When you get a puncture and you start repairing it on the side of the road it’s always a little heart warming when someone stops to offer assistance. A reader recently shared this experience: I have been visiting your site for more than a few ...
Cycling in London
The Mary Poppins Effect
Post by Nicole of Bike Thoughts From A Broad Last week I mentioned something called the 'Mary Poppins Effect'. (LovelyBicycle first mentions it here.) This is a syndrome encountered only, in my limited observation, by women (or those dressed as ...
The London Nightride 2011
“The Nightrider is a fantastic event. It’s more than a cycle ride; it’s an experience that lets you see the capital city in a completely new light. Cycling over Tower Bridge at 1.30am and then back over Waterloo Bridge as the sun rose are memories ...
How do you deal with aggressive drivers?
We can all spot an aggressive driver a mile off. Revving the engine, driving up too close to the back wheel and generally being a nuisance. I’ll never forget the approach of my friend Godwyns. When he spots an aggressive driver, he will tend to ...
How To Dress For Winter Commuting
Or at least, how I do it...... I like to ride my bike every day but sometimes it's a challenge, staying warm, dry and not looking like crazy cycling flouro person, although if looking like crazy cycling flouro person is your bag, then go ...
London Cyclists: Which roads do you avoid like the plague?
Stuck behind a huge bus blocking the full lane I leaned over to the left to see if there was any way past it. No way, jose. I leaned to the right to see if there was room to manoeuvre to the right. Not unless I could suddenly decrease my mass to that ...
London Cycling Bookclub launches
The London Cycling Bookclub will meet for the first time in January! The club is all about meeting fellow cyclists with a love of cycling and cycling literature. The meetings will probably happen on a 4-6 week basis and the first one is scheduled ...
Bicycle rental in London
As it turns out in my research there’s some pretty cool bicycle rental places in London. For a long time when a friend was visiting London I would simply direct them to one place I knew that had clunky, step over frame bicycles. However, it is ...
Cycling blogger hit by a car – here’s how it happened..
Just shared this on my Twitter but thought it would probably be of interest here on the blog too.. Cycle Gaz who runs The Views of a Cyclist from Croydon was yesterday hit by a car as he cycled on the bus lane. Here is the YouTube of the accident: ...
London bike show ticket giveaway
Entries now closed! I have 10 pairs of tickets to giveaway for the London Bike Show. To enter simply leave a comment below about what you’ll be interested in seeing at the show. I’ll then randomly pick out 10 winners and contact them. Entries close ...
Where do you wait at the traffic light?
Right up there in the most frequently discussed cyclist politics topics is: “Where do you wait at the traffic light?” As this is a serious matter I’ve given it plenty of consideration. In fact I’ve given it so much though that when I arrive at a ...
How the London cycle hire scheme will look for casual users
Tomorrow the London cycle hire scheme will be opening up to all users. This means you can walk up to a terminal, insert your credit or debit card and hire out a Boris Bike. For those of us with membership it is worth noting that you cannot ...
Should HGVs be banned from the city centre?
The big news that has been occupying the cycling blog headlines this week was an announcement by Boris that he is considering banning HGVs from the city centre. He mainly quoted environmental reasons as the precursor of the ban. Though of course ...
London Bike Polo
Jon Marshall from the London Hardcourt Bike Polo Association recently got in touch with me to update me on how bike polo is moving on in London. For those who have not heard of bike polo before or are not quite sure what it is there is an awesome ...
How’s your winter cycling coming along?
A couple of weeks ago we looked into the winter cycling gear that can make winter cycling more enjoyable. I wanted to check in with you guys and see how it’s all coming along. Post a comment with.. How are you finding the shorter daylight hours? ...
Cycle Hire Bike 14964
Cycle Hire Bike 14964 will always have a vivid place in my haunting memories. Yet, when I first approached it, it didn’t look so sinister. If anything Cycle Hire Bike 14964 looked kind of friendly and welcoming. Like an old friend. It wanted me to ...
The most courteous drivers in London?
Back in July I asked a simple question that turned into a the biggest discussion this site has ever had. I asked: Who are the least courteous drivers in London? Opinions were mixed and tensions ran high at certain points but many people agreed ...
2 is company: Do you cycle to work on your own or with someone else?
During the tube strikes a good friend of mine cycled from St John’s Wood to Canary Wharf for the first time. He enjoyed his cycle but on the way back he enjoyed it even more. This is because he was cycling with someone else from work. He found ...
The Skyride in pictures
85,000 people took over London’s roads in this years Skyride. A member of staff looks on as cheery Londoners cycle past. Give people a chance to be a little bit quirky and express themselves and they’ll take it. With beautiful results! The ...
Insider tips from Boris Bikes pioneers
If you are one of the pioneering users of the cycle hire scheme then the rest of us owe you a pint! As a pioneer you’ve struggled with bikes that don’t dock, over tightened bicycle brakes that require extra pedalling effort and call centres that ...