I think it might be time for new tires...

What do you think? Had to leave some rubber at the bottom of Macarthur St the morning when the lights turned amber and a car (also on Macarthur, at the lights) decided to make a late run for it. I hadn't seen indicators, but I wasn't going to risk the 'left-hook' scenario (flip the images at this American site to see what I'm talking about). Turns out the motorist was headed straight into the top of Collins and I could have rode along side, but hey, I'm safe, and therefore I'm not in the least bit sorry.

Still, it's not quite as bad as this...

A rather tidy effort from Nancy Boy, whose blog is definitely worth reading if you've ever wondered what a 90 minute commute was like.

Not the Best Week

I haven't posted on the recent cyclist death on Swanston St for a few reasons; it's received attention in all the local newspapers and the best blogs, it sparks up the inevitable 'no-place-on-the-road' victim blaming debate, and talking about it at all sits somewhere in the uncomfortable space between community awareness and scaremongering.

Also, it spooked the crap out of me.

I've taken a dive on tram tracks more than once, and on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays I cycle with my partner Jen halfway to her work in Parkville before turning onto Canning St - a route that sends me down Swanston St and past the now funerial Bourke St corner. The space afforded the commuter cyclist on that stretch is sometimes no more than the thin, creased strip between tram tracks and buses (parked, merging, turning).

Some commentators have suggested rider ignorance is to blame - tram tracks are an obvious hazard easily avoided. It's an oversimplification. Buses park in the outside lane with their hazard lights on. If you're halfway past them when they switch from hazards to their right-hand turn signal, how are you to know that the lights on the left have gone dark and the bus is about to merge out? If this happens in the blind spot, you're in trouble. If a tram is passing at the time, well, you can imagine.

The buses do have to go somewhere, that's certain. But that place is obviously not on the busiest bicycle route in the state.

This morning the shade was cool, but the sunlight heartening where it tiptoed through the buildings. It felt good. I didn't look to the flower memorial today. I just rode on past - over Flinders St where the station stood incandescent in the sunshine.

Tales From The Commute I: Passive Aggression

Construction workers, sand-filled plastic barriers, and traffic. Along Collins St the flow of cars and vans and trams stretches and breaks from intersection to intersection - imagine the slow drip of cold treacle from spoon to cereal and you'll get the idea. The crunch of weighted tires on damp asphalt is as crisp as the air - it's too cold to smell the exhaust fumes and the sweat. The sky is grey and blue, and brighter than last week. Not for the first time I wonder if I've missed daylight savings.

Jacketed cyclists rise from their saddles and coast across Russel Exhibition St with the green light, as a car parked behind the last legally parked car (wedged between barriers and the inner lane) pops its front driver side door and produces a largish man in a suit.

Standing in what would have been the bicycle lane but for the seemingly endless/fruitless construction work (I have a sneaking suspicion they're actually running a lucrative inner city construction worker free parking scam), he then swings the passenger door wide to allow yet another cyclist obstacle to disembark.

"Stupid place to stop." A woman in her 30s comments in an untraceable European accent as she pedals past.

"What was that?" Says the man who had heard perfectly well - his accent tracing its origins back to the foothills of Mt. Passive Aggressive.

"... I said, stupid place to stop!"

The man who grew up running through the daffodils on the shores of Lake Infarction considered this for a moment.

"F*$% off."

"Y-you!" Replied the woman, exasperated. Doubtless she was hoping for something better before Doppler robbed her of the opportunity.


What can we learn here? A few things. Firstly, Simon's Third Law of Commuter Cycling;

If a person is doing something stupid, and they see you coming and continue to do that stupid something, then they are obviously impervious to logic. Arguing with them is like arguing with stale porridge.


This relates to Simon's Second Law of Commuter Cycling;

Energy expended on reprimanding idiots should bear a direct and positive correlation to the degree to which their idiocy disrupted (or had the potential to disrupt) your commute.



For example, if some ruddy faced resident of Triplebypassville opens their car door twenty meters ahead of you, causing you to veer slowly out of their way, there's plenty of reason to let it go. For one, you were inconvenienced by only a few seconds and a couple of feet, and two, chastising this person will not result in their begging your forgiveness. More likely it will result in the water-cooler talk at Stomach Ulcer, Heartburn & Sons focusing on how some dope on a bicycle flew into a rage for no good reason.

On the other hand, if the person opens their car door two meters in front of you, causing you to veer wildly to save your own neck, then the potential for commute diruption (i.e. your untimely death by dooring) is severe enough to warrant at least a partial foaming at the mouth (also a call to 000 if you actually make contact with the door, as opening your door into oncomming traffic is an offense, and failure to subsequently exchange details on request is tantamount to a hit and run).

This is important, because working yourself up over small things distracts you, and distraction relates directly to Simon's First Law of Commuter Cycling;

The most dangerous idiots are the ones you're not looking for.


Addendum: This doesn't mean that you can't politely suggest to someone that they modify their behaviour in the future, nor does it mean that you shouldn't correct someone when they misinterpret the law (i.e. geddawfatharoad!). Just don't expect thanks for your efforts, and try not to become preoccupied with it.

"I said it once before but it bears repeating..."

Image from abc.net.au.

If you're going to cross tram tracks in the wet, either slow down to one third your usual speed, or increase your angle of intersection by at least 20 degrees. Preferably both.

I have a nice scrape on my elbow to remind me of why this is important.

From now on, when it rains I'm only going to turn off of Sturt St by way of a Right Hook Turn.

Bicycle Product Recall: Cervelo True Temper Wolf SL Carbon Fibre Fork

I don't think anyone here rides a Cervelo, but just in case, here's a link to the product recall of a fork fitted to some of their bikes.

Although the fork is not actually manufactured by Cervelo, after twelve instances of customers' handlebars detaching from their bikes mid commute/leisure ride/race, they're doing the honourable thing and recalling the lot.

Wacked Out Invention of The Week

Now when you blast through a red light, people will know exactly how fast you were hurtling toward that minivan at the moment of impact!

Okay, so there is a certain cool factor in this safety device, it's just that the person most likely to become one of these rolling speedometers is also the person most likely to be popping wheelies in traffic.

The design itself is quite clever - perhaps animated turn signals in the future?

St Georges Rd / Charles St / Merri Creek Pde Roundabout of Doom to go?

According to the Northcote Leader;

AFTER years of crashes and complaints, VicRoads has bowed to public pressure to replace the notorious St Georges Rd roundabout with traffic lights.

But whether the horror intersection is finally fixed will depend on the State Government allocating an estimated $2 million funding for the plan in its May budget.

The article also mentions dedicated bicycle crossing points and lanes. Good news for anyone who's had to contend with it. Click here for the article.