[Xaccers]

Originally Posted by Graham

Pardon me if I say this is *utter rubbish* and incredibly arrogant as well!
If you are driving in heavy rain or fog, do you give extra distance to the vehicle in front of you in case they stop?
Yes? (If no, well you bloody well should!)
So *WHY* do you appear to think that you should *NOT* give extra room to cyclists in rainy/ windy weather??? *WHY* do you seem to think that cyclists should not get in *your* way and if they might, they should get off and take some other form of transport instead?!

If you'd read what I'd said you'd have seen that I did mention that if the conditions deteriorate my driving adjusts, such as slowing down, increasing the distance between me and the vehicle in front etc. I even said that if I considered the road conditions to be too dangerous, I would not drive! At no point did I say drivers should not give cyclists extra room, in fact I said I give them plenty of room! (are you sure you were reading my post?)
The point I was responding to was that if the weather conditions are such that cyclists cannot ride safely with control of their vehicle (and remember, the weather will affect a light cyclist long before it affects heavier vehicles) then they should not go out cycling!
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Originally Posted by Graham

I think the irony (not to mention the point) is lost on *you*!!!

Just *how many* cyclists do you see there? Now imagine that they were, instead, in cars, (one to a vehicle!!) and consider just how much *more* space they would take up!

I once saw some pictures a cycle protest where they'd rigged some bikes with metal frames that were the equivalent size of a standard car. It clearly demonstrated how you could easily fit *at least* six cycles in the same space that *one* car driver regularly uses!!

A protest against congestion which causes more congestion.... seems ironic to me, why not you?

Now if they were all adhering to the highway code, using brighton's cycle lanes (which a cyclist friend of mine was consulted on, pointing things out like you say, that cyclists will only really use the lanes if they're planned properly so that you don't get pedestrians in the way, and can keep a constant speed up)
then I'm sure their point would have been better made.
Unfortunatly they didn't do this (hey it wouldn't have been so contraversial otherwise now would it?), instead they were changing lanes without signaling, some were kicking cars as they passed (and no there was no reason for this), generally causing a nuisance.
It's all very well them saying things like "if you all cycled there wouldn't be any of this congestion" well frankly, if cyclists were banned from brighton on those days there wouldn't be any congestion either! ( no I am not calling for them to be banned )

Originally Posted by Graham

Thus speaks someone who has most probably never ridden a bike in traffic and has never had someone *WITHOUT INDICATING* turn left, directly across the front of them, requiring rapid avoiding action or an emergency stop to avoid getting a face full of car!

And as for "changing lanes without signals" I suggest next time you're out, you see how many *car drivers* indicate properly when they undertake that manoevure and remember that *they* are surrounded by a tonne of metal that's going to cause a lot more damage than a bicycle.

So cycling down eastern road to portsmouth college wouldn't count then? Or going down there on a 50CC moped?
When weather conditions were too bad for 2 wheels, I called in to say I wouldn't be making it, or got a lift in the car.
Even as a driver I have to deal with muppets suddenly turning without indicating (bloody rover drivers! sorry russ) that's why I give plenty of room, so when they do that, I don't have to perform an emergency brake.
As I said before, those drivers who can't wait the extra few seconds for a cyclist infront to pass the junction they want to turn down, so decide to overtake and then turn nearly immediatly across the path of the poor cyclist have no excuse, and I would hope than any copper seeing such an act of dangerous driving would if nothing else, give the driver one hell of a warning.
As a motorist I've whitnessed white vans watching motorcyclists go down between lanes in traffic jams, and then swerve out just before they get to them, simply to block their paths.
I've witnessed cyclists running red lights, nearly get hit by traffic only to stand there waving their fists as if they had right of way.
I've seen cyclists riding along the pavement when the road has been empty, causing pedestrians to jump out the way.
I've seen a woman knocked over by lycra wearing cyclist in a pedestrianised area where signs clearly show that cycling is not allowed.
And more worryingly I always see cyclists riding along the roads in the dark, wearing black, with no lights on (my fear is one night I might not be lucky enough to see these idiots).
And talking of cycle lights, can I just say, these new ultra bright LED lights are great, but I know I'm not the only one who actually finds it difficult to judge the distance when it's blinking and moving (when there's no other illumination and the cyclist is wearing dark clothes), if you've got one, can you hust set it to solid red? Cheers

So Graham, hopefully you've read all that I've put above. Now, go have a cup of tea, take a deep breath, calm down, and with a clear head read it again (I'm not being patronising here, although I know it probably sounds it, and I appologise for that)
I am not having a go at responsible cyclists like you, who adhere to the highway code, who make sure their bikes are always roadworthy, who know that there are idiots out there who are a danger to others and so ride defensivly, making sure they always do a second savetly check over their shoulder before turning, who never ride in pedestrianised areas, who plan their routes sensibly so avoiding dangerous roads (if I had know what eastern road was like I'd have gone to havant college!)