I pondered the universe as I once again rode my bike in the rain today.
How many sessions/commutes in the wet does someone need to do to lose
the title "fair weather rider" - is 3 times in one week (when rain was
imminent and didn't just sneak up) enough?
Anyway, here are my words of "wisdom"* for today.
1. Racing cyclists are usually nicer to ride near than others when
commuting. There are several possible reasons:
(a) They race, so commuting to the city isn't a race. Therefore they
take corners safely and slow down before dangerous sections, and don't
assume that cars are going to stop or pedestrians are going to look
before they veer.
(b) They are used to paying attention to what other cyclists are doing,
because they have to do that in races (to a much higher degree than
triathletes in non-drafting races).
2. If a strange, as-yet unidentified noise comes from somewhere on your
bike, you're better off being a triathlete. That way, there's a good
chance the noise is not structural but rather is from all the bells and
whistles (extra bidon cages, pads on aeros flapping around, one of the
multiple storage boxes wobbling etc....)
Today I got to uni and then had to help a girl in a Mazda jelly-bean get
into a parking space, she was trying to do a 400-point turn and kept
stalling. Scary, isn't it. To think she probably drove past me on the
way in! I actually felt really sorry for her. I gave her instructions,
told her where to pull out to, told her how far to turn when, and got
her in no worries.
Tam
*not really wisdom