hit the front of his head on a roadside concrete block at 90kph. As you say though, the introduction of helmets have made no difference to serious head injuries in professional racing - mainly because there was no problem to begin with.
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>> All those wendy-ballers that need carried off the pitch and a month to recover when
>> they get a tap on the shin should take note..... :-)
Perhaps they should get something to toughen them up, say an enhancement of some sort. I understand these push bicycle players know a thing or two about that sort of thing. ;)
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A Daily Mail report:
tinyurl.com/pyord43
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Thanks for that, greatly enjoyed it.
A second TdF win for Froome, no chance of having his lead clawed back on tomorrow's flat stage.
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A great performance by Froome, surely now one of Britain's greatest ever sportsmen (Yeah, I know he was born in Kenya, but British parents and a British passport so who cares?)
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>> A great performance by Froome, surely now one of Britain's greatest ever sportsmen
We tried to find a cafe showing the final stage but the french seem to have lost interest........
The Lad came up with the ditty 'How old's Bernard Hinault now Do-dah, Do-dah' to tune of Camptown Racers and kept wondering round the campsite whistling the tune.
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Just bought a Pashley (Parabike style) for a bit of a laugh... it has a Sturmey Archer 5-speed hub which needs setting up since I took the rear wheel off to replace the tyres.
Can't seem to get it just right by trial and error... and google isn't finding a perfect method.
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Presumably you found this? (each line is a clickable link to manuals &/or tech information)
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Hmm.. it seems you too are keeping the mystic setup info secret.
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...and if you can identify which model it is, all the Sturmey Archer info is here:
www.sturmey-archer.com/en/products/5-speed
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Good links thanks guys... particularly the Youtube one which should have me sorted. The way the little chain screws into the hub to adjust is not something I could have guessed.
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>>it seems you too are keeping the mystic setup info secret.
Doh. what a dipstick. Sorry.
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That's in Brazil, I think.
Impressive bloke.
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>> That's in Brazil, I think.
>>
>> Impressive bloke.
>>
Blimey, you wouldn't mess with him.... but imagine what he'd look like in lycra???
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Kudos to taxi bloke there. Well played. Stopped very quickly, kept a proper distance from the cyclist in the first place.
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Another reason to ride in Primary; keep out of the door zone altogether.
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Happened to me when I was 14. It buckled the front wheel and bent the front forks on my Dawes racer. The driver carried it 50 yards up the road to the local bike shop and got his wallet out. More recently it happened in London, but I saw it coming and managed to push the door shut again without falling off.
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Happened to Mrs B on Whipendell Rd in Watford c1988. Riding home from the station 7pm of a Friday night on one of a pair of seventies shopper bikes we kept for the purpose.
Combination of pixxing rain, useless old Ever Ready light and her being too close to man in Mk2 Escort. She went over the back and suffered a nasty scalp abrasion. Bled like bu**ery and needed a stitch but no serious damage; she was back at work on Monday. Perp ran us both round the corner to the General's casualty and offered to wait while she was seen to but it was easier to wait and get a taxi.
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From London's Evening Standard:
tinyurl.com/npnk9rz
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Are the London commuter transport systems and rush / school run time roads reaching capacity?
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Can only be good for the future and childrens health.
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I doubt it, there are still millions of petrol and diesel engines there, also a relative handful of electric vehicles transferring their pollution other bits of the atmosphere.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Mon 17 Aug 15 at 19:02
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>> Are the London commuter transport systems and rush / school run time roads reaching capacity?
In some places/times combined with even a hint of disruption then yes, but that's not the whole story. A combination of a few good summers and mild winters with a spreading realisation that once waits and changes are accounted for cycling is quicker than the tube kicked of a growth in riding. Media cottoned on and cycling to work became normal rather than eccentric. The Olympics helped too.
Bikes achieve critical mass and can no longer be ignored by other road users or by authority.
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>> Bikes achieve critical mass and can no longer be ignored by other road users or
>> by authority.
>>
Did you forget to put the "In London" on the end of that sentence? :-)
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Is there anywhere else?
Pat
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>> Is there anywhere else?
>>
>> Pat
>>
Only if you are clever enough to realise that there far more comfortable places to live North of Watford, or its Gap, or the M4, or for some outside the M25. The up side is that the more people that cram themselves into London, the more room there is for the rest of us. :-)
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 18 Aug 15 at 08:56
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London; I always want a shower when I've been there, and a glance at my shirt collar and cuffs confirms it's not just me imagining that it's still a dirty place. Far better in that respect that it was 25 years ago, nevertheless.
The travel is the worst part for me. I always rejected the prospect of commuting there every day regardless of the pay as long as I had an alternative.
I suppose there must be other dirty places, many with fewer compensations.
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For us at least.
As a little postscript to the towbar story, another thing we should have checked before going to France was whether Beestling Minor (12) still fitted on the Beinn 26 that was handed down to him last year, and that he hadn't used seriously for a couple of months before we went.
When we did, the answer was 'yes, but only just'. The seat tube was pulled right out to its Max line and he found it difficult to get full extension out of his legs - not ideal in quite hilly country.
He struggled through sportingly enough, but also borrowed his brother's Saracen for a couple of longish rides with me and loved it.
So, some time this week - and with the benefit of some end-of-summer discounting from our friendly local specialist - he will become the owner of one of these:
www.saracen.co.uk/bikes/urban/studio-74
Somewhat alarmingly, he's already big enough for the largest, 20-inch frame - brother has the 18 - so it seemed unwise to order anything less. And this is before he starts his adolescent growth spurt!
Means we have another Isla to sell. Anyone?
};---)
Last edited by: WillDeBeest on Tue 25 Aug 15 at 15:14
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TC's decision at last. - Pat
