The Bugle | Blast 418

Friday 27th December 2019
Illuminati Edition

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

BICYCLIST OF THE WEEK [Image by Willow4]

This guy will probably be the greatest influence on how cycling willl change in the next five years under our new government.

While all the media attention has been on Dominic Cummings as Boris' Machivelli in Number 10 - not so many noticed that Andrew Gilligan had also been appointed as a Downing Street adviser especially as he has beeen curiously silent to date.

Andrew was the architect and driving force behind the former Mayor's SuperHighway and other cycling schemes. Anyone who has met him will know he is one of those rare enablers with the twin skills of really understanding cycling and how to cut through the bureaucratic inertia and opposition interest groups to actually get things done and has the blue tarmac to prove it.

In contrast the current mayor says the right things but does he have anyone delivering them?

Andrew has a huge mountaiin to climb with the Tory Manifesto promising even less support for cycling than the last government delivered. If one man can get to Boris and persuade him to do more and do iit usefully it has to be Andrew. 

Let's hope he does. More on Andrew: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Gilligan

 

BICYCLE FOR THE DARK

The days are now getting longer - but we still need lights if you out for more than a few hours - or even during the day when its very cloudy. But her's an idea going back to 2011 of using special paints enablin the whole bicycle to glow: http://cambridgebicycle.com/2011/12/27/glow-bike-details/

 

FRONT LIGHTS

I started nightriding using £2.50 cree torch lights like these from 7DayShop.com. They no longer do these but similar modes are available on eBay, Amazon and most Chinese retail sites.

Mine were powered by 3xAAA batteries using Eneloop rechargebales having the best reputation for holding their charge. The lights are so cheap it pays to have two. One on lower power is sufficient on lit roads. Two on low power will do adequately on most unlit roads and both on high power will be as bright as most lights 10x more expensive. At that high rate you will burn through batteries in a couple of hours but I used to carry a spare cartridge of 3xAAA to slot in quickly if one failed.

The downside of torch-like lamps is the beam is basically circular but by aimng one torch higher than the other they deliver a long throw of light to spot those potholes and give you time to take evasive action.

Search Super 2x Cree Bike Cycle Lights
 

Budget Recommendation

I moved on to using the Cateye Volt400. These come in around £40 and provide enough light for road cycling through the night. The advantage is these are rechargeble using you the same micro-usb cable/charger you may be carrying to recharge your phone on cycle tours. You can unscrew the battery pack and buy a spare if you are doing an extended all-night ride.

Cateye also sell a neat fork/brake bracket for £5. This has the advantages of being nearer the road throwning more light along a longer beam. It also keeps the handlebars clear when you need to have bells, satnav holders et al crowding you out.

Peter R has the EV800 vesion if you want an extra bit of oomph.

Pro's Recommendation

To those who think Paris-Brest-Paris or London-Edinburgh-London is a walk in the park there or aren't going to look at anything under £150 there is only one choice - HOPE. They have a wide range to ideally suit almost any need for brightness or longevity. But for road riding the HOPE VISION is the one I see most often. But beware - I was on a cycle tour when ever single one in our party was nicked during a ferry crossing - ouch!

Plus they had to follow my pair of £2.50 jobs until they could find a replacements. The HOPE range: https://www.hopetech.com/product-documents/lights/

 

BRINGING UP THE REAR

Bargain Recommendation

Your rear light is probably more important than the front. If you can't see where you are going you can slow down or stop. Being hit from behind is rather worse and out of your control.  Being seen is the issue.

Contrary to some cyclists' ideas the more and brighter is not the answer. Looking like a firework display can confuse motorists. They need to be able to judge your speed and direction too. Finding a compromise between being spotted and providing a steady reference is key. This little SMART light for around £10 gives a combination of lighting combinations to deliver that. And seems to last forever on on 2xAAA batteries. The only downside is the control switch at the bottom is a bit fiddly - or impossible if you are wearing gloves.

Budget Recommendation

Cateye again. Not much more at £15/20 but has one great advantage to the touring nightrider - the £5 bracket you can attach to the rear of your rack so its sits securely in the best place to be seen by a following vehicle.

Puting a light elsewhere - like the rear fork or seatposts means it may be obscured by saddlebags and panniers - and who hasn't lost a rear light when just clipped to a soft bag?

Again 2xAAA that live forever.

 

RIDE REPORT

UPCOMING RIDES

Saturday 28th December: 10am Shurguard, 501 Brighton Road
No confirmation for a ride but the weather is fair so just turn up and make it up!

Sunday 29th December: 10am Shurguard/501 Brighton Road
Speedies: Mark leads to Lingfield
Steadies: Julia leads to Lingfield
Relaxed: Des leads to Malabar Coffee Shop at Riverhead. Not going thru Coulsdon.

FINALLY

How many of us had our first bike at Christmas? How many remember falling off for the first time?

Now as parents/grandparents it's our turn to teach. But club riding doesn't help much. Here's some suggestions from Guardian readers: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2019/dec/21/learning-to-cycle-is-a-balance-bike-or-stabilisers-better

Thanks to Liv-Giant for the picture and how Americans are supposed to do it: https://www.liv-cycling.com/global/campaigns/9-tips-for-teaching-anxious-kids-to-bike/20113