When police fail you…

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Close  overtakes  and  police  response Two things almost any cyclist will tell you is that they’ve had dangerous, close overtakes from drivers, and that reporting it to police more often than not results in nothing being done. As a result, many (most?) cyclists have very little faith in police actually enforcing the law and taking ... Read more

Devon and Cornwall Police – Operation Closepass

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After much anticipation, the day finally arrived on which D & C Police would launch their Operation Closepass! For those unfamiliar with this, it is a method of roads policing pioneered by the West Mids Police Roads Policing Unit, and basically involves a cop, in plain clothes, riding a bicycle up and down a stretch ... Read more

Darkmoor 2017

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After what seemed forever, Darkmoor 2017 finally arrived, and everything was looking good. Even the weather was cooperating, with very light, broken cloud cover, mild temperature and little to no wind.As per usual, I was early at Cap’n Jaspers, feeling slightly apprehensive and hoping at least one other person would be crazy enough to join ... Read more

Devon and Cornwall Police Close Pass Initiative

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How I wish I was able to tell you that D & C Police had firm plans to implement West Mids Police’s brilliant (and sorely needed!) Close Pass Initiative. Sadly, the reality is quite different, despite what many other sources may have told you. Here’s how things currently stand: D & C Police have three ... Read more

Police Lottery

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This is a story of a lottery. No, not that national lottery, but a post code lottery. Specifically, a post code lottery in which where you live determines whether or not, as a cyclist, you can expect to receive any justice from police. If you live in Devon or Cornwall you’re bang out of luck, ... Read more

Dynamo update

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Several months ago I finally got round to rebuilding my bike’s front wheel around a Shimano hub dynamo and I fitted a dynamo front light. I’ve had a crash in May 2016, which injured my spine in three places, damaged my left thigh and left shoulder and resulted in a torn right calf muscle. As ... Read more

Sorry

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Dear Kids, I’m sorry. I have failed you. As a dad, my job is to try and make your lives as safe, secure, stable, happy and good as I can. I’ve tried to be a good role model (even if I can be a tad grumpy at times, and despite having worked WAY too long ... Read more

DayCycle – Seaton and the Rame peninsula

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If you live in Plymouth, you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to gorgeous cycling routes. From coastal vistas to high moorland and much more are within reach, so it always surprises me that so many people cycle the same route again and again. To me (well, this is my blog after all) a good ... Read more

There’s a long, long road a-winding…

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Sometimes I despair when I realise how far we still have to go to get safe cycling conditions. On the 11th of October, a man called Quentin Willson posted the following tweet on Twitter: Great new cycle lane but where are the cyclists? pic.twitter.com/a1vhAAXxt2 — Quentin Willson (@QuentinWillson) October 10, 2016 The picture is of ... Read more

Dynamo!

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UPDATE: You may want to read this newer blog post, about charging your devices while cycling For years I’ve been threatening to upgrade to a dynamo hub as the idea of generating the power you need to light your way yourself has always appealed to me. Add to that the fact that I enjoy all-night ... Read more

Staying alive

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Now you have the Bee Gees singing Staying Alive in the back of your mind, let’s look at perhaps extending that philosophy to cycling. Broadly speaking, and with many exceptions, cyclists tend to be split between the Vehicular Cycling (VC) crowd, and the Segregation bunch, and a great many epic online battles of words were ... Read more

Exmouth Exodus 2016

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The Exmouth Exodus was started as either an alternative or an addition to the Dunwich Dynamo, with the Dun being the original through-the-night bike ride. I’ve only cycled the Exodus once before, back in 2014. In 2015 life got in the way, so I was determined to ride it again in 2016. Towards the end ... Read more

New bike!

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Well, not brand new anymore – I’ve had it for a a number of weeks now, but I wanted to hold off for a while before expressing my opinion.I am mostly a commuter. Yes, I ride for fun and enjoyment, and yes, I do the occasional sportive, but the vast majority of miles I do ... Read more

Darkmoor 2016 – at a crossroads

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There are three big rides I look forward to all year: Darkmoor, the Dartmoor Classic and the Exmouth Exodus. The wily amongst you will have noticed that two of those are through-the-night rides, and I suppose that says a great deal about me, though what exactly it says I have no idea. Darkmoor was different ... Read more

But there’s a lovely new bridge for cyclists there, so why do you ride on the road?

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The city of Plymouth is hemmed in by two rivers – to the west is the Tamar, which also forms the border with neighbouring Cornwall, while to the east is the Plym, which gave the city its name. Rivers are great, but they sure mess with transport links and the main bridges over the Plym ... Read more